苔丝 Chapter19

The End 19

结局 19

It was evening in the parson's house at Emminster.Mr and Mrs Clare were waiting anxiously for Angel's return.

一天晚上，在爱敏斯特的牧师家，克莱尔先生和夫人正焦急地等待着安吉尔的归来。

‘He won't be here yet，my dear，’said old Mr Clare，as his wife went to the front door for the tenth time.‘Remember his train doesn't come in till six o'clock，and then he has to ride ten miles on our old horse.’

“亲爱的，他还到不了，”老克莱尔先生说道。他的妻子已经第十次到前门探望了。“记住他的火车直到六点才能抵达，然后他还得骑着咱们那匹老马走上十里路呢!”

‘But he used to do it in an hour，’said his wife impatiently.Both knew it was useless to talk about it，and the only thing to do was wait.

“可是，以往他在一个小时内就骑到了，”他的妻子焦躁地说道。两个人都知道谈论是没有用的，唯一能做的就是等待。

When they heard footsteps they rushed outside to meet the shape in the darkness.

他们听到脚步声，急忙冲到了门外，迎接那个黑暗中的身影。

‘Oh my boy，my boy，home at last!’cried Mrs Clare，who at that moment cared no more for Angel's lack of religion than for the dust on his clothes.What woman，in fact，however firm her beliefs，would not sacrifice her religion for her children?Nothing was more important to Mrs Clare than Angel's happiness.

“哦，我的孩子，我的孩子，终于到家了!”克莱尔夫人叫道。在这个时候，她关切的仅仅是安吉尔身上的尘土，而不会在乎他缺少宗教信仰。实际上，哪一个女人，不管她的信仰多么坚定，不会为了她的孩子们牺牲她的信仰?对克莱尔夫人来说，没有任何东西比安吉尔的幸福更重要。

But as soon as they reached the living room，she saw his face clearly in the light of the candles.She gave a cry and turned away in sorrow.‘Oh，it's not the Angel who went away!’

可是当他们进到了起居室，她在烛光映照下端详起他的脸庞时，她不禁惊叫了起来，痛苦地转过头去，“哦，这不是离开时的安吉尔!”

Even his father was shocked to see the change in his son.They would not have recognized him if they had passed him in the street.The cruel climate and hard work had aged him by twenty years.He was like a shadow，thin and bony，with no spring in his step and no enthusiasm in his eyes.

甚至他的父亲在看到儿子的变化时也很震惊。如果他们在街道上经过他身旁，他们会认不出他来的，恶劣的气候和艰苦的劳动让他苍老了二十岁。他瘦骨嶙峋，步伐沉重，目光黯然失神，简直不成人样了。

‘I was ill over there，’he said，noticing his parents concern.He had to sit down，being weak after his journey.

“在那边我一直生病，”注意到父母的忧虑，他说道。旅程之后，他已很虚弱，不得不坐下来了。

‘Has any letter come for me?’he asked eagerly.‘The last one…’

“有我的什么信件吗?”他急切地问道，“最近的一封……”

‘From your wife?’

“从你妻子那儿来的?”

‘Yes.I didn't get it until very recently，as I was travelling.If I had received it earlier，I would have come sooner.’

“是的，我直到最近，当我在旅行的时候才收到。如果我早点儿收到信的话，我会更快赶回来的。”

They gave him a letter that had been waiting for his arrival.Angel read it rapidly.It was Tess's last letter，short and desperate：

他们给了他一封一直等他回来看的信。安吉尔快速地浏览了信，这是苔丝最近一封信，写得简短、迫切：

Oh why have you treated me so badly，Angel?I do not deserve it.You are cruel! I intend to forget you.You have been so unfair to me!

啊，安吉尔，你为什么对我这么狠哪?这不是我应受的惩罚，你真是残酷!我要设法忘掉你。你对待我太不公平了!

It is all quite true!’cried Angel hopelessly，throwing down the letter.‘Perhaps she will never take me back!’