身份案 25玩弄感情的骗子(6)

"It was only a joke at first," groaned¹ our visitor.

"我当初只不过是跟她开玩笑，"客人哼哼唧唧地说，

"We never thought that she would have been so carried away."

"我们根本没有想到她会那么痴情。"

"Very likely not. However that may be, the young lady was very decidedly carried away,

"根本不可能是开玩笑。不过，那位年轻姑娘确实是被冲昏了头脑，

and, having quite made up her mind that her stepfather was in France, the suspicion of treachery never for an instant entered her mind.

一心以为她的继父是在法国，从来不怀疑她自己是上了大当。

She was flattered by the gentleman's attentions, and the effect was increased by the loudly expressed admiration² of her mother.

她因受到那位先生的殷勤奉承而高兴。而她母亲的一片赞扬声使她更加高兴。

Then Mr. Angel began to call, for it was obvious that the matter should be pushed as far as it would go if a real effect were to be produced.

于是安吉尔先生开始来访，因为一旦奏效，事情就要继续进行下去。

There were meetings, and an engagement, which would finally secure the girl's affections from turning towards anyone else.

会过几次面，订了婚，这就最后保证了姑娘的心不会转向别人。

But the deception³ could not be kept up forever. These pretended journeys to France were rather cumbrous.

但是牌局不能永远继续下去，装着去法国出差也相当麻烦，

The thing to do was clearly to bring the business to an end in such a dramatic manner

所以就干脆把事情来一个戏剧性的收场，

that it would leave a permanent impression upon the young lady's mind and prevent her from looking upon any other suitor for some time to come.

以便在年轻姑娘的心上留下永不磨灭的印象，这样来防止她有朝一日可能会看上其他求婚的男子。

Hence those vows⁴ of fidelity⁵ exacted upon a Testament⁶,

于是，就出现了手按圣经发誓白头偕老，

and hence also the allusions⁷ to a possibility of something happening on the very morning of the wedding.

举行婚礼那天的早晨暗示可能发生某种事情等把戏。

James Windibank wished Miss Sutherland to be so bound to Hosmer Angel,

詹姆斯·温迪班克希望萨瑟兰小姐对霍斯默·安吉尔忠贞不渝，

and so uncertain as to his fate, that for ten years to come, at any rate, she would not listen to another man.

而对他的生死则难以肯定，总而言之，可使她在以后的十年里不会去听从别的男人的话。

As far as the church door he brought her, and then, as he could go no farther,

霍斯默陪她到了教堂门口，他不能再往前走了，

he conveniently vanished away by the old trick of stepping in at one door of a four-wheeler and out at the other.

他耍起了老花招，从四轮马车的这扇门钻进去，又从那扇门钻出来，悠哉游哉地溜走了。

I think that that was the chain of events, Mr. Windibank!"

我认为这就是整个事情的经过，温迪班克先生！"

1 groaned   

v.呻吟( groan的过去式和过去分词 )；发牢骚；抱怨；受苦

参考例句：

• He groaned in anguish. 他痛苦地呻吟。
• The cart groaned under the weight of the piano. 大车在钢琴的重压下嘎吱作响。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 admiration   

n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕

参考例句：

• He was lost in admiration of the beauty of the scene.他对风景之美赞不绝口。
• We have a great admiration for the gold medalists.我们对金牌获得者极为敬佩。

3 deception   

n.欺骗，欺诈；骗局，诡计

参考例句：

• He admitted conspiring to obtain property by deception.他承认曾与人合谋骗取财产。
• He was jailed for two years for fraud and deception.他因为诈骗和欺诈入狱服刑两年。

4 vows   

誓言( vow的名词复数 )； 郑重宣布，许愿

参考例句：

• Matrimonial vows are to show the faithfulness of the new couple. 婚誓体现了新婚夫妇对婚姻的忠诚。
• The nun took strait vows. 那位修女立下严格的誓愿。

5 fidelity   

n.忠诚，忠实；精确

参考例句：

• There is nothing like a dog's fidelity.没有什么能比得上狗的忠诚。
• His fidelity and industry brought him speedy promotion.他的尽职及勤奋使他很快地得到晋升。

6 testament   

n.遗嘱；证明

参考例句：

• This is his last will and testament.这是他的遗愿和遗嘱。
• It is a testament to the power of political mythology.这说明，编造政治神话可以产生多大的威力。

7 allusions   

暗指，间接提到( allusion的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• We should not use proverbs and allusions indiscriminately. 不要滥用成语典故。
• The background lent itself to allusions to European scenes. 眼前的情景容易使人联想到欧洲风光。