| CHAPTER VII Cathy stayed at Thrushcross Grange five weeks: till Christmas. By that time her ankle was thoroughly cured, and her manners much improved. The mistress visited her often in the interval, and commenced her plan of reform by trying to raise her self-respect with fine clothes and flattery, which she took readily; so that, instead of a wild, hatless little savage jumping into the house, and rushing to squeeze us all breathless, there lighted from a handsome black pony a very dignified person, with brown ringlets falling from the cover of a feathered beaver, and a long cloth habit, which she was obliged to hold up with both hands that she might sail in. Hindley lifted her from her horse, exclaiming delightedly, “Why, Cathy, you are quite a beauty! I should scarcely have known you: you look like a lady now. Isabella Linton is not to be compared with her, is she, Frances?” “Isabella has not her natural advantages,” replied his wife: “but she must mind and not grow wild again here. Ellen, help Miss Catherine off with her things—Stay, dear, you will disarrange your curls—let me untie your hat.”
I removed the habit, and there shone forth beneath a grand plaid silk frock, white trousers, and burnished shoes; and, while her eyes sparkled joyfully when the dogs came bounding up to welcome her, she dared hardly touch them lest they should fawn upon her splendid garments. She kissed me gently: I was all flour making the Christmas cake, and it would not have done to give me a hug; and then she looked round for Heathcliff. Mr. and Mrs. Earnshaw watched anxiously their meeting; thinking it would enable them to judge, in some measure, what grounds they had for hoping to succeed in separating the two friends.
Heathcliff was hard to discover, at first. If he were careless, and uncared for, before Catherine’s absence, he had been ten times more so since. Nobody but I even did him the kindness to call him a dirty boy, and bid him wash himself, once a week; and children of his age seldom have a natural pleasure in soap and water. Therefore, not to mention his clothes, which had seen three months’ service in mire and dust, and his thick uncombed hair, the surface of his face and hands was dismally beclouded. He might well skulk behind the settle, on beholding such a bright, graceful damsel enter the house, instead of a rough-headed counterpart of himself, as he expected. “Is Heathcliff not here?” she demanded, pulling off her gloves, and displaying fingers wonderfully whitened with doing nothing and staying indoors. | 第7章 闞思在畫眉田莊住了五個禮拜，一直住到了聖誕節。那時候她的腳腕已徹底痊愈，言談舉止也大有改進。在這期間，俄韶太太常常去看闞思，並開始實施對闞思的改造計劃。她先試著用漂亮衣服和奉承言語來抬高闞思的自尊心，這些闞思毫不猶豫就接受了。因此，她不再是那個帽子也不戴就跳到屋裏，衝過來把我們脖子摟得都喘不過氣來的小野丫頭，而是一個高貴端莊的人兒，她從一匹漂亮的小黑馬身上下來，身穿一件長長的騎馬服，頭戴一頂海狸皮帽，帽子上方插著一支羽毛，棕色的卷發從帽子裏麵垂下來。她必須用雙手高高提著衣裙，才能儀態萬方地走進來。亨得利把她從馬背上舉起，愉快地驚叫著：“闞思，看不出來你還是個美人胚子！我都快認不出你了——這樣才像個淑女嘛。伊颯拜菈•林騰可比不上她，是吧，芙然希思？”“伊颯拜菈沒她這麽天生麗質，”他媳婦答道，“可是她得記著，在這兒可不要再野了。愛蕾，快幫闞思睿小姐脫掉外套。別動，寶貝，看你把卷發都搞亂了——讓我把帽子幫你解開。”
我幫她脫掉騎馬服，裏麵露出一件寬大的方格子真絲長袍和白色褲子，鞋子擦得油光錚亮。那幾條狗也跳上來歡迎她，她眼睛裏閃爍著快樂的光芒，她不敢上前去摸它們，生怕狗會為了討她歡心而撲到她漂亮的衣服上去。她溫柔地親我——我正在做聖誕節蛋糕，身上盡是麵粉，要抱我可不行。然後她就四下張望著想找黑思克裏夫。俄韶夫婦很焦急地看他倆怎麽會麵，心想著這下可以使他倆自己掂量掂量，再看看有多少希望把這兩個朋友徹底分開。
剛開始很難找到黑思克裏夫。如果說闞思睿不在家這段時間之前，他就是隨隨便便、無人照管的話，那麽後來他比之前要更糟上十倍。除了我以外，甚至沒有人連叫他一聲髒孩子都不肯叫，也沒有人叫他一禮拜去洗一次澡；像他這樣大的孩子一般天生不喜歡肥皂和清水。因此，先甭提他那身衣服，已經穿了三個月，滿是泥巴和塵土，還有從不梳理的一頭濃發，就是他的臉和手上也是皵著一層灰黑。當他看到走進屋裏的是這麽個光鮮亮麗、舉止文雅的年輕少女，而不是如他所期望的，跟他旗鼓相當，頭發亂糟糟之人，就隻好乖乖躲在高背椅子後麵。“黑思克裏夫不在這兒嗎？”她問道，一邊脫下手套，露出了她的手指，因為一直呆在屋裏不做任何事情，她的手指已經變得特別白了。 |
| “Heathcliff, you may come forward,” cried Mr. Hindley, enjoying his discomfiture, and gratified to see what a forbidding young blackguard he would be compelled to present himself. “You may come and wish Miss Catherine welcome, like the other servants.”
Cathy, catching a glimpse of her friend in his concealment, flew to embrace him; she bestowed seven or eight kisses on his cheek within the second, and then stopped, and drawing back, burst into a laugh, exclaiming, “Why, how very black and cross you look! and how—how funny and grim! But that’s because I’m used to Edgar and Isabella Linton. Well, Heathcliff, have you forgotten me?” She had some reason to put the question, for shame and pride threw double gloom over his countenance, and kept him immovable. “Shake hands, Heathcliff,” said Mr. Earnshaw, condescendingly; “once in a way, that is permitted.”
“I shall not,” replied the boy, finding his tongue at last; “I shall not stand to be laughed at. I shall not bear it!” And he would have broken from the circle, but Miss Cathy seized him again. “I did not mean to laugh at you,” she said; “I could not hinder myself: Heathcliff, shake hands at least! What are you sulky for? It was only that you looked odd. If you wash your face and brush your hair, it will be all right: but you are so dirty!” She gazed concernedly at the dusky fingers she held in her own, and also at her dress; which she feared had gained no embellishment from its contact with his. “You needn’t have touched me!” he answered, following her eye and snatching away his hand. “I shall be as dirty as I please: and I like to be dirty, and I will be dirty.” With that he dashed headforemost out of the room, amid the merriment of the master and mistress, and to the serious disturbance of Catherine; who could not comprehend how her remarks should have produced such an exhibition of bad temper. | “黑思克裏夫，你可以過來，”亨得利少爺喊著，欣賞著黑思克裏夫的狼狽樣，看著他被迫以一個令人討厭的小流氓形象出場，亨得利少爺感到心滿意足。“你可以過來，像其他仆人一樣歡迎闞思睿小姐。”
闞思一瞅見她朋友的藏身所在，便飛奔過去擁抱他。眨眼間她在他臉上連親了七八下，然後停住身子往後一退，放聲大笑，嚷道：“怎麽啦，你滿臉的不高興！而且多麽——多麽可笑又可怕呀！可那是因為我習慣了和愛德嘉、伊颯拜菈•林騰他們在一起啦。好呀，黑思克裏夫，你把我給忘了嗎？” 她有理由這樣問，羞恥和自尊在他臉上投下了雙重陰鬱的神情，使他動彈不得。
“握下手吧，黑思克裏夫。”俄韶少爺居高臨下，說道，“你可以偶爾握一下她的手。” “我不，”這男孩終於開口了，“我可受不了讓人這樣笑話。我受夠了！”他要從人群裏走開，但是闞思小姐又把他拽住了。
“我並非故意要笑話你呀，”她說，“剛才是我沒忍住。黑思克裏夫，至少握個手吧！你幹嗎不高興呢？你隻不過看著有點怪。要是你把臉洗一洗，把頭發整理一下，一切就都會好的，可你現在這麽髒！”
她關切地盯著自己手裏握著的烏黑手指，又盯著自己的衣服，怕自己的衣服因為接觸到他的衣服而會變得不漂亮。
“你用不著碰我！”他回答，看到她的眼色，就把手抽了回去。“我高興怎麽髒，就怎麽髒。我喜歡髒，我就是要髒。”
他說完，就一頭衝出屋外，這使得少爺少太太都很開心，而闞思睿則十分不安；她不能理解她的話怎麽會引得黑思克裏夫大發脾氣。 |
| After playing lady’s-maid to the new-comer, and putting my cakes in the oven, and making the house and kitchen cheerful with great fires, befitting Christmas-eve, I prepared to sit down and amuse myself by singing carols, all alone; regardless of Joseph’s affirmations that he considered the merry tunes I chose as next door to songs. He had retired to private prayer in his chamber, and Mr. and Mrs. Earnshaw were engaging Missy’s attention by sundry gay trifles bought for her to present to the little Lintons, as an acknowledgment of their kindness. They had invited them to spend the morrow at Wuthering Heights, and the invitation had been accepted, on one condition: Mrs. Linton begged that her darlings might be kept carefully apart from that “naughty swearing boy.”
Under these circumstances I remained solitary. I smelt the rich scent of the heating spices; and admired the shining kitchen utensils, the polished clock, decked in holly, the silver mugs ranged on a tray ready to be filled with mulled ale for supper; and above all, the speckless purity of my particular care—the scoured and well-swept floor. I gave due inward applause to every object, and then I remembered how old Earnshaw used to come in when all was tidied, and call me a cant lass, and slip a shilling into my hand as a Christmas-box; and from that I went on to think of his fondness for Heathcliff, and his dread lest he should suffer neglect after death had removed him: and that naturally led me to consider the poor lad’s situation now, and from singing I changed my mind to crying. It struck me soon, however, there would be more sense in endeavouring to repair some of his wrongs than shedding tears over them: I got up and walked into the court to seek him. He was not far; I found him smoothing the glossy coat of the new pony in the stable, and feeding the other beasts, according to custom. | 作為這位新近歸來之人的女仆，我把蛋糕放在烘爐裏，把正屋與廚房的火都撥旺，一切都完全符合聖誕節的氣氛。辦完這些事情後，我準備坐下來，唱幾支聖誕歌自己開開心，也不理會周思福妄下的斷言，說我所選的聖誕歌頂多算是民間小調。他已經回到臥房獨自禱告去了，俄韶夫婦正在用各色各樣漂亮的小玩意吸引闞思的注意力，這些東西是他們夫婦倆替她買來，然後送給林騰兄妹，用來答謝他們照顧闞思的一番好意。他們已經邀請林騰兄妹第二天來呼嘯山莊了，也收到對方接受邀請的回執，不過有個條件——林騰夫人請求把她的寶貝孩子們和那個“淘氣、愛罵人的男孩子”小心隔離開。
在這種情況下，我獨自一人在屋子裏。我聞到香料加熱散發出的濃鬱香味，欣賞著那些閃亮的廚具，擦得錚亮的鍾表裝飾著冬青葉子，托盤上一字排開的銀杯，隨時準備著用來在晚餐時倒入香料麥芽啤酒。在我的特別照管之下，地板經過徹底清掃並洗刷幹淨，變得一塵不染，這是我最欣賞的地方。我暗自對每樣東西都適當讚美一番，於是我就記起從前在把一切收拾幹淨，俄韶老爺每次走進屋子時的樣子，他說我是個假裝斯文的姑娘，而且把一個先令塞到我手裏，作為給我的聖誕禮物。這時我又想起他對黑思克裏夫的寵愛，他生怕死後黑思克裏夫會沒人照管，為此而感到恐懼，於是我很自然地接著想到現在這可憐孩子目前的狀況。我唱著唱著，轉而哭了起來。但是很快我猛然想到，盡力彌補他受的一些委屈，總比為此掉眼淚要更有意義。於是我起身來到院子中找他。他就在不遠的地方，我發現他在馬號裏，正撫摸著新進買回來的一匹小馬的油光皮毛。與平時一樣，他也正在喂其他牲口。 |
