MARILLA came briskly forward as Matthew opened the door. —
玛丽拉在马修打开门时迅速走了过来。 —

But when her eyes fell on the odd little figure in the stiff, ugly dress, with the long braids of red hair and the eager, luminous eyes, she stopped short in amazement.
但当她的目光落在那个穿着古怪、丑陋连衣裙的怪异小身影上，看着她那长长的红发辫和炯炯有神的眼睛，她惊讶地停了下来。

“Matthew Cuthbert, who’s that?” she ejaculated. “Where is the boy?”
“马修·卡思伯特，那是谁？”她惊呼道。“男孩在哪里？”

“There wasn’t any boy,” said Matthew wretchedly. “There was only her.”
“没有男孩”，马修痛苦地说。“只有她。”

He nodded at the child, remembering that he had never even asked her name.
他朝着那个孩子点了点头，想起自己甚至没问过她的名字。

“No boy! But there must have been a boy,” insisted Marilla. —
“没有男孩！但必须有个男孩”，玛丽拉坚持说道。 —

“We sent word to Mrs. Spencer to bring a boy.”
“我们让斯宾塞太太带一个男孩来。”

“Well, she didn’t. She brought her. I asked the station-master. And I had to bring her home. —
“嗯，她没有。她把她带来了。我问了车站长。我不得不把她带回家。” —

She couldn’t be left there, no matter where the mistake had come in.”
“无论错误发生在哪里，她都不能留在那里。”

“Well, this is a pretty piece of business!” ejaculated Marilla.
玛丽拉惊叹道：“这可真是一桩好事！”

During this dialogue the child had remained silent, her eyes roving from one to the other, all the animation fading out of her face. —
在这段对话期间，孩子保持沉默，眼睛在两人之间游移，脸上所有的生气都消退了。 —

Suddenly she seemed to grasp the full meaning of what had been said. —
突然间，她似乎领会到了话语的全部含义。 —

Dropping her precious carpet-bag she sprang forward a step and clasped her hands.
放下她珍贵的手提包，她迈出一步，紧紧握住手。

“You don’t want me!” she cried. “You don’t want me because I’m not a boy! —
“你们不要我！”她喊道。“你们不要我，因为我不是男孩！ —

I might have expected it. Nobody ever did want me. —
我或许该料到的。没有人曾经想要我。 —

I might have known it was all too beautiful to last. —
我或许该知道这一切太美好了无法长久。 —

I might have known nobody really did want me. —
我或许该知道真的没有人想要我。 —

Oh, what shall I do? I’m going to burst into tears!”
哦，我该怎么办？我要哭出来了！”

Burst into tears she did. Sitting down on a chair by the table, flinging her arms out upon it, and burying her face in them, she proceeded to cry stormily. —
她果然泣不成声。坐在桌边的椅子上，扑通一声把胳膊伸开在桌上，埋起了脸，开始狂暴地哭泣。 —

Marilla and Matthew looked at each other deprecatingly across the stove. —
玛丽拉和马修透过火炉无措地相互看了一眼。 —

Neither of them knew what to say or do. Finally Marilla stepped lamely into the breach.
他们俩都不知道该说什么或做什么。最后，玛丽拉支支吾吾地说话了。

“Well, well, there’s no need to cry so about it.”
“唉，唉，没有必要这样大哭。”

“Yes, there is need!” The child raised her head quickly, revealing a tear-stained face and trembling lips. —
“是的，有需要！”孩子抬起头，露出满是泪痕和颤抖的嘴唇。 —

“You would cry, too, if you were an orphan and had come to a place you thought was going to be home and found that they didn’t want you because you weren’t a boy. —
“如果你是个孤儿，来到一个你以为会成为家的地方，结果发现他们不想要你，因为你不是个男孩，你也会哭的。 —

Oh, this is the most tragical thing that ever happened to me!”
哦，这是我经历过的最悲惨的事情！”

Something like a reluctant smile, rather rusty from long disuse, mellowed Marilla’s grim expression.
某种不情愿的微笑，因为长时间不用而有些生疏，让玛丽拉的阴沉表情变得和煦起来。

“Well, don’t cry any more. We’re not going to turn you out-of-doors to-night. —
“好吧，不要再哭了。我们不会今晚把你赶到户外去。 —

You’ll have to stay here until we investigate this affair. —
在我们调查清楚这件事之前，你得留在这里。 —

What’s your name?”
你叫什么名字？”

The child hesitated for a moment.
孩子犹豫了一下。

“Will you please call me Cordelia?” she said eagerly.
“能叫我科黛丽亚吗？”她急切地说道。

“Call you Cordelia? Is that your name?”
“叫你科黛丽亚？那是你的名字吗？”

“No-o-o, it’s not exactly my name, but I would love to be called Cordelia. —
“不…不，不完全是我的名字，但我很想被叫做科黛丽亚。 —

It’s such a perfectly elegant name.”
这是一个非常优雅的名字。”

“I don’t know what on earth you mean. If Cordelia isn’t your name, what is?”
“我不知道你在说什么。如果科黛丽亚不是你的名字，那你叫什么？”

“Anne Shirley,” reluctantly faltered forth the owner of that name, “but, oh, please do call me Cordelia. —
“安妮·雪莉，”那个名字的主人勉强说出，“但，哦，请叫我科黛丽亚。 —

It can’t matter much to you what you call me if I’m only going to be here a little while, can it? —
如果我只会在这里呆一小会儿，你管我叫什么名字应该无所谓，对吧？ —

And Anne is such an unromantic name.”
“安妮是一个不浪漫的名字。”

“Unromantic fiddlesticks!” said the unsympathetic Marilla. —
“不浪漫的废话！”不解风情的玛丽拉说道。 —

“Anne is a real good plain sensible name. —
“安妮是一个真正好的朴素实在的名字。 —

You’ve no need to be ashamed of it.”
你不需要为此感到羞耻。”

“Oh, I’m not ashamed of it,” explained Anne, “only I like Cordelia better. —
“哦，我并不羞于此，”安妮解释道，“只是我更喜欢科黛莉亚。 —

I’ve always imagined that my name was Cordelia—at least, I always have of late years. —
近年来我总是想象我的名字是科黛莉亚——至少，近年来我总是这样想。 —

When I was young I used to imagine it was Geraldine, but I like Cordelia better now. —
当我年轻时，我曾想象过我的名字是杰拉尔丁，但现在我更喜欢科黛莉亚。 —

But if you call me Anne please call me Anne spelled with an E.”
但如果你叫我安妮，请拼写为带有E的安妮。”

“What difference does it make how it’s spelled? —
“拼写有什么区别呢？ —

” asked Marilla with another rusty smile as she picked up the teapot.
”玛丽拉边说边笑了笑，拿起茶壶。

“Oh, it makes such a difference. It looks so much nicer. —
“哦，这有很大的区别。看起来漂亮多了。 —

When you hear a name pronounced can’t you always see it in your mind, just as if it was printed out? —
当你听到一个名字被念出来，你难道不会在脑海中立刻看到它，就像它被印刷出来一样吗？ —

I can; and A-n-n looks dreadful, but A-n-n-e looks so much more distinguished. —
我能；A-n-n看起来可怕，但A-n-n-e看起来更有气质。 —

If you’ll only call me Anne spelled with an E I shall try to reconcile myself to not being called Cordelia.”
如果你只能叫我拼写为带有E的安妮，我会努力接受自己不能被称为科黛莉亚。”

“Very well, then, Anne spelled with an E, can you tell us how this mistake came to be made? —
“好吧，那么，拼写为带有E的安妮，你能告诉我们这个错误是怎么发生的吗？ —

We sent word to Mrs. Spencer to bring us a boy. —
我们通知斯宾塞夫人带一个男孩来。 —

Were there no boys at the asylum?”
教养院里没有男孩吗？

“Oh, yes, there was an abundance of them. —
“哦，那里男孩很多。 —

But Mrs. Spencer said distinctly that you wanted a girl about eleven years old. —
但是斯宾塞夫人明确说你们想要一个大约十一岁的女孩。 —

And the matron said she thought I would do. You don’t know how delighted I was. —
管理员说她认为我可以胜任。你们不知道我有多高兴。 —

I couldn’t sleep all last night for joy. —
我昨晚为了喜悦而无法入睡。 —

Oh,” she added reproachfully, turning to Matthew, “why didn’t you tell me at the station that you didn’t want me and leave me there? —
“哦，”她转身责备地对着马修说，“为什么车站的时候你不告诉我你不想要我，让我留在那里呢？ —

If I hadn’t seen the White Way of Delight and the Lake of Shining Waters it wouldn’t be so hard.”
如果我没有看到白色快乐之路和闪亮的湖水，就不会那么难过。

“What on earth does she mean?” demanded Marilla, staring at Matthew.
“她到底是什么意思？”，Marilla瞪大眼睛质问着Matthew。

“She—she’s just referring to some conversation we had on the road,” said Matthew hastily. —
“她——她只是在提到我们在路上的一些谈话”，Matthew急忙解释道。 —

“I’m going out to put the mare in, Marilla. —
“我要出去把母马放进去，Marilla。等我回来的时候准备好茶。” —

Have tea ready when I come back.”
Matthew出去后，Marilla继续说道。

“Did Mrs. Spencer bring anybody over besides you?” continued Marilla when Matthew had gone out.
“除了你之外，斯宾塞夫人还带了别人过来吗？”

“She brought Lily Jones for herself. Lily is only five years old and she is very beautiful and had nut-brown hair. —
“她带了Lily Jones来陪伴她自己。 Lily只有五岁，非常美丽，有着核桃般的棕色头发。” —

If I was very beautiful and had nut-brown hair would you keep me?”
“如果我很美丽，有着核桃般的棕色头发，你会留下我吗？”

“No. We want a boy to help Matthew on the farm. A girl would be of no use to us. —
“不会。我们需要一个男孩来帮助Matthew在农场上工作。女孩对我们毫无用处。” —

Take off your hat. I’ll lay it and your bag on the hall table.”
“把你的帽子脱下来。我会把它和你的包放在门厅的桌子上。”

Anne took off her hat meekly. Matthew came back presently and they sat down to supper. —
安妮顺从地脱下了帽子。不久，Matthew回来了，他们一起坐下来吃晚餐。 —

But Anne could not eat. In vain she nibbled at the bread and butter and pecked at the crab-apple preserve out of the little scalloped glass dish by her plate. —
但安妮无法吃东西。她虽然在面包和黄油上啃了一口，并尝了一些小扇形玻璃盘里的海棠果酱，但根本没有真正进展。 —

She did not really make any headway at all.
她实际上一点进展都没有。

“You’re not eating anything,” said Marilla sharply, eying her as if it were a serious shortcoming. Anne sighed.
“你一点都没吃东西”，Marilla严厉地说，盯着她，仿佛这是一个严重的缺点。安妮叹了口气。

“I can’t. I’m in the depths of despair. Can you eat when you are in the depths of despair?”
“我不能。我正处于绝望之中。当你处于绝望之中时，你能吃东西吗？”

“I’ve never been in the depths of despair, so I can’t say,” responded Marilla.
“我从来没有陷入绝望的深渊，所以我不能说，”玛丽拉回答道。

“Weren’t you? Well, did you ever try to imagine you were in the depths of despair?”
“你没有吗？那你试过想象自己陷入绝望的深渊吗？”

“No, I didn’t.”
“没有。”

“Then I don’t think you can understand what it’s like. —
“那么我认为你不可能理解那种感受。 —

It’s a very uncomfortable feeling indeed. —
这绝对是一种非常不舒服的感觉。 —

When you try to eat a lump comes right up in your throat and you can’t swallow anything, not even if it was a chocolate caramel. —
当你尝试吃东西时，喉咙里会涌出一块东西，你什么都吞不下，即使是巧克力焦糖。 —

I had one chocolate caramel once two years ago and it was simply delicious. —
我曾经两年前吃过一个巧克力焦糖，那简直太美味了。 —

I’ve often dreamed since then that I had a lot of chocolate caramels, but I always wake up just when I’m going to eat them. —
自那以后，我经常梦到我有很多巧克力焦糖，但每次都是在我要吃的时候醒来。 —

I do hope you won’t be offended because I can’t eat. —
我希望你不要感到生气，因为我无法吃东西。 —

Everything is extremely nice, but still I cannot eat.”
一切都非常好，但我仍然无法吃。”

“I guess she’s tired,” said Matthew, who hadn’t spoken since his return from the barn. —
“我想她可能累了，”自从从谷仓回来后就一直没有说话的马修说。 —

“Best put her to bed, Marilla.”
“最好让她去睡觉，玛丽拉。”

Marilla had been wondering where Anne should be put to bed. —
玛丽拉一直在想安妮应该住在哪里。 —

She had prepared a couch in the kitchen chamber for the desired and expected boy. —
她在厨房的小房间里为期望中的男孩准备了一张沙发。 —

But, although it was neat and clean, it did not seem quite the thing to put a girl there somehow. —
但虽然整洁干净，但在那里让一个女孩住似乎有点不妥。 —

But the spare room was out of the question for such a stray waif, so there remained only the east gable room. —
但是对于这样一个流浪儿来说，备用房间是不可能考虑的选项，所以只剩下东侧的山墙房间。 —

Marilla lighted a candle and told Anne to follow her, which Anne spiritlessly did, taking her hat and carpet-bag from the hall table as she passed. —
玛丽拉点燃了蜡烛，告诉安妮跟着她走，安妮无精打采地跟着，顺手从大厅的桌子上拿起帽子和旅行袋。 —

The hall was fearsomely clean; the little gable chamber in which she presently found herself seemed still cleaner.
大厅被清扫得干干净净；她接着来到的小斜顶房间更显得整洁。

Marilla set the candle on a three-legged, three-cornered table and turned down the bedclothes.
玛丽拉把蜡烛放在一个三条腿的三角桌上，轻轻放下被单。

“I suppose you have a nightgown?” she questioned.
“我想你有睡衣吧？”她问。

Anne nodded.
安妮点了点头。

“Yes, I have two. The matron of the asylum made them for me. They’re fearfully skimpy. —
“对，我有两件。收容所的女管理员给我做的。它们非常单薄。 —

There is never enough to go around in an asylum, so things are always skimpy—at least in a poor asylum like ours. —
在收容所，总是匮乏，至少在我们这样贫穷的收容所里是这样。 —

I hate skimpy night-dresses. But one can dream just as well in them as in lovely trailing ones, with frills around the neck, that’s one consolation.”
我讨厌单薄的睡衣。但一个人穿着它们也可以一样做美好的梦，就像穿着领口上有褶边的拖地睡衣一样，这是一个慰藉。”

“Well, undress as quick as you can and go to bed. —
“快脱衣服上床吧。 —

I’ll come back in a few minutes for the candle. —
我几分钟后来拿蜡烛。 —

I daren’t trust you to put it out yourself. —
我不敢相信你自己灭掉蜡烛。 —

You’d likely set the place on fire.”
你很可能会把房子弄着火。”

When Marilla had gone Anne looked around her wistfully. —
玛丽拉离开后，安妮眼巴巴地四处看着。 —

The whitewashed walls were so painfully bare and staring that she thought they must ache over their own bareness. —
涂了白漆的墙壁如此单薄而呆板，使她觉得它们一定在因为自己的单调而疼痛。 —

The floor was bare, too, except for a round braided mat in the middle such as Anne had never seen before. —
地板也赤裸裸的，中间只有一个圆形编织地垫，这是安妮从未见过的。 —

In one corner was the bed, a high, old-fashioned one, with four dark, low-turned posts. —
在一个角落里是一张高高的、老式的床，有四根深色、低矮的支柱。 —

In the other corner was the aforesaid three-corner table adorned with a fat, red velvet pin-cushion hard enough to turn the point of the most adventurous pin. —
在另一个角落里是那张上面摆着一个肥硕的、红色天鹅绒针垫的三角桌，针头再尖利的也难以刺透它。 —

Above it hung a little six-by-eight mirror. —
上面挂着一面六乘八英寸的小镜子。 —

Midway between table and bed was the window, with an icy white muslin frill over it, and opposite it was the wash-stand. —
在桌子和床之间的中央是一个窗户，窗上覆着冰白的轻纱边，对面是洗脸池。 —

The whole apartment was of a rigidity not to be described in words, but which sent a shiver to the very marrow of Anne’s bones. —
整个房间的严肃刻板之气无法用言语形容，但足以让安妮的骨头直发抖。 —

With a sob she hastily discarded her garments, put on the skimpy nightgown and sprang into bed where she burrowed face downward into the pillow and pulled the clothes over her head. —
带着一声啜泣，她匆匆脱下衣服，穿上那件单薄的睡衣，然后跳进床里，躲藏着面朝下躺在枕头上，将被子掩在头上。 —

When Marilla came up for the light various skimpy articles of raiment scattered most untidily over the floor and a certain tempestuous appearance of the bed were the only indications of any presence save her own.
当玛丽拉来熄灯时，地板上散落着各种单薄的衣物，床铺上呈现一种暴躁的状况，除此之外再无别人留下的迹象。

She deliberately picked up Anne’s clothes, placed them neatly on a prim yellow chair, and then, taking up the candle, went over to the bed.
她有意地捡起安妮的衣服，把它们整齐地放在一把端庄的黄色椅子上，然后拿起蜡烛，走到床边。

“Good night,” she said, a little awkwardly, but not unkindly.
“晚安，”她有点不自然地说，但并不无情。

Anne’s white face and big eyes appeared over the bedclothes with a startling suddenness.
安妮白皙的脸和大眼睛突然出现在被子上，让人吃惊。

“How can you call it a good night when you know it must be the very worst night I’ve ever had? —
“你怎么能说这是一个好晚上，当你知道这一定是我有过的最糟糕的晚上？” —

” she said reproachfully.
她有些责备地说。

Then she dived down into invisibility again.
然后她又钻到被子里消失了。

Marilla went slowly down to the kitchen and proceeded to wash the supper dishes. —
玛丽拉慢慢走下厨房，开始洗晚餐的碗碟。 —

Matthew was smoking—a sure sign of perturbation of mind. —
马修在抽烟——这是心烦意乱的明显迹象。 —

He seldom smoked, for Marilla set her face against it as a filthy habit; —
他很少抽烟，因为玛丽拉认为这是肮脏的习惯； —

but at certain times and seasons he felt driven to it and them Marilla winked at the practice, realizing that a mere man must have some vent for his emotions.
但在某些时刻，他感到被逼迫，而玛丽拉也就睁一只眼闭一只眼，意识到一个男人必须有一些情绪的出口。

“Well, this is a pretty kettle of fish,” she said wrathfully. —
“哎呀，这可真是个糟糕的事情，”她愤怒地说道。 —

“This is what comes of sending word instead of going ourselves. —
“这就是派人传话而不是亲自去的后果。 —

Richard Spencer’s folks have twisted that message somehow. —
理查德·斯宾塞一家人一定是曲解了那条信息。 —

One of us will have to drive over and see Mrs. Spencer tomorrow, that’s certain. —
我们中的一个明天得开车去见斯宾塞夫人，这是肯定的。 —

This girl will have to be sent back to the asylum.”
这个女孩必须送回收容所去。

“Yes, I suppose so,” said Matthew reluctantly.
“是的，我想是的，”马修勉强地说道。

“You suppose so! Don’t you know it?”
“你觉得是的！难道你不确定吗？”

“Well now, she’s a real nice little thing, Marilla. —
“嗯，她真是个很好的小家伙，玛丽拉。” —

It’s kind of a pity to send her back when she’s so set on staying here.”
把她送回去确实有点可惜，她这么想留在这里。”

“Matthew Cuthbert, you don’t mean to say you think we ought to keep her!”
“马修卡瑟伯特，你是不是认为我们应该留下她！”

Marilla’s astonishment could not have been greater if Matthew had expressed a predilection for standing on his head.
玛丽拉的惊讶如果马修表示倒立的偏好就不会更大了。

“Well, now, no, I suppose not—not exactly,” stammered Matthew, uncomfortably driven into a corner for his precise meaning. —
“嗯，嗯，不，我想不会，不完全是，”马修结结巴巴地被逼到了一个明确表达他的意思的角落里。 —

“I suppose—we could hardly be expected to keep her.”
“我想——我们大概没法指望留下她。”

“I should say not. What good would she be to us?”
“我想也不会。她对我们有什么好处？”

“We might be some good to her,” said Matthew suddenly and unexpectedly.
“我们或许对她有好处，”马修突然而意外地说道。

“Matthew Cuthbert, I believe that child has bewitched you! —
“马修卡瑟伯特，我相信那个孩子已经迷住你了！” —

I can see as plain as plain that you want to keep her.”
“我明明白白能看出你想留下她。”

“Well now, she’s a real interesting little thing,” persisted Matthew. —
“嗯，她真是个让人感兴趣的小东西，”马修坚持道。 —

“You should have heard her talk coming from the station.”
“你应该听听她从车站走过来时说的话。”

“Oh, she can talk fast enough. I saw that at once. It’s nothing in her favour, either. —
“哦，她确实能说得挺快的。我一眼就看出来了。这对她也没有什么好处。” —

I don’t like children who have so much to say. —
我讨厌那种话太多的孩子。 —

I don’t want an orphan girl and if I did she isn’t the style I’d pick out. —
我不想要一个孤女，即使我要一个，她也不是我会选的类型。 —

There’s something I don’t understand about her. —
对她有些事情我不明白。 —

No, she’s got to be despatched straight-way back to where she came from.”
不，她必须立刻送回她来的地方去。

“I could hire a French boy to help me,” said Matthew, “and she’d be company for you.”
“我可以雇一个法国男孩来帮助我,” Matthew 说, “她可以陪你。”

“I’m not suffering for company,” said Marilla shortly. “And I’m not going to keep her.”
“我不需要公司,” Marilla 突然说道，“我也不会留下她。”

“Well now, it’s just as you say, of course, Marilla,” said Matthew rising and putting his pipe away. —
“嗯，当然，Marilla，你说怎么样就怎么样，”Matthew 起身放下烟斗说。 —

“I’m going to bed.”
“我去睡觉了。”

To bed went Matthew. And to bed, when she had put her dishes away, went Marilla, frowning most resolutely. —
Matthew 上床睡觉了。Marilla 收拾完餐具后也上床了, 她坚决地皱着眉头。 —

And up-stairs, in the east gable, a lonely, heart-hungry, friendless child cried herself to sleep.
在东阁楼里，一个孤独、渴望有朋友的孩子哭着入睡了。