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"Is this the place?" Sara whispered, cuddling still closer to him. "Is it, papa?"
“这就是那地方吗？”萨拉悄声说，偎依得更紧些。“是吗，爸爸？”
"Yes, little Sara, it is. We have reached it at last."
“是的，小萨拉，就是这儿，我们终于到了。”
And though she was only seven years old, she knew that he felt sad when he said it.
虽然她只有七岁，她感觉到他说这话时是伤感的。
It seemed to her many years since he had begun to prepare her mind for "the place," as she always called it.
她觉得父亲让她在思想上对“那地方”（她总是这样称呼那个将来要去的地方）做好准备以来，好像已经有好多年了。
Her mother had died when she was born, so she had never known or missed her.
萨拉一生下来母亲就死了，所以她一点也不知道妈妈是什么样子，也不想念她。
Her young, handsome, rich, petting father seemed to be the only relation she had in the world.
她那年轻、英俊、富裕、亲昵的父亲似乎是这世界上唯一的亲人。
They had always played together and been fond of each other.
他们常常一起游玩，彼此感情深厚。
She only knew he was rich because she had heard people say so when they thought she was not listening,
她之所以知道他很富裕，是因为听人们这样说过，当时他们还以为她没在听，
and she had also heard them say that when she grew up she would be rich, too. She did not know all that being rich meant.
她还听到他们说，将来她长大后也会是个富人。她并不知道作为富人意味着什么。
She had always lived in a beautiful bungalow, and had been used to seeing many servants who made salaams to her and called her "Missee Sahib,"
她一直住在一座漂亮的平房里，惯于看到那许多仆人向她行礼，称呼她“小姐，您哪”，
and gave her her own way in everything. She had had toys and pets and an ayah who worshipped her,
并且凡事都由着她的性子。她有玩具与小宠物，还有一个崇拜她的印度保姆，
and she had gradually learned that people who were rich had these things. That, however, was all she knew about it.
于是她渐渐地明白了，富人们才拥有这些东西。不过，她所知道的也仅此而已。
During her short life only one thing had troubled her, and that thing was "the place" she was to be taken to some day.
在她那不长的生命历程中，只有一件烦心的事，那就是终有一天她要被送往“那地方”。
The climate of India was very bad for children, and as soon as possible they were sent away from it—generally to England and to school.
印度的气候对儿童来说是太恶劣了，因此一有可能就会把他们送往别处去——通常是到英国去上学。
She had seen other children go away, and had heard their fathers and mothers talk about the letters they received from them.
她看到过其他孩子离去，听说过他们的父母谈论收到的他们的来信。
She had known that she would be obliged to go also,
她早就知道她将来也不得不离去，
and though sometimes her father's stories of the voyage and the new country had attracted her,
虽然有时候父亲讲的一些航海故事以及那片新的国土曾使她着迷，
she had been troubled by the thought that he could not stay with her.
但是想到父亲将来不能同她呆在一起就感到烦恼。
"Couldn't you go to that place with me, papa?" she had asked when she was five years old.
“你不能跟我去那个地方吗，爸爸？”她五岁时就曾这样发问。
"Couldn't you go to school, too? I would help you with your lessons."
“你不能也去上学吗？我会帮你做功课的。”
