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全新版大学英语综合教程第五册-英语课文翻译

全新版大学英语综合教程第五册-英语课文翻译
全新版大学英语综合教程第五册-英语课文翻译

Take This Fish and Look at It

1 It was more than fifteen years ago that I entered the laboratory of Professor Agassiz, and told him I had enrolled my name in the Scientific School as a student of natural history . He asked me a few questions about my object in coming, my antecedents generally, the mode in which I afterwards proposed to use the knowledge I might acquire, and, finally, whether I wished to study any special branch. To the latter I replied that while I wished to be well grounded in all departments of zoology, I purposed to devote myself especially to insects.

把这条鱼拿去好好看看

我是在15余年前进入阿加西兹教授的实验室的,告诉他我已在科学学院注册读博物学。他略略询问了我来此的目的、我大致的经历、以后准备如何运用所学知识,最后问我是否希望修习某一特别学科。对最后一个问题我回答说,我希望自己在动物学各个领域都具有一定的基础,但特别想研究昆虫。

2 "When do you wish to begin?" he asked.

“你想什么时候开始呢?”他问。

3 "Now," I replied.

“就现在,”我回答说。

4 This seemed to please him, and with an energetic"Very well!" he reached from a shelf a huge jar of specimens in yellow alcohol. "Take this fish," he said, "and look at it; we call it a haemulon; by and by I will ask what you have seen."

他听了显然挺高兴,劲头十足地说道“很好”,便从架子上取下一个黄色酒精里浸有标本的大罐。“把这条鱼拿去看看,”他说,“我们叫它石鲈。过一会儿我会问你都看到些什么。”

5 With that he left me, but in a moment returned with explicit instructions as to the care of the object entrusted to me.

说着他走了,但一会儿又回来跟我详细说明如何保管交给我的标本。

6 "No man is fit to be a naturalist," said he, "who does not know how to take care of specimens."

“一个人如果连怎样保护标本都不知道,”他说,“他就不配当博物学家。”

7 I was to keep the fish before me in a tin tray, and occasionally moisten the surface with alcohol from the jar, always taking care to replace the stopper tightly. Those were not the days of ground-glass stoppers and elegantly shaped exhibition jars; all the old students will recall the huge neckless glass bottles with their leaky, wax-besmeared corks, half eaten by insects, and begrimed with cellar dust. Entomology was a cleaner science than ichthyology, but the example of the Professor, who had unhesitatingly plunged to the bottom of the jar to produce the fish, was infectious; and though this alcohol had a "very ancient

and fishlike smell," I really dared not

show any aversion within these sacred

precincts, and treated the alcohol as

though it were pure water. Still I was

conscious of a passing feeling of

disappointment, for gazing at a fish did

not commend itself to an ardent

entomologist. My friends at home, too,

were annoyed when they discovered

that no amount of eau-de-Cologne

would drown the perfume which

haunted me like a shadow.

我得把放在一个锡盘里的鱼摆在

面前,过一段时间用罐里的酒精润湿

它的表面,每次都要记住把瓶塞塞紧。

那个时候还没有毛玻璃瓶塞和外形精

美的展示用瓶,过去的大学生都会记

得那种硕大的无颈玻璃瓶,软木瓶塞

全是洞孔,涂过蜡,被虫啃去一半,

被地下室的灰尘弄得很脏。昆虫学这

门科学比鱼类学干净,可教授没半点

犹豫就伸手探入罐底捞出了鱼,他的

榜样颇具感染力。尽管酒精散发着一

种“陈腐的鱼腥味”,我却不敢在这神

圣的场所流露出丝毫厌恶,只能把酒

精当作纯净水对待。但我心头还是感

到一丝失望,因为盯着看一条鱼实非

一位满怀热情的昆虫学家之所爱。回

家后我的那些朋友也不怎么高兴,他

们发现,用再多的科隆香水也驱不走

幽灵般附在我身上的那股异味。

8 In ten minutes I had seen all that

could be seen in that fish, and started

in search of the Professor —who had,

however, left the Museum; and when I

returned, after lingering over some of

the odd animals stored in the upper

apartment, my specimen was dry all

over. I dashed the fluid over the fish as

if to resuscitate the beast from a

fainting fit, and looked with anxiety for

a return of the normal sloppy

appearance. This little excitement over,

nothing was to be done but to return to

a steadfast gaze at my mute companion.

Half an hour passed —an hour —

another hour; the fish began to look

loathsome. I turned it over and around;

looked it in the face—ghastly; from

behind, beneath, above, sideways,

at three-quarters' view —just as

ghastly. I was in despair; at an early

hour I concluded that lunch was

necessary; so, with infinite relief, the

fish was carefully replaced in the jar,

and for an hour I was free.

才十分钟,我就把那条鱼能看的全

都看了个遍,接着开始找教授,他却

已经离开了博物馆。我在楼上存放着

奇异动物的房间里转悠了一会儿,等

我回去时,我的鱼标本全都干了。我

急忙把酒精洒上去,就像是要把它从

昏迷中救醒过来似的,急切地等着它

回复到平时那湿漉漉的样子。一阵小

小的兴奋过后就无事可干了,只好继

续凝视着我那一言不发的伙伴。半个

小时过去了,一个小时,又是一个小

时。看着看着觉得那条鱼讨厌得很。

我把鱼翻来翻去,瞧瞧头部——怪可

怕的;再从后面看,从下面、上面、

侧面看,再从展示面部四分之三的角

度看——也是怪可怕的。我都绝望

了。时间还早,可我觉得应该去吃午

饭了,于是我如释重负地把鱼小心翼

翼地放回到罐里,便去逍遥了一个小

时。

9 On my return, I learned that Professor

Agassiz had been at the Museum, but

had gone, and would not return for

several hours. My fellow-students were

too busy to be disturbed by continued

conversation. Slowly I drew forth that

hideous fish, and with a feeling of

desperation again looked at it. I might

not use a magnifying-glass; instruments

of all kinds were interdicted. My two

hands, my two eyes, and the fish: it

seemed a most limited field. I pushed

my finger down its throat to feel how

sharp the teeth were. I began to count

the scales in the different rows, until I

was convinced that was nonsense. At

last a happy thought struck me —I

would draw the fish; and with surprise I

began to discover new features in the

creature. Just then the Professor

returned.

我回来后,得知阿加西兹教授回过

博物馆,可又走了,要过几个小时才

回来。我的那些同学都在忙着,不能

一直跟他们谈话打搅他们。我慢吞吞

地取出了那条面目可憎的鱼,怀着绝

望心情接着看。我不能用放大镜,任

何器材都不许用。一双手,两只眼,

还有这条鱼:这个观察场地也未免太

狭小了。我把一根手指伸进它的喉部,

试试它的牙齿有多锋利。我开始数一

排排鱼鳞,一直数到自己也觉得荒唐。

最后我想出了一个绝妙的主意——

把鱼画下来。我惊讶地发现这家伙身

上还真有不少新特征。就在这时教授

回来了。

10 "That is right," said he; "a pencil is

one of the best of eyes. I am glad to

notice, too, that you keep your

specimen wet, and your bottle corked."

对了,”他说,“笔的目光也是最敏

锐的。而且,令人高兴的是,我还注

意到你的标本没有干,瓶子也是塞住

的。”

11 With these encouraging words, he

added: "Well, what is it like?"

说了这番鼓励话之后,他接着问:

“好了,看得怎么样了?”

12 He listened attentively to my brief

rehearsal of the structure of parts

whose names were still unknown to me:

the fringed gill-arches and movable

operculum; the pores of the head,

fleshy lips and lidless eyes; the lateral

line, the spinous fins and forked tail;

the compressed and arched body.

When I finished, he waited as if

expecting more, and then, with an air

of disappointment:

他专注地听我简要叙述鱼体的结

构,许多部位我还不知道叫什么:带

边缘的鳃弓、活动鳃盖骨、头部细孔、

肉质唇部、无睑眼;侧线、刺状鳍、

叉状尾;扁曲身体。我讲完了,他仍等着,似乎还想听下去,接着带着失望的神情说:

13 "You have not looked very carefully; why," he continued more earnestly, "you haven't even seen one of the most conspicuous features of the animal, which is plainly before your eyes as the fish itself; look again, look again!" and he left me to my misery.

“你看得不够仔细。唉,”他满脸认真地接着说道,“你连这条鱼最明显的一项特征都没看出来,跟这条鱼一样,那特征就明摆在你的眼前。再看,再看!”说着他走了,留下我沮丧不已。

14 I was piqued; I was mortified. Still more of that wretched fish! But now I set myself to my task with a will, and discovered one new thing after another, until I saw how just the Professor's criticism had been. The afternoon passed quickly; and when, towards its close, the Professor inquired:

我怒从心生,我深感屈辱。还要看那条该死的鱼!不过,这次我看时憋了一股劲,于是发现了一个又一个新特征,到最后我明白教授的批评的确有道理。一个下午很快过去了。下午将尽时,教授问道:

15 "Do you see it yet?"

“发现了没有?”

16 "No," I replied, "I am certain I do not, but I see how little I saw before."

“还没有,”我回答说,“肯定还没有,可我看出了原先自己的确没观察到什么。”

17 "That is next best," said he, earnestly, "but I won't hear you now; put away your fish and go home; perhaps you will be ready with a better answer in the morning. I will examine you before you look at the fish."

“这是仅次于最好的结果了,”他认真地说,“不过现在我不打算听你讲。把鱼放好,然后就回家吧。说不定到了明天早上你会回答得更好。明天在你看鱼之前我再问你。”

18 This was disconcerting. Not only must I think of my fish all night, studying, without the object before me, what this unknown but most visible feature might be; but also, without reviewing my discoveries, I must give an exact account of them the next day. I had a bad memory; so I walked home by Charles River in a distracted state, with my two perplexities.

这真是太为难人了。我不仅得整晚想着这条鱼,要在实物不在眼前的情况下仔细琢磨这一未知却又极其显著的特征是什么;而且,第二天要在无法回顾我所作发现的情况下对我所观察到的东西作一精确描述。我记性不好,因此我沿着查尔斯河走回家时心烦意乱,想着自己的两个难题。

19 The cordial greeting from the Professor the next morning was reassuring; here was a man who seemed to be quite as anxious as I that I should see for myself what he saw.

第二天早上,教授热情的问候让人

感到安慰。眼前这人跟我一样,急切

地希望我能独立看出他业已观察到的

事物。

20 "Do you perhaps mean," I asked,

"that the fish has symmetrical sides

with paired organs?"

“您的意思是不是说,”我问,“这条

鱼两侧对称,器官成对?”

21 His thoroughly pleased "Of course!

Of course!" repaid the wakeful hours of

the previous night. After he had

discoursed most happily and

enthusiastically—as he always did —

upon the importance of this point, I

ventured to ask what I should do next.

他那听上去极为满意的“当然是,

当然是!”的回答补偿了前一晚多少个

不眠的小时。等他高兴而又热情地

——他一向如此——讲述完这一发

现的重要性,我斗胆问接下来我该做

什么。

22 "Oh, look at your fish!" he said, and

left me again to my own devices. In a

little more than an hour he returned,

and heard my new catalogue.

“哦,看你那条鱼!”他说着走了,又

不管我了。过了一小时多一点,他回

来了,听我汇报新的发现。

23 "That is good, that is good!" he

repeated; "but that is not all; go on";

and so for three long days he placed

that fish before my eyes, forbidding me

to look at anything else, or to use any

artificial aid. "Look, look, look," was his

repeated injunction.

“很好,很好!”他重复说道。“可这

还不够,接着看。”于是,整整三天,

他把那条鱼置于我眼前,不让我看别

的东西,也不让我借助任何工具。“看

看,看看,再看看,”就是他不断重复

的指令。

24 This was the best entomological

lesson I ever had —a lesson whose

influence has extended to the details of

every subsequent study; a legacy the

Professor had left to me, as he has left

it to so many others, of inestimable

value which we could not buy, with

which we cannot part.

这是我上过的最好的昆虫学课——

其影响延伸到以后每一项研究的各个

细节。这是阿加西兹教授留给我以及

其他许多人的遗产,其价值无法估量,

千金难买,我们决不会割舍。

25 The fourth day, a second fish of the

same group was placed beside the first,

and I was bidden to point out the

resemblances and differences between

the two; another and another followed,

until the entire family lay before me,

and a whole legion of jars covered the

table and surrounding shelves; the odor

had become a pleasant perfume; and

even now, the sight of an old, six-inch

worm-eaten cork brings fragrant

memories.

第四天,另一条同类的鱼摆在了前

一条鱼的旁边,我被要求指出两者之

间的异同。接着一条,又一条,直到

这一科的全部成员都摆放在我的眼

前,许许多多罐子占满了桌子和周围

的架子。那气味也变得如香水般迷人。

直到今天,只要看见一个被蛀虫咬过

的6英寸长的旧软木塞,都会引起我

美好的回忆。

26 The whole group of haemulons was

thus brought in review; and, whether

engaged upon the dissection of the

internal organs, the preparation and

examination of the bony framework, or

the description of the various parts,

Agassiz's training in the method of

observing facts and their orderly

arrangement was ever accompanied by

the urgent exhortation not to be

content with them.

就这样,整个石鲈一群全都拿来观

察过了。无论是在解剖内脏,在制作

和检查骨架,还是在描述各种不同的

部位,阿加西兹在训练学生观察事实

及其有序排列的能力时,始终谆谆告

诫大家不能满足于已有的发现。

27 "Facts are stupid things," he would

say, "until brought into connection with

some general law."

“事实是枯燥无聊的,”他常说,“除

非与某种普遍规律联系在一起。”

28 At the end of eight months, it was

almost with reluctance that I left these

friends and turned to insects; but what

I had gained by this outside experience

has been of greater value than years of

later investigation in my favorite

groups.

快满8个月时,我依依不舍地离开

了这些鱼类朋友,转向昆虫类。可是,

我从这次自己选修学科以外的经历中

得到的收获,其价值超过以后我对自

己喜欢的动物群所作的多年研究。

The Legacy

Virginia Woolf

1 'For Sissy Miller.' Gilbert Clandon,

taking up the pearl brooch that lay

among a litter of rings and brooches on

a little table in his wife's drawing-room,

read the inscription: 'For Sissy Miller,

with my love.'

遗赠物

弗吉妮娅·伍尔芙

“给西瑟·米勒。”吉尔伯特·克兰登拿

起放在太太客厅小桌子上那一堆戒指

和胸针中的那枚珍珠胸针,念着上面

的字:“给西瑟·米勒,谨致爱意。”

2 It was like Angela to have

remembered even Sissy Miller, her

secretary. Yet how strange it was,

Gilbert Clandon thought once more,

that she had left everything in such

order —a little gift of some sort for

every one of her friends. It was as if she

had foreseen her death. Yet she had

been in perfect health when she left

the house that morning, six weeks ago;

when she stepped off the kerb in

Piccadilly and the car had killed her.

她连自己的秘书西瑟·米勒都记在

心里,安吉拉就是这样的人。可多奇

怪,吉尔伯特·克兰登又一次想着,她

居然把一切都安排得那么井然有序——每一位朋友都有一件小小的礼物。似乎她预见到了自己的死。可是,六个星期前,她在那天上午离家时身体很好, 正当她走下皮卡迪利大街的人行道时,一辆汽车把她撞死。

3 He was waiting for Sissy Miller. He had asked her to come; he owed her, he felt, after all the years she had been with them, this token of consideration. Yes, he went on, as he sat there waiting, it was strange that Angela had left everything in such order. Every friend had been left some little token of her affection. Every ring, every necklace, every little Chinese box —she had a passion for little boxes —had a name on it. To him, of course, she had left nothing in particular, unless it were her diary. Fifteen little volumes, bound in green leather, stood behind him on her writing table. Ever since they were married, she had kept a diary. Some of their very few — he could not call them quarrels, say tiffs—had been about that diary. When he came in and found her writing, she always shut it or put her hand over it. 'No, no, no,' he could hear her say, 'After I'm dead —perhaps.' So she had left it him, as her legacy. It was the only thing they had not shared when she was alive. But he had always taken it for granted that she would outlive him. If only she had stopped one moment, and had thought what she was doing, she would be alive now. But she had stepped straight off the kerb, the driver of the car had said at the inquest. She had given him no chance to pull up...Here the sound of voices in the hall interrupted him.

他在等西瑟·米勒。他请她来的。他觉得她与他们夫妇俩相处了那么多年,自己应当以这种方式表示关心。真的,他坐在那儿等着,心里还在想,安吉拉把一切安排得这么井然有序,是很奇怪。每个朋友都得到一份代表她的情谊的小小礼物。每一枚戒指,每一串项链,每一个小巧的中国盒——她对小巧的盒子情有独钟——都有个名字附在上面。当然,她没给他留下什么特别的物品,除非是她的那些日记。15本小本子,用绿色皮面装帧,全都摆放在他身后的书桌上。婚后她就开始记日记了。两人偶有的——称不上争吵,只能说是别扭——都是为了这些日记。每当他走进房间看到她在写,她总是合上本子,或用手按着。“不,不行,不行,”他会听到她说,“也许,等我死后吧。”就这样,她把日记作为遗物留给了他。这是她生前夫妇俩惟一不曾共同拥有的东西。不过他一直认为自己一定会先走。只要她停顿片刻,想一想自己在干什么,此刻她就依然在这世上。可她径直走下人行道,在接受调查时那位驾车者这么说。她令他措手不及……就在这时,大厅里的说话声打断了他的思绪。

4 'Miss Miller, Sir,' said the maid.

“米勒小姐来了,先生,”女仆说。

5 She came in. She was terribly

distressed, and no wonder. Angela had

been much more to her than an

employer. She had been a friend. To

himself, he thought, as he pushed a

chair for her and asked her to sit down,

she was scarcely distinguishable from

any other woman of her kind. There

were thousands of Sissy Millers —drab

little women in black carrying attaché

cases. But Angela, with her genius for

sympathy, had discovered all sorts of

qualities in Sissy Miller. She was the

soul of discretion, so silent, so

trustworthy, one could tell her anything,

and so on.

她走了进来。她极为悲伤,这也难

怪。安吉拉不仅仅是她的雇主。还是

她的朋友。在他自己看来,他一边暗

自想着,一边为她拉过一张椅子,请

她坐下,她和所有像她这种身份的人

几乎没有什么区别。有成千上万个西

瑟·米勒——毫无情趣的小妇人,身穿

缁衣,手提公文包。可天生会同情人

的安吉拉在西瑟·米勒身上发现了种

种优良品质。她十分谨慎,守口如瓶,

值得信任,你什么话都可以对她说,

等等。

6 Miss Miller could not speak at first.

She sat there dabbing her eyes with her

pocket handkerchief. Then she made an

effort.

米勒小姐开始时说不出话来。她坐

在那儿用手帕轻拭眼睛。接着她定了

定神。

7 'Pardon me, Mr Clandon,' she said.

“请原谅,克兰登先生,”她说。

8 He murmured. Of course he

understood. It was only natural. He

could guess what his wife had meant to

her.

他含糊应了一声。他当然明白。这

太自然了。他想像得出妻子对她意味

着什么。

9 'I've been so happy here,' she said,

looking round. Her eyes rested on the

writing table behind him. It was here

they had worked — she and Angela. For

Angela had her share of the duties that

fall to the lot of the wife of a

prominent politician, she had been the

greatest help to him in his career. He

had often seen her and Sissy sitting at

that table —Sissy at the typewriter,

taking down letters from her dictation.

No doubt Miss Miller was thinking of

that, too. Now all he had to do was to

give her the brooch his wife had left her.

A rather incongruous gift it seemed. It

might have been better to have left her

a sum of money. Or even the typewriter.

But there it was —'For Sissy Miller,

with my love.' And, taking the brooch,

he gave it her with the little speech that

he had prepared. He knew, he said, that

she would value it. His wife had often

worn it... And she replied, as she took it,

almost as if she too had prepared a

speech, that it would always be a

treasured possession. ... She had, he

supposed, other clothes upon which a

pearl brooch would not look quite so

incongruous. She was wearing the little

black coat and skirt that seemed the

uniform of her profession. Then he

remembered —she was in mourning,

of course. She too had had her tragedy

— a brother, to whom she was devoted,

had died only a week or two before

Angela. In some accident, was it? He

could remember only Angela telling him;

Angela, with her genius for sympathy,

had been terribly upset. Meanwhile

Sissy Miller had risen. She was putting

on her gloves. Evidently she felt that

she ought not to intrude. But he could

not let her go without saying something

about her future. And so he added, as

he pressed her hand. 'Remember, Miss

Miller, if there's any way in which I can

help you, it will be a pleasure....' Then

he opened the door. For a moment, on

the threshold, as if a sudden thought

had struck her, she stopped.

“我在这里一向非常愉快,”她说着,

环顾四周。她的目光落在他身后的书

桌上。她俩就是在这里工作的——她

和安吉拉。因为安吉拉肩负着政要夫

人应该承担的各种责任,在他的政治

生涯中她给了他极大的帮助。他经常

看见她和西瑟坐在这张书桌旁——

西瑟把她口授的信件用打字机打出。

不用说,米勒小姐也在想这些往事。

现在他所要做的就是把太太留给她的

胸针交给她。这件礼物似乎不太合适。

还不如给她一笔钱呢。即便那台打字

机也更合适些。可是礼物早已安排好

了——“给西瑟·米勒,谨致爱意。”他

拿着胸针,交给她时讲了几句事先想

好的话。他深知,他说,她会珍惜这

枚胸针。他夫人生前经常佩戴它……她

接过胸针时回答说,简直也像事先准

备过似的,它永远是件珍爱之物……他

猜想她有别的跟这枚珍珠胸针更相配

的衣服。她身上穿着黑衣黑裙,像是

她那种职业的人穿的制服。他随即想

起,她是穿着丧服,没错。她自己也

遇到了伤心事——她一向爱着的一

位兄弟,在安吉拉之前的一两个星期

去世了。好像是什么意外?他只记得

安吉拉跟自己说过;天生会同情人的

安吉拉为此非常难过。他这么想着时

西瑟·米勒已经站了起来。她正在戴手

套。显然她觉得自己不该打扰。可是,

他不能对她的将来不表示一下关心就

让她走。于是他一边说,一边紧紧握

着她的手。“请记住,米勒小姐,若需

帮助尽管开口,本人定当效劳……”说

着,他打开门。刹那间,她似乎突然

想到了什么,在门口停了下来。

10 'Mr Clandon,' she said, looking

straight at him for the first time, and for

the first time he was struck by the

expression, sympathetic yet searching,

in her eyes. 'If at any time,' she was

saying, 'there's anything I can do to

help you, remember, I shall feel it, for

your wife's sake, a pleasure....'

“克兰登先生,”她说,目光第一次

直视着他,他第一次为她的眼神暗暗吃惊,既流露出同情又十分锐利。“如果什么时候,”她说道,“有什么事我能帮上忙,请记住,为了夫人,我会很高兴为您效劳……”

11 With that she was gone. Her words and the look that went with them were unexpected. It was almost as if she believed, or hoped, that he would have need of her. A curious, perhaps a fantastic idea occurred to him as he returned to his chair. Could it be, that during all those years when he had scarcely noticed her, she, as the novelists say, had entertained a passion for him? He caught his own reflection in the glass as he passed. He was over fifty; but he could not help admitting that he was still, as the looking-glass showed him, a very distinguished-looking man.

说完她走了。她的话,还有说话时的神态真是出乎意料。就好像她以为,或者希望,自己会需要她。他坐回到椅子里时,产生了一个离奇的,甚或是荒唐的念头。会不会,那么多年来,虽然自己很少注意过她,她却像那些小说家写的那样对自己暗生情愫?他走过镜子时瞄了一眼镜子中的自己。他已经年过半百,可他不得不承认,自己依旧仪表堂堂,就像刚才镜子里看到的那样。

12 'Poor Sissy Miller!' he said, half laughing. How he would have liked to share that joke with his wife! He turned instinctively to her diary. 'Gilbert, ' he read, opening it at random, 'looked so wonderful....' It was as if she had answered his question. Of course, she seemed to say, you're very attractive to women. Of course Sissy Miller felt that too. He read on. 'How proud I am to be his wife!' And he had always been very proud to be her husband. How often when they dined out somewhere he had looked at her across the table and said to himself. She is the loveliest woman here! He read on. That first year he had been standing for Parliament. They had toured his constituency. 'When Gilbert sat down the applause was terrific. The whole audience rose and sang: "For he's a jolly good fellow." I was quite overcome.' He remembered that, too. She had been sitting on the platform beside him. He could still see the glance she cast at him, and how she had tears in her eyes. He read on rapidly, filling in scene after scene from her scrappy fragments. 'Dined at the House of Commons.... To an evening party at the Lovegroves. Did I realize my responsibility, Lady L. asked me, as Gilbert's wife?' Then as the years passed — he took another volume from the writing table —he had become more and more absorbed in his work. And she, of course, was more often alone. It had been a great grief to her, apparently, that they had had no children. 'How I wish,' one entry read, 'that Gilbert had a son!' Oddly enough

he had never much regretted that

himself. Life had been so full, so rich as

it was. That year he had been given a

minor post in the government. A minor

post only, but her comment was: 'I am

quite certain now that he will be Prime

Minister!' Well, if things had gone

differently, it might have been so. He

paused here to speculate upon what

might have been. Politics was a gamble,

he reflected; but the game wasn't over

yet. Not at fifty. He cast his eyes rapidly

over more pages, full of the little trifles,

the insignificant, happy, daily trifles that

had made up her life.

“可怜的西瑟·米勒!”他说着,微微

一笑。他多想能把这件趣事讲给太太

听!他下意识地取过她的日记。“吉尔

伯特,”他信手翻开来读道,“看上去

真英俊……”简直就像是她回答了自己

的问题。没错,她仿佛在说,你让女

人着迷。当然,西瑟·米勒也有同感。

他接着读下去。“成为他的太太我感到

太荣幸了!”而他也一向以做她的丈夫

为荣。多少次,两人外出就餐,他望

着对座的她,暗自说。这儿数她最楚

楚动人。他接着读。婚后第一年他竞

选议员。两人一起在选区访问。“吉尔

伯特坐下时,掌声雷动。听众全体起

立,高唱着:‘他是个大好人。’我感动

万分。”他也记起了这事。她和自己并

肩坐在台上。他仍记得她向自己投来

的目光,记得她两眼噙着泪水。他快

速读下去,她那些零乱的片断一幕幕

涌入他的脑海。“在下议院就餐……前

往洛夫格罗夫府参加晚会。作为吉尔

伯特的太太,洛夫格罗夫夫人问我,

我可曾意识到身负的责任?”光阴一

年年逝去——他从书桌上取过另一

本日记簿——他越来越专注于工作。

而她,独处的时间自然也越来越多。

他俩没孩子,显然她对此深感悲伤。

“我多希望,”有一天的日记里写着,

“吉尔伯特有个儿子!”奇怪的是,他本

人从不怎么以此为憾事。生活那么丰

富,那么充实,的确如此。那年派给

了他一个无足轻重的政府中的职务。

一个小职位而已,可她的评论竟然是:

“现在我相信他会当上首相!”嗯,如果

情况朝另外的方向发展,或许果真如

此了。他略略停顿,思忖着事情的进

展或许会如何不同。政治就是一场赌

博,他想;可这游戏还没完呢。年方

五十还有机会。他目光飞快地掠过一

页又一页日记,都是些琐碎小事,那

些构成她生活的无关紧要的快乐琐

事。

13 He took up another volume and

opened it at random. 'What a coward I

am! I let the chance slip again. But it

seemed selfish to bother him about my

own affairs, when he has so much to

think about. And we so seldom have an

evening alone.' What was the meaning

of that? Oh here was the explanation —

it referred to her work in the East End. 'I

plucked up courage and talked to

Gilbert at last. He was so kind, so good.

He made no objection.' He

remembered that conversation. She

had told him that she felt so idle, so

useless. She wished to have some work

of her own. She wanted to do

something —she had blushed so

prettily, he remembered, as she said it

sitting in that very chair —to help

others. So every Wednesday she went

to Whitechapel. He remembered how

he hated the clothes she wore on those

occasions. But she had taken it very

seriously it seemed. The diary was full

of references like this: 'Saw Mrs Jones....

She has ten children.... Husband lost his

arm in an accident. ... Did my best to

find a job for Lily.' He skipped on. His

own name occurred less frequently. His

interest slackened. Some of the entries

conveyed nothing to him. For example:

'Had a heated argument about

socialism with B. M.' Who was B. M.?

He could not fill in the initials; some

woman, he supposed, that she had met

on one of her committees. 'B. M. made

a violent attack upon the upper

classes... . I walked back after the

meeting with B. M. and tried to

convince him. But he is so

narrow-minded.' So B. M. was a man —

no doubt one of those 'intellectuals' as

they call themselves, who are so violent,

as Angela said, and so narrow-minded.

She had invited him to come and see

her apparently. 'B. M. came to dinner.

He shook hands with Minnie!' That

note of exclamation gave another twist

to his mental picture. B. M., it seemed,

wasn't used to parlour-maids: he had

shaken hands with Minnie. Presumably

he was one of those tame workingmen

who air their views in ladies'

drawing-rooms. Gilbert knew the type,

and had no liking for this particular

specimen, whoever B. M. might be.

Here he was again. 'Went with B. M. to

the Tower of London.... He said

revolution is bound to come. ... He said

we live in a Fool's paradise.' That was

just the kind of thing B. M. would say —

Gilbert could hear him. He could also

see him quite distinctly— a stubby

little man, with a rough beard, red tie,

dressed as they always did in tweeds,

who had never done an honest day's

work in his life. Surely Angela had the

sense to see through him? He read on.

'B. M. said some very disagreeable

things about. ...' The name was

carefully scratched out. 'I would not

listen to any more abuse of. ...' Again

the name was obliterated. Could it have

been his own name? Was that why

Angela covered the page so quickly

when he came in? The thought added

to his growing dislike of B. M. He had

had the impertinence to discuss him in

this very room. Why had Angela never

told him? It was very unlike her to

conceal anything; she had been the

soul of candour. He turned the pages,

picking out every reference to B. M. 'B. M. told me the story of his childhood. His mother went out charring.... When I think of it, I can hardly bear to go on living in such luxury.... Three guineas for one hat! ' If only she had discussed the matter with him, instead of puzzling her poor little head about questions that were much too difficult for her to understand! He had lent her books. Karl Marx. 'The Coming Revolution.' The initials B. M., B. M., B. M., recurred repeatedly. But why never the full name? He read on. 'B. M. came unexpectedly after dinner. Luckily, I was alone.' That was only a year ago. 'Luckily' —why luckily? — 'I was alone.' Where had he been that night? He checked the date in his engagement book. It had been the night of the Mansion House dinner. And B. M. and Angela had spent the evening alone! He tried to recall that evening. Was she waiting up for him when he came back? Had the room looked just as usual? Were there glasses on the table? Were the chairs drawn close together? He could remember nothing —nothing whatever. It became more and more inexplicable to him —the whole situation: his wife receiving an unknown man alone. Perhaps the next volume would explain. Hastily he reached for the last of the diaries — the one she had left unfinished when she died. There on the very first page was that cursed fellow again. 'Dined alone with B. M.... He became very agitated. He said it was time we understood each other.... I tried to make him listen. But he would not. He threatened that if I did not...' the rest of the page was scored over. He could not make out a single word; but there could be only one interpretation: the scoundrel had asked her to become his mistress. Alone in his room! The blood rushed to Gilbert Clandon's face. He turned the pages rapidly. What had been her answer? Initials had ceased. It was simply 'he' now. 'He came again. I told him I could not come to any decision....

I implored him to leave me.' He had forced himself upon her in this very house? But why hadn't she told him? How could she have hesitated for an instant? Then: 'I wrote him a letter.' Then pages were left blank. Then there was this: 'No answer to my letter.' Then more blank pages: and then this: 'He has done what he threatened.' After that —what came after that? He turned page after page. All were blank. But there, on the very day before her death, was this entry: 'Have I the courage to do it too?' That was the end.

他又取过一本,信手翻开。“我真是个懦夫!我又让机会溜走了。可是,他有那么多事要考虑,而我却用自己的事去打搅他,而且我俩很少有机会单独在一起度过一个夜晚,这未免太自私了。”这话是什么意思?哦这里有

说明——指的是她在伦敦东区的工

作。“我鼓起勇气,终于跟吉尔伯特谈

了。他真好,太好了。他一点也不反

对。”他记起了那次谈话。她跟他说她

觉得无所事事,像个废物。她希望能

做点事。她想做些什么——她涨红着

脸,那么可爱,他回想起来了,她说

话时就坐在那张椅子里——去帮助

别人。于是,她每星期三去怀特查普

尔。他回想起来,自己是多么讨厌她

去那儿时的穿戴。可看来她还真把这

当一回事。日记里提到的全是这类

事:“见到琼斯太太……她有十个孩

子……丈夫在事故中失去了一条手

臂……尽我的努力给莉莉找了个工

作。”他快速浏览着。自己的名字出现

得少了。他的兴趣也不大了。有些记

载他读了觉得莫名其妙。比如:“与B.M.

就社会主义展开了激烈争论。”谁是

B.M.?他光看首字母猜不出来;是某

位女士,他猜想,是她在某个委员会

里认识的。“B.M.对上层社会大加抨

击……会后我和B.M.一起步行回来,我

想说服他。可他思想褊狭。”就是说B.M.

是个男的——肯定就是自称“知识分

子”的那类人,言词非常激烈,就像安

吉拉说的那样,而且思想十分褊狭。

显然是她邀请他来访。“B.M.前来赴

宴。他竟然与明妮握手!”这句话的惊

叹语气使他对此人的印象更糟了。B.M.

可能没见识过客厅女仆:他竟然与明

妮握了手。大概他是那种听使唤的工

人,在夫人小姐的起居室里发表自己

的看法。吉尔伯特见识过那种人,且

不论这位B.M.究竟是何许人,他对这

人全无好感。又写到这人。“和 B.M.

一起去伦敦塔……他说革命必将来

临……他说我们陶醉在虚无缥缈的乐

境之中。”这是 B.M.常说的那种话——

吉尔伯特完全料得到。他还能清楚地

看到他的样子——一个矮矮胖胖的

小男人,胡子拉茬,系着红色领带,

穿着他们这种人天天穿的粗花呢衣

服,一辈子从没干过一天正经活儿。

安吉拉总该有头脑看穿这种人吧?他

往下读。“B.M.说了些很难听的话,是

有关……”名字被小心翼翼地划掉了。

“我再也不想听这些对……的诋毁之词

了。”名字又被划掉了。会不会是他自

己的名字?会不会就为这个安吉拉在

他进来时急急忙忙地把本子遮住?这

一想法越发加深了他对B.M.的厌恶。

他如此放肆,竟然就在这个房间里议

论起他来了。可安吉拉怎么从没跟自

己说起呢?她才不会对他隐瞒什么

呢;她是直率诚恳的化身。他一页页

翻着,找出提及 B.M.的文句。“B.M.

跟我讲了他童年的事。他母亲到别人

家里干杂活……想到这一点,我真不愿

继续过如此奢侈的生活……一顶帽子

就花去三几尼!”她只要跟自己谈谈这

事就好了,用不着让她那可怜的小脑

袋为这种她理解不了的事而烦恼嘛!

他借书给她看。卡尔·马克思。《即将

来临的革命》。B.M.,B.M.,B.M.的缩

写一再重复出现。可为什么不用全名

呢?他往下读。“晚餐后B.M.未经邀请

自己来了。幸好我一人在家。”那不过

是一年前的事。“幸好”——为什么幸

好?——“我一人在家。”自己那天晚上

去哪里了?他查了查约会簿里的日

期。那个晚上是去市长官邸赴宴。B.M.

和安吉拉那天晚上单独在一起!他试

图回忆那晚的情形。他回家时她有没

有在等他?屋子里看上去跟平时一样

吗?桌上有没有杯子?椅子有没有靠

在一起?他什么也回想不起来——

一点都想不起来了。这事变得越来越

莫名其妙——整个事件:太太独自一

人接待一个陌生男子。也许下一本日

记能解释一切。他急急抓过最后一本

日记簿——她生前没记完的那本。第

一页赫然在目的又是那该死的家伙。

“一个人与B.M.进餐……他非常激动。

他说咱俩该相互理解了……我想让他

听我说。可他不听。他威胁说要是我

不……”这一页其余的文字全都被涂抹

掉了。他一个字也无法辨认;可只有

一个解释:那个混蛋要她做他的情人。

两人单独在他的房间!热血涌上了吉

尔伯特·克兰登的脸。他快速地一页页

翻过去。她怎么回答的呢?首字母不

见了。现在干脆只说“他”了。“他又来

了。我告诉他我做不了决定。我恳求

他离开我。”他就在这所房子里迫她就

范?可是为什么她不跟自己说呢?她

用得着片刻犹豫吗?下面:“我给他写

了一封信。”后面几页都是空白。接着

有这么一句话:“没有回信。”后面又

是空白,接着是:“他把威胁付之行动

了。”那以后——那以后怎么了?他

一页一页地翻着。都是空白。可是,

就在她出事的前一天,写着这么一句:

“我有勇气也这么做吗?”日记终止

了。

14 Gilbert Clandon let the book slide to

the floor. He could see her in front of

him. She was standing on the kerb in

Piccadilly. Her eyes stared; her fists

were clenched. Here came the car...

吉尔伯特·克兰登听任日记本滑落

到地上。他能看到她在他眼前。她站

在皮卡迪利大街的人行道上。她凝视

着前方,紧握着双拳。车开过来了……

15 He could not bear it. He must know

the truth. He strode to the telephone.

他无法再忍受了。他必须了解真

相。他大步走到电话机旁。

16 'Miss Miller!' There was silence.

Then he heard someone moving in the

room.

“米勒小姐!”没有声音。接着他听见

房间里有人在走动。

17 'Sissy Miller speaking' — her voice at

last answered him.

“我是西瑟·米勒”——总算听到她

来接电话了。

18 'Who,' he thundered, 'is B. M.?'

“到底谁,”他吼道,“是B.M.?”

19 He could hear the cheap clock

ticking on her mantelpiece: then a long

drawn sigh. Then at last she said:

他听得见她壁炉架上那座廉价钟

的滴答声,接着是一声长长的叹息。

最后她回答说:

20 'He was my brother.'

“他是我兄弟。”

21 He was her brother; her brother

who had killed himself.

那是她兄弟,她那自杀的兄弟。22 'Is there,' he heard Sissy Miller asking, 'anything that I can explain?' “有什么,”他听到西瑟·米勒在说,“要我解释的吗?”

23 'Nothing!' he cried. 'Nothing!'

“没有!”他喊道。“没有!”

24 He had received his legacy. She had told him the truth. She had stepped off the kerb to rejoin her lover. She had stepped off the kerb to escape from him.

他得到了属于自己的遗赠。她把真相告诉了他。她走下人行道与情人重新团聚。她走下人行道从自己身边逃逸。

Going for Broke

1 Rex Coile's life is a narrow box, so dark and confining he wonders how he got trapped inside, whether he'll ever get out.

孤注一掷

雷克斯·科勒好像生活在一个狭窄的箱子里 伸手不见五指 空间又狭小 他不知道自己是怎么陷进去的 也不知道自己还能不能走出来。

2 He never goes to the movies, never sees concerts, never lies on a sunny beach, never travels on vacation, never spends Christmas with his family. Instead, Rex shares floor space in cheap motels with other compulsive gamblers, comforting himself with delusional dreams of jackpots that will magically wipe away three decades of wreckage. He has lost his marriage, his home, his Cadillac, his clothes, his diamond ring. Not least of all, in the card clubs of Southern California, he has lost his pride.

他从不看电影 从不听音乐会 从不躺在沙滩上晒太阳 从不在假日去旅游 从不和家人一起过圣诞节。相反 雷克斯在廉价汽车旅馆和别的嗜赌成癖的赌徒一起住 幻想着赢大钱 好魔术般地把30年的晦气厄运一扫而光。他失去了婚姻 失去了家 失去了卡迪拉克牌轿车 失去了衣物和钻戒。尤其是 在南加州的纸牌俱乐部 他还失去了自尊心。

3 Rex no longer feels sorry for himself, not after a 29-year losing streak that has left him scrounging for table scraps to feed his habit. Still, he agonizes over what he has become at 5

4 and what he might have been.

雷克斯不再为自己哀叹 他都输了29年了 输到了在赌桌上偷零钱以满足自己嗜好的地步。尽管如此 他还是对自己54岁时的境况深感痛苦 对自己未能成就可能会成就的事业而深感痛苦。

4 Articulate, intellectual, he talks about existential philosophy, the writings of Camus and Sartre. He was once aneditor at Random House. His mind is so jam packed with tidbits about movies, television, baseball and history that card room regulars call him " Rex Trivia," a name he cherishes for the

remnant of self-respect it gives him.

"There's a lot of Rexes around these

card rooms," he says in a whisper of

resignation and sadness.

他能说会道 善于思考 喜谈存在主

义哲学 谈加缪和萨特的作品。他曾

是兰登出版社的编辑。他脑子里装满

有关电影、电视、棒球和历史的趣闻

因此那些纸牌室的常客都叫他“趣

闻大王雷克斯” 他珍惜这个带给自

己些许自尊的名字。“这些纸牌室里有

不少雷克斯 ”他无奈而又悲伤地低

声说道。

5 And their numbers are soaring as

gambling explodes across America,

from the mega-resorts of Las Vegas to

the gaming parlors of Indian

reservations, from the riverboats along

the Mississippi to the corner mini-marts

selling lottery tickets. With nearly every

state in the union now sanctioning

some form of legalized gambling to

raise revenues, evidence is mounting

that society is paying a steep price, one

that some researchers say must be

confronted, if not reversed.

美国各地赌博盛行 从拉斯维加斯的

特大型度假胜地 到印第安人居留地

的小赌场 从密西西比河上的内河船

到街角处出售彩票的便利店 赌博

随处可见 因此赌徒人数正在剧增。

由于全国几乎每个州都批准某种合法

化的赌博形式以增加税收 越来越多

的事实表明 整个社会正在付出巨大

的代价 不少研究者指出 对此现象

如果不能彻底改变 那就必须严肃面

对。

6 Never before have bettors blown so

much money — a whopping $50.9

billion last year —five times the

amount lost in 1980. That's more than

the public spent on movies, theme

parks, recorded music and sporting

events combined. A substantial share of

those gambling losses —an estimated

30% to 40% —pours from the pockets

and purses of chronic losers hooked on

the adrenaline rush of risking their

money, intoxicated by the fast action

of gambling's incandescent world.

赌徒以前从来不曾花费如此多的赌金

——去年的赌输金额高达509亿美

元 是1980年赌输金额的5倍 高出

公众在电影、主题公园、唱片音乐以

及运动项目等方面的消费总额。输掉

的赌金中有相当一部分——约占

30% 40%——是从那些常输的赌徒

的钱包里掏出来的 赌博带来的兴奋

令他们入迷 瞬息万变的赌博世界令

他们如痴如醉。

7 Studies place the total number of

compulsive gamblers at about 4.4

million, about equal to the nation's

ranks of hard-core drug addicts.

Another 11 million, known as problem

gamblers, teeter on the verge. Since

1990, the number of Gamblers

Anonymous groups nationwide has

doubled from about 600 to more than

1,200.

据研究 嗜赌成瘾者的总数约有440

万 与美国毒瘾大的瘾君子的人数大

致相同。另有1100万所谓有问题的赌

徒 已濒临深渊摇摇欲坠。自1990年

以来 全国戒赌组织的总数翻了一番

从600个上升到1200多个。

8 Compulsive gambling has been linked

to child abuse, domestic violence,

embezzlement, bogus insurance claims,

bankruptcies, welfare fraud and a host

of other social and criminal ills. The

advent of Internet gambling could lure

new legions into wagering beyond their

means.

嗜赌成瘾总是与虐待儿童、家庭暴力、

盗用钱款、伪造保险索赔、破产、福

利救济欺骗 以及其他许多社会问题

与犯罪行为联系在一起。网上赌博的

出现会诱使更多的人无节制地狂赌。

9 Every once in a while, a case is so

egregious it makes headlines: A

10-day-old baby girl in South Carolina

dies after being left for nearly seven

hours in a hot car while her mother

plays video poker. A suburban Chicago

woman is so desperate for a bankroll to

gamble that she allegedly suffocates

her 7-week-old daughter 11 days after

obtaining a $200,000 life-insurance

policy on the baby.

每过一段时间 总有一则令人震惊的

案子成为头条社会新闻 南卡罗来纳

州一名出生10天的女婴被放在闷热

的汽车里几乎达7个小时后死去 其

间女婴的母亲在电脑上打扑克。芝加

哥郊区一名妇女急于觅得赌资 据说

她在为她出生仅7周的女婴购买了

20万美元的人寿保险后11天将其窒

息致死。

10 Science has begun to uncover clues

to compulsive gambling —genetic

predispositions that involve chemical

receptors in the brain, the same

pleasure pathways implicated in drug

and alcohol addiction. But no amount

of knowledge, no amount of

enlightenment, makes the illness any

less confounding, any less destructive.

What the gamblers cannot understand

about themselves is also well beyond

the comprehension of family members,

who struggle for normality in a world of

deceit and madness.

科学研究开始揭示形成嗜赌成癖恶

习的线索——与大脑中的化学感受

器有关的 即与嗜毒、嗜酒同一个快

感途径有关的遗传特性。但无论对这

一顽症有多少了解有多少认识 人们

对它的困惑一点也没有减少 它的破

坏性也一点也没有减少。赌徒不明白

自己的地方也正是家人所难以理解的

地方 他们在一个充满欺骗与疯狂的

世界中苦苦追求正常生活。

11 Money starts vanishing: $500 here,

$200 there, $800 a couple of weeks

later. Where is it? The answers come

back vague, nonsensical. It's in the desk

at work. A friend borrowed it. It got

spent on family dinners, car repairs,

loans to in-laws. Exasperated spouses play the sleuth, combing through pockets, wallets, purses, searching the car. Sometimes the incriminating evidence turns up — a racing form, lottery scratchers, a map to an Indian casino. Once the secret is uncovered, spouses usually fight the problem alone, bleeding inside, because the stories are too humiliating to share.

钱突然就不知去向 这里用了500美元 那儿花了200美元 两三个星期之后又少了800美元。钱哪去了 回答很含糊 不知所云。在单位的办公桌抽屉里。朋友借去了。家人聚餐花了 修车用了 借给姻亲了。怒不可遏的配偶充当起侦探 把衣袋、皮夹子、钱包翻了个遍 还搜了汽车。有时犯罪证据会暴露——赛马小报、刮刮乐、去一家印第安赌场的地图。秘密一旦被揭穿 配偶通常都单独面对问题 独自承受心头巨痛 因为这种事太丢人 没法跟别人说。

12 "Anybody who is living with a compulsive gambler is totally overwhelmed," says Tom Tucker, president of the California Council on Problem Gambling. "They're steeped in anger, resentment, depression, confusion. None of their personal efforts will ever stop a person from their addiction. And they don't really see any hope because compulsive gambling in general is such an under-recognized illness."

“与嗜赌成瘾者一起生活的人都会陷入绝望 ”加利福尼亚问题赌博委员会主任汤姆·塔克说。“他们沉浸在愤怒、怨恨、沮丧、困惑之中。他们怎么苦心规劝也无法使浪子回头。他们真的看不到丝毫希望 因为人们通常并不真正懂得嗜赌成瘾的严重性。”13 One Los Angeles woman, whose husband's gambling was tearing at her sanity, says she slept with her fists so tightly clenched that her nails sliced into her palms. She had fantasies of death —first her own, thinking he'd feel sorry for her and stop gambling. Later, she harbored thoughts of turning her rage on her husband. She imagined getting a gun, hiding in the closet and blasting him out of her life.

一个洛杉矶妇女 由于丈夫嗜赌成瘾 自己几乎神经崩溃。她说自己晚上睡觉时双手紧紧握成拳头 指甲把手掌都掐破了。她常常想到死——起初是想自己去死 觉得他会为自己伤心 会戒赌。后来 她又想到把怒气转到丈夫身上。她设想自己弄到一支枪 藏在壁橱里 一枪把他从自己的生活中扫出去。

14 "The hurt was so bad I think I would have pulled the trigger," she says. "There were times the pain was so much I thought being in jail, or being in the electric chair, would be less than this."

“那种伤害太痛苦了 我想自己真的会扣动扳机 ”她说。“有时真的痛苦不堪 觉得哪怕坐牢、上电椅 也不

至于那么痛苦。”

15 With drug or alcohol abusers, there

is the hope of sobering up, an

accomplishment in itself, no matter

what problems may have accompanied

their addictions. Compulsive gamblers

often see no way to purge their urges

when suffocating debts suggest only

one answer: a hot streak (suicide?).

David Phillips, a UC San Diego sociology

professor, studied death records from

1982 to 1988 —before legalized

gambling exploded across America —

and found that people in Vegas, Atlantic

City and other gambling meccas

showed significantly higher suicide

rates than people in non-gambling

cities.

吸毒者或酗酒者尚有清醒起来的希望

不管他们的毒瘾、酒瘾造成了什么

麻烦 会清醒起来本身就是一项成

就。嗜赌成癖的赌徒高筑的债台意味

着只有一条出路 赢大奖(或自杀 )。

这时 他们往往无法戒除赌瘾。加利

福尼亚大学圣地亚哥分校社会学教授

戴维·菲利普斯研究了1982 1988

年间——合法赌博在美国蔓延之前

——的死亡档案 发现拉斯维加斯、

大西洋城和其他赌城的居民的自杀率

明显高于没有赌场的城市的居民。

16 Rex Trivia is not about to kill himself,

but like most compulsive gamblers, he

occasionally thinks about it. Looking at

him, it's hard to imagine he once had a

promising future as a smart young New

York book editor. His pale eyes are

expressionless, his hair yellowish and

brittle. In his fifties, his health is failing:

emphysema, three lung collapses, a bad

aorta, rotting teeth.

趣闻大王雷克斯尚未打算自杀 但和

众多嗜赌成瘾的赌徒一样 偶尔他会

闪过这个念头。望着他 难以相信他

曾经是一位前途无量、年轻聪颖的纽

约书籍编辑。他那灰色的双眸呆滞无

神 淡黄的头发显得枯萎。才50多岁

健康状况已经每况愈下 肺气肿、3

次肺萎陷、主动脉有问题 牙齿也损

坏了。

17 His plunge has been so dizzying that

at one point he agreed to aid another

desperate gambler in a run of bank

robberies —nine in all, throughout

Los Angeles and Orange counties.

When the FBI busted him in 1980, he

had $50,000 in cash in a dresser drawer

and $100,000 in traveler's checks in his

refrigerator's vegetable crisper. Rex,

who ended up doing a short stint in

prison, hasn't seen that kind of money

since.

他一直狂赌 结果走投无路 竟然答

应协助另一个因绝望而不顾一切的赌

徒实施银行抢劫——在洛杉矶和桔

县共抢了9家银行。1980年联邦调查

局逮捕他时 他五斗橱抽屉里有

50,000美元现金 还有100,000美元

的旅行支票藏在冰箱的蔬菜保鲜格

内。结果雷克斯在监狱服了一段时间

刑 从此再也没见到过那么多的钱

了。

18 At 11 P. M. on a Tuesday night, with

a bankroll of $55 —all he has —he

is at a poker table in Gardena. With

quick, nervous hands he stacks and

unstacks his $1 chips. The stack

dwindles. Down $30, he talks about

leaving, getting some sleep. Midnight

comes and goes. Rex starts winning.

Three aces. Four threes. Chips pile up

—$60, $70. "A shame to go when the

cards are falling my way." He checks the

time: "I'll go at 2. Win, lose or draw."

一个星期二晚上11点 他揣着55美

元——这是他的全部家产——坐在

了加德纳的一张牌桌前。他两手紧张

地把那些1美元的筹码迅速地堆起又

弄散。筹码渐渐少了。到剩下30美元

时 他说要走了 去睡一会儿。午夜

稍纵即逝。雷克斯开始赢了。三张A

牌 四张3点。筹码多起来了——60

美元 70美元。“我牌运那么好 怎

么能走。”他看了看时间 “到2点就

走 不管是输是赢还是平。”

19 Fate, kismet, luck —the cards keep

falling. At 2 A. M., Rex is up $97. He

stands, leaves his chips on the table and

goes out for a smoke. In the darkness at

the edge of the parking lot, he loiters

with other regulars, debating with

himself whether to grab a bus and quit.

命运 天命加牌运——一路顺势。

到了凌晨2点 雷克斯赢了97美元。

他站起身 把筹码留在桌上 出去抽

烟。他在停车场边上黑暗的地方与别

的常客闲站着 心里盘算着要不要坐

公共汽车回去算了。

20 "I should go back in there and cash

in and get out of here," he says. "That's

what I should do."

“我该进去把筹码兑换成现金就离开

这儿 ”他说。“我该这么做。”

21 A long pause. Crushing out his

cigarette, Rex turns and heads back

inside. He has made his decision.

一阵长长的沉默。雷克斯摁灭烟蒂

转身走了进去。他作出了决定。

22 "A few more hands."

“再玩几副。”

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