牛津書蟲系列 大衛(wèi)科波菲爾 Chapter 10 Death and discovery

　　Traddles and I had both received rather strange letters from Mr Micawber， in which he asked us to come to Canterbury， with my aunt. At this meeting， he said， he would show to all of us the proof of Uriah Heep's wickedness.Dora was too ill to come with us， so Traddles， my aunt， Mr Dick and I travelled to Canterbury by coach， spent the night in a hotel there，and arrived punctually at the Wickfields’house the next morning. Mr Micawber met us at the door and showed us into Uriah Heep's office. Uriah himself seemed rather surprised to see us， but pretended to welcome us as old friends. Mr Micawber brought Agnes into the room too， and then stood firmly by the door.

　　特拉德和我都接到米考伯先生寫來的奇怪的信，他要我倆和我姨婆去一趟坎特伯雷城。這次會面，他說，他要讓我們看看尤賴亞·希普的惡劣行徑的罪證。朵拉身體太弱不能和我們一起去，所以，特拉德、姨婆、迪克先生和我搭上長途馬車，來到了坎特伯雷，在當(dāng)?shù)氐穆灭^住了一宿，第二天早上很準(zhǔn)時地來到威克菲爾住所。米考伯先生在門口迎接我們并把我們帶到了尤賴亞·希普的辦公室。尤賴亞本人見到我們似乎很吃驚，但裝著迎接老朋友似地歡迎了我們。米考伯先生把阿格尼斯也帶到了辦公室，自己則堅定地站在門口。

　　‘Don't wait， Micawber，’ said Uriah to his assistant.

　　“出去，米考伯，”尤賴亞對他的助手說道。

　　But Mr Micawber did not move.He stared coldly at his employer.

　　可米考伯先生沒走，他冷冷地盯著他的雇主。

　　‘ Did you hear what I said， Micawber?’ said Uriah angrily，his little eyes becoming redder while his long face went very pale.

　　“你聽見我的話了嗎，米考伯?”尤賴亞生氣地說道，他的小眼睛越來越紅，他的長臉開始蒼白。

　　‘ Yes!’ replied Micawber.‘ But I don't choose to leave.Listen to me， Heep! I don't care if I lose my job!I don't wish to work any longer for the wickedest man in England!’

　　“聽見了，”米考伯回答，“可我不準(zhǔn)備離開。聽著，希普!我不在乎丟掉飯碗!我不想再為英國最惡毒的人賣命?”

　　Uriah fell back， shocked. Looking slowly round at us， with a dark， evil expression on his face， he said，‘ I see!You've all arranged this between you! But I know who to blame for this!It's you，Copperfield! You're jealous of my new position ，aren't you?But I know things about all of you which I can use against you—for example，I know about your father's business mistakes， Miss Agnes， and I know about your past in the warehouse，Copperfield!So be careful，I warn you all!’

　　尤賴亞大驚失色倒退一步，之后，他慢慢地環(huán)視著我們，帶著一種陰暗、邪惡的表情說道：“我明白了!你們幾個都串通好了!可我知道誰該受譴責(zé)!是你，科波菲爾!你嫉妒我的新職位，是不是?可我知道可以用來對付你們的所有事情——比方說，我知道你父親生意上的失誤，阿格尼斯小姐;我知道你在倉庫的一段過去，科波菲爾!所以，小心點，我警告你們!”

　　‘Mr Micawber，’ I said calmly，‘please tell us what you were going to say about this man!’

　　“米考伯先生，”我平靜地說，“請你告訴我們關(guān)于這個人你要說些什么!”

　　Just then Traddles， who had disappeared a few minutes before，reappeared with Mrs Heep.Uriah had not noticed Traddles before.‘ Who are you?’ he demanded angrily.

　　正在這個時候，幾分鐘之前離開了房間的特拉德爾帶著希普太太重新出現(xiàn)了。尤賴亞在此之前沒注意到特拉德爾。“你是誰?”他憤憤地問道。

　　‘ I am a lawyer and a friend of Mr Wickfield， sir，’ said Traddles， in a businesslike way.‘ And he's asked me to carry out all his business arrangements from now on.’This came as a surprise to me as well as to Uriah.

　　“我是一名律師，威克菲爾先生的朋友，先生，”特拉德爾說道，儼然一副公事公辦的樣子，“他要求我從現(xiàn)在起處理他的一切業(yè)務(wù)往來。”這話出乎我的意料，尤賴亞也始料不及。

　　‘The old fool has been drinking too much again!’ said Uriah，looking uglier than ever.‘ You can't believe anything he says!And you've bribed my assistant，I suppose，to speak against me!’

　　“這個老渾蛋又喝多了!”尤賴亞說，顯得比以前更丑陋。“你們不要相信他說的任何一句話!我料想你是賄賂了我的助手，讓他反對我!”

　　‘ It's you who have been dishonest，’ said Traddles firmly，‘as we shall hear from Mr Micawber.’And we all looked expectantly towards that large， important-looking gentleman.He was clearly delighted to have such an interested audience，and cleared his throat several times before starting to speak.As he spoke， his voice became louder and louder with excitement， until he was almost shouting.

　　“不誠實的是你，”特拉德爾堅定地說道，“米考伯先生會講給我們聽。”我們都迫不及待地看著這位寬臉龐、大人物長相的先生。他顯然很高興擁有如此專注的聽眾，在開始說話之前清了好幾下嗓子。說的時候，他的聲音因激動而越來越大，直至幾乎成了高喊。

　　‘ Ladies and gentlemen，’he began，‘ when very poor and desperate for work， I came to Canterbury as assistant to this evil man Heep.I am sorry to say I was soon involved in all his wicked plans.I may be poor， but I can't accept his lies， his cheating， his bribes and all the rest of it. And so I've brought you here today， ladies and gentlemen， to hear me accuse Heep publicly! One， he has confused and lied to his partner so often that poor Mr Wickfield now thinks he has himself been dishonest.Two， he has sometimes copied Mr Wickfield's signature on to false documents and cheques. Three， for years he has been stealing large amounts of money from Mr Wickfield and the firm!’

　　“女士們，先生們，”他開始道，“由于貧窮，極需工作，我來到坎特伯雷城擔(dān)任這個惡魔希普的助手。我很抱歉，我很快卷入了他全部的罪惡計劃。我雖貧窮，可我不能忍受他的謊言、他的欺詐行為、他的賄賂和其他種種劣行。所以我今天把你們叫來。女士們，先生們，傾聽我對希普的公開控訴!第一，他經(jīng)常擾亂、迷惑他的合伙人，以至可憐的威克菲爾先生誤以為是他自己不誠實。第二，他有時仿造威克菲爾的簽字簽寫文件和支票。第三，幾年來他一直盜用威克菲爾先生和事務(wù)所的大量現(xiàn)金!”

　　‘ You can never prove it!’ cried Uriah wildly.

　　“你證明不了這一切!”尤賴亞瘋狂地叫道。

　　‘ I have taken copies of all the necessary documents，’said Mr Micawber confidently，‘ while working as your clerk. And just to make sure， I've given them to Mr Traddles to keep safely.’

　　“我保留了所有重要文件的副本，”米考伯先生自信地說，“在作為你的職員而工作的時候。為確鑿起見，我已把它們交由特拉德先生妥善保管。”

　　‘ Uriah，my dear boy，’cried his mother，sobbing bitterly，‘ tell them how humble you are!Say you didn't mean to hurt anyone! Say you're sorry，and arrange matters with these gentlemen!Do，dear boy!’

　　“尤賴亞，我親愛的孩子，”他母親痛哭道，“告訴他們你是多么卑謙恭順!說你無意傷害任何人!說你很抱歉，愿意和先生們協(xié)調(diào)這些事!說，親愛的孩子!”

　　‘ Mother， be quiet!’he whispered angrily.‘ Don't help my enemies!Copperfield here would have given you a hundred pounds to say what you've just said!’

　　“母親，安靜點!”他憤憤地低聲說道，“不要幫助我的敵人們!科波菲爾情愿出價100英鎊買你剛才一番話!”

　　Suddenly my aunt attacked Uriah， hitting his head with her umbrella.‘ Give me back my investments!’ she cried.‘ I thought Mr Wickfield had lost my money， and I didn't want to hurt Agnes by saying so! But now I know you've had control of the firm，and you've stolen my money…’Somehow I managed to get her away from him before she hurt him too badly.

　　突然，我姨婆對尤賴亞發(fā)起進(jìn)攻，她用傘打他的腦袋，“把我的投資還給我!”她叫道，“我以為是威克菲爾先生把錢弄丟了，我沒這么說是不想傷害阿格尼斯!而現(xiàn)在我知道是你控制了事務(wù)所，是你偷了我的錢……”在她沒來得及痛揍他之前，我設(shè)法把她拉開了。

　　Then Mrs Heep fell on her knees to all of us， begging us to forgive her dear boy， and to remember how humble he always was.

　　這時，希普太太給我們大家跪下了，乞求我們饒恕他親愛的孩子并想想他以前一慣的卑微相。

　　‘ Be silent，Mother!’ said her son. He turned to Traddles and asked unpleasantly，‘ Well? What are you asking me to do?’

　　“安靜，母親!”她兒子說。他轉(zhuǎn)向特拉德，令人不悅地問道，“怎樣?你讓我做什么?”

　　‘ Not asking， demanding， Heep. You will give us the keys to all your boxes and drawers， all your documents and cheque-books， everything in fact that belongs to the firm. You will stay in this house until we've checked all the documents.’

　　“不是讓你，而是命令你，希普。你把你所有箱子、抽屜的鑰匙，所有的文件、支票簿、以及所有屬于事務(wù)所的東西都交出來。你必須留在這所房子里直到我們核對完所有的文件。”

　　‘ And if I don't agree?’ he asked， frowning.

　　“要是我不同意呢?”他皺了皺眉，問道。

　　‘ Copperfield， perhaps you would fetch a couple of policemen. Things move slowly in the lawcourts， but in the end Mr Wickfield will get his business back， and you， Heep，will be in prison for a very long time.’

　　“科波菲爾，或許你該去叫幾個警察來。通過法庭事情處理起來要慢些，但最終威克菲爾先生會要回他的事務(wù)所，而你，希普，將要在牢里呆上很長一段。”

　　Uriah realized that he had to do what we wanted， and went to fetch the documents， with Mr Dick at his side. At the door， with his blackest， most evil expression， Heep turned and said to me，‘ I've always hated you，Copperfield!’ Then he was taken away.

　　尤賴亞意識到他必須按我們的要求去做，于是就去取文件，迪克先生跟在他身邊。走到門口，希普轉(zhuǎn)過身，帶著最陰暗、最邪惡的表情跟我說道：“我早就恨你，科波菲爾!”然后他被帶走了。

　　In the next few days Traddles and Micawber worked very hard together to put right what Uriah had done.They discovered my aunt's money and gave it back to her， and paid all the firm's debts.Mr Wickfield decided to sell his business， and retire. The Wickfields would not have much money， but at least they did not owe anything. In the end Uriah Heep and his mother left Canterbury， but we all thought he was too evil to stay out of trouble for long.

　　接下來的幾天，特拉德爾和米考伯一起辛苦工作，把尤賴亞所干一切更正過來。他們發(fā)現(xiàn)了我姨婆的那筆錢，并把錢退給了她，還付清了公司的所有債務(wù)。威克菲爾先生決定賣掉公司，然后退休。威克菲爾父女將剩不下多少錢，但至少他們不欠下什么。最后，尤賴亞·希普和他母親離開了坎特伯雷，可我們都認(rèn)為他那么惡毒，不惹禍的日子長不了。

　　My aunt had a wonderful idea for the Micawber family.‘Have you ever thought of going to live in Australia?’ she suggested.‘ It's a new country， with a lot of business opportunities.’

　　姨婆給米考伯一家出了一個極妙的主意。“你們想過移居澳大利亞嗎?”她建議道，“那是個新國家，多的是做生意的機會。”

　　Mr Micawber was very interested.‘ Something could easily turn up there，’ he agreed. My aunt generously offered to lend him the necessary money to pay for the journey， and the whole Micawber family started planning and packing immediately.

　　米考伯先生很感興趣，“那兒很容易出現(xiàn)轉(zhuǎn)機，”他贊同地說。姨婆很慷慨地提出借他一路所需的費用，于是米考伯一家上下很快就開始準(zhǔn)備，收拾行裝。

　　When I returned to London， I realized my poor Dora was much worse. She stayed upstairs all the time now， and the sitting-room seemed very quiet without my little child-wife in her usual place.One day when I was sitting with her in her room，she said lovingly，‘You know， David dear， I'm afraid I was too young.’

　　我回到倫敦，意識到可憐的朵拉病得更厲害了。她現(xiàn)在一直呆在樓上，客廳里沒有我的小童妻在她以往的位置上似乎非常安靜。一天，我在她房間坐在她身邊，她動情地說，“你知道，大衛(wèi)，親愛的，恐怕我太年輕了。”

　　‘ Don't say that，Dora!’I whispered，conscious that she was speaking of herself in the past.

　　“別這么說，朵拉!”我輕聲說道，感覺她在說自己的過去。

　　‘I was a silly little girl， David， and you know it. It's just as well that I won't live much longer.Perhaps if I lived，you'd wish you'd married someone more sensible， more practical，someone like…’ She did not finish what she was saying.

　　“我是一個傻小孩，大衛(wèi)，你是知道的。我活不長了正好?；蛟S要是我活下去，你會希望自己應(yīng)該娶一位更懂事理，更現(xiàn)實的人，就像…”她沒有接下去說完。

　　‘ But we've been so happy， Dora!’I said，trying not to cry.

　　“但我們一直那么快樂，朵拉!”我說，竭力不讓自己哭出來。

　　She took my band and kissed it.‘We have， haven't we?David， do you think if you asked Agnes， she'd come and see me? I have something particular to say to her.’

　　她握住我的手，吻了吻。“我們是快樂，不是嗎?大衛(wèi)，你覺得假如你要阿格尼斯來一趟，她會來看我嗎?我有特別的事要跟她說。”

　　‘Of course， my love， I'll write to her tonight.’

　　“當(dāng)然，我的寶貝，我今晚就給她寫信。”

　　Agnes came the next day， and went straight upstairs to see Dora.Although the doctor and my aunt had told me there was no hope that Dora would live， when I held her hand and saw her love for me in her innocent blue eyes，I could not believe she would be taken from me.But when Agnes came downstairs so calmly and silently， and said nothing，but raised her hand and pointed upwards，I knew!It was over，and I remembered only darkness for a long time afterwards.

　　第二天，阿格尼斯來了，徑直來到樓上看望朵拉。盡管醫(yī)生和姨婆都告訴過我朵拉活下來的希望很渺茫，當(dāng)我握著她的手，從她天真無邪的藍(lán)眼睛里看出她對我的愛時，我還是不相信她會離我而去。但當(dāng)阿格尼斯平靜、悄然地下樓來，一句話不說，只是抬手指了指樓上時，我明白了!一切都結(jié)束了，此后很長一段時間我的記憶里只有一片黑暗。

　　In the middle of my terrible sadness I received a message from Emily.She asked me to take a letter from her to Ham her last words to the man who had loved her so much——before she and Daniel left England for Australia. They were sailing in two weeks’ time， and the Micawbers were going on the same ship. I remembered my childish love for little Emily， and agreed to do what she asked.

　　正當(dāng)我處在萬分悲痛之中，我收到了埃米莉的便條，她要我在她和丹尼爾離開英國前往澳大利亞之前給哈姆去送一封信——她對這位曾經(jīng)是那么愛她的人所說的最后的話。他們兩周后起航，米考伯一家在同一艘輪船上。我回想起對小埃米莉那孩童般的愛，就同意了她的要求。

　　The weather was very stormy as I travelled through the night to Yarmouth.Several times the coach was almost knocked off the road by the wind and the rain. By the time we arrived in Yarmouth， most of the local people were in the streets， afraid to stay in their houses， in case the roof or the chimney blew down. Many women were crying， afraid for their husbands or brothers who were out fishing in their small boats. The sea itself， with its huge waves crashing noisily on the beach， frightened us all very much.

　　我去往雅茅斯的那晚是一個暴風(fēng)雨天氣。有幾次，風(fēng)和雨差點把馬車掀到路下。我們到達(dá)雅茅斯時，大多數(shù)當(dāng)?shù)氐娜硕寂艿浇稚?，他們害怕呆在家里，怕房頂或煙囪會被風(fēng)刮倒。許多婦女都在哭泣，擔(dān)心駕著小船出海的丈夫們或兄弟們。而大海呢，巨浪呼嘯著拍打海岸，沒有人不害怕。

　　I went to the hotel， and tried to sleep a little after my tiring journey. But the wind made so much noise that I could not sleep， and I went down to the beach again， where a lot of people were standing together， watching the waves. By now the storm had got even worse.

　　我來到旅館，準(zhǔn)備睡一會，消消旅途的勞累?？娠L(fēng)聲如此狂虐，讓我無法入睡，于是我又來到海岸邊，那里聚集了很多人，注視著海浪。此時暴風(fēng)雨更猛烈了。

　　‘ Two ships have gone down， sir!’ a local fisherman shouted to me.‘ A few miles away! We couldn't save any of the men on them! The waves were too high! And look! There's another!’

　　“已經(jīng)沉了兩艘船了，先生!”當(dāng)?shù)匾晃粷O民對我喊道，“就在幾里開外!我們無法營救船上的人!浪太高了!瞧，又有一艘船!”

　　And suddenly I gasped in horror. I could see a great ship，which had been pushed violently on to the rocks by the waves.It was in danger of falling back into the waves， or of breaking in half， at any moment. Several figures were visible on the ship ， especially one very active， curly-haired young man， who seemed to be giving orders. The crowd on the beach cried out as the ship rolled and a huge wave swept over it， carrying the men into the rushing water.In a moment the only figure we could see was the curly-haired young man， holding desperately on to the side of the ship and calling for help. What could we do ? It was certain death for any man to enter those waves.

　　突然，我驚恐地倒吸一口涼氣。我看見一艘巨輪被海浪無情地擱在了礁石上。隨時都有可能被沖回浪里，或折成兩半的危險。船上有幾個人影依晰可見，尤其是一位非?；钴S的、卷頭發(fā)的青年，看上去像是在指揮。當(dāng)輪船搖晃了幾下，一個巨浪橫掃過去，把船上的人卷入激流時，岸上的人群發(fā)出一陣叫喊。這時，我們唯一能看見的只剩那位卷頭發(fā)的青年人了，他拼命地抓著船沿呼救。我們能做什么?任何人進(jìn)入這海浪中都必死無疑。

　　Just then I saw Ham Peggotty running through the crowd to the edge of tM water. One end of a rope was tied around his waist， and the other end was held firmly be three strong men standing on the beach.

　　正在這時，我看見哈姆·辟果提沖出人群，跑向海邊。一條繩子的一端系在他的腰上，另一端由站在岸上的三個壯小伙子緊緊地拉著。

　　‘ No， Ham!’I cried，trying to hold him back.‘ Don't try to rescue that poor sailor!You'll kill yourself!’

　　“別，哈姆!”我叫道，試圖拉回他，“不用試著去救那可憐的水手!你自己會沒命的!”

　　‘ Let me go，Master David!’he replied cheerfully，shaking both my hands.‘ If God thinks it’ s time for me to die， then I'm ready! Friends，I'm going in!Give me more rope!’

　　“讓我去，大衛(wèi)少爺!”他握住我的兩個手，心甘情愿地回答，“如果上帝認(rèn)為現(xiàn)在是我的死期，那么我已經(jīng)準(zhǔn)備就緒!伙計們，我要下去了!放繩!”

　　He dived in under a great wave， and swam strongly towards the ship. In another moment he would have reached it， when a high green hill of water appeared，and the ship went down with a great crash.The people on the beach pulled on Ham's rope， and he arrived at my feet—dead. They carried him to the nearest house， and I called a doctor， but nothing could be done for him.He had been beaten to death by that great wave， and his generous heart had stopped for ever.

　　他潛入到一個巨浪底下，很有力地朝輪船游去。再有一會兒，他就要觸到輪船了，這時，一個巨大得像山一樣的綠色海浪迎面襲來，輪船被打得粉碎沉了下去。岸上的人們收回哈姆的繩索，他來到我的腳邊——死了。他們把他扛到距離最近的一所房子，我叫來了醫(yī)生，但已無濟于事。他被那一陣巨浪打死了，他的博大的心臟停止了跳動。

　　As I sat hopelessly by his bed， a fisherman who had known me when Emily and I were children， came to tell me he recognized the curly-haired sailor， whose body had been thrown out of the water by the waves. I went to see. And there on the beach where she and I had played， I saw Steerforth lying，with his handsome face on his arm. He would never smile at me or Emily again.

　　我心灰意冷地坐在他床邊，一位在我和埃米莉還小的時候就認(rèn)識我的漁夫進(jìn)來告訴我他認(rèn)出了那位卷頭發(fā)的水手，他的尸體被海浪沖上了海灘。我過去一看，在埃米莉和我過去常玩的海灘上，斯提福茲躺在那兒，胳膊枕在他那英俊的臉下面。他再也不會對我或埃米莉笑了。

　　I was surrounded by too many ghosts to return to London and my old life. I was selfishly sad that I had lost my child-wife and my childhood friend，and sometimes I felt I wanted to die.So I left England， and travelled for many months in Europe. I lived in a dark， miserable dream， with no hope or interest in my future.

　　我被太多的幽靈包圍著，我不能再回倫敦，回到我的舊生活。我只顧悲痛失去了我的童妻，失去了兒時的朋友，有時我覺得自己都想死。所以我離開了英國，到歐洲游歷了數(shù)月。我生活在黑暗、痛苦的夢境中，對未來毫無希望和興趣。

　　One evening I arrived in a village in Switzerland， and received a packet of letters that had been waiting for me.

　　一天晚上，我到達(dá)瑞士的一個小村落，收到了早已等在那兒的一捆信。

　　The first one I opened was from Agnes.She gave me no advice，but she told me simply that she trusted me to find a purpose in life，and that she would always be proud of me， and love me as a sister.

　　我首先拆開的是阿格尼斯的信，她沒給我任何建議，只簡單地告訴我，她相信我能尋找到生活的目標(biāo)，她將永遠(yuǎn)為我驕傲，并且像姐姐一樣愛我。

　　As the light died out of the sky，and I watched the colour of the snow on the mountain tops change， I felt I was waking from my unhappy dream， and I began to understand how much I loved Agnes.She had been the one who had always guided and supported me， and now I realized I needed her love for the rest of my life. Had falling in love with Dora been a mistake?We had both been very young， it is true. I had always called Agnes sister， and now perhaps I no longer had the right to ask whether her love for me was more than sisterly.

　　天空的夜色逐漸消退，我注視著山頂上的雪慢慢轉(zhuǎn)變顏色，感覺自己正從不愉快的夢境中醒來，我開始明白自己是那么地愛阿格尼斯。她才是一直引導(dǎo)我、支持我的人，現(xiàn)在我意識到我的余生需要她的愛。愛上朵拉是個錯誤嗎?我們倆都很年輕，這是事實。我一直把阿格尼斯稱做姐姐，或許現(xiàn)在我已沒資格問她對我的愛是否能超越姐弟般的愛。

　　However， I decided to return， and travelled home to England， after three years of absence.I was delighted to find that Traddles had married his Sophy， and was doing well as a lawyer. My aunt had moved back to her old Dover house， and was living happily there with Mr Dick and Peggotty. When I visited my aunt， I took the opportunity of asking her about Agnes.

　　不管怎樣，在闊別三年之后，我決定回去，回到英國的家。我欣喜地發(fā)現(xiàn)，特拉德已經(jīng)和他的索菲結(jié)婚，還干律師，干得不錯。姨婆已搬回到多佛她的老房子里，和迪克先生和辟果提愉快地生活在一起。我去看望我姨婆時，趁機打聽了一下阿格尼斯的情況。

　　‘Has she—has she any young man she'd like to marry?’ I asked as lightly as possible.

　　“她有——她有意中人了嗎?”我盡可能輕松地問道。

　　My aunt looked carefully at me as she replied，‘ I suspect she has， David. She's never mentioned it to me， but I think—I feel sure she's going to marry soon.’

　　姨婆仔細(xì)地打量著我回答：“我估計她有，大衛(wèi)。她從未跟我提起過，可我認(rèn)為——我肯定她很快就要結(jié)婚了。”

　　I was firm with myself and did not show my feelings. I borrowed a horse and rode to Canterbury to ask Agnes myself.When I saw that beautiful， gentle face again， I knew I had come home. I knew how dear she was to me， and would always be.

　　我穩(wěn)住自己不流露任何情緒。我借了一匹馬，騎到坎特伯雷當(dāng)面去問阿格尼斯。當(dāng)我再一次看著她美麗、溫柔的臉時，我感覺自己回到了家。我知道她對我有多親，而且永遠(yuǎn)那么親。

　　‘ Agnes，’I said，‘ I am so grateful to you， for making me what I am ， for helping me to be good! But I think you have a secret. Let me share it， Agnes， as your brother! Tell me whom you love!’

　　“阿格尼斯，”我說，“我是那么感激你，感謝你造就如今的我，感謝你幫助我走上正路!可我覺得你有事瞞著我，說給我聽聽，說給你的弟弟聽，阿格尼斯!告訴我你愛的是誰!”

　　Agnes turned away from me and burst into tears. Somehow these tears did not sadden me， but gave me hope.‘ My dear Agnes!Don't cry!’

　　阿格尼斯轉(zhuǎn)過身去，痛哭起來?？刹恢趺吹?，她的眼淚并不令我憂傷，反而給了我希望。“我親愛的阿格尼斯!別哭了!”

　　‘David， leave me! I can't talk about it now!’ she sobbed.

　　“大衛(wèi)，別管我!我現(xiàn)在沒法說!”她抽泣道。

　　‘ Agnes， you're dearer to me than anything in the world.Don't think I'll be jealous of any man you choose to marry. I only want you to be happy!’

　　“阿格尼斯，在這個世界上，你對我比任何人都親。別以為我會嫉妒你選擇要嫁的男人，我只想讓你快樂!”

　　She had stopped crying now and was calmer.‘ If I have a secret， David， it is—not a new one. It has been my secret—for a long time!’

　　她這時停止了哭泣，平靜多了。“要是我有什么秘密，大衛(wèi)，那也是——不是什么新的。那一直是我的秘密——保留了很長時間。”

　　I was wild with hope.‘ Not a new one’! Did she mean…?‘Dearest Agnes! Dare I hope to call you more than a sister!’She was in my arms and sobbing again， but this time with happiness.‘ I went away， Agnes， loving you!I returned home， loving you!’

　　我欣喜若狂，“不是新的”!難道她指的是……?“最親愛的阿格尼斯!我能叫你比姐姐更親的稱呼嗎!”她投進(jìn)我的懷里，又一次哭起來，但這次是出于高興。“我離開時，阿格尼斯!愛著你，我回到家時，愛著你!”

　　We held each other for some time， sure now of each other's love.

　　我們互相擁抱了一會兒，感受著對方對自己的愛。

　　‘ There is something I must tell you， David，’ she said gently，looking calmly into my face.‘I have loved you all my life!’ She added，‘ And something else—before our sweet Dora died， she asked me—can you guess—to fill the empty place in your heart.’ And Agnes laid her head on my shoulder， and cried. And I cried with her， although we were both so happy.

　　“有一件事我必須告訴你，大衛(wèi)，”她溫柔地說，并平靜地看著我的臉，“我一輩子都在愛你!”她又說道，“還有一件事——我們親愛的朵拉臨死前，她要求我——你猜猜看——填補她在你心中的空缺。”阿格尼斯把頭靠在我肩上哭起來，我也跟著哭了，盡管我們都感到幸福。

　　My story has almost come to an end. I have published several books now， and I am a well-known writer.Agnes and I have been married for twenty years， and live in perfect happiness，with our children around us. We have heard from Daniel Peggotty in Australia. He and Emily have made friends there and are happy.Mr Micawber has become an important figure in a large Australian town， and his family are quite used to living there. My aunt， Mr Dick and Peggotty are all white-haired and old now， but still very fit， and they love playing with our children whenever they can. My old friend Traddles has two sons of his own， and will soon become a judge.

　　我的故事將近尾聲。我至今已出版了好幾本書，成了一位著名的作家。阿格尼斯和我結(jié)婚已有20年，生活得幸福、美滿，而且現(xiàn)已兒女成群。我們收到了遠(yuǎn)在澳洲的丹尼爾·辟果提的消息，他和埃米莉在那兒廣交朋友，生活得很快樂。米考伯先生在澳洲一個大集鎮(zhèn)里成了一位重要人物。他一家很習(xí)慣那兒的生活。我姨婆、迪克先生和辟果提已成了白發(fā)蒼蒼的老人，但依然很健朗，他們只要一有時間就來陪我們的孩子們一起玩耍。我的老朋友特拉德爾已有兩個兒子，自己很快將升為法官。

　　When I think of my friends and family， Agnes's lovely face shines above them all. She is here， next to me， as I write， and I hope that when my life comes to its end， she will be with me in the shadows， pointing upwards to the light!

　　當(dāng)我想著我的朋友、家人時，阿格尼斯可愛的臉總閃耀在我眼前?，F(xiàn)在，她就在我身邊，陪伴我寫作。我希望等我的人生之路走到盡頭時，她能在黑暗中與我同在，為我指引光明!