雙語·《刀鋒》 第一章 六

CHAPTER ONE 6
第一章 六

The following evening, having refused Elliott's telephoned offer to fetch me, I arrived quite safely at Mrs. Bradley's house.I had been delayed by someone who had come to see me and was a trifle late.So much noise came from the sitting-room as I walked upstairs that I thought it must be a large party and I was surprised to find that there were, including myself, only twelve people.Mrs.Bradley was very grand in green satin with a dog-collar of seed pearls round her neck, and Elliott in his well-cut dinner jacket looked elegant as he alone could look.When he shook hands with me my nostrils were assailed by all the perfumes of Arabia.I was introduced to a stoutish, tall man with a red face who looked somewhat ill at ease in evening clothes.He was a Dr.Nelson, but at the moment that meant nothing to me.The rest of the party consisted of Isabel's friends, but their names escaped me as soon as I heard them.The girls were young and pretty and the men young and upstanding.None of them made any impression on me except one boy and that only because he was so tall and so massive.He must have been six foot three or four and he had great broad shoulders.Isabel was looking very pretty；she was dressed in white silk, with a long, hobbled skirt that concealed her fat legs；the cut of her frock showed that she had well-developed breasts；her bare arms were a trifle fat, but her neck was lovely.She was excited and her fine eyes sparkled.There was no doubt about it, she was a very pretty and desirable young woman, but it was obvious that unless she took care she would develop an unbecoming corpulence.
次日，艾略特打電話來，說要接我去布雷德利夫人家，我回絕了他的好意，傍晚時(shí)分獨(dú)自前往，也照樣平安無事地抵達(dá)了目的地。出門前有客來訪，稍微耽擱了一下。到達(dá)后上樓，客廳里人聲嘈雜，我心想人數(shù)一定非常多，可終了意外地發(fā)現(xiàn)連我算上總共才十二個(gè)人。布雷德利夫人穿一身綠緞子衣服，戴一串細(xì)珠項(xiàng)鏈，顯得儀態(tài)萬方。艾略特穿的是無尾禮服，裁剪得體，一派儒雅的風(fēng)度，大有超塵脫俗之風(fēng)。跟他握手，他身上的阿拉伯香水味直朝我的鼻孔里鉆。他把我介紹給一個(gè)身材稍胖的高個(gè)子，那人是個(gè)紅臉膛，晚禮服穿在身上總顯得別別扭扭的。此人就是納爾遜醫(yī)生，但當(dāng)時(shí)我聽了他的名字一點(diǎn)感覺也沒有。其他的來客都是伊莎貝爾的朋友，那些人的名字被介紹后，我邊聽邊忘。姑娘們個(gè)個(gè)年輕，人人漂亮，小伙子則都玉樹臨風(fēng)。這些人除了當(dāng)中的一個(gè)男孩，其他的沒有給我留下任何印象——我記住了那男孩，只是因?yàn)樗麄€(gè)頭太高，身材太魁梧了。說起來，他一定有六英尺三四英寸高，生得虎背熊腰。伊莎貝爾看上去很漂亮，穿白綢上衣和拖地長(zhǎng)裙（裙子長(zhǎng)，正好遮住她的胖腿）；衣服頗顯腰身，彰顯她有著豐胸肥乳；露在外邊的膀子略顯肥胖，但脖頸是很可愛的。但見她情緒高昂，一雙美眸閃閃發(fā)光。毫無疑問，她是個(gè)美麗、性感的年輕女子，但是看得出如果不當(dāng)心的話，她會(huì)胖過頭的。

At dinner I found myself placed between Mrs. Bradley and a shy drab girl who seemed even younger than the others.As we sat down, to make the way easier Mrs.Bradley explained that her grandparents lived at Marvin and that she and Isabel had been at school together.Her name, the only one I heard mentioned, was Sophie.A lot of chaff was bandied across the table, everyone talked at the top of his voice and there was a great deal of laughter.They seemed to know one another very well.When I was not occupied with my hostess I attempted to make conversation with my neighbour, but I had no great success.She was quieter than the rest.She was not pretty, but she had an amusing face, with a little tilted nose, a wide mouth, and greenish blue eyes；her hair, simply done, was of a sandy brown.She was very thin and her chest was almost as flat as a boy's.She laughed at the badinage that went on, but in a manner that was a little forced so that you felt she wasn't as much amused as she pretended to be.I guessed that she was making an effort to be a good sport.I could not make out if she was a trifle stupid or only painfully timid and, having tried various topics of conversation only to have them dropped, for want of anything better to say I asked her to tell me who all the people at table were.
吃飯時(shí)，我坐在布雷德利夫人和一位靦腆、拘謹(jǐn)?shù)呐⒅虚g——那女孩似乎是在場(chǎng)的人中最年輕的一個(gè)。落座后，布雷德利夫人引出了話頭，說那女孩的祖父母住在馬文，而她曾經(jīng)和伊莎貝爾是校友。她的芳名叫索菲（這是我聽到布雷德利夫人提起的唯一一個(gè)人的名字）。席間，客人們插科打諢，大家都可著嗓門說話，歡聲笑語不絕于耳，人人好像都是知根知底的老熟人。我跟女主人聊天，抽個(gè)空就想跟鄰座的女孩嘮嗑，但是卻討個(gè)沒趣——她不太愛跟人說話。論相貌她不算漂亮，可是臉蛋卻很有趣味——小鼻頭微翹，闊嘴，眼珠藍(lán)里帶綠。她的頭發(fā)呈沙棕色，式樣梳得很簡(jiǎn)單，身材消瘦，胸部幾乎像男孩子一樣平坦。別人開玩笑，她也跟著笑，但樣子很勉強(qiáng)，叫人覺得她并沒有真的被逗樂，開心的樣子是裝出來的。我猜想她在走過場(chǎng)，應(yīng)付應(yīng)付場(chǎng)面。不知她是天性愚鈍還是過于拘謹(jǐn)，反正我頻頻兜起話頭均落了個(gè)半路夭折，后來實(shí)在無話可說，就請(qǐng)她告訴我席間這些人都是些什么樣的人。

“Well, you know Dr. Nelson，”she said, indicating the middle-aged man who was opposite me on Mrs.Bradley's other side.“He's Larry's guardian.He's our doctor at Marvin.He's very clever, he invents gadgets for planes that no one will have anything to do with, and when he isn’t doing that he drinks.”
“哦，納爾遜醫(yī)生你是認(rèn)識(shí)的?！彼傅氖亲诓祭椎吕蛉藢?duì)面的那個(gè)中年人，“他是拉里的監(jiān)護(hù)人，是馬文當(dāng)?shù)氐囊粋€(gè)醫(yī)生，腦子很聰明，發(fā)明了許多飛機(jī)零件，只是沒有人愿意買。無事可做的時(shí)候，他喜歡喝上一杯?！?/p>

There was a gleam in her pale eyes as she said this that made me suspect that there was more in her than I had at first supposed. She went on to give me the names of one young thing after another, telling me who their parents were, and in the case of the men what college they had been to and what work they did.It wasn't very illuminating. “She's very sweet，”or：“He's a very good golfer.”
說話時(shí)，她那淺色的眼睛里光彩熠熠，我不禁覺得她恐怕并不像我最初猜度的那般缺心眼。接下來，她把那些年輕人的名字一一告訴我，還告訴我那些人的父母是什么樣的人。如果說的是男子，她就告訴我對(duì)方曾在何處上大學(xué)，現(xiàn)在干什么工作。她的介紹平淡無奇，或說“她很可愛”，或說“他高爾夫打得很好”。

“And who is that big fellow with the eyebrows?”
“那個(gè)眉毛濃濃的大個(gè)子是什么人？”

“That?Oh, that's Gray Maturin. His father's got an enormous house on the river at Marvin.He's our millionaire.We're very proud of him.He gives us class.Maturin, Hobbes, Rayner, and Smith.He's one of the richest men in Chicago and Gray’s his only son.”
“哪個(gè)？哦，那是格雷·馬圖林。他父親在馬文河畔有一所大房子，是我們那一帶的百萬富翁。我們都以他為榮，他把我們的身份都抬高了。馬圖林、霍布斯、雷納和史密斯都是響當(dāng)當(dāng)?shù)拿帧Ｔ谥ゼ痈?，馬圖林是最有錢的了，而格雷是他的獨(dú)生子。”

She put such a pleasant irony into that list of names that I gave her an inquisitive glance. She caught it and flushed.
她講到這一連串有錢人的名字時(shí)，語氣戲謔、刻薄，使我不由得向她投去詢問的目光，她見了臉發(fā)紅，像塊紅布。

“Tell me more about Mr. Maturin.”
“馬圖林先生的情況，請(qǐng)你再仔細(xì)講講。”

“There's nothing to tell. He's rich.He's highly respected.He built us a new church at Marvin and he's given a million dollars to the University of Chicago.”
“沒有什么可講的。他是個(gè)富翁，很受人尊敬，在馬文為民眾蓋了一所新教堂，還捐了一百萬給芝加哥大學(xué)?！?/p>

“His son's a fine-looking fellow.”
“他兒子長(zhǎng)得很帥氣?！?/p>

“He's nice. You'd never think his grandfather was shanty Irish and his grandmother a Swedish waitress in an eating house.”
“他是個(gè)大好人。從他身上你絕想不到他祖父是個(gè)愛爾蘭水手，祖母是瑞典人，曾在一家飯館當(dāng)服務(wù)員。”

Gray Maturin was striking rather than handsome. He had a rugged, unfinished look；a short blunt nose, a sensual mouth, and the florid Irish complexion；a great quantity of raven black hair, very sleek, and under heavy eyebrows clear, very blue eyes.Though built on so large a scale he was finely proportioned, and stripped he must have been a fine figure of a man.He was obviously very powerful.His virility was impressive.He made Larry who was sitting next to him, though only three or four inches shorter, look puny.
格雷·馬圖林雖然并非英氣逼人，卻也氣宇軒昂。他有著粗獷、豪放的氣質(zhì)，獅子鼻，嘴巴性感，膚色是愛爾蘭人的那種紅潤(rùn)色，一頭濃密的黑發(fā)閃著光澤，眉毛粗重，清澈的眼睛湛藍(lán)湛藍(lán)的，雖則體格高大，卻十分勻稱，脫光衣服后暴露出來的一定是健美的身段。一看就知道他力大無窮，雄赳赳的樣子給人以深刻的印象。坐在他身邊的拉里雖則不過比他矮三四英寸，卻比他顯得文弱許多。

“He's very much admired，”said my shy neighbour.“I know several girls who would stop at nothing short of murder to get him. But they haven't a chance.”
“崇拜他的人是很多的?！蔽业倪@位靦腆的鄰座說，“據(jù)我所知，有好幾個(gè)女孩子在拼命追他，就差沒弄出人命了?？墒撬齻円稽c(diǎn)指望也沒有?！?/p>

“Why not?”
“為什么？”

“You don't know anything, do you?”
“你一點(diǎn)都不知道嗎？”

“How should I?”
“我怎么會(huì)知道?！?/p>

“He's so much in love with Isabel, he can't see straight, and Isabel's in love with Larry.”
“他愛伊莎貝爾愛得都昏了頭，而伊莎貝爾愛的卻是拉里?！?/p>

“What's to prevent him from setting to and cutting Larry out?”
“他完全可以爭(zhēng)一下嘛，把伊莎貝爾從拉里手中奪過來。”

“Larry's his best friend.”
“拉里是他的鐵哥們。”

“I suppose that complicates matters.”
“這樣子可就麻煩了?！?/p>

“If you're as high-principled as Gray is.”
“格雷是講哥們義氣的。”

I was not sure whether she said this in all seriousness or whether there was in her tone a hint of mockery. There was nothing saucy in her manner, forward or pert, and yet I got the impression that she was lacking neither in humour nor in shrewdness.I wondered what she was really thinking while she made conversation with me, but that I knew I should never find out.She was obviously unsure of herself and I conceived the notion that she was an only child who had lived a secluded life with people a great deal older than herself.There was a modesty, an unobtrusiveness about her that I found engaging, but if I was right in thinking that she had lived much alone I guessed that she had quietly observed the older persons she lived with and had formed decided opinions upon them.We who are of mature age seldom suspect how unmercifully and yet with what insight the very young judge us.I looked again into her greenish blue eyes.
我吃不準(zhǔn)她這話的意思是當(dāng)真，還是話中有話、夾槍帶棒的。她的態(tài)度不卑不亢，一副不顯山不露水的樣子，而我產(chǎn)生了一種印象，覺得她既不缺幽默又不缺心眼。真不知她一邊跟我說話一邊在肚子里轉(zhuǎn)什么心思。有一點(diǎn)我倒是知道的：我永遠(yuǎn)也別想摸透她。顯而易見，她有點(diǎn)缺乏自信。我猜想她大概是個(gè)獨(dú)生女，跟比她大許多的成年人在一起過著與世隔絕的日子。她在氣質(zhì)上賢淑靜雅，倒是挺招人喜歡的。她常年過著孤獨(dú)的生活——這一點(diǎn)如果我沒猜錯(cuò)的話，那她一定在默默觀察著成年人的一舉一動(dòng)，而且對(duì)他們形成了根深蒂固的看法。我們有些年紀(jì)的人很少覺察到年輕人對(duì)我們的判斷是多么無情，然而又多么深刻。想到這里，我又瞧了瞧她那藍(lán)里帶綠的眼睛。

“How old are you?”I asked.
“你多大了？”我問道。

“Seventeen.”
“十七歲?！?/p>

“Do you read much?”I asked at a venture.
“你愛看書嗎？”我唐突地冒出了這么一句。

But before she could answer, Mrs. Bradley, attentive to her duties as a hostess, drew me to her with some remark and before I could disengage myself dinner was at an end.The young people went off at once to wherever they were going and the four of us who were left went up to the sitting-room.
可是，未等她回答，布雷德利夫人要盡地主之誼，跟我搭上了話頭，我還沒來得及擺脫，晚宴就結(jié)束了。那些年輕人轉(zhuǎn)眼走得不知去向，剩下了我們四個(gè)人，就到樓上客廳里去坐。

I was surprised that I had been asked to this party, for after a little desultory conversation they began to talk of a matter that I should have thought they would have preferred to discuss in private. I could not make up my mind whether it would be more discreet in me to get up and go or whether, as a disinterested audience of one, I was useful to them.The question at issue was Larry's odd disinclination to go to work, and it had been brought to a point by an offer from Mr.Maturin, the father of the boy who had been at dinner, to take him into his office.It was a fine opportunity.With ability and industry Larry could look forward to making in due course a great deal of money.Young Gray Maturin was eager for him to take it.
我奇怪的是，不知他們?yōu)楹我?qǐng)我加入他們的談話，因?yàn)殚e聊了幾句之后，他們便切入了一個(gè)話題——一個(gè)我認(rèn)為他們一定愿意私下談?wù)摰脑掝}。我舉棋不定，不知是不是應(yīng)該知趣地起身告辭，或者作為局外人幫著出出主意。這個(gè)話題涉及的是拉里，說他看法古怪，不愿意參加工作。話題的核心點(diǎn)是：馬圖林先生（即剛才同席吃飯的那個(gè)叫格雷的男孩的父親）答應(yīng)給他一份工作，讓他進(jìn)馬圖林家的公司。這可是一個(gè)天賜的好機(jī)會(huì)。進(jìn)了公司，只要能干和勤奮，拉里最終一定能掙很多的錢。小格雷·馬圖林一心希望他能接受這個(gè)工作。

I cannot remember all that was said, but the gist of it is clear in my memory. On Larry's return from France Dr.Nelson, his guardian, had suggested that he should go to college, but he had refused.It was natural that he should want to do nothing for a while；he had had a hard time and had been twice, though not severely, wounded.Dr.Nelson thought that he was still suffering from shock and it seemed a good idea that he should rest till he had completely recovered.But the weeks passed into months and now it was over a year since he'd been out of uniform.It appeared that he had done well in the air corps and on his return he cut something of a figure in Chicago, the result of which was that several business men offered him positions.He thanked them, but refused.He gave no reason except that he hadn't made up his mind what he wanted to do.He became engaged to Isabel.This was no surprise to Mrs.Bradley since they had been inseparable for years and she knew that Isabel was in love with him.She was fond of him and thought he would make Isabel happy.
我記不清那次談話的具體內(nèi)容了，但其主旨卻清晰地印在了我的腦海里。拉里從法國(guó)返回，他的監(jiān)護(hù)人納爾遜醫(yī)生勸他進(jìn)大學(xué)深造，可是他拒絕了。他一時(shí)還不想忙碌起來，這也是很自然的——他畢竟在戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)中吃了不少苦，還負(fù)了兩次傷（雖然傷勢(shì)并不嚴(yán)重）。納爾遜醫(yī)生認(rèn)為他對(duì)戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)的余悸還沒有消除，休息休息直到完全恢復(fù)正常，這也在情理之中?？墒牵恍瞧谟忠恍瞧谶^去了，一個(gè)月又一個(gè)月過去了，如今離他脫下軍裝已經(jīng)一年多的時(shí)間過去了。他在空軍里好像干得不錯(cuò)，回到芝加哥后成了個(gè)八面風(fēng)光的人物，商界人士紛紛向他伸出橄欖枝，邀請(qǐng)他加盟。他先是表示感謝，繼而婉言謝絕。他不解釋原因，只說自己還沒有拿定主意，尚不知干什么好。后來，他和伊莎貝爾訂了婚。布雷德利夫人并不覺得意外，因?yàn)檫@兩人密不可分，已相處多年，她知道伊莎貝爾深深愛著拉里。她本人也喜歡拉里，認(rèn)為拉里能給女兒帶來幸福。

“Her character's stronger than his. She can give him just what he lacks.”
“伊莎貝爾的個(gè)性比拉里強(qiáng)，可以彌補(bǔ)他的不足?！辈祭椎吕蛉苏f。

Though they were both so young Mrs. Bradley was quite willing that they should marry at once, but she wasn't prepared for them to do so until Larry had gone to work.He had a little money of his own, but even if he had had ten times more than he had she would have insisted on this.So far as I could gather, what she and Elliott wished to find out from Dr.Nelson was what Larry intended to do.They wanted him to use his influence to get him to accept the job that Mr.Maturin offered him.
盡管兩人年紀(jì)都這么小，布雷德利夫人卻愿意他們立刻結(jié)婚，不過有一個(gè)條件——拉里得先有份工作。拉里手頭是有點(diǎn)錢的，但即便他的腰包比這鼓十倍，她還是要堅(jiān)持這一原則。據(jù)我猜測(cè)，她和艾略特想從納爾遜醫(yī)生口中了解拉里的意圖，并且希望納爾遜醫(yī)生運(yùn)用他的影響力，勸說拉里接受馬圖林先生給他的職位。

“You know I never had much authority over Larry，”he said.“Even as a boy he went his own way.”
“你知道我從來就管不了拉里，”納爾遜醫(yī)生說，“他小的時(shí)候就我行我素?！?/p>

“I know. You let him run wild.It's a miracle he's turned out as well as he has.”
“這我知道。你對(duì)他是大撒手。他沒有變壞，完全是個(gè)奇跡?！辈祭椎吕蛉苏f。

Dr. Nelson, who had been drinking quite heavily, gave her a sour look.His red face grew a trifle redder.
納爾遜醫(yī)生喝了不少酒，一聽這話，白了她一眼，原本就紅的臉變得更紅了。

“I was very busy. I had my own affairs to attend to.I took him because there was nowhere else for him to go and his father was a friend of mine.He wasn't easy to do anything with.”
“我沒空，有一屁股的事忙不完。當(dāng)初我收留他，是因?yàn)樗麩o處可去。誰叫他父親跟我是朋友呢。他可不是個(gè)容易管教的主兒。”

“I don't know how you can say that，”Mrs. Bradley answered tartly.“He has a very sweet disposition.”
“真不知你怎么能說出這種話。”布雷德利夫人尖刻地說，“他的性情是十分可愛的?！?/p>

“What are you to do with a boy who never argues with you, but does exactly what he likes and when you get mad at him just says he's sorry and lets you storm?If he'd been my own son I could have beaten him. I couldn't beat a boy who hadn't got a relation in the world and whose father had left him to me because he thought I'd be kind to him.”
“你叫我怎么辦？這孩子從不跟你頂嘴，卻想干什么照干什么。你氣壞了的時(shí)候，他就說聲對(duì)不起，然后就由著你發(fā)火。他要是我自己的兒子，我下得了手打他?？蛇@么一個(gè)舉目無親的孩子，他父親把他托給了我，心想我會(huì)善待他的，我總不能上巴掌吧？”

“That's neither here nor there，”said Elliott, somewhat irritably.“The position is this：he's dawdled around long enough；he's got a fine chance of a position in which he stands to make a lot of money, and if he wants to marry Isabel he must take it.”
“你們凈講些不著邊的話?！卑蕴卣f，語氣有點(diǎn)氣呼呼的，“問題在于，他整日游手好閑，時(shí)間已經(jīng)夠長(zhǎng)的了，現(xiàn)在有個(gè)好機(jī)會(huì)可以就業(yè)，能掙很多的錢；他如果想娶伊莎貝爾，就必須抓住這個(gè)機(jī)會(huì)?！?/p>

“He must see that in the present state of the world，”Mrs. Bradley put in，“a man has to work.He's perfectly strong and well now.We all know how after the war between the States, there were men who never did a stroke after they came back from it.They were a burden to their families and useless to the community.”
“必須讓他知道，人活在世上就得有工作干。”布雷德利夫人插進(jìn)來說，“他現(xiàn)在已恢復(fù)了元?dú)?，身體挺好的。大家都知道，南北戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)之后，有些人回來從不做事，成了家庭的累贅，而且對(duì)社會(huì)毫無益處?！?/p>

Then I added my word.
就在這時(shí)，我開口說了話：

“But what reason does he give for refusing the various offers that are made him?”
“那么多人邀請(qǐng)他去工作，都被拒絕了，那他給出的理由是什么呢？”

“None. Except that they don't appeal to him.”
“無理由。他只說那些工作不合他的心意。”

“But doesn't he want to do anything?”
“那么，他究竟想干什么樣的工作呢？”

“Apparently not.”
“顯然沒有他愿意干的?！?/p>

Dr. Nelson helped himself to another highball.He took a long drink and then looked at his two friends.
納爾遜醫(yī)生給自己又倒上一杯摻了蘇打水的威士忌，喝了一大口，然后看看他的兩個(gè)朋友。

“Shall I tell you what my impression is?I dare say I'm not a great judge of human nature, but at any rate afterthirty-odd years of practice I think I know something about it. The war did something to Larry.He didn't come back the same person that he went.It's not only that he's older.Something happened that changed his personality.”
“你們?cè)敢獠辉敢饴犅犖业淖疽?？我不敢說自己知人善辨，但畢竟行醫(yī)三十余年，對(duì)人性也許還是略知一二的。這次戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)改變了拉里。他從戰(zhàn)場(chǎng)歸來，已經(jīng)不再是以前的他了，不僅增長(zhǎng)了年歲，不知遇到什么事，連性格也變了?！?/p>

“What sort of thing?”I asked.
“遇到什么事了？”我問。

“I wouldn't know. He's very reticent about his war experiences.”Dr.Nelson turned to Mrs.Bradley.“Has he ever talked to you about them, Louisa?”
“這我無從得知。他對(duì)自己的戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)經(jīng)歷總是諱莫如深?！奔{爾遜醫(yī)生說著，把臉轉(zhuǎn)向了布雷德利夫人：“路易莎，他可跟你談過他的經(jīng)歷？”

She shook her head.
布雷德利夫人搖了搖頭。

“No. When he first came back we tried to get him to tell us some of his adventures, but he only laughed in that way of his and said there was nothing to tell.He hasn't even told Isabel.She's tried and tried, but she hasn't got a thing out of him.”
“沒有。他初回來時(shí)，我們想讓他講講戰(zhàn)場(chǎng)上的經(jīng)歷，他卻總是打個(gè)哈哈，說沒有什么可講的。甚至對(duì)伊莎貝爾，他也閉口不談。伊莎貝爾不知問過多少次了，可一點(diǎn)名堂也沒問出來?！?/p>

The conversation went on in this unsatisfactory way and presently Dr. Nelson, looking at his watch, said he must go.I prepared to leave with him, but Elliott pressed me to stay.When he had gone, Mrs.Bradley apologized for troubling me with their private affairs and expressed her fear that I had been bored.
談話就這么進(jìn)行下去，效果不盡如人意。過了一會(huì)兒，納爾遜醫(yī)生看看表，說他必須告辭了。我準(zhǔn)備跟他一同走，但艾略特硬把我留了下來。待納爾遜醫(yī)生走后，布雷德利夫人向我表示歉意，說拿這些私事攪擾我，恐怕我一定覺得膩味。

“But you see it's all very much on my mind，”she finished.
“不過，你從中也可以看到，這成了我的一件很大的心事。”她最后說道。

“Mr. Maugham is very discreet, Louisa；you needn't be afraid of telling him anything.I haven't the feeling that Bob Nelson and Larry are very close, but there are some things that Louisa and I thought we'd better not mention to him.”
“毛姆先生為人很謹(jǐn)慎，路易莎，你不必?fù)?dān)心，有什么事只管告訴他好啦。我并不覺得鮑勃·納爾遜和拉里怎樣親密，不過，有些事路易莎和我都覺得不好開口跟他提?！?/p>

“Elliott.”
“艾略特。”

“You've told him so much, you may as well tell him the rest. I don't know whether you noticed Gray Maturin at dinner?”
“話都說這么多了，何不將事情全都兜底講出來。不知你吃飯時(shí)注意到格雷·馬圖林沒有？”

“He's so big, one could hardly fail to.”
“他塊頭那么大，誰都會(huì)注意到的。”

“He's a beau of Isabel's. All the time Larry was away he was very attentive.She likes him, and if the war had lasted much longer she might very well have married him.He proposed to her.She didn't accept and she didn't refuse.Louisa guessed she didn't want to make up her mind till Larry came home.”
“他也是伊莎貝爾的一個(gè)追求者，拉里不在的時(shí)候，一直對(duì)伊莎貝爾殷勤備至。伊莎貝爾也喜歡他。假如戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)再拖久一點(diǎn)，她很可能就嫁給他了。格雷倒是向她求過婚，她沒有接受，也沒有拒絕。路易莎猜她是不愿意在拉里回來之前就決定自己的終身大事?！?/p>

“How is it that he wasn't in the war?”I asked.
“格雷為什么不去參戰(zhàn)呢？”我問。

“He strained his heart playing football. It's nothing serious, but the army wouldn't take him.Anyhow when Larry came home he had no chance.Isabel turned him down flat.”
“他因?yàn)樘咦闱?，心臟出了點(diǎn)毛病，其實(shí)并沒有什么大不了的，可是軍隊(duì)硬是不接受他。總之，拉里一回來，他就沒戲了，伊莎貝爾徹底地拒絕了他的求婚。”

I didn't know what I was expected to say to that, so I said nothing. Elliott went on.With his distinguished appearance and his Oxford accent he couldn't have been more like an official of high standing at the Foreign Office.
真是清官難斷家務(wù)事。所以我沒發(fā)表任何議論。艾略特卻滔滔不絕地說了下去。以他那樣的堂堂儀表和牛津口音，足可以當(dāng)一名外交部的高級(jí)官員。

“Of course Larry's a very nice boy and it was damned sporting of him to run away and join the air corps, but I'm a pretty good judge of character……”He gave a knowing little smile and made the only reference I ever heard him make to the fact that he had made a fortune by dealing in works of art.“Otherwise I shouldn't have at this moment a tidy sum in gilt-edged securities. And my opinion is that Larry will never amount to very much.He has no money to speak of and no standing.Gray Maturin is a very different proposition.He has a good old Irish name.They've had a bishop in the family, and a dramatist and several distinguished soldiers and scholars.”
“當(dāng)然，拉里是個(gè)好孩子，就他私自溜了去參加空軍這件事來說也是一種了不起的壯舉。不過，我看人只看實(shí)質(zhì)，而且一看一個(gè)準(zhǔn)……”他頗具深意地微微一笑，說了一句推心置腹的話——這是唯一的一句我所聽到的揭示他從事藝術(shù)品交易發(fā)財(cái)訣竅的話，“如若不然，我現(xiàn)在就不會(huì)擁有一筆數(shù)額相當(dāng)大的金邊證券了。依我看，拉里永遠(yuǎn)不會(huì)有大的出息，既不會(huì)有錢也不會(huì)有地位。格雷·馬圖林就全然不同了。他那古老的愛爾蘭家族聲望很好，出過一個(gè)主教、一個(gè)戲劇家，以及若干個(gè)出類拔萃的軍人和學(xué)者?！?/p>

“How do you know all that?”I asked.
“這些情況你是怎么知道的？”我問。

“It's the sort of thing one knows，”he answered casually.“As a matter of fact I happened to be glancing through the Dictionary of National Biography the other day at the club and I came across the name.”
“反正是該知道的時(shí)候就知道了?！彼唤?jīng)心地說，“其實(shí)，我是無意中知道的。那天在俱樂部里翻閱《名人大辭典》，看到了這個(gè)家族。”

I didn't think it was my business to repeat what my neighbour at dinner had told me of the shanty Irishman and the Swedish waitress who were Gray's grandfather and grandmother. Elliott proceeded.
我原本想把晚飯時(shí)我的鄰座告訴我的情況和盤托出，說馬圖林的祖父是愛爾蘭的窮水手，祖母是瑞典的一個(gè)飯館服務(wù)員，可又覺得犯不著多事，便將話又咽了回去。只聽艾略特仍在高談闊論。

“We've all known Henry Maturin for many years. He's a very fine man and a very rich one.Gray's stepping into the best brokerage house in Chicago.He's got the world at his feet.He wants to marry Isabel and one can't deny that from her point of view it would be a very good match.I’m all in favour of it myself and I know Louisa is too.”
“我們認(rèn)識(shí)亨利·馬圖林已經(jīng)有好多年了。他人品好，而且非常有錢。格雷正要進(jìn)芝加哥最好的一家經(jīng)濟(jì)行，天下的人沒有不羨慕的。他想娶伊莎貝爾，替她著想，不能不說是一門很好的親事。我自己完全贊成，而且我知道路易莎也贊成?！?/p>

“You've been away from America so long, Elliott，”said Mrs. Bradley, with a dry smile，“You've forgotten that in this country girls don't marry because their mothers and their uncles are in favour of it.”
“艾略特，你離開美國(guó)太久了?！辈祭椎吕蛉苏f道，臉上擠出一個(gè)微笑，“你忘記了在這個(gè)國(guó)家里，女孩子并不因?yàn)樗齻兡赣H或者舅舅贊成她們的婚姻就去嫁人?！?/p>

“That is nothing to be proud of, Louisa，”said Elliott sharply.“As the result of thirty years'experience I may tellyou that a marriage arranged with proper regard to position, fortune, and community of circumstances has every advantage over a love match. In France, which after all is the only civilized country in the world, Isabel would marry Gray without thinking twice about it；then, after a year or two, if she wanted it, she'd take Larry as her lover.Gray would install a prominent actress in a luxurious apartment, and everyone would be perfectly happy.”
“這種情況沒有什么可以引以為自豪的，路易莎?！卑蕴蒯樹h相對(duì)地說，“根據(jù)我三十年的經(jīng)驗(yàn)，我可以告訴你，一件婚事把地位、財(cái)產(chǎn)以及出身環(huán)境都考慮在內(nèi)，要比愛情的結(jié)合強(qiáng)得多。法國(guó)算是世界上唯一的文明國(guó)家了吧。在法國(guó)，伊莎貝爾會(huì)毫不遲疑地嫁給格雷；婚后過上一兩年，假如她愿意的話，可以把拉里當(dāng)作她的情人；格雷呢，則可以置一所豪華公寓，養(yǎng)一個(gè)女明星嘛。那樣會(huì)皆大歡喜?！?/p>

Mrs. Bradley was no fool.She looked at her brother with sly amusement.
布雷德利夫人不癡不傻，眼睛望著自家兄弟，心里只覺得好笑。

“The objection to that, Elliott, is that as the New York plays only come here for limited periods, Gray could only hope to keep the tenants of his luxurious apartment for a very uncertain length of time. That would surely be very unsettling for all parties.”
“艾略特，問題在于，紐約劇團(tuán)來演戲，待的時(shí)間有限，明星住進(jìn)格雷那所豪華公寓里，能夠住多久，沒個(gè)定數(shù)。這會(huì)讓不管哪一方都覺得心里不安寧?！?/p>

Elliott smiled.
艾略特聽后笑了。

“Gray could buy a seat on the New York stock exchange. After all, if you must live in America I can't see any object in living anywhere but in New York.”
“格雷可以在紐約證券交易所謀個(gè)缺嘛。在我看來，生活在美國(guó)，除了紐約，別的地方都是不能夠住的?！?/p>

I left soon after this, but before I did Elliott, I hardly know why, asked me if I would lunch with him to meet the Maturins, father and son.
這以后不久我就辭別了?？墒牵谧咧?，艾略特不知出于什么緣故，提出想請(qǐng)我跟他一道吃午飯，去會(huì)會(huì)馬圖林父子。

“Henry is the best type of the American businessman，”he said，“and I think you ought to know him. He's looked after our investments for many years.”
“若說美國(guó)的商人，亨利是最優(yōu)秀的那一類了?！彼f道，“你不妨跟他認(rèn)識(shí)認(rèn)識(shí)。他打理我們家的投資業(yè)已有許多個(gè)年頭了?！?/p>

I hadn't any particular wish to do this, but no reason to refuse, so I said I would be glad to.
我并無結(jié)識(shí)此人的熱情，可是一時(shí)又找不到推托之詞，于是便答應(yīng)了下來。