牛津書蟲系列 勃朗特一家的故事 02 Cowan Bridge School

2 考恩橋?qū)W校

I was born in a small house in Ireland.There were only two rooms in our house，and I had nine brothers and sisters.My parents were very poor.We had no money，and only a small farm.But we did have a church near us， and that church had a school.

我生于愛爾蘭的一座小房子里。家里只有兩個房間，我有9個兄弟姐妹。父親很窮，我們沒有錢，只有一個小農(nóng)常附近有個教堂，那個教堂有一所學校。

That school gave me my one chance of success.I worked very hard there，and when I was sixteen，I became a teacher.Then I went to St John's College，Cambridge，to study some more.I became a curate.When I married，I was able to get a good job and a house for my family.I got all that because I worked so hard at school.

這所學校賦予了我一個成功的機會。我非常努力，16歲時，我成了一名教師，后來我去劍橋的圣約翰學院深造。我成了副牧師。等到我成家的時候，我得到了一份好工作和一座房子。這一切得益于我在學校的努力。

I wanted my children to go to the best school that I could find.Cowan Bridge School was a school for the daughters of churchmen.It belonged to a churchman—Mr Wilson.He was a good man，I thought.I liked the school，and it was not too expensive.So，in July 1824，I took Maria and Elizabeth there.In September，I took Charlotte and，in November，Emily as well.Emily was just six then，and Charlotte was eight.

我要我的孩子上我能找到的最好的學校。考恩橋?qū)W校是專為牧師的女兒們開辦的。它屬于一個牧師——威爾遜先生。我認為他是個好人。我喜歡這所學校，而且它也不太貴。在1842年7月，我把瑪麗亞和伊麗莎白送到了那里。9月份，我又把夏洛蒂送到那兒。11月份又送去了愛米麗。愛米麗當時只有6歲，夏洛蒂8歲。

I remember how quiet the house was that autumn.In the evenings I taught my son，Branwell，and my wife's sister looked after the youngest child，Anne.I often thought about the girls.My eldest，Maria，was a good，clever girl—I thought she must be the best pupil in the school.I waited for her letters，and wondered what new things she was learning.

我記得那年秋天，家里變得非常安靜。晚上我教兒子布蘭韋爾念書;我妻子的姐姐照料最小的孩子安妮。我時常惦記我的女兒們。我的大女兒瑪麗亞是個善良聰明的女孩，我相信她一定是學校中最好的學生。我等著她的來信，猜想著她又學到了什么新的東西。

She did tell me some things in her letters，but not enough.She told me she liked the schoolwork，and I was pleased.But she did not tell me about the food，or the cold，or the unkind teachers.Charlotte told me those things，much later.I know Maria did not tell me that the food was often burnt and uneat-able，or that they could not sleep because the beds were too cold.She did not tell me that the poor hungry children had to wash with ice in the morning，and walk through wet snow to sit for two hours with icy feet in a cold church on Sundays. She did not tell me that many of the children at the school were ill.

在信中她的確給我講了一些事，但還不夠多。她只告訴我她喜歡學校的功課，我很高興。但她沒講起學校的飲食、寒冷和嚴厲的教師。夏洛蒂后來告訴我了，但那已是很久以后的事了。我知道瑪麗亞沒有告訴我食物經(jīng)常燒焦，難以下咽;床鋪冰冷得令人無法入睡。她沒有告訴我可憐的孩子們經(jīng)常一大早餓著肚子，卻不得不用冰水漱洗，然后踏著積雪去教堂，星期天在冰冷的教堂里坐上兩個鐘頭，雙腳凍得冰涼。她也沒有告訴我學校有許多孩子都生病了。

You didn't tell me that， did you，Maria?Did you?Or did you try to write something，and stop because you were afraid of the teachers?You were a good，brave child，and I was so proud of you，so pleased because you were at school.I wanted you to learn everything;I didn't want you to be poor like my sisters.God help me，I thought you were happy at Cowan Bridge School!

瑪麗亞，你沒有告訴我這些，是嗎?或許你試著寫可又停了筆，因為你害怕老師知道。你是個善良聰明的孩子，我那么地以你為榮，為你在學校念書而高興。我希望你學會所有的東西;我不想你像我的姐妹們那么窮困一生。上帝，幫幫我，我以為你在考恩橋?qū)W校是快活的呀!

There were no Christmas holidays at the school，and it was too difficult to travel over the cold，windy hills to visit my little girls.So I sat at home here in Haworth，with Aunt Branwell，my son，and the little girl，Anne.Outside，the wind blew snow over the gravestones，and there was ice on our windows.

圣誕節(jié)學校也不放假，對我來說，要爬過寒風呼嘯的山巒去看我的女兒們太困難了。所以，我和布蘭韋爾姨媽、兒子和小女兒安妮留在霍沃斯的家中。屋外，寒風把雪卷到墓碑上空，窗戶上都結(jié)了冰。

On Christmas Day little Anne looked lonely.She asked me about her sisters.

圣誕節(jié)那天小安妮顯得很孤單。她向我問起姐姐們。

'Don't worry，my dear，'I said.'They are happy，with the other girls at school.You shall go to Cowan Bridge，too，when you are older.'

“別擔心，親愛的。”我說，“她們和其他孩子在學校里很快活。你長大了也要去考恩橋?qū)W校。”

I remember how strangely she looked at me then.She was only four，and very pretty.She smiled at me，but her face went very white，and her hands started to shake.I don't know why.I thought she was cold，and I put some more wood on the fire.Then Aunt Branwell read her a story from the Bible，and I for-got about it.

我記得她聽了以后那么奇怪地看著我，她只有4歲，非常漂亮。她沖我笑了笑，可是臉卻變得非常蒼白，雙手也開始顫抖起來。我不知道是怎么回事。我以為她冷，就往火里加了些木頭。然后布蘭韋爾姨媽給她念圣經(jīng)里的一個故事，我就把這事忘了。

In February a letter came.It was in an adult's handwriting，not Maria' Many children in the school have been ill，and your daughter Maria...

2月份時來了一封信，不是瑪麗亞寫的，而是一個成年人的筆跡。“親愛的勃朗特先生，”上面寫道，“恐怕有個壞消息要通知您。學校里有很多孩子都病了，您的女兒瑪麗亞……”

My hand began to shake badly，and I dropped the letter on the floor.As I picked it up，I could see only one word—dead ...If your daughter Maria does not come home soon，she will be dead.

我的手劇烈地哆嗦起來，信紙滑落到地板上。我撿起來，只看見一個字——“死……如果您的女兒瑪麗亞不趕快回家的話，她會死的。”

I went over the hills to bring her back.My Maria was in a small bed in a cold room upstairs，coughing badly.Elizabeth and Charlotte and Emily stood beside her，waiting for me.They looked so sad and ill and frightened.I remember the big eyes in their small white faces.But I did not bring them home then;the school doctor said it was not necessary. So I took Maria home across the cold，windy moors to Haworth.I sat be-side her in the coach and held her hand all the way.I remem-ber how cold her hand was in mine.Thin cold fingers，that did not move at all.

我翻山越嶺去接她回家。我的小瑪麗亞躺在樓上一間冰冷房間的小床上，劇烈地咳嗽著。伊麗莎白、夏洛蒂和愛米麗站在床邊等著我。她們看上去好像病了，又傷心又驚恐不安。我記得她們蒼白的小臉上大大的眼睛!但是我沒有把她們也接回家;學校的醫(yī)生說用不著。于是我只帶著瑪麗亞穿過寒風呼嘯的荒野回到霍沃斯。一路上我在馬車里坐在她身旁，握著她的手。我還記得她的手在我手心里是多么的冰涼埃手指又細又涼，一動也不動。

It was too late to save her.She lay in bed upstairs for nearly three months，but she was too ill to eat.Her poor face was white，I remember，and it seemed thin and small like a dead child's.Only her eyes looked alive—big dark eyes in a thin white face.'Don't cry，father，'she said to me once.' I shall be with mother soon，you know.And with God.'

要挽救她的生命還是太晚了。她在樓上的床上躺了近三個月，病得不能吃東西。我記得她那蒼白的小臉看上去那么瘦小，像個死孩子一樣。只有眼睛看上去還是活生生的——瘦削、蒼白的臉上大大的黑眼睛。“別哭，爸爸。”有一次她對我說，“你知道，我很快就要和媽媽在一起了。和上帝在一起。”

I buried Maria beside her mother，and a month later I buried Elizabeth there，too.She became ill at school，and a woman from the school brought her home.I brought Charlotte and Emily home two weeks later.They were here when Elizabeth died.Her body lay all night in a wooden box on the table，and her little sisters and brother kissed her before she was buried.

我把瑪麗亞埋在她媽媽的旁邊。1個月以后我又掩埋了伊麗莎白，她在學校生了病，被學校的一個女人送回了家。兩周后我把夏洛蒂和愛米麗接了回來。伊麗莎白死時她們都在家。她的尸體在桌上的木盒里放了整夜，下葬前她的小妹妹們和小弟弟親吻了她。

I had wanted so much for these two girls，and now I had nothing.I stood in the church，and looked at the summer flow-ers I had put on their grave.I remembered how my wife had held the girls in her arms，and how she had smiled at me when we looked at them.'They have come back to you now，Maria，'I said.'I am sorry.I am so sorry，my love.'

我曾在這兩個女孩子身上寄托了那么多希望，而現(xiàn)在我什么也沒有了。我站在教堂里看著我放在她們墳上的花兒。我還記得我妻子如何把她們摟在懷里，記得當我看著她們時，她們是如何地向我微笑著。“她們回到你身邊了，瑪麗亞。”我說，“對不起，真對不起，親愛的。”