| 目 录 上一节 下一节 
就在这个时候，他的表兄来领取他的财产，那个该死的恶棍，他告诉我说他已经买下了我和孩子们，他把契据摊开在我的面前。我恨透他了，我不停地在上帝面前咒骂；即使我死，我也不愿跟他。 "`Just as you please,' said he; `but, if you don't behave reasonably, I'll sell both the children, where you shall never see them again.' He told me that he always had meant to have me, from the first time he saw me; and that he had drawn Henry on, and got him in debt, on purpose to make him willing to sell me. That he got him in love with another woman; and that I might know, after all that, that he should not give up for a few airs and tears, and things of that sort."' 你自己决定吧！'他接着说，'如果你不想要我把你的孩子卖掉的话，你就乖乖地听我的话，我要你做什么你就得做什么，否则，你将永远都见不到你那可爱的孩子们。'他还得意地告诉我说，在他见我第一面的时候，便想霸占我。是他故意引亨利误入歧途，染上赌瘾，欠一屁股债，最后让他心甘情愿地把我们卖掉。他还告诉我，他又想尽一切办法使亨利爱上了那位小姐，他既然费了这么大劲，做了那么多事，就不会轻言放弃我让他心血白费，他更不会因为我耍要性子，掉几滴眼泪而心慈手软的。 "I gave up, for my hands were tied. He had my children;--whenever I resisted his will anywhere, he would talk about selling them, and he made me as submissive as he desired. O, what a life it was! to live with my heart breaking, every day,--to keep on, on, on, loving, when it was only misery; and to be bound, body and soul, to one I hated. I used to love to read to Henry, to play to him, to waltz with him, and sing to him; but everything I did for this one was a perfect drag,--yet I was afraid to refuse anything. He was very imperious, and harsh to the children. Elise was a timid little thing; but Henry was bold and high-spirited, like his father, and he had never been brought under, in the least, by any one. He was always finding fault, and quarrelling with him; and I used to live in daily fear and dread. I tried to make the child respectful;--I tried to keep them apart, for I held on to those children like death; but it did no good. _He sold both those children_. He took me to ride, one day, and when I came home, they were nowhere to be found! He told me he had sold them; he showed me the money, the price of their blood. Then it seemed as if all good forsook me. I raved and cursed,--cursed God and man; and, for a while, I believe, he really was afraid of me. But he didn't give up so. He told me that my children were sold, but whether I ever saw their faces again, depended on him; and that, if I wasn't quiet, they should smart for it. Well, you can do anything with a woman, when you've got her children. He made me submit; he made me be peaceable; he flattered me with hopes that, perhaps, he would buy them back; and so things went on, a week or two. One day, I was out walking, and passed by the calaboose; I saw a crowd about the gate, and heard a child's voice,--and suddenly my Henry broke away from two or three men who were holding the poor boy screamed and looked into my face, and held on to me, until, in tearing him off, they tore the skirt of my dress half away; and they carried him in, screaming `Mother! mother! mother!' There was one man stood there seemed to pity me. I offered him all the money I had, if he'd only interfere. He shook his head, and said that the boy had been impudent and disobedient, ever since he bought him; that he was going to break him in, once for all. I turned and ran; and every step of the way, I thought that I heard him scream. I got into the house; ran, all out of breath, to the parlor, where I found Butler. I told him, and begged him to go and interfere. He only laughed, and told me the boy had got his deserts. He'd got to be broken in,--the sooner the better; `what did I expect?' he asked." 我认输了，我佩服他的聪明，要知道我的孩子就是我的命根子呀！除了他们，我什么都没有了，我不能再失去他们。他使出最狠毒的杀手锏，警告我：只要我稍有反抗，他就要卖掉我的孩子们，我怕了，最后我只好屈服。老天！那时我过着什么样的生活啊！随着日子一天天地滑过，我的心都碎了，我恨束缚我身体和灵魂的人，我没有解救自己的办法。所以我不得不去接受我的悲哀和不幸。想起以前和亨利生活的时候，我总是喜欢朗诵诗书给他听，他喜欢听我读书，弹琴，唱歌，也喜欢同我跳舞。但我为这个人所做的一切事情都是我不情愿的。那是一种惩罚、一种累赘、一种沉重的心理负担，可我还是不得不忍让。我害怕他对我的孩子们专横残暴。小亨利像他爸爸一样，从来没有向任何人屈服过，他是个勇敢高傲的小家伙，而埃利斯则是个敏感羞怯的小东西。那该杀的恶棍老是喜欢为难小亨利，然后再跟他闹。这样使得我每天都在忧心和担心中度过。我劝小亨利对他忍让一些，尊敬他一些，也试着让他们保持一段距离，我太害怕失去孩子们了！但我所做的一切根本无济于事，有一天，他终于把两个孩子都卖掉了。我记得那天，他非要领我去坐马车到野外兜风，在我回家之后，才知道孩子们没了。他心安理得地告诉我说，他把两个孩子卖掉了。他甚至还神气地说，卖掉了我的孩子，他因此而得到了一笔可观的收入。那是用我的骨肉换来的钱！当时我像一个发疯的女人对他破口大骂，我用最恶毒的话去诅咒他。他有好一阵子的确挺怕我，可他并没有因此而对我好一点。他说：孩子们是被他卖掉了，不错，他卖掉了他们，但还可能让我有机会同他们见面，只要他高兴。要是我再继续咧咧不休地吵闹，不平静下来，他们就会因此而遭殃！唉！我的孩子掌握在他的掌中，我不得不听任他的任何企图和摆布。他逼得我整天一声不吭地对他唯命是从，他还花言巧语地骗我，只要他高兴说不准哪天就把孩子们赎回来，我期待着。有一天，我到外面散步，途中路过一家拘留所。我看见一大堆人堵在门口，还听见一个小孩的哭叫声。突然，我可怜的小亨利挣脱了那几个人的魔掌，飞奔着向我跑来，他拼命地抓住我的衣服。那几个人恶狠狠地跑过来，对他叫骂着。其中有一个人（我一辈子都不会忘掉那张脸），他朝小亨利怒吼道，"你别天真得想逃跑，我要把你带到拘留所去，让他们好好地惩罚你一顿，最好叫你这一辈子想忘都忘不了。"我害怕了，我苦苦地哀求他们放了小亨利，他们却哄堂大笑。我那可怜的孩子惊惶地尖叫着，他盯着我的脸，拼命地抓住我的衣服不放。我没有办法解救他，他们为了把他带走，几乎撕烂了我的裙子，最终，他们如愿以偿地把他带去了拘留所，我可怜的小亨利边走边悲惨的叫着'妈！妈！妈！你要救救我呀！'有一位老人站在旁边，看起来似乎很同情我们。我向他求助，只要他愿意帮助我的小亨利，我可以把身上所有值钱的东西全部给他。他不停地摇头，听那人说，自从主人买下这个小男孩，他一直都不听话，很无礼。他要让那男孩吃点苦头，让他以后再不敢那样。我飞奔似地跑回了家，一路上只要我每向前踏出一步，就好像听见了小亨利的哭喊声。我气喘吁吁地跑回了家，冲进客厅里，在客厅里我找到了巴特勒，我把自己亲眼见到的事情经过告诉了他，求他去救救小亨利。他却奸笑道说：'那孩子是应该被教训教训了，他罪有应得，早就该被教训了。'他竟然还对我说：'我没骗你吧！'" "It seemed to me something in my head snapped, at that moment. I felt dizzy and furious. I remember seeing a great sharp bowie-knife on the table; I remember something about catching it, and flying upon him; and then all grew dark, and I didn't know any more,--not for days and days." 当时我的脑里一片空白，只觉得天旋地转，我气炸了。我依稀记得桌上放着把猪刀，在不太清醒的状态下，我有了勇气，拿起那把长猎刀向巴特勒刺去。再后来，我眼睛一黑，便失去了知觉…… "When I came to myself, I was in a nice room,--but not mine. An old black woman tended me; and a doctor came to see me, and there was a great deal of care taken of me. After a while, I found that he had gone away, and left me at this house to be sold; and that's why they took such pains with me." 我晕过去了，很多天后，当我再次苏醒过来的时候，我发现自己躺在一间舒适雅致的屋子里，那不是我的房问。有一个陌生的黑人老太太小心地照料着我，她还请了位大夫常常来观察我的病情，给我很多关怀。到后来，我才知道究竟是怎么回事，那个恶棍已经永远离开了这幢房子，我是唯一留在这幢即将出售房子中的人，所谓她们为什么要对我无微不至的关怀无非是因为这个原因。 
我根本就没指望自己能够生活得健健康康，相反我总希望自己能够永远这么躺着，有人照顾。但希望终归是希望，我根本没法阻止事实的到来，我的烧渐渐地退了，身子也开始好转，最后我终于可以下床了。他们便天天催着我打扮自己，时而有一些绅士模样的先生来拜访，抽着大烟用不怀好意的目光打量我，向我提一些问题，争讨我的身价。我显得是那么地悲伤无助，几乎从不开口说话。他们为此都不愿意收留我。后来就有人恐吓我，说我如果不让人家看起来精神一点，友善一点，给人家好感一点，他们就会用鞭子惩罚我。我气馁了，终于有一天，一位川斯图尔特的绅士先生看上了我，他似乎洞悉我的心事渐渐地对我有了感情。后来，他老是三番五次地来看我，他的诚意打动了我，我相信他是个好人，便把有关自己的一切情况都告诉了他。紧接着，他就买下了我，并发誓一定要帮我赎回我那可怜的孩子们，他四处打听，终于找到了小亨利的主人家，但人家告诉他，小亨利已经离开了那家旅馆被卖到了珍珠河畔的一个庄园里。这就是关于小亨利的最后一个消息，再后来他又寻找到我的女儿，他愿意赎回小埃利斯，但那家老太太不肯，即使用一笔钱来交换，她也不肯。巴特勒听到这个消息后不怀好意地托人捎话给我，说我今生都别再指望要见到她。令我唯一感到欣慰的是：川斯图尔特对我特别好，作为一位船长，他拥有一座令人羡慕的大庄园，庄园雅致漂亮。我和他生活在那儿，那一年，我怀上了他的孩子。噢！那个未出世的小家伙我是多么地喜欢他呀！他肯定像极了我可爱的小亨利，但是这一切并没有阻止我去放弃他的决心。的确，我在心里早就下了决心，我不能再让我的又一个孩子来到世上受罪！等他出生才两个星期的时候，我把他心疼地搂在怀里，一边吻着他，一边对他流泪。然后，我喂了他鸦片酊，紧紧地把他搂在怀里，我可爱的孩子在睡梦中结束了生命。当时我是多么地悲伤啊！我每天以泪洗面，我后悔一时错念杀死了他，这样说估计人们不会相信。但现在我并不认为它是一件错事，我自豪自己的决定，至少它使我的孩子逃离了人世的苦难和不幸，我无法令他幸福，除了赐他死亡之外我还能给他什么好东西呢？后来，霍乱蔓延开了，川斯图尔特船长并没有逃脱这次恶运，他离我走了。我不明白自己已经走到了死亡的边沿，为什么还依旧幸存呢？！不久之后，我继续变成了一种商品，从一个人的手里被卖到了另外一个人的手里。接下来的日子里，我美丽的容颜终于被无情的岁月磨损了，腐蚀了，脸上起了好多皱纹还患了可怕的寒热病。到最后，这个恶棍买下了我，我被迫来到了这个鬼地方。" The woman stopped. She had hurried on through her story, with a wild, passionate utterance; sometimes seeming to address it to Tom, and sometimes speaking as in a soliloquy. So vehement and overpowering was the force with which she spoke, that, for a season, Tom was beguiled even from the pain of his wounds, and, raising himself on one elbow, watched her as she paced restlessly up and down, her long black hair swaying heavily about her, as she moved. 故事完了，那女人停住了她的述说。在她讲述自己不幸的遭遇时，声音时快时慢，语调沉重热切。有时候她好像在向别人诉说，有时候则好像是说给自己听。她讲的是那么地投入，那么地令人感动，汤姆完完全全地沉浸在她的故事中，完全忘记了自己身上的疼痛。他用自己的右手困难地支撑身体，眼睛一眨不眨地注视着她，只见她不停地在房间里走来走去，脑后那又长又黑的卷发随着她的移动也不停地在她背后一起一伏。
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