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"Then I'll tell our story right away," said the lady.
"那么，我現在就來把事情的經過說給你們聽吧，"那位女士說道。
"Frank here and I met in '84, in McQuire's camp, near the Rockies, where pa was working a claim.
"我和這位弗蘭克是一八八四年在落磯山附近的麥圭爾營地認識的，爸爸當時正在經營一個礦場。
We were engaged to each other, Frank and I; but then one day father struck a rich pocket and made a pile,
我和弗蘭克訂了婚，后來有一天爸爸突然挖到了一個富礦，從此發了財。
while poor Frank here had a claim that petered out and came to nothing.
可是這位可憐的弗蘭克所占有的土地上的礦脈卻漸漸變小，以至于完全消失了。
The richer pa grew the poorer was Frank;
我的爸爸越來越富，弗蘭克卻越來越窮。
so at last pa wouldn't hear of our engagement lasting any longer, and he took me away to 'Frisco.
所以，后來爸爸硬是不同意我們的婚約繼續下去。他把我帶到舊金山去。
Frank wouldn't throw up his hand, though; so he followed me there, and he saw me without pa knowing anything about it.
盡管如此，弗蘭克不愿意放手，于是，他接著也到了那里，并且瞞著爸爸和我見面。
It would only have made him mad to know, so we just fixed it all up for ourselves.
讓爸爸知道只會使他生氣，所以我們就自己做了安排。
Frank said that he would go and make his pile, too, and never come back to claim me until he had as much as pa.
弗蘭克說，他也要去發一筆財，直到他像爸爸一樣富有，他才回來跟我結婚。
So then I promised to wait for him to the end of time and pledged myself not to marry anyone else while he lived.
我當時答應等他一輩子，并且發誓只要他活著，我就不嫁給別人。
'Why shouldn't we be married right away, then,' said he,
'那么，為什么我們不馬上就結婚呢？'他說，
'and then I will feel sure of you; and I won't claim to be your husband until I come back?'
'這樣我對你就感到放心了，無須在我回來以后要求人家承認我是你的丈夫。'
Well, we talked it over, and he had fixed it all up so nicely,
哦，就這樣，我們經過了商量，他把一切都安排得那么妥貼，
with a clergyman all ready in waiting, that we just did it right there;
請好了一位牧師，我們當即舉行了婚禮。
and then Frank went off to seek his fortune, and I went back to pa."
過后，弗蘭克就離開了我去奔前程，而我則回到了爸爸身邊。"
"The next I heard of Frank was that he was in Montana,
"我再次聽到弗蘭克的消息是他到了蒙大拿，
and then he went prospecting in Arizona, and then I heard of him from New Mexico.
接著在亞利桑那探礦，以后我又聽說他在新墨西哥。
After that came a long newspaper story about how a miners' camp had been attacked by Apache Indians,
在那以后報上登出過一篇長期報道，說有一個礦工營地如何遭到亞利桑那印第安人的襲擊，
and there was my Frank's name among the killed.
死亡者的名單中有我的弗蘭克的名字。
I fainted dead away, and I was very sick for months after.
我看了以后昏厥過去，接著我纏綿病床達數月之久。
Pa thought I had a decline and took me to half the doctors in 'Frisco.
病得非常厲害。爸爸以為我得了癆病，帶我去找遍了整個舊金山大約一半的醫生。
Not a word of news came for a year and more, so that I never doubted that Frank was really dead.
一年多來，音信杳然，因而我從不懷疑弗蘭克是真的死了。
Then Lord St. Simon came to 'Frisco, and we came to London, and a marriage was arranged, and pa was very pleased,
之后，圣西蒙勛爵來到舊金山，我們到了倫敦，婚事定了下來，爸爸非常高興。
but I felt all the time that no man on this earth would ever take the place in my heart that had been given to my poor Frank."
但是我總覺得我的心已經給了我可憐的弗蘭克，世界上再沒有哪一個男人能代替他。"
