牛津書蟲系列 織工馬南 1 Silas Marner，past and present

1 馬南的過去和現(xiàn)在

In the early years of the nineteenth century，Strange-looking little men were often seen on the country roads，usually with a heavy bag on their shoulders.They were linen-weavers，taking the linen they had woven to the women in the villages.Unlike the strong，healthy country people，they were small and thin，with tired white faces，bent backs and round shoulders.They were often shortsighted too，because they had to look so closely at their work.To the villagers the weavers looked almost foreign，and quite frightening.Where did they come from?Was it the devil who sent them?Who were their parents?How could you trust a man if you didn't know his father or mother?Country people used to be very suspicious of all strangers and travellers.They were also suspi-cious of clever people，people who could do something they themselves had not learnt to do.That is why the linen-weavers，who often moved from towns to live and work in the country，were considered strangers all their lives by their neighbours，and were sometimes very lonely as a result.

在19世紀初的英國，人們經常在鄉(xiāng)村小路上看到一些小個子男人，扛著沉沉的大袋子，樣子很古怪。他們是織布匠，在把織好的亞麻布送給鄉(xiāng)下婦女。和健壯的鄉(xiāng)下人不同，織工們身材瘦小而且臉色蒼白，神情疲憊，曲背彎腰。由于用眼過度，他們中許多人眼睛都有些近視。在鄉(xiāng)下人眼里，這些織布匠幾乎算得上怪異，而且很嚇人。鄉(xiāng)下人疑惑不解：這些人是從哪里來的?是魔鬼派他們來的嗎?他們的父母是誰呢?一個你不了解他父母的人，你怎么能信任呢?鄉(xiāng)下人常常懷疑所有的陌生人和旅客。他們也懷疑那些聰明的人，那些會干一些鄉(xiāng)下人自己不會做的事的人。因為這個原因，這些從城市搬到鄉(xiāng)下干活、居住的織工終生都會被鄰居認為是怪人.并因而感到很孤獨。

Silas Marner was one of these weavers.He lived in a small cottage near the village of Raveloe.Every day he worked at his loom in the cottage.The small boys of Raveloe had never heard the sound of a loom before，and sometimes they used to run up to his house to look quickly in at the window.If Silas noticed them，he lifted his shortsighted eyes from the loom to stare at the boys.There was something terrible about his stare，which made the boys run away at once，screaming with fear.The vil-lagers believed that Silas had an almost devilish power，which he could use to harm them if he wanted，and so they were all afraid of him.Raveloe was an important-looking village with a fine old church and a number of large farms.But it was at least an hour away from any other village，and very few strangers visited it，which explains why the villagers'opinions were so out of date.

西拉斯就是這些織工中的一個。他住在靠近瑞福洛村的一間小草屋里，每天在小屋里的織布機上干活。瑞福洛村的孩子們以前從沒有聽到過織布機的聲音，所以經常到他的小屋來扒窗戶偷看。如果西拉斯發(fā)覺了，就會把近視眼從織布機上抬起來盯著孩子們。他的眼光中似乎有什么可怕的東西，孩子們馬上驚叫著四散跑開。村里人有些怕他，因為大家相信西拉斯有著近乎魔鬼的力量，如果愿意他可以用來傷害他們。瑞福洛是一個很氣派的村莊，有著很好的老式教堂和大片的農田。但由于離最近的鄰村也有一個小時的路程，很少有陌生人來，所以村里人的思想非常落后。

Silas Marner had first come to Raveloe fifteen years before，as a young man.He and his way of life seemed very strange to the villagers.He worked long hours at his loom，and had no friends or visitors from the village or anywhere else.He never talked to his neighbours unless it was necessary for his work，and he never looked at any of the Raveloe girls.'Who would want to marry him anyway?'the girls laughed to each other.'Marry a dead man come to life again，with that unhealthy white skin and those insect-like eyes of his?Certainly not!'

西拉斯·馬南是15年前到瑞福洛來的，那時他還是一個小伙子。他和他的生活方式對瑞福洛的村民來說是那么神秘。他長時間在織布機上工作，沒有朋友和客人。除非為了工作的事，他從不和鄰居說話，也從不看一眼瑞福洛村的女孩子們。“有誰愿意嫁給他?”姑娘們互相開玩笑，“有誰愿意嫁給這個蒼白得嚇人，長著一雙蟲子一樣眼睛的人?好像死人剛活過來一樣!誰也不會愿意!”

One of the villagers had had a strange experience with Silas.One evening he had discovered the weaver resting on a field gate，his eyes open but unseeing，and his body cold and hard，like a dead man's.After a few moments Silas appeared to wake up，said'Good night'，and walked away.

一個村民目睹過一件怪事。一天晚上，他發(fā)現(xiàn)西拉斯在一個門口歇著，眼睛睜著但目光呆滯，身體又涼又硬，就像一個死人。過了一會兒，西拉斯看上去醒了過來，說了一句“晚安”，然后就離開了。

When this was discussed in the village，some people thought that Silas had had a fit.But others，like Mr Macey，the church clerk，refused to accept a medical explanation.

當村里人議論這件事的時候，有的人認為西拉斯是病了，但有的人，像教堂的執(zhí)事麥西先生，拒絕接受這種醫(yī)學的解釋。

'No，he isn't ill，that weaver，'said old Mr Macey，shaking his head knowingly.'If he had a fit，he'd fall down，wouldn't he?I think his soul flies out of his body sometimes and that's why he looks so strange.He doesn't come to church，does he?And how does he know so much about medicines?You all re-member how he made Sally Oates better，when the doctor him-self could do no more for her.That's the devil's work，believe me!'

“不，那個織布匠不是病了，”麥西老先生有把握地搖著頭說，“如果病了，他會倒下，對吧?我覺得他的靈魂有時會離開他的身體，所以他才會看起來那么奇怪。他不上教堂，對吧?而且他怎么會知道那么多醫(yī)療的事?你們都記得吧，醫(yī)生都沒辦法，他卻能讓薩莉·奧茨好過一點。相信我，他那是妖術!”

However，the housewives needed Silas to weave their linen，and they could find nothing wrong with his work.The years passed，and Raveloe villagers did not change their opinion of the weaver.At the end of fifteen years they said exactly the same things about him，but they believed them more strongly.They also said that he had saved up a lot of money since he had come to Raveloe.

然而不管怎樣，主婦們需要西拉斯為她們織亞麻布，他的貨無可挑剔。時間一年年過去，可人們對西拉斯的看法從來沒有改變。15年后，人們仍在議論著同樣的事，只不過更相信這些事了。同時他們還說西拉斯來瑞福洛以后已積攢了一筆可觀的財富。

Silas had come from a large town to the north of Raveloe.Here he had lived a very different life.Because he was one of a large number of weavers，he was not considered strange，and he belonged to an enthusiastic religious group.They met every Sunday at the chapel in Light Street.Once，at a chapel meeting，Silas had become unconscious and had sat without moving，hearing or seeing，for over an hour.This experience made him specially interesting to the rest of the group.

西拉斯是從瑞福洛北面的一個大鎮(zhèn)子來的，在那里他過著與現(xiàn)在完全不同的生活。作為眾多織工中的一個，他很平常，而且他屬于一個活躍的宗教組織。教友們每個禮拜日都在日光街的小教堂集會。在一次集會中，西拉斯突然失去了知覺，坐在那里一動不動，聽不到也看不到，長達一個多小時。這次經歷使教友們覺得他很特別。

'We should not call this strange unconsciousness a fit，'the minister，Mr Paston，told them.'No， it's much more than that.In that moment，when he is absent from us，our young friend Silas's soul is open，open to a possible message from God.I believe he has been chosen by God!'

“我們不應該認為他這種奇怪的失去知覺是疾病，”牧師帕斯通先生告訴大家，“完全不是這樣。他的意識離開我們的時候，我們年輕的朋友西拉斯的靈魂打開了，去接受上帝的信息。我相信是上帝選擇了他。”

silas's best friend at chapel was William Dane，a serious young man who was，some people thought，a little too sure of his own goodness and cleverness.Silas，however，could see no fault in him，and trusted his friend completely.They remained good friends，when Silas became engaged to a young woman，Sarah，who belonged to the same chapel.In fact Silas was de-lighted that Sarah did not mind if William joined them some-times on their Sunday walks.

西拉斯在教會最要好的朋友是威廉·戴恩，一個嚴肅的年輕人，有的人認為他對自己的聰明善良未免太有把握。但是西拉斯卻不認為他的朋友有任何缺點，他完全信任威廉。當西拉斯與同教會的年輕女子薩拉訂婚以后，威廉還是他最要好的朋友。西拉斯很高興薩拉不介意倆人的禮拜日散步有時有威廉在常

Strangely，when Silas had his fit at the chapel meeting，William was the only one who disagreed with the minister.

奇怪的是，在西拉斯發(fā)病以后，威廉卻是唯一一個不同意牧師觀點的人。

'To me it looks more like the devil's work than God's，'William had said.'Look deep into yourself，friend Silas.Is there any evil hiding in your soul?'

“依我看不像是上帝倒像是魔鬼干的，”威廉說，“好好看看你自己，西拉斯，我的朋友，是不是有魔鬼隱藏在你的靈魂里?”

Silas was hurt that his friend doubted him，and he began to be worried，too，about Sarah.She seemed to be showing signs of dislike towards him，but when he asked her about it，she did not give him any answer.

被好朋友懷疑使西拉斯很傷心，同時，他也開始為薩拉擔起心來。薩拉似乎開始顯得有點不太喜歡他了。可當西拉斯問起來，她卻又什么也不說。

At that time one of the chapel leaders was dangerously ill，and because he had no family，some of the young men offered to sit with him at night.One night Silas was sitting alone at the old man's bedside.Time seemed to pass slowly in the quiet，dark room.But suddenly he realized that the man was no longer breathing.He was dead.

這個時候，一位教會的長老生了重玻因為他沒有家室，教會的年輕人就輪流在晚上陪伴他。一天晚上，西拉斯獨自一人陪坐在老人的床邊。在黑暗而安靜的屋子里，時間似乎過得很慢。突然，西拉斯意識到老人已經停止了呼吸，已經死了。

'Strange!'thought Silas.'His body's cold!He's been dead for some time!Why did't I notice?Perhaps I've had anoth-er fit.And it's already four o'clock in the morning.Why hasn't William come?He promised he'd come at two o'clock!'He hurried out of the house to call the doctor and the minister，and then went to work as usual，still wondering why William had not arrived.

“奇怪!”西拉斯想，“他的身體已經涼了。他已經死了一會兒了!我怎么沒有注意?我可能又犯病了。已經是早上4點了，威廉為什么還沒有來換班?他說會在2點鐘到的!”他跑出屋去喊大夫和牧師，然后像平時一樣去工作，他一直不明白為什么威廉沒有按時來換班。

But that evening，after work，William came to his room，with the minister.They were both looking very serious.

這天晚上下班以后，威廉和牧師一起來到了西拉斯的屋子。兩個人都很嚴肅。

'You must come to the chapel at once，'said Mr Paston.

“你必須馬上到教堂去。”帕斯通先生說。

'But why?'asked Silas，looking unhappily at them.

“為什么?”西拉斯不太高興地看著他們。

'You will hear when you get there，was the only answer.

“到那兒你就知道了。”這是唯一的回答。

Then，in the chapel，Silas stood alone，in front of all the peo-ple who were once his friends.The room was silent.There was a pocket-knife in the minister's hand.

然后，在教堂里，西拉斯獨自一人站在他以前的朋友們面前。屋里很靜。牧師的手里拿著一把小刀。

'Where did you leave this knife?'he asked.

“你把這把刀放在哪兒了?”他問。

Silas was trembling at this strange question.I don't re-member，'he answered.

西拉斯被這個奇怪的問題嚇了一跳。“我不記得了。”

'Silas，Silas，you must confess!'cried the minister.'Tell us the truth!This knife，your knife，was found at the dead man's bedside，and the bag of church money，which I saw there myself only yesterday，has gone!

“西拉斯，西拉斯，你必須坦白!”牧師叫道，“向我們坦白事實!你的這把刀是在死者的床旁發(fā)現(xiàn)的，而且教會的錢袋也不見了，我昨天還看見它在那里!”

Silas did not speak for a moment.Then he said，'God knows I did not steal the money.Search my room-you won't find the money.I'm not a thief.'

西拉斯半晌說不出話來。終于他說：“上帝知道我沒有偷錢。去搜查我的房間吧——你們不會找到錢。我不是賊。”

'You were the only one in our dead friend's house last night，when the money was stolen，'said Mr Paston.'William tells us he was suddenly ill，which prevented him from coming to take your place.We will search your room.

“威廉告訴我們他突然病了，不能去接你的班，所以你是昨天晚上唯一在我們死去的朋友房間的人，就是那時錢被偷了，”帕斯通先生說。“我們要搜查你的房間。”

And when they went to Silas's room，Willia m fond the missing bag，now empty，under Silas's bed.

到了西拉斯的房間，威廉在西拉斯的床底下發(fā)現(xiàn)了丟失的、已經空了的錢袋。

'Silas，my friend，'cried William，'confess your crime to us now!Send the devil away from your soul!'

“西拉斯，我的朋友，”威廉喊道，“快向我們認罪吧!把你靈魂中的魔鬼趕走吧!”

Silas turned to the man he had always trusted.'William，in the nine years since we've been friends，have I ever told you a lie?But God will prove the truth.'

西拉斯轉向這個他曾經信賴的朋友。“威廉，在我們做朋友的9年里我有沒有對你說過謊?上帝會證明事實。”

As he looked at William，he suddenly remembered something，and reddened.He said in a trembling voice，'The knife wasn't in my pocket last night!'

看著威廉，西拉斯突然想起來了什么，臉紅起來。“刀子昨晚不在我的兜里!”西拉斯顫抖地說。

'I don't know what you mean，'replied William coldly.

“我不明白你的意思，”威廉冷冷地回答。

In the strange little world of the Light Street chapel，they did not believe in the law or judges.They thought only God knew the answers，so they agreed to draw lots to decide what had happened.They all went down on their knees to ask for God's help in finding th truth.Silas knelt with them，sure that God would prove his honesty.There was silence，as the minister took one of the papers out of the covered box.

在日光街小教堂這個奇特的小世界里，人們不相信法律和法官。他們認為只有上帝知道事情的答案，所以他們一致同意通過抽簽來判斷到底發(fā)生了什么。于是大家都跪下祈求上帝幫助查出事實真相。西拉斯和大家一同跪著，他相信上帝會證明他是誠實的。牧師從蓋著的盒子里抽出一張紙的時候，屋子里一片寂靜。

'The lots say that Silas Marner has stolen the money，'he said.'You will leave the chapel，Silas Marner，and you will not be accepted back until you confess your crime.'

“簽上說是西拉斯·馬南偷了錢，”他說，“西拉斯·馬南，你得離開教堂。在你認罪前，我們不會再接納你。”

Silas listened in horror.At last he walked over to William Dane and said firmly，'I lent you my knife，you know that.You stole the money，while I was having a fit，and you've blamed me for it.But perhaps you'll never be punished，since there is no God who takes care of the good and punishes the bad，only a God of lies.'

西拉斯恐怖地聽著。最后他走到威廉·戴恩的面前堅定地說：“我把刀子借給你了，你知道的。你趁我發(fā)病的時候偷了錢，并以此陷害我。不過你可能永遠也不會受到懲罰，因為根本沒有一個保護善良懲治邪惡的上帝，只有一個說謊的上帝。”

'You hear，my friends?'said William，smiling sadly.' This is the voice of the devil speaking.'

“朋友們，聽到了吧?”威廉苦笑著說，“這就是魔鬼的聲音。”

Silas went home.The next day he sat alone for the whole day，too miserable to do anything.On the second day the min- ister came to tell him that Sarah had decided she could not marry him.Only a month later，Sarah married William Dane，and soon afterwards Silas Marner left the town.

西拉斯回到家里，第二天他在屋里呆了一整天，痛苦得不能做任何事。第三天牧師來告訴他薩拉決定取消與他的婚約。一個月后，薩拉嫁給了威廉·戴恩。再后來不久，西拉斯離開了這個鎮(zhèn)子。

At Raveloe，Silas shut himself away in his cottage.He did not want to think about the disaster he had experienced.He could not understand why God had refused to help him.But now that his trust in God and his friends had been broken， he did not feel strong enough to build up that trust again，in a new church and with new friends.From now on，he would live in a dark，loveless，hopeless world.

在瑞福洛，西拉斯把自己關在小草屋里。他不愿意再去想那些痛苦的經歷。他不明白為什么上帝拒絕幫助他?，F(xiàn)在他的對上帝和朋友的信任都已經崩潰了，他已經沒有足夠的信心再到新的教堂去和新的朋友一起重建這種信任。從此，他要開始生活在一個黑暗的、沒有愛也沒有希望的世界里。

All that was left to him was his weaving，and he sat at his loom seven days a week，working all the daylight hours.In the town he had earned less，and had given much of his money to the chapel，for the old，the poor，and the sick.But now he be-gan to earn more than ever before，and there was no reason for him to give away any of it.He was often paid for his linen in gold.He discovered that he liked holding the shining coins in his hand and looking at their bright faces.

西拉斯剩下的只有織布。他一個禮拜7天都坐在織布機前面從早到晚地工作。在城里時他掙的不多，而且大部分捐給了教會，去幫助老人、窮人和病人。但現(xiàn)在他掙的比以前多許多，而且也沒有理由再給出去。顧客經常付給他金幣，他發(fā)現(xiàn)自己喜歡把閃光的金幣拿在手里，看它們閃亮的表面。

In his childhood，Silas had been taught，by his mother，to make simple medicines from wild flowers and plants.One day he saw the shoemaker's wife，Sally Oates，sitting at her cottage door，and he realized she had all the signs of the illness which had killed his mother.He felt sorry for Sally，and although he knew he could not prevent her dying，he prepared some medicine for her which made her feel much better.The vil-lagers considered this a good example of Silas's strange，fright-ening power，but as it had worked for Sally，they started visit-ing Silas to ask for help with their own illnesses.But Silas was too honest to take their money and give them useless medicine.He knew he had no special power，and so he sent them away.The villagers believed he was refusing to help them，and they were angry with him.They blamed him for accidents that hap-pened to them，and deaths in the village.So poor Silas's kind-ness to Sally did not help him make friends in Raveloe.

小的時候，西拉斯的媽媽教過他用野花、野草制作一些簡單的藥材。一天，西拉斯看見鞋匠的老婆薩莉·奧茨坐在家門口，看得出她已經染上了奪去他母親生命的那種玻西拉斯很為薩莉難受，雖然知道自己沒有能力救活她，西拉斯還是為她配了些藥使她減少一些痛苦。村民們認為這是一個很好的例子，可以說明西拉斯的神奇而可怕的力量，但是因為這種力量在薩莉身上產生了效果，人們開始紛紛找上門來請西拉斯給自己診玻然而西拉斯太誠實了，不愿意收了錢而把沒用的藥賣給別人。他知道自己沒有超人的力量，于是就把人們都轟了出去。村民們認為是西拉斯不愿意幫助大家，都很生氣，于是把自己遇到的災難和村里發(fā)生的死亡都歸罪于他。因此對薩莉的善行沒有幫助西拉斯在瑞福洛交到朋友。

But little by little，the piles of gold coins in his cottage grew higher.The harder he worked，the less he spent on himself.He counted the coins into piles of ten，and wanted to see them grow into a square，and then into a larger square.He was de-lighted with every new coin，but it made him want another.His gold became a habit，a delight，a reason for living，almost a reli-gion.He began to think the coins were his friends，who made the cottage less lonely for him.But it was only at night， when he had finished his work，that he spent time with them.He kept them in two bags，under the floorboards near the loom.Like a thirsty man who needs a drink，he took them out every evening to look at them，feel them，and count them.The coins shone in the firelight，and Silas loved every one of them.When he looked at his loom，he thought fondly of the half-earned gold in the work he was doing，and he looked forward to the years ahead of him，the countless days of weaving and the growing piles of gold.

慢慢地，西拉斯的金幣越碼越高。他干活越賣力，為自己花錢就越少。他把金幣每10個碼成一摞，想像著它們變成一片，再變成一大片。每一枚新的金幣都使他高興，也使他更渴望得到下一枚金幣。他的金幣成了一種愛好，一種喜悅，一個活著的原因，甚至成了一種宗教。他開始認為金幣是他的朋友，它們使他在小屋里不再那么寂寞。但只有在晚上，結束了一整天的工作，他才有時間陪伴它們。他把它們放在織布機旁邊地板下的兩只袋子里。像干渴的人需要喝水一樣，他每天晚上都要把它們拿出來看一看，摸一摸，數(shù)一數(shù)。金幣在爐火的照耀下閃閃發(fā)光，西拉斯愛它們當中的每一個。每當看到織布機，西拉斯都滿懷愛憐地想到即將在工作中掙到的金幣，并且想到今后數(shù)不清的工作的日子和將會越堆越高的金幣。