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Chapter 3
第三章
NOT all that Mrs. Bennet, however, with the assistance of her five daughters, could ask on the subject was sufficient to draw from her husband any satisfactory description of Mr. Bingley.
尽管班纳特太太有了五个女儿帮腔，还是没能从丈夫那里得到一个对宾格莱先生的较为满意的描述。
They attacked him in various ways; with barefaced questions, ingenious suppositions, and distant surmises; but he eluded the skill of them all; and they were at last obliged to accept the second-hand intelligence of their neighbour Lady Lucas.
母女们想尽办法对付他——赤裸裸的问句，巧妙的设想，不着边际的猜测，什么办法都用到了；可是他并没有上她们的圈套。最后她们迫不得已，只得听取邻居卢卡斯太太的间接消息。
Her report was highly favourable. Sir William had been delighted with him. He was quite young, wonderfully handsome, extremely agreeable, and, to crown the whole, he meant to be at the next assembly with a large party.
她的报道全是好话。据说威廉爵士很喜欢他。他非常年轻，长得特别帅气，为人又极其谦和，最重要的一点是，他打算请一大群客人来参加下次的舞会。
Nothing could be more delightful! To be fond of dancing was a certain step towards falling in love; and very lively hopes of Mr. Bingley's heart were entertained.
这真是再也没有的好事；这就意味着朝坠入爱河的道路上迈出了结实的一步；姑娘们跃跃欲试，都希望自己能赢得宾格莱先生的好感。
"If I can but see one of my daughters happily settled at Netherfield," said Mrs. Bennet to her husband, "and all the others equally well married, I shall have nothing to wish for."
“我只要能看到一个女儿在尼日斐花园幸福地安了家，”班纳特太太对她的丈夫说，“看到其他几个也匹配得这样门当户对，这辈子就心满意足了。”
In a few days Mr. Bingley returned Mr. Bennet's visit, and sat about ten minutes with him in his library. He had entertained hopes of being admitted to a sight of the young ladies, of whose beauty he had heard much; but he saw only the father.
几天后，宾格莱先生回访了班纳特先生，与他在书房坐了大约有十多分钟。宾格莱先生对班纳特先生几个女儿的美貌早有耳闻，只是见他的只有班纳特先生。
The ladies were somewhat more fortunate, for they had the advantage of ascertaining, from an upper window, that he wore a blue coat and rode a black horse.
小姐们倒是比他幸运一些，因为她们已从楼上的窗子里看到了他穿着一件蓝外套，骑着一匹黑色的马。
An invitation to dinner was soon afterwards dispatched; and already had Mrs. Bennet planned the courses that were to do credit to her housekeeping, when an answer arrived which deferred it all.
饭局的邀请随后便发出了。班纳特太太已经在计划着准备她拿手的几道菜，这时突然从那边传来回话，于是这请吃饭的事也就搁下了。
Mr. Bingley was obliged to be in town the following day, and consequently unable to accept the honour of their invitation. Mrs. Bennet was quite disconcerted.
宾格莱先生第二天要进城，所以不能接受他们的盛情款待，班纳特太太为此感到很不自在。
She could not imagine what business he could have in town so soon after his arrival in Hertfordshire; and she began to fear that he might be always flying about from one place to another, and never settled at Netherfield as he ought to be.
她简直想象不出宾格莱先生刚刚来到哈福德郡就要回城里去干什么。于是她开始担心思了；照理他应该在尼日斐花园安安定定住下来，看现在的情形，莫不是他经常都得这样东漂西泊，行踪不定？
Lady Lucas quieted her fears a little by starting the idea of his being gone to London only to get a large party for the ball; and a report soon followed that Mr. Bingley was to bring twelve ladies and seven gentlemen with him to the assembly.
卢卡斯太太说，她想宾格莱去伦敦只是为了邀请一群客人来参加舞会，这才稍稍安定了班纳特太太的情绪；不久消息传来，宾格莱将领十二名女士、七名男士前来参加舞会。
The girls grieved over such a large number of ladies; but were comforted the day before the ball by hearing that, instead of twelve, he had brought only, his five sisters and a cousin. And when the party entered the assembly room, it consisted of only five altogether; Mr. Bingley, his two sisters, the husband of the oldest, and another young man.
这里的姑娘听说有这么多的女士要来，不免有些沮丧，不过到了举办舞会的前一天，她们的心情又好了起来，因为她们又听到消息说，宾格莱先生从伦敦只带回了六个人，他的五个姐妹和一个表妹。当他和他的客人们走进舞厅的时候，他们一共只有五个人：宾格莱先生，他的两个姐妹，他的姐夫和另外一个男人。
Mr. Bingley was good looking and gentlemanlike; he had a pleasant countenance, and easy, unaffected manners.
宾格莱先生仪表堂堂，大有绅士风度，而且和颜悦色，没有拘泥做作的气习。
His brother-in-law, Mr. Hurst, merely looked the gentleman; but his friend Mr. Darcy soon drew the attention of the room by his fine, tall person, handsome features, noble mien; and the report which was in general circulation within five minutes after his entrance, of his having ten thousand a year.
他的姐夫赫斯特先生看上去只是个普通的绅士而已，但宾格莱的朋友达西却很快引起了满屋子人的注意。只见他长得眉清目秀，身材匀称魁梧，举止高贵典雅；在达西刚刚进来的五分钟里，他一年有一万英镑收入的消息已经在四下传开。
The gentlemen pronounced him to be a fine figure of a man, the ladies declared he was much handsomer than Mr. Bingley, and he was looked at with great admiration for about half the evening, till his manners gave a disgust which turned the tide of his popularity; for he was discovered to be proud, to be above his company, and above being pleased; and not all his large estate in Derbyshire could then save him from having a most forbidding, disagreeable countenance, and being unworthy to be compared with his friend.
男士们称颂他是男人中的佼佼者，女士们夸赞他比宾格莱先生要漂亮得多。在前半个晚上，达西一直沐浴在人们景仰钦羡的目光里，后来他的行为开始引起人们的反感，使他的声誉在刹那间一落千丈；因为舞会上的人们看出他孤傲不群，人们无法接近和取悦他。这样一来，不管他在德比郡的庄园有多大，也不能使他免遭人们的非议了，人们说看他的面孔有多么冷峻，仿佛要拒人于千里之外，与他的朋友宾格莱相比，他简直就什么也不是了。
