狄更斯雙語小說:《董貝父子》第22章Part 8

'He has been a little wild, Sir,' returned Polly, checking the baby, who was making convulsive efforts with his arms and legs to launch himself on Biler, through the ambient air, 'and has gone with wrong companions: but I hope he has seen the misery of that, Sir, and will do well again.'
Mr Carker looked at Polly, and the clean room, and the clean children, and the simple Toodle face, combined of father and mother, that was reflected and repeated everywhere about him - and seemed to have achieved the real purpose of his visit.
'Your husband, I take it, is not at home?' he said.
'No, Sir,' replied Polly. 'He's down the line at present.'
The prodigal Rob seemed very much relieved to hear it: though still in the absorption of all his faculties in his patron, he hardly took his eyes from Mr Carker's face, unless for a moment at a time to steal a sorrowful glance at his mother.
'Then,' said Mr Carker, 'I'll tell you how I have stumbled on this boy of yours, and who I am, and what I am going to do for him.'
This Mr Carker did, in his own way; saying that he at first intended to have accumulated nameless terrors on his presumptuous head, for coming to the whereabout of Dombey and Son. That he had relented, in consideration of his youth, his professed contrition, and his friends. That he was afraid he took a rash step in doing anything for the boy, and one that might expose him to the censure of the prudent; but that he did it of himself and for himself, and risked the consequences single-handed; and that his mother's past connexion with Mr Dombey's family had nothing to do with it, and that Mr Dombey had nothing to do with it, but that he, Mr Carker, was the be-all and the end-all of this business. Taking great credit to himself for his goodness, and receiving no less from all the family then present, Mr Carker signified, indirectly but still pretty plainly, that Rob's implicit fidelity, attachment, and devotion, were for evermore his due, and the least homage he could receive. And with this great truth Rob himself was so impressed, that, standing gazing on his patron with tears rolling down his cheeks, he nodded his shiny head until it seemed almost as loose as it had done under the same patron's hands that morning.
Polly, who had passed Heaven knows how many sleepless nights on account of this her dissipated firstborn, and had not seen him for weeks and weeks, could have almost kneeled to Mr Carker the Manager, as to a Good Spirit - in spite of his teeth. But Mr Carker rising to depart, she only thanked him with her mother's prayers and blessings; thanks so rich when paid out of the Heart's mint, especially for any service Mr Carker had rendered, that he might have given back a large amount of change, and yet been overpaid.
As that gentleman made his way among the crowding children to the door, Rob retreated on his mother, and took her and the baby in the same repentant hug.
'I'll try hard, dear mother, now. Upon my soul I will!' said Rob.
'Oh do, my dear boy! I am sure you will, for our sakes and your own!' cried Polly, kissing him. 'But you're coming back to speak to me, when you have seen the gentleman away?'
'I don't know, mother.' Rob hesitated, and looked down. 'Father - when's he coming home?'
'Not till two o'clock to-morrow morning.'

“他有些頑皮，先生，”波利回答道，一邊制止住伸手伸腳，想通過周圍的空氣向拜勒撲過去的嬰孩，“又交上了壞朋友，不過，我希望他吃過那種苦頭以後，又會重新變好的。”
卡克先生看了看波利，看了看清潔的房間、清潔的孩子和那兼有父親和母親的特徵、在他周圍處處重複出現的、純樸的圖德爾式的臉孔。
“我想您的丈夫不在家吧？”他問道。
“是的，先生。”波利回答道，“他現在在鐵路線上。”
浪子羅布聽到這句話，似乎大大地鬆了口氣，雖然他仍和先前一樣把注意力集中在恩人身上，除了向母親偷偷地投去悲傷的眼光外，眼睛幾乎沒有離開過卡克先生的臉孔。
“那麼，”卡克先生說道，“我就跟您說說，我是怎麼碰見您這個兒子的，我是什麼人以及我打算爲他做什麼事。”
卡克先生按照他自己的方式敘述了這一切；他說，羅布放肆地闖到董貝父子公司附近一帶地方來，他本打算因爲這個原因讓他的頭吃上無數苦頭的。但考慮到他年輕，又已經表示悔恨，又考慮到他的親屬，所以他寬大爲懷，不再追究。他擔心他爲了幫助這個孩子採取了一個輕率的步驟，這會引起那些謹小慎微的人們對他進行指責，但是他還是獨自決定這樣做了，由他本人承擔風險，並由他獨自對後果負責。羅布母親過去和董貝先生家庭的關係與這毫無關係；董貝先生與這毫無關係；所有這一切全都是由他，卡克先生一手操辦，全都是他一個人作出決定的。他把他做了好事的功勞全都歸屬於他自己；全家在場的人也全都同樣把功勞歸屬於他。卡克先生間接地，但卻仍相當明白無誤地表示，羅布對他應絕對忠誠，死心塌地，不懷二心；這應當永遠是羅布應盡的本分，也是卡克至少應當受到的尊敬。羅布本人對這個偉大的真理深刻領會，他站在那裏望着恩人，眼淚滾滾流下臉頰，不住地點着閃閃發亮的頭，直到它似乎就要從肩膀上脫落下來，就像當天早上在這同一個恩人的手下的情形一樣。
波利曾經爲了她這個遊蕩不正的大兒子度過了天老爺才知道有多少個不眠的夜晚，她也已有好幾個星期沒有見到他的面了，所以她現在幾乎可以像跪在善良的天神面前一樣，跪在經理卡克先生的面前，不顧他的牙齒如何。但是卡克先生站起身來要走，因此她只是用母親的祈禱和祝福來感謝他；她對他千謝萬謝，句句出自內心，對卡克先生所做的好事，更是感恩戴德；即使卡克先生沒有把這些感謝全部領受過去，他所帶走的也還是大大超過他所應得的。
當這位先生從擁擠的孩子們中間打開道路走向門口的時候，羅布往回跑到母親跟前，悔恨萬分地把她和她手中的嬰兒一起緊緊地抱住。
“我現在將好好努力，親愛的媽媽；我憑良心發誓，我一定會的！”羅布說道。
“啊，努力吧，我親愛的孩子！我相信你會的，爲了我們，也爲了你自己！”波利吻着他說道，“可是你把這位先生送走了以後是不是還回來跟我說話呢？”
“我不知道，媽媽，”羅布低垂着眼睛，遲疑不定地說道，“爸爸——什麼時候回家？”
“總得到夜裏兩點鐘以後。”