名著·汤姆叔叔的小屋 - 第75节


目 录 上一节 下一节

  那他们的灵魂将来会怎么样呢?"

   "That isn't my affair, as I know of," said St. Clare; "I am only dealing in facts of the present life. The fact is, that the whole race are pretty generally understood to be turned over to the devil, for our benefit, in this world, however it may turn out in another!""

  这不是我能管得了的事情,我只负责管他们这辈子的事。黑人们都非常清楚自己服从了白人,他们在人世间已经人不人,鬼不鬼了,哪还管得了死后受到什么报应哪!"

   "This is perfectly horrible!" said Miss Ophelia; you ought to be ashamed of yourselves!""

  这简直太可怕了。你们真该为此而感到羞耻。"

   "I don't know as I am. We are in pretty good company, for all that," said St. Clare, "as people in the broad road generally are. Look at the high and the low, all the world over, and it's the same story,--the lower class used up, body, soul and spirit, for the good of the upper. It is so in England; it is so everywhere; and yet all Christendom stands aghast, with virtuous indignation, because we do the thing in a little different shape from what they do it.""

  我可不这么认为,因为像我这样的人还有许多。你看这个世界不就是这样吗?下等人用他们的心血和汗水供养着上等人,英国是这样,世界各地都是这样。可全世界的基督徒对我们都不能理解,十分痛恨,我想只不过因为我们的做法和他们的略微不同罢了。"

   "It isn't so in Vermont.""

  弗蒙特可不是这样子。"

  是的,我承认新英格兰和各自由州郡都比我们做得好。铃响了,好啦,表姐,还是让我们把地域偏见先放在一边,先去吃饭吧。"

   As Miss Ophelia was in the kitchen in the latter part of the afternoon, some of the sable children called out, "La, sakes! thar's Prue a coming, grunting along like she allers does."A tall, bony colored woman now entered the kitchen, bearing on her head a basket of rusks and hot rolls.

  傍晚时候,奥菲利亚小姐在厨房里听到几个黑孩子叫道:"天啦,普吕来了!她总是一副唉声叹气的样子。"只见一个身材瘦高的黑女人走进了厨房,头上顶着一篮面包干和热面包卷。

   "Ho, Prue! you've come," said Dinah."

  是你来了,普吕。"黛娜说道。

   Prue had a peculiar scowling expression of countenance, and a sullen, grumbling voice. She set down her basket, squatted herself down, and resting her elbows on her knees said,"O Lord! I wish't I 's dead!"

  普吕愁眉不展地喘着气,放下篮子,坐到地上,把胳膊肘放在膝盖上,说:"天啦,真不如死了好。"

   "Why do you wish you were dead?" said Miss Ophelia."

  为什么想死呢?"奥菲利亚小姐疑惑地问道。

  死了就一了百了,也不必受什么罪了。"那黑女人没好气地回答,眼睛仍盯着地板。

   "What need you getting drunk, then, and cutting up, Prue?" said a spruce quadroon chambermaid, dangling, as she spoke, a pair of coral ear-drops."

  谁让你成天都喝得醉醺醺的?全都是你自讨苦吃!"一个穿戴整齐的第二代混血女仆一边说,一边摆弄着她那副珊瑚耳环。

   The woman looked at her with a sour surly glance."Maybe you'll come to it, one of these yer days. I'd be glad to see you, I would; then you'll be glad of a drop, like me, to forget your misery."

  黑女人狠狠地瞪了她一眼。"早晚有一天,你也会落到我这步田地,我会有幸看到那么一天的,你也会和我一样借酒消愁。"

   "Come, Prue," said Dinah, "let's look at your rusks. Here's Missis will pay for them.""

  让我们看看你的面包干吧,这位小姐会付给你钱的。"黛娜说道。

   Miss Ophelia took out a couple of dozen.

  奥菲利亚从那篮面包干中挑出了二、三十块。

  第一层架子上面的那只破罐子里有票。杰克,你爬上去把它拿下来。"黛娜说。

   "Tickets,--what are they for?" said Miss Ophelia."

  什么票?干什么用的?"奥菲利亚小姐问道。

   "We buy tickets of her Mas'r, and she gives us bread for 'em.""

  我们从她的主人那儿买票,然后用这票来买她的面包。"

   "And they counts my money and tickets, when I gets home, to see if I 's got the change; and if I han't, they half kills me.""

  我回去后,他们就清点我的钱和票,检查对不对。如果不对,他们就会打我个半死。"

   "And serves you right," said Jane, the pert chambermaid, "if you will take their money to get drunk on. That's what she does, Missis.""

  你活该,"那个叫简的女仆傲慢地说,"谁让你拿他们的钱去喝酒。小姐,她向来就这样。"

  我不喝酒就一天也活不下去了。喝醉了就什么都忘了。"

   "You are very wicked and very foolish," said Miss Ophelia, "to steal your master's money to make yourself a brute with.""

  偷主人的钱去喝酒,醉得不成人样,我看你真是可恶之极,愚蠢之极。"奥菲利亚小姐说。

   "It's mighty likely, Missis; but I will do it,--yes, I will. O Lord! I wish I 's dead, I do,--I wish I 's dead, and out of my misery!" and slowly and stiffly the old creature rose, and got her basket on her head again; but before she went out, she looked at the quadroon girt, who still stood playing with her ear-drops."

  小姐,也许你说得对,可我还是要喝。天啦,让我死吧,死了就不会再受罪了。"那黑妇人慢慢地站起来,把篮子重新顶到头上。出门之前,她又瞪了一眼那个还在玩弄耳环的姑娘。

   "Ye think ye're mighty fine with them ar, a frolickin' and a tossin' your head, and a lookin' down on everybody. Well, never mind,--you may live to be a poor, old, cut-up crittur, like me. Hope to the Lord ye will, I do; then see if ye won't drink,--drink,--drink,--yerself into torment; and sarve ye right, too--ugh!" and, with a malignant howl, the woman left the room."

  别在那儿臭美了,把副破耳环弄来弄去,把谁都不放在眼里。哼,你迟早也会像我一样,变成个可怜的穷老婆子。希望老天有眼,让我看到你有那么一天。到时候,看你会不会喝呀,喝呀,喝到死的那一天。到那时,我看你也是活该!呸!"老妇人狠狠地骂了一通,走出了厨房。

   "Disgusting old beast!" said Adolph, who was getting his master's shaving-water. "If I was her master, I'd cut her up worse than she is.""

  该死的老东西!"正在厨房里替主人打洗脸水的阿道夫骂道,"如果我是她的主人,我会把她整得更惨!"

  黛娜说:"你不会那么残忍吧。你看她的背已经被打得连衣服都穿不上了。"

   "I think such low creatures ought not to be allowed to go round to genteel families," said Miss Jane. "What do you think, Mr. St. Clare?" she said, coquettishly tossing her head at Adolph."

  真不该让这种人到大户人家里来乱闯,"简小姐说,"圣克莱尔先生,你认为呢?"她边问边调情地对阿道夫甩了甩脑袋。

   It must be observed that, among other appropriations from his master's stock, Adolph was in the habit of adopting his name and address; and that the style under which he moved, among the colored circles of New Orleans, was that of _Mr. St. Clare_.

  这里必须说明一下,阿道夫除了随便动用主人的东西外,还习惯用主人的姓名和地址。在新奥尔良的黑人圈子里,他向来以"圣克莱尔先生"自居。

   "I'm certainly of your opinion, Miss Benoir," said Adolph."

  我当然同意你的看法,伯努瓦小姐。"阿道夫回答道。

   Benoir was the name of Marie St. Clare's family, and Jane was one of her servants.

  伯努瓦是玛丽·圣克莱尔娘家的姓,简以前是她家的女仆。

  伯努瓦小姐,我能冒昧地问你,那耳环是为了明晚的舞会而准备的吗?它简直太美了。"

   "I wonder, now, Mr. St. Clare, what the impudence of you men will come to!" said Jane, tossing her pretty head til the ear-drops twinkled again. "I shan't dance with you for a whole evening, if you go to asking me any more questions.""

  圣克莱尔先生,你们这些男人真是厚颜无耻,"简一边说,一边甩甩她的小脑袋,耳朵上的耳环摇得闪闪发光,"如果你再问我的话,我明晚绝不和你跳舞。"

   "O, you couldn't be so cruel, now! I was just dying to know whether you would appear in your pink tarletane," said Adolph."

  你不会那么狠心的。我想知道你明晚还会穿那条粉红的薄纱衣裳吗?"

   "What is it?" said Rosa, a bright, piquant little quadroon who came skipping down stairs at this moment."

  你们在谈什么呢?"罗莎这个二代混血的机灵鬼一蹦一跳地跑下楼来。

   "Why, Mr. St. Clare's so impudent!""

  圣克莱尔先生实在是太无礼了。"简说道。

目 录 上一节 下一节

八哥英语:课本 电影 阅读

扫扫二维码

手机学英语


名著·汤姆叔叔的小屋 - 第75节