诺贝尔文学经典:《宠儿》第5章Part 1

When they reached the woods it took her no time to find the path through it because big-cityrevivals were held there regularly now, complete with food-laden tables, banjos and a tent. The oldpath was a track now, but still arched over with trees dropping buckeyes onto the grass below.
There was nothing to be done other than what she had done, butSethe blamed herself for Baby Suggs' collapse. However many times Baby denied it, Sethe knewthe grief at 124 started when she jumped down off the wagon, her newborn tied to her chest in theunderwear of a whitegirl looking for Boston.
Followed by the two girls, down a bright green corridor of oak and horse chestnut, Sethe began tosweat a sweat just like the other one when she woke, mud-caked, on the banks of the Ohio.
Amy was gone. Sethe was alone and weak, but alive, and so was her baby. She walked a waysdownriver and then stood gazing at the glimmering water. By and by a flatbed slid into view, butshe could not see if the figures on it were whitepeople or not. She began to sweat from a fever shethanked God for since it would certainly keep her baby warm. When the flatbed was beyond hersight she stumbled on and found herself near three coloredpeople fishing — two boys and an olderman. She stopped and waited to be spoken to. One of the boys pointed and the man looked over hisshoulder at her — a quick look since all he needed to know about her he could see in no time.
Noone said anything for a while. Then the man said, "Headin' 'cross?"
"Yes, sir," said Sethe.
"Anybody know you coming?"

到达那片树林后，她没费一点时间就找到了穿行的小路，因为如今那里定期举行大城市信仰复兴活动，丰盛的餐桌、班卓琴、帐篷，一应俱全。过去的羊肠小道如今已经被踏成了一条路，不过仍然有繁茂的树在上面搭出拱顶，把橡子掉在下面的草叶上。
塞丝已经尽力而为了，可她还是不能不为贝比·萨格斯的崩溃而怪罪自己。尽管贝比一次次地否认，塞丝仍旧清楚地知道，124号的悲哀就是从那一刻开始的：她跳下大车，新生儿裹在一个寻找波士顿的白人姑娘的内衣里，系在她胸前。
领着两个姑娘，穿过了一道橡树和七叶树织成的明亮的绿色长廊，塞丝开始冒汗，那情形酷似另一次：她在俄亥俄河岸上汗津津地醒来，泥浆已经在她身上结了痂。
爱弥走了。塞丝孤单而虚弱，却还活着，她的婴儿也活着。她沿河向下游走了一段，然后站在那里，凝望着波光粼粼的河水。一只平底船不时划进视线，但她看不清站在上边的是不是白人。由于发烧，她开始出汗，也因此感谢上帝，因为这样当然能让她的婴儿暖和。她看不见平底船了，就跌跌撞撞地向前走去，发现自己走近了三个打鱼的黑人———两个男孩和一个男人。她停下来，等着他们跟她说活。一个男孩朝这边指了指，男人越过他的肩膀看了她一眼———不过是迅速的一瞥，因为他只需一眼就知道她究竟是怎么回事。
有一会儿工夫谁都没说话。然后男人道：“想过河吗？”
“是，先生。”塞丝说。
“有人知道你来吗？”