圣誕歡歌 2.三幽靈中的第一位

2 The first of the three spirits
2.三幽靈中的第一位
When Scrooge woke up，it was very dark in the room.He heard the church clock start striking，and listened to see what the time was.To his great surprise，the heavy bell went on striking up to twelve，then stopped.Twelve o'clock! It was past two in the morning when he had gone to bed.The clock must be wrong!He looked at his watch.It said twelve o'clock too!
當(dāng)斯克羅吉醒來的時候，房間里黑極了。他聽見教堂的鐘聲響了，他聽著想知道是幾點了。令他大吃一驚的是，沉重的鐘聲一直敲了12下，然后停了。12點了!他上床睡覺的時候已經(jīng)是凌晨2點了。一定是鐘出了問題!他看了看他的手表，也是12點。 “我睡了一整天嗎?難道已經(jīng)是第二天夜里了嗎?”斯克羅吉問自己。“或者是太陽出了問題?也許是正午而不是午夜!但那又不太可能。”
He climbed out of bed，and felt his way to the window.But there was nobody outside in the dark，foggy streets，and he realized it must be night-time.He went back to bed again，but could not sleep.He was worried，because he could not understand what was happening.‘Was Marley's ghost a dream?’he wondered.‘But it seemed very real…’
他下了床，摸黑來到窗前，但外面漆黑的、霧蒙蒙的街上一個人也沒有，他知道一定是晚上。他又上了床，但是卻睡不著。他憂心忡忡，因為他不明白正在發(fā)生的一切。“馬利的鬼魂是夢嗎?”他想知道。“但它似乎是真的。”
He lay awake until he heard the clock striking a quarter to the hour.Suddenly he remembered.The ghost had warned him that a spirit would visit him at one o'clock.He decided to stay awake until one o'clock had passed.The quarter of an hour passed very slowly，but at last he heard the clock striking the four quarters.
他睜著眼睛躺著直到聽見鐘敲45分。突然他記起了。鬼魂曾警告過他1點鐘時有個幽靈要來見他。他決定睜眼等到1點鐘過去。15分鐘過得極慢，但最后他終于聽到鐘敲了4刻。
‘It's one o'clock!’cried Scrooge delightedly，‘and nothing has happened!’But he spoke before the hour bell had sounded.The clock now struck a deep，sad ONE，and immediately light shone into Scrooge's bedroom.The curtains round his bed were pulled open.Scrooge sat up in bed，and stared at his ghostly visitor.
“1點了!”斯克羅吉高興地大叫道，“而且什么也沒發(fā)生!”但他是在整點的鈴響之前說這番話的?，F(xiàn)在鐘敲了沉悶悲傷的1點，立刻就有亮光照進(jìn)了斯克羅吉的臥室。他床周圍的簾子被扯開了。斯克羅吉從床上坐起注視著鬼魂般的來訪者。
A strange figure，half like a child，half like an old man， looked back at him.It had long，white hair，but its skin was soft and young.It wore a short，white robe，covered with both summer and winter flowers.But the strangest thing about it was that from the top of its head shone a bright，clear light.
一個奇怪的影子，一半像孩子，一半像老頭兒，回頭看著他。它的頭發(fā)又長又白，但它的皮膚柔軟而富有彈性。它穿著白色的短袍子，上面滿是夏季和冬季的花兒。但最奇怪的是它的頭頂上閃耀出明亮的光。
Perhaps this light was sometimes too bright，because under one arm it carried a hat，which looked like a large extinguisher.
也許這光有時太亮了，因為它的一只胳膊下夾著一頂帽子，看上去像是一個大的滅火工具。
‘Who and what are you，sir?’asked Scrooge.
“你是誰，是干什么的，先生?”斯克羅吉問。
‘I am the ghost of Christmas Past，’replied the spirit，in a soft，gentle voice.
“我是昔日圣誕鬼魂，”幽靈用柔弱、溫柔的聲音回答說。
‘Do you mean long ago in the past?’asked Scrooge.
“你是指過去很久以前嗎?”斯克羅吉問。
‘No.Your past.’
“不。是你的過去。”
‘Spirit，please tell me why you are here.’
“幽靈，請告訴我你為什么來這兒。”
‘I am here for your own good，’answered the ghost.
“我來這兒純粹是為了你好，”鬼魂說。
‘Thank you，’replied Scrooge politely.But secretly he thought，‘Bah!A night of unbroken sleep is a more useful thing to have!’
“謝謝你，”斯克羅吉禮貌地回答說，但他心里想，“呸!睡個一晚上沒人打擾的覺比什么都強(qiáng)。”
The spirit seemed to hear him thinking，and said at once，‘I am here to help you change your life!Watch and listen!’It put out a strong hand，and held Scrooge by the arm.‘Get up，and come with me!’
幽靈似乎懂得了他在想什么，便立刻說，“我來這兒是幫助你改變你的生活的!看好了，聽清楚!”它伸出一只強(qiáng)有力的手，抓住斯克羅吉的胳膊。“起來跟我走!”
It was dark and cold outside.Scrooge did not want to go anywhere，and for a moment he thought about pretending to be too ill to go out.But he did not like to refuse，so he said nothing，and got out of bed.Together they passed through the wall of the house out into the darkness.
外面又黑又冷。斯克羅吉哪兒也不想去，所以一時間他想裝成病入膏盲的樣子無法出去，但他又不愿拒絕，所以他什么也沒說就下了床。他們一起穿過房子的墻壁來到了夜色中。
Suddenly Scrooge realized they were standing on an open country road，with fields on each side.London，the fog，and the darkness had all disappeared，and it was a clear，cold， winter day，with snow on the ground.
忽然斯克羅吉發(fā)覺他們來到了一條空曠的鄉(xiāng)間馬路上，兩邊都是田野。倫敦、濃霧和黑夜都已消失，現(xiàn)在是一個晴朗、寒冷的冬日，地上覆蓋著積雪。
‘Good Heavens!’cried Scrooge.‘I was born near here!I rememher it well!’
“天哪!”斯克羅吉喊道。“我出生在這兒附近，我記得很清楚!”
The spirit looked kindly at the old man.‘How strange that you've forgotten it for so many years!What is that on your face?Are you crying?’
幽靈友善地看著這位老人。“奇怪得很，這么多年你都把這忘記了!你臉上是什么?你哭了嗎?”
Scrooge put a hand over his eyes.‘It's nothing—I've got a cold，that's all.Take me where you want，spirit!’
斯克羅吉用一只手捂住他的眼。“沒事兒——只是我得了感冒。幽靈，帶我去你想去的地方吧!”
Scrooge recognized every field，post，and tree，as they walked along the road towards a little market town.All around thgm were young schoolboys on horses and in farmers’carts，laughing and wishing each other a merry Christmas，as they travelled to their homes for the Christmas holiday.
在他們?nèi)ネ粋€小集鎮(zhèn)的路上，斯克羅吉認(rèn)出了每一片田野，每一處城堡和每一棵樹木。他們周圍到處都是學(xué)校的男孩子們，他們有的騎在馬上，有的坐在農(nóng)夫的馬車?yán)?，在他們趕回家過圣誕節(jié)的路上，他們笑著并彼此祝愿圣誕快樂。
‘They are only shadows from the past，’said the spirit.‘They cannot see us.’
“他們只不過是過去的影子，”幽靈說。“他們看不見我們。”
Scrooge knew and named all of them.Why was he so delighted to see them?Why did his cold heart beat faster when they went past，shouting‘Merry Christmas!’?What was‘merry Christmas’to Scrooge?What good had it ever done to him?
斯克羅吉全都認(rèn)識他們，并能叫出他們的名字。為什么他看見他們這么高興?為什么當(dāng)他們走過，高喊著“圣誕快樂”時，他冷酷的心跳得快了?“圣誕快樂”對斯克羅吉意味著什么?它給他帶來了什么好處?
‘Not everyone has left the school，’said the ghost.‘There is one lonely child there still，one child whose friends have all gone.’
“不是所有的孩子們都離開了學(xué)校，”鬼魂說。“那兒還有一個孤獨的孩子，他的朋友們?nèi)甲吡恕?rdquo;
‘I know!’said Scrooge.And now he was crying openly.
“我知道!”斯克羅吉說?，F(xiàn)在他毫不掩飾地哭了。
They turned into a smaller road，and soon came to the school.Inside，in the long，cold，silent classroom，a lonely boy sat reading near a small fire.When he saw his poor forgotten past self，Scrooge sat down at one of the desks，put his head in his hands and cried.
他們拐到了一條更小的路上，不一會兒就來到了學(xué)校。在那間狹長、寒冷、寂靜的教室里，一個孤獨的孩子正坐在微弱的火旁著書。當(dāng)他看見自己那寒酸的、已被忘卻的過去的自己時，斯克羅吉坐在一張課桌旁，雙手抱頭哭了。
‘Poor boy!I wish—but it's too late now.’
“可憐的孩子啊!我希望——但現(xiàn)在太晚了。”
‘What's the matter?’asked the spirit.
“什么事?”幽靈問。
‘There was a boy singing Christmas carols at my door yesterday.I'm sorry I didn't give him anything，that's all.’
“昨天有一個男孩子在我的門口唱圣誕頌歌，很抱歉我什么也沒給他，就是這事兒。”
The ghost smiled，and lifted its hand，saying，‘Let's see another past Christmas!’
鬼魂笑了，舉起一只手說，“咱們再去看看另外一個昔日圣誕節(jié)。”
The schoolroom became darker and dirtier.There was the young Scrooge again，a little older and bigger than before.He was not reading this time，but was walking up and down， looking very unhappy.The door opened，and a little girl， much younger than him，came running in.Putting her arms round his neck，she said lovingly to him，‘I've come to bring you home，dear brother!Father is so much kinder than he used to be!The other day I asked him if you could come home，and he said yes!And we're going to spend Christmas together，and have the merriest time!’she was laughing delightedly as she began to pull him towards the door.They went out happily together，hand in hand.
教室變得更暗更臟了，又出現(xiàn)了年輕的斯克羅吉，比以前稍微長大了一些而且個頭高了一些。這次他沒在看書，而是來回踱著步，看上去很不高興。門開了，跑進(jìn)來一個比他小得多的女孩兒。她雙手摟著他的脖子親昵地對他說，“我是來帶你回家的，親愛的哥哥!父親比從前慈愛多了。不久前的一天，我問他你可不可以回家，他答應(yīng)了!我們可以一起過圣誕節(jié)了，而且會過得比以前都快活!”她開始把他往門口拉并開心地笑著。他們手拉著手，一起高興地出去了。
‘What a warm heart she had!’said the ghost.
“她真是熱心腸!”鬼魂說。
‘You're right，’said Scrooge.‘I agree with you，spirit!’
“你說得對。”斯克羅吉說。“我同意你的看法。”
‘She married，I understand，’continued the ghost，‘and had children，I think，before she died.’
“她結(jié)婚了，我知道，”鬼魂繼續(xù)說，“而且我想，在她死之前有了孩子。”
‘One child，’answered Scrooge.
“有一個孩子，”斯克羅吉回答說。
‘True，’said the ghost.‘Your nephew!’
“對，”鬼魂說。“你的外甥!”
Scrooge did not answer at once.‘Yes，’he said at last.
斯克羅吉沒有馬上回答。“是的，”他最后說。
Now the school had disappeared，and they were in the middle of a busy town，with shadowy crowds and carts all around them.Here it was Christmas time again，but it was evening， and there were lights in the shops and streets.
現(xiàn)在學(xué)校不見了，他們來到了一座繁忙的鎮(zhèn)子中心，周圍都是模糊的人群和馬車。這里也是圣誕節(jié)的日子，但已是夜晚，商店和大街上都亮起了燈。
The ghost stopped at an office door.‘Do you know this place，Scrooge?’he asked.
鬼魂在一個辦公室的門前停下。“你認(rèn)識這個地方嗎，斯克羅吉?”它問。
‘Know it!’cried Scrooge.‘Why，I was a clerk here!’
“認(rèn)識!”斯克羅吉大聲說。“怎么了，我曾是這兒的一名雇員啊!”
They went in，and when they saw a large，kind-looking old gentleman sitting at a high desk，Scrooge cried excitedly，‘Good Heavens，it's old Fezziwig!God bless him!It's Fezziwig alive again!’
他們走了進(jìn)去，當(dāng)他們看見一位身材魁梧、慈眉善目的老紳士坐在一張高高的桌子旁時，斯克羅吉興奮地喊道，“天哪，他是老費澤威格!上帝保佑他!費澤威格又活了!”
Old Fezziwig put down his pen，and looked at the clock.Fastening his coat buttons over his fat stomach，he started laughing as he called out in a rich，deep，happy voice， ‘Ebenezer!Dick!Seven o'clock!No more work tonight!It'sChristmas Eve，remember!’
老費澤威格放下筆，看了看表。系好覆于其胖肚子上的外衣扣子，他一邊用圓潤、低沉、幸福的聲音大聲說，“埃比尼澤!迪克!7點了!今晚就干到這兒了。記得嗎，今天是圣誕節(jié)!”一邊開始笑了起來。
The young Scrooge hurried in，with another clerk.
年輕的斯克羅吉帶著另一個雇員匆匆地進(jìn)來了。
‘That's Dick Wilkins!’said Scrooge quietly to the ghost.
“這是迪克·威爾金斯!”斯克羅吉悄悄地告訴鬼魂。
‘He always liked me.Oh dear!poor Dick!’
“他一直都喜歡我。噢，親愛的。可憐的迪克!”
Together the two young clerks put away all the pens and papers，and，following Fezziwig's orders，cleared all the furniture away from the centre of the room.In came a fiddler.In came Mrs Fezziwig，fat and smiling.In came the three Fezziwig daughters，sweet and pretty.In came the six young men who were in love with them.In came the cook，with her young man，the milkman.In came the boy from next door， with the girl from the house opposite.In they came，some quietly，some noisily，but all happy because it was Ghristmas Eve.The fiddler started playing，and away they all went in the dance，twenty pairs at the same time，round and round， down the middle and up again.When they were all tired，old Fezziwig cried out，‘Well done!Now，have something to eat and drink!’there was cake and hot meat and bread and cold meat and fruit，and all kinds of drinks，on a long table near the door.And after they had eaten，they danced again.
兩個年輕的雇員一起把所有的筆和文件都收拾好放到了一邊，并按照費澤威格的吩咐把所有的家具都從屋子中央挪開。一個小提琴手走了進(jìn)來;費澤威格走了進(jìn)來，胖胖的，面帶笑容;費澤威格的三個女兒走了進(jìn)來，她們長得甜甜的而且很漂亮;六個愛著這三位姑娘的年輕人走了進(jìn)來;廚師和她年輕的丈夫，送奶工走了進(jìn)來;隔壁家的男孩，帶著對面房子里的女孩走了進(jìn)來。他們都進(jìn)來了，有的靜悄悄的，有的吵吵嚷嚷的，但都興高采烈，因為今天是圣誕節(jié)。小提琴手開始演奏，他們?nèi)技尤氲教枵叩男辛校瑫r有20對兒，來回地轉(zhuǎn)著圈跳著。當(dāng)他們都跳累了的時候，老費澤威格大聲說，“跳得好極了!現(xiàn)在吃點東西或喝點什么吧!”在門口的一張長桌子上擺著蛋糕、燒好的熱乎乎的肉、面包、凍肉、水果和各種喝的。他們吃過之后又重新跳舞。
When the clock struck eleven，the dancing ended.Mr and Mrs Fezziwig stood by the door，shaking hands with each person as he or she went out，and wishing him or her a merry Christmas.
當(dāng)鐘敲11點的時候，舞會結(jié)束了。費澤威格先生和太太站在門口，他們和每個離開的人一一握手并祝愿他或她圣誕快樂。
During this time Scrooge had thought of nothing except what was happening in front of his eyes.He remembered and enjoyed it all with the greatest delight.But when the dancing came to an end，he realized that the ghost was looking at him.The light on the spirit's head was burning very clearly.
在這斯間斯克羅吉想的只是他眼前所發(fā)生的一切。他以從未有過的興奮，記住了發(fā)生的一切并且覺得一切都很開心。但當(dāng)舞會結(jié)束的時候，他覺察到鬼魂正看著他。幽靈頭上的光明亮地閃爍著。
‘It seems easy enough to amuse these childish people，’said the ghost.‘It was nothing much that Fezziwig did，was it? After all，he only spent a few pounds，on food and drink and paying the fiddler.’
“好像輕而易舉就能給這些傻里傻氣的人們帶來娛樂，”鬼魂說。“費澤威格并沒做多少事情，不是嗎?他充其量不過是花了幾個英鎊買了些吃的、喝的和付了小提琴手的報酬。”
‘It isn't a question of money，’replied Scrooge warmly.He was speaking like the young man he used to be，not the old man he was now.‘No，spirit，you see，our employer can make us happy or sad.His words，his looks，all these things are so important!The happiness that he gives is just as valuable as money!’
“這不是錢的問題。”斯克羅吉熱情地回答說。他說話的樣子和他年輕時一樣，可不是現(xiàn)在年邁的那副神情。“不，幽靈，要知道，我們的雇主能夠令我們高興或悲傷。他的話語、他的表情，所有這些都很重要!他給我們帶來的幸福同金錢一樣有價值!”
He suddenly stopped speaking，when he felt the spirit watching him closely.
當(dāng)他感到幽靈正密切地注視著他的時候，他不再說下去了。
‘What's the matter?’asked the ghost.
“怎么了?”鬼魂問。
‘Er—nothing，’said Scrooge.‘Just that—I'd like to be able to say a word or two to my clerk now.’
“哦——沒什么，”斯克羅吉說，“只是——我想現(xiàn)在和我的雇員說一兩句話。”
Now Scrooge could see himself again.He was older now， and it was clear that he was beginning to show an unhealthy interest in money.His eyes were restless，and his mouth looked thin and mean.He was not alone，but was sitting beside a lovely young girl.The light that shone brightly from the ghost of Christmas Past showed that she was crying.
斯克羅吉現(xiàn)在又能看見他本人了。他現(xiàn)在比以前老了，很顯然他對錢已經(jīng)顯示出一種不良的興趣。他目光焦慮，嘴看上去刻薄且吝嗇。他不是獨自一人，他身邊坐著一個可愛的姑娘。借著“昔日圣誕”鬼魂身上發(fā)出的明亮的光可以看出她在哭。
‘I know it doesn't matter very much to you，’she said softly.‘You care about gold more than you care about me.Perhaps I shouldn't be sad.Money will give you the happiness that I wanted to give you.’
“我知道這對你來說算不了什么，”她輕柔地說，“你把金子看得比我還重。也許我不該難過，金錢會給你帶來我想帶給你的幸福的。”
‘But I haven't changed towards you，have I?’
“但對你我并沒變心，不是嗎?”
‘You have changed.We promised to marry a long time ago，when we were both poor，and happy to be poor.I have stayed the same，but you have different hopes and dreams now.I loved the man that you used to be，but I know that you do not wish to marry me any more.So I've come to tell you that you're free.Be happy in the life that you've chosen!’And she left him.
“你已經(jīng)變了。在很久以前當(dāng)我們都還很窮但又窮得快樂的時候我們就許諾過要結(jié)婚。我一直沒改變想法，但你現(xiàn)在有了不同的希望和理想。我愛的是過去的你，但我知道你不再想娶我了，所以我來是想告訴你你自由了。祝你在你自己選擇的道路上幸福生活!”她離開了他。
‘Spirit!’cried Scrooge.‘Show me no more!Take me home!This is too painful!’
“幽靈!”斯克羅吉大聲說，“別再讓我看下去了!帶我回家吧!這太痛苦了!”
‘One shadow more!’said the ghost.
“還有一個影子!”鬼魂說。
‘No more!’cried Scrooge.‘I don't wish to see any more!’But the spirit held his arms，and he could not escape.
“一個也不要再看了!”斯克羅吉高聲喊道。“我不想再看了!”但幽靈抓住他的胳膊，所以他無法逃脫。
Now they were in another place，in a room which was not very large，but comfortable.Near the fire sat a beautiful young girl.Scrooge thought she was the girl that he had just seen，until he saw her，now a good-looking married lady，sitting opposite her daughter.The room was full of children，and noise，and shouting，and laughing.Just then the door opened， and the father entered，carrying a great pile of Christmas presents.The noise became twice as loud，as the children received their presents with delight，and kissed their father gratefully.Finally，the younger ones went upstairs to bed，and Scrooge watched more sadly than ever，as the father sat down with his loving daughter and her mother by the fire.
現(xiàn)在他們來到了另一個地方，一個不是很大但非常舒適的房間里?；疬呑晃黄恋哪贻p姑娘。斯克羅吉想她就是剛才看到過的女孩，到他見到她時，她已是一位漂亮的已婚婦女了，她坐在女兒的對面。房間里都是孩子，滿屋子吵鬧聲、喊叫聲和笑聲。這時門開了，父親抱著一大摞圣誕禮物走了進(jìn)來。當(dāng)孩子們高興地拿到禮物時，吵鬧聲比剛才高了一倍，他們充滿感激地吻了父親。最后，小點兒的孩子們上樓睡覺去了。父親同他可愛的女兒及妻子在火爐旁坐下，這時，斯克羅吉比往常更加傷心地看著。
‘Belle，’said the husband，turning to his wife with a smile，‘I saw an old friend of yours this afternoon.Guess who? Mr Scrooge!He was sitting alone in his office.His partner is dying，and I don't think he has any other friends.’
“貝爾，”丈夫說著把臉轉(zhuǎn)向妻子，面帶微笑。“我今天下午看見了你的一位老朋友，你猜他是誰?斯克羅吉先生!他正獨自一人坐在他的辦公室里。他的合伙人快要死了，我認(rèn)為他再沒有別的朋友了。”
‘Spirit!’said Scrooge in a broken voice.‘Take me away from this place.’
“幽靈!”斯克羅吉用顫抖的聲音說。“帶我離開這個地方吧。”
‘These are shadows of the things that happened in the past，’said the ghost.‘You chose the life that you preferred， so why cry now?’
“這都是過去所發(fā)生的事情的影子，”鬼魂說，“你選擇了你喜歡的生活，現(xiàn)在干嘛要哭呢?”
‘I can't watch any more!It's too awful!Leave me alone， spirit!’And Scrooge，noticing that the ghostly light was burning high and bright，suddenly took the extinguisher，and pushed it down hard on the spirit's head.But although it covered the ghost's head and body，Scrooge could not hide the light，which continued to shine out strongly from underneath.
“我不能再看下去了!太可怕了!幽靈，讓我一個人呆著吧!”當(dāng)斯克羅吉看到鬼火高高地明晃晃地照著時，他突然奪下滅火器，重重地放在了幽靈的頭上。但盡管它蓋住了鬼魂的頭和身體，斯克羅吉還是蓋不住它身上的光，那光依舊從下面強(qiáng)烈地放射出來。
Now Scrooge found himself back in his own bedroom again.Feeling very tired，he climbed into bed and at once fell into a deep，heavy sleep.
現(xiàn)在斯克羅吉發(fā)現(xiàn)他又回到了自己的臥室。感覺非常疲勞，他爬上床立刻就進(jìn)入了沉睡的夢鄉(xiāng)。