"I know not Lethe nor Nepenthe," remarked he; "but I have learned many new secrets in the wilderness, and here is one of them- a recipe that an Indian taught me, in requital of some lessons of my own, that were as old as Paracelsus. Drink it! It may be less soothing than a sinless conscience. That I cannot give thee. But it will calm the swell and heaving of thy passion, like oil thrown on the waves of a tempestuous sea."
“我不懂得什么迷魂湯或忘憂草之類的東西，”他說道，“但我在那些野蠻人中間學(xué)到了許多新訣竅，這里的就是其中一種——這是一個(gè)印第安人教給我的一種偏方，以報(bào)答我傳授給他的象巴拉塞爾蘇斯①那樣一些老掉牙的知識。喝下去吧！這藥也許不如一顆無罪的良心那樣讓人舒服。那種良心我可沒辦法給你。不過，這劑藥象是把油倒在暴風(fēng)雨掀起的海浪上，總可以平息你那澎湃翻騰的情欲?！?/div>

He presented the cup to Hester, who received it with a slow, earnest look into his face; not precisely a look of fear, yet full of doubt and questioning, as to what his purposes might be. She looked also at her slumbering child.
他把杯子端給海絲特，而她在接過杯子的時(shí)候，眼睛緩緩地打量著他的面孔，她的目光中說不上有什么恐懼，倒是充滿了懷疑和探究，想弄清他的目的何在。她接著又看了看她那熟睡的孩子。

"I have thought of death," said she- "have wished for it- would even have prayed for it, were it fit that such as I should pray for anything. Yet, if death be in this cup, I bid thee think again, ere thou beholdest me quaff it. See! It is even now at my lips."
“我想到過死，”她說，——“我巴不得去死——甚至還祈禱過上帝要我去死，如果我還能夠有所祈求的話。不過，要是這杯藥可以致我于死地，在你眼看著我一口吞下去之前，我請求你再想一想?？?！杯子已經(jīng)沾到我嘴唇了?！?/div>

"Drink, then," replied he, still with the same cold composure. "Dost thou know me so little, Hester Prynne? Are my purposes wont to be so shallow? Even if I imagine a scheme of vengeance, what could I do better for my object than to let thee live- than to give thee medicines against all harm and peril of life- so that this burning shame may still blaze upon thy bosom!" As he spoke, he laid his long forefinger on the scarlet letter, which forthwith seemed to scorch into Hester's breast, as if it had been red-hot. He noticed her involuntary gesture, and smiled. "Live, therefore, and bear about thy doom with thee, in the eyes of men and women- in the eyes of him whom thou didst call thy husband- in the eyes of yonder child! And, that thou mayest live, take off this draught."
“那就喝吧，”他回答著，依然冷酷如前，不動聲色?！半y道你這么不了解我嗎，海絲特·白蘭？我的目標(biāo)會如此淺薄嗎？即使我心里想著復(fù)仇的念頭，為了達(dá)到我的目標(biāo)；比起讓你活著——比起給你藥吃，讓你解除身體的危害——以便讓這灼熱的恥辱可以繼續(xù)燒燙你的胸膛，難道我還有什么更高明的作法嗎？”他一邊說著，一邊把長長的食指放到那紅字上，那字立刻火燒火燎地象是烙進(jìn)了海絲特的胸膛。他注意到她那不由自主的姿勢，微微一笑。“所以說，還是活下去吧，在男男女女的眼前，——在你確曾稱作丈夫的人眼前，——在這個(gè)孩子的眼前，承受你注定的命運(yùn)吧！那么，為了你可以活下去，把這藥吃下去?！?/div>?

Without further expostulation or delay, Hester Prynne drained the cup, and, at the motion of the man of skill, seated herself on the bed where the child was sleeping; while he drew the only chair which the room afforded, and took his own seat beside her. She could not but tremble at these preparations; for she felt that- having now done all that humanity, or principle, or, if so it were, a refined cruelty, impelled him to do, for the relief of physical suffering- he was next to treat with her as the man whom she had most deeply and irreparably injured.
海絲特·白蘭無需再聽勸告，也沒有再加拖延，使舉杯將藥一飲而盡，然后，按照這個(gè)手段高明的男人的示意，坐到了孩子睡著的床上；面他則拉過牢房中唯一的一把椅子，坐在她的旁邊。她面對這種種安排，不由得局身顫栗起來；因?yàn)樗杏X到——在完成這一切由人道或原則，或者，果真如此的話，由一種優(yōu)雅的殘忍迫使他做出這些解脫她肉體上痛苦的事情之后——下一步，他就要作為被她無可挽回地深深傷害了的人來對待她了。

①巴拉塞爾蘇斯(1493一1941)，瑞士的煉金術(shù)士和醫(yī)生。