評論
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'You have only yourself to thank for it,' returned the brother.
“那只能怪你自己，”弟弟回答道。
'Only myself,' he assented with a sigh. 'I don't seek to divide the blame or shame.'
“只怪我自己，”他嘆了一口氣，表示同意。“·我不想尋找別人來分擔我的罪過或恥辱。”
'You have divided the shame,' James Carker muttered through his teeth. And, through so many and such close teeth, he could mutter well.
“你已經讓別人來分擔你的恥辱了，”詹姆斯·卡克通過他的牙齒咕噥著。雖然他的牙齒那么多那么密，但是他卻能咕噥得清清楚楚。
'Ah, James,' returned his brother, speaking for the first time in an accent of reproach, and seeming, by the sound of his voice, to have covered his face with his hands, 'I have been, since then, a useful foil to you. You have trodden on me freely in your climbing up. Don't spurn me with your heel!'
“啊，詹姆斯，”他的哥哥回答道；他第一次用責備的聲調說話，而且從他說話的聲音聽起來，他似乎用手捂著臉，“從那時起，我就成了你的一個有用的襯托物。在你向上爬的時候，你任意地踐踏我。請別用你的腳后跟踢我吧！”
A silence ensued. After a time, Mr Carker the Manager was heard rustling among his papers, as if he had resolved to bring the interview to a conclusion. At the same time his brother withdrew nearer to the door.
接著是靜默無聲。過了一些時候，只聽到經理卡克沙沙地翻閱公文的聲音，仿佛他已決定結束這次會晤了。在這同時，他的哥哥退到門口。
'That's all,' he said. 'I watched him with such trembling and such fear, as was some little punishment to me, until he passed the place where I first fell; and then, though I had been his father, I believe I never could have thanked God more devoutly. I didn't dare to warn him, and advise him; but if I had seen direct cause, I would have shown him my example. I was afraid to be seen speaking with him, lest it should be thought I did him harm, and tempted him to evil, and corrupted him: or lest I really should. There may be such contagion in me; I don't know. Piece out my history, in connexion with young Walter Gay, and what he has made me feel; and think of me more leniently, James, if you can.
“這就是一切，”他說道。“我是那么擔心、那么害怕地注意觀察著他，就像這是對我的一種小小的懲罰一樣，直到他走過了我第一次失足掉下的地方，那時候我相信，即使我是他的父親，我也不會比那更為虔誠地感謝上帝的了。我不敢預先警戒他，向他提出忠告；但是如果我看到了直接的原因的話，那么我就會向他顯示我本人經歷過的先例。我怕被別人看到我跟他講話，唯恐人們會認為我加害于他，引誘他走向邪惡，使他墮落，或者唯恐我真正這樣做。也許在我身上有這種傳染性的病毒；有誰知道呢？請把我的歷史跟沃爾特·蓋伊聯系起來想一下，也請把它跟他使我產生的感覺聯系起來想一下，詹姆斯，如果你能夠的話，那么請想到我的時候更寬厚一些吧！”
