狄更斯雙語小說:《董貝父子》第42章Part1

Attired no more in Captain Cuttle's sable slops and sou'-wester hat, but dressed in a substantial suit of brown livery, which, while it affected to be a very sober and demure livery indeed, was really as self-satisfied and confident a one as tailor need desire to make, Rob the Grinder, thus transformed as to his outer man, and all regardless within of the Captain and the Midshipman, except when he devoted a few minutes of his leisure time to crowing over those inseparable worthies, and recalling, with much applauding music from that brazen instrument, his conscience, the triumphant manner in which he had disembarrassed himself of their company, now served his patron, Mr Carker. Inmate of Mr Carker's house, and serving about his person, Rob kept his round eyes on the white teeth with fear and trembling, and felt that he had need to open them wider than ever.
He could not have quaked more, through his whole being, before the teeth, though he had come into the service of some powerful enchanter, and they had been his strongest spells. The boy had a sense of power and authority in this patron of his that engrossed his whole attention and exacted his most implicit submission and obedience. He hardly considered himself safe in thinking about him when he was absent, lest he should feel himself immediately taken by the throat again, as on the morning when he first became bound to him, and should see every one of the teeth finding him out, and taxing him with every fancy of his mind. Face to face with him, Rob had no more doubt that Mr Carker read his secret thoughts, or that he could read them by the least exertion of his will if he were so inclined, than he had that Mr Carker saw him when he looked at him. The ascendancy was so complete, and held him in such enthralment, that, hardly daring to think at all, but with his mind filled with a constantly dilating impression of his patron's irresistible command over him, and power of doing anything with him, he would stand watching his pleasure, and trying to anticipate his orders, in a state of mental suspension, as to all other things.
Rob had not informed himself perhaps - in his then state of mind it would have been an act of no common temerity to inquire - whether he yielded so completely to this influence in any part, because he had floating suspicions of his patron's being a master of certain treacherous arts in which he had himself been a poor scholar at the Grinders' School. But certainly Rob admired him, as well as feared him. Mr Carker, perhaps, was better acquainted with the sources of his power, which lost nothing by his management of it.
On the very night when he left the Captain's service, Rob, after disposing of his pigeons, and even making a bad bargain in his hurry, had gone straight down to Mr Carker's house, and hotly presented himself before his new master with a glowing face that seemed to expect commendation.
'What, scapegrace!' said Mr Carker, glancing at his bundle 'Have you left your situation and come to me?'

磨工羅布不再穿卡特爾船長給他的黑色喪服，也不再戴那防水帽，而是穿上一套結實的、棕色的制服了；雖然這套制服在他身上表面上裝出很樸實、很端莊的樣子，但實際上卻顯出一副沾沾自喜、逞能自信的神態，這正是任何裁縫都願意把衣服做成這種氣派的；就這樣，磨工羅布完全改變了他的外觀；他在心裏也完全把船長和海軍軍官候補生拋開，只不過在閒暇的時候才花上幾分鐘向這些難以分開的、尊貴的朋友們誇耀一下自己的升遷，並在那黃銅樂器--他的良心--發出的讚揚的音樂的伴奏下，回憶起他是怎樣得意揚揚地擺脫了他們的；他現在爲他的恩人卡克先生服務。他住在卡克先生家裏，侍候着他本人，因此一直懷着恐懼的心情，哆哆嗦嗦地把他那圓圓的眼睛片刻不離地注視着卡克先生那雪白的牙齒，而且覺得，他應當把眼睛睜得比過去任何時候都更大才是。
即使他是在一位大巫士手下服務，牙齒又是這巫士最強有力的魔力的話，那麼他也不能比對着卡克先生這些牙齒，全身上下顫抖得更厲害的了。這孩子在他恩人身上感覺到一種力量和權威，它吸引了他的全部注意力，迫使他絕對地馴服與順從。甚至當他的恩人不在的時候，他也並不認爲他想到他時就安全無恙，因爲他唯恐他的恩人又會像他第一次見到他的那天早上一樣，立即就抓住他的喉嚨；他唯恐又會看到，他恩人的每一顆牙齒都來揭發他，並譴責他心中的每一個念頭。跟他恩人面對面在一起的時候，羅布毫不懷疑：卡克先生看透他的祕密的思想；或者更確切地說，如果卡克先生想要這樣做的話，那麼他只要稍稍運用一下他的意志，他就能看透它們；羅布完全相信這一點，就像他相信他在看卡克先生的時候，卡克先生一定在看他一樣。卡克先生凌駕於他的力量是這樣包羅一切，是這樣牢牢地把他置於他的控制之下，因此他根本連想也不敢去想，而只是在整個心裏不斷地愈益強烈地感覺到，他的恩人對他具有不可抗拒的權威，並有能力對他做任何事情，因此他就站着討取他的歡心，並設法搶先去執行他的命令，至於其他一切思想活動則完全停止了。
也許羅布沒有問過他自己--在他當時的心情下，提出這樣的問題將會是一件非常輕率的行爲--：他在各個方面都這樣完全屈服於這種影響，是不是因爲他在心中曾浮現過這樣的猜疑：他的恩人是奸詐權術的大師，而他自己在磨工學校中在這方面也曾經是一名可憐的學生。不過羅布不僅怕他，而且也的的確確欽佩他。也許卡克先生更瞭解他力量的源泉，並萬無一失地運用它。
羅布在辭退了船長那裏的職務的當天晚上，賣掉了鴿子，在匆匆忙忙之中甚至做了一筆不利的交易之後，就直接來到卡克先生的家裏，興奮地出現在他的新主人的面前；他滿臉通紅，似乎指望得到稱讚似的。
“怎麼，淘氣鬼！”卡克先生向他的包袱看了一眼，說道，”你已經辭退了你的工作，上我這裏來了？”