Introduction：Editha，a girl infatuated with passion for romance，urged her fiancée George into war despite his aversion for bloodshed。She intended to make George a better man，a perfect man according to her standard of man。It was her ideal belief of war that prompted her to do so。What would become of George was way beyond her imagination。
1 The air was thick with the war feeling，like the electricity of astorm which has not yet burst。Editha sat looking out into the hot spring afternoon，withher lips parted，and panting with the intensity of the question whether she could let him go。She had decided that she could not let him stay，when she saw himat the end of the still leafless avenue，making slowly up towards the house，with his head down and his figure relaxed。She ran impatiently out on the veranda，to the edge of the steps，and imperatively demanded greater haste of him with her will before she called aloud to him：“George！”
评注：埃蒂莎（Editha）这个名字在英文中常常和平凡、古旧，可爱但容易上当而又迟钝的女人联系在一起。本篇小说中女主人公叫这个名字也有一定的含义。埃蒂莎无法认清战争的本质，仅凭心目中的标准和报纸的宣传，就失去了是非标准，一步步地将乔治逼向战争。
2 He had quickened his pace in mystical response to her mystical urgence，before he could have heard hernow he looked up and answered，“Well？”
3 “Oh，how united we are！”she exulted，and then she swooped down the steps to him。“What is it？”she cried。
4 “It’s war，”he said，and he pulled her up to him and kissed her。
5 She kissed him back intensely，without consenting to her sense ofitand she did not know just what to think at first。She never knew what to think of himthat made his mystery，his charm。All through their courtship，which was contemporaneous with the growth of the war feeling，she had been puzzled by his want of seriousness about it。He seemed to despise it even more than he abhorred it。She could have understood his abhorring any sort of bloodshedthat would have been a survival of his old life when he thought he would be a minister，and before he changed and took up the law。But making light of a cause sohigh and noble seemed to show a want of earnestness at the core of his being。Not but that she felt herself able to cope with a congenital defect of that sort，and make his love for her save him from himself。Now perhaps the miracle was already wrought inhim。In the presence of the tremendous fact that he announced，all triviality seemed to have gone out of himshe began to feel that。He sank down on the top step，and wiped his forehead with his handkerchief，while she poured out upon himher question of the origin and authenticity of his news。
评注：第5段既简略地介绍了两人的关系，又表明了他们之间的爱情并非埃蒂莎想象中的那样完美，埃蒂莎因为乔治对于战争无所谓的态度略感遗憾，也为他们之间没有小说中骑士战胜重重困难最终赢得公主这类情节而不满。因此她鼓励他参战，也算是心理上骑士情结在作祟。她对战争报有崇高、浪漫而不切实际的幻想，和乔治的态度形成了鲜明的对比，作者虽然未直接批判，但态度在字里行间已表露无遗。
veranda：n。门廊
demand greater haste of him with her will：在意念中要他快一点
exult：v。欢欣鼓舞，洋洋得意
swoop：v。向下猛冲，用在这里很好地表达了女主人公欢快的心情
consent to：允许，同意
courtship：n。追求
was contemporaneous with：和……同时
abhor：v。讨厌，厌恶
bloodshed：n。流血
make light of：拿（重要的事情）开玩笑，不把……当一回事
want：n。want在这里是缺乏、匮乏的意思
cope with：应对，对付
congenital：adj。天生的，天性的
wrought：v。work古体的过去式和过去分词
triviality：n。琐事
authenticity：n。真实性6All the while，in her duplex emotioning，she was aware that now at the verybeginning she must put a guard upon herself against urging him，by any word or act，to take the part that her whole soul willed him to take，for the completionof her ideal of him。He was very nearly perfect as he was，and he must be allowed to perfect himself。But he was peculiar，and he might very well be reasoned out of his peculiarity。Before her reasoning went her emotioning：her nature pulling upon his nature，her womanhood upon his manhood，without her knowing the means she was using to the end she was willing。She had always supposed that the man who won her would have done something to win hershe did not know what，but something。George Gearson had simply asked her for her love，on the way home froma concert，and she gave her love to him，without，as it were，thinking。But now，it flashed upon her，if he could do something worthy to have won her be a hero，her hero it would be even better than if he had done it before asking herit would be grander。Besides，she had believed in the war from the beginning。
7 “But don’t you see dearest，”she said，“that it wouldn’t have come to this if it hadn’t been in the order of Providence？And I call any war glorious that is for the liberation of people who have been struggling for years against the cruelest oppression。Don’t you think so，too？”
8 “I suppose so，”he returned，languidly。“But wars！Is it gloriousto break the peace of the world？”
9 “That ignoble peace！It was no peace at all，with that crime andshame at our very gates。”She was conscious of parroting the current phrases of the newspapers，but it was no time to pick and choose her words。She must sacrifice anything to the high ideal she had for him，and after a good deal of rapid argument she ended with the climax：“But now it doesn’t matter about the how or why。Since the war has come，all that is gone。There are no two sides any more。There is nothing now but our country。”
10 He sat with his eyes closed and his head leant back against the veranda，and he remarked，with a vague smile，as if musing aloud，“Our country right or wrong。”
11 “Yes，right or wrong！”she returned fervidly。“I’ll go and get you somelemonade。”She rose rustling，and whisked awaywhen she came back with two tall glasses of clouded liquid on a tray，and the ice clucking in them，he still sat as she had left him，and she said，as if there had been no interruption：“But there is no question of wrong in this case。I call it a sacred war。A war of liberty and humanity，if ever there was one。And I know you will see it just as I do，yet。”
duplex：adj。双重的
put a guard against herself：防止自己做某事
flash upon：念头一闪而过
Providence：n。天意
languidly：adv。懒散地，缓慢地
fervidly：adv。热切地
lemonade：n。柠檬水
rustle：v。（树叶、衣物）等沙沙做响
whisk away：迅速地拿开，急速地送离
tray：n。托盘
cluck：v。发出咯咯声12He took half the lemonade at a gulp，and he answered as he set the glass down：“I know you always have the highest ideal。When I differ from you I oughtto doubt myself。”
13 A generous sob rose in Editha’s throat for the humility of a man，so very nearly perfect，who was willing to put himself below her。
14 Besides，she felt，more subliminally，that he was never so near slipping through her fingers as when he took that meek way。
15 “You shall not say that！Only，for once I happen to be right。”She seized his hand in her two hands，and poured her soul from her eyes into his。“Don’t you think so？”she entreated him。
16 He released his hand and drank the rest of his lemonade，and she added，“Have mine，too，”but he shook his head in answering，“I’ve no business to think so，unless I act so，too。”
17 Her heart stopped a beat before it pulsed on with leaps that she felt in her neck。She had noticed that strange thing in men：they seemed to feel bound todo what they believed，and not think a thing was finished when they said it，asgirls did。She knew what was in his mind，but she pretended not，and she said，“Oh，I am not sure，”and then faltered。
评注：作者在埃蒂莎和乔治的谈论中采用了大量的一般用于宗教场合的词语，相对于他们谈论的战争话题，形成了很浓的讽刺意味。
18 He went on as if to himself，without apparently heeding her：“There’s only one way of proving one’s faith in a thing like this。”
19 She could not say that she understood，but she did understand。
20 He went on again。“If I believed if I felt as you do about this war。Doyou wish me to feel as you do？”
21 Now she was really not sureso she said：“George，I don’t know whatyou mean。”
22 He seemed to muse away from her as before。“There is a sort of fascinationin it。I suppose that at the bottom of his heart every man would like at times to have his courage tested，to see how he would act。”
23 “How can you talk in that ghastly way？”
gulp：n。大口吞咽
subliminally：adv。崇高地，高尚地
meek：adj。温顺的，听话的
entreat：v。恳求，祈求
stop a beat：因为紧张或激动心脏停跳一拍
pulse on：脉搏继续跳动
heed：v。听见，听从
ghastly：adj。讨厌的，让人不愉快的24“It is rather morbid。Still，that’s what it comes to，unless you’re swept away by ambition or driven by conviction。I haven’t the conviction or the ambition，and the other thing is what it comes with me。I ought to have been a preacher，after allthen I couldn’t have asked it of myself，as I must，now I’m a lawyer。And you believe it’s a holy war，Editha？”he suddenly addressed her。“Oh，Iknow you do！But you wish me to believe so，too？”
25 She hardly knew whether he was mocking or not，in the ironical way he always had with her plainer mind。But the only thing was to be outspoken with him。
26 “George，I wish you to believe whatever you think is true，at any and every cost。If I’ve tried to talk you into anything，I take it all back。”
27 “Oh，I know that，Editha。I know how sincere you are，and how I wish I hadyour undoubting spirit！I’ll think it overI’d like to believe as you do。But I don’t，nowI don’t，indeed。It isn’t this war alonethough this seems peculiarly wanton and needlessbut it’s every war so stupidit makes me sick。Why shouldn’t this thing have been settled reasonably？”
28 “Because，”she said，very throatily again，“God meant it to be war。”
29 “You think it was God？Yes，I suppose that is what people will say。”
30 “Do you suppose it would have been war if God hadn’t meant it？”
31 “I don’t know。Sometimes it seems as if God had put this world into men’s keeping to work it as they pleased。”
32 “Now，George，that is blasphemy。”
33 “Well，I won’t blaspheme。I’ll try to believe in your pocket Providence，”he said，and then he rose to go。
34 “Why don’t you stay to dinner？”Dinner at Balcom’s Works was at one o’clock。
35 “I’ll come back to supper，if you’ll let me。Perhaps I shall bring youa convert。”
36 “Well，you may come back，on that condition。”
37 “All right。If I don’t come，you’ll understand。”
38 He went away without kissing her，and she felt it a suspension of theirengagement。It all interested her intenselyshe was undergoing a tremendous experience，and she was being equal to it。While she stood looking after him，her mother came out through one of the long windows onto the veranda，with a catlike softness and vagueness。
morbid：adj。病态的
outspoken：adj。坦率的，直言不讳的
wanton：adj。放肆的，恶意的
blasphemy：n。亵渎神灵
convert：n。改变
undergo：v。经历，遭受39“Why didn’t he stay to dinner？”
40 “Because because war has been declared，”Editha pronounced，without turning。
41 Her mother said，“Oh，my！”and then said nothing more until she had satdown in one of the large Shaker chairs and rocked herself for some time。Then she closed whatever tacit passage of thought there had been in her mind with the spoken words：“Well，I hope he won’t go。”
42 “And I hope he will，”the girl said，and confronted her mother with a stormy exaltation that would have frightened any creature less unimpressionable thana cat。
43 Her mother rocked herself again for an interval of cogitation。What shearrived at in speech was：“Well，I guess you’ve done a wicked thing，Editha Balcom。”
44 The girl said as she passed indoors through the same window her mother had come out by：“I haven’t done anything yet。”
45 In her room，she put together all her letters and gifts from Gearson，downto the withered petals of the first flower he had offered，withthat timidity of his veiled in that irony of his。In the heart of the packet she enshrined her engagement ring which she had restored to the pretty box he had brought it to her in。Then she sat down，if not calmly yet strongly，and wrote：
tacit passage of thought：tacit的意思是沉默寡言的，这句话也就是说她安静地思索了很多事情
exaltation：n。异常兴奋，洋洋得意
cogitation：n。深思熟虑
withered：adj。枯萎的
timidity：n。胆小，羞怯
enshrine：v。铭记，珍视46GEORGE：I understood when you left me。But I think we had better emphasize your meaning that if we cannot be one in everything we had better be one in nothing。So I am sending these gifts for your keeping till you have made up your mind。
I shall always love you，and therefore I shall never marry any one else。But the man I marry must love his country first of all，and be able to say to me，
‘I could not love thee，dear，so much，
Loved I not honor more。’
There is no honor above America with me。In this great hour there is no other honor。
Your heart will make my word clear to you。I had never expected to say so much，but it has come upon me that I must say the utmost。
EDITHA。
47 She thought she had worded her letter well，worded it in a way that could not be betteredall had been implied and nothing expressed。
48 She had it ready to send with the packet she had tied with red，white，andblue ribbon，when it occurred to her that she was not just to him，that she wasnot giving him a fair chance。He had said he would go and think it over，and she was not waiting。She was pushing，threatening，compelling。That was not a woman’s part。She must leave him free，free，free。She could not accept for her country or herself a forced sacrifice。
49 In writing her letter she had satisfied the impulse from which it sprangshe could well afford to wait till he had thought it over。She put the packet and the letter by，and rested serene in the consciousness of having done what was laid upon her by her love itself to do，and yet used patience，mercy，justice。
50 She had her reward。Gearson did not come to tea，but she had given him till morning，when，late at night there came up from the village the sound of a fife and drum，with a tumult of voices，in shouting，singing，and laughing。The noise drew nearer and nearerit reached the street end of the avenuethere it silenced itself，and one voice，the voice she knew best，rose over the silence。It fellthe air was filled with cheersthe fife and drum struck up，with the shouting，singing，and laughing again，but now retreatingand a single figure came hurrying up the avenue。
评注：乔治在半开玩笑半起哄的情况下参军，本身就是对战争的一种讽刺，和埃蒂莎对战争煞有介事的热情形成了鲜明对比。
51 She ran down to meet her lover and clung to him。He was very gay，and he put his arm round her with a boisterous laugh。“Well，you must call me Captain nowor Cap，if you preferthat’s what the boys call me。Yes，we’ve had a meetingat the town-hall，and everybody has volunteeredand they selected me for captain，and I’m going to the war，the big war，the glorious war，the holy war ordained by the pocket Providence that blesses butchery。Come alonglet’s tell the whole family about it。Call them from their downy beds，father，mother，Aunt Hitty，and all the folks！”
it occurred to her：她突然想到
serene：adj。平静的，安静的
fife：n。军中的横笛
tumult：n。混乱
gay：adj。欢乐的
boisterous：adj。喧闹的，活泼的
ordain：v。规定，判定（一般用于和宗教相关的场合）
butchery：n。残杀，屠杀
downy：adj。羽绒的52But when they mounted the veranda steps he did not wait for a larger audiencehe poured the story out upon Editha alone。
53 “There was a lot of speaking，and then some of the fools set up a shoutfor me。It was all going one way，and I thought it would be a good joke to sprinkle a little cold water on them。But you can’t do that with a crowd that adores you。The first thing I knew I was sprinkling hell-fire on them。‘Cry havoc，and let slip the dogs of war。’That was the style。Now that it had come to the fight，there were no two partiesthere was one country，and the thing was to fight to a finish as quick as possible。I suggested volunteering then and there，and I wrote my name first of all on the roster。Then they elected me that’s all。I wishI had some ice-water。”
54 She left him walking up and down the veranda，while she ran for the ice-pitcher and a goblet，and when she came back he was still walking up and down，shouting the story he had told her to her father and mother，who had come out more sketchily dressed than they commonly were by day。He drank goblet after goblet of the ice-water without noticing who was giving it，and kept on talking，and laughing through his talk wildly。“It’s astonishing，”he said，“how well the worsereason looks when you try to make it appear the better。Why，I believe I was thefirst convert to the war in that crowd to-night！I never thought I should liketo kill a manbut now I shouldn’t careand the smokeless powder lets you see the man drop that you kill。It’s all for the country！What a thing it is to havea country that can’t be wrong，but if it is，is right，any-way。”
55 Editha had a great，vital thought，an inspiration。She set down the ice-pitcher on the veranda floor，and ran up-stairs and got the letter she had writtenhim。When at last he noisily bade her father and mother，“Well，good-night。I forgot I woke you upI shan’t want any sleep myself，”she followed him down theavenue to the gate。There，after the whirling words that seemed to fly away from her thoughts and refuse to serve them，she made a last effort to solemnize themoment that seemed so crazy，and pressed the letter she had written upon him。
sprinkle：v。洒（小液滴），撒（小固体片）
havoc：n。大灾难，浩劫
pitcher：n。壶
goblet：n。无柄高脚杯
sketchily：adv。不完全地
inspiration：n。灵感
bade：v。bid的过去式，意思是向……问好56“What’s this？”he said。“Want me to mail it？”
57 “No，no。It’s for you。I wrote it after you went this morning。Keep itkeep it and read it sometime。”She thought，and then her inspiration came：“Readitif ever you doubt what you’ve done，or fear that I regret your having done it。Read it after you’ve started。”
58 They strained each other in embraces that seemed as ineffective as their words，and he kissed her face with quick，hot breaths that were so unlike him，that made her feel as if she had lost her old lover and found a stranger in his place。The stranger said：“What a gorgeous flower you are，with your red hair，andyour blue eyes that look black now，and your face with the color painted out bythe white moonshine！Let me hold you under the chin，to see whether I love blood，you tiger-lily！”Then he laughed Gearson’s laugh，and released her，scared and giddy。Within her wilfulness she had been frightened by a sense of subtler force in him，and mystically mastered as she had never been before。
59 She ran all the way back to the house，and mounted the steps panting。Her mother and father were talking of the great affair。Her mother said：“Wasn’tMr。Gearson in rather an excited state of mind？Didn’t you think he acted curious？”
60 “Well，not for a man who’d just been elected captain and had set’emup for the whole of Company A，”her father chuckled back。
61 “What in the world do you mean，Mr。Balcom？Oh！There’s Editha！”She offered to follow the girl indoors。
62 “Don’t come，mother！”Editha called，vanishing。
63 Mrs。Balcom remained to reproach her husband。“I don’t see much of anything to laugh at。”
64 “Well，it’s catching。Caught it from Gearson。I guess it won’t be muchof awar，and I guess Gearson don’t think so，either。The other fellows will back down as soon as they see we mean it。I wouldn’t lose any sleep over it。I’m going back to bed，myself。”
65 Gearson came again next afternoon，looking pale and rather sick，but quitehimself，even to his languid irony。“I guess I’d better tell you，Editha，thatI consecrated myself to your god of battles last night by pouring too many libations to him down my own throat。But I’m all right now。One has to carry off theexcitement，somehow。”
66 “Promise me，”she commanded，“that you’ll never touch it again！”
67 “What！Not let the cannikin clink？Not let the soldier drink？Well，I promise。”
评注：这一句话引用自莎士比亚的《奥赛罗》。原文如下：“And let me the cannikin clink，clink，/A soldier’s a man，/Oh，man’s life’s but a span/Why，then，leta soldier drink。”乔治说这句话，也更加表明人生苦短，而战士更可能随时丧生，因此战士饮酒，及时行乐，是应该的。这里使用这句话，表明乔治对战争的清醒认识。他不像埃蒂莎那样对战争有理想化的幻想。这句话的言外之意也预示着乔治参军后的可能结局。
68 “You don’t belong to yourself nowyou don’t even belong to me。You belongto your country，and you have a sacred charge to keep yourself strong and well for your country’s sake。I have been thinking，thinking all night and all day long。”
69 “You look as if you had been crying a little，too，”he said，with his queer smile。
70 “That’s all past。I’ve been thinking，and worshipping you。Don’t yousuppose I know all that you’ve been through，to come to this？I’ve followed you every step from your old theories and opinions。”
71 “Well，you’ve had a long row to hoe。”
tiger-lily：n。虎皮百合，也称卷丹。这是一种艳丽的花，给人的感觉带有攻击性，乔治用它来指埃蒂莎，其中自有深意
consecrate：v。宣布（某人）为主教等。这也是一个惯常用于宗教场合的词
libation：n。祭酒（通常用于宗教场合）
cannikin：n。一种饮酒的器具
hoe：v。用锄头锄72“And I know you’ve done this from the highest motives……”
73 “Oh，there won’t be much pettifogging to do till this cruel war is……”
74 “And you haven’t simply done it for my sake。I couldn’t respect you ifyou had。”
75 “Well，then we’ll say I haven’t。A man that hasn’t got his own respect intact wants the respect of all the other people he can corner。But we won’t go into that。I’m in for the thing now，and we’ve got to face our future。My idea isthat this isn’t going to be a very protracted strugglewe shalljust scare the enemy to death before it comes to a fight at all。But we must provide forcontingencies，Editha。If anything happens to me—”
76 “Oh，George！”She clung to him，sobbing。
77 “I don’t want you to feel foolishly bound to my memory。I should hate that，wherever I happen to be。”
78 “I am yours，for time and eternity time and eternity。”She liked the wordsthey satisfied her famine for phrases。
pettifogging：adj。过分关注细节的，吹毛求疵的
intact：adj。完整的
corner：v。使……陷入难以逃脱的境地
protracted：adj。延长的，拖延的
provide for contingencies：provide for 意思是为……准备，contingency意思是可能发生的意外之事
eternity：n。永恒
famine：n。饥荒，匮乏79“Well，say eternitythat’s all rightbut time’s another thingand I’m talking about time。But there is something！My mother！If anything happens—”
80 She winced，and he laughed。“You’re not the bold soldier-girl of yesterday！”Then he sobered。“If anything happens，I want you to help my mother out。She won’t like my doing this thing。She brought me up to think war a fool thing as well as a bad thing。My father was in the Civil War，all through itlost his armin it。”She thrilled with the sense of the arm round herwhat if that should be lost？He laughed as if divining her：“Oh，it doesn’t run in the family，as faras I know！”Then he added gravely：“He came home with misgivings about war，andthey grew on him。I guess he and mother agreed between them that I was to be brought up in his final mind about itbut that was before my time。I only knew him from my mother’s report of him and his opinionsI don’t know whether they were hers firstbut they were hers last。This will be a blow to her。I shall have to write and tell her—”
81 He stopped，and she asked：“Would you like me to write，too，George？”
82 “I don’t believe that would do。No，I’ll do the writing。She’ll understanda little if I say that I thought the way to minimize it was to make war on the largest possible scale at once that I felt I must have been helping on the war somehow if I hadn’t helped keep it from coming，and I knew I hadn’twhen it came，I had no right to stay out of it。”
83 Whether his sophistries satisfied him or not，they satisfied her。She clung to his breast，and whispered，with closed eyes and quivering lips：“Yes，yes，yes！”
84 “But if anything should happen，you might go to her and see what you could do for her。You know？It’s rather far offshe can’t leave her chair—”
85 “Oh，I’ll go，if it’s the ends of the earth！But nothing will happen！Nothing can！I—”
86 She felt herself lifted with his rising，and Gearson was saying，with his arm still round her，to her father：“Well，we’re off at once，Mr。Balcom。We’re to be formally accepted at the capital，and then bunched up withthe rest somehow，and sent into camp somewhere，and got to the front as soon as possible。We all want to be in the van，of coursewe’re the first company to report to the Governor。I came to tell Editha，but I hadn’t got round to it。”
评注：埃蒂莎因为乔治父亲在战争中失去了一条手臂而心神不宁，她对战争后果最残酷的认识也不过如此，因此，当乔治因为小规模的冲突就丧命的事实让她大受打击。一方面，她没想到他真的会死；另一方面，乔治又并非因为大规模的战争为国捐躯，她又不能按照自己的想象为战争英雄坚贞地守候。
87 She saw him again for a moment at the capital，in the station，just beforethe train started southward with his regiment。He looked well，in his uniform，and very soldierly，but somehow girlish，too，with his clean-shaven face and slim figure。The manly eyes and the strong voice satisfied her，and his preoccupation with the some unexpected details of duty flattered her。Other girls were weeping and bemoaning themselves，but she felt a sort of noble distinction in the abstraction，the almost unconsciousness，with which they parted。Only at the last moment he said：“Don’t forget my mother。It mayn’t be such a walk-over as I supposed，”and he laughed at the notion。
wince：v。表示痛苦、沮丧或尴尬（尤指面部表情）
sober：v。使……变得严肃，严谨
run in the family：家族遗传
misgiving：n。疑虑，担忧
sophistry：n。诡辩
quiver：v。颤抖
bunch up：聚成堆
get round to：终于去做（一直打算做的事情）
regiment：n。（军队的）团
preoccupation：n。全神贯注
bemoan：v。抱怨，叹息
walk-over：n。轻而易举取得的胜利88He waved his hand to her as the train moved off she knew it among a score of hands that were waved to other girls from the platform of the car，for it held a letter which she knew was hers。Then he went inside the car to read it，doubtless，and she did not see him again。But she felt safe for him through the strength of what she called her love。What she called her God，always speaking the name in a deep voice and with the implication of a mutual understanding，would watch over him and keep him and bring him back to her。If with an empty sleeve，then he should have three arms instead of two，for both of hers should be his for life。She did not see，though，why she should always be thinking of the arm his father had lost。
89 There were not many letters from him，but they were such as she could havewished，and she put her whole strength into making hers such as she imagined hecould have wished，glorifying and supporting him。She wrote to his mother glorifying him as their hero，but the brief answer she got was merely to the effect that Mrs。Gearson was not well enough to write herself，and thanking her for her letter by the hand of someone who called herself“Yrs truly，Mrs。W。J。Andrews。”
90 Editha determined not to be hurt，but to write again quite as if the answer had been all she expected。Before it seems as if she could have written，therecame news of the first skirmish，and in the list of the killed，which was telegraphed as a trifling loss on our side，was Gearson’s name。There was a frantic time of trying to make out that it might be，must be，some other Gearsonbut thename and the company and the regiment and the State were too definitely given。
91 Then there was a lapse into depths out of which it seemed as if she never could rise againthen a lift into clouds far above all grief，black clouds，that blotted out the sun，but where she soared with him，with George George！She had the fever that she expected of herself，but she did not die in itshe was noteven delirious，and it did not last long。When she was well enough to leave herbed，her one thought was of George’s mother，of his strangely worded wish thatshe should go to her and see what she could do for her。In the exaltation of theduty laid upon her it buoyed her up instead of burdening her she rapidly recovered。
skirmish：n。小规模战争，小规模冲突
trifling：adj。微不足道的
frantic：adj。发疯似的，情绪失控的
make out：了解
company：n。军队编制中的连
soar：v。猛升，骤增
delirious：adj。精神错乱的
buoy up：振奋……的精神92Her father went with her on the long railroad journey from northern NewYork to western Iowahe had business out at Davenport，and he said he could just as well go then as any other timeand he went with her to the little country town where George’s mother lived in a little house on the edge of the illimitablecornfields，under trees pushed to a top of the rolling prairie。George’s fatherhad settled there after the Civil War，as so many other old soldiers had donebut they were Eastern people，and Editha fancied touches of the East in the June rose overhanging the front door，and the garden with early summer flowers stretching from the gate of the paling fence。
93 It was very low inside the house，and so dim，with the closed blinds，thatthey could scarcely see one another：Editha tall and black in her crapes whichfilled the air with the smell of their dyesher father standingdecorously apart with his hat on his forearm，as at funeralsa woman rested in a deep armchair，and the woman who had let the strangers in stood behind the chair。
评注：dye和die同音，作者在这里使用了双关的手法（pun），渲染了死亡的气氛。
94 The seated woman turned her head round and up，and asked the woman behind her chair：“Who did you say？”
95 Editha，if she had done what she expected of herself，would have gone downon her knees at the feet of the seated figure and said，“I am George’s Editha，”for answer。
96 But instead of her own voice she heard that other woman’s voice，saying：“Well，I don’t know as I did get the name just right。I guess I’ll have to makea little more light in here，”and she went and pushed two of the shutters ajar。
illimitable：adj。无边无际的
prairie：n。草原
crape：n。表示哀悼的黑纱
dye：n。染料，颜料
decorously：adv。得体地
shutter：n。百叶窗
ajar：adj。（门）半开的97Then Editha’s father said，in his public will-now-address-a-few-remarks tone：“My name is Balcom，ma’am Junius H。Balcom，of Balcom’s Works，New York：my daughter—”
98 “Oh！”the seated woman broke in，with a powerful voice，the voice thatalways surprised Editha from Gearson’s slender frame。“Let me see you。Stand roundwhere the light can strike on your face，”and Editha dumbly obeyed。“So，you’reEditha Balcom，”she sighed。
99 “Yes，”Editha said，more like a culprit than a comforter。
100 “What did you come for？”Mrs。Gearson asked。
101 Editha’s face quivered and her knees shook。“I came because because George”She could go no further。
102 “Yes，”the mother said，“he told me he had asked you to come if he got killed。You didn’t expect that，I suppose，when you sent him。”
103 “I would rather have died myself than done it！”Editha said，withmore truth in her deep voice than she ordinarily found in it。“I tried to leave him free—”
104 “Yes，that letter of yours，that came back with his other things，left him free。”
105 Editha saw now where George’s irony came from。
106 “It was not to be read before unless until I told him so，”she faltered。
107 “Of course，he wouldn’t read a letter of yours，under the circumstances，till he thought you wanted him to。Been sick？”the woman abruptly demanded。
108 “Very sick。”Editha said，with self-pity。
109 “Daughter’s life，”her father interposed，“was almost despaired of，at one time。”
110 Mrs。Gearson gave him no heed。“I suppose you would have been glad to die，such a brave person as you！I don’t believe he was glad to die。He was always atimid boy，that wayhe was afraid of a good many thingsbut if he was afraid he did what he made up his mind to。I suppose he made up his mind to go，but I knew what it cost him by what it cost me when I heard of it。I had been through one war before。When you sent him you didn’t expect he would get killed。”
111 The voice seemed to compassionate Editha，and it was time。“No，”she huskily murmured。
112 “No，girls don’twomen don’t，when they give their men up to their country。They think they’ll come marching back，somehow，just as gay as they went，orif it’s an empty sleeve，or even an empty pantaloon，it’s all the more glory，and they’re so much the prouder of them，poor things！”
culprit：n。罪犯，在这里culprit和comforter押头韵（alliteration）
interpose：v。插话
give him no heed：不听他的话
huskily：adv。声音沙哑地
pantaloon：n。裤子113 The tears began to run down Editha’s faceshe had not wept till thenbut it was now such a relief to be understood that the tears came。
评注：乔治母亲的一段话也清楚地表明了作者的反战立场。她的悲痛不仅仅因为战争夺取了自己的孩子，更因为战争意味着面对面的杀戮。她不愿自己的儿子去屠杀别人的儿子，因此她的反战立场更高。她也一针见血地指出，埃蒂莎的悲恸是自私的、狭隘的甚至虚伪的。
114 “No，you didn’t expect him to get killed，”Mrs。Gearson repeated，in a voice which was startlingly like George’s again。“You just expected him to kill someone else，some of those foreigners，that weren’t there because they had any sayabout it，but because they had to be there，poor wretches conscripts，or whatever they call’em。You thought it would be all right for my George，your George，to kill the sons of those miserable mothers and the husbands of those girls thatyou would never see the faces of。”The woman lifted her powerful voice in a psalmlike note。“I thank my God he didn’t live to do it！I thank my God they killedhim first，and that he ain’t livin’with their blood on his hands！”She droppedher eyes，which she had raised with her voice，and glared at Editha。“What yougot that black on for？”She lifted herself by her powerful arms so high that herhelpless body seemed to hang limp its full length。“Take it off，take it off，before I tear it from your back！”
115 The lady who was passing the summer near Balcom’s Works was sketching Editha’s beauty，which lent itself wonderfully to the effects of a colorist。It hadcome to that confidence which is rather apt to grow between artist and sitter，and Editha told her everything。
116 “To think of your having such a tragedy in your life！”the lady said。She added：“I suppose there are people who feel that way about war。But when you consider the good this war has done how much it has done for the country！I can’t understand such people，for my part。And when you had come all the way out there to console her got up out of a sick-bed！Well！”
117 “I think，”Editha said，magnanimously，“she wasn’t quite in her right mindand so did papa。”
118 “Yes，”the lady said，looking at Editha’s lips in nature and then at her lips in art，and giving an empirical touch to them in the picture。“But how dreadful of her！How perfectly excuse me how vulgar！”
119 A light broke upon Editha in the darkness which she felt had been without a gleam of brightness for weeks and months。The mystery that had bewildered her was solved by the wordand from that moment she rose from grovelling in shame and self-pity，and began to live again in the ideal。
conscript：n。应征入伍者
psalmlike：adj。圣歌般的
sketch：v。素描
lend to：添加……的特质
apt to：倾向于做某事
console：v。安慰
magnanimously：adv。宽宏大量地
empirical：adj。以经验为依据的
grovel：v。（因有求于人）卑躬屈膝
Comprehension Exercises
1 。What’s the essence of the relationship between George and Editha？
2 。The author had elaborated on Editha’s preference for sentimentalstories。What’s the function of such an arrangement？
3 。Pay special attention to the vocabulary used in the story and youwill find a lot of religious jargon。What effect will it have on the reader？
W·D·豪威尔斯（1837—1920）：美国著名的小说家、文学评论家，曾在《大西洋月刊》等著名杂志担任编辑。他认为小说的主要作用是教诲读者而不是用于娱乐，因此他反对当时盛行的浪漫主义文风，提倡现实主义的写作技巧。这一主张在本篇小说中也有所体现。