牛津书虫系列《勃朗特一家的故事》Chapter3 附中英双语文本

3 The little books
3 小书
I had four children now— Charlotte，Branwell，Emily and Anne．I did not send them to school again for many years．God's ways are hard to understand，I thought．Perhaps God was not pleased with me；perhaps He wanted Maria and Elizabeth for Himself．I decided to keep the others at home．Aunt Branwell could teach them，and I could help when I had time．
现在我只剩下了4个孩子——夏洛蒂、布兰韦尔，爱米丽和安妮。有好几年我没把他们送到学校去。我觉得上帝的做法不容易为人所理解。也许上帝对我不高兴，也许他自己想要玛丽亚和伊丽莎白。我决定把其他几个孩子留在家里，布兰韦尔姨妈能教他们，我有空的时候也能帮把手。
They were clever children，quick at learning．They loved to write and draw and paint，and they talked all day long．And，thank God，they were not ill．In the afternoons，my servant，Tabby，took them for long walks on the moors behind the house．They walked for miles on the hilltops in the strong clean wind，alone with the birds and the sheep．I think it was good for them．They grew stronger，and there was a bright light in their eyes．
他们都是很聪明的孩子，学得很快。他们喜欢写字、画画和涂涂画画，一天到晚地都在交谈。感谢上帝，他们没再生玻下午，我们的用人泰比会带他们到屋后的荒野散步。在清凉劲风中，他们在山顶上走好几英里，和那些鸟儿、羊儿们呆在一起。这对他们很有好处。他们长得结实些了，眼眸中熠熠闪光。
I was not the only sad father in Haworth．Many，many chil-dren died，and I had to bury them all．The water in Haworth was bad，so many children died from illness．And many more died from accidents；I saw a hundred children die from fire．In my house，I was always very careful．I had no curtains，no car－pets，because I was afraid of fire．My children never wore cot－ton clothes，because they burn so easily．
在霍沃斯，我并不是唯一一个伤心的父亲，许多孩子都死了，都是由我来埋葬的。霍沃斯的水很糟糕，很多孩子因此生病死去。还有更多的孩子死于意外。我见过上百个孩子被火烧死。在自己家里我总是非常小心。我不挂窗帘，不铺地毯，因为我害怕火灾。我的孩子从不穿棉布衣服，那太容易着火了。
One day in 1826 I brought a box of toy soldiers home from Leeds．Next morning the children began to play games with them．
1826年的一天我从商店买回一盒玩具兵，第二天一早孩子们就开始玩起士兵的游戏。
'This one is mine！'Charlotte said．'He's the Duke of Wellington！'
“这个是我的！”夏洛蒂说，“他是惠灵顿公爵。”
'And this is mine！'said Branwell．'He's Napoleon Bonaparte！'
“这个是我的！”布兰韦尔说，“他是拿破仑·波拿巴。”
The children liked the wooden soldiers and began to tell a story about them．It was a very exciting story，I remember．They read it to me and Aunt Branwell and Tabby，our servant．The next day they invented another story，and then another．And then for several days the children were very quiet，and I wondered what they were doing．
孩子们喜欢这些木头士兵，编起了他们的故事。我记得那是个令人兴奋的故事。他们把故事念给我、布兰韦尔姨妈和用人泰比听。第二天他们又编出了新的故事，然后又是另一个。后来的几天孩子们变得很安静。我很奇怪，不知道他们究竟在干什么。
I went upstairs，and opened their bedroom door．Inside，they were all busily writing or drawing on small pieces of paper．The wooden soldiers were in the middle of the room in front of them．
我上了楼，推开他们卧室的门。屋内他们正忙着在纸上又写又画。木头士兵就摆在他们面前屋子的中央。
'What are you doing？'I asked．
“你们在干什么？”我问道。
Emily looked up．'Oh，father，please go away，'she said．
爱米丽抬起头说：“哦，爸爸，请走开！我们正在写要保密的书。”
'We're writing our secret books．' I suppose I looked sad．'What？ Can't I see them？'I asked．
我想我看起来有点难过。“怎么，我不能看看吗？”我问。
They all thought for a minute．Then Charlotte said，very se－riously：'You can see some of them，of course，papa．But they aren't easy to read，because it's very small writing． We'll show them to you when we are ready．'
他们想了一会儿。然后夏洛蒂非常严肃地说：“当然，爸爸，你可以看一部分。但它们不太好读，字太小了。等我们写完了就给你看。”
These toy soldiers opened a new world for my children．They showed me some of their stories，but there were hundreds that tney kept secret．They all began writing so young—Charlotte，the oldest，was only ten，and Emily was eight．I don't think they ever stopped．Mr Nicholls has all Charlotte's little books now，in a cupboard in his room．Some of them are no more than five or six centimetres high．They are beautifully made，and full of small pictures and tiny writing．There is one on my desk now，but I can't read it，my eyes are too bad．