牛津书虫系列《织工马南》Chapter5 附中英双语文本

5 Silas's neighbours
5 西拉斯的邻居们
In the weeks following the robbery，the police tried hard to find the pedlar，because so many people suspected him of being the thief．But there was no sign of him in any of the towns and villages round Raveloe．
失窃案后的几周里，因为那么多人都怀疑那个小贩是贼，警察就费了很大劲查找他，但是在瑞福洛周围的村子和镇子里都找不到他的踪影。
Nobody was surprised at Dunstan Cass's absence．Once be-fore he had stayed away for six weeks and then come back．No-body imagined he could have anything to do with the robbery．The villagers continued to discuss Silas and his lost gold，but they had no more explanations to offer．
没有人对邓斯坦·凯斯的失踪表示奇怪，以前有一次他曾离家6周以后才回来。没人想到他会和失窃案有关。村民们仍在谈论西拉斯和他丢了的金子，可人们都找不到更新的解释。
Silas himself still had his loom and his work，so he went on weaving But the only thing that had made his life worth living had gone，and now he had nothing to look forward to．A life－time of empty evenings lay ahead of him． He did not enjoy thinking of the money he would earn，because it reminded him of the money he had lost．As he sat weaving，he sometimes used to moan quietly to himself．And in the evenings，as he sat alone in front of the fire，he used to put his head in his hands and moan again．
至于西拉斯本人，他还有他的织布机和他的工作，所以他继续织布。可是生活中唯一有价值的东西失去了，他不再有什么可期望的了。今后的一生将只有空虚的夜晚。他不再喜欢去想将要挣到的钱．那会使他想起丢失的钱。坐着干活的时候，他有时会对自己呻吟。晚上，一个人坐在炉火前，他也常会用手抱着头痛苦地呻吟。
But this disaster had one good result．Little by little，Silas's neighbours realized it was wrong to be suspicious of him． He was just a poor，simple，harmless man，who needed their help．
不过他的灾难也有一个好的结果。慢慢地，邻居们认识到以前对西拉斯的怀疑是不对的。他只是一个穷困、简单、无恶意的人，需要他们的帮助。
They showed their new opinion of him in many different ways．Some of the women，who were baking cakes and preparing meat for Christmas，brought him presents of food．Some of the men，who had nothing to give him，stopped him in the village to ask about his health，or visited him to discuss the robbery．They often finished their conversation by saying cheerfully，'Now you're the same as the rest of us—we're poor too！Cheer up，Master Marner！If you get ill and can't work any more，the Squire'll give you food and your neigh－bours will take care of you．'this did not make Silas feel better，but he realized it was meant kindly．
他们通过许多不同的方式表达对马南的新看法。有的妇女会在准备圣诞晚餐或者烤面包时送给他一些食物，那些没什么可给他的男人也会在村里叫住他问候他或者到小屋来看他，和他聊关于失窃案的事。谈话结束的时候他们通常会愉快地说：“现在你和我们这些人一样了——我们也是穷人！高兴起来，马南师傅！如果你病了，不能再工作了，乡绅会给你食物，邻居们会照顾你。”这些虽然不能让西拉斯感觉好受些，但他知道这是好意。
Old Mr Macey，the church clerk，came to the cottage one day，to explain how his opinion of the weaver had changed．
有一天，执事老麦西先生到小屋来解释他对于织布匠看法的改变。
'You see，Master Marner，'he said in his high old voice，'I used to think you worked for the devil—you've always looked strange，you know．But now I'm sure you're not evil，just a lit-tle bit crazy．That's what I tell the neighbours．'
“你知道，马南师傅，”他用苍老的高音说，“我以前以为你为魔鬼工作——你知道你老是看起来怪怪的。可现在我肯定你不邪恶，只是有一点儿古怪，我就是这么对邻居们讲的。”
He stopped to give Silas time to reply，but the weaver did not speak．He was sitting with his head in his hands as usual．He knew that the old man was trying to be kind，but he was too miserable to show any interest．
他停下来等西拉斯回答，可西拉斯没有出声，只是像平常一样用手抱着头坐着，他知道这个老人在试图表示友好，不过他实在是太沮丧了，没有兴趣。
'Come，Master Marner， what's your answer to that？'asked Mr Macey， a little impatiently．
“怎么样，马南师傅，你对我说的怎么看？”麦西先生有点儿不耐烦了。
'Oh，'said Silas，slowly lifting his head，'thank you． Thank you for your kindness．'