ELIZABETH had the satisfaction of receiving an answer to her letter as soon as she possibly could. She was no sooner in possession of it than, hurrying into the little copse, where she was least likely to be interrupted, she sat down on one of the benches and prepared to be happy; for the length of the letter convinced her that it did not contain a denial.
伊麗莎白果然如愿以償，很快就接到了回信。她一接到信，就跑到那清靜的小樹林里去，在一張長凳上坐下來，準(zhǔn)備讀個痛快，因為她看到信寫得那么長，便斷定舅母沒有拒絕她的要求。

"Gracechurch-street, Sept. 6. MY DEAR NIECE, ---I have just received your letter, and shall devote this whole morning to answering it, as I foresee that a little writing will not comprise what I have to tell you. I must confess myself surprised by your application; I did not expect it from you. Don't think me angry, however, for I only mean to let you know that I had not imagined such enquiries to be necessary on your side. If you do not choose to understand me, forgive my impertinence. Your uncle is as much surprised as I am -- and nothing but the belief of your being a party concerned would have allowed him to act as he has done. But if you are really innocent and ignorant, I must be more explicit.
剛剛接到你的來信，我便決定以整個上午的時間來給你寫回信，因為我估料三言兩語不能夠把我要跟你講的話講個明白。我得承認(rèn)，你所提出的要求很使我詫異，我沒有料到提出這個要求的竟會是你。請你不要以為我這是生氣的話，我不過說，我實在想象不到你居然還要來問。如果你一定裝作聽不懂我的話，那只有請你原諒我失禮了。你舅父也跟我同樣地詫異，我們都認(rèn)為，達西所以要那樣做，完全是為了你的緣故。如果你當(dāng)真一點也不知道，那也只好讓我來跟你說說明白了。

On the very day of my coming home from Longbourn, your uncle had a most unexpected visitor. Mr. Darcy called, and was shut up with him several hours. It was all over before I arrived; so my curiosity was not so dreadfully racked as your seems to have been. He came to tell Mr. Gardiner that he had found out where your sister and Mr. Wickham were, and that he had seen and talked with them both; Wickham repeatedly, Lydia once. From what I can collect, he left Derbyshire only one day after ourselves, and came to town with the resolution of hunting for them. The motive professed was his conviction of its being owing to himself that Wickham's worthlessness had not been so well known as to make it impossible for any young woman of character to love or confide in him. He generously imputed the whole to his mistaken pride, and confessed that he had before thought it beneath him to lay his private actions open to the world. His character was to speak for itself. He called it, therefore, his duty to step forward, and endeavour to remedy an evil which had been brought on by himself. If he had another motive, I am sure it would never disgrace him.
就在我從浪搏恩回家的那一天，有一個意想不到的客人來見你舅父。那人原來就是達西先生，他跟你舅父關(guān)起門來，密談了好幾個鐘頭。等我到家的時候，事情已經(jīng)過去了，我當(dāng)時倒并沒有象你現(xiàn)在這樣好奇。他是因為發(fā)覺了你妹妹和韋翰的下落，特地趕來告訴嘉丁納先生一聲。他說，他已經(jīng)看到過他們，而且跟他們談過話──跟韋翰談過好多次，跟麗迪雅談過一次。據(jù)我看，我們離開德比郡的第二天，達西就動身趕到城里來找他們了。他說，事情弄到如此地步，都怪他不好，沒有及早揭露韋翰的下流品格，否則就不會有哪一位正派姑娘會把他當(dāng)作知心，會愛上他了。他概然引咎自責(zé)，認(rèn)為這次的事情都得怪他當(dāng)初太傲慢，因為他以前認(rèn)為韋翰的品格自然而然會讓別人看穿，不必把他的私人行為都一一揭露出來，免得使他自己有失體統(tǒng)，他認(rèn)為這都是他自己一手造成的罪惡，因此他這次出面調(diào)停，設(shè)法補救實在是義不容辭。他自己承認(rèn)他要干預(yù)這件事的動機就是如此。如果他當(dāng)真別有用心，也不會使他丟臉。