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Mr Peter, Miss Matty, and I had all been quiet, each with a separate reverie, for some little time, when Mr Peter broke in— “Do you know, little Matty, I could have sworn you were on the high road to matrimony when I left England that last time!
彼得先生、马蒂小姐和我都沉默着，各自沉浸在自己的幻想中。过了一会儿，彼得先生突然说道：“你知道吗，小马蒂，我上次离开英国的时候，敢发誓说你肯定在通往婚姻的大道上了！
If anybody had told me you would have lived and died an old maid then, I should have laughed in their faces.”
如果当时有人告诉我，你会一辈子当老姑娘，我一定会当面嘲笑他们。”
Miss Matty made no reply, and I tried in vain to think of some subject which should effectually turn the conversation; but I was very stupid; and before I spoke he went on— “It was Holbrook, that fine manly fellow who lived at Woodley, that I used to think would carry off my little Matty.
马蒂小姐没有回答，我试图想出一些能有效改变话题的内容，但没有成功，我太笨了，在我说话之前，他接着说：“是霍尔布鲁克，那个住在伍德利的很算个男子汉的人，我过去常想他会把小马蒂娶走。
You would not think it now, I dare say, Mary; but this sister of mine was once a very pretty girl—at least, I thought so, and so I’ve a notion did poor Holbrook.
玛丽，我敢说你现在肯定想不到，但是我的这个姐姐曾经是个非常漂亮的姑娘——至少，我是这么觉得的，而且我觉得霍尔布鲁克也是这么想的。
What business had he to die before I came home to thank him for all his kindness to a good-for-nothing cub as I was?
他之前对我这个一无是处的家伙那么好，他怎么在我回家向他道谢之前就死了呢？
It was that that made me first think he cared for you; for in all our fishing expeditions it was Matty, Matty, we talked about.
正是那件事让我第一次觉得他喜欢你，因为我们每次去钓鱼，谈论的都只有马蒂、马蒂。
Poor Deborah! What a lecture she read me on having asked him home to lunch one day, when she had seen the Arley carriage in the town, and thought that my lady might call.
可怜的黛博拉！有一天我邀请他回家吃午饭，她为此狠狠地教训了我一顿，因为那天她看见阿利家的马车进了城，以为尊贵的阿利夫人可能会来拜访。
Well, that’s long years ago; more than half a life-time, and yet it seems like yesterday!
啊，都是很久以前的事了，大半辈子之前了，却仿佛就在昨天！
I don’t know a fellow I should have liked better as a brother-in-law.
我不知道还有哪个家伙会让我更想让他当我的姐夫。
You must have played your cards badly, my little Matty, somehow or another—wanted your brother to be a good go-between, eh, little one?” said he, putting out his hand to take hold of hers as she lay on the sofa.
你一定是把牌打糟了，小马蒂，不管怎么说，你当初是想让弟弟做个中间的传话人，是吗，小马蒂？”他说着，伸出手去握她的手，她正躺在沙发上。
“Why, what’s this? You’re shivering and shaking, Matty, with that confounded open window.
“怎么了？怎么回事？你在发抖，马蒂，都是因为那扇该死的开着的窗户。
Shut it, Mary, this minute!”
快关窗户，玛丽，快关上！”
I did so, and then stooped down to kiss Miss Matty, and see if she really were chilled.
我照做了，然后弯下腰吻了一下马蒂小姐，看看她是否真的着凉了。
She caught at my hand, and gave it a hard squeeze—but unconsciously, I think—for in a minute or two she spoke to us quite in her usual voice, and smiled our uneasiness away, although she patiently submitted to the prescriptions we enforced of a warm bed and a glass of weak negus.
她抓住我的手，紧紧地握了一下——但我想她是无意识的——因为一两分钟后，她就用平常的声音和我们说话了，微笑着让我们安心，尽管她耐心地接受了我们的迫切嘱咐，上床去暖和暖和，再喝一杯淡尼格斯酒。
I was to leave Cranford the next day, and before I went I saw that all the effects of the open window had quite vanished.
我第二天就要离开克兰福德了，在我离开之前，我看到开窗户造成的所有影响都完全消失了。
I had superintended most of the alterations necessary in the house and household during the latter weeks of my stay.
在我逗留的最后几周，我监督了房子和家务安排中需要进行的大部分变动。
The shop was once more a parlour: the empty resounding rooms again furnished up to the very garrets.
商店又一次变成了客厅：有回声的空荡荡的房间再一次添满了家具，阁楼也不放过。
There had been some talk of establishing Martha and Jem in another house, but Miss Matty would not hear of this.
曾经有人提起过把玛莎和杰姆安置在另一所房子里，但马蒂小姐一点都听不下去。
Indeed, I never saw her so much roused as when Miss Pole had assumed it to be the most desirable arrangement.
实际上当波尔小姐认为这是最理想的安排时，我从未见过她如此情绪激动。
As long as Martha would remain with Miss Matty, Miss Matty was only too thankful to have her about her; yes, and Jem too, who was a very pleasant man to have in the house, for she never saw him from week’s end to week’s end.
只要玛莎愿意和马蒂小姐待在一起，马蒂小姐就会非常感激她能陪在自己身边；是的，还有杰姆，有他在家里很让人高兴，因为她从周一到周末都见不到他。
And as for the probable children, if they would all turn out such little darlings as her god-daughter, Matilda, she should not mind the number, if Martha didn’t.
至于可能以后还会有孩子，如果他们都能像她的教女玛蒂尔达一样可爱，她就不会介意孩子太多，只要玛莎不介意。
Besides, the next was to be called Deborah—a point which Miss Matty had reluctantly yielded to Martha’s stubborn determination that her first-born was to be Matilda.
而且，下一个孩子要叫黛博拉——这一点是马蒂小姐不情愿地让步的，因为玛莎固执地决定她的第一个孩子要叫玛蒂尔达。
So Miss Pole had to lower her colours, and even her voice, as she said to me that, as Mr and Mrs Hearn were still to go on living in the same house with Miss Matty, we had certainly done a wise thing in hiring Martha’s niece as an auxiliary.
所以波尔小姐不得不敛色低声地对我说，既然赫恩夫妇还要继续和马蒂小姐住在同一所房子里，那么我们雇佣玛莎的侄女作为帮手，肯定是很明智的。
I left Miss Matty and Mr Peter most comfortable and contented; the only subject for regret to the tender heart of the one, and the social friendly nature of the other, being the unfortunate quarrel between Mrs Jamieson and the plebeian Hogginses and their following.
我离开马蒂小姐和彼得先生时，他们非常舒适和满足；唯一让心软的前者和天生待人友好的后者感到遗憾的是，贾米森夫人和平民霍金斯一家及其拥护者之间发生了不幸的争吵。
In joke, I prophesied one day that this would only last until Mrs Jamieson or Mr Mulliner were ill, in which case they would only be too glad to be friends with Mr Hoggins; but Miss Matty did not like my looking forward to anything like illness in so light a manner, and before the year was out all had come round in a far more satisfactory way.
我曾经开玩笑地预言，只要贾米森夫人或穆利纳先生生了病，争吵就会结束，在这种情况下，他们只会非常高兴与霍金斯先生成为朋友；但是马蒂小姐不喜欢我以这么轻巧的态度期待任何类似疾病的事情，而在这一年结束之前，一切都以一种令人满意得多的方式解决了。
