1872
WHAT THE MOON SAW
by Hans Christian Andersen
INTRODUCTION
IT is a strange thing, when I feel most fervently and most deeply,
my hands and my tongue seem alike tied, so that I cannot rightly
describe or accurately portray the thoughts that are rising within me;
and yet I am a painter; my eye tells me as much as that, and all my
friends who have seen my sketches and fancies say the same.
I am a poor lad, and live in one of the narrowest of lanes; but
I do not want for light, as my room is high up in the house, with an
extensive prospect over the neighbouring roofs. During the first few
days I went to live in the town, I felt low-spirited and solitary
enough. Instead of the forest and the green hills of former days, I
had here only a forest of chimney-pots to look out upon. And then I
had not a single friend; not one familiar face greeted me.
So one evening I sat at the window, in a desponding mood; and
presently I opened the casement and looked out. Oh, how my heart
leaped up with joy! Here was a well-known face at last- a round,
friendly countenance, the face of a good friend I had known at home.
In, fact, it was the MOON that looked in upon me. He was quite
unchanged, the dear old Moon, and had the same face exactly that he
used to show when he peered down upon me through the willow trees on
the moor. I kissed my hand to him over and over again, as he shone far
into my little room; and he, for his part, promised me that every
evening, when he came abroad, he would look in upon me for a few
moments. This promise he has faithfully kept. It is a pity that he can
only stay such a short time when he comes. Whenever he appears, he
tells me of one thing or another that he has seen on the previous
night, or on that same evening. "Just paint the scenes I describe to
you"- this is what he said to me- "and you will have a very pretty
picture-book." I have followed his injunction for many evenings. I
could make up a new "Thousand and One Nights," in my own way, out of
these pictures, but the number might be too great, after all. The
pictures I have here given have not been chosen at random, but
follow in their proper order, just as they were described to me.
Some great gifted painter, or some poet or musician, may make
something more of them if he likes; what I have given here are only
hasty sketches, hurriedly put upon the paper, with some of my own
thoughts, interspersed; for the Moon did not come to me every evening-
a cloud sometimes hid his face from me.
1872
月亮看见的
汉斯·克里斯蒂安·安徒生
前言
很奇怪，往往在感受最深切的时候，我的手臂掣肘，我的口舌木讷，不能准确的画出，也无法确切的表述我内心的涌出的东西。可我是一个画画的，我的眼睛明明是看见了呀。看了我素描和画稿的朋友也有一样的感觉。
我是一个穷小子，住在一个最窄的小巷里，但我并不缺少阳光，因为我的房间在顶层，放眼望去，满眼都是邻居的屋顶。我刚住进这小镇里的时候，我抑郁而孤独，没有了先前的森林和青山，取而代之的是悬在头顶的一栋栋大烟囱。没有一个朋友，也没有一张熟悉的脸会笑着跟我打招呼。
有天晚上我坐在窗边，有点沮丧，无意中打开了窗户向外望去--哎呀，顿觉喜悦满怀--毕竟还有老熟人的面孔呢。一张写满了笑意的圆脸在我的面前，那是我老家好友的脸。事实上，那是一张正望着我的月亮的脸。她静静的，一如既往，一如她先前在旷野的柳梢后窥我的样子。我的老友啊，我一遍遍的向她飞吻，感谢她把微笑倾进我的小屋。她答应我，每天晚上在她都会陪我呆一会儿。她一直遵守这个诺言，可惜每次时间不长，要是能多呆一会儿就好了。她来的时候，就把她前一晚或者或者当晚的见闻说给我听。
“你把我跟你说的画下来吧，”她对我说，“那你就会有一本很漂亮的画册了。”
我听从了她的建议，我也可以做一本自己的《一千零一夜》呢！要是我每晚都把她说的画出来，可能不止一千零一个那么多呢。
我画出来的并没有经过选择，只是根据她的描述再加上我的灵感随性的画出来，大多是草图，匆匆而就，要是有天才的画家诗人或者音乐家可以加上他们自己的灵感，就会不一样了，或许变得更好呢。
我们并不能每晚都见面，晚上要是有了云彩，我们就见不到了。
FIRST EVENING
"Last night"- I am quoting the Moon's own words- "last night I was
gliding through the cloudless Indian sky. My face was mirrored in
the waters of the Ganges, and my beams strove to pierce through the
thick intertwining boughs of the bananas, arching beneath me like
the tortoise's shell. Forth from the thicket tripped a Hindoo maid,
light as a gazelle, beautiful as Eve. Airy and etherial as a vision,
and yet sharply defined amid the surrounding shadows, stood this
daughter of Hindostan: I could read on her delicate brow the thought
that had brought her hither. The thorny creeping plants tore her
sandals, but for all that she came rapidly forward. The deer that
had come down to the river to quench her thirst, sprang by with a
startled bound, for in her hand the maiden bore a lighted lamp. I
could see the blood in her delicate finger tips, as she spread them
for a screen before the dancing flame. She came down to the stream,
and set the lamp upon the water, and let it float away. The flame
flickered to and fro, and seemed ready to expire; but still the lamp
burned on, and the girl's black sparkling eyes, half veiled behind
their long silken lashes, followed it with a gaze of earnest
intensity. She knew that if the lamp continued to burn so long as
she could keep it in sight, her betrothed was still alive; but if
the lamp was suddenly extinguished, he was dead. And the lamp burned
bravely on, and she fell on her knees, and prayed. Near her in the
grass lay a speckled snake, but she heeded it not- she thought only of
Bramah and of her betrothed. 'He lives!' she shouted joyfully, 'he
lives!' And from the mountains the echo came back upon her, 'he
lives!"
第一夜
“昨夜”--我直接引用月亮的话--“昨夜我滑行在晴朗无云的印度夜空，我的脸映在恒河里，象镜子一样;我的光透过密密交错的香蕉树枝桠，树下光影斑驳，就象海龟的背壳。一个印度女孩象一只小羚羊般轻快的从密丛中走出，美丽如夏娃。她步履轻盈，身影在那片斑驳中清晰可见。从她那清秀的眉宇间我看得出她为什么而来，藤棘刺穿了她的凉鞋，她也全然不顾。来到河边解渴的小鹿吃惊的跳开，因为她拎着一盏晶亮的小灯。在她为摇曳的灯火挡风的时候，我看见她纤细的指尖流着的血。她走到河边，把小灯放在河面，让它漂走。小小的灯火摇曳，似乎马上就要熄灭，摇晃了一番，还是倔强的又亮了起来。长长如丝绸般的睫毛下，那双闪亮黑眸紧紧地跟随飘忽渐远小灯。她知道，只要在她的视野之内小灯一直亮着，她的心上人就一定还活着，要是突然熄灭，他就是死去了。小灯一直倔强的燃着，女孩跪下来祈祷。旁边的草丛里睡着一条小花蛇，她并没留心，此时她的世界里只有樊天和她的心上人。‘他还活着！’她突然幸福的叫了起来。‘他--还--活--着’远处的山回应她的声音，‘他--还--活--着！’”
SECOND EVENING
"Yesterday," said the Moon to me, "I looked down upon a small
courtyard surrounded on all sides by houses. In the courtyard sat a
clucking hen with eleven chickens; and a pretty little girl was
running and jumping around them. The hen was frightened, and screamed,
and spread out her wings over the little brood. Then the girl's father
came out and scolded her; and I glided away and thought no more of the
matter.
"But this evening, only a few minutes ago, I looked down into
the same courtyard. Everything was quiet. But presently the little
girl came forth again, crept quietly to the hen-house, pushed back the
bolt, and slipped into the apartment of the hen and chickens. They
cried out loudly, and came fluttering down from their perches, and ran
about in dismay, and the little girl ran after them. I saw it quite
plainly, for I looked through a hole in the hen-house wall. I was
angry with the willful child, and felt glad when her father came out
and scolded her more violently than yesterday, holding her roughly
by the arm; she held down her head, and her blue eyes were full of
large tears. 'What are you about here?' he asked. She wept and said,
'I wanted to kiss the hen and beg her pardon for frightening her
yesterday; but I was afraid to tell you.'
"And the father kissed the innocent child's forehead, and I kissed
her on the mouth and eyes."
第二夜
“昨天，”月亮对我说，“我看一个小小的四合院，院子里有一窝鸡，一只咕咕叫的老母鸡还有十一只小鸡崽儿。一个漂亮的小女孩正连蹦带跳地对鸡妈妈和鸡宝宝们围追堵截。鸡妈妈吓坏了，一边咕咕地叫着一边扑拉开翅膀尽力的护着小鸡崽儿，后来小女还的爸爸出来臭了她。我觉得这是个稀松平常的小事，就悄悄地离开了。
“今天晚上，就在几分钟之前，我又望了那个小院子，开始还是静悄悄的，没有一点声音。不久那个小女孩又出来了，她轻轻地走到鸡舍旁边，拉出门闩，钻进了鸡妈妈和鸡宝宝的家。他们扑棱着翅膀从栖木上跳下来，大声的惊叫着，慌乱四窜。小女孩在后面紧追不舍。透过鸡舍墙上的一个洞，这一切我看的很清楚。我有些讨厌这个顽皮的孩子，她爸爸出来了，粗暴的用两只手抓着女孩的上臂，凶巴巴的责备她，比上次更严厉了。老实说这个时候我觉得暗爽哩。女孩低着头，大颗的泪珠从蓝色的眼睛掉下来。
‘恁搁这弄啥哩？’爸爸问她。她抹着眼泪说，‘我想亲一下鸡妈妈，我想跟她说对不起，我昨天吓到了她和她的宝宝们，我想请她原谅我，我不敢跟爸爸说。’爸爸没有再说什么，只是俯下身来亲着这个天真孩子的前额。而我亲了她的小嘴和眼睛。”
THIRD EVENING
"In the narrow street round the corner yonder- it is so narrow
that my beams can only glide for a minute along the walls of the
house, but in that minute I see enough to learn what the world is made
of- in that narrow street I saw a woman. Sixteen years ago that
woman was a child, playing in the garden of the old parsonage, in
the country. The hedges of rose-bush were old, and the flowers were
faded. They straggled wild over the paths, and the ragged branches
grew up among the boughs of the apple trees; here and there were a few
roses still in bloom- not so fair as the queen of flowers generally
appears, but still they had colour and scent too. The clergyman's
little daughter appeared to me a far lovelier rose, as she sat on
her stool under the straggling hedge, hugging and caressing her doll
with the battered pasteboard cheeks.
"Ten years afterwards I saw her again. I beheld her in a
splendid ballroom: she was the beautiful bride of a rich merchant. I
rejoiced at her happiness, and sought her on calm quiet evenings-
ah, nobody thinks of my clear eye and my silent glance! Alas! my
rose ran wild, like the rose bushes in the garden of the parsonage.
There are tragedies in every-day life, and tonight I saw the last
act of one. "She was lying in bed in a house in that narrow street: she was
sick unto death, and the cruel landlord came up, and tore away the
thin coverlet, her only protection against the cold. 'Get up!' said
he; 'your face is enough to frighten one. Get up and dress yourself,
give me money, or I'll turn you out into the street! Quick- get up!'
She answered, 'Alas! death is gnawing at my heart. Let me rest.' But
he forced her to get up and bathe her face, and put a wreath of
roses in her hair; and he placed her in a chair at the window, with
a candle burning beside her, and went away.
"I looked at her, and she was sitting motionless, with her hands
in her lap. The wind caught the open window and shut it with a
crash, so that a pane came clattering down in fragments; but still she
never moved. The curtain caught fire, and the flames played about
her face; and I saw that she was dead. There at the open window sat
the dead woman, preaching a sermon against sin- my poor faded rose out
of the parsonage garden!"
第三夜
“转过那边的街角，是一条狭窄的街，那里实在是太窄了，沿着房子的墙壁下来，我的光只能照过那里不到一分钟。就是这短短的一分钟，已经足够让我了解这个世界了。
就是在这个狭窄的街，我看见了一个女人。十六年前，她还是一个小女孩，在一个乡村教堂的院子里玩，蔷薇丛已经枯死，玫瑰花早就凋谢了，坚强的藤蔓挣扎着爬过小路，缠绕在苹果树的树枝，芜蔓在枝桠之间。其间还点缀着几朵开着的花--虽并不象往日花中王后那般雍容，还保持着颜色和香味。在我看来，传教士的小女儿比那干花更惹人怜爱。她坐在篱笆下的小凳子上，怀里抱着洋娃娃，抚摩着她的脸颊。”
“十年后我再次看见她，在一个华丽的大厅里，她已经是一位富商的美丽的新娘，我沉浸在她的幸福中，在这寂静的夜里，我望着她，没有人在意。哎呀，我的小玫瑰怒放，就象那个老传教士院子里的玫瑰丛。”
“生活中悲剧每天都在上演，今夜，我看见了最后的一场。在那个狭窄的街，她正躺在床上。她病得很重，就要死了。残忍的房东来了，掀开了她身上薄薄的床单，天很冷，那是她唯一御寒的东西。‘起来！’房东吼着，‘瞅你那张脸，真是恶心，快起来穿上衣服，赶紧给我钱，不然马上滚出我的房子！快，起来！’‘求你了，我的心很痛，我快要死了，你让我歇一下吧’房东根本不理会，把她硬拉起来，给她胡乱的洗脸，在她发间插了几朵玫瑰花，拉她坐在窗边的椅子上，在她旁边点燃了一根蜡烛，然后走开了。”
“我望着她，她静静的坐在那里一动不动，双手放在膝上，北风把开着的窗户哐的关上又打开，窗框叽叽吱吱的响，她一直没有动，窗帘着了火，火焰映在她的脸上。我知道，她死了。在一个敞开的窗户前，坐着一个死去的女人，似乎在为自己的罪恶祈祷着--这时我想起那可怜的老传教士院子里枯萎的玫瑰花。”
FOURTH EVENING
"This evening I saw a German play acted," said the Moon. "It was
in a little town. A stable had been turned into a theatre; that is
to say, the stable had been left standing, and had been turned into
private boxes, and all the timber work had been covered with
coloured paper. A little iron chandelier hung beneath the ceiling, and
that it might be made to disappear into the ceiling, as it does in
great theatres, when the ting-ting of the prompter's bell is heard,
a great inverted tub has been placed just above it.
"'Ting-ting!' and the little iron chandelier suddenly rose at
least half a yard and disappeared in the tub; and that was the sign
that the play was going to begin. A young nobleman and his lady, who
happened to be passing through the little town, were present at the
performance, and consequently the house was crowded. But under the
chandelier was a vacant space like a little crater: not a single
soul sat there, for the tallow was dropping, drip, drip! I saw
everything, for it was so warm in there that every loophole had been
opened. The male and female servants stood outside, peeping through
the chinks, although a real policeman was inside, threatening them
with a stick. Close by the orchestra could be seen the noble young
couple in two old arm-chairs, which were usually occupied by his
worship the mayor and his lady; but these latter were to-day obliged
to content themselves with wooden forms, just as if they had been
ordinary citizens; and the lady observed quietly to herself, 'One
sees, now, that there is rank above rank;' and this incident gave an
air of extra festivity to the whole proceedings. The chandelier gave
little leaps, the crowd got their knuckles rapped, and I, the Moon,
was present at the performance from beginning to end."
第四夜
“今晚我看了一场德国剧表演，”月亮说。“在一个小镇里，有一个由马厩被改成的剧院。马厩的格局还在，只是原来的隔栏都变成了一个个包间，所有的木头还都包上了彩纸。天花板下吊着一个小铁烛台，在吊灯的上面还装了一个倒扣的大木桶，可能是为模仿大剧院那样吧，因为正规剧院里，醒铃一响起，灯就会熄灭。”
“‘叮叮！’小烛台突然上升了多半码，隐藏在了大木桶里，那意味着表演就要开始了。一个年轻的贵族和他的夫人恰好路过这个小镇，他们也来看戏。结果这个‘马厩剧院’就显得有些拥挤了。烛台下面倒是有块空地，没有人会坐在那里，因为有蜡油正从上面滴下来。一滴，两滴... ...这一切都被我看见了，因为那里太热了，所有的通风孔都被打开了，外面的男女仆人们透过裂缝往里看，一个警察在里面拿着棍子拦着他们。在乐队的旁边，年轻的贵族夫妇坐在两个扶手椅上，这两个座位通常是留给镇长和他夫人的。可今晚，他们不得不把位置让出来，象其他人一样坐在凳子上看演出了。一个看戏的女人小声的揶揄着：‘哎，真是官大一级呀！’这个小小的情节为今晚添加了别样的意味，烛光微微的跳动，观众们也变得活跃起来。而我呢，我这天上的月亮，从头到尾都在观看这场特殊的演出。”
FIFTH EVENING
"Yesterday," began the Moon, "I looked down upon the turmoil of
Paris. My eye penetrated into an apartment of the Louvre. An old
grandmother, poorly clad- she belonged to the working class- was
following one of the under-servants into the great empty
throne-room, for this was the apartment she wanted to see- that she
was resolved to see; it had cost her many a little sacrifice, and many
a coaxing word, to penetrate thus far. She folded her thin hands,
and looked round with an air of reverence, as if she had been in a
church.
"'Here it was!' she said, 'here!' and she approached the throne,
from which hung the rich velvet fringed with gold lace. 'There,' she
exclaimed, 'there!' and she knelt and kissed the purple carpet. I
think she was actually weeping.
"'But it was not this very velvet!' observed the footman, and a
smile played about his mouth. 'True, but it was this very place,'
replied the woman, 'and it must have looked just like this. 'It looked
so, and yet it did not,' observed the man: 'the windows were beaten
in, and the doors were off their hinges, and there was blood upon
the floor.' 'But for all that you can say, my grandson died upon the
throne of France. Died!' mournfully repeated the old woman. I do not
think another word was spoken, and they soon quitted the hall. The
evening twilight faded and my light shone doubly vivid upon the rich
velvet that covered the throne of France.
"Now who do you think this poor woman was? Listen, I will tell you
a story.
"It happened, in the Revolution of July, on the evening of the
most brilliantly victorious day, when every house was a fortress,
every window a breastwork. The people stormed the Tuileries. Even
women and children were to be found among the combatants. They
penetrated into the apartments and halls of the palace. A poor
half-grown boy in a ragged blouse fought among the older insurgents.
Mortally wounded with several bayonet thrusts, he sank down. This
happened in the throne-room. They laid the bleeding youth upon the
throne of France, wrapped the velvet around his wounds, and his
blood streamed forth upon the imperial purple. There was a picture!
The splendid hall, the fighting groups! A torn flag upon the ground,
the tricolor was waving above the bayonets, and on the throne lay
the poor lad with the pale glorified countenance, his eyes turned
towards the sky, his limbs writhing in the death agony, his breast
bare, and his poor tattered clothing half hidden by the rich velvet
embroidered with silver lilies. At the boy's cradle a prophecy had
been spoken: 'He will die on the throne of France!' The mother's heart
dreamt of a second Napoleon.
"My beams have kissed the wreath of immortelles on his grave,
and this night they kissed the forehead of the old grandame, while
in a dream the picture floated before her which thou mayest draw-
the poor boy on the throne of France."
第五夜
“昨夜，”月亮开始了，“我路过喧嚣的巴黎，透过卢浮宫的一个房间，我看见了一个穿着破烂的老太太，一看就知道她是个做粗活的。她跟着一个下等仆人后面，一直走到空荡的大殿，她执意要来这里，为了进来，她对那个仆人低声下气地说了不少好话，她合起她那枯枝般的双手，环视四周，神色庄重，好象在教堂里一样。”
“‘就是这儿！’她说， ‘这里！’她向王座走去，王座那里铺着华贵的镶金边的天鹅绒。‘就是这儿…….’她喃喃道，‘这儿…….’这时，她跪下来，吻着紫色的天鹅绒。我能感觉到她在啜泣，泪水流过那张苍老的脸庞。”
“‘可这并不是原来的天鹅绒啊！’仆人看了看，嘴角带着微笑。
“‘对，可就是在这里。’老太太说‘原来就是这样的。’”
“‘看起来差不多，但早不是原来的东西了。窗户打破了，门的铰链掉了，门上还有血迹。’仆人说。”
“‘无论怎么说，我的孙子就是在这张王位上死去的。’”
“老太太嘴里悲戚的重复着，可又有谁会在意她说什么呢。他们没有继续再说什么话了，离开了那间大厅。黄昏最后的一屡光线也消退了，我的微光静静的照着法兰西王座上那张华贵的紫色天鹅绒。”
“说到这里，你一定想知道那位老太太到底是谁吧，那就让我再给你讲一个故事好了。”
“那还是七月革命的时候，革命就要取得最终的胜利。那时的巴黎，每个房子都是一个堡垒，每一扇窗子后面都有一个狙击手。人们正在猛烈攻打杜伊勒里宫，进攻的人群中甚至包括了女人和孩子。最后，他们取得了胜利，攻了进去。一个穿着破破烂烂的半大孩子也在进攻的人群中，他身上被刺刀刺了好几处致命的伤口，终于倒在了王宫里。于是，人们把还在流血的他抬上了王位，用铺在王位上的紫色天鹅绒为他包扎伤口，殷红的血很快浸透了那块只属于帝王的紫色天鹅绒。那是一幅怎样的图画啊，金碧辉煌的大殿，浴血奋战的人们，被扯碎的帝国旗帜躺在地上，鲜艳的三色旗在刺刀丛中飘扬。在那个曾经代表最高权力的法兰西王座上，躺着一个穷孩子，面颊上泛着苍白的荣光，两眼望着天空，四肢扭曲成一团，稚嫩的胸膛露在那张绣着银百合花的天鹅绒外面。”
“当他还在摇篮里的时候，有人预言：‘他将死在法兰西的王位上。’他的母亲因此一直梦想着自己的孩子或许会是第二个拿破仑。”
“我已经亲吻过孩子墓上的花环。今晚，当这位老人梦见她的孙子时，我亲吻了她的额头。你也可以画下她的梦——一个穷苦的孩子倒在法兰西的王座上。”
SIXTH EVENING
"I've been in Upsala," said the Moon: "I looked down upon the
great plain covered with coarse grass, and upon the barren fields. I
mirrored my face in the Tyris river, while the steamboat drove the
fish into the rushes. Beneath me floated the waves, throwing long
shadows on the so-called graves of Odin, Thor, and Friga. In the
scanty turf that covers the hill-side names have been cut. There is no
monument here, no memorial on which the traveller can have his name
carved, no rocky wall on whose surface he can get it painted; so
visitors have the turf cut away for that purpose. The naked earth
peers through in the form of great letters and names; these form a
network over the whole hill. Here is an immortality, which lasts
till the fresh turf grows!
"Up on the hill stood a man, a poet. He emptied the mead horn with
the broad silver rim, and murmured a name. He begged the winds not
to betray him, but I heard the name. I knew it. A count's coronet
sparkles above it, and therefore he did not speak it out. I smiled,
for I knew that a poet's crown adorns his own name. The nobility of
Eleanora d'Este is attached to the name of Tasso. And I also know
where the Rose of Beauty blooms!"
Thus spake the Moon, and a cloud came between us. May no cloud
separate the poet from the rose!
第六夜
“我到过乌普萨拉，”月亮说。“我看见荒凉的田野上长满野草，我的光倒映在佛里斯河里，一只汽船把鱼儿吓得钻进靠岸的水草。云在我下面飘浮着，荒原的野冢上铺着他们长长的阴影。稀疏的草皮覆盖在这些土丘上，人们铲掉草皮，以此来标记墓主的名字。这儿没有墓碑，也没有使过路人可以刻上自己名字的路牌，更没有使人可以作标记的石壁，因此人们只好在草批上划出名字。黄土在一些大字母和名字下面露出来，斑驳交错的布满了整个的山丘，当新草长出，这些记号就再也看不见了。
“山丘上站着一个人——一个诗人。他喝干了一杯蜜酿的酒——杯子嵌着很宽的银边。嘴里念着一个名字。他请求风不要告诉别人，可我还是听到了这个名字，而且我知道这个人。这名字上闪耀着一个伯爵的光环，虽然他没有把爵位念出来。我笑了，因为我知道他的名字前面还有一个诗人荣冠呢。爱伦诺拉·戴斯特的高贵是与达索的名字分不开的。我也知道美丽的玫瑰应在哪里开放！”
月亮就是这么说的，一块乌云浮过来了。我希望没有乌云来把诗人和玫瑰花朵隔开！
注：乌普萨拉[瑞典东南部城市]）
注：在北欧神话中奥丁（Ｏｄｉｎ）是知识、文化和战争之神。多尔（Ｔｈｏｒ）是雷神。佛列（Friga）是丰收和富饶之神。后来人们普遍地把这些名字当做人名来使用。因而成为北欧最常用的名字，等于我们的张三李四。
注：达索（Ｔｏｒｇｕａｔｏ Ｔａｓｓｏ）是１６世纪意大利的一个名诗人。埃莉诺拉·戴斯特（Ｅｌｅａｎｏｒａ Ｄ’ｅｓｔｅ）是当时皇族的一个美丽公主，因与达索交往而得名。
SEVENTH EVENING
"Along the margin of the shore stretches a forest of firs and
beeches, and fresh and fragrant is this wood; hundreds of nightingales
visit it every spring. Close beside it is the sea, the ever-changing
sea, and between the two is placed the broad high-road. One carriage
after another rolls over it; but I did not follow them, for my eye
loves best to rest upon one point. A Hun's Grave lies there, and the
sloe and blackthorn grow luxuriantly among the stones. Here is true
poetry in nature.
"And how do you think men appreciate this poetry? I will tell
you what I heard there last evening and during the night.
"First, two rich landed proprietors came driving by. 'Those are
glorious trees!' said the first. 'Certainly; there are ten loads of
firewood in each,' observed the other: 'it will be a hard winter,
and last year we got fourteen dollars a load'- and they were gone.
'The road here is wretched,' observed another man who drove past.
'That's the fault of those horrible trees,' replied his neighbour;
'there is no free current of air; the wind can only come from the
sea'- and they were gone. The stage coach went rattling past. All
the passengers were asleep at this beautiful spot. The postillion blew
his horn, but he only thought, 'I can play capitally. It sounds well
here. I wonder if those in there like it?'- and the stage coach
vanished. Then two young fellows came gallopping up on horseback.
There's youth and spirit in the blood here! thought I; and, indeed,
they looked with a smile at the moss-grown hill and thick forest. 'I
should not dislike a walk here with the miller's Christine,' said one-
and they flew past.
"The flowers scented the air; every breath of air was hushed; it
seemed as if the sea were a part of the sky that stretched above the
deep valley. A carriage rolled by. Six people were sitting in it. Four
of them were asleep; the fifth was thinking of his new summer coat,
which would suit him admirably; the sixth turned to the coachman and
asked him if there were anything remarkable connected with yonder heap
of stones. 'No,' replied the coachman, 'it's only a heap of stones;
but the trees are remarkable.' 'How so?' 'Why I'll tell you how they
are very remarkable. You see, in winter, when the snow lies very deep,
and has hidden the whole road so that nothing is to be seen, those
trees serve me for a landmark. I steer by them, so as not to drive
into the sea; and you see that is why the trees are remarkable.'
"Now came a painter. He spoke not a word, but his eyes sparkled.
He began to whistle. At this the nightingales sang louder than ever.
'Hold your tongues!' he cried testily; and he made accurate notes of
all the colours and transitions- blue, and lilac, and dark brown.
'That will make a beautiful picture,' he said. He took it in just as a
mirror takes in a view; and as he worked he whistled a march of
Rossini. And last of all came a poor girl. She laid aside the burden
she carried, and sat down to rest upon the Hun's Grave. Her pale
handsome face was bent in a listening attitude towards the forest. Her
eyes brightened, she gazed earnestly at the sea and the sky, her hands
were folded, and I think she prayed, 'Our Father.' She herself could
not understand the feeling that swept through her, but I know that
this minute, and the beautiful natural scene, will live within her
memory for years, far more vividly and more truly than the painter
could portray it with his colours on paper. My rays followed her
till the morning dawn kissed her brow."
第七夜
清新芬芳的冷杉和山毛榉沿着海岸线尽情伸展着，当春天来临，有成百上千的夜莺在这里婉转吟唱。树林下边就是大海，它没心没肺的一成不变。在海和树林之间，蜿蜒着一条宽宽的马路，马车一辆又一辆的驶过，我的目光从没有在意那些熙来攘往马车，我最喜欢盯着那里的‘匈奴坟’，野梅和黑刺李荒乱不羁的杂生在乱石之间，这是真正的大自然的诗。
你觉得人们会怎样欣赏这自然的作品呢？我告诉你昨晚和今夜的见闻吧！
先是两个富有的地主乘着马车过来，‘这里的树不错啊！’第一个地主说。‘那是啊，一根木头就可以装十车呢！’另个地主说。‘今年冬天一定很冷，记得去年一车木材卖到十四美金呢！’于是他们走开了。
‘这里的路太糟糕了！’又一个路过的人抱怨说。‘是啊，都怪这些该死的树！’旁边的人附和着说。‘海风吹到树林就过不来了，空气不能自由流通。’说着他们也走开了。
一辆载客的马车咔哒咔哒的跑过来，当走过这个美丽的地方时，车上的旅客都在熟睡。车夫吹起喇叭，他心里只是想：‘我吹得太好听了，我的喇叭声在这儿很好听。不知道车里的人觉得怎样？’这辆马车渐渐消失在路上。
两个小伙子骑着马飞驰过来，他们看起来意气风发，看着生满着青苔的山和这浓密的树林，‘要是和克丽丝汀在这散步肯定不错！’当他们飞速驰而过，一个小伙子说。
风在花儿的芬芳中睡熟，连海也静谧。深邃的天空横亘深深的山谷，与海连成一色。一辆厢车过来了，车上拉着六个乘客，四个人在做着各自的梦，第五个人在盘算着他的夏天的新衣服，他想着穿上新衣服样子一定很帅。第六个人正在和车夫搭讪，问车夫那边的一堆石头有什么来历。‘没什么好说的，’车夫说。‘就是一堆乱石头罢了。这边的树林倒是有点用处呢！’‘有什么用处？’‘我跟你说吧，冬天下大雪的时候，雪厚得要命，路上什么都看不见。有时连路都不知道在哪里。这些树就是很好的参照物了，我沿着林边赶车，就不会担心把车赶到海里去了。现在你知道这树林的用处了吧！’
一个画家来了，他什么也没有说，但是目光闪烁。他开始吹口哨，这时夜莺的歌声更大了。‘闭上你们的鸟嘴！’他气急败坏的喊着。他在画布上准确的勾画着，蓝色，紫色，褐色。‘这会是一个美丽的画！’他自言自语。他的画就象一张照片，当他画画时，嘴里吹着欢快的罗西尼进行曲。
最后来的是一个穷苦的女孩子，她把背上的东西放在一边，在匈奴坟边坐下来休息。她的脸苍白而俊俏，面对着树林。明亮的眼望着大海和天空，她合起双手，我想她是在念《主祷文》。她说不出此时浸透全身的是怎样一种感觉，可我知道，那时那刻，这种感觉连同这美丽的景色将会在她的记忆里一直跳跃，直到很久很久，远比那画家笔下的的颜色更生动，更真实。我的光线照着她，一直到晨曦吻她的前额的时候。”
（注：罗西尼（Ｇ．Ａ．Ｒｏｓｓｉｎｉ）是１９世纪初叶的一位意大利歌剧作曲家。他的音乐的特点是生动，富有活力，充分代表意大利的民族风格。）
Hun's grave: In the village a ditch-surrounded mound--one of the kind called a Hunengrab, or "Hun's grave"--had attached to it a story about a great robber who buried in it his favourite child in a golden cradle.
Our Father:
（源自《圣经》马太福音）
Our Father in Heaven,hallowed be Your name,Your Kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven,give us today our daily bread,forgive our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors,and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.For the Kingdom, the power, and the glory are Yours,now and forever, Amen!
主禱告文
我們在天上的父
願人都尊你的名為聖
願你的國降臨
願你的旨意行在地上 如同行在天上
我們日用的飲食 今日賜給我們
免我們的債 如同我們免了人的債
不叫我們遇見試探 救我們脫離兇惡因為國度、權柄、榮耀 全是你的
直到永遠
阿門
EIGHTH EVENING
Heavy clouds obscured the sky, and the Moon did not make his
appearance at all. I stood in my little room, more lonely than ever,
and looked up at the sky where he ought to have shown himself. My
thoughts flew far away, up to my great friend, who every evening
told me such pretty tales, and showed me pictures. Yes, he has had
an experience indeed. He glided over the waters of the Deluge, and
smiled on Noah's ark just as he lately glanced down upon me, and
brought comfort and promise of a new world that was to spring forth
from the old. When the Children of Israel sat weeping by the waters of
Babylon, he glanced mournfully upon the willows where hung the
silent harps. When Romeo climbed the balcony, and the promise of
true love fluttered like a cherub toward heaven, the round Moon
hung, half hidden among the dark cypresses, in the lucid air. He saw
the captive giant at St. Helena, looking from the lonely rock across
the wide ocean, while great thoughts swept through his soul. Ah!
what tales the Moon can tell. Human life is like a story to him.
To-night I shall not see thee again, old friend. Tonight I can draw no
picture of the memories of thy visit. And, as I looked dreamily
towards the clouds, the sky became bright. There was a glancing light,
and a beam from the Moon fell upon me. It vanished again, and dark
clouds flew past: but still it was a greeting, a friendly good-night
offered to me by the Moon.
第八夜
浓厚的乌云铺满了天空，连一点月亮的影子也看不见。我站在我的小屋里，望着月亮应该出现的地方，感到从来没有过的寂寞。我的思绪飞扬，一直到我的好朋友那里。她告诉我那么多美丽的故事，是啊，她有那么多的经历，她见过蛮荒时的洪水，对着挪亚的方舟微笑，一如她近来带给我的微笑，她的那些故事给我安慰，给我一个从久远到现在的全新的世界。当以色列的子民在巴比伦河畔无助哭泣的时候，他在悬着竖琴的杨柳树之间怜悯地望着他们。当罗密欧爬上朱丽叶的阳台，倾诉着衷肠，真爱象一个挥舞着翅膀的小天使扑啦啦飞向天空，圆圆的月亮挂在清朗的夜空，半掩在古柏枝之间。她见过被流放到圣赫勒拿岛上的英雄，这时他正在一个孤独的石崖上望着茫茫的大海，胸心中泛起了许多伟大的思想。啊！月亮有什么事不知道呢？对他说来，人的生活是一个又一个童话。
今夜我见不到你了，我的朋友，也画不出你的故事。我望着朦胧的夜空，月光变得稍微明亮一些，云中一束光露了出来，照在我的身上，随后一片乌云飘过，月亮又隐去了。然而这总算是一声问候，来自老朋友的一声“晚安”。
注：根据古代希伯来人的神话，上帝因为人心太坏，决心要用洪水来毁掉坏人。只有挪亚是一个老实人，所以上帝告诉他准备一条独木船，先迁到木船里去住。他听从了上帝的话而没有被淹死。因之人类也没有灭亡。
注：以色列人就是犹太人，公元前１３世纪曾在巴勒斯坦居住。公元前２０００年他们迁到迦南，之后又因灾荒迁移到埃及。
注：巴比伦是古代“两河流域”最大的城市，公元二世纪时已化为废墟。
注：这是沙士比亚悲剧《罗密欧与朱丽叶》中的男主角，他的家与他的爱人朱丽叶的家是世仇。在封建社会里他们无法结婚，因此殉情而死。
注：这是指法国的将军拿破仑。他从１８０４年起做法国的皇帝，在欧洲掀动起一系列的战役，直到俄国人把他打垮为止。１８１５年他被放逐到南大西洋上的圣赫勒拿岛（Ｓｔ．Ｈｅｌｅｎａ）。）
NINTH EVENING
The air was clear again. Several evenings had passed, and the Moon
was in the first quarter. Again he gave me an outline for a sketch.
Listen to what he told me.
"I have followed the polar bird and the swimming whale to the
eastern coast of Greenland. Gaunt ice-covered rocks and dark clouds
hung over a valley, where dwarf willows and barberry bushes stood
clothed in green. The blooming lychnis exhaled sweet odours. My
light was faint, my face pale as the water lily that, torn from its
stem, has been drifting for weeks with the tide. The crown-shaped
Northern Light burned fiercely in the sky. Its ring was broad, and
from its circumference the rays shot like whirling shafts of fire
across the whole sky, flashing in changing radiance from green to red.
The inhabitants of that icy region were assembling for dance and
festivity; but, accustomed to this glorious spectacle, they scarcely
deigned to glance at it. 'Let us leave the soul of the dead to their
ball-play with the heads of the walruses,' they thought in their
superstition, and they turned their whole attention to the song and
dance. In the midst of the circle, and divested of his furry cloak,
stood a Greenlander, with a small pipe, and he played and sang a
song about catching the seal, and the chorus around chimed in with,
'Eia, Eia, Ah.' And in their white furs they danced about in the
circle, till you might fancy it was a polar bear's ball.
"And now a Court of Judgment was opened. Those Greenlanders who
had quarrelled stepped forward, and the offended person chanted
forth the faults of his adversary in an extempore song, turning them
sharply into ridicule, to the sound of the pipe and the measure of the
dance. The defendant replied with satire as keen, while the audience
laughed, and gave their verdict. The rocks heaved, the glaciers
melted, and great masses of ice and snow came crashing down, shivering
to fragments as they fall; it was a glorious Greenland summer night. A
hundred paces away, under the open tent of hides, lay a sick man. Life
still flowed through his warm blood, but still he was to die- he
himself felt it, and all who stood round him knew it also; therefore
his wife was already sewing round him the shroud of furs, that she
might not afterwards be obliged to touch the dead body. And she asked,
'Wilt thou be buried on the rock, in the firm snow? I will deck the
spot with thy kayak, and thy arrows, and the angekokk shall dance over
it. Or wouldst thou rather be buried in the sea?' 'In the sea,' he
whispered, and nodded with a mournful smile. 'Yes, it is a pleasant
summer tent, the sea,' observed the wife. 'Thousands of seals sport
there, the walrus shall lie at thy feet, and the hunt will be safe and
merry!' And the yelling children tore the outspread hide from the
window-hole, that the dead man might be carried to the ocean, the
billowy ocean, that had given him food in life, and that now, in
death, was to afford him a place of rest. For his monument, he had the
floating, ever-changing icebergs, whereon the seal sleeps, while the
storm bird flies round their gleaming summits!"
第九夜
夜终于清朗起来。几个晚上过去，天上的新月象个晶莹透亮的指甲，她又开始给我讲故事了，听听她都跟我说了什么。
“我跟随着极地海鸟和在海里起伏游泳的大鲸鱼来到了格陵兰岛的东海岸。嶙峋的岩石上覆盖着冰，浓黑的云悬在点缀着翠绿矮柳和草莓丛的山谷上，含苞的剪秋罗吐纳着馥郁的香气。我的光微弱，脸色苍白，就象凋谢的睡莲花瓣在海水飘了几个星期一样，环形的极光炽烈的燃烧着，环带很宽，周围旋涡形的光带布满了整个北极的天空，一会是绿色，一会又变成红色。冰原上的居民聚集在一起，欢度着节日的舞会，他们习惯了这辉煌的天象，懒得去看一眼。‘让那些逝者的魂灵享受他们的舞会--尽情的玩海象头吧，’这是他们的迷信。他们尽情的享受着，又唱又跳。在圆圈的中间，一个格陵兰岛人脱掉了他的毛皮斗篷，吹着笛子给自己伴奏，唱着一首捉海豹的歌，一旁的人‘哎伊亚，哎伊亚，啊！’为他伴唱，他们穿着白色的毛皮转着圈跳舞，看着看着，让人觉得这好象是一群北极熊的舞会。”
“现在一场审判开始了，有纷争的岛民走了出来，原告跟随着笛子和舞蹈的节奏即兴的唱着，尖酸的讥讽被告的不是，被告也尖刻的辩护着，观众们哄堂大笑，随后做出他们的判决。
岩石拢起，冰河融化，大量的冰雪落下，变成细碎的粉末，这就是美丽的格陵兰岛的夏夜。一百步远的地方，一个敞开的帐篷下面躺着一个行将就木的男人。生命仍然在他温暖的血液里流动着，可他还是要死了--他自己清楚，站在他旁边的人也清楚。他的妻子趁他还有一口气，已经开始在为他缝着毛皮寿衣，妻子在他死后就不可以再碰他的尸体。妻子问道：‘你愿意睡在山上坚实的雪地吗？我会把你的卡耶克和弓箭放在你旁边，昂格勾克会在那里跳舞。要么在海里？’‘海里吧。’男人低语，点着头，悲哀的笑笑。‘嗯，好。那是不错的帐篷呢。’妻子说。‘那儿有成千上万的海豹在跳着，海象就在你的脚下睡觉，在那儿打猎既安全又快活！’喧闹的孩子们把蒙在窗户上的兽皮扯掉，死去的男人从这里抬出去，葬到汹涌的大海。这海生前给他食物，现在他死了，这里成了他永远安息的地方。永远浮在海上的日夜变幻的冰川就是他的墓碑，海豹在这冰山上打盹，海鸟在若隐若现的冰山顶上盘旋。
（注：格陵兰（Ｇｒｅｅｎｌａｎｄ）是在北极圈里，为世界最大的海岛，终年为雪所盖。岛上的住民为爱斯基摩人。因为气候寒冷，无法种植，打猎就是他们唯一取得生活资料的方法。）
（注：卡耶克（Ｋａｊａｋ）是格林兰岛上爱斯基摩人所用的一种皮制的小船，通常只坐一个人。）
（注：昂格勾克（Ａｎｇｅｋｏｋｋ）是爱斯基摩人的巫师，据说能治病。）
TENTH EVENING
"I knew an old maid," said the Moon. "Every winter she wore a
wrapper of yellow satin, and it always remained new, and was the
only fashion she followed. In summer she always wore the same straw
hat, and I verily believe the very same gray-blue dress.
"She never went out, except across the street to an old female
friend; and in later years she did not even take this walk, for the
old friend was dead. In her solitude my old maid was always busy at
the window, which was adorned in summer with pretty flowers, and in
winter with cress, grown upon felt. During the last months I saw her
no more at the window, but she was still alive. I knew that, for I had
not yet seen her begin the 'long journey,' of which she often spoke
with her friend. 'Yes, yes,' she was in the habit of saying, when I
come to die I shall take a longer journey than I have made my whole
life long. Our family vault is six miles from here. I shall be carried
there, and shall sleep there among my family and relatives.' Last
night a van stopped at the house. A coffin was carried out, and then I
knew that she was dead. They placed straw round the coffin, and the
van drove away. There slept the quiet old lady, who had not gone out
of her house once for the last year. The van rolled out through the
town-gate as briskly as if it were going for a pleasant excursion.
On the high-road the pace was quicker yet. The coachman looked
nervously round every now and then- I fancy he half expected to see
her sitting on the coffin, in her yellow satin wrapper. And because he
was startled, he foolishly lashed his horses, while he held the
reins so tightly that the poor beasts were in a foam: they were
young and fiery. A hare jumped across the road and startled them,
and they fairly ran away. The old sober maiden, who had for years
and years moved quietly round and round in a dull circle, was now,
in death, rattled over stock and stone on the public highway. The
coffin in its covering of straw tumbled out of the van, and was left
on the high-road, while horses, coachman, and carriage flew past in
wild career. The lark rose up carolling from the field, twittering her
morning lay over the coffin, and presently perched upon it, picking
with her beak at the straw covering, as though she would tear it up.
The lark rose up again, singing gaily, and I withdrew behind the red
morning clouds."
第十夜
“我认识一位老太太，她一辈子没有嫁，”月亮说，“或许叫老处女更合适。每年冬天她都穿着同一件黄缎子大衣，这么多年，大衣总是跟新的一样，这是她唯一的一件时髦的衣服。到了夏天，她总是戴着同一顶草帽，身上永远是同一件蓝灰色的衣服。”
“她除了偶尔到街对面去她的女朋友那里就哪也不去，那个朋友和她一样老。这几年她干脆门也不出了，因为她唯一的朋友去世了。这个孤独的老太太总是在窗户前忙碌着，夏天就摆弄着窗台上那些漂亮的花，到了冬天，则有一堆从毛毡里钻出来的水堇。最近几个月她不在窗户前忙活了，但是她还活着。对于这一点我还是确信的。因为我还没有看见她开始她一直念叨的‘长途旅行’呢！‘嗯，对，’这句话都成了她的口头禅了，‘我死之前我一定要做一次长途旅行，去远点的地方，要比我这辈子走的路都远。我家的祖墓离这六英里，我死后会埋在那儿，和我的家人还有亲戚们睡在一起。’”
“昨夜一辆篷车停在她的房前，从里面抬出一具棺材，我知道，她死了。人们把棺材抬到车上，外面裹上了草席，马车开走了。这个一整年都没有出过大门的老太太现在安静的睡在那里，马车喀哒喀哒的驶出小镇，那么轻快，好象是要去做一次令人期待的愉快的旅行。当马车上了大路，跑得更轻快了。车夫不时紧张的向后面回望--我猜想他是有点怕，担心她还是不是穿着那件黄缎子衣服坐在后面的棺材上呢。因为心慌，他连马车都赶不好了，他胡乱的鞭着马，紧紧的勒着缰绳，马的嘴里都吣出沫子来了，那些小马脾气暴躁，一只野兔横着路跳过去，马惊了，吓得连步伐都乱了。那个安静的老处女，一辈子在自己昏暗的小圈子里默默的转啊转，现在，在她死后，却在一条坑洼不平的马路上颠簸着。草席裹着的棺材终于跌出来了，马，车夫还有车厢仍然在荒凉的马路上飞快的跑着。一只云雀从田野里飞来，对着这口棺材咿咿呀呀地唱起了歌，不一会儿它就落到棺材上，用它的小嘴啄着草席，好像想要把席子撕开似的。云雀又唱着欢快的歌飞向天空去了，我隐到了红色的朝霞后面。”
（注：vault是欧洲古建筑物中的一种地下室，顶上是圆形。所有的古教堂差不多都有这种地下室，里面全是坟墓，特别是有重要地位的人的坟墓。）
ELEVENTH EVENING
"I will give you a picture of Pompeii," said the Moon. "I was in
the suburb in the Street of Tombs, as they call it, where the fair
monuments stand, in the spot where, ages ago, the merry youths,
their temples bound with rosy wreaths, danced with the fair sisters of
Lais. Now, the stillness of death reigned around. German
mercenaries, in the Neapolitan service, kept guard, played cards,
and diced; and a troop of strangers from beyond the mountains came
into the town, accompanied by a sentry. They wanted to see the city
that had risen from the grave illumined by my beams; and I showed them
the wheel-ruts in the streets paved with broad lava slabs; I showed
them the names on the doors, and the signs that hung there yet: they
saw in the little courtyard the basins of the fountains, ornamented
with shells; but no jet of water gushed upwards, no songs sounded
forth from the richly-painted chambers, where the bronze dog kept
the door.
"It was the City of the Dead; only Vesuvius thundered forth his
everlasting hymn, each separate verse of which is called by men an
eruption. We went to the temple of Venus, built of snow-white
marble, with its high altar in front of the broad steps, and the
weeping willows sprouting freshly forth among the pillars. The air was
transparent and blue, and black Vesuvius formed the background, with
fire ever shooting forth from it, like the stem of the pine tree.
Above it stretched the smoky cloud in the silence of the night, like
the crown of the pine, but in a blood-red illumination. Among the
company was a lady singer, a real and great singer. I have witnessed
the homage paid to her in the greatest cities of Europe. When they
came to the tragic theatre, they all sat down on the amphitheatre
steps, and thus a small part of the house was occupied by an audience,
as it had been many centuries ago. The stage still stood unchanged,
with its walled side-scenes, and the two arches in the background,
through which the beholders saw the same scene that had been exhibited
in the old times- a scene painted by nature herself, namely, the
mountains between Sorento and Amalfi. The singer gaily mounted the
ancient stage, and sang. The place inspired her, and she reminded me
of a wild Arab horse, that rushes headlong on with snorting nostrils
and flying mane- her song was so light and yet so firm. Anon I thought
of the mourning mother beneath the cross at Golgotha, so deep was
the expression of pain. And, just as it had done thousands of years
ago, the sound of applause and delight now filled the theatre. 'Happy,
gifted creature!' all the hearers exclaimed. Five minutes more, and
the stage was empty, the company had vanished, and not a sound more
was heard- all were gone. But the ruins stood unchanged, as they
will stand when centuries shall have gone by, and when none shall know
of the momentary applause and of the triumph of the fair songstress;
when all will be forgotten and gone, and even for me this hour will be
but a dream of the past."
第十一夜
"我给你一张庞贝城的图画吧,"月亮说。"我在城外的坟墓街上，人们都这么叫，街上立着很多美丽的纪念碑，几年前，就在那里，一群快活的年轻人头戴着美丽的玫瑰花环，和拉绮司的美丽的姊妹们在一起跳舞。可是现在呢，是一片死的沉寂。受那不勒斯政府雇佣的德国雇佣兵在这里驻扎，他们打牌，掷骰子。从山那边来的一群陌生人由一个哨兵带队进了城，他们想在我的光亮下升起来的坟墓之城。我把熔岩上的车辙印指给他们看；我把许多门上的姓名也指给他们看，门上还挂着门牌。在一个小小的庭院里他们看到一个镶着贝壳的喷泉池；可是现在没有泉水喷出来了；那些由古铜色的小狗看守着的装修豪华的房间里，再也没有歌声传出来了。"
"这是一座死亡之城，只有维苏威火山一直唱着他没有休止符颂歌，人们把颂歌的每个诗节都叫做‘喷发’。我们去拜访维纳斯的神庙。它是用雪白的大理石建的，宽广的台阶前是高大的祭坛。簇新的垂柳在圆柱之间冒出来，天空纯净而蔚蓝。漆黑的维苏威山成为这一切的背景，火不停地从它顶上喷出来，像一株松树的树干。寂静的夜幕衬托着火山的烟灰，像一株松树的簇顶在火山顶上飘浮着，只是泛着血一样的红光。"
"这群人中有一个女歌唱家，她是一个真正的伟大的歌唱家，我亲眼见过在欧洲的大城市里人们向她致以敬意，当他们来到圆形的悲剧剧院的时候，人都坐在阶梯台阶上，这个剧院的一小部分终于有人坐了，就如同很多世纪以前那样。舞台仍旧没有变，两侧是墙壁，背景是两个拱门，通过拱门，观众看到的仍然是在很久很久以前就设置好的布景：苏伦多城和亚玛尔菲城之间的群山--一幅由大自然画就的布景。"
"歌唱家轻快的踏上了舞台，开始唱了起来。这地方给了她灵感，她的歌声使我想起了在原野上奔驰的阿拉伯的野马，它的鼻息如雷，它的红鬃飞舞——她的歌声轻快而又肯定。随后我想起在各各他山的十字架下悲哀的母亲——她的苦痛的表情是多么深切呵。忽然剧院响起了一片掌声和欢呼声，一如千余年前此地。'太有才了！'人群欢呼着，尖叫着。五分钟后，阶梯座位空了，这群人消失了，没有一丝声音，一切都消失了。只有这废墟遗迹还一直矗立在这里，他们已经矗立了千年，还将继续矗立千年。当没有人记起这片刻的喝彩和美丽歌者的荣耀，所有的一切都被遗忘和消亡，对于我，这片刻的欢愉也只将是老去的一个梦而已。"
（注：庞贝（Ｐｏｍｐｅｉｉ）是意大利的一个古城，在那不勒斯湾附近，维苏威火山的脚下。它是古代罗马贵族集居的一个城市，纪元７９年维苏威火山爆发把这城全部毁了。在中古时人们把这个城完全忘记了。从１８６１年起意大利人开始有计划地发掘，此城即陆续出土。最有价值的发现是一个能坐两万人的圆形剧场及许多神庙。）
（注：拉绮司（Ｌａｉｓ）是古希腊的一个宫妓，长得很美。）
（注：维纳斯（Ｖｅｎｕｓ）是古代意大利的文艺和春天的女神。罗马人后来把她和希腊的爱情之女神亚芙罗蒂（Ａｐｈｒｏｄｉｔｅ）统一起来，所以她就成了爱情之神。）
（注：苏伦多（Ｓｏｒｒｅｎｔｏ）是那不勒斯湾上的一个城，有古教堂和古迹。）
（注：亚玛尔菲（Ａｍａｌeｉ）是意大利的古城，在那下勒斯西南２４英里的地方，古迹很多。）
（注：①各各他山（Ｇｏｌｇｏｔｈａ）是耶路撒冷城外的一个小山。据说耶稣就是在这山上被钉在十字架上死去的。）
TWELFTH EVENING
"I looked through the windows of an editor's house," said the
Moon. "It was somewhere in Germany. I saw handsome furniture, many
books, and a chaos of newspapers. Several young men were present:
the editor himself stood at his desk, and two little books, both by
young authors, were to be noticed. 'This one has been sent to me,'
said he. 'I have not read it yet; what think you of the contents?'
'Oh,' said the person addressed- he was a poet himself- 'it is good
enough; a little broad, certainly; but, you see, the author is still
young. The verses might be better, to be sure; the thoughts are sound,
though there is certainly a good deal of common-place among them.
But what will you have? You can't be always getting something new.
That he'll turn out anything great I don't believe, but you may safely
praise him. He is well read, a remarkable Oriental scholar, and has
a good judgment. It was he who wrote that nice review of my
'Reflections on Domestic Life.' We must be lenient towards the young
man."
"'But he is a complete hack!' objected another of the gentlemen.
'Nothing worse in poetry than mediocrity, and he certainly does not go
beyond this.'
"'Poor fellow,' observed a third, 'and his aunt is so happy
about him. It was she, Mr. Editor, who got together so many
subscribers for your last translation.'
"'Ah, the good woman! Well, I have noticed the book briefly.
Undoubted talent- a welcome offering- a flower in the garden of
poetry- prettily brought out- and so on. But this other book- I
suppose the author expects me to purchase it? I hear it is praised. He
has genius, certainly: don't you think so?'
"'Yes, all the world declares as much,' replied the poet, 'but
it has turned out rather wildly. The punctuation of the book, in
particular, is very eccentric.'
"'It will be good for him if we pull him to pieces, and anger
him a little, otherwise he will get too good an opinion of himself.'
"'But that would be unfair,' objected the fourth. 'Let us not carp
at little faults, but rejoice over the real and abundant good that
we find here: he surpasses all the rest.'
"'Not so. If he is a true genius, he can bear the sharp voice of
censure. There are people enough to praise him. Don't let us quite
turn his head.'
"'Decided talent,' wrote the editor, 'with the usual carelessness.
that he can write incorrect verses may be seen in page 25, where there
are two false quantities. We recommend him to study the ancients,
etc.'
"I went away," continued the Moon, "and looked through the windows
in the aunt's house. There sat the be-praised poet, the tame one;
all the guests paid homage to him, and he was happy.
"I sought the other poet out, the wild one; him also I found in
a great assembly at his patron's, where the tame poet's book was being
discussed.
"'I shall read yours also,' said Maecenas; 'but to speak honestly-
you know I never hide my opinion from you- I don't expect much from
it, for you are much too wild, too fantastic. But it must be allowed
that, as a man, you are highly respectable.'
"A young girl sat in a corner; and she read in a book these words:
"'In the dust lies genius and glory,
But ev'ry-day talent will pay.
It's only the old, old story,
But the piece is repeated each day.'"
第十二夜
"我透过一个编辑的窗户望进去，"月亮说,"这是德国的什么地方，我看见屋子里有考究的家具，很多书，还有乱七八糟的一堆报纸，里面有几个年轻人。编辑自己站在桌子边，桌子上放着两本小部头书，他们正要评论那两本书。
"'这一本是才送到我手中来的'，他说。'我还没有看呢，你们觉得它的内容怎样呢？'
"'噢，'一个人说--他是一个诗人，'还算不错！有点拖沓，不过作者还很年轻，以后行文肯定会更好的。他的思想很成熟，在平庸的作者里面他该算佼佼者了。可是我们还能期待些什么呢？不能指望总是能看到一些新东西啊。我不觉得他将来会变得怎么了不起，你还是可以小小的夸奖下他的！他是饱学之士，小有名气的东方学者，他的判断力也很好。为我的《家常生活感言》写过一篇很好书评的人就是他。我们应该对这位年轻人宽容一点。'
“'我觉得他就是一个平庸的家伙！' 书房里的另外一位先生说。'写诗最糟糕的事莫过于平庸乏味。他没能突破这个窠臼。'
“'可怜的家伙！'第三位先生说。'他的姑妈却以为他了不起呢。编辑先生，他姑妈就是为你新近翻译的一部作品弄到许多定单的人。'
“‘啊，那女人还不错！唔，我已经简略地把这本书评价了一下。他是一个天才，这一点是确定的——一个受人喜爱的人！是诗坛里的一朵鲜花！装帧也很美等等。可是另外的那本书呢——我想作者是希望我买它的帐吧？我听到人们称赞过它。说他是一位才子，你们说呢？’
“‘是啊，大家都这么说呢！’那个诗人说。‘但是我感觉他的字里行间有点太狂妄了，尤其是那里的标点用的，真是有些另类！’
“‘如果我们在书评里多说些负面的话，这样对他比较好。否则难免他自视甚高。’
“‘可是这不公平呀！’第四位大声说。‘我们没有必要在小的错误上吹毛求疵，应该对于它的优点感到高兴，而它的优点也很多。他的水平确实比同代人要高嘛。’
“‘才不是呢！假如他是一个真正的天才，他就应该能受得住尖锐的批评。私下称赞他的人够多了，我们不要让他觉得飘飘然吧！’
“‘一个天才，’编辑先生写道，‘粗心大意之处是偶尔有之。在第２５页上我们可以看出，他会写出不正规的诗句——那儿可以发现两个不协调的音节。我们建议他学习一下古文。 …… ’
“‘我走开了，’月亮接着说，‘我向那位姑妈的窗子望进去。那位被称赞的、不狂的诗人就坐在那儿。所有的客人对他表示敬意，他很高兴。’
“我去找另外那位诗人——那位狂妄的另类诗人。他也在一个主顾家里和一大堆人在一起。人们正在这里谈论那不狂妄诗人的作品。
“‘我也要读读你的作品，’那位主顾说，‘说实话——我这人没啥缺点，就是爱说实话——我并不奢望从你那里读到什么，你太狂妄，充满野性和不实际的空想——话说回来，这也是可以接受的，作为一个人，你是值得大家崇拜的。’
“一个小女孩坐在角落里，读着书里的这些文字：
“‘天才和荣耀在尘土里，
天才累。
由来如此
也从未停。’”
（注：patron “主顾”。欧洲封建时代文坛上的一个特色。那时诗人的诗卖不出钱，所以贵族和地主常常利用这个弱点，送给诗人们一点生活费，而要求诗人把诗“献给”他们，好使他们的名字“永垂不朽”。类似我过古代名流养士，象吕不韦。）
THIRTEENTH EVENING
The Moon said, "Beside the woodland path there are two small
farm-houses. The doors are low, and some of the windows are placed
quite high, and others close to the ground; and whitethorn and
barberry bushes grow around them. The roof of each house is
overgrown with moss and with yellow flowers and houseleek. Cabbage and
potatoes are the only plants cultivated in the gardens, but out of the
hedge there grows a willow tree, and under this willow tree sat a
little girl, and she sat with her eyes fixed upon the old oak tree
between the two huts.
"It was an old withered stem. It had been sawn off at the top, and
a stork had built his nest upon it; and he stood in this nest clapping
with his beak. A little boy came and stood by the girl's side: they
were brother and sister.
"'What are you looking at?' he asked.
"'I'm watching the stork,' she replied: 'our neighbors told me
that he would bring us a little brother or sister to-day; let us watch
to see it come!'
"'The stork brings no such things,' the boy declared, 'you may
be sure of that. Our neighbor told me the same thing, but she
laughed when she said it, and so I asked her if she could say 'On my
honor,' and she could not; and I know by that the story about the
storks is not true, and that they only tell it to us children for
fun.'
"'But where do babies come from, then?' asked the girl.
"'Why, an angel from heaven brings them under his cloak, but no
man can see him; and that's why we never know when he brings them.'
"At that moment there was a rustling in the branches of the willow
tree, and the children folded their hands and looked at one another:
it was certainly the angel coming with the baby. They took each
other's hand, and at that moment the door of one of the houses opened,
and the neighbour appeared.
"'Come in, you two,' she said. 'See what the stork has brought. It
is a little brother.'
"And the children nodded gravely at one another, for they had felt
quite sure already that the baby was come."
第十三夜
月亮说，“在林荫小路旁边有两个农家小院，门开得很低，窗子有的很高，有的却紧贴地面。房子周围长满了山楂树和小檗丛。屋顶上长满了青苔、黄花和石莲花。那个小小的园子里只种着白菜和土豆。可是篱笆旁边有一株柳树，树下坐着一个小小的女孩子，眼睛凝望着两座房子之间的那株老栎树。
“这是一株很老的树，树皮都皴了，树顶也已经老掉了。鹳鸟在那上面筑了一个巢。它站在巢里，用尖嘴磕着树干，发出笃笃声。一个小男孩子走出来了，站在小姑娘的旁边。他们是兄妹。
“‘你在看什么呢？’哥哥问。
“‘我在看鹳鸟呢，’她回答，‘咱们的邻居告诉我，鹳鸟今天会带个小弟弟或者小妹妹给我们，我们看它怎么带来。’
“‘鹳鸟才不会带这样的东西来呢！’哥哥澄清道，‘你相信我。我们的邻居也这么跟我说的，可她说的时候笑了，我问她敢不敢向上帝赌咒，她不敢，那会我就知道她是唬人的，他们就是跟我们小孩说着玩的。’
“‘可那小孩是怎么来的呢？’小女孩问。
“‘嗯 ，是天使从天上带下来的，在他的披风下面，人是看不到的，所以人们从来不知道他是什么时候来的。’
“就在那时，一阵微风来，柳舞动着它的枝叶。这两个孩子叠着手，互相呆望着；这肯定是天使送小孩子来了。于是他们互相捏了一下手。屋子的门开了，那位邻居出来了。
“‘进来吧，’她说。‘你们看鹳鸟带来了什么东西。是一个小弟弟！’
“这两个孩子庄重的点了点头；他们知道婴儿已经来了。”
FOURTEENTH EVENING
"I was gliding over the Luneburg Heath," the Moon said. "A
lonely hut stood by the wayside, a few scanty bushes grew near it, and
a nightingale who had lost his way sang sweetly. He died in the
coldness of the night: it was his farewell song that I heard.
"The morning dawn came glimmering red. I saw a caravan of emigrant
peasant families who were bound to Hamburgh, there to take ship for
America, where fancied prosperity would bloom for them. The mothers
carried their little children at their backs, the elder ones
tottered by their sides, and a poor starved horse tugged at a cart
that bore their scanty effects. The cold wind whistled, and
therefore the little girl nestled closer to the mother, who, looking
up at my decreasing disc, thought of the bitter want at home, and
spoke of the heavy taxes they had not been able to raise. The whole
caravan thought of the same thing; therefore, the rising dawn seemed
to them a message from the sun, of fortune that was to gleam
brightly upon them. They heard the dying nightingale sing; it was no
false prophet, but a harbinger of fortune. The wind whistled,
therefore they did not understand that the nightingale sung, 'Fare
away over the sea! Thou hast paid the long passage with all that was
thine, and poor and helpless shalt thou enter Canaan. Thou must sell
thyself, thy wife, and thy children. But your griefs shall not last
long. Behind the broad fragrant leaves lurks the goddess of Death, and
her welcome kiss shall breathe fever into thy blood. Fare away, fare
away, over the heaving billows.' And the caravan listened well pleased
to the song of the nightingale, which seemed to promise good
fortune. Day broke through the light clouds; country people went
across the heath to church; the black-gowned women with their white
head-dresses looked like ghosts that had stepped forth from the church
pictures. All around lay a wide dead plain, covered with faded brown
heath, and black charred spaces between the white sand hills. The
women carried hymn books, and walked into the church. Oh, pray, pray
for those who are wandering to find graves beyond the foaming
billows."
第十四夜
“我滑过吕涅堡荒地上，”月亮说。“路边有一个孤单的茅屋，旁边长着稀疏的灌木丛，一个迷路的夜莺在唱着歌，声音依旧婉转，他将在这样寒冷的夜里死去：那是他永别的歌。
“晨曦熏醉了东方的云，云的脸色微红。我看见一辆大篷车，是一家迁徙的农民。他们向汉堡走去——再搭船到美洲去——他们憧憬着，在那里优裕的生活像花儿开放，对他们微笑，招手。母亲们背着幼小的孩子，大点的孩子则在她们身边踉跄的走着。一匹瘦马吃力的驮着车子，车上装着他们那点可怜的家产。
“冷风呼啸着，幼小的女孩紧紧地依偎在妈妈的怀里，母亲望着我渐缺的脸，想着家乡那困苦的生活，呢喃着他们交不起的赋税，整辆车上的人都在这么想着。拂晓的光越发明亮，照在他们身上，预示着他们光明的未来。他们听见将死的夜莺唱着，它不是一个虚假的预言家，而是幸运的使者。
风在吹着，他们不知道那夜莺都唱了什么。‘保重啊，即将跨越重洋的人啊，你们倾家荡产，为了远洋的旅费，贫困无望的你们到梦想的福地去，你们卖妻鬻子，但你们不会悲痛太久，藏在宽大芳香的叶子后面那死亡的女神，她的欢迎之吻会在你们的血里带去热病。永别了，永别了，那波涛汹涌的大海。’车上的人们听得很清楚，他们很高兴，因为那歌声预示着好运。
光透过轻薄的云彩，天大亮了。乡村的人们穿过荒地，走向教堂。穿着黑袍子、裹着白头巾的妇女们看起来好像是从教堂里的挂图上走下来的幽灵。周围是一片空旷死寂的平原，白色的沙山上覆盖着褪色的棕色石楠和焦黑的野火痕迹。女人们带着圣经，走进教堂。啊，祈祷吧！为那些远行的人们——那些向茫茫大海的彼岸去寻找坟墓的人们而祈祷吧！”
（注：吕涅堡（Ｌｙｎｅｂｕｒｇ）是德国的一个小城市，在汉堡东南３１英里的地方。）
石楠 植物名。花供观赏叶可入药。《太平御览》卷九六一引 南朝梁 任昉 《述异记》：“ 曲阜古城有颜回墓，墓上石楠二株，可三四十围，土人云颜回手植之木。” 唐柳宗元《袁家渴记》：“其树多枫柟石楠，楩櫧樟柚。”
FIFTEENTH EVENING
"I know a Pulcinella," the Moon told me. "The public applaud
vociferously directly they see him. Every one of his movements is
comic, and is sure to throw the house into convulsions of laughter;
and yet there is no art in it all- it is complete nature. When he
was yet a little boy, playing about with other boys, he was already
Punch. Nature had intended him for it, and had provided him with a
hump on his back, and another on his breast; but his inward man, his
mind, on the contrary, was richly furnished. No one could surpass
him in depth of feeling or in readiness of intellect. The theatre
was his ideal world. If he had possessed a slender well-shaped figure,
he might have been the first tragedian on any stage; the heroic, the
great, filled his soul; and yet he had to become a Pulcinella. His
very sorrow and melancholy did but increase the comic dryness of his
sharply-cut features, and increased the laughter of the audience,
who showered plaudits on their favourite. The lovely Columbine was
indeed kind and cordial to him; but she preferred to marry the
Harlequin. It would have been too ridiculous if beauty and ugliness
had in reality paired together.
"When Pulcinella was in very bad spirits, she was the only one who
could force a hearty burst of laughter, or even a smile from him:
first she would be melancholy with him, then quieter, and at last
quite cheerful and happy. 'I know very well what is the matter with
you,' she said; 'yes, you're in love!' And he could not help laughing.
'I and Love," he cried, "that would have an absurd look. How the
public would shout!' 'Certainly, you are in love,' she continued;
and added with a comic pathos, 'and I am the person you are in love
with.' You see, such a thing may be said when it is quite out of the
question- and, indeed, Pulcinella burst out laughing, and gave a
leap into the air, and his melancholy was forgotten.
"And yet she had only spoken the truth. He did love her, love
her adoringly, as he loved what was great and lofty in art. At her
wedding he was the merriest among the guests, but in the stillness
of night he wept: if the public had seen his distorted face then, they
would have applauded rapturously.
"And a few days ago, Columbine died. On the day of the funeral,
Harlequin was not required to show himself on the boards, for he was a
disconsolate widower. The director had to give a very merry piece,
that the public might not too painfully miss the pretty Columbine
and the agile Harlequin. Therefore Pulcinella had to be more
boisterous and extravagant than ever; and he danced and capered,
with despair in his heart; and the audience yelled, and shouted
'bravo, bravissimo!' Pulcinella was actually called before the
curtain. He was pronounced inimitable.
"But last night the hideous little fellow went out of the town,
quite alone, to the deserted churchyard. The wreath of flowers on
Columbine's grave was already faded, and he sat down there. It was a
study for a painter. As he sat with his chin on his hands, his eyes
turned up towards me, he looked like a grotesque monument- a Punch
on a grave- peculiar and whimsical! If the people could have seen
their favourite, they would have cried as usual, 'Bravo, Pulcinella;
bravo, bravissimo!'"
第十五夜
“我认识一位个小丑演员，是演普启涅罗的，”月亮告诉我。“观众一见到他就向他欢呼，他的一颦一笑甚至每个动作都十分有意思，他表演的时候观众经常是哄堂大笑，前仰后合。然而他的表演并不做作，而是完全天生的。当他还是小孩子和其他小孩一起玩的时候，就已经是一个潘趣了。可能是上天故意跟他开玩笑，鸡胸驼背的。但他是一个内敛的人，他的思想细腻深邃而又睿智，没有人能超越。剧院是他理想的世界。如果他有苗条的身材和英俊的面孔，他可以胜任任何悲剧的男主角。他的灵魂里充满了悲壮和伟大的情绪。然而现在他只是一个只能演普启涅罗的演员。他的痛苦和忧郁只有增加他古怪外貌的滑稽性，引得观众发笑，带给他热烈的掌声。美丽善良的科隆比纳也对他心仪，但是她更希望嫁给哈勒昆，现实中如果美女和野兽在一起会太荒唐了。
“当普启涅罗心情很坏的时候，她是唯一的一个可以让他发出会心一笑的人，或者只是扯动嘴角的浅浅的笑。起初她总是像他一样地忧郁，然后就略为变得安静一点，最后就充满了愉快的神情。
“‘我很清楚你是怎么回事。’她说，‘真的，你恋爱了。’然后他就开始禁不住笑起来。‘我，爱，’他说，‘那是多可笑的事啊，要是人家知道了会笑死的！’
‘我确定，你就是恋爱了，’她继续道，加了一个戏剧中的哀婉表情，‘你爱的那个人就是我。’“的确，当人们知道实际上没有爱情这回事儿的时候，是可以讲出这类的话来的。普启涅罗笑了，向空中蹦了一下。这时忧郁感就没有了。
然而她说对了，他的确爱她，崇拜她，正如他爱艺术的伟大和崇高一样。在她的婚礼上，他是众宾客中最高兴的一位，但在寂静的夜晚，他哭了。如果观众看见他那时扭曲的脸，他们一定会笑得晕倒，还热切的鼓掌。
“几天前，科隆比纳死了。在葬礼那天，哈勒昆没有在舞台上表演，因为他那时是一个郁郁寡欢的鳏夫了。导演不得不安排一个愉快的节目，好使观众不至于因为没有美丽的科隆比纳和活泼的哈勒昆而感到太难过。因此普启涅罗演得要比以往更卖力一点才行。他跳着，他跳着，虽然他心里满是悲哀和绝望。观众大叫大笑着鼓掌喝彩：‘好，好极了！’ 普启涅罗谢幕了好几次。啊，他的确是独一无二的！
“昨天晚上，这位长相令人厌恶的小丑走出城外，独自一个人，走到一个荒凉的墓地里去。科隆比纳坟上的花圈已经褪色了，他在坟旁边坐下来。他的这副样儿真值得画家画下来。他用手支着下巴，他的双眼朝着我望。他象一个奇特的墓碑，一个坟上的潘趣：古怪而又滑稽。假如观众看见了他们这位心爱的艺人的话，他们一定会喝彩：‘好！普启涅罗！好，好极了！’“
注：普启涅罗Ｐｕｌｃｉｎｅｌｌｏ是意大利传统戏曲职业喜剧Ｃｏｍｍｅｄｉａｄｅｌｌ’，Ａｒｔｅ中的一个常见的主角。他的面貌古怪：勾鼻子，驼背，性情滑稽，爱逗人发笑，同时喜欢吹牛。
注：科隆比纳Ｃｏｌｕｍｂｉｎｅ是意大利喜剧中的一个定型角色，通常是潘塔隆内的女儿，并与丑角哈勒昆Harlequin相爱。
注：哈勒昆Harlequin是科隆比纳Ｃｏｌｕｍｂｉｎｅ的恋人。
注：潘趣Punch 英国木偶戏 Punch and Judy 中的主角。
SIXTEENTH EVENING
Hear what the Moon told me. "I have seen the cadet who had just been made an officer put on his handsome uniform for the first time; I have seen the young bride in her wedding dress, and the princess girl-wife happy in her gorgeous robes; but never have I seen a felicity equal to that of a little girl of four years old, whom I watched this evening. She had received a new blue dress, and a new pink hat, the splendid attire had just been put on, and all were calling for a candle, for my rays, shining in through the windows of the room, were not bright enough for the occasion, and further illumination was required. There stood the little maid, stiff and upright as a doll, her arms stretched painfully straight out away from the dress, and her fingers apart; and oh, what happiness beamed from her eyes, and from her whole countenance! 'To-morrow you shall go out in your new clothes,' said her mother; and the little one looked up at her hat, and down at her frock, and smiled brightly. 'Mother,' she cried, 'what will the little dogs think, when they see me in these splendid new things?'"
第十六夜
听听月亮说的话吧：“我看见过一位刚升为军官的军校学生第一次穿上他漂亮的制服。我看见过一位穿着婚纱的年轻新娘。我还看见过一位王子的年轻未婚妻，穿着华丽的礼服，非常快乐。不过谁的快乐也比不上我今晚看到的一个孩子——一个四岁的小姑娘。她得到了一件蔚蓝色的衣服和一顶粉红色的帽子。她已经打扮好了，大家都叫把蜡烛拿来照照，因为我的光线，从窗子射进去，还不够亮，所以必须有更强的光线才成。
“这位小姑娘有点费力的直挺的站着，像一个小玩具娃娃。她的手小心翼翼地从衣服里伸出来，她的手指撒开着。啊，她的眼里，她整个的面孔，发出多么幸福的光辉啊！
“‘明天你应该到街上去走走！’她的母亲说。这位小宝贝朝上看了看自己的帽子，朝下面看了看自己的衣服，不禁发出一个幸福的微笑。
“‘妈妈！’她说，‘当那些小狗看见我穿得这样漂亮的时候，它们心里会想些什么呢？’”
SEVENTEENTH EVENING
"I have spoken to you of Pompeii," said the Moon; "that corpse of a city, exposed in the view of living towns: I know another sight still more strange, and this is not the corpse, but the spectre of a city. Whenever the jetty fountains splash into the marble basins, they seem to me to be telling the story of the floating city. Yes, the spouting water may tell of her, the waves of the sea may sing of her fame! On the surface of the ocean a mist often rests, and that is her widow's veil. The bridegroom of the sea is dead, his palace and his city are his mausoleum! Dost thou know this city? She has never heard the rolling of wheels or the hoof-tread of horses in her streets, through which the fish swim, while the black gondola glides spectrally over the green water. I will show you the place," continued the Moon, "the largest square in it, and you will fancy yourself transported into the city of a fairy tale. The grass grows rank among the broad flagstones, and in the morning twilight thousands of tame pigeons flutter around the solitary lofty tower. On three sides you find yourself surrounded by cloistered walks. In these the silent Turk sits smoking his long pipe, the handsome Greek leans against the pillar and gazes at the upraised trophies and lofty masts, memorials of power that is gone. The flags hang down like mourning scarves. A girl rests there: she has put down her heavy pails filled with water, the yoke with which she has carried them rests on one of her shoulders, and she leans against the mast of victory. That is not a fairy palace you see before you yonder, but a church: the gilded domes and shining orbs flash back my beams; the glorious bronze horses up yonder have made journeys, like the bronze horse in the fairy tale: they have come hither, and gone hence, and have returned again. Do you notice the variegated splendour of the walls and windows? It looks as if Genius had followed the caprices of a child, in the adornment of these singular temples. Do you see the winged lion on the pillar? The gold glitters still, but his wings are tied- the lion is dead, for the king of the sea is dead; the great halls stand desolate, and where gorgeous paintings hung of yore, the naked wall now peers through. The lazzarone sleeps under the arcade, whose pavement in old times was to be trodden only by the feet of high nobility. From the deep wells, and perhaps from the prisons by the Bridge of Sighs, rise the accents of woe, as at the time when the tambourine was heard in the gay gondolas, and the golden ring was cast from the Bucentaur to Adria, the queen of the seas. Adria! shroud thyself in mists; let the veil of thy widowhood shroud thy form, and clothe in the weeds of woe the mausoleum of thy bridegroom- the marble, spectral Venice."
第十七夜
“记得我跟你说过的庞贝城吧，”月亮说，“我又见过一个城市，似乎是那座尸骸之城的复活的影子，那并不是城的尸骸，而是城的幽灵。喷泉往大理石池子喷着水，象是在述说着这座漂浮这城的事，是的，喷泉可以讲出这个故事，海上的波涛也似乎在颂她的名。茫茫的大海上经常漂浮着一层薄雾，那是她未亡人的面纱，海的新郎死了，他的宫殿和城是他的陵墓，你知道这个城市吗？那里的街上从来听不见滚动的车轮声，也听不见踢踏的马蹄声，这里只有鱼儿游来游去，只有黑色的贡杜拉在绿水上像幽灵似地滑过。我带你看看这个地方吧，”月亮继续说，“这里最大的广场，你会觉得自己进入到了一个童话中的城市：草在街上宽宽的石板缝间丛生着，晨曦中成千成万温顺的鸽子绕着一座高高的塔顶飞翔。你的三面围绕着隐蔽的走廊，在这些走廊里，土耳奇人静静地坐着抽他们的长烟斗，美貌的年轻希腊人倚着圆柱看那些战利品和高耸的旗杆——逝去的荣耀的纪念品。旗帜垂头丧气的，像是哀悼的黑纱。有一个女孩子在这儿休息，她已经放下了盛满了水的桶，但扁担还搭在肩膀上，她靠着那根胜利的旗杆站着。在你前面远处的并不是一个辉煌的宫殿，而是一个教堂：镀金的拱顶反射着我的光线，那上面威武的铜马，像童话中的铜马一样，曾经作过多次的旅行：它们旅行到这儿来，又从这儿走去，最后又回到这儿来。你注意到那些花花绿绿的金碧辉煌的墙和窗户了吗？看上去好象是一个天才遵从了一个小孩子的奇思妙想，把这个教堂装饰了一番。你看见那圆柱子上面长着翅膀的狮子了么？上面的镀金仍然在闪着光，但是他的翅膀倦了；狮子死了，因为海的王死了，高大的殿堂仍然孤独的耸立，很久前那里曾经挂着华丽的油画，光秃的墙壁也有了漏洞，你甚至可以透过那洞瞥见里面。流浪汉在拱廊下打着呼噜，要知道那里在过去是只有最高贵的贵族才可以走的地方呀。从那些深邃的井里——也许是从那‘叹息桥’旁的监狱里——飘出一声哀惋的叹息。当人们从布生脱尔号上把金指环投进亚得里亚海——这个王后之海后，从贡杜拉上传出欢快的手鼓声，象极了那叹息声！亚得里亚海啊，让薄雾把你隐藏起来吧！让这寡妇的面纱罩着你的躯体，盖住你的新郎的陵墓——大理石砌的诡谲的威尼斯城吧！”
注：贡杜拉（Ｇｏｎｄｏｌａ）是在意大利水城威尼斯来往运行的一种细长平底的小船。
注：即中古时期“海上霸权”威尼斯。
注：这是威尼斯城内联接宫殿和国家监狱的一条走廊。凡是被判了死刑的人都是走过这条走廊到行刑的地方去，所以它叫做“叹息桥”。
注：Bucentaur本意是半牛半人的怪物，这里是代表威尼斯的一只“御船”的名字。古代威尼斯的首长，在耶稣升天节这天，就乘这只船开到海上（亚得里亚海），向海里投下一个金戒指，表示他代表威尼斯与海结婚。因为威尼斯在中世纪时是一个海上霸权，与海分不开的，故有此迷信。在１５世纪末叶，自从绕过好望角到东方的新航线发现以后，威尼斯就丧失了它海上霸权的地位。人马（centaur）希腊神话中的centaur是一种半人半马怪，是贴撒里国王伊克西翁和云的产物。centaur有很多分类，有的拥有人的身体和四肢，但从腰部向后却延伸出马的躯干和后腿，有的拥有一双翅膀，有的还长有一对马的耳朵，由此也衍生出onocentaur、bucentaur和leontocentaur等称呼。除肯陶洛斯族的喀戎和比较低级的普赫洛族外，大部分人马怪都与酗酒、暴力、色情联系在一起。
EIGHTEENTH EVENING
"I looked down upon a great theatre," said the Moon. "The house
was crowded, for a new actor was to make his first appearance that
night. My rays glided over a little window in the wall, and I saw a
painted face with the forehead pressed against the panes. It was the
hero of the evening. The knighly beard curled crisply about the
chin; but there were tears in the man's eyes, for he had been hissed
off, and indeed with reason. The poor Incapable! But Incapables cannot
be admitted into the empire of Art. He had deep feeling, and loved his
art enthusiastically, but the art loved not him. The prompter's bell
sounded; 'the hero enters with a determined air,' so ran the stage
direction in his part, and he had to appear before an audience who
turned him into ridicule. When the piece was over, I saw a form
wrapped in a mantle, creeping down the steps: it was the vanquished
knight of the evening. The scene-shifters whispered to one another,
and I followed the poor fellow home to his room. To hang one's self is
to die a mean death, and poison is not always at hand, I know; but
he thought of both. I saw how he looked at his pale face in the glass,
with eyes half closed, to see if he should look well as a corpse. A
man may be very unhappy, and yet exceedingly affected. He thought of
death, of suicide; I believe he pitied himself, for he wept
bitterly, and when a man has had his cry out he doesn't kill himself.
"Since that time a year had rolled by. Again a play was to be
acted, but in a little theatre, and by a poor strolling company. Again
I saw the well-remembered face, with the painted cheeks and the
crisp beard. He looked up at me and smiled; and yet he had been hissed
off only a minute before- hissed off from a wretched theatre, by a
miserable audience. And tonight a shabby hearse rolled out of the
town-gate. It was a suicide- our painted, despised hero. The driver of
the hearse was the only person present, for no one followed except
my beams. In a corner of the churchyard the corpse of the suicide
was shovelled into the earth, and nettles will soon be growing
rankly over his grave, and the sexton will throw thorns and weeds from
the other graves upon it."
第十八夜
“我朝着下面的一个大剧场望，”月亮说。“那里挤满了观众，因为有一位新演员今晚第一次亮相。我的光照到墙上的一个小窗口上，看见一个化装好了的面孔，前额紧贴着窗玻璃。这就是今晚的主角。他的骑士胡密密地卷在他下巴的周围；但眼里却闪着泪珠，因为他刚才曾被观众嘘下了舞台，确实他的表演也很该嘘。可怜的蹩脚演员啊！不过在艺术的王国里是不容许低能人存在的。他对艺术有深厚的感情，他深切的爱着艺术，但是艺术却不爱他。
“舞台督促的铃声响了。关于他这个角色的舞台画外音是：‘主角以英勇和豪迈的姿态出场。’所以他只好又在观众面前出现，成为他们哄笑的对象。当他的戏份演完以后，我看到一个裹在外套里的人形偷偷地溜出了后台。布景的剧务们互相窃窃私语，说：这就是今晚那位演砸了的骑士。我跟着这个可怜的人回家，回到他的房间里去。
“上吊死的很难看，又不光彩，而毒药手头又没有。我知道，这两种方式他都想到了。我看到他在镜子里瞧了瞧自己惨白的面孔；眼睛半睁着，想要看看，变成一具死尸他是否还是这个样子。一个人可能是极度地不幸，但这并妨碍他做作一番。他在想着死，想着自杀。我相信他在怜惜自己，因为他哭得确实很伤心。然而，当一个人能够哭出来的时候，他就不会自杀了。
“自从这时候起，一年已经过去了。又有一出戏要上演，这次是在一个小剧场里上演，而且是由一个寒酸的流动剧团演出的。我又看到那个很熟的面孔，那个双颊打了油彩、下巴上卷着胡子的面孔。他抬头向我望了一眼，微笑了一下。可是刚刚在一分钟以前他又被嘘下了舞台——被一群可怜的观众嘘下一座寒酸的舞台！
“今天晚上有一辆很破烂的柩车开出了城门，没有一个人在后面送葬。这是一位寻了短见的人——我们那位涂着油彩的、被人瞧不起的主角。没有一个人给他送葬，只有那个车夫。再有就是我的光线了。在教堂墓地的一角，这位自杀者的尸体被投进土坑里去了。不久他的坟上就会长满了杂草，而守墓人便会在它上面扔一些从别的坟上弄过来的荆棘和荒草。”
NINETEENTH EVENING
"I come from Rome," said the Moon. "In the midst of the city, upon
one of the seven hills, lie the ruins of the imperial palace. The wild
fig tree grows in the clefts of the wall, and covers the nakedness
thereof with its broad grey-green leaves; trampling among heaps of
rubbish, the ass treads upon green laurels, and rejoices over the rank
thistles. From this spot, whence the eagles of Rome once flew
abroad, whence they 'came, saw, and conquered,' our door leads into
a little mean house, built of clay between two pillars; the wild
vine hangs like a mourning garland over the crooked window. An old
woman and her little granddaughter live there: they rule now in the
palace of the Caesars, and show to strangers the remains of its past
glories. Of the splendid throne-hall only a naked wall yet stands, and
a black cypress throws its dark shadow on the spot where the throne
once stood. The dust lies several feet deep on the broken pavement;
and the little maiden, now the daughter of the imperial palace,
often sits there on her stool when the evening bells ring. The keyhole
of the door close by she calls her turret window; through this she can
see half Rome, as far as the mighty cupola of St. Peter's.
"On this evening, as usual, stillness reigned around; and in the
full beam of my light came the little granddaughter. On her head she
carried an earthen pitcher of antique shape filled with water. Her
feet were bare, her short frock and her white sleeves were torn. I
kissed her pretty round shoulders, her dark eyes, and black shining
hair. She mounted the stairs; they were steep, having been made up
of rough blocks of broken marble and the capital of a fallen pillar.
The coloured lizards slipped away, startled, from before her feet, but
she was not frightened at them. Already she lifted her hand to pull
the door-bell- a hare's foot fastened to a string formed the
bell-handle of the imperial palace. She paused for a moment- of what
might she be thinking? Perhaps of the beautiful Christ-child,
dressed in gold and silver, which was down below in the chapel,
where the silver candlesticks gleamed so bright, and where her
little friends sung the hymns in which she also could join? I know
not. Presently she moved again- she stumbled: the earthen vessel
fell from her head, and broke on the marble steps. She burst into
tears. The beautiful daughter of the imperial palace wept over the
worthless broken pitcher; with her bare feet she stood there
weeping; and dared not pull the string, the bell-rope of the
imperial palace!"
第十九夜
“我从罗马来，”月亮说，“那里有七座山，在其中一座山上，躺着古罗马城的废墟。野生的无花果树从墙的缝隙中生长出来，大大的灰绿色的叶子遮掩着赤裸的墙壁，毛驴在废墟间踩踏着，踩过绿色的桂花，在繁茂的蓟草上撒欢儿。罗马的雄鹰从这里飞出去，飞到哪里，看见哪里，征服哪里。两根柱子之间，有一个小土房，野生的常春藤象一个哀悼的花圈一样，挂在扭曲的窗户上。
“屋子里住着一个老太婆和她的小孙女。她们现在是这恺撒皇宫的主人，把这里逝去的荣耀指给陌生人看。曾经是皇位所在的那间大殿，现在只剩得一座赤裸裸的断墙。放着皇座的那块地方，现在只有一座深青色的柏树所撒下的一道长影。在破碎的地板上现在堆着好几尺厚的灰尘。当暮钟响起的时候，那位小姑娘——皇宫的女儿——常常在这儿坐在一个小凳子上。她把旁边门上的一个锁匙孔叫做她的角楼窗。从这个窗子望去，她可以看到半个罗马，一直到圣彼得教堂雄伟的圆屋顶。
“这天晚上，像平时一样，周围是一片静寂。那位小姑娘出现在我明亮的月光下，头上顶着一个古代式样的陶罐，里面装满了水。她光着脚，她的短裙和衣袖都破了，我吻了她漂亮的滚圆的肩膀，黝黑的眼眸，和闪亮的黑头发。
她走上台阶，台阶很陡，是用破碎的大理石和倒掉圆柱的残砖砌成的。受惊的花绿的蜥蜴飞快的从她脚边溜开了，她一点也没有害怕，她已经抬起手去拉门铃——皇宫门铃的把手现在是系在一根绳子上的兔子脚。她停了一下——她在想什么呢？也许是下边小教堂里面那个穿金戴银的幼年基督的画像吧，那里她的小伙伴们唱着她熟悉的赞美诗，蜡烛在银灯架上闪着明亮的光，她是不是也能加入他们，和他们一起唱呢？我不确定。她又走起来了，而且还跌了一跤，那个土瓦罐儿从头顶落下来，在大理石台阶上摔成碎片。她大哭起来。这位美丽的皇宫的女儿竟然为这不值钱的瓦罐哭了，光着脚站在那哭，不敢拉那根绳子——那个皇宫的铃绳！”
注：七座山 在提未累（Ｔｉｖｅｒｅ）河的东岸，古代的罗马即建在这些山上。
注：一座山上指巴拉蒂尼山（Ｐａｌａｔｉｎｅ）。这山上现在全是古代的遗迹。
注：圣彼得教堂 是罗马梵蒂冈山上一个著名的大教堂。在１５０６年开始建造，１６２６年完成。圆屋顶是艺术家米开朗琪罗（１４７５—１５６４）设计的。
注："I came, I saw, I conquered." -- Julius Caesar
注：蓟，多年生直立草本。有大蓟和小蓟两种。茎和叶有刺和白色软毛,初夏开紫红色花。全草供药用。嫩茎叶可食用或作饲料。如:罗平蓟; 贡山蓟
TWENTIETH EVENING
It was more than a fortnight since the Moon had shone. Now he
stood once more, round and bright, above the clouds, moving slowly
onward. Hear what the Moon told me.
"From a town in Fezzan I followed a caravan. On the margin of
the sandy desert, in a salt plain, that shone like a frozen lake,
and was only covered in spots with light drifting sand, a halt was
made. The eldest of the company- the water gourd hung at his girdle,
and on his head was a little bag of unleavened bread- drew a square in
the sand with his staff, and wrote in it a few words out of the Koran,
and then the whole caravan passed over the consecrated spot. A young
merchant, a child of the East, as I could tell by his eye and his
figure, rode pensively forward on his white snorting steed. Was he
thinking, perchance, of his fair young wife? It was only two days
ago that the camel, adorned with furs and with costly shawls, had
carried her, the beauteous bride, round the walls of the city, while
drums and cymbals had sounded, the women sang, and festive shots, of
which the bridegroom fired the greatest number, resounded round the
camel; and now he was journeying with the caravan across the desert.
"For many nights I followed the train. I saw them rest by the
wellside among the stunted palms; they thrust the knife into the
breast of the camel that had fallen, and roasted its flesh by the
fire. My beams cooled the glowing sands, and showed them the black
rocks, dead islands in the immense ocean of sand. No hostile tribes
met them in their pathless route, no storms arose, no columns of
sand whirled destruction over the journeying caravan. At home the
beautiful wife prayed for her husband and her father. 'Are they dead?'
she asked of my golden crescent; 'Are they dead?' she cried to my full
disc. Now the desert lies behind them. This evening they sit beneath
the lofty palm trees, where the crane flutters round them with its
long wings, and the pelican watches them from the branches of the
mimosa. The luxuriant herbage is trampled down, crushed by the feet of
elephants. A troop of negroes are returning from a market in the
interior of the land: the women, with copper buttons in their black
hair, and decked out in clothes dyed with indigo, drive the
heavily-laden oxen, on whose backs slumber the naked black children. A
negro leads a young lion which he has brought, by a string. They
approach the caravan; the young merchant sits pensive and
motionless, thinking of his beautiful wife, dreaming, in the land of
the blacks, of his white lily beyond the desert. He raises his head,
and- " But at this moment a cloud passed before the Moon, and then
another. I heard nothing more from him this evening.
第二十夜
月亮两个礼拜没有露面了，今晚她终于出来了，圆圆的，亮亮的，慢慢的穿行在云彩上面。听听月亮都跟我说了什么。
“我跟着一个商队从费赞的一个城市走出来。一直到沙漠的边缘。在一块盐池边上，他们停下来了。盐池发着光，像一个结了冰的湖，只有一小块地方盖着一层薄薄的、流动着的沙。商队中最年长的一个人——他腰带上挂着一个水葫芦，头上顶着一小包无酵饼——用他的手杖在沙子上画了一个方格，同时在方格里写了《可兰经》里的一句话。然后整队的旅行商就走过了这块献给神的处所。
“一位年轻的商人——我可以从他的眼睛和身材看出他是一个东方人——骑着一匹鼻息呼呼的白马急匆匆走过去了。也许他是在思念他年轻美丽的妻子吧？那是两天前的事：一匹用毛皮和华贵的披巾所装饰着的骆驼载着她——美貌的新娘——绕着城走了一周。敲锣打鼓，妇女唱着歌，和着欢庆的鞭炮声，回响在骆驼周围。那天新郎放了很多鞭炮，现在——他跟着这队旅行商走过沙漠。
“我跟他们走了好多晚上了。我看见他们在矮小的棕榈树林中的水井旁边休息。他们用刀子向倒下的骆驼胸脯中插进去，在火上烤着它的肉吃。我的光线使灼热的沙子冷下来，同时对他们指出那些黑石头——这一望无涯的沙漠之海的死岛。在他们没有前路可走的旅途中，没有遇见怀着敌意的异族人，没有暴风雨出现，没有夹着沙子的旋风袭击他们。
“家里那位美丽的妻子在为她的丈夫和父亲祈祷。‘他们死了吗？’她向我金黄色的月芽问。‘他们病了吗？’她向我的圆月问。
“现在他们已经走出沙漠了，今晚他们在高大的棕榈树下休息。白鹤在他们的周围拍着长翅膀飞翔，这儿鹈鹕在含羞树的枝上朝着他们凝望。茂盛的草趴在地上，上面印着大象的大脚印。一群黑人刚刚赶集回来，女人们穿着青色的外套，黑色的头发上别着铜发卡，赶着背着很多东西的牛，光屁股的小孩在她们背上熟睡。还有一个黑人牵着他刚才买来的小狮子。他们走近这商队，那个年轻商人静静地坐着，沉思着一动也不动，想着他的美丽的妻子。在这个黑人的国度里梦想着在沙漠彼岸的、他的那朵白色的百合花。他抬起头——”
就在这时，一块乌云飘到月亮面前来，接着又来了另一块乌云。这天晚上我再没有听到以后的事情。
费赞：利比亚西南部一地区
TWENTY-FIRST EVENING
"I saw a little girl weeping," said the Moon; "she was weeping
over the depravity of the world. She had received a most beautiful
doll as a present. Oh, that was a glorious doll, so fair and delicate!
She did not seem created for the sorrows of this world. But the
brothers of the little girl, those great naughty boys, had set the
doll high up in the branches of a tree and had run away.
"The little girl could not reach up to the doll, and could not
help her down, and that is why she was crying. The doll must certainly
have been crying too, for she stretched out her arms among the green
branches, and looked quite mournful. Yes, these are the troubles of
life of which the little girl had often heard tell. Alas, poor doll!
it began to grow dark already; and suppose night were to come on
completely! Was she to be left sitting on the bough all night long?
No, the little maid could not make up her mind to that. 'I'll stay
with you,' she said, although she felt anything but happy in her mind.
She could almost fancy she distinctly saw little gnomes, with their
high-crowned hats, sitting in the bushes; and further back in the long
walk, tall spectres appeared to be dancing. They came nearer and
nearer, and stretched out their hands towards the tree on which the
doll sat; they laughed scornfully, and pointed at her with their
fingers. Oh, how frightened the little maid was! 'But if one has not
done anything wrong,' she thought, 'nothing evil can harm one. I
wonder if I have done anything wrong?' And she considered. 'Oh, yes! I
laughed at the poor duck with the red rag on her leg; she limped along
so funnily, I could not help laughing; but it's a sin to laugh at
animals.' And she looked up at the doll. 'Did you laugh at the duck
too?' she asked; and it seemed as if the doll shook her head."
第二十一夜
“我看见一个小女孩在哭，”月亮说，“她为这世界的不堪哭泣。她得到了一件礼物——一个最美丽的玩偶。啊！这才算得是一个玩偶呢！它是那么好看，那么可爱！它似乎不是为了要受苦而造出来的。可是小姑娘的几个哥哥——那些高大淘气的男孩子——把这玩偶拿走了，高高地把它放在花园的树上，然后他们就跑开了。
“小姑娘够不到玩偶，没法把它抱下来，因此她才哭起来。玩偶一定也在哭，因为它的手在绿枝间伸着，好像很害怕的样子。是的，这就是妈妈常常提到的人世间的恶毒。天啦，可怜的玩偶啊！天已经快要黑了，夜马上就要到来！难道就这样让它单独地在树枝间坐一整夜吗？不，小姑娘不忍让这样的事情发生。
“‘我会和你在一起！’她说，虽然她并没有这样勇敢。她已经在想象中清楚地看到一些小鬼怪，戴着高帽子，在灌木林里向外窥探，同时高大的幽灵在黑暗的路上跳着舞，一步一步地走近来，并且把手伸向坐在树上的玩偶。他们用手指指着玩偶，对玩偶大笑。啊，小姑娘是多么害怕啊！
“‘不过，要是一个人没有做过坏事，’她想，‘那么，什么妖怪也不能害你！我不知道我是不是做过坏事？’于是她沉思起来。‘哦，对了！’她说，‘有一次我讥笑过一只腿上系着红布条的可怜的小鸭子。她摇摇摆摆走得那么滑稽，我真忍不住笑了；可是笑话小动物是一桩罪过呵！’她抬起头来望望玩偶。‘你讥笑过小鸭子没有？’她问。玩偶好像是在摇头的样子。”
TWENTY-SECOND EVENING
"I looked down upon Tyrol," said the Moon, "and my beams caused
the dark pines to throw long shadows upon the rocks. I looked at the
pictures of St. Christopher carrying the Infant Jesus that are painted
there upon the walls of the houses, colossal figures reaching from the
ground to the roof. St. Florian was represented pouring water on the
burning house, and the Lord hung bleeding on the great cross by the
wayside. To the present generation these are old pictures, but I saw
when they were put up, and marked how one followed the other. On the
brow of the mountain yonder is perched, like a swallow's nest, a
lonely convent of nuns. Two of the sisters stood up in the tower
tolling the bell; they were both young, and therefore their glances
flew over the mountain out into the world. A travelling coach passed
by below, the postillion wound his horn, and the poor nuns looked
after the carriage for a moment with a mournful glance, and a tear
gleamed in the eyes of the younger one. And the horn sounded faint and
more faintly, and the convent bell drowned its expiring echoes."
第二十二夜
“我望着下面的蒂洛尔，”月亮说。“黑色松树在石头上映下长长的影子。我凝望屋墙上的画，画的是圣·克利斯朵夫，肩上背着婴孩耶稣，这是一幅巨大的画，从墙底一直到墙顶。还有一幅是耶稣的门徒圣·佛罗陵，他正向一座着火屋子泼水，上帝被钉在路旁的十字架上，正流着血。对于现在的人来说，这都是古画了。可我是亲眼看到它们是怎么绘出来的，一幅接着一幅地被绘出来。
“山顶上有一个修道院，像个燕巢一样孤独的筑在那里，有两位修女在钟楼敲钟。她们都很年轻，因此她们的眼光禁不住越过那山，连同他们的心思，一齐飞到尘世里去。一辆马车在下边经过，车夫按了一下喇叭。这两位可怜修女的目光跟随着这辆车子，悲哀的看了好一会儿，泪光在年轻点的修女眼睛里闪着。
“喇叭声渐渐淡去了，修道院的钟声响起，把那恍惚的喇叭声驱散，再也听不见了。”
（注：蒂洛尔（Ｔｙｒｏｌ）是奥地利西部的一个州，位于德国、意大利和瑞士之间。）
（注：依据希伯来人的神话，圣·克利斯朵夫（Ｓｔ．Ｃｈｒｉｓｔｏｐｈｅｒ）是渡船的保护神。这幅画是起源于下面的故事：有一个小孩子看到克利斯朵夫身材魁梧，特请他抱他过河。克利斯朵夫走到河中，越抱越觉得沉重，不禁发起牢骚来。小孩子这时就说：“不要奇怪，你抱住了我就等于抱住了全世界的罪恶。”这孩子就是耶稣。）
（注：圣·佛罗陵（Ｓｔ．Eｌｏｒｉａｎ）一般人认为他是防火的保护神。祭他的节日是每年５月４日。）
TWENTY-THIRD EVENING
Hear what the Moon told me. "Some years ago, here in Copenhagen, I
looked through the window of a mean little room. The father and mother
slept, but the little son was not asleep. I saw the flowered cotton
curtains of the bed move, and the child peep forth. At first I thought
he was looking at the great clock, which was gaily painted in red
and green. At the top sat a cuckoo, below hung the heavy leaden
weights, and the pendulum with the polished disc of metal went to
and fro, and said 'tick, tick.' But no, he was not looking at the
clock, but at his mother's spinning wheel, that stood just
underneath it. That was the boy's favourite piece of furniture, but he
dared not touch it, for if he meddled with it he got a rap on the
knuckles. For hours together, when his mother was spinning, he would
sit quietly by her side, watching the murmuring spindle and the
revolving wheel, and as he sat he thought of many things. Oh, if he
might only turn the wheel himself! Father and mother were asleep; he
looked at them, and looked at the spinning wheel, and presently a
little naked foot peered out of the bed, and then a second foot, and
then two little white legs. There he stood. He looked round once more,
to see if father and mother were still asleep- yes, they slept; and
now he crept softly, softly, in his short little nightgown, to the
spinning wheel, and began to spin. The thread flew from the wheel, and
the wheel whirled faster and faster. I kissed his fair hair and his
blue eyes, it was such a pretty picture.
"At that moment the mother awoke. The curtain shook, she looked
forth, and fancied she saw a gnome or some other kind of little
spectre. 'In Heaven's name!' she cried, and aroused her husband in a
frightened way. He opened his eyes, rubbed them with his hands, and
looked at the brisk little lad. 'Why, that is Bertel,' said he. And my
eye quitted the poor room, for I have so much to see. At the same
moment I looked at the halls of the Vatican, where the marble gods are
enthroned. I shone upon the group of the Laocoon; the stone seemed
to sigh. I pressed a silent kiss on the lips of the Muses, and they
seemed to stir and move. But my rays lingered longest about the Nile
group with the colossal god. Leaning against the Sphinx, he lies there
thoughtful and meditative, as if he were thinking on the rolling
centuries; and little love-gods sport with him and with the
crocodiles. In the horn of plenty sat with folded arms a little tiny
love-god, contemplating the great solemn river-god, a true picture
of the boy at the spinning wheel- the features were exactly the
same. Charming and life-like stood the little marble form, and yet the
wheel of the year has turned more than a thousand times since the time
when it sprang forth from the stone. Just as often as the boy in the
little room turned the spinning wheel had the great wheel murmured,
before the age could again call forth marble gods equal to those he
afterwards formed.
"Years have passed since all this happened," the Moon went on to
say. "Yesterday I looked upon a bay on the eastern coast of Denmark.
Glorious woods are there, and high trees, an old knightly castle
with red walls, swans floating in the ponds, and in the background
appears, among orchards, a little town with a church. Many boats,
the crews all furnished with torches, glided over the silent
expanse- but these fires had not been kindled for catching fish, for
everything had a festive look. Music sounded, a song was sung, and
in one of the boats the man stood erect to whom homage was paid by the
rest, a tall sturdy man, wrapped in a cloak. He had blue eyes and long
white hair. I knew him, and thought of the Vatican, and of the group
of the Nile, and the old marble gods. I thought of the simple little
room where little Bertel sat in his night-shirt by the spinning wheel.
The wheel of time has turned, and new gods have come forth from the
stone. From the boats there arose a shout: 'Hurrah, hurrah for
Bertel Thorwaldsen!'"
第二十三夜
请听月亮讲的话吧：“几年前，在哥本哈根，我对着窗子向一个简陋的房间望进去。爸爸和妈妈都睡着了，不过小儿子还醒着。我看到床上的花布床单在动着，这个小家伙在偷偷地向外望。起初我以为他在看那个大钟。它上了一层红红绿绿的油漆，它顶上立着一个布谷鸟。下面的铅制的沉重的钟摆，外面包着一层被打磨得发亮的金属，在那里摆来摆去：‘滴答！滴答！’可不是，他并不是在看那钟。而是他妈妈的纺车，就在钟的下面。这是这孩子在整个屋中最心爱的一件家什，可是他不敢动它，他一乱动那个纺车，就会象在开饭前偷吃一样被打手。他的妈妈在纺纱的时候，他可以在旁边坐几个钟头，望着呼呼动的纺锤和飞快转动的纺轮，同时幻想着许多东西。啊！他多么希望自己也能纺几下啊！
“爸爸和妈妈睡着了。他望了望他们，也望了望纺车，然后他就把一只小赤脚伸出床外来，接着又把另一只小赤脚伸出来，最后一双小白腿就现出来了。噗！他落到地板上来。他又转身望了一眼，看爸爸妈妈是不是还在睡觉。是的，他们还是睡着的。于是他就轻轻地，轻轻地，只是穿着他的小睡衣，溜到纺车旁，开始纺起纱来。棉纱吐出丝来，车轮就转动得更快。我吻了一下他金黄的头发和他碧蓝的眼睛。这真是一幅可爱的图画。
“这时妈妈忽然醒了。床上的帐子动了；她向外望，她以为她看到了一个小鬼或者一个什么小妖精。‘老天爷呀！’她说，同时惊惶地把她的丈夫推醒。他睁开眼睛，用手揉了几下，望着这个忙碌的小鬼。‘怎么，是巴特尔呀！’他说。
“于是我的视线就离开了这个简陋的房间——我还有那么多的东西要看！这时候我看了一下梵蒂冈的大厅。那里面有许多大理石雕的神像。我的光照到拉奥孔的一群雕像，他们似乎在叹气。我在那些缪斯的唇上静静地亲了一吻，我相信她们又有了生命。可是我的光辉在巨大的尼罗神像上逗留得最久。那巨神倚在斯芬克斯身上，默默无言，似乎在冥思，想着那些一去不复返的岁月。一群矮小的爱神在他的周围和一群鳄鱼玩耍。在丰饶之角里坐着一位小小的爱神，他的双臂交叉着，眼睛凝视着那位巨大的、庄严的河神。就象是纺车旁的那个小孩子，表情一模一样。栩栩如生的小石像静静的立在那儿，那么迷人。可是自从它从大理石里破壳而出的时候起，岁月之轮已转动了千年。在世界能产生出同样伟大的大理石像以前，岁月的大轮子，像这小孩在这间简陋的房里摇着的纺车那样，又不知要转动多久。
“自此以后，许多年又过去了，”月亮继续说。“昨天我向下面看了看丹麦东海岸的一个海湾。那儿有秀美挺拔的树林，红色的围墙环抱着古老的骑士城堡，湖里漂着美丽的天鹅。在苹果园的后面隐隐地现出一个小镇和教堂。许多船只，全都燃着火把，在这静静的水上滑过。人们点着火把，并不是为了要捕鱼，不是的，是为了要表示庆祝！音乐奏起来了，歌声唱起来了。在这许多船中间，有一个人在一条船里站起来了。大家都向他致敬。他披着斗篷，是一个高大、雄伟的人。他有碧蓝的眼睛和长长的白发。我认识他，于是我想起了梵蒂冈里尼罗神像和所有的古老的大理石神像；我想起了那个简陋的小房间，曾经穿着小小睡衣的小巴特尔坐在纺车边纺纱。是的，岁月的轮子已经转动过了，新的神像又从石头中走出来了。从这些船上升起一片欢呼声：‘万岁！巴特尔·多瓦尔生万岁！’”
（注：拉奥孔（Ｌａｏｋｏｎ）是希腊神话里的一个祭司。他因为触犯了神怒，被两条蛇活活地缚死。以他为中心的一系列的雕刻，是留存在梵蒂冈的最优美的古代艺术作品，这些雕刻是在１５０９年出土的。）
（注：希腊神话中艺术之女神。）
（注：尼罗是焚蒂冈的另一系列的巨大神像，以尼罗河神为中心。）
（注：斯芬克斯是古代埃及的一个假想的动物，他的头像人，身像狮子。）
（注：丰饶之角是和平与繁荣的象征，所以爱神坐在里面。据希腊神话，希腊之天神裘斯（Ｚｅｕｓ）是一位叫做亚马尔苔亚（Ａｍａｌｔｈｅａ）的女仙用羊奶养大的。裘斯长大了要报答她的恩，特地送她一个羊角，并且说，有了这个东西想要什么就有什么。）
（注：多瓦尔生（ＢｅｒｔｅｌＴｈｏｒｗａｌｄｓｅｎ，１７７０—１８４４）是丹麦一个穷木刻匠的儿子，后来成了世界闻名的雕刻家。他的作品深受古代希腊和罗马雕刻的影响，散见于欧洲各大教堂和公共建筑物里。）
TWENTY-FOURTH EVENING
"I will now give you a picture from Frankfort," said the Moon.
"I especially noticed one building there. It was not the house in
which Goethe was born, nor the old Council House, through whose grated
windows peered the horns of the oxen that were roasted and given to
the people when the emperors were crowned. No, it was a private house,
plain in appearance, and painted green. It stood near the old Jews'
Street. It was Rothschild's house.
"I looked through the open door. The staircase was brilliantly
lighted: servants carrying wax candles in massive silver
candlesticks stood there, and bowed low before an old woman, who was
being brought downstairs in a litter. The proprietor of the house
stood bare-headed, and respectfully imprinted a kiss on the hand of
the old woman. She was his mother. She nodded in a friendly manner
to him and to the servants, and they carried her into the dark
narrow street, into a little house, that was her dwelling. Here her
children had been born, from hence the fortune of the family had
arisen. If she deserted the despised street and the little house,
fortune would also desert her children. That was her firm belief."
The Moon told me no more; his visit this evening was far too
short. But I thought of the old woman in the narrow despised street.
It would have cost her but a word, and a brilliant house would have
arisen for her on the banks of the Thames- a word, and a villa would
have been prepared in the Bay of Naples.
"If I deserted the lowly house, where the fortunes of my sons
first began to bloom, fortune would desert them!" It was a
superstition, but a superstition of such a class, that he who knows
the story and has seen this picture, need have only two words placed
under the picture to make him understand it; and these two words
are: "A mother."
第二十四夜
“我给你一张法兰克福的图画吧，”月亮说。“我特意留意了那里的一幢房子，那不是歌德出生的房子，也不是古老的市政厅，从破碎的窗户我看见了牛角，当皇帝们加冕的时候，这儿曾经烤过牛肉，分赠给众人吃。这是一个私人的房子，看起来很普通，外面漆着绿色的油漆。这是罗斯柴尔德家在老犹太街上的房子。
“我从敞开的门望进去，楼梯间那儿很亮，仆人们托着大银烛台，向一位刚从楼梯上被抬下来的老妇人深深鞠躬；房子的主人脱帽站着，恭恭敬敬地在这位老太太的手上亲了一吻。这位老妇人就是他的母亲。她和善地对他和仆人们点点头；于是她被抬到一条黑暗的狭小巷子里去，到一幢小小的房子里去，那就是她的住所，她曾经在这儿生下一群孩子，在这儿发家。假如她遗弃了这条不起眼小巷和这幢小小的房子，幸运可能就会遗弃他她的子孙。这是她一直坚信的！”
月亮再没有对我说什么；他今晚的来访是太短促了。不过我想着那条不起眼的、狭窄巷子里的老太太。她只须一开口就可以在泰晤士河边有一幢华丽的房子，只须一句话就有人在那不勒斯湾为她准备好一所别墅。
“我的儿子们是在这儿发迹的，假如我遗弃了它，幸运可能就会遗弃他们！”这是一个迷信。这个迷信，对于那些了解这个故事和看过这幅画的人，只须加这样两个字的说明就能理解：“母亲。”
注：罗斯柴尔德（Ｒｏｔｈｓｃｈｉｌｄ）是欧洲一个欧洲乃至世界久负盛名的犹太籍的大财阀家族。发迹于19世纪初，其创始人是梅耶·罗斯柴尔德(Mayer Amschel Ｒｏｔｈｓｃｈｉｌｄ)。他和他的5个儿子先后在法兰克福、伦敦、巴黎、维也纳、那不勒斯等欧洲著名城市开设银行，建立了当时世界上最大的金融王国。这家族的子孙有不同的国籍，他们翻云覆雨的力量使欧洲的王宫贵族也甘拜下风，左右许多国家的政局。时至今日，世界的主要黄金市场也是由他们所控制。宋鸿兵《货币战争》有详细的介绍。
TWENTY-FIFTH EVENING
"It was yesterday, in the morning twilight"- these are the words
the Moon told me- "in the great city no chimney was yet smoking- and
it was just at the chimneys that I was looking. Suddenly a little head
emerged from one of them, and then half a body, the arms resting on
the rim of the chimney-pot. 'Ya-hip! ya-hip!' cried a voice. It was
the little chimney-sweeper, who had for the first time in his life
crept through a chimney, and stuck out his head at the top. 'Ya-hip!
ya-hip' Yes, certainly that was a very different thing to creeping
about in the dark narrow chimneys! the air blew so fresh, and he could
look over the whole city towards the green wood. The sun was just
rising. It shone round and great, just in his face, that beamed with
triumph, though it was very prettily blacked with soot.
"'The whole town can see me now,' he exclaimed, 'and the moon
can see me now, and the sun too. Ya-hip! ya-hip!' And he flourished
his broom in triumph."
第二十六夜
“那是昨天，天刚蒙蒙亮的时候，”月亮说着，“在这个大城市里，烟囱还没有开始冒烟——而就在我看着这些烟囱的时候，有一个小小的脑袋从一个烟囱里冒出来了，接着露出半截身子，最后便有一双手臂搁在烟囱口上。
‘哟嗬！’小家伙叫着，是个小小的扫烟囱工。这是他有生第一次爬出烟囱，第一次把头从烟囱顶上伸出来。‘不赖！’的确，比起在又黑又窄的烟囱管里爬，现在显然是不一样了！空气那么清新，还可以望见全城的风景，一直望到绿色的森林。太阳刚刚升起来，又圆又大，阳光直照到他的脸上——而他的脸正发着快乐的光芒，虽然脸上蹭满了黑漆漆的烟灰。
“‘整个城里的人都可以看到我了！月亮也可以看到我了，太阳也可以看到我了！好啊！好！’他一边自豪地挥着他的扫帚，一边大叫着。”
TWENTY-SIXTH EVENING
"Last night I looked down upon a town in China," said the Moon.
"My beams irradiated the naked walls that form the streets there.
Now and then, certainly, a door is seen; but it is locked, for what
does the Chinaman care about the outer world? Close wooden shutters
covered the windows behind the walls of the houses; but through the
windows of the temple a faint light glimmered. I looked in, and saw
the quaint decorations within. From the floor to the ceiling
pictures are painted, in the most glaring colours, and richly gilt-
pictures representing the deeds of the gods here on earth. In each
niche statues are placed, but they are almost entirely hidden by the
coloured drapery and the banners that hang down. Before each idol (and
they are all made of tin) stood a little altar of holy water, with
flowers and burning wax lights on it. Above all the rest stood Fo, the
chief deity, clad in a garment of yellow silk, for yellow is here
the sacred colour. At the foot of the altar sat a living being, a
young priest. He appeared to be praying, but in the midst of his
prayer he seemed to fall into deep thought, and this must have been
wrong, for his cheeks glowed and he held down his head. Poor
Soui-Hong! Was he, perhaps, dreaming of working in the little flower
garden behind the high street wall? And did that occupation seem
more agreeable to him than watching the wax lights in the temple? Or
did he wish to sit at the rich feast, wiping his mouth with silver
paper between each course? Or was his sin so great that, if he dared
utter it, the Celestial Empire would punish it with death? Had his
thoughts ventured to fly with the ships of the barbarians, to their
homes in far distant England? No, his thoughts did not fly so far, and
yet they were sinful, sinful as thoughts born of young hearts,
sinful here in the temple, in the presence of Fo and the other holy
gods.
"I know whither his thoughts had strayed. At the farther end of
the city, on the flat roof paved with porcelain, on which stood the
handsome vases covered with painted flowers, sat the beauteous Pu,
of the little roguish eyes, of the full lips, and of the tiny feet.
The tight shoe pained her, but her heart pained her still more. She
lifted her graceful round arm, and her satin dress rustled. Before her
stood a glass bowl containing four gold-fish. She stirred the bowl
carefully with a slender lacquered stick, very slowly, for she, too,
was lost in thought. Was she thinking, perchance, how the fishes
were richly clothed in gold, how they lived calmly and peacefully in
their crystal world, how they were regularly fed, and yet how much
happier they might be if they were free? Yes, that she could well
understand, the beautiful Pu. Her thoughts wandered away from her
home, wandered to the temple, but not for the sake of holy things.
Poor Pu! Poor Soui-hong!
"Their earthly thoughts met, but my cold beam lay between the two,
like the sword of the cherub."
第二十六夜
“昨天晚上我看见一个中国的城市，”月亮说，“我的光照在一面面光秃秃的墙上，那些墙隔成一个个街道。偶尔可以看见一扇门，可是门是关着的。 中国人对外面的世界还有什么关心的么？紧闭的窗扉掩盖着房子山墙的窗，只有从一所庙宇的窗子里，有一丝微光透露了出来。
“我朝里面望进去，里面的装饰奇特而精巧，从地板一直到天花板都画着闪亮的图画，金碧辉煌的壁画展示着佛的神迹。每一个神龛里有一个佛像，可是差不多全被挂在佛龛上垂下的帷幔掩住了。每一座佛像——都是用锡做的——面前有一个小小的佛台，上面放着圣水、花朵和燃着的蜡烛。但是这寺庙里的神中之神——佛主。身披一身金黄的袈裟，因为黄色是至高无上的颜色。佛象下面坐着一个有生命的人——一个年轻的和尚。他似乎在念经，念着念着，他的思绪似乎跑到另外一个地方去了，这肯定是罪过，他双颊绯红，这让他抬不起头来。可怜的随相和尚啊，他是不是想着在高墙的花园里干活呢？他是不是觉得在花园里干活会比在庙里对着一根燃烧的蜡烛更好过些呢？或者是他在幻想着自己坐在丰盛的餐桌旁，在每道菜之间用银色的餐巾纸搽嘴呢？他果真犯了那么重的罪，只要他一开口说出来，皇帝就会把他拉出去斩首的么？他的思绪是不是飞到外邦蛮夷的轮船上，想着搭上船一起去遥远的英格兰呢？ 不，他没有想那么远，但是他想的确实是罪过的，那是一颗年轻的心所天生带来的罪过，特别是在这庙里，在佛祖和众神佛之前。
“我知道他的心思跑到哪里去了，远在这个城市的另一边，一个铺着瓷砖、摆着精美的绘花花瓶的屋顶平台上，坐着一位美丽的姑娘，她叫朴。她的目光迷离，她的唇饱满，她的小脚玲珑周整，她的鞋子紧得使她发痛，但此刻她的心更疼。她抬起优雅圆润的臂，绸子衣服沙沙作响。她面前的鱼缸里有四条金鱼，她拿着一根细细的棍子轻轻的搅着鱼缸，那么慢，因为她现在也走神了。她恐怕在想，这些金鱼的生活是多么优裕呀，丰衣足食，宁静而安详。要是它们被放生它们会多么快活呀！是的，对于这一点她是感同身受的，美丽的朴是懂得这个道理的。她的心思溜出了家门，一直溜进那个庙里，而并不是因为那庙宇里的诸天神佛。我们可怜的朴，可怜的随相啊！
“他们凡尘的心思碰在一起，但是我的冰冷的光隔在他们中间，象小天使的剑一样。”
TWENTY-SEVENTH EVENING
"The air was calm," said the Moon; "the water was transparent as
the purest ether through which I was gliding, and deep below the
surface I could see the strange plants that stretched up their long
arms towards me like the gigantic trees of the forest. The fishes swam
to and fro above their tops. High in the air a flight of wild swans
were winging their way, one of which sank lower and lower, with
wearied pinions, his eyes following the airy caravan, that melted
farther and farther into the distance. With outspread wings he sank
slowly, as a soap bubble sinks in the still air, till he touched the
water. At length his head lay back between his wings, and silently
he lay there, like a white lotus flower upon the quiet lake. And a
gentle wind arose, and crisped the quiet surface, which gleamed like
the clouds that poured along in great broad waves; and the swan raised
his head, and the glowing water splashed like blue fire over his
breast and back. The morning dawn illuminated the red clouds, the swan
rose strengthened, and flew towards the rising sun, towards the bluish
coast whither the caravan had gone; but he flew alone, with a
longing in his breast. Lonely he flew over the blue swelling billows."
第二十七夜
“夜冷清而透明，”月亮说，“下面的水也如我此刻穿行的夜空一般清澈，水里长着一些奇怪的植物，象森林里那些参天大树，在水下向我伸出长长的茎，又宛如一个落水者尽力伸出求救的胳膊。鱼儿们在上面游来游去。天空中一群大雁正呼扇着翅膀赶着夜路，其中的一个飞不动了，沉得越来越低。它尽力的挥动着翅膀，眼睛紧盯着渐渐离它远去的队伍，眼看着它们最后融化在未知的远方。它伸展翅膀，慢慢地俯落下来，象一个肥皂泡泡，在宁静的空气中下落，直到最后它接触到水面。它扭过头，插进双翼里去，象睡在平静湖面上的一朵白水莲。
微风轻起，吹皱原本镜子样的水面，泛起粼粼的银色，象白色的云朵嵌进水的波纹。那飘忽的蓝色水光如火焰般燃烧，缭绕在它的胸前、它的后背。晨曦熏醉了云，醉云成霞。大雁挣扎着又飞了起来，朝着初起的太阳，朝着那吞没了它队伍的蓝色的海岸，它孤单的飞呀飞，满怀着焦急，形单影只的飞过那蔚蓝色的汹涌的浪花。
注：水面的描写不得不让我想起“日出江花红胜火，春来江水绿如蓝。”
TWENTY-EIGHTH EVENING
"I will give you another picture of Sweden," said the Moon. "Among
dark pine woods, near the melancholy banks of the Stoxen, lies the old
convent church of Wreta. My rays glided through the grating into the
roomy vaults, where kings sleep tranquilly in great stone coffins.
On the wall, above the grave of each, is placed the emblem of
earthly grandeur, a kingly crown; but it is made only of wood, painted
and gilt, and is hung on a wooden peg driven into the wall. The
worms have gnawed the gilded wood, the spider has spun her web from
the crown down to the sand, like a mourning banner, frail and
transient as the grief of mortals. How quietly they sleep! I can
remember them quite plainly. I still see the bold smile on their lips,
that so strongly and plainly expressed joy or grief. When the
steamboat winds along like a magic snail over the lakes, a stranger
often comes to the church, and visits the burial vault; he asks the
names of the kings, and they have a dead and forgotten sound. He
glances with a smile at the worm-eaten crowns, and if he happens to be
a pious, thoughtful man, something of melancholy mingles with the
smile. Slumber on, ye dead ones! The Moon thinks of you, the Moon at
night sends down his rays into your silent kingdom, over which hangs
the crown of pine wood."
第二十八夜
“我还要给你一幅瑞典的图画，”月亮说。“深色的松林掩映的罗克生河，在葱郁的岸边，立着古老的乌列达修道院。我的光，穿过墙上的窗格子，射进宽敞的地下墓窖里去——帝王们在这儿的石棺里长眠。在每个石棺所对应的墙上挂着一个作为人世间荣华的象征——皇冠。不过这皇冠是木雕的，涂了漆，镀了金，挂在钉进墙里的木栓上。蛀虫已经蛀进这块镀了金的木头里去了，蜘蛛在皇冠和石棺之间织起一层网来；作为一面哀悼的黑纱，它是脆弱而暂时的，正如人间对死者的哀悼一样。
“这些帝王们睡得多么安静啊！我还能清楚地记起他们，清楚的记得他们嘴唇上莫测的微笑——他们是那么有威严，生杀予夺，股掌之间，可以叫人快乐，也可以叫人痛苦。
“当汽船象一个神奇的蜗牛一样在湖面爬行的时候，常常会有个别陌生人走进这个教堂，拜访一下这个墓窖。他问着这些帝王们的姓名，但是这些姓名说出来时变成了令人一串生疏的音节，没有任何意义。他带着微笑望了望那些虫蛀了的皇冠。假如他是一个虔诚的有思想的人，他的微笑或许会带着忧郁的意味。
“安眠吧，你们这些死去了的人们！月亮还记得你们，月亮在夜间把它寒冷的光辉送进你们静寂的王国——那上面挂着松木做的皇冠！”
（注：罗克生河（Ｒｏｘｅｎ）是在瑞典南部的一条小河。）
（注：Wreta, Wreta Gård AB）
TWENTY-NINTH EVENING
"Close by the high-road," said the Moon, "is an inn, and
opposite to it is a great waggon-shed, whose straw roof was just being
re-thatched. I looked down between the bare rafters and through the
open loft into the comfortless space below. The turkey-cock slept on
the beam, and the saddle rested in the empty crib. In the middle of
the shed stood a travelling carriage; the proprietor was inside,
fast asleep, while the horses were being watered. The coachman
stretched himself, though I am very sure that he had been most
comfortably asleep half the last stage. The door of the servants' room
stood open, and the bed looked as if it had been turned over and over;
the candle stood on the floor, and had burnt deep down into the
socket. The wind blew cold through the shed: it was nearer to the dawn
than to midnight. In the wooden frame on the ground slept a wandering
family of musicians. The father and mother seemed to be dreaming of
the burning liquor that remained in the bottle. The little pale
daughter was dreaming too, for her eyes were wet with tears. The harp
stood at their heads, and the dog lay stretched at their feet."
第二十九夜
“紧贴着大路旁边，”月亮说，“有一个客栈，在客栈的对面有一个很大的车棚，棚子上的草顶正在重新修葺。我从裸露椽子之间，透过敞着的顶楼窗，朝下望着那不太舒服的空间。雄火鸡在横梁上睡觉，马鞍躺在空槽里。棚子的中央停着一辆旅行马车，车主人在里面熟睡；马儿在喝着水，马车夫在伸着懒腰，我确信他睡得最香，而且在赶最后一段路时至少睡了半路。下人房的门是开着的，床上的被子扭成了几个劲儿。蜡烛在地板上燃着，已经燃到烛台的座儿里去了。风寒冷地吹进棚子里来；时间与其说是深夜，倒不如说是接近天明。在旁边的畜栏旁边的空地上睡着流浪音乐师一家人。爸爸和妈妈似乎在梦着酒瓶里剩下来的烈酒。那个脸色苍白的小女儿也在梦中熟睡，因为她的眼角还沾着泪珠。竖琴靠在他们的头边，小狗睡在他们的脚下。”
THIRTIETH EVENING
"It was in a little provincial town," the Moon said; "it certainly
happened last year, but that has nothing to do with the matter. I
saw it quite plainly. To-day I read about it in the papers, but
there it was not half so clearly expressed. In the taproom of the
little inn sat the bear leader, eating his supper; the bear was tied
up outside, behind the wood pile- poor Bruin, who did nobody any harm,
though he looked grim enough. Up in the garret three little children
were playing by the light of my beams; the eldest was perhaps six
years old, the youngest certainly not more than two. 'Tramp, tramp'-
somebody was coming upstairs: who might it be? The door was thrust
open- it was Bruin, the great, shaggy Bruin! He had got tired of
waiting down in the courtyard, and had found his way to the stairs.
I saw it all," said the Moon. "The children were very much
frightened at first at the great shaggy animal; each of them crept
into a corner, but he found them all out, and smelt at them, but did
them no harm. 'This must be a great dog,' they said, and began to
stroke him. He lay down upon the ground, the youngest boy clambered on
his back, and bending down a little head of golden curls, played at
hiding in the beast's shaggy skin. Presently the eldest boy took his
drum, and beat upon it till it rattled again; the bear rose upon his
hind legs, and began to dance. It was a charming sight to behold. Each
boy now took his gun, and the bear was obliged to have one too, and he
held it up quite properly. Here was a capital playmate they had found;
and they began marching- one, two; one, two.
"Suddenly some one came to the door, which opened, and the
mother of the children appeared. You should have seen her in her
dumb terror, with her face as white as chalk, her mouth half open, and
her eyes fixed in a horrified stare. But the youngest boy nodded to
her in great glee, and called out in his infantile prattle, 'We're
playing at soldiers.' And then the bear leader came running up."
第三十夜
"在一个乡下的小镇上，”月亮说，“这是去年发生的事了，但是那并没有什么关系，我记得清清楚楚。今天我看见报纸还报道了呢，但是说得不清不楚的。"
"小客栈的酒馆里一个耍熊人正在吃晚饭，他的熊拴在外面的一个木头堆后面——可怜的熊先生啊，他从没招过谁，也没惹过谁，虽然他看起来够吓人的。上面的顶楼上有三个小孩在我的光线下玩耍，最大的看起来六岁的样子，最小的不到两岁。‘噗咚——噗咚’——有人上楼来了。是谁呢？门呼啦一声被推开了——是熊先生，那只个头大大的、毛发蓬蓬的大熊！他在楼下的院子里等腻歪了，所以就顺着楼梯上来了。这是我亲眼看见的。"月亮说。
"起初孩子们被这个毛呼呼的大家伙吓坏了，都紧缩到角落里。可是他把他们一个一个地找出来，在他们身上嗅了一阵子，但是一点也没有伤害他们！‘这肯定是一只大狗，’他们说，并开始抚摩他。他在地板上躺下来，最小的那个孩子爬到他身上，把他长满了金黄鬈发的头钻进熊的厚毛里，玩起捉迷藏来。接着那个最大的孩子取出他的鼓来，敲得咚咚地响。这时熊儿便用它的一双后腿立起来，开始跳起舞来。这真是一个可爱的景象！现在每个孩子背着一支枪，给熊也发了一支，而且他拿枪的架势还很标准呢。他们真算找到了一个很好的玩伴！他们开始‘齐步走’起来——一二一！一二一……
"忽然有人把门推开了；这是孩子们的母亲。你应该看看她的那副样子，那副惊恐得说不出话来的样子：惨白的面孔，半张着的嘴，和那对惊恐呆滞的眼睛。可是顶小的那个孩子却是非常高兴地在对她点头，用他幼稚的口吻大声说：‘我们在学军队练操啦！’ "这时耍熊的人也跑来了。"
THIRTY-FIRST EVENING
The wind blew stormy and cold, the clouds flew hurriedly past;
only for a moment now and then did the Moon become visible. He said,
"I looked down from the silent sky upon the driving clouds, and saw
the great shadows chasing each other across the earth. I looked upon a
prison. A closed carriage stood before it; a prisoner was to be
carried away. My rays pierced through the grated window towards the
wall; the prisoner was scratching a few lines upon it, as a parting
token; but he did not write words, but a melody, the outpouring of his
heart. The door was opened, and he was led forth, and fixed his eyes
upon my round disc. Clouds passed between us, as if he were not to see
his face, nor I his. He stepped into the carriage, the door was
closed, the whip cracked, and the horses gallopped off into the
thick forest, whither my rays were not able to follow him; but as I
glanced through the grated window, my rays glided over the notes,
his last farewell engraved on the prison wall- where words fail,
sounds can often speak. My rays could only light up isolated notes, so
the greater part of what was written there will ever remain dark to
me. Was it the death-hymn he wrote there? Were these the glad notes of
joy? Did he drive away to meet death, or hasten to the embraces of his
beloved? The rays of the Moon do not read all that is written by
mortals."
第三十一夜
冷风呼啸着，天上的云匆匆的卷过。月亮不时地在空中露出脸来。
月亮说：“我在寂静的夜空中望着下面的云，他们被风驱赶着，投在地面上的影子互相追逐。下面是一座监狱，一辆囚车紧关着门停在旁边，一个囚犯要被带走了。我的光穿过窗栅照在墙上，一个囚犯正在上面画着几道线，作为留别的纪念。他并不是在写字，而是写一个谱，那是从他心里涌出的曲子。
“门开了，他被带了出去，他的目光注视着我圆圆的脸。乌云在我们之间经过，好像是他不想看见我，我也不想看见他似的。他走进囚车，门锁上了。马车飞快的跑起来，很快消失在密林之中，我再也看不见他了。
“我的光透过有格栅的窗户，照在那些音符上——那个犯人刻在墙的绝笔。文字说不出来的，声音却可以。我的光只能照到个别几个音符，其余的大部分将永远留在黑暗之中了。那是他写下的死亡的赞歌吗？还是一些快乐的音符呢？他被拉走去见死神了呢，还是被送进爱人的怀抱中？毕竟月亮的光并不能认得人类写的所有的东西。”
THIRTY-SECOND EVENING
"I love the children," said the Moon, "especially the quite little
ones- they are so droll. Sometimes I peep into the room, between the
curtain and the window frame, when they are not thinking of me. It
gives me pleasure to see them dressing and undressing. First, the
little round naked shoulder comes creeping out of the frock, then
the arm; or I see how the stocking is drawn off, and a plump little
white leg makes its appearance, and a white little foot that is fit to
be kissed, and I kiss it too.
"But about what I was going to tell you. This evening I looked
through a window, before which no curtain was drawn, for nobody
lives opposite. I saw a whole troop of little ones, all of one family,
and among them was a little sister. She is only four years old, but
can say her prayers as well as any of the rest. The mother sits by her
bed every evening, and hears her say her prayers; and then she has a
kiss, and the mother sits by the bed till the little one has gone to
sleep, which generally happens as soon as ever she can close her eyes.
"This evening the two elder children were a little boisterous. One
of them hopped about on one leg in his long white nightgown, and the
other stood on a chair surrounded by the clothes of all the
children, and declared he was acting Grecian statues. The third and
fourth laid the clean linen carefully in the box, for that is a
thing that has to be done; and the mother sat by the bed of the
youngest, and announced to all the rest that they were to be quiet,
for little sister was going to say her prayers.
"I looked in, over the lamp, into the little maiden's bed, where
she lay under the neat white coverlet, her hands folded demurely and
her little face quite grave and serious. She was praying the Lord's
prayer aloud. But her mother interrupted her in the middle of her
prayer. 'How is it,' she asked, 'that when you have prayed for daily
bread, you always add something I cannot understand? You must tell
me what that is.' The little one lay silent, and looked at her
mother in embarrassment. 'What is it you say after our daily bread?'
'Dear mother, don't be angry: I only said, and plenty of butter on
it.'"
THE END
（１８４０—１８５５年）
第三十二夜
"我特别喜欢孩子，"月亮说，"尤其是小小的孩子——他们太有趣了。当他们没有注意到我的时候，我透过窗棂和窗帘之间，悄悄地窥进小房间，看到他们自己穿衣服和脱衣服是那么好玩。一个光溜溜的小圆肩头先从衣服里冒出来，接着手臂也冒出来了。有时我看到袜子脱下去，露出一条胖胖的小白腿来，接着是一个让我禁不住想亲一下的小脚板，而我也就吻它一下了！"
"今晚——我得告诉你！——今晚我从一扇窗子望进去。窗子上的窗帘没有放下来，因为对面没有邻居。我看到里面有一大窝小家伙——他们都是一家人。他们中间有一个顶小的妹妹。她只有四岁，不过，她也会祈祷，而且一点也不比其他的哥哥姐姐差。每天晚上妈妈坐在她的床边，听她念完祷告，然后她就得到一个吻。妈妈坐在旁边等她睡着——一般说来，只要她的小眼睛一闭，她就睡着了。"
"今天晚上那两个较大的孩子有点儿闹。一个穿着白色的长睡衣，用一只脚跳来跳去。另一个站在一把堆满了别的孩子的衣服的椅子上，他说他是在装一个希腊雕像。第三和第四个孩子把干净的亚麻衣服很仔细地放进箱子里去，因为事情应该是这样办才对。不过妈妈坐在最小的那个孩子床边，同时说，大家应该放安静一点，因为小妹妹要念《主祷文》了。
"我朝灯那边望，"月亮说。"那个四岁的小女孩睡在床上，盖着整洁的白被褥；她的一双小手端正地叠在一起，她的小脸露出严肃的表情。她在高声地念《主祷文》。忽然妈妈在中间打断了她，‘这是怎么一回事？当你念到“我们日用的饮食，天天赐给我们”的时候，你总加进去一点东西——但是我听不出究竟是什么。究竟是什么呢？你必须告诉我。’小姑娘一声不响，难为情地望着妈妈。‘除了说“我们每天的面包，您今天赐给我们”以外，你还加了些什么进去呢？’
"‘亲爱的妈妈，你别生气，’小姑娘说，‘我只是祈求在面包上多放点黄油！’"
（注：“我们日用的饮食，天天赐给我们”这句是引自《圣经·新约·路加福音》第１１章第３节。）
完 结
（１８４０—１８５５年）
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