见信如晤Letters Live 第24期:'露易丝·布瑞莉&索菲·亨特'读信:亲爱的朋友(3)

 　　For how many people are there in London today who realise that my “co-partner,” as you wittily¹ dub² her, is none other than Hermione Baddeley, and by the way, she wants me to thank you for the facsimile letter you sent her, and say that she is getting on in years and feeble, and is not able to attend to her correspondence as she would wish, and so she cannot answer your letter personally.

　　伦敦现在还有多少人会意识到我的“合作伙伴”是赫敏·巴德利，用“合作伙伴”这个词你也真是幽默。另外她让我感谢你寄给她复印版的信，她说她最近几年身体不太好，不能时常处理信件，所以不能亲自给你回信。

　　An awful thought has dawned.

　　我有一个可怕的想法。

　　It is all a joke, and you aren't really my friend at all.

　　这一切都是玩笑，其实你根本不是我的朋友。

　　I must try to dismiss this thought.

　　我必须试着抹去这个想法。

　　It depresses me.

　　这让我沮丧。

　　To lose a friend like you in a few words, oh no.

　　三言两句之间就失去了你这样一个朋友，不要。

　　So, dear anonymous³ friend, if this should chance to meet your eye, please keep your promise and come round one night--yes, and bring your friends, too, for I know intuitively that your friends will be my friends.

　　所以，亲爱的朋友，如果你有机会看到这封信，请务必遵守诺言，晚上来看我们的演出，还有，带上你的朋友，因为直觉告诉我，你的朋友也会成为我的朋友的。

　　Cordially yours,

　　谨上，

　　Hermione Gingold

　　赫敏·金戈尔德

　　P.S. If you wish to strike at me with your wrath⁴ in my home, I am always in between ten-thirty and twelve in the morning, excluding Tuesday, which is a bad day, as a lot of tiresome⁵ tradespeople call for the same reason.

　　另外，如果你想在我家愤怒地攻击我，我一般上午10点半到12点之间在家，除了周二，周二有很多烦人的推销电话。

　　You will easily recognize my apartment, for, apart from the number “85” marked in plain figures on the door, over the knocker there is a notice, "strike twice and wait, bell out of order.”

　　你可以很容易认出我的公寓，门上有朴素的数字“85”，门环上有个告示写着：“敲两次后等着，门铃坏了。”

1 wittily   

机智地，机敏地

参考例句：

• They have just been pulling our legs very wittily. 他们不过是跟我们开个非常诙谐的玩笑罢了。
• The tale wittily explores the interaction and tension between reality and imagination. 这篇故事机智地探讨了现实和想象之间的联系和对立。

2 dub   

vt.（以某种称号）授予，给...起绰号，复制

参考例句：

• I intend to use simultaneous recording to dub this film.我打算采用同期录音的方法为这部影片配音。
• It was dubbed into Spanish for Mexican audiences.它被译制成西班牙语以方便墨西哥观众观看。

3 anonymous   

adj.无名的；匿名的；无特色的

参考例句：

• Sending anonymous letters is a cowardly act.寄匿名信是懦夫的行为。
• The author wishes to remain anonymous.作者希望姓名不公开。

4 wrath   

n.愤怒，愤慨，暴怒

参考例句：

• His silence marked his wrath. 他的沉默表明了他的愤怒。
• The wrath of the people is now aroused. 人们被激怒了。

5 tiresome   

adj.令人疲劳的，令人厌倦的

参考例句：

• His doubts and hesitations were tiresome.他的疑惑和犹豫令人厌烦。
• He was tiresome in contending for the value of his own labors.他老为他自己劳动的价值而争强斗胜，令人生厌。