雙語對照 | 書蟲二級《長池村的故事》：5.妮蒂·薩金特和房子

Netty Sargent and the House

妮蒂·薩金特和房子

Netty Sargent lived with her uncle in that lonely house just outside the grounds of the squire's big house. She was a tall young woman, with black hair and dancing eyes. And she had a little laughing smile that sent all the young men wild.

妮蒂·薩金特和叔叔一起住在一座孤零零的房子里，緊挨著鄉(xiāng)紳大宅的土地。她是個高挑的姑娘，有著一頭黑發(fā)和一雙閃亮的眼睛。她咯咯笑起來的時候能讓所有小伙子發(fā)瘋。

All the young men of that time were after her, but in the end she decided that Jasper Cliff was her favourite. He was good-looking, but he only ever thought about himself, not other people. But Netty wanted Jasper, and none of the others. Jasper liked Netty too, but he was more interested in her uncle's house.

當時所有的小伙子都在追求她，可她最后卻看中了賈斯珀·克利夫。他長得不錯，但老是只想著他自己，從不顧其他人。可是妮蒂就想要賈斯珀，別人都不行。賈斯珀也挺喜歡妮蒂，不過他對她叔叔的房子更感興趣。

The house was built by Netty's great-great-grandfather, and had a garden and a little field next to it. But it was a leasehold house, because the ground belonged to the squire.

那房子是妮蒂的爺爺?shù)臓敔斀ǖ?，旁邊還有一個花園和一小塊田地，但建房的地是從鄉(xiāng)紳那里租來的。

'And what happens,' Jasper asked Netty one day, 'when your uncle dies?'

“你叔叔死后那房子會怎樣?”有一天賈斯珀問妮蒂。

'The house, garden and field will go back to the squire,' said Netty. 'But if Uncle pays a few pounds, he can renew the leasehold and put another name on it. Then the squire can't get the house back until that person dies.'

“房子、花園和田地都會被鄉(xiāng)紳收回，”妮蒂說，“不過叔叔只要付幾英鎊，就可以續(xù)租，而且還能把租約轉(zhuǎn)到另一個人名下。這樣，在那個人死前，鄉(xiāng)紳都不能把房子收回去。”

'And what is your uncle going to do?' asked Jasper.

“那你叔叔打算怎么辦?”賈斯珀問。

'Oh, he's going to renew the leasehold, and put my name on it. He told me that months ago.'

“哦，他打算續(xù)約，在上面換上我的名字。他幾個月前就跟我說了。”

Netty's uncle knew that it was important to renew the leasehold, because the squire was very anxious to get the house back. The squire didn't like all those little leaseholds on his ground, and he wanted to pull the house down and make it all nice and tidy.

妮蒂的叔叔知道續(xù)約這件事非常重要，因為鄉(xiāng)紳很想把房子收回。他不喜歡自己的地盤上有零碎的小塊地被租出去，而且他想把這個房子拆掉，讓這周圍看起來整齊漂亮。

Netty's uncle knew this very well — but he still didn't renew the leasehold. He didn't like Jasper Cliff, so perhaps he didn't like to think of Jasper marrying Netty and living in the house when he was dead.

妮蒂的叔叔非常清楚鄉(xiāng)紳的想法——但他還沒有續(xù)約。他不喜歡賈斯珀·克利夫這個人，所以他大概也不希望自己死后，賈斯珀跟妮蒂結(jié)婚一起住到這個房子里。

Every week Jasper asked Netty about the leasehold, and Netty asked her uncle, and her uncle said, 'I'll go and see the squire's agent next week.' But still nothing happened.

每個星期賈斯珀都會問妮蒂租約的事，而妮蒂又會去問她叔叔，她叔叔總是說：“我下個星期就去見鄉(xiāng)紳的代理人。”可是，一切都還是老樣子，什么進展也沒有。

At last old Mr Sargent fell ill, and Jasper got tired of waiting. 'Why doesn't your uncle do it?' he asked Netty. 'I tell you, if you lose the house and ground, I won't marry you. And there's an end of it.'

最后，老薩金特先生病倒了，而賈斯珀也等得不耐煩了。“你叔叔干嗎不去續(xù)約?”他問妮蒂，“我告訴你，你如果失去了那房子和田地，我是不會和你結(jié)婚的。我們倆的事就這么算了。”

Poor Nerty hurried indoors to talk to her uncle.

可憐的妮蒂趕緊回到家找她叔叔商量。

'Please do something, Uncle!' she said. 'If I don't get the house, I won't get a husband!'

“求你做點兒什么吧，叔叔!”她說，“如果我不能得到這房子，就沒法結(jié)婚了!”

'And you must have Jasper, must you, my dear?'

“而你非得跟賈斯珀結(jié)婚，是嗎，親愛的孩子?”

'Yes, Uncle, I must!'

“是的，叔叔，我一定要跟他結(jié)婚!”

Old Sargent didn't want to make Netty unhappy, so he asked for a meeting with the squire's agent. The squire was very cross when he heard this. He was hoping that old Sargent would die and the leasehold would come to an end. But he had to agree to renew the leasehold if Sargent paid the money. So the squire's agent got the new papers ready for old Sargent to sign.

老薩金特不想讓妮蒂傷心，于是向鄉(xiāng)紳的代理人提出約個時間見面。鄉(xiāng)紳聽說了這件事非常生氣。他原本期望老薩金特就這么死了，好讓租約自動解除。但是，如果老薩金特現(xiàn)在付錢，那他就不得不跟他續(xù)約。于是，鄉(xiāng)紳的代理人擬好了新的租約文件，準備拿給老薩金特簽字。

By now Netty's uncle was really ill, and couldn't leave the house. The agent agreed to visit him. 'I'll come at five o'clock on Monday,' he told Netty, 'and Mr Sargent can pay the money and sign the papers then.'

妮蒂的叔叔這個時候已經(jīng)病得很厲害了，根本沒辦法出門。代理人同意來見他。“我星期一下午5點過來，”他告訴妮蒂，“到時候薩金特先生可以交錢并且在文件上簽字。”

At three o'clock on that Monday Netty brought her uncle a cup of tea. When she came in the room, her uncle gave a little cry and fell forward in his chair. Netty ran to him, but he could not speak or move. And in a few minutes, she saw that his face and hands were cold and white. He was dead, stone-cold dead.

星期一下午3點，妮蒂給她叔叔送茶。她剛進門，她叔叔就發(fā)出一聲呻吟，垂下頭癱倒在椅子里。妮蒂趕忙跑過去，可他既說不出話，也動不了了。沒幾分鐘，她就發(fā)現(xiàn)他的臉和手已經(jīng)變得蒼白冰冷。他死了，一丁點兒活氣兒也沒有了。

Netty was very unhappy. 'Why didn't he live two more hours?' she thought. 'Now I've lost everything — house, garden, field, and a home for myself and my lover. What am I going to do now?'

妮蒂難過極了。“他為什么不再多活兩小時呢?”她想，“現(xiàn)在我什么都沒了——房子、花園、田地，還有我和愛人的家。這下我究竟該怎么辦才好?”

Then, suddenly, she knew what she had to do. It was a dark December afternoon, which was very helpful for her. First, she locked the front door. Then she moved her uncle's table in front of the fire. Her uncle's body was still in his chair, which was a big old chair on wheels. So she pushed the chair, with her uncle in it, to the table, putting the chair with its back half-turned to the window.

突然，她知道自己該怎么辦了。那是一個12月的午后，天色很暗，這幫了她的大忙。首先，她鎖上了前門。然后，她把她叔叔的桌子挪到了壁爐前。她叔叔還在那把老舊的大輪椅上，于是她把輪椅和她叔叔一起推到了桌子前，讓輪椅的背面斜對著窗子。

On the table she put the large family Bible open in front of him, and put his finger on the page. Then she opened his eyes a little, and put his glasses on his nose. When it got dark, she lit a candle and put it on the table beside the Bible. Then she unlocked the door, and sat down to wait.

她把家里又大又厚的《圣經(jīng)》放在桌子上，又把她叔叔的手指放在打開的書頁上，然后把他的眼皮弄開一點兒，把眼鏡架到他的鼻子上。天黑下來以后，她點了一根蠟燭，放在那本《圣經(jīng)》旁邊。最后，她把門鎖打開，坐下來等。

When she heard the agent's knock at five o'clock, she hurried to the door.

5點，她聽到代理人敲門，趕快來到門口。

'I'm sorry, sir,' she whipered, 'Uncle's so ill tonight. I'm afraid he can't see you.'

“我很抱歉，先生，”她小聲說，“我叔叔今晚很不舒服，恐怕不能見你。”

The agent was not very pleased. 'So I've come out all this way for nothing, have I?'

代理人不太高興，“那我不是白折騰了這一趟?”

'Oh, no, sir, I hope not,' said Netty. 'We can do the business about the leasehold, can't we?'

“哦，不，先生，我希望你沒有白跑一趟，”妮蒂說，“租約的事情由我們來處理，這樣可以嗎?”

'Of course not. He must pay the money, and sign the leasehold papers in front of me. I have to be a witness.'

“當然不行，他必須交錢，然后當著我的面在租約上簽字，我得當見證人。”

Netty looked worried. 'Uncle is so afraid of business things like this. His hands were shaking when I told him that you were coming today.'

妮蒂看起來很擔心，“我叔叔很怕這種生意上的事情。我跟他說你今天要來的時候，他的手都在發(fā)抖。”

'Poor old man — I'm sorry for him,' said the agent. 'But he must sign the papers, and I must be a witness.'

“可憐的老人——我為他難過，”代理人說，“可他必須在文件上簽字，而我也必須在一旁作證。”

'Yes, I understand that, sir,' said Netty. She thought for a minute. 'You have to see him. But can you still be a witness, sir, if he doesn't see you?'

“是的，我明白，先生，”妮蒂說著，想了想，“你必須看得到他?？扇绻床坏侥?，你也可以當見證人吧，先生?”

'How do you mean, girl?' said the agent.

“你這話是什么意思，姑娘?”代理人問。

'Come with me a minute,' she said.

“跟我來一下。”妮蒂說。

She took him into the garden and round to the window. Inside, the agent could see, at the other end of the room, the back and side of the old man's head, and his arm. He could see the glasses on his nose, and the book and the candle on the table.

她帶他走進花園，繞到窗子外面。代理人能看見房間另一頭老人的后背和頭、他的一只胳膊、他鼻子上的眼鏡，還有桌上的書和蠟燭。

'He's reading his Bible, sir,' said Netty, in her softest, sweetest voice.

“他在讀他的《圣經(jīng)》，先生，”妮蒂用她最甜美輕柔的聲音說。

'Yes, I see that,' said the agent. 'But nobody ever sees him in church, do they?'

“是的，我看得出來，”代理人說，“可沒人見他去過教堂，不是嗎?”

'No, but he loves his Bible,' said Netty. 'I think he's sleeping a little at the moment, but that's not surprising in an old man, who's so unwell. Now, sir, can you stand here at the window and watch him sign the papers? Then he won't see you, and he won't be worried and unhappy about it all. Can you do that for him, sir?'

“確實是這樣，但他很喜歡他的《圣經(jīng)》，”妮蒂說，“我想他這會兒在打盹兒，不過上了年紀的病人這樣也不稀奇。先生，你可不可以站在這里看著他在文件上簽字?這樣他就不會看見你，也不會覺得難受了。你能幫他這個忙嗎，先生?”

'Very well,' said the agent. He took out a cigar, lit it, and began to smoke. 'Have you got the money ready?'

“好吧，”代理人說著，掏出一支雪茄點上，抽了起來，“你把錢準備好了嗎?”

'Yes,' said Netty. 'I'll bring it out.' She hurried inside, and brought out the money. The agent counted it, then gave Netty the leasehold papers.

“是的，”妮蒂說，“我這就拿出來。”她很快進屋拿來了錢。代理人清點了數(shù)目，把租約遞給了妮蒂。

'Uncle's hand is very shaky now,' she said. 'And he's so sleepy. I don't think he signs his name very well.'

“我叔叔的手現(xiàn)在抖得厲害，”她說，“而且他困得迷糊了。我想他可能會簽得不太好。”

'He doesn't have to have beautiful writing. He just has to sign,' said the agent.

“他用不著把字寫得很漂亮，只要簽上名字就行了。”代理人說。

'Can I hold his hand, to help him?'

“我能扶著他的手，幫他一下嗎?”

'Yes, hold his hand, girl — that'll be all right.'

“可以，幫他扶著手，姑娘——這沒問題。”

Netty went into the house, and the agent went on smoking his cigar outside the window. He saw Netty put the pen and the papers in front of her uncle, and touch his arm, and speak to him. She showed him where to write his name on the papers, and put the pen in his hand. Then she stood behind him, and held his hand. But the agent could still see a bit of his head, and he saw the old man's hand write his name on the papers.

妮蒂走進房子，代理人繼續(xù)在窗外抽著雪茄。他看見妮蒂把筆和文件放在她叔叔跟前，碰了碰他的胳膊，跟他說了些什么，并把文件上要簽名的地方指給他看，又把筆放到他手里。然后，她站到他身后，扶住了他的手。不過，代理人還是能看到一點兒老人的頭，也看到老人的手在文件上簽了字。

Then Netty came out and gave the papers to the agent, and the agent signed his name as witness. He gave her the paper signed by the squire, and left.

之后，妮蒂出來把文件交給代理人，代理人作為見證人也在上面簽了字。最后，他把鄉(xiāng)紳簽好字的文件遞給她，就離開了。第二天早上，妮蒂告訴鄰居們她叔叔夜里睡覺的時候去世了。

And the next morning Netty told the neighbours that her uncle was dead in his bed.

第二天早上，妮蒂告訴鄰居們她叔叔夜里睡覺的時候去世了。

So that's how Netty Sargent lost her house and field, and got them back again — with a husband. But Jasper was a mistake as a husband. After a few years he started hitting Netty — not very hard, but it made her angry. Then she told a neighbour about the leasehold business, and the story got around. By then the old squire was dead, and the squire's son got to hear the story. But Netty was a pretty young woman, and the squire's son never did anything about it.

這就是妮蒂·薩金特失而復(fù)得房子和田地的經(jīng)過——當然，她還得到了一個丈夫。不過，嫁給賈斯珀是個錯誤。幾年以后，他開始打妮蒂——打得不厲害，但卻把她惹火了。后來，她跟一個鄰居說了租約的事，這件事就傳開了。那個時候，老鄉(xiāng)紳已經(jīng)死了，事情傳到了他兒子那里。不過，妮蒂漂亮又年輕，鄉(xiāng)紳的兒子從沒理會過這件事。

*　*　*

*　*　*

Soon the carrier's wagon came down the hill into Longpuddle, and everybody got out and went home. John Lackland's son went to find a room at the Dog and Fox. He stayed in Longpuddle for a few days, walking around, looking at things, and talking to people. Then he left, and no one saw him again.

很快，馬車下了小山，進了長池村，乘客們紛紛下車回家了。約翰·拉克蘭的兒子在“獵狗和狐貍”旅館開了個房間，住了幾天，到處走走看看，跟人們聊聊天，然后就離開了，從此再沒有人見過他。

'Where did he go?' the schoolteacher asked Mrs Weedle in the post office one day.

“他去了哪里?”學校教師一天在郵局問維德爾太太。

'I don't know,' said Mrs Weedle. 'He didn't tell anyone. He just went.'

“我不知道，”維德爾太太說，“他沒跟任何人打招呼，就這么走了。”

'Why did he come back to Longpuddle, do you think?'

“你覺得他為什么回長池村來?”

'He said he just wanted to see the place where he was a child. But perhaps he came back to get a wife, and couldn't find one. Who knows?'

“他說就是想看看小時候待過的地方。不過他也許是回來找老婆的，卻沒找到。誰知道呢?”