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这个建议很明智，但我无法迫使自己去实施。我害怕得到一个让我绝望的回答。延长疑虑就是延长希望。我也许能再见一见星光照耀下的府第。我面前还是那道踏阶--还是那片田野，那天早晨我逃离桑菲尔德，急急忙忙穿过这片田野，不顾一切，漫无目的，心烦意乱，被一种复仇的愤怒跟踪着，痛苦地折磨着。呵，我还没决定走哪条路，就己置身于这片田野之中了。我走得好快呀！有时候我那么奔跑着！我多么希望一眼就看到熟悉的林子呵，我是带着怎样的感情来欢迎我所熟悉的一棵棵树木，以及树与树之间的草地和小山呵！ At last the woods rose; the rookery clustered dark; a loud cawingbroke the morning stillness. Strange delight inspired me: on Ihastened. Another field crossed--a lane threaded--and there werethe courtyard walls--the back offices: the house itself, therookery still hid. "My first view of it shall be in front," Idetermined, "where its bold battlements will strike the eye nobly atonce, and where I can single out my master's very window: perhapshe will be standing at it--he rises early: perhaps he is nowwalking in the orchard, or on the pavement in front. Could I butsee him!--but a moment! Surely, in that case, I should not be somad as to run to him? I cannot tell--I am not certain. And if Idid--what then? God bless him! What then? Who would be hurt by myonce more tasting the life his glance can give me? I rave: perhapsat this moment he is watching the sun rise over the Pyrenees, or onthe tideless sea of the south." 树林终于出现在眼前，白嘴鸦黑压压一片，呱呱的响亮叫声打破了清晨的寂静。一种奇怪的喜悦激励着我，使我急煎煎往前赶路，穿过另一片田野--走过一条小径--看到了院墙--但后屋的下房、府搂本身、以及白嘴鸦的巢穴，依然隐而不见。"我第一眼看到的应是府第的正面，"我心里很有把握，"那里雄伟醒目的城垛会立刻扑入眼帘；那里我能认出我主人的那扇窗子，也许他会伫立窗前--他起得很早。也许他这会儿正漫步在果园里，或音前面铺筑过的路上。要是我能见见他该多好！--就是一会儿也好！当然要是那样，我总不该发狂到向他直冲过去吧？我说不上来--我不敢肯定。要是我冲上去了--那又怎么样？上帝祝福他！那又怎么样？让我回味一下他的目光所给予我的生命，又会伤害了谁呢？--我在呓语。也许此刻他在比利牛斯山或者南部风平浪的的海面上规赏着日出呢。" I had coasted along the lower wall of the orchard--turned its angle:there was a gate just there, opening into the meadow, between twostone pillars crowned by stone balls. From behind one pillar Icould peep round quietly at the full front of the mansion. Iadvanced my head with precaution, desirous to ascertain if anybedroom window-blinds were yet drawn up: battlements, windows, longfront--all from this sheltered station were at my command. 我信步朝果园的矮墙走去，在拐角处转了弯，这里有一扇门，开向草地，门两边有两根石柱，顶上有两个石球。从一根石柱后面我可以悄然四顾，看到府宅的全部正面。我小心地探出头去，很希望看个明白，是不是有的窗帘已经卷起。从这个隐蔽的地方望去，城垛、窗子和府楼长长的正面，尽收眼底。 The crows sailing overhead perhaps watched me while I took thissurvey. I wonder what they thought. They must have considered Iwas very careful and timid at first, and that gradually I grew verybold and reckless. A peep, and then a long stare; and then adeparture from my niche and a straying out into the meadow; and asudden stop full in front of the great mansion, and a protracted,hardy gaze towards it. "What affectation of diffidence was this atfirst?" they might have demanded; "what stupid regardlessness now?" 我这么观察着的时候，在头顶滑翔的乌鸦们也许正俯视着我。我不知道它们在想什么，它们一定以为起初我十分小心和胆怯，但渐渐地我变得大胆而鲁莽了。我先是窥视一下，随后久久盯着，再后是离开我躲藏的角落，不经意走进了草地，突然在府宅正面停下脚步，久久地死盯着它。"起初为什么装模做样羞羞答答？"乌鸦们也许会问，"而这会儿又为什么傻里傻气，不顾一切了？" Hear an illustration, reader. 读者呀，且听我解释。 
一位情人发现他的爱人睡在长满青苔的河岸上，他希望看一眼她漂亮的面孔而不惊醒她。他悄悄地踏上草地，注意不发出一点声响，他停下脚步--想象她翻了个身。他往后退去，千方百计要不让她看到。四周万籁俱寂。他再次往前走去，向她低下头去。她的脸上盖着一块轻纱。他揭开面纱，身子弯得更低了。这会儿他的眼睛期待着看到这个美人儿--安睡中显得热情、年青和可爱。他的第一眼多么急不可耐！但他两眼发呆了：他多么吃惊！他又何等突然，何等激烈地紧紧抱住不久之前连碰都不敢碰的这个躯体，用手指去碰它！他大声呼叫着一个名字，放下了抱着的身躯，狂乱地直愣愣瞧着它。他于是紧抱着，呼叫着，凝视着，因为他不再担心他发出的任何声音，所做的任何动作会把她惊醒。他以为他的爱人睡得很甜。但此发现她早己死去了。 I looked with timorous joy towards a stately house: I saw ablackened ruin. 我带着怯生生的喜悦朝堂皇的府第看去，我看到了一片焦黑的废墟。 No need to cower behind a gate-post, indeed!--to peep up at chamberlattices, fearing life was astir behind them! No need to listen fordoors opening--to fancy steps on the pavement or the gravel-walk!The lawn, the grounds were trodden and waste: the portal yawnedvoid. The front was, as I had once seen it in a dream, but a well-like wall, very high and very fragile-looking, perforated withpaneless windows: no roof, no battlements, no chimneys--all hadcrashed in. 没有必要躲在门柱后面畏缩不前了，真的！--没有必要偷偷地眺望房间的格子窗，而担心窗后已有动静！没有必要倾听打开房门的声音--没有必要想象铺筑过的路和砂石小径上的脚步声了，草地，庭院已踏得稀烂，一片荒芜。入口的门空张着。府第的正门象我一次梦中所见的那样，剩下了贝壳似的一堵墙，高高耸立，却岌岌可危，布满了没有玻璃的窗孔。没有屋顶，没有城垛，没有烟囱--全都倒塌了。 And there was the silence of death about it: the solitude of alonesome wild. No wonder that letters addressed to people here hadnever received an answer: as well despatch epistles to a vault in achurch aisle. The grim blackness of the stones told by what fatethe Hall had fallen--by conflagration: but how kindled? What storybelonged to this disaster? What loss, besides mortar and marble andwood-work had followed upon it? Had life been wrecked as well asproperty? If so, whose? Dreadful question: there was no one hereto answer it--not even dumb sign, mute token. 这里笼罩着死一般的沉寂和旷野的凄凉。怪不得给这儿的人写信，仿佛是送信给教堂过道上的墓穴，从来得不到答复。黑森森的石头诉说着府宅遭了什么厄运，一火灾。但又是怎么烧起来的呢？这场灾难的经过加何？除了灰浆、大理石和木制品，还有什么其他损失呢，生命是不是象财产一样遭到了毁灭？如果是，谁丧失了生命？这个可怕的问题，眼前没有谁来回答--甚至连默默的迹象、无言的标记都无法回答。 In wandering round the shattered walls and through the devastatedinterior, I gathered evidence that the calamity was not of lateoccurrence. Winter snows, I thought, had drifted through that voidarch, winter rains beaten in at those hollow casements; for, amidstthe drenched piles of rubbish, spring had cherished vegetation:grass and weed grew here and there between the stones and fallenrafters. And oh! where meantime was the hapless owner of thiswreck? In what land? Under what auspices? My eye involuntarilywandered to the grey church tower near the gates, and I asked, "Ishe with Damer de Rochester, sharing the shelter of his narrow marblehouse?" 我徘徊在断垣颓壁之间，穿行于残破的府宅内层之中，获得了迹象，表明这场灾难不是最近发生的。我想，冬雪曾经飘入空空的拱门，冬雨打在没有玻璃的窗户上。在一堆堆湿透了的垃圾中，春意催发了草木，乱石堆中和断梁之间，处处长出了野草。呵！这片废墟的主人又在哪里？他在哪个国度？在谁的保护之下？我的目光不由自主地飘向了大门边灰色的教堂塔楼，我问道，"难道他已随戴默尔.德.罗切斯特而去，共住在狭窄的大理石房子里？" 
这些问题都得找到答案。而除了旅店，别处是找不到的。于是不久我便返回那里。老板亲自把早餐端到客厅里来，我请他关了门，坐下来。我有些问题要问他，但待他答应之后，我却不知道从何开始了。我对可能得到的回答怀着一种恐俱感，然而刚才看到的那番荒凉景象，为一个悲惨的故事作好了一定的准备。老板看上去是位体面的中年人。 "You know Thornfield Hall, of course?" I managed to say at last." 你当然知道桑菲尔德府了？"我终于启齿了。 "Yes, ma'am; I lived there once."" 是的，小姐，我以前在那里住过。" "Did you?" Not in my time, I thought: you are a stranger to me." 是吗？"不是我在的时候，我想。我觉得他很陌生。 "I was the late Mr. Rochester's butler," he added." 我是已故的罗切斯特先生的管家，"他补充道。 
已故的！我觉得我避之不迭的打击重重地落到我头上了。 "The late!" gasped. "Is he dead?"" 已故的！"我透不过气来了。"他死了？" "I mean the present gentleman, Mr. Edward's father," he explained.I breathed again: my blood resumed its flow. Fully assured bythese words that Mr. Edward--MY Mr. Rochester (God bless him,wherever he was!)--was at least alive: was, in short, "the presentgentleman." Gladdening words! It seemed I could hear all that wasto come--whatever the disclosures might be--with comparativetranquillity. Since he was not in the grave, I could bear, Ithought, to learn that he was at the Antipodes." 我说的是现在的老爷，爱德华先生的父亲，"他解释说。我又喘过气来了，我的血液也继续流动。他的这番话使我确信，爱德华先生--我的罗切斯特先生（无论他在何方，愿上帝祝福他！）至少还活着，总之还是"现在的老爷"，（多让人高兴的话！）我似乎觉得，不管他会透露什么消息，我会比较平静地去倾听。我想，就是知道他在新西兰和澳大利亚，我都能忍受。 "Is Mr. Rochester living at Thornfield Hall now?" I asked, knowing,of course, what the answer would be, but yet desirous of deferringthe direct question as to where he really was." 罗切斯特先生如今还住在桑菲尔德府吗？"我问，当然知道他会怎样回答，但并不想马上就直截了当地问起他的确实住处。
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