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就这样，疾病在罗沃德安了家，死亡成了这里的常客；围墙之内笼罩着阴郁和恐怖；房间里和过道上散发着医院的气味，香锭徒劳地挣扎着要镇住死亡的恶臭。与此同时，五月的明媚阳光从万里无云的天空，洒向陡峭的小山和美丽的林地。罗沃德的花园花儿盛开，灿烂夺目。一丈红拔地而起，高大如林，百合花已开，郁金香和玫瑰争妍斗艳，粉红色的海石竹和深红的双瓣雏菊，把小小花坛的边缘装扮得十分鲜艳。香甜的欧石南，在清晨和夜间散发着香料和苹果的气味。但这些香气扑鼻的宝贝，除了时时提供一捧香草和鲜花放进棺材里，对罗沃德的人来说已毫无用处。 But I, and the rest who continued well, enjoyed fully the beautiesof the scene and season; they let us ramble in the wood, likegipsies, from morning till night; we did what we liked, went wherewe liked: we lived better too. Mr. Brocklehurst and his familynever came near Lowood now: household matters were not scrutinisedinto; the cross housekeeper was gone, driven away by the fear ofinfection; her successor, who had been matron at the LowtonDispensary, unused to the ways of her new abode, provided withcomparative liberality. Besides, there were fewer to feed; the sickcould eat little; our breakfast-basins were better filled; whenthere was no time to prepare a regular dinner, which often happened,she would give us a large piece of cold pie, or a thick slice ofbread and cheese, and this we carried away with us to the wood,where we each chose the spot we liked best, and dined sumptuously. 不过我与其余仍然健康的人，充分享受着这景色和季节的美妙动人之处。他们让我们像吉卜赛人一样，从早到晚在林中游荡，爱干什么就干什么，爱上哪里就上哪里。我们的生活也有所改善。布罗克赫斯特先生和他的家人现在已从不靠近罗沃德，家常事也无人来有问，啤气急躁的管家己逃之夭夭，生怕受到传染。她的后任原本是洛顿诊所的护士长，并未习惯于新地方的规矩，因此给得比较大方。此外，用饭的人少了，病人又吃得不多，于是我们早饭碗里的东西也就多了一些。新管家常常没有时间准备正餐，干脆就给我们一个大冷饼，或者一厚片面包和乳酪，我们会把这些东西随身带到树林里，各人找个喜欢的地方，来享受一顿盛宴。 My favourite seat was a smooth and broad stone, rising white and dryfrom the very middle of the beck, and only to be got at by wadingthrough the water; a feat I accomplished barefoot. The stone wasjust broad enough to accommodate, comfortably, another girl and me,at that time my chosen comrade--one Mary Ann Wilson; a shrewd,observant personage, whose society I took pleasure in, partlybecause she was witty and original, and partly because she had amanner which set me at my ease. Some years older than I, she knewmore of the world, and could tell me many things I liked to hear:with her my curiosity found gratification: to my faults also shegave ample indulgence, never imposing curb or rein on anything Isaid. She had a turn for narrative, I for analysis; she liked toinform, I to question; so we got on swimmingly together, derivingmuch entertainment, if not much improvement, from our mutualintercourse. 我最喜欢坐在一块光滑的大石头上。这块石头儿立在小溪正中，又白又干燥，要淌水过河才到得那里，我每每赤了脚来完成这一壮举。这块石头正好够舒舒服服地坐上两个人，我和另一位姑娘。她是我当时选中的伙伴，名叫玛丽.安.威尔逊，这个人聪明伶俐，目光敏锐。我喜欢同她相处，一半是因为她机灵而有头脑，一半是因为她的神态使人感到无拘无束。她比我大几岁，更了解世情，能告诉我很多我乐意听的东西，满足我的好奇心。对我的缺陷她也能宽容姑息，从不对我说的什么加以干涉。她擅长叙述，我善于分析；她喜欢讲，我喜欢问，我们两个处得很融洽，就是得不到很大长进，也有不少乐趣。 And where, meantime, was Helen Burns? Why did I not spend thesesweet days of liberty with her? Had I forgotten her? or was I soworthless as to have grown tired of her pare society? Surely theMary Arm Wilson I have mentioned was inferior to my firstacquaintance: she could only tell me amusing stories, andreciprocate any racy and pungent gossip I chose to indulge in;while, if I have spoken truth of Helen, she was qualified to givethose who enjoyed the privilege of her converse a taste of farhigher things. 与此同时，海伦.彭斯哪儿去了呢？为什么我没有同她共度这些自由自在的舒心日子？是我把她忘了，还是我本人不足取，居然对她纯洁的交往感到了厌倦？当然我所提及的玛丽.安.威尔逊要逊于我的第一位相识。她只不过能给我讲些有趣的故事，回对一些我所津津乐道的辛辣活泼的闲聊。而海伦呢，要是我没有说错，她足以使有幸听她谈话的人品味到高级得多的东西。 True, reader; and I knew and felt this: and though I am a defectivebeing, with many faults and few redeeming points, yet I never tiredof Helen Burns; nor ever ceased to cherish for her a sentiment ofattachment, as strong, tender, and respectful as any that everanimated my heart. How could it be otherwise, when Helen, at alltimes and under all circumstances, evinced for me a quiet andfaithful friendship, which ill-humour never soured, nor irritationnever troubled? But Helen was ill at present: for some weeks shehad been removed from my sight to I knew not what room upstairs.She was not, I was told, in the hospital portion of the house withthe fever patients; for her complaint was consumption, not typhus:and by consumption I, in my ignorance, understood something mild,which time and care would be sure to alleviate. 确实如此，读者，我明白，并感觉到了这一点。尽管我是一个很有缺陷的人，毛病很多，长处很少，但我决不会嫌弃海伦，也不会不珍惜对她的亲情。这种亲情同激发我心灵的任何感情一样强烈，一样温柔，一样令人珍重。不论何时何地，海伦都向我证实了一种平静而忠实的友情，闹别扭或者发脾气都不会带来丝毫损害。可是海伦现在病倒了。她从我面前消失，搬到楼上的某一间房子，已经有好几周了。听说她不在学校的医院部同发烧病人在一起，因为她患的是肺病，不是斑疹伤寒。在我幼稚无知的心灵中，认为肺病比较和缓，待以时日并悉心照料，肯定是可以好转的。 
我的想法得到了证实，因为她偶尔在风和日丽的下午下楼来，由坦普尔小姐带着步入花园。但在这种场合，她们不允许我上去同她说话。我只不过从教室的窗户中看到了她，而且又看不清楚，因为她裹得严严实实，远远地坐在回廊上。 One evening, in the beginning of June, I had stayed out very latewith Mary Ann in the wood; we had, as usual, separated ourselvesfrom the others, and had wandered far; so far that we lost our way,and had to ask it at a lonely cottage, where a man and woman lived,who looked after a herd of half-wild swine that fed on the mast inthe wood. When we got back, it was after moonrise: a pony, whichwe knew to be the surgeon's, was standing at the garden door. MaryAnn remarked that she supposed some one must be very ill, as Mr.Bates had been sent for at that time of the evening. She went intothe house; I stayed behind a few minutes to plant in my garden ahandful of roots I had dug up in the forest, and which I fearedwould wither if I left them till the morning. This done, I lingeredyet a little longer: the flowers smelt so sweet as the dew fell; itwas such a pleasant evening, so serene, so warm; the still glowingwest promised so fairly another fine day on the morrow; the moonrose with such majesty in the grave east. I was noting these thingsand enjoying them as a child might, when it entered my mind as ithad never done before:- 六月初的一个晚上，我与玛丽.安在林子里逗留得很晚。像往常一样，我们又与别人分道扬镳，闲逛到了很远的地方，远得终于使我们迷了路，而不得不去一间孤零零的茅舍回路。那里住着一男一女，养了一群以林间山毛榉为食的半野的猪。回校时，己经是明月高挂。一匹我们知道是外科医生骑的小马，呆在花园门口。玛丽.安说她猜想一定是有人病得很重，所以才在晚间这个时候请贝茨先生来。她先进了屋，我在外面呆了几分钟，把才从森林里挖来的一把树根栽在花园里，怕留到第二天早晨会枯死。栽好以后，我又多耽搁了一会儿，沾上露水的花异香扑鼻。这是一个可爱的夜晚，那么宁静，又那么温煦。西边的天际依旧一片红光，预示着明天又是个好天。月亮从黯淡的东方庄严地升起。我注意着这一切，尽一个孩子所能欣赏着。这时我脑子里出现了一个从未有过的想法： "How sad to be lying now on a sick bed, and to be in danger ofdying! This world is pleasant--it would be dreary to be called fromit, and to have to go who knows where?"" 这会儿躺在病床上，面临着死亡的威胁是多么悲哀呀！这个世界是美好的，把人从这里唤走，到一个谁都不知道的地方去，会是一件十分悲惨的事。" And then my mind made its first earnest effort to comprehend whathad been infused into it concerning heaven and hell; and for thefirst time it recoiled, baffled; and for the first time glancingbehind, on each side, and before it, it saw all round an unfathomedgulf: it felt the one point where it stood--the present; all therest was formless cloud and vacant depth; and it shuddered at thethought of tottering, and plunging amid that chaos. While ponderingthis new idea, I heard the front door open; Mr. Bates came out, andwith him was a nurse. After she had seen him mount his horse anddepart, she was about to close the door, but I ran up to her. 随后我的脑袋第一次潜心来理解已被灌输进去的天堂和地狱的内涵，而且也第一次退缩了，迷惑不解了，也是第一次左右前后扫视着。它在自己的周围看到了无底的深渊，感到除了现在这一立足点之外，其余一切都是无形的浮云和空虚的深渊。想到自己摇摇晃晃要落入一片混乱之中，便不禁颤抖起来。我正细细咀嚼着这个新想法，却听得前门开了，贝茨先生走了出来，由一个护士陪同着。她目送贝茨先生上马离去后，正要关门，我一个箭步到了她跟前。 "How is Helen Burns?"" 海伦.彭斯怎么样了？" 
很不好，"回答说。 "Is it her Mr. Bates has been to see?"" 贝茨先生是去看她的吗？" "Yes."" 是的。" "And what does he say about her?"" 对她的病，他说了些什么呀？" "He says she'll not be here long."" 他说她不会在这儿呆很久了。" 
这句话要是昨天让我听到，它所表达的含义只能是，她将要搬到诺森伯兰郡自己家去了，我不会去怀疑它包含着"她要死了"的意思。但此刻我立即明白了。在我理解起来，这句话一清二楚，海伦在世的日子已屈指可数，她将被带往精灵的地域，要是这样的地域确实存在的话。我感到一阵恐怖，一种今人震颤的悲哀，随后是一种愿望，一种要见她的需要。我问她躺在哪一个房间。 "She is in Miss Temple's room," said the nurse." 她在坦普尔小姐的屋里，"护士说。
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