Is Miss Temple as severe to you as Miss Scatcherd?
坦普尔小姐跟斯卡查德小姐对你一样严厉吗?
At the utterance of Miss Temple's name, a soft smile flitted over her grave face.
一提到坦普尔小姐的名字,她阴沉的脸上便掠过了一丝温柔的微笑。
Miss Temple is full of goodness. It pains her to be severe to any one, even the worst in the school.
坦普尔小姐非常善良,不忍心对任何人严厉,即使是校里最差的学生。
She sees my errors, and tells me of them gently.
她看到我的错误,便和颜悦色地向我指出。
And, if I do anything worthy of praise, she gives me my meed liberally.
要是我做了值得称赞的事情,她就慷慨地赞扬我。
One strong proof of my wretchedly defective nature is,
我的本性有严重缺陷,一个有力的证据是,
that even her expostulations, so mild, so rational, have not influence to cure me of my faults.
尽管她的规劝那么恰到好处,那么合情合理,却依旧治不了我那些毛病。
And even her praise, though I value it most highly, cannot stimulate me to continued care and foresight.
甚至她的赞扬,虽然我非常看重,却无法激励我始终小心谨慎,高瞻远瞩。
“That is curious,” said I, “it is so easy to be careful.”
“那倒是奇怪的,”我说,“要做到小心还不容易。”
For you I have no doubt it is.
对你说来无疑是这样。
I observed you in your class this morning, and saw you were closely attentive.
早上我仔细观察了你上课时的情形,发现你非常专心。
Your thoughts never seemed to wander while Miss Miller explained the lesson and questioned you.
米勒小姐讲解功课,问你问题时,你思想从不开小差。
Now, mine continually rove away.
而我的思绪却总是飘忽不定。
When I should be listening to Miss Scatcherd, and collecting all she says with assiduity, often I lose the very sound of her voice.
当我应该听斯卡查德小姐讲课,应该用心把她讲的记住时,我常常连她说话的声音都听不见了。
I fall into a sort of dream.
我进入了一种梦境。
Sometimes I think I am in Northumberland,
有时我以为自己到了诺森伯兰郡,
and that the noises I hear round me are the bubbling of a little brook which runs through Deepden, near our house.
以为周围的耳语声,是我家附近流过深谷那条小溪源源的水声。
Then, when it comes to my turn to reply, I have to be awakened.
于是轮到我回答时,我得从梦境中被唤醒。
And having heard nothing of what was read for listening to the visionary brook, I have no answer ready.
而因为倾听着想象中的溪流声,现实中便什么也没有听到,我也就回答不上来了。
Yet how well you replied this afternoon.
可是你今天,下午回答得多好!
It was mere chance.
那只是碰巧。
The subject on which we had been reading had interested me.
因为我对我们读的内容很感兴趣。
This afternoon, instead of dreaming of Deepden,
今天下午我没有梦游深谷,我在纳闷,
I was wondering how a man who wished to do right could act so unjustly and unwisely as Charles the First sometimes did.
一个像查理一世那样希望做好事的人,怎么有时会干出那么不义的蠢事来。
And I thought what a pity it was that, with his integrity and conscientiousness, he could see no farther than the prerogatives of the crown.
我想这多可惜,那么正直真诚的人竟看不到皇权以外的东西。
If he had but been able to look to a distance, and see how what they call the spirit of the age was tending!
要是他能看得远些,看清了所谓时代精神的走向该多好!
Still, I like Charles. I respect him. I pity him, poor murdered king!
虽然这样,我还是喜欢查理一世,我尊敬他,我怜惜他,这位可怜的被谋杀的皇帝。