名著·雾都孤儿 - 第119节

　　“那是真的棺材，”姑娘答道，“我看到的不是真的。”

There was something so uncommon in her manner, that the flesh of the concealed listener crept as he heard the girl utter these words, and the blood chilled within him. He had never experienced a greater relief than in hearing the sweet voice of the young lady as she begged her to be calm, and not allow herself to become the prey of such fearful fancies.

　　她说话的回气的确非同寻常，躲在一旁偷听的暗探禁不住毛骨悚然，连血都凉了。接着他又听到那位小姐柔和的声音，只感到一阵前所未有的轻松，那位小姐恳求她平静下来，不要听任这样可怕的幻觉来折磨自己。

'Speak to her kindly,' said the young lady to her companion. 'Poor creature! She seems to need it.'

　　“请你好好劝劝她，”小姐对老先生说，“苦命的姑娘。她看来很需要这样。”

'Your haughty religious people would have held their heads up to see me as I am to-night, and preached of flames and vengeance,' cried the girl. 'Oh, dear lady, why ar'n't those who claim to be God's own folks as gentle and as kind to us poor wretches as you, who, having youth, and beauty, and all that they have lost, might be a little proud instead of so much humbler?'

　　“看见我今天晚上的样子，你们有些高傲的教友少不了会昂起头来，并且祈祷地狱之火和上帝的惩罚降临，”姑娘嚷道，“噢，可爱的小姐，有些人自称是上帝的子民，他们对待我们这班苦命人为什么不能像你这样体贴、善意呢？你又年轻又美貌，我们失去的一切你都有，你完全可以高傲一些，用不着这么谦恭。”

'Ah!' said the gentleman. 'A Turk turns his face, after washing it well, to the East, when he says his prayers; these good people, after giving their faces such a rub against the World as to take the smiles off, turn with no less regularity, to the darkest side of Heaven. Between the Mussulman and the Pharisee, commend me to the first!'

　　“哦。”老先生说道，“土耳其人把脸洗净，然后面朝东方做祷告。而那些好人，在和尘世的摩擦中似乎连笑容也给抹掉了，总是一成不变地面向天国最黑暗的一侧。如果要我在异教徒和伪君子之间作一个选择的话，我宁可选择前者。”

　　这番话表面上是向年轻小姐说的，但目的也许是给南希一点时间，让她定下心来。稍停，老先生自己便和她攀谈起来。

'You were not here last Sunday night,' he said.

　　“上星期天晚上你不在这里。”他说道。

'I couldn't come,' replied Nancy; 'I was kept by force.'

　　“我来不了，”南希回答，“硬给留下了。”

'By whom?'

　　“被谁？”

'Him that I told the young lady of before.'

　　“我以前跟小姐说过的那个人。”

　　“今天晚上我们到这儿来，没有人怀疑你是来向什么人通风报信的？”老先生说。

'No,' replied the girl, shaking her head. 'It's not very easy for me to leave him unless he knows why; I couldn't give him a drink of laudanum before I came away.'

　　“没有，”姑娘摇了摇头，回答，“我离开他可真不容易，除非让他知道为什么。要不是上一次出来以前我给他服了一点鸦片酊，我也见不着这位小姐了。”

'Did he awake before you returned?' inquired the gentleman.

　　“在你回去之前，他没醒过来？”老先生问道。

'No; and neither he nor any of them suspect me.'

　　“没有，不管是他，还是他们中的哪一个，都没有怀疑我。”

'Good,' said the gentleman. 'Now listen to me.'

　　“很好，”老先生说道，“眼下你听我说。”

　　“我听着呢。”姑娘在他停下来的刹那间回答。

'This young lady,' the gentleman began, 'has communicated to me, and to some other friends who can be safely trusted, what you told her nearly a fortnight since. I confess to you that I had doubts, at first, whether you were to be implicitly relied upon, but now I firmly believe you are.'

　　“这位小姐，”老先生开日了，“把差不多半个月以前你说的事，告诉了我和另外几位可以完全信赖的朋友。坦率地说，一开始我怀疑你是否绝对靠得住，但现在我深信你是靠得住的。”

'I am,' said the girl earnestly.

　　“我靠得住。”姑娘真诚地说。

'I repeat that I firmly believe it. To prove to you that I am disposed to trust you, I tell you without reserve, that we propose to extort the secret, whatever it may be, from the fear of this man Monks. But if--if--' said the gentleman, 'he cannot be secured, or, if secured, cannot be acted upon as we wish, you must deliver up the Jew.'

　　“我再说一遍，我对此深信不疑。为了向你证明我对你的信任，我要毫无保留地告诉你，我们打算从利用孟可司这个人的恐惧着手，逼他说出秘密，不管这是个什么样的秘密。但如果--如果--”老先生说，“不能把他给逮住，或者，即便逮住了，却无法迫使他按我们的意图行事，你就必须告发那个犹太人。”

'Fagin,' cried the girl, recoiling.

　　“费金！”姑娘猛一后退，发出一声惊叫。

　　“你必须告发那个人。”老先生说道。

'I will not do it! I will never do it!' replied the girl. 'Devil that he is, and worse than devil as he has been to me, I will never do that.'

　　“我不干。我绝不会干这种事！”姑娘回答，“虽说他是个魔鬼，对待我比魔鬼还要可恶，我也绝不会干这种事。”

'You will not?' said the gentleman, who seemed fully prepared for this answer.

　　“你不愿意？”老先生仿佛对这一答复已有充分准备似的。

'Never!' returned the girl.

　　“绝不！”姑娘答道。

'Tell me why?'

　　“可不可以告诉我原因？”

　　“有一个原因，”姑娘断然回答，“有一个原因是小姐知道的，而巨也会支持我，我知道她会支持我，因为我跟她有约在先。再说，还有一个原因，他虽说是个坏蛋，可我也不是什么好东西，我们许多人干的都是同样的勾当，我不能出卖他们，他们--不管是哪一个--本来都有机会出卖我，可都没有出卖我，尽管他们是坏人。”

'Then,' said the gentleman, quickly, as if this had been the point he had been aiming to attain; 'put Monks into my hands, and leave him to me to deal with.'

　　“既然如此，”老先生随即说道，似乎这正是他一心要达到的目的一般，“那就把孟可司交给我，由我来对付他。”

'What if he turns against the others?'

　　“要是他供出别人怎么办？”

'I promise you that in that case, if the truth is forced from him, there the matter will rest; there must be circumstances in Oliver's little history which it would be painful to drag before the public eye, and if the truth is once elicited, they shall go scot free.'

　　“我答应你，在这种情形下，只要他说出真相，事情就算作罢，奥立弗的简短经历当中一定有种种变故，不便分之于世。一旦真相大白，他们也就脱离干系了。”

'And if it is not?' suggested the girl.

　　“如果弄不清楚呢？”姑娘提醒道。