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阿道夫，带汤姆下楼去，你可要留神，记住刚才我给你交待的话。"圣克莱尔喊道。 Adolph tripped gracefully forward, and Tom, with lumbering tread, went after. 阿道夫风度优雅，步伐轻快地走在前头，汤姆拖着深重的步子跟在后面。 "He's a perfect behemoth!" said Marie." 他简直就是个大怪物。"玛丽说道。 "Come, now, Marie," said St. Clare, seating himself on a stool beside her sofa, "be gracious, and say something pretty to a fellow."" 行啦，玛丽，"圣克莱尔在她的沙发旁的凳子上坐了下来，"客气点儿，说点好听的给我吧。" "You've been gone a fortnight beyond the time," said the lady, pouting." 你在外面多呆了近半个月。"玛丽嘟着个嘴说道。 
可我写信说明了原因呀。" "Such a short, cold letter!" said the lady." 你的信又短又冷淡！" "Dear me! the mail was just going, and it had to be that or nothing."" 饶了我吧。我那天急着发信，所以只能那么短，要不然就来不及发了。" "That's just the way, always," said the lady; "always something to make your journeys long, and letters short."" 你从来就是这样。一出门就总会有事把你耽搁下来，信也从来不写长。" "See here, now," he added, drawing an elegant velvet case out of his pocket, and opening it, "here's a present I got for you in New York."" 看看这个吧，"他说着，从口袋里拿出一只精致的丝绒面盒子，把它打开，"这是我在纽约为你定的礼物。" 
这是张早期照片。照片上，伊娃和父亲手挽手坐着，色泽清晰、柔和，好似雕像一般。 Marie looked at it with a dissatisfied air. 玛丽瞟了相片一眼，似乎并不满意。 "What made you sit in such an awkward position?" she said." 你的坐相怎么这么难看。" "Well, the position may be a matter of opinion; but what do you think of the likeness?"" 坐相怎么了，各人有各人的看法。你看照得到底像不像？" "If you don't think anything of my opinion in one case, I suppose you wouldn't in another," said the lady, shutting the daguerreotype." 如果你不考虑这点意见，别的就不用说了。"她说着就关上了盒子。 
真该死！"圣克莱尔暗暗说道，可嘴里却大声说："看看吧，玛丽，你说像不像嘛，别瞎说，啊！" "It's very inconsiderate of you, St. Clare," said the lady, "to insist on my talking and looking at things. You know I've been lying all day with the sick-headache; and there's been such a tumult made ever since you came, I'm half dead."" 圣克莱尔，你不会体贴人，你非得让我说话看东西吗？头痛把我弄得成天躺在床上，你知道吗？你回来以后闹哄哄的，简直快把我吵死了。" "You're subject to the sick-headache, ma'am!" said Miss Ophelia, suddenly rising from the depths of the large arm-chair, where she had sat quietly, taking an inventory of the furniture, and calculating its expense." 你有呕吐性头痛吗，太太？"奥菲利亚小姐突然从一张大椅子上站起来。这半天，她一直在那儿安静地坐着，打量着屋子里的家具，盘算着它们大概值多少钱。 "Yes, I'm a perfect martyr to it," said the lady." 可不是吗，简直难受死了。" "Juniper-berry tea is good for sick-headache," said Miss Ophelia; "at least, Auguste, Deacon Abraham Perry's wife, used to say so; and she was a great nurse."" 用杜松果熬茶是个有效的方法。反正，以前亚伯拉罕·佩里执事太太这么说过，她可是个有名的护士。" 
等我们湖边花园里的杜松果熟了，我让人采些来给你熬茶喝，"圣克莱尔神情沮丧地伸手拉了拉铃。"姐姐，你也一定想回房去休息了。走了这么远的路，也该歇歇了。阿道夫，"他喊道，"把妈咪叫来。"不一会儿，妈咪来了。她就是伊娃抱住热烈拥吻的那个混血女人。她仪态端庄，衣着整洁，头上高高地裹着红黄两色的头巾，那是伊娃送给她的礼物，并亲手为她缠好。"妈咪，"圣克莱尔说，"我把这位小姐交给你照顾了。她累了，想休息了。你带她到她的房间去，把她安排得舒舒服服的。"随后，奥菲利亚跟着妈咪走出了屋子。 CHAPTER XVI 第十六章 Tom's Mistress and Her Opinions 汤姆的女主人和她的见解 "And now, Marie," said St. Clare, "your golden days are dawning. Here is our practical, business-like New England cousin, who will take the whole budget of cares off your shoulders, and give you time to refresh yourself, and grow young and handsome. The ceremony of delivering the keys had better come off forthwith."" 玛丽，我看现在是你该休息，享福的时候了。我们这位来自新英格兰的堂姐能干，有经验，她一定能替你挑起家务的重担。这样，你就会有足够的时间来养身体，重新恢复你的青春和美貌。我看现在就举行钥匙移交仪式吧。"在奥菲利亚小姐来到圣克莱尔家几天之后，有一天吃早饭的时候，圣克莱尔在餐桌上这样对大家说道。 This remark was made at the breakfast-table, a few mornings after Miss Ophelia had arrived."I'm sure she's welcome," said Marie, leaning her head languidly on her hand. "I think she'll find one thing, if she does, and that is, that it's we mistresses that are the slaves, down here." 玛丽无精打采地将一只手支在脑袋下面，说："那是最好不过了，我相信在她管理这个家后，一定会发现在南方，当奴隶的不是别人，正是我们这些主人。" 
这是毫无疑问的，她不仅会发现这点，还会发现其它许多令人受益匪浅的道理。"圣克莱尔说。 "Talk about our keeping slaves, as if we did it for our _convenience_," said Marie. "I'm sure, if we consulted _that_, we might let them all go at once."" 表面上看来，我们蓄养奴隶，仿佛是为了我们自己享福，可实际上，我们如果真为了享福，完全可以把他们全部放走。"玛丽说。 Evangeline fixed her large, serious eyes on her mother's face, with an earnest and perplexed expression, and said, simply, "What do you keep them for, mamma?" 伊娃用她那两只大大的眼睛，带着真诚和困惑的神情看着玛丽，天真无邪地问道："妈妈，那你究竟为了什么原因而蓄养奴隶呢？" "I don't know, I'm sure, except for a plague; they are the plague of my life. I believe that more of my ill health is caused by them than by any one thing; and ours, I know, are the very worst that ever anybody was plagued with."" 除了给自己找麻烦，我不清楚到底是为了什么。我最厌烦的就是这帮黑奴。我相信他们是把我的身体状况弄得如此糟糕的主要原因，而且，我们家的奴隶真是最糟糕的。" "O, come, Marie, you've got the blues, this morning," said St. Clare. "You know 't isn't so. There's Mammy, the best creature living,--what could you do without her?"" 得了吧，玛丽。你明知道实际情况并不是你说的那样。你今天早上的心情太不好了。咱们不说别人，就说妈咪吧，她简直是个再好不过的人了--如果没有她，你怎么过日子呀？"圣克莱尔说 
。"我承认妈咪是我遇到的最好的一个黑奴。可是现在，她也变得自私自利起来，而且自私得极为可怕。这是黑人的一种通病。" "Selfishness _is_ a dreadful fault," said St. Clare, gravely." 自私自利的确是种非常可怕的病。"圣克莱尔一脸严肃地说。 "Well, now, there's Mammy," said Marie, "I think it's selfish of her to sleep so sound nights; she knows I need little attentions almost every hour, when my worst turns are on, and yet she's so hard to wake. I absolutely am worse, this very morning, for the efforts I had to make to wake her last night."" 妈咪晚上睡得不知道有多沉，这难道不是自私自利吗？她明明知道我身体不好，一时一刻也离不开人，可她却睡得不省人事，怎么叫她也醒不了。昨晚，我费了九牛二虎之力才把她给叫醒，所以今天早上起来，我觉得更难受了。" "Hasn't she sat up with you a good many nights, lately, mamma?" said Eva." 妈咪不是陪了你好几个晚上了吗，妈妈？"伊娃问道。 "How should you know that?" said Marie, sharply; "she's been complaining, I suppose."" 你怎么知道的？"玛丽追问道，"一定是她向你抱怨了吧？" 
她没有向我抱怨什么。她只是跟我说你夜里很难受，一连好几个晚上都是这样。" "Why don't you let Jane or Rosa take her place, a night or two," said St. Clare, "and let her rest?"" 你为什么不叫简或罗莎来替换妈咪照顾你，也好让妈咪休息一下呀。"圣克莱尔说。
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