THE DRYAD (1868)

　　树精灵（1）

　　We’re going to Paris to see the exposition!

　　我们要去巴黎看博览会了！

　　Now we’re there!

　　现在我们到了！

　　It was a speedy journey, done completely without witchcraft—we went by steam, in a ship and on a railroad.

　　这是一次快速的旅程，完全没有使用魔法——我们乘坐蒸汽轮船和火车前往。

　　Our time is indeed a time of fairy tales.

　　我们的时代真是一个童话的时代。

　　Now we are in a large hotel in the middle of Paris.

　　现在我们住在巴黎市中心的一家大旅馆里。

　　The staircase is decorated with flowers, and soft carpets are spread over the steps.

　　楼梯上装饰着鲜花，台阶上铺着柔软的地毯。

　　Our room is pleasant; the balcony door is open, and we can look out onto a large square.

　　我们的房间很舒适；阳台门开着，我们可以望见一个大广场。

　　Down there is spring, which has come to Paris, having arrived at the same time we did, in the form of a big, young chestnut tree with delicate leaves beginning to open.

　　下面的广场上，春天已经来到了巴黎，它以一棵高大、年轻的栗子树的形式，与我们在同一时间到达，嫩叶正开始舒展。

　　How much more richly that tree is dressed in the beauty of spring than the other trees on the square!

　　比起广场上的其他树木，这棵树披上了多么浓郁的春装啊！

　　One of them has stepped out of the row of living trees and lies on the ground with its roots torn up.

　　其中一棵树已经离开了活树的行列，倒在地上，树根被拔起。

　　Where that tree stood the young chestnut will be planted, and there it will grow.

　　在那棵倒下的树原来的位置上，这棵年轻的栗子树将被栽种，并在那里生长。

　　It is still standing high up on the heavy wagon that brought it to Paris this morning from many miles out in the country.

　　它仍然高高地站在那辆沉重的马车上，这辆车今天早上把它从数英里外的乡村运到了巴黎。

　　For years it had stood out there, close to a mighty oak, under which the pious old pastor often used to sit and tell his stories to the listening children.

　　多年来它一直矗立在那里，靠近一棵巨大的橡树，那位虔诚的老牧师经常坐在橡树下，给聆听的孩子们讲故事。

　　Of course, the young chestnut tree had also listened.

　　当然，这棵年轻的栗子树也听了。

　　The Dryad that lived in this tree was then but a child; she could remember way back when the chestnut tree was so small it could hardly peep over the tall grass blades and ferns.

　　住在这棵树里的树精灵那时还是个孩子；她能记得很久以前，栗子树还很小，几乎无法从高高的草叶和蕨类植物中探出头来。

　　These were then as large as they ever would be; but the tree grew bigger every year, drinking in air and sunshine, dew and rain; the powerful winds shook it and bent it back and forth, which was an important part of its education.

　　这些植物当时已经长得很大了；但栗子树每年都在长大，汲取空气、阳光、露水和雨水；猛烈的风摇晃着它，使它前后弯曲，这是它成长的重要部分。

　　The Dryad was pleased with her life and enjoyed living, was pleased with the sunshine and the songs of birds; but she liked best of all the human voice for she knew the language of people as well as that of the animals.

　　树精灵对自己的生活很满意，享受活着的感觉，喜欢阳光和鸟儿的歌声；但她最喜欢的是人类的声音，因为她既懂得动物的语言，也懂得人类的语言。

　　Butterflies, cockchafers, and dragonflies—indeed, everything that could fly came to visit her, and everyone that came would gossip.

　　蝴蝶、金龟子、蜻蜓——事实上，所有能飞的生物都来拜访她，每个来访者都会闲聊。

　　They talked about the villages, the vineyards, the woods, and the old castle with its park, in which there were dikes and canals; down there in water also dwelt beings who in their own way could fly from place to place—beneath the water—beings with knowledge and imagination, but who said nothing, for they were too wise.

　　它们谈论着村庄、葡萄园、树林，以及那座带有公园的古老城堡，公园里有堤坝和运河；水底下也住着生物，它们以自己的方式在水下从一个地方“飞”到另一个地方——这些生物有知识和想象力，但什么也不说，因为它们太聪明了。

　　The swallow, which often dived down deep into the water, told about the bright goldfish, the fat turbot, the sturdy perch, and the old moss-covered carp.

　　那只经常潜入水底的燕子，讲述了明亮的金鱼、肥胖的大菱鲆、强壮的鲈鱼和长满苔藓的老鲤鱼的故事。

　　The swallow gave very good descriptions, but it’s always better to go and look for oneself, it said.

　　燕子描述得非常生动，但它说，最好还是亲自去看看。

　　But how could the Dryad ever see all these things

　　但树精灵怎么能看到所有这些呢？

　　She had to be satisfied with the beautiful landscape and the buzz of human activity.

　　她只能满足于美丽的风景和人类活动的喧嚣。

　　Everything was delightful, but most delightful when the old pastor stood there under the oak tree and talked about France and about the great deeds of men and women whose names are remembered through the ages with admiration.

　　一切都是令人愉快的，但最令人愉快的是当那位老牧师站在橡树下，讲述法国以及那些被世代铭记、令人钦佩的男女伟人的事迹时。

　　The Dryad heard of the shepherd maid, Joan of Arc, of Charlotte Corday; she learned of ancient times, and the times of Henry IV and Napoleon I, and she even heard of the genius and glory of our own times.

　　树精灵听说了牧羊女圣女贞德、夏洛特·科黛；她了解了古代，以及亨利四世和拿破仑一世时代的事迹，她甚至听说了我们这个时代的天才和荣耀。

　　She heard of names that were deep in the hearts of the people, and that France is the world’s country, the world’s gathering place of genius, with the cradle of liberty at its center.

　　她听说了那些深深印在人民心中的名字，听说法国是世界的国度，是世界天才的汇集地，自由摇篮的中心。

　　The village children listened attentively, and the Dryad just as attentively; she became a schoolchild like the rest.

　　村里的孩子们专注地听着，树精灵也同样专注；她变得和其他孩子一样，成了一名学生。

　　In the shapes of the drifting clouds she could see many pictures of those things she had learned.

　　从飘动的云朵形状中，她能看到许多她所学到的事物的画面。

　　The cloudy sky was her picture book.

　　多云的天空是她的图画书。

　　She had thought she was very happy in this beautiful France, but she began to believe that the birds—in fact, all creatures that could fly—were much better off than she.

　　她本以为在美丽的法国生活非常快乐，但她开始相信，鸟儿——事实上，所有能飞的生物——都比她过得好得多。

　　Even the fly could look far beyond her horizon.

　　就连苍蝇也能看到远远超出她视野范围的地方。

　　France was so large and so beautiful, but she could see only a very small part of it.

　　法国那么大，那么美，但她只能看到其中很小的一部分。

　　France was as broad as the world, with vineyards and forests and great cities, and of all these Paris was the greatest and most glorious!

　　法国像世界一样宽广，有葡萄园、森林和大城市，而在所有这些之中，巴黎是最伟大、最辉煌的！

　　The birds could fly there, but she, never!

　　鸟儿可以飞到那里去，但她，永远不能！

　　Among the village children there was a little girl so ragged and so poor, but very pretty to look upon.

　　村里的孩子中有一个衣衫褴褛、非常贫穷的小女孩，但长得非常漂亮。

　　She was always singing and laughing, and often tied red flowers in her black hair.

　　她总是唱歌、欢笑，常常在乌黑的头发上系上红花。

　　“Don’t go to Paris!” said the old pastor.

　　“不要去巴黎！”老牧师说。

　　“Poor child, if you go there it will be the ruin of you!”

　　“可怜的孩子，如果你去了那里，那会毁了你！”

　　And yet she went.

　　然而她还是去了。

　　The Dryad often thought of her, for they had both had the same desire and yearning to see the great city.

　　树精灵常常想起她，因为她们俩都有着同样的渴望，都向往见到那座大城市。

　　Spring came, and then summer; autumn came, and then winter.

　　春天来了，然后是夏天；秋天来了，然后是冬天。

　　A couple of years went by.

　　几年过去了。

　　The Dryad’s tree was bearing its first chestnut blossoms, and the birds chirped around them in the bright sunlight.

　　树精灵的树第一次开出了栗子花，鸟儿在明亮的阳光下围着花朵叽叽喳喳。

　　A noble lady came driving along the road in a grand carriage.

　　一位高贵的女士乘着一辆华丽的马车沿着大路驶来。

　　She herself was driving the beautiful and spirited horses, with a smartly dressed little groom sitting behind her.

　　她自己驾驭着漂亮而精神抖擞的马匹，身后坐着一位衣着讲究的小马夫。

　　The Dryad recognized her; the old pastor knew her.

　　树精灵认出了她；老牧师也认识她。

　　He shook his head and said sadly, “You did go there, and it proved your ruin, poor Marie!”

　　他摇着头，悲伤地说：“你还是去了那里，结果毁了你，可怜的玛丽！”

　　“She, poor” thought the Dryad.

　　“她，可怜？”树精灵想。

　　“No! What a change! She’s dressed like a duchess; that’s what she got in the city of enchantment.

　　“不！变化多大啊！她穿得像个公爵夫人；这就是她在那个迷人的城市里得到的。

　　Oh, if only I were there in all that light and splendor!

　　哦，要是我能置身于那片光明与辉煌之中该多好啊！

　　When I look over there where I know the city is, I can see how it lights up the clouds in the night.”

　　当我眺望我所知道的城市所在的方向时，我能看到它是如何在夜晚照亮云彩的。”

　　Indeed, she would look in that direction every evening, every night; there she could see the brightness along the horizon.

　　的确，她每天晚上、每夜都会朝那个方向望去；在那里，她能看到地平线上的光亮。

　　On clear, moonlit nights she missed the bright cloudiness; she missed the drifting clouds that showed her pictures of the great city and its history.

　　在晴朗的月夜，她怀念那明亮的云彩；她怀念那些飘动的云朵，它们向她展示着这座大城市及其历史的画面。

　　The child clings to its picture book.

　　孩子依恋他的图画书。

　　The Dryad clings to her cloud book, her book of thoughts.

　　树精灵依恋着她的云朵之书，她的思想之书。

　　A balmy, cloudless sky was like a blank page to her, and it had now been several days since she had seen one like that.

　　对她来说，温和无云的天空就像一页白纸，而她已经有好多天没看到这样的天空了。

　　It was summertime, and the days were hot and sultry, without a cooling breeze; every flower and leaf was drowsy, and people were, too.

　　正值夏季，天气炎热闷人，没有一丝凉风；每朵花、每片叶子都昏昏欲睡，人们也是如此。

　　The clouds rose at that corner of the horizon where in the night the brightness announced, “Here is Paris!”

　　云朵从地平线的那个角落升起，那里的亮光在夜晚宣告着：“巴黎在这里！”

　　All the clouds gathered and rose together, forming what appeared to be whole mountains; they pushed through the air and spread out over the entire countryside as far as the Dryad could see.

　　所有的云聚集在一起升起，形成了看似整座山脉的形状；它们穿过天空，蔓延到整个乡村，树精灵目力所及之处皆是。

　　They were heaped in mighty, rocklike, thundery-blue masses, layer on layer, high into the air.

　　它们堆积成巨大的、岩石般的、雷暴般的蓝色团块，层层叠叠，高耸入云。

　　Then flashes of light shot out from them.

　　然后，光芒从中射出。

　　“These are also the servants of God our Master,” the old pastor had said.

　　“这些也是我们主的仆人，”老牧师曾说。

　　And then out flashed a bluish, blinding light, a blaze of lightning, which tried to rival the sun itself; it shattered the piled-up clouds.

　　然后一道蓝色的、令人目眩的光芒闪现，一道闪电试图与太阳匹敌；它击碎了堆积的云层。

　　The lightning struck down, down at the mighty old oak tree, splitting it to its very roots; the crown was shattered, the trunk torn apart.

　　闪电劈下，击中了那棵巨大的老橡树，将它从根部劈开；树冠被击碎，树干被撕裂。

　　The tree crashed down and fell as if spreading itself out to receive the messenger of light.

　　树轰然倒下，仿佛伸展开来迎接光明的使者。

　　Not even the mightiest cannon could roar through the air and over the land at the birth of a king’s son as did the thunder in saluting the passing of the old oak tree.

　　即便是最强大的大炮，在王子诞生时发出的轰鸣，也无法像这声惊雷那样响彻天空和大地，向老橡树的逝去致敬。

　　The rain streamed down.

　　大雨倾盆而下。

　　A refreshing breeze sprang up; the storm was over, and a holiday calm settled on the countryside.

　　一阵清新的微风吹起；暴风雨过去了，一种节日的宁静笼罩着乡村。

　　The villagers gathered around the fallen old oak tree; the old pastor spoke a few words in praise of it, and a painter made a sketch of the old tree as a lasting souvenir.

　　村民们聚集在倒下的老橡树周围；老牧师说了几句赞美它的话，一位画家为老树画了张素描作为永久的纪念。

　　“Everything passes on,” said the Dryad, “passes on as the clouds do, never to return.”

　　“一切都会过去，”树精灵说，“就像云朵一样过去，永不回头。”

　　Never again did the pastor come there.

　　牧师再也没有来过那里。

　　The roof of the schoolhouse had crashed in, and the pulpit was broken.

　　校舍的屋顶塌了，讲坛也坏了。

　　No more did the children come.

　　孩子们也不再来了。

　　But autumn came, and winter came, and then spring.

　　但是秋天来了，冬天来了，然后春天又来了。

　　And during this time the Dryad’s eyes were turned toward that corner on the distant horizon where every evening and night the lights of Paris shone like a belt of radiance.

　　在此期间，树精灵的眼睛一直注视着遥远地平线上的那个角落，那里每个夜晚巴黎的灯光都像一条光带一样闪耀。

　　Out of Paris sped locomotive after locomotive, train after train, whistling and roaring, constantly.

　　一列又一列的火车、一列又一列的列车从巴黎疾驰而出，不停地鸣笛、轰鸣。

　　At every hour, in the evenings, at midnight, in the morning, and throughout the day, the trains arrived, and from these, and into these, people from all countries of the world pushed.

　　每时每刻，傍晚、午夜、清晨以及整个白天，火车都在抵达，来自世界各地的人们从这些火车里涌出，又涌进这些火车。

　　A new wonder of the world drew them to Paris.

　　一个新的世界奇观吸引他们来到巴黎。

　　How did this wonder show itself

　　这个奇观是如何展现的呢？

　　“A gorgeous flower of art and industry,” people said, “has sprung up on the barren sands of the Champ de Mars.

　　“一朵艺术与工业的绚丽之花，”人们说，“已经在战神广场贫瘠的沙地上绽放。

　　It’s a gigantic sunflower, and from its leaves you can study geography or statistics, or become as wise as a councilman, or be inspired by art and poetry, or learn about the products and greatness of every country.

　　它是一朵巨大的向日葵，你可以从它的叶子中学习地理或统计，或者变得像议员一样聪明，或者受到艺术和诗歌的启发，或者了解每个国家的产品和伟大之处。

　　“It’s a fairy-tale flower,” others said, “a colored lotus, spreading its green leaves like a velvet carpet, the leaves that shot up in the early spring.

　　“这是一朵童话之花，”另一些人说，“一朵彩色的莲花，铺展着它那如天鹅绒地毯般的绿叶，这些叶子在早春时节迅速生长。

　　Summer will see it in its greatest glory, and the storms of autumn will blow it away, leaving neither leaves nor roots.”

　　夏天它将展现出最壮丽的景象，而秋天的风暴会把它吹走，不留下一片叶子或根须。”

　　Before the military school, the Champ de Mars lay stretched out in time of peace, a field without grass and straw, a piece of sandy desert cut from the African wilderness, where Fata Morgana shows her mysterious air castles and hanging gardens; they were more magnificent, more wondrous, now on the Champ de Mars, for they had been converted into reality by human skill.

　　在军校前面，战神广场在和平时期伸展着，那是一片没有草和秸秆的田野，一块从非洲荒野切割出来的沙质沙漠，海市蜃楼在那里展示着她神秘的空中楼阁和空中花园；如今在战神广场上，它们更加宏伟、更加奇妙，因为人类的技艺已将它们变为现实。

　　“They have built the palace of the modern Aladdin,” it was said.

　　“他们建造了现代阿拉丁的宫殿，”人们说。

　　“Day after day, hour after hour, it unfolds more and more of its new splendors.”

　　“日复一日，时复一时，它展现出越来越多新的辉煌。”

　　There was an endless array of halls in marble and many colors.

　　有着数不尽的大厅，由大理石和各种颜色的材料建成。

　　The giant with bloodless veins moved his steel and iron limbs there in the great circular hall.

　　那个没有血液的巨人，在大圆形大厅里移动着他钢铁的四肢。

　　Works of art in metal, in stone, in tapestry, loudly proclaimed the powerful genius that labored in all the lands of the world.

　　金属、石头、挂毯制成的艺术品，高声宣告着在世界各地劳作的强大天才。

　　There were picture galleries and flower shows.

　　那里有画廊和花展。

　　Everything that hand and brain could create was on exhibition in the workshop of the mechanic.

　　手和脑所能创造的一切都在机械师的工场里展出。

　　Even relics from ancient castles and peat moors were to be found there.

　　甚至还能在那里找到来自古堡和泥炭沼泽的遗迹。

　　The overwhelmingly great, colorful show should have been reproduced in miniature and squeezed into the dimensions of a toy, to be seen and appreciated in its entirety.

　　这场极其盛大、色彩斑斓的展览本应被缩微复制，压缩到一个玩具的大小，以便人们能完整地观看和欣赏。

　　There on the Champ de Mars stood, as on a huge Christmas table, Aladdin’s castle of art and industry, and around it were knickknacks of greatness from every country; every nation found a memory of its home.

　　在战神广场上，矗立着阿拉丁的艺术与工业城堡，就像在一张巨大的圣诞桌上，周围摆满了来自各国的伟大纪念品；每个国家都能找到自己家园的记忆。

　　There was the royal palace of Egypt, and there a caravansery from the desert.

　　那里有埃及的皇宫，还有来自沙漠的商队旅馆。

　　The Bedouin from the land of the hot sun galloped past; and there were the Russian stables, with beautiful fiery horses from the steppes.

　　来自炎热太阳之地的贝都因人骑马奔驰而过；那里还有俄罗斯的马厩，里面是来自大草原的美丽骏马。

　　Over there was the small thatched cottage of a Danish peasant, with Dannebrog, the flag of Denmark, next to Gustavus Vasa’s beautifully carved wooden cottage from Dalarne.

　　那边是一座丹麦农民的小茅草屋，旁边是丹麦国旗丹尼布洛，挨着的是古斯塔夫·瓦萨来自达拉纳的精美木雕小屋。

　　American log cabins, English cottages, French pavilions, mosques, churches, and theaters were all spread about in a wonderful manner.

　　美国的小木屋、英国的村舍、法国的亭阁、清真寺、教堂和剧院都以奇妙的方式散布各处。

　　And in the middle of all this was the fresh green turf, with clear running water, flowering shrubs, rare trees, and glass houses where one might imagine oneself in a tropical forest.

　　而在这一切中间，是新鲜的绿色草皮，有清澈的流水、开花的灌木、珍稀的树木，还有玻璃房，让人仿佛置身于热带森林。

　　Complete rose gardens, brought from Damascus, bloomed in glory under glass roofs.

　　来自大马士革的完整玫瑰园，在玻璃屋顶下灿烂地盛开。

　　What colors and fragrance!

　　多么绚丽的色彩和芬芳啊！