評(píng)論
打印
'I say, Uncle! You musn't really, you know!' urged Walter. 'Don't!'
“我說，舅舅！你真不應(yīng)該這么說，你知道！”沃爾特勸說道。“別那么說了！”
Old Sol endeavoured to assume a cheery look, and smiled across the little table at him as pleasantly as he could.
老所爾努力裝出一副高興的神色，向桌子對(duì)面的他盡量愉快地微笑著。
'There's nothing more than usual the matter; is there, Uncle?' said Walter, leaning his elbows on the tea tray, and bending over, to speak the more confidentially and kindly. 'Be open with me, Uncle, if there is, and tell me all about it.'
“沒有發(fā)生跟往常不同的什么事吧，是不是，舅舅？”沃爾特把兩只胳膊肘支在茶盤上，身子向前彎過去，更加親密、更加親切地說道：“別對(duì)我瞞什么，舅舅，如果發(fā)生了什么事情，那么請(qǐng)把一切都告訴我。”
'No, no, no,' returned Old Sol. 'More than usual? No, no. What should there be the matter more than usual?'
“沒有，沒有，沒有，”老所爾回答道。“跟往常有什么不同的事嗎？沒有，沒有，會(huì)發(fā)生跟往常不同的什么事情呢？”
Walter answered with an incredulous shake of his head. 'That's what I want to know,' he said, 'and you ask me! I'll tell you what, Uncle, when I see you like this, I am quite sorry that I live with you.'
沃爾特表示不大相信地?fù)u搖頭，作為回答。“這就是我想要知道的，”他說道，“可是你卻問我！我將告訴你，舅舅，當(dāng)我看到你這種樣子的時(shí)候，我就會(huì)因?yàn)楦阕≡谝黄鸲械绞诌z憾。”
Old Sol opened his eyes involuntarily.
老所爾不自覺地張開了眼睛。
'Yes. Though nobody ever was happier than I am and always have been with you, I am quite sorry that I live with you, when I see you with anything in your mind.'
“是的，雖然沒有什么人能比我現(xiàn)在更幸福，而且我跟你在一起一直是幸福的，可是每當(dāng)我看到你有什么心事的時(shí)候，我就會(huì)因?yàn)楹湍阕≡谝黄鸲械绞诌z憾。”
'I am a little dull at such times, I know,' observed Solomon, meekly rubbing his hands.
“我知道，我在這種時(shí)候有些沉悶，”所羅門溫和地搓著手，說道。
'What I mean, Uncle Sol,' pursued Walter, bending over a little more to pat him on the shoulder, 'is, that then I feel you ought to have, sitting here and pouring out the tea instead of me, a nice little dumpling of a wife, you know, - a comfortable, capital, cosy old lady, who was just a match for you, and knew how to manage you, and keep you in good heart. Here am I, as loving a nephew as ever was (I am sure I ought to be!) but I am only a nephew, and I can't be such a companion to you when you're low and out of sorts as she would have made herself, years ago, though I'm sure I'd give any money if I could cheer you up. And so I say, when I see you with anything on your mind, that I feel quite sorry you haven't got somebody better about you than a blundering young rough-and-tough boy like me, who has got the will to console you, Uncle, but hasn't got the way - hasn't got the way,' repeated Walter, reaching over further yet, to shake his Uncle by the hand.
“我想要說的是，所爾舅舅，”沃爾特把身子往前再彎過去一點(diǎn)，好拍拍他的肩膀，“這種時(shí)候我就覺得你應(yīng)當(dāng)有一位和善的、矮小的、胖乎乎的妻子，而不是我跟你坐在一起，給你倒茶；你知道，——她是一位賢惠的、能使你感到愉快的、和你情投意合的老太太，跟你正好相配；她知道怎樣照顧你，讓你心情舒暢。可是現(xiàn)在卻是我在這里；我是一個(gè)很愛你的外甥（我相信我應(yīng)當(dāng)是！），可是我只是一個(gè)外甥；當(dāng)你悶悶不樂，心緒不佳的時(shí)候，我就不能成為像她那樣幾年前就知道怎么做的伴侶了，雖然我相信，如果我能使你高興起來，那么要我拿出多少錢來我都是愿意的。所以我說，每當(dāng)我看到你有什么心事，而除了像我這樣一個(gè)常常出漏子的粗魯小伙子外，你沒有一個(gè)更好的人在身旁的時(shí)候，我就感到很遺憾。我倒有意安慰安慰你，舅舅，可是我不知道該怎么辦才好——不知道怎么辦才好。”沃爾特重復(fù)說了一句，一邊把身子向前再彎過去一些，好和他的舅舅握握手。
'Wally, my dear boy,' said Solomon, 'if the cosy little old lady had taken her place in this parlour five and forty years ago, I never could have been fonder of her than I am of you.'
“沃利，我親愛的孩子，”所羅門說道，“如果那位和我情投意合的、矮小的老太太在四十五年前就在這客廳里占據(jù)了她的位置，那么我也決不會(huì)像我現(xiàn)在這樣喜歡你一樣地喜歡她的。”
'I know that, Uncle Sol,' returned Walter. 'Lord bless you, I know that. But you wouldn't have had the whole weight of any uncomfortable secrets if she had been with you, because she would have known how to relieve you of 'em, and I don't.'
“我知道這一點(diǎn)，所爾舅舅，”沃爾特回答道。“上帝保佑你，我知道這一點(diǎn)。可是如果她跟你在一起，那么你有了不好對(duì)外人說的不稱心的事情，你就不會(huì)承擔(dān)它的全部負(fù)擔(dān)了，因?yàn)樗涝鯓幼屇惆阉鼈兘饷摰舻模揖筒恢懒恕?rdquo;
