福爾摩斯探案集·血字的研究 第61期:和先知的會談(5)

He was still sitting with his elbow upon his knee, considering how he should broach the matter to his daughter,

他用肘支在膝頭上，一直坐在那里，考慮著究竟如何對女兒說起這件事才好。

when a soft hand was laid upon his, and looking up, he saw her standing beside him.

這時，忽然有一只柔軟的手握住了他的手。他抬頭一看，只見他的女兒站在他的身旁。

One glance at her pale, frightened face showed him that she had heard what had passed.

他一瞧見她那蒼白、驚恐的臉，他就明白了，她已經(jīng)聽見剛才這一番談話了。

"I could not help it," she said, in answer to his look.

她看見了父親的臉色，就說："我沒法不聽，

"His voice rang through the house. Oh, father, father, what shall we do?"

他的聲音那么大，整個房子里都聽得見。哦，爸爸，爸爸，咱們究竟該怎么辦呢？"

"Don't you scare yourself," he answered, drawing her to him, and passing his broad, rough hand caressingly over her chestnut hair.

"你不要驚慌，"他一面說，一面把她拉到身邊，用他的粗大的手撫摸著她的栗色秀發(fā)，

"We'll fix it up somehow or another.

"咱們總能想出個辦法來的。

You don't find your fancy kind o' lessening for this chap, do you?"

你對那個小伙子的愛情不會淡薄下來吧，會嗎？"

A sob and a squeeze of his hand were her only answer.

露茜沒有回答，只是緊握著老人的手，默默地啜泣著。

"No; of course not. I shouldn't care to hear you say you did.

"不，當然不會。我并不愿聽到你說你會。

He's a likely lad, and he's a Christian, which is more than these folks here, in spite o' all their praying and preaching.

他是一個有前途的小伙子，而且他還是個基督徒。就憑這一點，他也就比這里的人強多了，不管他們是怎樣禮拜祈禱，也不管他們怎樣諄諄說教。

There's a party starting for Nevada to-morrow, and I'll manage to send him a message letting him know the hole we are in.

明天早晨有一伙人動身到內(nèi)華達去，我準備給侯波送個信，讓他知道咱們現(xiàn)在的惡劣處境。

If I know anything o' that young man, he'll be back with a speed that would whip electro-telegraphs."

如果我對這個年輕人還算有點了解的話，那么，他一定會象接著電報一樣，飛也似地跑回來的。"

Lucy laughed through her tears at her father's description.

露茜聽了她父親的這番描述，不禁破涕為笑。

"When he comes, he will advise us for the best. But it is for you that I am frightened, dear.

"他回來以后，一定會給咱們想個萬全的辦法的?？墒?，我擔心的倒是你，爸爸。

One hears–one hears such dreadful stories about those who oppose the Prophet; something terrible always happens to them."

有人聽說--聽說關于反對先知的那些可怕的事，說什么反對他的人都要遭到可怕的災難。"

"But we haven't opposed him yet," her father answered.

她的父親回答說："可是，咱們還沒有反對他呢。

"It will be time to look out for squalls when we do.

如果咱們反對了他，那可就真得防備一下呢。

We have a clear month before us; at the end of that, I guess we had best shin out of Utah."

咱們還有整整一個月的時間哩。期限一到，我想咱們最好是逃出猶他這個地方去。"

"Leave Utah!"

"離開猶他！"

"That's about the size of it."

"就得這樣吧。"

"But the farm?"

"可是田莊呢？"

"We will raise as much as we can in money, and let the rest go.

"可以變賣的，我們盡量把它變賣成錢。賣不掉的也只好算了。

To tell the truth, Lucy, it isn't the first time I have thought of doing it.

說實在的，露茜，并不是現(xiàn)在我才想到要這樣做。

I don't care about knuckling under to any man, as these folk do to their darned Prophet.

至于屈從在任何人之下這一點，就象這里的人屈從在他們那位該死的先知淫威之下一樣，我倒不斤斤計較。

I'm a free-born American, and it's all new to me.

但是，我是一個自由的美國人，這里的一切，我實在看不慣。

Guess I'm too old to learn.

我認為我是太老了，學不來他們這一套。

If he comes browsing about this farm, he might chance to run up against a charge of buckshot travelling in the opposite direction."

可是假如他真要到我的田莊里來橫行霸道的話，他就要嘗嘗迎面飛來的獵槍子彈的滋味了。"

"But they won't let us leave," his daughter objected.

他的女兒看法不同，她說："可是，他們不會放咱們走的。"

"Wait till Jefferson comes, and we'll soon manage that.

"等到杰弗遜回來以后，咱們很快就能逃出去了。

In the meantime, don't you fret yourself, my dearie, and don't get your eyes swelled up, else he'll be walking into me when he sees you.

在這期間，你千萬不要自己苦惱自己，我的好女兒，也不要把眼睛哭得腫腫的，不然的話，他若看見你這副模樣，就一定會來找我的麻煩了。

There's nothing to be afeared about, and there's no danger at all."

沒有什么可怕的，根本也不會有什么危險。"

John Ferrier uttered these consoling remarks in a very confident tone,

約翰·費瑞厄?qū)λf了這些安慰的話，說得十分堅定而有信心。

but she could not help observing that he paid unusual care to the fastening of the doors that night,

但是，當天晚上，她卻看到，他與往日不同，非常仔細謹慎地把門戶一一加閂，

and that he carefully cleaned and loaded the rusty old shot-gun which hung upon the wall of his bedroom.

并且把掛在臥室墻上的那支生了銹的舊獵槍取了下來，把它擦拭干凈，裝上了子彈。