雙語小說連載:《董貝父子》第14章 Part 11

'Assuredly,' said Mrs Blimber.

“一定，”布林伯夫人說道。

The Apothecary bending down, looked closely into Paul's eyes, and felt his head, and his pulse, and his heart, with so much interest and care, that Paul said, 'Thank you, Sir.'

藥劑師彎下身子，仔細地觀察着保羅的眼睛，非常關切、非常細心地摸摸他的頭、他的 脈搏、他的心臟，因此，保羅說，“謝謝您，先生。”

'Our little friend,' observed Doctor Blimber, 'has never complained.'

“我們的小朋友，”布林伯博士說道，“從來沒有喊叫過痛苦。”

'Oh no!' replied the Apothecary. 'He was not likely to complain.'

“啊沒有！”藥劑師回答道。“他是不大可能喊叫痛苦的。”

'You find him greatly better?' said Doctor Blimber.

“您覺得他好多了嗎？”布林伯博士問道。

'Oh! he is greatly better, Sir,' returned the Apothecary.

“啊，他好多了，先生，”藥劑師回答道。

Paul had begun to speculate, in his own odd way, on the subject that might occupy the Apothecary's mind just at that moment; so musingly had he answered the two questions of Doctor Blimber. But the Apothecary happening to meet his little patient's eyes, as the latter set off on that mental expedition, and coming instantly out of his abstraction with a cheerful smile, Paul smiled in return and abandoned it.

保羅開始按照自己奇怪的方式來思考當時引起藥劑師思考的問題；他是那麼沉思地回答 了布林伯博士的兩個問題。可是，當他的小病人正開始進行內心探索時，藥劑師正巧碰 上了他的眼光，於是他就立刻用一個愉快的微笑停止了出神，保羅也用微笑回答他，不再思考了。

He lay in bed all that day, dozing and dreaming, and looking at Mr Toots; but got up on the next, and went downstairs. Lo and behold, there was something thematterwith the great clock; and a workman on a pair of steps had taken its face off, and was poking instruments into the works by the light of a candle! This was a great event for Paul, who sat down on the bottom stair, and watched the operation attentively: now and then glancing at the clock face, leaning all askew, against the wall hard by, and feeling a little confused by a suspicion that it was ogling him.

他整天躺在牀上，昏昏沉沉地睡着，做着夢，看着圖茨先生；但第二天他起來了，走下 樓去。哎喲，你看，大鐘出了點什麼事，一位站在梯子上的工人已把鐘面卸下，現在正 藉着一支燭光，把工具戳進機械中去！對保羅來說，這是一件大事；他在樓梯最低的一 級上坐下來，專心致志地看着正在進行的操作；有時向歪斜地靠在近旁牆上的鐘面看一 眼，心中有些不安地猜疑，它正在向他送秋波吧。

The workman on the steps was very civil; and as he said, when he observed Paul, 'How do you do, Sir?' Paul got into conversation with him, and told him he hadn't been quite well lately. The ice being thus broken, Paul asked him a multitude of questions about chimes and clocks: as, whether people watched up in the lonely church steeples by night to make them strike, and how the bells were rung when people died, and whether those were different bells from wedding bells, or only sounded dismal in the fancies of the living. Finding that his new acquaintance was not very well informed on the subject of the Curfew Bell of ancient days, Paul gave him an account of that institution; and also asked him, as a practical man, what he thought about King Alfred's idea of measuring time by the burning of candles; to which the workman replied, that he thought it would be the ruin of the clock trade if it was to come up again. In fine, Paul looked on, until the clock had quiterecoveredits familiar aspect, and resumed its sedate inquiry; when the workman, putting away his tools in a long basket, bade him good day, and went away. Though not before he had whispered something, on the door—mat, to the footman, in which there was the phrase 'old—fashioned' — for Paul heard it. What could that old fashion be, that seemed to make the people sorry! What could it be!

梯子上的工人很有禮貌；當他看到保羅的時候，問他，“您好嗎，先生？”於是保羅就跟 他攀談起來，告訴他，他最近身體不十分好。這樣消除隔閡之後，保羅向他問了許多關 於鐘樂和時鐘的問題；例如，人們是不是在寂寞的教堂尖塔裏值夜，以便到時候敲響時 鍾；人們死去的時候，鍾是怎樣敲的，它們跟結婚的鐘聲是不是不同，還是僅僅是在活 着的人們的幻想中聽起來淒涼而已。當保羅發現他新結識的朋友對古代的熄燈晚鐘①沒 有很多知識的時候，他就向他敘述了那個風俗；保羅還問他，作爲一個講究實際的人， 他覺得艾爾弗雷德國王②用燃燒蠟燭的辦法來計算時間的主意怎麼樣；工人回答說，他 認爲現在重新採用這種辦法，時鐘行業就會破產了。最後，保羅繼續看着，直到時鐘完 全恢復了它平時的外貌，重新發出了它那沉着冷靜的問題爲止。這時候這位工人把工具 收拾到一個長籃子中去，向他告別之後，離開了。雖然在這之前他走到門口擦鞋的棕墊 那裏時曾向男僕低聲說了幾句話，其中有“老氣”這兩個字——因爲保羅聽到了。

Having nothing to learn now, he thought of this frequently; though not so often as he might have done, if he had had fewer things to think of. But he had a great many; and was always thinking, all day long.

似乎使人們感到遺憾的“老氣”究竟是什麼呢？它究竟是什麼呢？ 由於他現在不需要學習什麼，所以他不時想到這一點；如果他要想的事情比現在少一些 ，那麼他想到這一點的次數就會更多了。但是他有很多很多的事情要想；因此整天經常在想着。

註釋：①中世紀，根據一項特別法律，在歐洲的許多城市，夜間到了規定的熄燈時間，就敲鐘發出通知。

②艾爾弗雷德國王（KingAlfred，849—899年），別稱艾爾弗雷德大帝（AlfredtheGreat） ，是九世紀時英格蘭西南部撒克遜－韋塞克斯（Saxon－Wessex）王朝的國王（在位時間 爲871—899年）；他治國井井有條，善制訂一部重要法典；用點蠟燭來計算時間的方法 就是他建議的。

詞語註釋：mattern. 物質；原因；事件
vi. 有關係；要緊
詞組短語 
no matter 不論怎樣；不要緊
a matter of 大約；…的問題
no matter how 不管怎樣
no matter what 不管什麼，無論什麼
organic matter 有機質；有機物；有機物質
subject matter 主題；主旨
doesn't matter 無所謂；無關緊要
matter of fact n. 事實
no matter where 無論哪裏
for that matter 就此而言；至於那個；說到那一點
dry matter 幹物質，固形物
no matter what happens 無論發生什麼事；無論出現什麼情況
no matter who conj. 不管是誰
on the matter 在這件事情上；對這個問題
no matter whether conj. 無論（不管是）
a matter of time 只是時間問題；某事肯定發生只是時間問題而已
in the matter of 就…而論，在…方面
in a matter of 左右；大約只不過在…之內
no matter which 無論哪一個
dark matter 暗物質
例句：
(1) This matter concerns all of us.
這件事與我們每個人都有關係。
(2) We must move at once in this matter.
對這件事我們必須立刻採取行動。
(3) He tends towards my opinion on this matter.
在這件事上他傾向於我的意見。
(4) They'll approach her on that matter.
他們要向她交涉那件事情。
(5) We have to ravel the matter out.
我們必須把事情弄個水落石出。
(6) They discussed an important matter with her.
他們跟她談論一件重要事情。
(7) They will go behind this matter.
他們將徹底調查這件事。
(8) I saw some persons haunting around your house, what's the matter with you?
我看見有幾個人常在你家周圍轉悠，你那裏發生什麼事了?
(9) I should like to arbitrate on this matter.
我想談談我對這件事的看法。
(10) In this matter we must place the common cause above all else.
在這件事情上， 我們必須把共同事業放在高於一切的位置上。

recovervt. 恢復；彌補；重新獲得
vi. 恢復；勝訴；重新得球
n. 還原至預備姿勢
短語
recover from 恢復；恢復知覺
recover possession收回管有
recover oneself恢復正常；恢復健康；清醒過來；鎮定下來
recover investments投資成本回收
Recover Photographs得照片
File Recover易用的文件恢復軟件
Recover Floppy緊急還原磁片
Recover passwords取回密碼
Recover MP恢復MP
STATUS RECOVER恢復技能
詞根：recover
adj. recoverable 可收回的；可恢復的；可補償的
n.
recovery 恢復，復原；痊癒；重獲
recoverer 回收器；財產收回取得者；追索財產者
(1) I sincerely hope you will soon recover.
我誠懇地盼望你早日康復。
(2) It is impossible for the client to recover.
該訴訟委託人不可能勝訴。
(3) But no one knows yet how well she might recover.
但現在無人知道她能恢復到什麼程度。
(4) I thought, if I recover I have to do more for everyone.
我當時就想，如果我能恢復，我要爲大家做更多的事。
(5) Then they treat them with drugs to help them recover.
然後，他們用藥物治療，以幫助他們恢復。
(6) How they recover is not just their problem, but Europe’s.
他們如何恢復不只是他們的問題，而是歐洲的問題。
(7) If I were told that I could recover my eyesight, I would refuse.
如果有人告訴我我可以恢復我的視力，我會拒絕。
(8) Short of replacing hardware, you cannot recover from this situation.
缺乏可替換硬件，將不能從這種情況中恢復。
(9) They vaccinate our children and help us to recover when we are sick.
他們對我們的兒童進行預防接種並幫助我們在患病時康復。
(10) In many parts of the world, it has yet to recover.
在很多地方，到目前爲止，這種狀況還沒恢復。