Chapter 10

CHAPTER X Anne's Apology Marilla said nothing to Matthew about the affair that evening; but when Anne proved still refractory the next morning an explanation had to be made to account for her absence from the breakfast table. Marilla told Matthew the whole story, taking pains to impress him with a due sense of the enormity of Anne's behavior. "It's a good thing Rachel Lynde got a calling down; she's a meddlesome old gossip," was Matthew's consolatory rejoinder. "Matthew Cuthbert, I'm astonished at you. You know that Anne's behavior was dreadful, and yet you take her part! I suppose you'll be saying next thing that she oughtn't to be punished at all!" "Well now-no-not exactly," said Matthew uneasily. "I reckon she ought to be punished a little. But don't be too hard on her, Marilla. Recollect she hasn't ever had anyone to teach her

第十章 安妮的道歉 那天晚上玛丽拉没有把这件事告诉马修； 可到第二天早上安妮依旧倔强不肯认错，玛丽拉只好解释她为什么没出现在早餐桌上。 玛丽拉把事情全告诉了马修，特意让他清楚安妮的行为有多过分。 “雷切尔·林德被骂一顿才好呢； 她就是个爱管闲事的老长舌妇，”马修这样安慰道。 “马修·卡斯伯特，你真让我吃惊。 你明明知道安妮的行为糟透了，居然还帮她说话！ 我看你接下来就要说根本不该惩罚她对不对！” “唉呀——不——也不是这样，”马修不自在地说。 “我觉得她确实该受点惩罚。 但是别对她太狠呀，玛丽拉。 你想想，从来都没人教过她

right. You're-you're going to give her something to eat, aren't you?" "When did you ever hear of me starving people into good behavior?" demanded Marilla indignantly. "She'll have her meals regular, and I'll carry them up to her myself. But she'll stay up there until she's willing to apologize to Mrs. Lynde, and that's final, Matthew." Breakfast, dinner, and supper were very silent meals-for Anne still remained obdurate. After each meal Marilla carried a well-filled tray to the east gable and brought it down later on not noticeably depleted. Matthew eyed its last descent with a troubled eye. Had Anne eaten anything at all? When Marilla went out that evening to bring the cows from the back pasture, Matthew, who had been hanging about the barns and watching, slipped into the house with the air of a burglar and crept upstairs. As a general thing Matthew gravitated between the kitchen and the little bedroom off the hall where he slept; once in a while he ventured uncomfortably into the parlor or sitting room when the minister came to tea. But he had never been upstairs in his own house since the

该怎么做呀。 你、你会给她留吃的对不对？” “你什么时候听过我靠饿肚子逼人教好？”玛丽拉气冲冲地质问道。 “她会按时吃饭，我会亲自给她端上去。 但她得一直待在楼上，直到愿意给林德太太道歉，这事就这么定了，马修。” 早饭、午饭、晚饭都静悄悄的——安妮依旧不肯松口。 每顿饭后玛丽拉都把装满食物的托盘端到东山墙房间，后来端下来的时候，托盘里的东西几乎没少。 马修看着最后端下来的托盘，满心不安。 安妮到底有没有吃东西啊？ 那天傍晚玛丽拉出门去后山牧场赶奶牛，一直在谷仓附近转悠盯着的马修，像小偷似的溜进屋子，偷偷爬上楼。 平日里马修要么待在厨房，要么待在走廊旁他睡觉的小卧室； 偶尔牧师来喝茶，他才会不自在地硬着头皮去客厅或者起居室。 可他在自己家自从那

spring he helped Marilla paper the spare bedroom, and that was four years ago. He tiptoed along the hall and stood for several minutes outside the door of the east gable before he summoned courage to tap on it with his fingers and then open the door to peep in. Anne was sitting on the yellow chair by the window gazing mournfully out into the garden. Very small and unhappy she looked, and Matthew's heart smote him. He softly closed the door and tiptoed over to her. "Anne," he whispered, as if afraid of being overheard, "how are you making it, Anne?" Anne smiled wanly. "Pretty well. I imagine a good deal, and that helps to pass the time. Of course, it's rather lonesome. But then, I may as well get used to that." Anne smiled again, bravely facing the long years of solitary imprisonment before her. Matthew recollected that he must say what he had come to say without loss of time, lest Marilla return prematurely.

春天帮玛丽拉贴空房间的墙纸之后，那已经是四年前的事了。 他沿着走廊踮着脚走，在东山墙房间门外站了好几分钟，才鼓起勇气用手指敲了敲门，接着推开门往里面偷看。 安妮坐在窗边的黄色椅子上，忧伤地望着外面的花园。 她看起来小小的，满脸不开心，马修的心一下子揪紧了。 他轻轻关上门，踮着脚走到安妮身边。 “安妮，”他小声说，好像怕被人听见，“你过得怎么样呀，安妮？” 安妮虚弱地笑了笑。 “还不错。 我会想很多事儿，这样就能打发时间了。 当然啦，这里挺孤单的。 不过，我慢慢习惯就好了。” 安妮又笑了笑，勇敢地面对眼前要被单独关起来的漫长日子。 马修记起来得抓紧说自己来要说的话，免得玛丽拉提前回来。

"Well now, Anne, don't you think you'd better do it and have it over with?" he whispered. "It'll have to be done sooner or later, you know, for Marilla's a dreadful determined woman-dreadful determined, Anne. Do it right off, I say, and have it over." "Do you mean apologize to Mrs. Lynde?" "Yes-apologize-that's the very word," said Matthew eagerly. "Just smooth it over so to speak. That's what I was trying to get at." "I suppose I could do it to oblige you," said Anne thoughtfully. "It would be true enough to say I am sorry, because I AM sorry now. I wasn't a bit sorry last night. I was mad clear through, and I stayed mad all night. I know I did because I woke up three times and I was just furious every time. But this morning it was over. I wasn't in a temper anymore-and it left a dreadful sort of goneness, too. I felt so ashamed of myself. But I just couldn't think of going and telling Mrs. Lynde so. It would be so humiliating. I made up my mind I'd stay shut up here forever rather than do that. But still-I'd do

“哎呀，安妮，你不觉得最好还是道歉把这事了结了吗？”他小声说。 “这事早晚都得做，你知道的，玛丽拉是个特别固执的女人——固执极了，安妮。 听我的，现在就去做，把这事了结了吧。” “你是说让我给林德太太道歉？” “对——道歉——就是这个意思，”马修急切地说。 “说白了就是把这事翻篇儿。 我就是想对你说这个。” “为了让你安心，我想我可以去，”安妮若有所思地说。 “说我抱歉确实没错，因为我现在真的知道错了。 我昨天晚上一点都不后悔。 我整个人都气疯了，一整天气都没消。 我清楚得很，因为我醒了三次，每次醒来都还是火冒三丈。 不过今天早上气就消了。 我不再生气了——气消之后只觉得空落落的，难受极了。 我真的觉得自己太丢脸了。 可我就是没办法去找林德太太说这话。 这太丢人了。 我打定主意，宁愿一辈子关在这儿，也不去做这件事。 不过呢——我愿意

anything for you-if you really want me to-" "Well now, of course I do. It's terrible lonesome downstairs without you. Just go and smooth things over-that's a good girl." "Very well," said Anne resignedly. "I'll tell Marilla as soon as she comes in I've repented." "That's right-that's right, Anne. But don't tell Marilla I said anything about it. She might think I was putting my oar in and I promised not to do that." "Wild horses won't drag the secret from me," promised Anne solemnly. "How would wild horses drag a secret from a person anyhow?" But Matthew was gone, scared at his own success. He fled hastily to the remotest corner of the horse pasture lest Marilla should suspect what he had been up to. Marilla herself, upon her return to the house, was agreeably surprised to hear a plaintive voice calling, "Marilla" over the banisters. "Well?" she said, going into the hall. "I'm sorry I lost my temper and said rude things, and I'm willing to go and tell Mrs. Lynde so."

我什么都愿意做——要是你真想要我去的话——”“哎呀，我当然想要你去呀。 你不在楼下，这里可太孤单了。 快去把这事说和了——这才是好孩子呀。” “好吧，”安妮顺从地说。 “等玛丽拉一进来，我就告诉她我知道错了。” “这就对了——这就对了，安妮。 不过别告诉玛丽拉我说了这些话。 她该觉得我多管闲事，我可答应过不插手的。” “就算野马也别想把秘密从我嘴里拉出去，”安妮严肃地保证。 “话说野马到底要怎么把秘密从人嘴里拽出来呀？” 可马修已经走了，他做成这事自己反倒慌了神。 他急急忙忙逃去马场最远的角落，就怕玛丽拉猜出他刚才撺掇了什么。 玛丽拉回到家，听见楼梯栏杆后传来一声可怜巴巴的“玛丽拉”，不由得又惊又喜。 “怎么了？”她边说边走进门厅。 “我不该发脾气说难听的话，我错了，我愿意亲自去跟林德太太道歉。”

"Very well." Marilla's crispness gave no sign of her relief. She had been wondering what under the canopy she should do if Anne did not give in. "I'll take you down after milking." Accordingly, after milking, behold Marilla and Anne walking down the lane, the former erect and triumphant, the latter drooping and dejected. But halfway down Anne's dejection vanished as if by enchantment. She lifted her head and stepped lightly along, her eyes fixed on the sunset sky and an air of subdued exhilaration about her. Marilla beheld the change disapprovingly. This was no meek penitent such as it behooved her to take into the presence of the offended Mrs. Lynde. "What are you thinking of, Anne?" she asked sharply. "I'm imagining out what I must say to Mrs. Lynde," answered Anne dreamily. This was satisfactory-or should have been so. But Marilla could not rid herself of the notion that something in her scheme of punishment was going askew. Anne had no business to look so rapt and radiant. Rapt and radiant Anne continued until they were in the very presence of Mrs. Lynde, who was

“行吧。” 玛丽拉语气干脆，半点儿没露出自己其实松了口气。 她之前还在犯愁，要是安妮一直不肯让步，她到底该怎么办。 “挤完牛奶我带你过去。” 于是挤完牛奶，玛丽拉和安妮走在小路上：前者昂首挺胸，得意洋洋；后者垂头丧气，无精打采。 可走到半路，安妮的沮丧就像被施了魔法似的，一下子消失了。 她抬起头，脚步轻快起来，眼睛望着落日的天空，浑身透着一股子按捺不住的兴奋。 玛丽拉看着这变化，满心都不赞同。 这哪里该是带去找被得罪的林德太太认错的温顺悔罪人呀。 “安妮，你在想什么呢？” 她厉声问道。 “我在想等下该对林德太太说什么呀，”安妮恍恍惚惚地回答。 这回答还算让人满意——或者说本该满意才对。 可玛丽拉总觉得，她原本的惩罚计划哪里出了岔子。 安妮根本不该这么全神贯注、神采飞扬呀。 安妮就一直这么神采奕奕地走着，直到她们站到林德太太面前，林德太太正