名著·呼啸山庄 - 第97节


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  “你是出于非常无聊的好奇来问这话,”他插嘴,大笑一声。“可是,我要答复你的。昨天夜里我是在地狱的门槛上。今天,我望得见我的天堂了。我亲眼看到了,离开我不到三尺!现在你最好走开吧!如果你管住自己,不窥探的话,你不会看到或听到什么使你害怕的事。”

   Having swept the hearth and wiped the table, I departed; more perplexed than ever.

  扫过炉台、擦过桌子之后,我走开了,更加惶惑不安了。

   He did not quit the house again that afternoon, and no one intruded on his solitude; till, at eight o'clock, I deemed it proper, though unsummoned, to carry a candle and his supper to him. He was leaning against the ledge of an open lattice, but not looking out: his face was turned to the interior gloom. The fire had smouldered to ashes; the room was filled with the damp, mild air of the cloudy evening; and so still, that not only the murmur of the beck down Gimmerton was distinguishable, but its ripples and its gurgling over the pebbles, or through the large stones which it could not cover. I uttered an ejaculation of discontent at seeing the dismal grate, and commenced shutting the casements, one after another, till I came to his.

  那天下午他没再离开屋子,也没人打搅他的孤独,直到八点钟时,虽然我没有被召唤,我以为该给他送去一支蜡烛和他的晚饭了。 他正靠着开着的窗台边,可并没有向外望;他的脸对着屋里的黑暗。炉火已经烧成灰烬;屋子里充满了阴天晚上的潮湿温和的空气;如此静,不止是吉默吞那边流水淙淙可以很清楚地听到,就连它的涟波潺潺,以及它冲过小石子上或穿过那些它不能淹没的大石头中间的汩汩声也听得见。我一看到那阴暗的炉子便发出一声不满意的惊叫,我开始关窗子,一扇一扇地关,直到我来到他靠着的那扇窗子跟前。

   'Must I close this?' I asked, in order to rouse him; for he would not stir.

  “要不要关上这扇?”我问,为的是要唤醒他,因为他一动也不动。

   The light flashed on his features as I spoke. Oh, Mr. Lockwood, I cannot express what a terrible start I got by the momentary view! Those deep black eyes! That smile, and ghastly paleness! It appeared to me, not Mr. Heathcliff, but a goblin; and, in my terror, I let the candle bend towards the wall, and it left me in darkness.

  我说话时,烛光闪到他的面容上。啊,洛克乌德先生,我没法说出我一下子看到他时为何大吃一惊!那对深陷的黑眼睛!那种微笑和像死人一般的苍白,在我看来,那不是希刺克厉夫先生,却是一个恶鬼;我吓得拿不住蜡烛,竟歪到墙上,屋里顿时黑了。

  “好吧,关上吧,”他用平时的声音回答着,“哪,这纯粹是笨!你为什么把蜡烛横着拿呢?赶快再拿一支来。”

   I hurried out in a foolish state of dread, and said to Joseph - 'The master wishes you to take him a light and rekindle the fire.' For I dared not go in myself again just then.

  我处于一种吓呆了的状态,匆匆忙忙跑出去,跟约瑟夫说--“主人要你给他拿支蜡烛,再把炉火生起来。”因为那时我自己再也不敢进去了。

   Joseph rattled some fire into the shovel, and went: but he brought it back immediately, with the supper-tray in his other hand, explaining that Mr. Heathcliff was going to bed, and he wanted nothing to eat till morning. We heard him mount the stairs directly; he did not proceed to his ordinary chamber, but turned into that with the panelled bed: its window, as I mentioned before, is wide enough for anybody to get through; and it struck me that he plotted another midnight excursion, of which he had rather we had no suspicion.

  约瑟夫在煤斗里装了些煤,进去了,可是他立刻又回来了,另一只手端着晚餐盘子,说是希刺克厉夫先生要上床睡了,今晚不要吃什么了。我们听见他径直上楼;他没有去他平时睡的卧室,却转到有嵌板床的那间:我在前面提到过,那间卧室的窗子是宽得足够让任何人爬进爬出的,这使我忽然想到他打算再一次夜游,而不想让我们生疑。

   'Is he a ghoul or a vampire?' I mused. I had read of such hideous incarnate demons. And then I set myself to reflect how I had tended him in infancy, and watched him grow to youth, and followed him almost through his whole course; and what absurd nonsense it was to yield to that sense of horror. 'But where did he come from, the little dark thing, harboured by a good man to his bane?' muttered Superstition, as I dozed into unconsciousness. And I began, half dreaming, to weary myself with imagining some fit parentage for him; and, repeating my waking meditations, I tracked his existence over again, with grim variations; at last, picturing his death and funeral: of which, all I can remember is, being exceedingly vexed at having the task of dictating an inscription for his monument, and consulting the sexton about it; and, as he had no surname, and we could not tell his age, we were obliged to content ourselves with the single word, 'Heathcliff.' That came true: we were. If you enter the kirkyard, you'll read, on his headstone, only that, and the date of his death.

  “他是一个食尸鬼,还是一个吸血鬼呢?”我冥想着。我读过关于这类可怕的化身鬼怪的书。然后我又回想在他幼年时我曾怎样照顾他,守着他长成青年,几乎我这一辈子都是跟着他的,而现在我被这种恐怖之感所压倒是多荒谬的事啊。 “可是这个小黑东西,被一个好人庇护着,直到这个好人死去,他是从哪儿来的呢?”在我昏昏睡去的时候,迷信在咕哝着。我开始半醒半梦地想象他的父母该是怎样的人,这些想象使我自己很疲劳;而且,重回到我醒时的冥想,我把他充满悲惨遭遇的一生又追溯了一遍,最后,又想到他的去世和下葬,关于这一点,我只能记得,是为他墓碑上的刻字的事情特别烦恼,还去和看坟的人商议;因为他既没有姓,我们又说不出他的年龄,就只好刻上一个“希刺克厉夫”。这梦应验了;我们就这样作的。如果你去墓园,你可以在他的墓碑上读到只有那个字,以及他的死期。

   Dawn restored me to common sense. I rose, and went into the garden, as soon as I could see, to ascertain if there were any footmarks under his window. There were none. 'He has stayed at home,' I thought, 'and he'll be all right to-day.' I prepared breakfast for the household, as was my usual custom, but told Hareton and Catherine to get theirs ere the master came down, for he lay late. They preferred taking it out of doors, under the trees, and I set a little table to accommodate them.

  黎明使我恢复了常态。我才能瞅得见就起来了,到花园里去,想弄明白他窗下有没有足迹。没有。“他在家里,”我想,“今天他一定完全好了。” 我给全家预备早餐,这是我通常的惯例,可是告诉哈里顿和凯瑟琳不要等主人下来就先吃他们的早餐,因为他睡得迟。他们愿意在户外树下吃,我就给他们安排了一张小桌子。

  我再进来时,发现希刺克厉夫先生已在楼下了。他和约瑟夫正在谈着关于田地里的事情,他对于所讨论的事都给了清楚精确的指示,但是他说话很急促,总是不停地掉过头去,而且仍然有着同样兴奋的表情,甚至更比原来厉害些。当约瑟夫离开这间屋子时,他便坐在他平时坐的地方,我便把一杯咖啡放在他面前。他把杯子拿近些,然后把胳臂靠在桌子上,向对面墙上望着。据我猜想,是看一块固定的部分,用那闪烁不安的眼睛上上下下地看,而且带着这么强烈的兴趣,以至于他有半分钟都没喘气。

   'Come now,' I exclaimed, pushing some bread against his hand, 'eat and drink that, while it is hot: it has been waiting near an hour.'

  “好啦,”我叫,把面包推到他手边,“趁热吃点、喝点吧。 等了快一个钟头了。”

   He didn't notice me, and yet he smiled. I'd rather have seen him gnash his teeth than smile so.

  他没理会到我,可是他在微笑着。我宁可看他咬牙也不愿看这样的笑。

   'Mr. Heathcliff! master!' I cried, 'don't, for God's sake, stare as if you saw an unearthly vision.'

  “希刺克厉夫先生!主人!”我叫,“看在上帝的面上,不要这么瞪着眼,好像是你看见了鬼似的。”

   'Don't, for God's sake, shout so loud,' he replied. 'Turn round, and tell me, are we by ourselves?'

  “看在上帝面上,不要这么大声叫。”他回答。“看看四周,告诉我,是不是只有我们俩在这儿?”

  “当然,”这是我的回答,“当然只有我们俩。”

   Still, I involuntarily obeyed him, as if I was not quite sure. With a sweep of his hand he cleared a vacant space in front among the breakfast things, and leant forward to gaze more at his ease.

  可是我还是身不由己地服从了他,好像是我也没有弄明白似的。他用手一推,在面前这些早餐什物之间清出一块空地方,更自在地向前倾着身子凝视着。

   Now, I perceived he was not looking at the wall; for when I regarded him alone, it seemed exactly that he gazed at something within two yards' distance. And whatever it was, it communicated, apparently, both pleasure and pain in exquisite extremes: at least the anguished, yet raptured, expression of his countenance suggested that idea. The fancied object was not fixed, either: his eyes pursued it with unwearied diligence, and, even in speaking to me, were never weaned away. I vainly reminded him of his protracted abstinence from food: if he stirred to touch anything in compliance with my entreaties, if he stretched his hand out to get a piece of bread, his fingers clenched before they reached it, and remained on the table, forgetful of their aim.

  现在,我看出来他不是在望着墙;因为当我细看他时,真像是他在凝视着两码之内的一个什么东西。不论那是什么吧,显然它给予了极端强烈的欢乐与痛苦;至少他脸上那悲痛的,而又狂喜的表情使人有这样的想法。那幻想的东西也不是固定的;他的眼睛不倦地追寻着,甚至在跟我说话的时候,也从来不舍得移去。我提醒他说他很久没吃东西了,可也没用,即使他听了我的劝告而动弹一下去摸摸什么,即使他伸手去拿一块面包,他的手指在还没有摸到的时候就握紧了,而且就摆在桌上,忘记了它的目的。

   I sat, a model of patience, trying to attract his absorbed attention from its engrossing speculation; till he grew irritable, and got up, asking why I would not allow him to have his own time in taking his meals? and saying that on the next occasion I needn't wait: I might set the things down and go. Having uttered these words he left the house, slowly sauntered down the garden path, and disappeared through the gate.

  我坐着,像一个有耐心的典范,想把他那全神贯注的注意力从它那一心一意的冥想中牵引出来;到后来他变烦躁了,站起来,问我为什么不肯让他一个人吃饭?又说下一次我用不着侍候:我可以把东西放下就走。说了这些话,他就离开屋子,慢慢地顺着花园小径走去,出了大门不见了。

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名著·呼啸山庄 - 第97节