小公主英語怎麼讀

Little Women 小婦人

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About the Author

Louisa May Alcott was born in Germantown， Pennsylvania in 1832。 She was the second of four daughters。 Her father was a teacher and he gave her lessons at home。

路易莎·梅·奧爾科特於1832年出生於賓夕法尼亞州的日耳曼敦。她是四個女兒中的老二。她的父親是一名教師，他在家給她上課。

The Alcott family often moved house when Louisa was growing up， but Alcott‘s happiest years were in the small town of Concord， Massachusetts。 Little Women is set in the Alcott family home there。

路易莎成長過程中，奧爾科特一家經常搬家，但奧爾科特最快樂的時光是在馬薩諸塞州的小鎮康科德度過的。《小婦人》的故事發生在奧爾科特一家的家中。

Alcott started work when she was still young because the family wasn’t rich。 She did many jobs including teaching and dressmaking， but she wanted to be a writer。 Her first published work was a poem in 1852。 This was the beginning of her writing career。

奧爾科特很小的時候就開始工作，因為家裡並不富裕。她做過很多工作，包括教學和服裝製作，但她想成為一名作家。她在1852年發表的第一部作品是一首詩。這是她寫作生涯的開始。

In 1861 the American Civil War started。 Alcott wanted to help so she went to Washington to work as a nurse。

1861年，美國內戰爆發。奧爾科特想要幫忙，所以她去了華盛頓當護士。

After the war Alcott spent a year in Europe as the companion of an invalid。 While they were in Switzerland， she had a short love affair with a Polish soldier， Ladislas Wisniewski。 She later used him as the model for Laurie in Little Women， which was published in 1868。The book was an instant success so she wrote a sequel。 She then wrote two more books about the March family： Little Men （1871） and Jo‘s Boys （1886）。

戰爭結束後，奧爾科特作為一個病人的伴侶在歐洲呆了一年。他們在瑞士的時候，她和一個名叫拉迪斯拉斯·維希涅夫斯基的波蘭士兵有過一段短暫的戀情。後來，她以他為原型，在1868年出版的《小婦人》中扮演勞裡。這本書一出版就大獲成功，所以她又寫了續集。之後，她又寫了兩本關於馬奇一家的書：《小男人》（1871）和《喬的男孩》（1886）。

Alcott never married and she died at the age of 56 in Boston。

奧爾科特從未結婚，56歲時在波士頓去世。

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About the Book

關於這本書

Little Women

is set in New England during the American Civil War（1861-65）。 The novel follows the lives of the four March sisters -Meg， Jo， Beth， and Amy- and is based on the author’s own experiences of growing up with her three sisters。

《小婦人》以美國內戰（1861-65）期間的新英格蘭為背景。這部小說講述了馬奇家的四姐妹——梅格、喬、貝絲和艾米的生活，並根據作者自己和她的三姐妹一起成長的經歷寫成。

The main theme in the story is the importance of family。 Other themes include the need to work and self-improvement。

這個故事的主題是家庭的重要性。其他主題包括工作和自我提高的需要。

When the story begins the sisters are complaining because they are poor and have to work。 Their mother says that they mustn‘t spend money on pleasure because there is a war and everybody must help。 Their father is in the army。 In the letters their father sends home he tells his daughters to work hard and not to waste their time。 They must try to accept the bad things in their lives and stay cheerful。 He wants to be proud of them when he comes home。 The girls decide to make an effort to improve themselves because they love and miss their father very much。

故事開始時，姐妹們在抱怨，因為她們很窮，必須工作。他們的母親說他們不應該把錢花在享樂上，因為有一場戰爭，每個人都必須幫忙。他們的父親在軍隊裡。在父親寄回家的信中，他告訴女兒們要努力工作，不要浪費時間。他們必須努力接受生活中不好的事情，並保持樂觀。當他回家的時候，他想以他們為榮。女孩們決定努力提高自己，因為她們非常愛和想念她們的父親。

Alcott was interested in women’s rights and， through the four March sisters， she explores four different ways of being a woman in those days。 Meg leaves the family to get married and have a new family。 Beth devotes herself to looking after her own family。 Amy focuses on herself and her own pleasure。 And Jo， like Alcott herself， tries to have a career in writing and care for her family at the same time。

奧爾科特對婦女權利很感興趣，透過馬奇四姐妹，她探索了當時作為一個女人的四種不同方式。梅格離開家去結婚，有了一個新的家庭。貝絲致力於照顧自己的家庭。艾米只關注她自己和她自己的快樂。和奧爾科特一樣，喬也在努力從事寫作工作，同時照顧家人。

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1 THE MARCH SISTERS

1馬奇姐妹

It was December and the snow was falling quietly outside。 The four March sisters were sitting around the fire in the parlor。 They were knitting socks for soldiers。 There was a war and everyone had to help。

12月，外面正下著雪。馬奇四姐妹圍坐在客廳的火爐旁。他們在為士兵織襪子。有一場戰爭，每個人都得幫忙。

Meg was the oldest of the four sisters。 She was sixteen。 She was very pretty and she loved pretty clothes。 Jo was fifteen。 She was very tall and thin。 She was different from Meg。 She didn‘t care about dresses or hairstyles。 She was a tomboy。 Beth was thirteen。 She was very shy and quiet and she seemed to live in a happy world of her own。 The youngest， Amy， looked like a snow princess with her blue eyes and blonde hair。 She loved beautiful things and she was a little vain。 She also thought that she was a very important person。

梅格是四姐妹中最大的。她十六歲。她很漂亮，她喜歡漂亮的衣服。喬是十五歲。她又高又瘦。她和梅格不一樣。她不在乎衣服和髮型。她是個假小子。貝絲13歲。她很害羞，很安靜，似乎生活在自己的幸福世界裡。最小的艾米長著一雙藍眼睛和一頭金髮，看上去就像一位白雪公主。她喜歡美麗的東西，有點愛慕虛榮。她還認為自己是一個非常重要的人。

’Christmas isn‘t Christmas without any presents，’ Jo said sadly。

“沒有禮物聖誕節就不是聖誕節，”喬憂傷地說。

‘I hate being poor！’Meg said， looking at her old dress。

“我討厭貧窮！”梅格看著她的舊衣服說。

‘Some girls have lots of nice things， and other girls have nothing at all，’ said Amy。 ‘I don’t think it‘s fair。’

“有些女孩有很多好東西，有些女孩什麼都沒有，”艾米說。“我認為這不公平。”

‘But we’ve got Father and Mother， and each other，‘ said Beth。 The four sisters looked happy for a moment when they remembered this。

“但是我們有爸爸媽媽，還有彼此，”貝絲說。四姐妹想起了這一點，一時顯得很高興。

Then Jo said， ’But we haven‘t got Father。’

然後喬說：“可我們沒有爸爸呀。”

Their smiles suddenly disappeared。 Mr March was far away with the soldiers。

他們的笑容突然消失了。馬奇先生和士兵們在很遠的地方。

‘Mother says our men are suffering and we mustn’t spend money for pleasure，‘ Meg said。 ’That‘s why we can’t have presents this year。‘

“媽媽說我們的男人在受苦，我們不能花錢尋歡作樂，”梅格說。“這就是我們今年不能收到禮物的原因。”

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’Well， each of us has a dollar to spend，‘ said Jo。 ’What can the army do with four dollars？ Nothing！ I don‘t expect anything from Mother but I’d like to buy a book for myself。‘ Jo loved reading and she had a passion for books。

“好吧，我們每人有一美元，”喬說。“軍隊用四塊錢能做什麼？沒有什麼！我不指望從媽媽那裡得到什麼，但我想給自己買本書。”喬喜歡讀書，她酷愛讀書。

’I want to spend mine on some new music，‘ said Beth。 She played the piano and she loved singing。

“我想把我的錢花在買些新音樂上，”貝絲說。她彈鋼琴，她喜歡唱歌。

I’m going to buy a box of drawing pencils。 I really need them，‘ said Amy。 She wanted to be an artist。

我打算買一盒繪畫鉛筆。“我真的需要它們，”艾米說。她想成為一名藝術家。

’Mother didn‘t say anything about spending our own money，’ cried Jo。 ‘We work hard for it so let’s buy what we want and have a little fun。‘

“媽媽沒說過要花我們自己的錢，”喬嚷道。“我們努力工作，所以讓我們買我們想要的東西，找點樂子。”

It was true。 The two older sisters had jobs。 Meg worked as a teacher for the King family and Jo looked after Aunt March， their father’s rich， bad-tempered old aunt。 Beth and Amy helped with the housework。

這是真的。兩個姐姐都有工作。梅格在金家當教師，喬照顧馬奇姑姑，他們父親富有的、壞脾氣的老姑姑。貝絲和艾米幫著做家務。

Just then the clock struck six。 Beth got up and put her mother‘s slippers near the fire to warm。

就在這時，鐘敲了六下。貝絲站起來，把媽媽的拖鞋放在火邊取暖。

’Those slippers are very old，‘ said Jo。’ Mother needs some new ones。‘

“那些拖鞋很舊了，”喬說。“媽媽需要一些新的。”

’I can buy a pair for her with my dollar，‘ said Beth。

“我可以用我的錢給她買一雙，”貝絲說。

’No， I‘m the oldest，’ Meg said。 ‘I want to buy the slippers for her。’

“不，我最大，”梅格說。“我想給她買拖鞋。”

‘No， it’s my job，‘ said Jo。 ’Father told me to take care of Mother while he was away。‘

“不，這是我的工作，”喬說。“爸爸要我在他不在的時候照顧媽媽。”

’I have an idea，‘ said Beth。 ’Let‘s not spend our money on ourselves。 Let’s get some presents for Mother。‘

“我有個主意，”貝絲說。“我們不要把錢花在自己身上。我們給媽媽買些禮物吧。”

Her sisters thought that this was a very good idea。

她的姐妹們認為這是一個非常好的主意。

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’I‘m going to give her a pair of gloves，’ said Meg looking at her own pretty hands。 They were small and white。 ‘And you， Jo？’

“我打算給她一副手套，”梅格看著自己漂亮的手說。它們又小又白。“而你，喬？”

‘Some new slippers！’ cried Jo。

“一些新拖鞋！”喬喊道。

‘I’m going to make her some handkerchiefs，‘ said Beth quietly。

“我想給她做一些手帕，”貝絲平靜地說。

’And I‘m going to give her a bottle of perfume，’ said Amy。

“我還要給她買瓶香水，”艾米說。

They all agreed to go shopping for the presents the next day。

他們都同意第二天去買禮物。

What does “But we haven‘t got Father” mean？

How much money do they have for presents？

What does “she had a passion for books” mean？

What presents will each of them buy for their mom？

At that moment a happy voice called， ’Hello， my dears！‘ It was Mrs March。 The girls jumped up and ran to the front door。

這時一個幸福的聲音喊道：“你們好，親愛的！”是馬奇太太。女孩們跳起來跑到前門。

While she was taking off her wet cloak and shoes and putting on the warm slippers， Mrs March talked to her daughters about their day。

馬奇太太一邊脫下溼斗篷和鞋子，換上暖和的拖鞋，一邊和她的女兒們談論這一天的事情。

’How is your cold， Meg？ Jo， you look tired。 Did anyone call today， Beth？ Amy， baby， come and give me a kiss。‘

“你感冒怎麼樣了，梅格？”喬，你看起來很累。今天有人打電話來嗎，貝絲？艾米，寶貝，過來吻我一下。”

Then the girls quickly prepared the table for the evening meal and they all sat down to eat。 There was a happy smile on Mrs March’s face。

然後，女孩們很快地準備好了桌子，大家都坐下來吃晚飯。馬奇太太的臉上露出了幸福的微笑。

‘I’ve got a surprise for you after supper，‘ she said。

“晚飯後我有個驚喜要給你，”她說。

’Hooray！‘ shouted Beth。 ’A letter from Father！‘

“萬歲！”“貝絲喊道。“父親的來信！”

’Yes！‘ said Mrs March。 ’A nice long letter。‘

“是的！馬奇太太說。“一封漂亮的長信。”

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The letter was very cheerful and full of interesting descriptions of life in the army。 At the end of the letter there was a special message for the girls。 He told them to be good to their mother and to work hard。 He wanted to be proud of them when he came back。 The girls cried when their mother read the last part because they loved and missed their father a lot。 They wanted to make him happy so each one made a promise to be a better person in the future。

信中內容很愉快，而且充滿了關於軍隊生活的有趣描述。在信的結尾有一封特別寫給女孩們的信。他告訴他們要對媽媽好，要努力工作。當他回來的時候，他想以他們為榮。當她們的母親讀到最後一部分時，女孩們哭了，因為她們非常愛和想念她們的父親。她們想讓他開心，所以每個人都承諾將來會成為一個更好的人。

Before they went to bed， Beth played some songs on the old piano in the parlor and they all sang。

睡覺前，貝絲在客廳的那架舊鋼琴上彈了幾首歌，大家都唱了起來。

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2 A MERRY CHRISTMAS

2聖誕快樂

Jo was the first to wake up on Christmas morning。 When her sisters were awake too， they all went down to the kitchen。 Their mother wasn’t there but Hannah， their servant， was。

聖誕節早晨，喬是第一個醒來的。姐妹們也醒了，她們都下樓到廚房去了。他們的母親不在，但他們的僕人漢娜在。

‘Your mother went out early，’ she said。 ‘A poor boy came to the door asking for food。 She was sorry for him and she wanted to help him。 She went to see his family。’

“你媽媽很早就出去了，”她說。“一個窮孩子到門口討吃的。她為他感到難過，想幫助他。她去看他的家人了。”

While they were waiting for their mother to come back， the girls put their presents for her in a basket。 Soon they heard the sound of a key in the front door。

在等媽媽回來的時候，女孩們把送給她的禮物放在一個籃子裡。不久，他們聽到了用鑰匙開啟前門的聲音。

‘Mother’s here！‘ cried Jo。’ Hide the basket behind the sofa！ Quick！“

“母親在這裡！”喬喊道。“把籃子藏在沙發後面！快！”

Then they all rushed into the hall to greet their mother。

然後他們都衝進大廳去迎接他們的母親。

‘Merry Christmas， Mother！’ they cried。

“媽媽，聖誕快樂！”他們嚷道。

‘Merry Christmas， little daughters！’ Mrs March said in her happy voice。 She hugged them all and kissed them。 Then she suddenly became very serious。

“聖誕快樂，孩子們！”馬奇太太用快樂的聲音說。她擁抱他們，親吻他們。然後她突然嚴肅起來。

‘Come and sit down， girls。 I want to say something before we start breakfast。’

“姑娘們，過來坐下。吃早飯前我有話要說。”

They all sat down at the breakfast table and Mrs March continued。

他們都坐在早餐桌旁，馬奇太太繼續說。

‘I went to see a poor woman this morning。 Her name is Mrs Hummel。 She lives near here in one room with her seven children。 One of them is only a baby。 They are cold and hungry because they don’t have a fire or any food。 The oldest boy came to ask me for help。 Girls， can we give them our breakfast as a Christmas present？‘

“今天早晨我去看了一個可憐的女人。她的名字是哈梅爾夫人。她和七個孩子住在附近的一個房間裡。其中一個還只是個嬰兒。他們又冷又餓，因為他們沒有火，也沒有任何食物。最大的男孩來找我幫忙。孩子們，我們能把我們的早餐送給他們做聖誕禮物嗎？”

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The sisters looked at the good food on the table。 They were all hungry。 For a minute nobody spoke。 Then Jo said， ’I‘m so glad you came back before we started eating， Mother！’

姐妹倆看著桌上豐盛的食物。他們都餓了。有一分鐘沒有人說話。然後喬說：我很高興你在我們開始吃飯之前回來，媽媽！”

Meg put the bread on a big plate without saying anything。

梅格什麼也沒說就把麵包放在一個大盤子裡。

‘Can I help carry the things to the poor children？’ asked Beth。

“我能幫著把東西拿給那些可憐的孩子們嗎？”貝絲問。

‘I want to take the cream and the muffins，’ said Amy。 They were her favorite things。

“我想帶上奶油和鬆餅，”艾米說。那是她最喜歡的東西。

Mrs March smiled。

馬奇太太笑了。

‘Let’s all go together，‘ she said。

“我們一起走吧，”她說。

The girls and Hannah put on their hats and cloaks and they went out into the snowy street。

姑娘們和漢娜戴上帽子，穿上斗篷，走到白雪覆蓋的街道上。

They were shocked when they saw the Hummels’ room。 The window was broken and there was no fire。 It was very cold。 Mrs Hummel， the baby and a group of pale children were trying to keep warm under one old blanket。 The children‘s eyes opened wide and their blue lips smiled when they saw the girls。 Mrs Hummel cried with joy。

當他們看到哈梅爾家的房間時，都驚呆了。窗戶被打破了，也沒有生火。天氣很冷。哈梅爾太太、嬰兒和一群臉色蒼白的孩子在一條舊毯子下面取暖。當孩子們看到女孩們時，他們的眼睛睜得大大的，藍色的嘴唇露出了微笑。哈梅爾太太高興得叫了起來。

Hannah made a fire and put her own cloak over the broken window。 The girls put the food on the table and soon the children were eating it hungrily。 Mrs March gave the mother some hot soup and dressed the little baby。

漢娜生了火，把自己的斗篷罩在破窗戶上。女孩們把食物放在桌子上，很快孩子們就狼吞虎嚥地吃了起來。馬奇太太給了母親一些熱湯，並給嬰兒穿好衣服。

’Angels！ You‘re angels！’ Mrs Hummel called to them as they left。 That Christmas morning the girls had bread and milk for breakfast but they weren‘t sad。

“天使！”你是天使！他們離開時，哈梅爾太太對他們喊道。那個聖誕節的早晨，女孩們早餐吃的是麵包和牛奶，但她們並不悲傷。

’I‘m glad that we helped those poor people，’ said Meg。 ‘It was the right thing to do。’

“我很高興我們幫助了那些窮人，”梅格說。“這麼做是正確的。”

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After breakfast the girls gave their mother her Christmas presents。 They explained the reason for each one and there was a lot of laughing and kissing。 Mrs March immediately put some perfume on one of the handkerchiefs and put it into her pocket。 Then she put on the slippers and the gloves。

早飯後，姑娘們把聖誕禮物送給了母親。他們解釋了每一個原因，大家笑了起來，親吻了起來。馬奇太太立即在一塊手帕上塗了些香水，放進了口袋。然後她穿上拖鞋和手套。

‘Perfect！’ she said。

“完美！”她說。

The girls spent the rest of the day preparing a play。 The sisters often performed plays for their friends and they were very good at making costumes and props。

女孩們用那天剩下的時間準備一齣戲。這對姐妹經常為她們的朋友表演戲劇，她們非常擅長製作服裝和道具。

A dozen girls arrived about six o‘clock and took their places on the bed in the big bedroom。 The play was a great success。 Everybody enjoyed it very much。 The girls were still laughing and clapping when Hannah came in and said， ’Supper is ready。‘

大約六點鐘，十幾個姑娘到了，她們在大臥室的床上就座。這齣戲非常成功。每個人都很喜歡。姑娘們還在鼓掌大笑，這時漢娜走了進來，說：“晚飯準備好了。”

A surprise was waiting for them on the dining room table-dishes of ice cream， pink and white， fresh fruit， cakes and real French chocolates。 And in the middle of all this delicious food there were four vases of beautiful flowers。 The girls couldn’t believe their eyes。

一個驚喜在餐廳裡等著他們，盤子裡有冰激凌，粉色和白色的，新鮮的水果，蛋糕和真正的法國巧克力。在所有這些美味的食物中間有四瓶美麗的花。女孩們簡直不敢相信自己的眼睛。

‘Did the fairies bring the supper？’ asked Amy。

“仙女們帶來晚餐了嗎？”艾米問。

‘No！ Santa Claus brought it，’ said Beth。

“不！是聖誕老人帶來的，”貝絲說。

‘Mother did it，’ Meg said。

“是媽媽做的，”梅格說。

‘No！ Aunt March sent it！’ cried Jo。

“不！馬奇太太送來的！”喬喊道。

‘You are all wrong，’ said Mrs March。 ‘Old Mr Laurence sent it。’

“你們都錯了，”馬奇太太說。“是勞倫斯老先生送來的。”

Write a short description of a special meal that you and your family have。 Say when and why you have it and what you eat and drink。

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‘The Laurence boy’s grandfather！‘ exclaimed Meg。 ’Why did he do that？ We don‘t know him！’

“勞倫斯男孩的爺爺！”梅格喊道。“他為什麼要那樣做？”我們不認識他！”

‘Hannah told one of his servants the story of the Hummels。 Mr Laurence was sorry to hear about your poor Christmas breakfast so he decided to give you a surprise。’

漢娜把哈梅爾一家的故事告訴了他的一個僕人。勞倫斯老先生聽說你可憐的聖誕早餐很難過，所以他決定給你一個驚喜。”

‘My mother says he’s very proud，‘ said one of the girls at the table。’ She says that he doesn‘t like mixing with his neighbors。 His grandson has to stay in the house and study all day。 We invited him to a party once， but he didn’t come。 He‘s very shy。’

“我媽媽說他很驕傲，”餐桌上的一個女孩說。她說他不喜歡和鄰居們混在一起。他的孫子不得不整天呆在家裡學習。我們曾邀請他參加一次聚會，但他沒來。他很害羞。”

‘I’m going to talk to him one day，‘ said Jo。 ’He needs to have some fun。 I‘m going to invite him to our next play！’

“有一天我會跟他說的，”喬說。他需要找點樂子。我還要邀請他來看我們下一場戲！”

Page 22

3 THE LAURENCE BOY

3勞倫斯家的男孩

‘Jo！ Jo！ Where are you？’Meg shouted from the bottom of the stairs。

“喬！喬！你在哪裡？”梅格在樓梯底下喊道。

‘I’m in the attic！‘ answered Jo。 She was sitting on an old sofa next to a small window。 This was her favorite place in the house。 She went there to be alone and to read。 When Meg appeared， she closed her book and looked up。

“我在閣樓上！”喬回答說。她坐在一扇小窗旁的一張舊沙發上。這是她最喜歡的地方。她去那裡是為了獨處和讀書。梅格出現時，合上書抬起頭來。

’We have an invitation from Mrs Gardiner to a dance on New Year‘s Eve！’ cried Meg excitedly。 ‘Oh dear！ What am I going to wear？ ’

“加德納太太請我們參加新年夜的舞會！”梅格興奮地叫道。“哦，親愛的！我穿什麼好呢？”

‘Your old cotton dress is alright，’ replied Jo。 ‘You can wear that。’

“你的舊棉連衣裙挺好的，”喬回答。“你可以穿著它。”

‘I’d love to have a silk dress，‘ said Meg sadly。 ’Mother says I can have one when I‘m eighteen。 But it’s a very long time to wait。‘

“我很想有一件絲綢連衣裙，”梅格悲哀地說。“媽媽說我十八歲時可以有一個。但要等很長時間。”

On New Year’s Eve， Beth and Amy helped their older sisters get ready for the party。 The girls looked very nice in their simple dresses。 Meg‘s was a silver color and Jo’s was dark red。 Meg borrowed her mother‘s pearl pin to decorate her dress。 Jo put a flower on hers。

新年前夜，貝絲和艾米幫助她們的姐姐為晚會做準備。女孩們穿著簡單的連衣裙看起來很漂亮。梅格的連衣裙是銀色的，而喬的則是深紅色。梅格借了她母親的珍珠別針來裝飾她的連衣裙。喬在她的連衣裙上放了一朵花。

’Have a good time， my dears！‘ said Mrs March。 ’Don‘t eat too much， and come home at eleven。’

“玩得開心點，親愛的！”馬奇太太說。“別吃太多，11點回家。”

They were closing the garden gate when their mother cried from a window， ‘Girls！ Have you both got clean handkerchiefs？’

他們正關著花園的門，母親從視窗叫道：“姑娘們！你們倆都有乾淨手帕嗎？”

‘Yes， yes。 And Meg put some perfume on hers，’ cried Jo， and she and Meg laughed all the way to the Gardiners‘ house。

“是的，是的。梅格還在她的手帕上抹了些香水，”喬叫道，她和梅格在去加德納家的路上一路笑著。

Page 23

When they arrived they were feeling a bit shy because they didn’t often go to parties。 But soon some girls started talking to Meg， and then some boys asked her to dance。 Jo stood on her own at one end of the room。 She didn‘t like talking to girls。 A group of boys near her was talking about ice-skating。 She wanted to join them but it wasn’t polite for a girl to talk about sport with boys。 She began to feel bored。 Then a boy with red hair started to walk towards her。 Suddenly she felt very shy。

當他們到達時，他們感到有點害羞，因為他們不經常參加聚會。但很快一些女孩開始和梅格說話，然後一些男孩請她跳舞。喬獨自站在房間的一頭。她不喜歡和女孩子說話。她身邊的一群男孩正在談論滑冰。她想加入他們，但一個女孩和男孩談論運動是不禮貌的。她開始感到無聊。然後一個紅頭髮的男孩開始向她走來。她突然感到很害羞。

‘Oh， no！’ she thought。 ‘He’s going to ask me to dance。‘

“哦，不！”她想。“他要請我跳舞了。”

What kind of parties do you go to？

Are your parties different from this one？

Why？

She looked around for a hiding place。 There was a large heavy curtain behind her。 She lifted it quickly and slipped behind it。 When the curtain dropped， she found herself face to face with the ’Laurence boy‘！

她四處尋找藏身之處。她身後有一個又大又沉的帷幕。她迅速提起它，溜到它後面。帷幕落下後，她發現自己正面對著“勞倫斯家的男孩”！

She turned red with embarrassment。

她窘得滿臉通紅。

’Sorry！‘ she said。 ’I didn‘t know that you were here。’

“對不起！”她說。“我不知道你在這兒。”

She started to leave but the boy laughed and said in a pleasant voice， ‘Stay if you like。 Don’t worry about me。 I only came here because I don‘t know many people。 I was bored。’

她準備離開，但男孩笑了，並用愉快的聲音說：“你願意就留下吧。”別為我擔心。我來這裡只是因為我認識的人不多。我是無聊。”

‘I was， too。’

“我也是。”

Jo tried to be polite and relaxed。

喬儘量表現得禮貌而輕鬆。

Page 24

‘You live near us， don’t you？‘ she said。 ’I saw you the other day。‘

“你住在我們附近，是不是？”她說。“前幾天我還看見你的。”

’Yes。 Next door。‘

“是的。隔壁。”

And then they both laughed。

然後他們都笑了。

’We had a good time at Christmas。 Thank you for your nice Christmas present。‘

“聖誕節我們玩得很開心。謝謝你漂亮的聖誕禮物。”

’Grandfather sent it。‘

“爺爺寄的。”

’But you gave him the idea， didn‘t you， Mr Laurence？’

“可那是你給他出的主意，是嗎，勞倫斯老先生？”

‘I’m not Mr Laurence， Miss March。 I‘m only Laurie。’

“我不是勞倫斯老先生，馬奇小姐。我叫勞裡。”

‘And I am not Miss March。 I’m only Jo，‘ she replied。

“我也不是馬奇小姐。我叫喬，”她回答。

Soon they forgot their shyness and were chatting happily about Laurie’s travels to foreign countries。 They began to feel like old friends。

很快他們就忘記了羞澀，愉快地聊著勞裡的國外之行。他們開始覺得像老朋友了。

Then Laurie asked Jo to dance。 He taught her a new German dance and they had a lot of fun。 Laurie was a good dancer。 Laurie was telling Jo about a students‘ festival in Heidelberg when she suddenly saw Meg。 Her sister was sitting on a sofa and holding her foot。 She looked pale。 Jo immediately went to see what was wrong。

然後勞裡請喬跳舞。他教她一種新的德國舞蹈，他們玩得很開心。勞裡舞跳得很好。勞里正在給喬講在海德堡舉行的學生節，這時她突然看見了梅格。她姐姐坐在沙發上，抱著她的腳。她看起來蒼白。喬馬上去看是怎麼回事。

’It‘s my ankle，’ said Meg。 ‘That stupid high heel on my shoe broke。 I can’t stand or walk very well。 How am I going to get home？‘

“我的腳踝受傷了，”梅格說。“我鞋上那愚蠢的高後跟壞了。我不能很好地站立或行走。我怎麼回家啊？”

Jo went outside and looked for a carriage but there weren’t any。

喬出去找馬車，可是找不到。

‘You can have my grandfather’s carriage，‘ said Laurie。

“你可以用我爺爺的馬車，”勞裡說。

’But it‘s still early！’ said Jo。 ‘Do you really want to go home now？’

“可現在時間還早！”喬說。“你真想現在回家嗎？”

‘Oh， yes，’ replied Laurie。 ‘I always leave parties early。’

“哦，是的，”勞裡回答。“我總是早早地離開派對。”

So Jo accepted his kind offer because it was an emergency。 Then they went to find Meg。

所以喬接受了他的好意因為情況緊急。然後他們去找梅格。

Page 25

When they arrived at the Marches‘ house， Jo and Meg thanked Laurie and said goodnight。 They opened the front door very quietly but Beth and Amy were still awake。

他們來到馬奇家時，喬和梅格向勞裡道謝並道了晚安。他們輕輕地開啟前門，但貝絲和艾米還沒睡。

’Tell us about the party！‘ they cried from the top of the stairs。

“給我們講講舞會的事！”他們在樓梯頂上叫道。

Jo and Meg described the most exciting moments of the evening and then the two younger sisters went to bed happily。

喬和梅格描述了當晚最激動人心的時刻，然後兩個妹妹高高興興地去睡覺了。

Later Jo put a bandage on Meg’s foot and brushed her sister‘s hair。 ’Thank you， Jo，‘ Meg said。 ’I feel like a real lady。‘

後來喬給梅格的腳纏上繃帶，又給她姐姐梳頭。“謝謝你，喬，”梅格說。“我覺得自己像個真正的淑女。”

’We don‘t have silk dresses and beautiful shoes，’ said Jo。 ‘But I’m sure that we enjoy ourselves as much as real ladies do。‘

“我們沒有絲綢裙子和漂亮的鞋子，”喬說。“不過我敢肯定，我們像真正的貴婦人一樣玩得很開心。”

Page 26

4 GOOD NEIGHBORS

4好鄰居

The Marches’ house was between two large houses。 On one side there was an old brown house。 On the other side there was a large stone mansion。 This was the home of old Mr Laurence and his grandson， Laurie。 It was a very grand house and the rooms looked very comfortable behind the heavy silk curtains at the windows。 But it was a house without life。 The Marches‘ house was different。 It was always busy and full of noise and people。

馬奇家的房子在兩幢大房子之間。一邊是一座棕色的老房子。對面是一座巨大的石頭豪宅。這是勞倫斯老先生和他孫子勞裡的家。這是一所非常豪華的房子，窗戶上厚重的絲綢窗簾後面的房間看上去非常舒適。但這是一座沒有生命的房子。馬奇家的房子就不同了。它總是很繁忙，充滿了噪音和人群。

A few days after the party Jo saw Laurie again。 He was standing at an upstairs window in the mansion and looking down at their garden。 Beth and Amy were playing in the snow。 They were throwing snowballs and having a lot of fun。 Laurie’s face was very sad。

聚會後的幾天，喬又見到了勞裡。他站在豪宅樓上的一個視窗，俯視著他們的花園。貝絲和艾米在雪裡玩。他們在扔雪球，玩得很開心。勞裡的臉很悲傷。

‘Poor boy！’ she thought。 ‘He’s all alone。 It‘s a shame！ He needs some friends。’ She couldn‘t stop thinking about him。 She wanted to go and see him but how could she go to his house without an invitation？

“可憐的孩子！”她想。“他是獨自一人。這是一件遺憾的事！他需要一些朋友。”她情不自禁想起了他。她很想去看看他，可是沒有得到邀請，她怎麼能去他家呢？

Then one snowy afternoon， while she was looking out of the window， she saw Mr Laurence。 He was getting into his carriage。 He was going out。 This gave her an idea。

然後在一個下雪的下午，她往窗外看時，看到了勞倫斯老先生。他正在上他的馬車。他要出去。這給了她一個主意。

’Laurie is alone in the house，‘ she thought。 ’Perhaps he‘s looking out of his window。’

“勞裡一個人在房子裡，”她想。“也許他正往窗外看呢。”

She put on her hat and an old coat and took a broom and a shovel from the kitchen。

她戴上帽子，穿上一件舊外套，從廚房裡拿出一把掃帚和一把鐵鍬。

Page 27

‘What are you going to do， Jo？’ asked Meg when she saw her sister in the hall。

“你打算幹什麼，喬？”梅格在大廳看見她妹妹時問道。

‘I want to get some exercise，’ answered Jo with a smile。 ‘I’m going to clear the garden path。‘

“我想鍛鍊身體，”喬笑著回答。“我要清掃花園小路。”

Laurie was standing at the window again。 He wasn’t looking at her so she threw a snowball to get his attention。 When the snow hit the glass， he turned his head immediately and a big smile changed his pale， sad face。

勞裡又站在窗前。他沒有看她，所以她扔雪球來引起他的注意。當雪打在玻璃上時，他立刻轉過頭來，一個大大的微笑改變了他蒼白、悲傷的臉。

Jo laughed and shouted， ‘How are you？ Are you ill？’

喬笑著嚷道：“你怎麼樣？你生病了嗎？”

Laurie opened the window and said， ‘I’m better now， thank you。 I had a bad cold and I had to stay inside for a week。‘

勞裡開啟窗戶說：“我現在好多了，謝謝你。”我得了重感冒，不得不在屋裡呆了一個星期。”

Page 28

’I‘m sorry，’ said Jo。 ‘Are you bored？’

“對不起，”喬說。“你很無聊嗎？”

‘Yes， very，’ he replied。

“是的，非常，”他回答。

‘Don’t your friends come to visit you？‘

“你的朋友們不來看你嗎？”

’No。 But I don‘t want to see anybody。 Boys are noisy and they give me a headache。’

“沒有。但我誰也不想見。男孩子們太吵了，他們讓我頭疼。”

‘Girls are quiet。’

“女孩安靜。”

‘I don’t know any girls。‘

“我不認識女孩子。”

’You know us。‘

“你知道我們。”

’That‘s true！ Can you come and visit me？’ cried Laurie。 ‘Please！’

“這是真的！你能來看我嗎？”勞裡喊道。“請！”

I‘m not quiet but I’d like to come，‘ replied Jo。 ’But I must ask Mother first。‘

“我不安靜，可我願意來，”喬回答。“但我得先問問媽媽。”

She picked up her broom and ran into the house。

她拿起掃帚跑進了房子。

Which of the following words can be used to describe Jo？

□ shy□ lonely □ lovely □ talkative

Why should Laurie stay inside for a week？

How did Jo get Laurie’s attention when she wanted to help him？

A few minutes later she returned and rang the bell on the door of the mansion。 A servant answered it and took her upstairs。

幾分鐘後，她回來了，按了按豪宅的門鈴。一個僕人接了，把她帶到樓上。

‘Here I am！’ she said brightly。 ‘Mother sends her love and Meg gave me this blancmange for you。’

“我在這裡！ ”她歡快地說。“媽媽給了她的愛，梅格給了我這個牛奶凍，都給你。”

‘That looks delicious，’ Laurie said。 He was very happy to see Jo。

“看起來很好吃，”勞裡說。他很高興看到喬。

Page 29

‘Please sit down，’ Laurie said and pointed to a comfortable armchair。

“請坐，”勞裡說，指著一張舒服的扶手椅。

Jo looked around。 There were lots of books on the shelves。

喬看了看四周。書架上有很多書。

‘What a cozy room！’ she said。 ‘I can read to you if you like。’

“多舒服的房間啊！”她說。“如果你願意，我可以讀給你聽。”

‘No， let’s talk，‘ replied Laurie。

“不，讓我們談談，”勞裡回答。

’Alright，‘ said Jo。 ’I can talk for hours。 Beth says I never know when to stop。‘

“好吧，”喬說。“我能講上幾個小時。貝絲說我總是不知道什麼時候該停下來。”

’Which sister is Beth？ Does she sometimes carry a brown basket when she goes out？‘ asked Laurie。

“哪個妹妹是貝絲？”她出去的時候有時會提一個棕色的籃子嗎？”勞裡問。

’Yes。 She‘s very shy。 She doesn’t go out much。 She loves being at home。‘

“是的。她很害羞。她不常出去。她喜歡待在家裡。”

’And Meg is very pretty and Amy has lovely blonde hair，‘ Laurie continued。

“梅格很漂亮，艾米有可愛的金髮，”勞裡接著說。

’Yes！‘ said Jo in a surprised voice。 ’How do you know that？‘

“是的！”喬驚訝地說道。“你怎麼知道的？”

’You call each other‘s names when you are in the garden。 I can hear you from my room。 Sometimes you forget to close the curtains and I can see you all around the table with your mother。 She has a very kind face。 I like looking at her。 I haven’t got a mother， you know。‘

“你們在花園裡互相稱呼對方的名字。我在房間裡就能聽到你的聲音。有時你忘了拉上窗簾，我能看到你和你媽媽坐在桌子周圍。她有一張非常和善的臉。我喜歡看她。你知道，我沒有媽媽。”

Jo felt sad when she heard this。

喬聽了這些話感到很難過。

’Why don‘t you come and visit us？’ she said suddenly。 ‘It isn’t good for you to stay in this house all the time。‘

“你為什麼不來看看我們呢？”她突然說。“你老是呆在這個房子裡對你不好。”

’Thank you。 I‘d like to come very much，’ said Laurie。 ‘We know all our neighbors except you，’ Jo said。 ‘I’m glad we‘re friends now。’

“謝謝你。“我很想來，”勞裡說。“除了你，我們都認識我們的鄰居，”喬說。“我很高興我們現在是朋友。”

She told him about all the interesting things in her life - her plays， her plans and her passion for books。 Laurie loved books too， and offered to show her the library in the house。

她告訴他她生活中所有有趣的事情 — 她的戲劇，她的計劃和她對書籍的熱愛。勞裡也喜歡書，主動向她展示家裡的圖書館。

Page 30

The library was a wonderful room。 Jo loved it。

圖書館是一個漂亮的房間。喬愛它。

‘How marvelous！’ she sighed。 ‘All those books！’

“真了不起！”她嘆了口氣。“所有這些書！”

‘A person needs more than books，’ said Laurie。

“一個人需要的不只是書，”勞裡說。

Just then the bell rang and a maid came in。

正在這時鈴響了，一個女僕走了進來。

‘The doctor is here to see you， sir，’ she said。

“醫生來看您了，先生，”她說。

‘I’m sorry， Jo， but I must see him，‘ said Laurie。 ’Wait for me here， please。‘

“對不起，喬，我必須見他，”勞裡說。“請在這兒等我。”

Page 31

He went away and Jo walked around the room。 She was standing in front of a portrait of old Mr Laurence when she heard a sound behind her。 She thought it was Laurie so she said， ’I like him。 He‘s got kind eyes， but he isn’t as handsome as my grandfather。‘

他走了，喬在房間裡踱來踱去。她正站在勞倫斯老先生的畫像前，突然聽到身後有聲音。她以為是勞裡，就說：“我喜歡他。他有一雙和善的眼睛，但他沒有我爺爺英俊。”

’Thank you， ma‘am，’ said a deep voice。 She turned round quickly。 Old Mr Laurence was standing near the door。

“謝謝您，夫人，”一個深沉的聲音說。她很快轉過身來。勞倫斯老先生站在門邊。

‘So I am not as handsome as your grandfather？’

“所以我不如你爺爺英俊？”

‘No， sir，’ she replied。 Her face was red。

“沒有，先生，”她回答。她的臉漲紅了。

‘But you like me anyway？’

“可你還是喜歡我？”

‘Yes， I do， sir。’

“是的，先生。”

The old gentleman laughed and said， ‘Your grandfather was a good man， my dear。 He was also a brave and an honest one， and I was proud to be his friend。’

老先生笑著說：“你的爺爺是個好人，親愛的。他也是一個勇敢而誠實的人，我很自豪能成為他的朋友。”

‘Thank you， sir。’

“謝謝你，先生。”

Jo began to feel less shy。

喬開始覺得不那麼害羞了。

‘I came to see Laurie， sir。 I saw him at the window。 He looked very sad and I wanted to cheer him up。’

“我來見勞裡，先生。我在視窗看見他。”他看起來很傷心，我想讓他高興起來。”

‘Do you think he is lonely？’

“你覺得他孤獨嗎？”

‘Yes， sir。 We’re only girls， but we are happy to help if we can。‘

“是的，先生。我們只是女孩子，但如果能幫上忙我們也很樂意。”

A bell rang in a room downstairs。

樓下一個房間裡響起了鈴聲。

’That‘s the tea bell，’ Mr Laurence said。 ‘Please stay and have tea with us。’

“那是茶鈴，”勞倫斯老先生說。“請留下來和我們一起喝茶。”

He was glad that his grandson had a friend。

他很高興孫子有了一個朋友。

Page 32

5 A SURPRISE FOR BETH

5 給貝絲的一個驚喜

The new friendship between the March family and the Laurence family became stronger and stronger during the following weeks。 Old Mr Laurence often went to see Mrs March after Jo‘s visit to the stone mansion。 He enjoyed her company and her cheerfulness。

在接下來的幾周裡，馬家和勞倫斯家之間的新友誼越來越牢固。在喬參觀了石頭豪宅之後，勞倫斯老先生經常去看望馬奇太太。他喜歡她的陪伴和快樂。

The young people went ice-skating and sleighing， and spent many pleasant evenings together。 Everybody liked Laurie， and Laurie told Mr Brooke， his tutor， that the March girls were ’splendid‘。 He was tired of books。 He wanted to be with young people。 He began to spend most of his time with the March family and he didn’t go to his lessons。 Mr Brooke was worried about his progress。

年輕人去滑冰和滑雪，在一起度過了許多愉快的夜晚。每個人都喜歡勞裡，勞裡告訴他的家庭教師布魯克先生，馬奇家的女孩“棒極了”。他對書感到厭倦。他想和年輕人在一起。他開始把大部分時間花在馬奇一家身上，也不去上課。布魯克先生擔心他的進步。

‘Don’t worry， Brooke！‘Mr Laurence said。 ’Mrs March is doing more for him than we can。‘

“別擔心，布魯克！勞倫斯老先生說。“馬奇太太為他做的比我們多。”

Sometimes the girls visited the stone mansion。 Laurie was very happy to show them all the lovely things in the house。 Meg enjoyed looking at the flowers in the conservatory。 Jo read the books in the library and Amy copied the pictures。

有時女孩們會參觀石頭豪宅。勞裡非常高興地向他們展示房子裡所有可愛的東西。梅格喜歡看暖房裡的花。喬在圖書館看書，艾米則臨摹圖片。

Only Beth stayed away。 She was afraid of Mr Laurence。 She knew that there was a grand piano in the library and she wanted to play it but she was too afraid to go to the house。 When he heard this， Mr Laurence tried to find a way of solving this problem。

只有貝絲沒有來。她害怕勞倫斯老先生。她知道圖書館裡有一架大鋼琴，她想彈它，但她太害怕了，不敢走到屋裡去。聽到這些話，勞倫斯老先生試圖找到一個解決這個問題的辦法。

During one of his visits to Mrs March， he started talking about music。 Beth was sitting quietly in a corner。

一次去看望馬奇太太時，他開始談論音樂。貝絲靜靜地坐在角落裡。

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’Laurie isn‘t playing the piano much these days，’ Mr Laurence told Mrs March。 ‘This isn’t good for the instrument。 Would your girls like to practice on it now and then？ Just to keep it in tune， you know， ma‘am。’

“這些天勞裡不怎麼彈鋼琴，”勞倫斯老先生對馬奇太太說。“這對樂器不好。你的女兒們要不要偶爾練習一下？你知道，夫人，只是為了讓它保持音準。”

Beth moved a little closer to him to listen to the conversation。

貝絲走近他一點，聽著他們的談話。

‘They don’t need to see or speak to anyone，‘ continued Mr Laurence。 ’I‘m always in my study in another part of the house。’

“他們不需要見任何人或跟任何人說話，”勞倫斯老先生接著說。“我總是在房子另一頭的書房裡。”

He stood up and went to the door。

他站起來，向門口走去。

‘I must go now， but please tell the young ladies what I said。 Goodbye！’

“我現在得走了，請把我的話告訴小姐們。再見！”

Beth ran up to him and touched his arm。

貝絲跑到他跟前，碰了碰他的胳膊。

‘I’m Beth，‘ she said shyly。 ’I love music。 I‘d love to come but I don’t want to disturb you。‘

“我是貝絲，”她害羞地說。“我喜歡音樂。我很願意來，但不想打擾你。”

Mr Laurence smiled at her。

勞倫斯老先生朝她笑了笑。

’The library is usually empty， my dear，‘ he said gently。 ’Come and play when you like。‘

“圖書室通常是空的，親愛的，”他溫柔地說。“你想玩就來玩吧。”

’Thank you， Sir！‘

“謝謝你，先生！”

After that， Beth went to play the piano in the mansion nearly every day。 Mr Laurence loved listening to her。 He opened his study door to hear the songs better， but Beth never knew that。

從那以後，貝絲幾乎每天都去那座豪宅彈鋼琴。勞倫斯老先生喜歡聽她說話。他開啟書房的門以便更好地聽歌，但貝絲從來不知道這一點。

Why was Beth afraid to play the grand piano？

How did Mr。 Laurence make Beth play the piano？

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A few weeks after her first visit to the mansion， Beth said to her mother， ’I‘m going to make a pair of slippers for Mr Laurence， Mother。 I want to thank him， and I don’t know another way。‘

在貝絲拜訪這座豪宅的幾個星期後，她對母親說：“我打算給勞倫斯老先生做一雙拖鞋，媽媽。”我想感謝他，我不知道還有什麼別的辦法。”

When the slippers were ready， she wrote a short note to the old gentleman and asked Laurie to put them on his grandfather’s desk。

拖鞋準備好後，她給老先生寫了一張便條，讓勞裡把拖鞋放在爺爺的桌子上。

Two days later Beth had the biggest surprise of her life。 A small piano arrived at the Marches‘ house！ There was a letter for her with it。 Jo read it aloud。

兩天後，貝絲有了她一生中最大的驚喜。馬奇家收到了一架小鋼琴！裡面還有她的一封信。喬大聲讀著。

Dear Miss March，

I like the slippers very much。 They fit me perfectly and they are very comfortable。 I hope you like the piano。 It belonged to my little granddaughter。 She’s dead now but when I see you， I remember her。

Thank you and best wishes，

Your grateful friend，

JAMES LAURENCE

親愛的小姐，

我非常喜歡這雙拖鞋。它們非常適合我，而且非常舒適。我希望你喜歡鋼琴。它是我的小孫女的。她現在已經死了，但當我看到你，我就會想起她。

謝謝你，並致以良好的祝願。

你的感激的朋友，

詹姆斯•勞倫斯

It was a beautiful little piano。 Beth sat down and played it immediately。

那是一架漂亮的小鋼琴。貝絲坐下來，馬上彈奏起來。

‘It’s perfect！‘ she sighed。 ’I must go and thank him。‘

“這是完美的！”她嘆了口氣。“我得去謝謝他。”

And she walked out of the house and into the stone mansion。 Her sisters were very surprised because Beth was usually very shy。 Mr Laurence was also surprised when she opened his study door and ran up to him。

她走出房子，走進了石頭豪宅。她的姐妹們很驚訝，因為貝絲通常都很害羞。當她開啟勞倫斯老先生書房的門跑向他時，勞倫斯老先生也很吃驚。

’I came to thank you， sir。。。‘ But she didn’t finish。 When she saw his friendly face and she remembered his little granddaughter， she put her arms around his neck and kissed him on the cheek。

“我是來感謝您的，先生……但她沒有說完。當她看到他那張友好的臉，想起了他的小孫女，便摟著他的脖子親吻他的臉頰。

She wasn‘t afraid of him any more and after that they became best friends。

她不再害怕他了，從那以後，他們成了最好的朋友。

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6 DREAMS

6夢想

Winter turned to spring and spring turned to summer。 The girls worked in the garden， went for long walks and picked flowers。 Jo often went rowing on the river with Laurie。 One day an English family visited him。 Laurie organized a picnic in the field for them。 He also invited the four March sisters。 They had a very good time。 Mr Brooke was there， too。 He was especially kind to Meg and talked to her a lot that afternoon。 Meg liked him very much。

冬天變成了春天，春天變成了夏天。姑娘們在花園裡幹活，出去長時間散步，摘花。喬經常和勞裡在河上划船。一天，一個英國家庭來拜訪他。勞裡為他們組織了一次野外野餐。他還邀請了馬奇四姐妹。他們玩得很開心。布魯克先生也在那裡。他對梅格特別好，那天下午他跟她說了很多話。梅格非常喜歡他。

Sometimes that summer， when it was very hot， the girls walked to the top of the hill near their house。 It was cool under the trees and there was a wonderful view over the river from the top。

那年夏天，有時天氣很熱，女孩們會走到房子附近的山頂上。樹下很涼爽，從山頂可以看到河上的美景。

One day Laurie followed them。 He hid behind a tree and watched them。 A squirrel suddenly ran down the tree trunk and Beth looked up。 She saw Laurie and waved。

一天，勞裡跟著他們。他躲在樹後看著他們。一隻松鼠突然從樹幹上跑下來，貝絲抬頭看了看。她看見勞裡，就揮了揮手。

’Can I join you？‘Laurie asked shyly。

“我能加入你們嗎？”勞裡害羞地問。

’Of course！‘ said Meg。 ’Come and sit down！‘

“當然！”梅格說。“過來坐下！”

’We call this hill the Delectable Mountain，‘ Jo told him。 Because we can look far away and see the country of our dreams。’

“我們稱這座小山為‘悅人之山’，”喬對他說。因為我們可以遠眺，看到我們夢想的國家。”

Which of the four sisters does Mr。 Brooke like most？ □ Beth □ Meg □ Jo □ Amy

Does Laurie want to be a businessman like his grandfather？

What does Jo want to be？

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‘I have lots of dreams，’ said Laurie。 He lay down and looked up at the sky。

“我有很多夢，”勞裡說。他躺下，仰望天空。

‘Tell us about your favorite one， Laurie，’ Meg said。

“跟我們說說你最喜歡的夢想，勞裡，”梅格說。

‘Only if you tell me about yours，’ the boy replied。 The girls agreed， so Laurie began。

“除非你告訴我你的夢想，”勞裡回答道。姑娘們都同意了，於是勞裡開始說。

‘I want to travel around the world and see lots of places。 Then I’d like to become a famous musician。 Grandfather wants me to go to college and then become a businessman like him。 But I don‘t care about money or business。 I just want to enjoy myself。’

“我想環遊世界，看很多地方。然後我想成為一個著名的音樂家。爺爺想讓我上大學，然後像他一樣成為一個商人。但我不在乎錢和生意。我只想享受生活。”

‘Why don’t you get on a ship and sail away？‘ said Jo。

“你為什麼不乘船遠航呢？”喬說。

’No， Jo，‘ said Meg quickly。 ’That isn‘t right。 Laurie， you must do what your grandfather wants。 He loves you。’

“不，喬，”梅格很快地說。“這不是正確的。勞裡，你必須按你爺爺說的做。他愛你。”

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‘Perhaps you’re right， Meg，‘ Laurie said。 ’My grandfather is old and he doesn‘t have anyone else。 He only has me。 Tell us about your favorite dream， Meg！’

“也許你是對的，梅格，”勞裡說。“我爺爺老了，他沒有別的親人。他只有我。告訴我們你最喜歡的夢，梅格！”

‘I’d like a lovely house， full of all kinds of nice things-good food， pretty clothes and lovely furniture，‘ Meg said。 ’And lots of money， of course。 I‘d also like to help people。 I want to be a good person。’

“我想要一個漂亮的房子，裡面要有各種各樣的好東西——好的食物、漂亮的衣服和漂亮的傢俱，”梅格說。“當然還有很多錢。我也想幫助別人。我想做個好人。”

‘And what about a husband and some beautiful children in your lovely house？’ said Jo， laughing。

“在你可愛的房子裡有個丈夫和幾個漂亮的孩子怎麼樣？”喬笑著說。

Meg looked at Laurie and her face turned red。

梅格看著勞裡，她的臉變紅了。

‘I suppose you want horses and pens and books in your house， Jo！’ she replied。

“我猜你家裡需要馬、筆和書，喬！”她回答。

‘You’re right！ Lots of Arabian horses and rooms full of books，‘ said Jo。 ’I want to write books and be rich and famous。 I want to do something important in my life。 That‘s my favorite dream。 And yours， Beth？’

“你是對的！有許多阿拉伯馬和裝滿書的房間，”喬說。“我想寫書，發財成名。我想在我的生命中做一些重要的事情。那是我最喜歡的夢。你的夢想呢，貝絲？”

I dream about staying at home with Father and Mother forever and looking after the family，‘ said Beth quietly。

“我夢想永遠呆在家裡和爸爸媽媽在一起照顧一家人，”貝絲平靜地說。

’Is that all？‘ asked Laurie。

“就這些嗎？”勞裡問。

’Now I have my little piano， I don‘t want anything else。’

“現在我有了我的小鋼琴，我什麼也不要了。”

‘I have lots of dreams，’ said Amy。‘ But my favorite one is to be an artist。 I’d like to go to Rome and paint wonderful pictures。 I want to be the best artist in the world。‘

“我有很多夢，”艾米說。“但我最喜歡的是當一名藝術家。我想去羅馬畫一些精彩的畫。我想成為世界上最好的藝術家。”

’Let‘s meet again in ten years and see how many of us have got our wishes，’ said Jo。 She was always ready with a plan。

“我們十年後再見面吧，看看我們中有多少人實現了願望，”喬說。她總是有個計劃。

Page 39

7 A TELEGRAM

7一份電報

November was cold， wet and grey。

十一月是寒冷、潮溼和灰暗的。

‘November is the worst month of the year，’ Meg said grumpily。 She was looking out of one of the parlor windows。

“十一月是一年中最糟糕的月份，”梅格生氣地說。她從客廳的一扇窗戶往外看。

‘Nothing pleasant ever happens in this family，’ she continued。 ‘We work all the time and we have very little fun。 ’Oh dear！ You aren‘t very happy today，’ said Jo。

“這個家從來沒有發生過什麼愉快的事，”她接著說。“我們整天都在工作，卻很少有樂趣。“哦，親愛的！“你今天不太高興，”喬說。

Did Meg like November？ Why？

Why did Beth smile？

What did Laurie come for？

Beth was sitting at another window。 She was smiling。

貝絲坐在另一個視窗。她微笑著。

‘Two pleasant things are going to happen right now，’ she said。 ‘Mother is coming down the garden path and Laurie is crossing the garden。 He looks excited about something。’

她說，現在將會發生兩件令人愉快的事情。“媽媽正沿著花園的小路走過來，勞里正穿過花園。他看起來對什麼事很興奮。”

Mrs March came in first and asked her usual question， ‘Is there a letter from Father， girls？’

馬奇太太先走進來，問了個老問題：“女兒們，有父親來的信嗎？”

Then Laurie arrived and asked， ‘Would you like to come for a drive？ It’s a grey day， but the air isn‘t bad。 I’m going to take Mr Brooke home。 Come on， Jo！ What about you， Beth？‘

這時勞裡來了，他問：“你願意開車兜風嗎？天氣陰沉，但空氣還不錯。我要送布魯克先生回家。來吧，喬！你呢，貝絲？”

’Oh， yes！‘ they both replied together。

“哦，好的！”他們倆齊聲回答。

’I‘m busy，’ said Meg。

“我忙著呢，”梅格說。

‘I’ll come， too！‘ cried Amy。

“我也來！”艾米喊道。

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Just then Hannah came in。 She was carrying a letter。

就在這時漢娜進來了。她帶著一封信。

’It‘s one of those horrid telegrams，’ she said。

“這是一封可怕的電報，”她說。

When Mrs March heard the word ‘telegram’， she took it quickly from Hannah。 She read it and sat down suddenly in her chair。 Her face was white。 Laurie ran to get some water for her while Jo read the telegram aloud。

馬奇太太一聽到“電報”這個詞，就趕緊從漢娜手裡接過。她讀著信，突然在椅子上坐了下來。她的臉色蒼白。勞裡跑去給她弄點水來，喬則大聲讀著電報。

The girls went and stood around Mrs March‘s chair in silence。 Laurie quietly left the room。 This was the family’s private moment of grief。

姑娘們走過去，默默地站在馬奇太太的椅子周圍。勞裡悄悄地離開了房間。這是這個家庭的悲痛時刻。

Mrs March soon recovered from the shock。 She held out her arms to her daughters and said， ‘I must go to him immediately。 Perhaps it’s already too late！ You must help me， girls！‘

馬奇太太很快從這一打擊中恢復過來。她向女兒們伸出雙臂說：“我必須馬上去找他。也許已經太遲了！你們必須幫助我，姑娘們！”

AMERICAN TELEGRAPH COMPANY

Mrs March。

Your husband is very ill。

Come immediately。

S。 Hale。

Blank Hospital

Washington。

The girls started to cry。 Hannah was crying， too。 For a few minutes the room was full of the sound of their sobs。 Then Mrs March dried her eyes and said， ’We must be calm。 I must make a plan。 Where‘s Laurie？’

女孩們開始哭泣。漢娜也在哭。過了幾分鐘，房間裡就充滿了他們的嗚咽聲。然後馬奇太太擦乾眼淚說：“我們必須冷靜。我必須制定一個計劃。勞裡在哪兒？”

‘Here， ma’am，‘ he said， running into the room。 ’What can I do to help？‘

“在這兒，夫人，”他說著跑進了房間。“我能幫上什麼忙嗎？”

’Send a telegram to Mr Hale。 Say that I‘m going to take the first train tomorrow morning。’

“給黑爾先生髮封電報。就說我明天早晨乘第一班火車去。”

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‘Anything else？’ asked Laurie。

“還有別的事嗎？”勞裡問。

‘Yes。 Please take this note to Aunt March，’ said Mrs March。

“是的。請把這張條子帶給馬奇姑姑，”馬奇太太說。

She quickly wrote something and gave it to him。 Five minutes later Laurie galloped past the window on his horse。

她很快寫了些東西給了他。五分鐘後，勞裡騎著馬從視窗疾馳而過。

Then Mrs March made a list and gave it to Jo。

然後馬奇太太列了一個單子給了喬。

‘Go to town and buy these things， Jo。 I must take extra food and clothes for your father。 Beth， go and tell Mr Laurence that I’m leaving tomorrow。 Amy， tell Hannah to bring the black trunk to my bedroom。 Meg， come and help me pack， please。‘

“去鎮上把這些東西買下來，喬。我必須為你父親多帶些吃的和穿的。貝絲，去告訴勞倫斯老先生我明天就要走了。艾米，告訴漢娜把黑色的箱子搬到我臥室來。梅格，過來幫我收拾，謝謝。”

Mr Laurence came back with Beth。 He brought a box of food and some good wine for Mr March。 A little later Mr Brooke arrived。

勞倫斯老先生和貝絲一起回來了。他給馬奇先生帶來一盒食物和一些好酒。不一會兒，布魯克先生來了。

’I‘m very sorry to hear about your father， Miss March，’ he said， when Meg opened the door。 He spoke in a quiet and kind way。 Meg immediately began to feel better。 She looked up into his brown eyes and for a moment she forgot all her problems。

“你父親的事我很難過，馬奇小姐，”當梅格開啟門時他說。他說話的方式安靜而親切。梅格立刻感覺好些了。她抬起頭來望著他那雙棕色的眼睛，一時忘記了所有的煩惱。

‘I’m going to Washington， tomorrow， too，‘ he continued。 ’I have to do a few things for Mr Laurence。 So if your mother agrees， we can travel together。 I can keep her company and help her with her bags。‘

“我明天也要去華盛頓，”他接著說。“我得為勞倫斯老先生做些事。所以如果你媽媽同意，我們可以一起去。我可以陪著她，幫她提包。”

’Thank you very， very much， Mr Brooke！‘ replied Meg。 ’It‘s a long journey。’

“非常、非常感謝你，布魯克先生！”梅格說。“路途很長。”

Everything was ready when Laurie returned。 He brought a note and some money from Aunt March。 The afternoon passed slowly。 Meg and her mother sewed， Beth and Amy prepared supper and Hannah did the ironing。 It was dark when Jo finally arrived home。 She had a very strange expression on her face。 She put some money in her mother‘s hand and said。 This is for Father。 Buy something nice for him and bring him home！’

勞裡回來時，一切都準備好了。他從馬奇姑姑那裡帶來一張字條和一些錢。下午過得很慢。梅格和媽媽做針線活，貝絲和艾米準備晚飯，漢娜熨衣服。喬終於到家時天已經黑了。她臉上有一種很奇怪的表情。她把一些錢放在她母親的手裡說。這是給父親的。給他買點好東西，把他帶回家來！”

Page 43

‘Twenty-five dollars！ My dear， where did you get it？’ said Mrs March in a surprised voice。

“25美元！親愛的，你從哪兒弄來的？”馬奇太太用驚訝的聲音說。

‘I earned it，’ replied Jo， taking off her hat。

“是我掙的，”喬答道，摘下她的帽子。

Everybody in the room gasped。 Jo‘s hair was as short as a boy’s。

房間裡的每個人都倒抽了一口冷氣。喬的頭髮和男孩子的一樣短。

‘Your hair！ You cut your beautiful hair！’ cried her mother。 ‘It wasn’t necessary to do that！‘She touched her daughter’s head and kissed her。 ‘You don’t look like my Jo anymore。 But I love you the same！‘

“你的頭髮！你剪了你漂亮的頭髮！”她母親喊道。“沒有必要這樣做！”她摸了摸女兒的頭，吻了她一下。“你看起來不像我的喬了。可我同樣愛你！”

’Why did you do it？‘ asked Amy。 She couldn’t imagine cutting her own pretty hair。

“你為什麼要這樣做？”艾米問。她無法想象剪掉自己漂亮的頭髮。

‘I wanted to do something for Father，’ replied Jo。

“我想為爸爸做點事，”喬回答。

Mrs March looked at her and smiled。 She understood and she was proud of her daughter。

馬奇太太看著她，笑了。她理解她，也為她的女兒感到驕傲。

Page 44

That evening Beth played her father‘s favorite hymn before they went to bed。 At the end of it they were all crying。

那天晚上，上床睡覺前，貝絲彈奏了父親最喜歡的讚美詩。最後他們都哭了。

’Go to bed， my dears，‘ said Mrs March。 ’You need to sleep because we must get up early tomorrow。‘

“去睡覺吧，親愛的，”馬奇太太說。“你需要睡覺，因為明天我們得早起。”

Beth and Amy soon fell asleep but Meg was awake for a long time。 She thought Jo was asleep but then Jo sobbed very softly。

貝絲和艾米很快就睡著了，但梅格很長時間沒睡著。她以為喬睡著了，可後來喬很輕地抽泣起來。

’Jo！ You‘re crying！’ said Meg。 ‘Are you worried about Father？’

“喬！你哭了！”梅格說。“你擔心爸爸嗎？”

‘No， not now。’

“不，不是現在。”

‘Why then？’

“為什麼呢？”

‘My hair！’

“我的頭髮！”

Meg smiled and kissed her sister。

梅格笑了，吻了吻她妹妹。

‘And you， Meg？ Can’t you sleep？‘

“而你，梅格？你睡不著嗎？”

’I‘m thinking about Father，’ replied Meg。

“我在想爸爸，”梅格回答。

But when the clock struck midnight， they were all asleep。 Only Mrs March was still awake。 She moved quietly from bed to bed， looking tenderly at each sleeping face。 Then she went to the window and looked at the cold， wet night。 Suddenly the moon came out from behind the clouds and shone like a bright face。 It seemed to whisper in the silence， Don‘t worry！ There is always a light behind the clouds。’

但當午夜鐘聲敲響時，他們都睡著了。只有馬奇太太還醒著。她靜靜地從一張床走到另一張床，溫柔地看著每一張熟睡的臉。然後她走到窗前，看著這寒冷潮溼的夜晚。突然，月亮從雲層後面鑽了出來，像一張明亮的臉。它似乎在寂靜中低語：“別擔心！”烏雲後面總有一線光明。”

Page 46

8 WITHOUT MOTHER

8沒有母親

The next day was also cold and grey。 Nobody talked much during breakfast。 Mrs March was pale and tired。 The girls tried to hide their tears。

第二天也是陰冷的。早餐時沒有人多說話。馬奇太太臉色蒼白，疲憊不堪。女孩們竭力隱藏她們的眼淚。

Then Mr Brooke arrived with the carriage and it was time for Mrs March to leave。 She kissed her daughters one by one and said， ‘Keep busy， my dears， and never lose hope！’

後來布魯克先生駕著馬車來了，馬奇太太也該走了。她一個接一個地吻著她的女兒們說：“忙起來吧，我親愛的，永遠不要失去希望！”

‘Yes， Mother。’

“是的，媽媽。”

‘Meg， look after your sisters。 If you need help， ask Hannah or Mr Laurence。 Jo， be patient and cheerful， and write to me often。 Beth and Amy， help with the housework and be obedient。’

“梅格，照顧好你的妹妹們。如果你需要幫助，找漢娜或勞倫斯老先生。喬，要有耐心，要開朗，經常給我寫信。貝絲和艾米，幫著做家務，要聽話。”

‘Yes， Mother！ Don’t worry！‘

“是的，媽媽！別擔心！”

She got into the carriage and opened the window。

她走進馬車，開啟窗戶。

’Goodbye， my dears！‘ she called as it drove away。 The girls waved their hands cheerfully until the carriage turned the corner。 Then， with sad faces and heavy hearts， they went back inside。

“再見，我親愛的！”馬車離去時她喊道。姑娘們高高興興地揮手，直到馬車拐過街角。然後，他們帶著悲傷的表情和沉重的心情回到屋裡。

’The house seems very empty now，‘ said Meg。

“房子現在好像很空，”梅格說。

’Our motto is ”Hope and keep busy“， said Jo brightly。 She was trying to forget how sad she was feeling。 ‘So I’m going to go and see Aunt March。 What about you， Meg？‘

“我們的座右銘是‘充滿希望，保持忙碌’，”喬歡快地說。她試圖忘記她是多麼傷心。“所以我要去見馬奇姑姑。你呢，梅格？”

’I‘m going to teach the King children，’ replied Meg。 ‘And Amy and I are going to help Hannah with the housework，’ said Beth。

“我要去教金家的孩子們，”梅格回答。“艾米和我打算幫漢娜做些家務，”貝絲說。

‘I think anxiety is very interesting，’ Amy said seriously。

“我覺得焦慮很有趣，”艾米嚴肅地說。

Her remark made her sisters laugh， and they all started to feel a little better。

她的話逗得她的姐姐們笑了起來，她們都開始覺得好點了。

Page 47

A letter arrived every day from Mr Brooke with news about their father‘s health。 He was dangerously ill， Mr Brooke wrote， but he was slowly getting better。 Mrs March was a good nurse and Mr March was very happy that she was there。

布魯克先生每天都會來信，告訴他們父親的健康狀況。他病得很重，布魯克先生寫道，但他在慢慢地好轉。馬奇太太是位好護士，馬奇先生很高興她在那兒。

·Match the people（a-e） with who， or what， they have to look after （1-5）。

□ dentist 1 sick people

□ baby sitter 2 sick animals

□ doctor 3 people’s teeth

□ vet 4 plants

□ gardener 5 small children

·Would you like to do one of these jobs？

·If so， which one？

·If not， what kind of job would you like to do？ Tell the class。

For a week the girls kept to their motto and worked hard。 Then Jo got a bad cold and had to stay at home。 She didn‘t mind this at all because she didn’t like going to Aunt March‘s。 She was happy to lie on the sofa all day with her books and medicine。 Amy got bored with doing housework so she took out her pencils and drawing book again。 Meg went to teach the King children every day， and sewed。 She spent the rest of her time writing long letters to her mother and reading the letters from Mr Brooke。 Only Beth continued to look after the house。 She did her own jobs and her sisters’ jobs， too。 She never complained。 And every day she took some food to the Hummel family。

一個星期以來，女孩們堅持她們的座右銘，努力地學習。然後喬得了重感冒，不得不呆在家裡。她對此一點也不介意，因為她不喜歡去馬奇姑姑家。她很高興整天和書、藥一起躺在沙發上。艾米厭倦了做家務，於是又拿出鉛筆和畫冊。梅格每天去教金家的孩子們做針線活。其餘的時間，她給母親寫長信，讀布魯克先生來的信。只有貝絲繼續照看房子。她做她自己的工作，也做她姐姐們的工作。她從不抱怨。每天她都給哈梅爾一家帶些食物。

Page 48

One day， about ten days after their mother‘s departure， Beth went to Meg and said， ’Can you go and see the Hummel family today， Meg？ I‘ve got a headache and I feel tired。’

一天，大約在她們母親離開後10天，貝絲來對梅格說：“你今天能去看望哈梅爾一家嗎，梅格？我頭疼，感覺很累。”

‘I’m sorry， Beth，‘ her sister replied。 ’I want to finish this letter to Mother。‘

“對不起，貝絲，”她姐姐回答說。“我要把給媽媽的這封信寫完。”

Beth lay on the sofa。 An hour passed。 Then she quietly put on her cloak， filled her basket with food for the poor children， and went out into the cold air。 It was late when she came back。 She went straight upstairs to her mother’s room and closed the door。 Half an hour after， Jo found her there。 Her eyes were red and there was a worried expression on her face。 She was holding a bottle of medicine in her hand。

貝絲躺在沙發上。一個小時過去了。然後她靜靜地披上斗篷，在籃子裡裝滿了給貧困孩子們吃的食物，然後出去到寒冷的空氣中。她回來時已經很晚了。她徑直上樓來到母親的房間，關上了門。半小時後，喬發現她在那兒。她的眼睛紅紅的，臉上有一種擔心的表情。她手裡拿著一瓶藥。

Page 49

‘Christopher Columbus！ What’s the matter？‘ cried Jo。

“天哪！有什麼事嗎？”喬喊道。

’Did you have scarlet fever when you were younger， Jo？‘ she asked。

“你年輕的時候得過猩紅熱嗎，喬？”她問。

’Yes， Meg and I had it at the same time。 Why？‘

“是的，梅格和我同時得的。為什麼？”

’The baby‘s dead， Jo！’

“孩子死了，喬！”

‘What baby？’

“什麼寶貝？”

‘Mrs Hummel’s。 It died before she got back from work，‘ cried Beth with a sob。

“哈梅爾夫人的。在她下班回來之前它就死了，”貝絲抽泣著喊道。

’My poor darling！ How awful for you！‘ said Jo。

“我可憐的親愛的！這對你太可怕了！”喬說。

’It wasn‘t awful， Jo。 Only very sad！’

“那並不可怕，喬。只是很難過！”

‘Don’t cry， dear！ What did you do？‘

“別哭了，親愛的！你做了什麼？”

’I just sat and held it。 Then Mrs Hummel came with the doctor。 ‘Scarlet fever， ma’am，‘ he said。 He was angry。 ’Why didn‘t you call me before？’ he asked Mrs Hummel。 She told him she was poor。 Then he told me to go home and take some medicine immediately。‘

“我只是坐著拿著它。然後哈梅爾太太帶著醫生來了。“猩紅熱，太太，”他說。他很生氣。“你以前為什麼不打電話給我？”他問哈梅爾太太。她告訴他她很窮。然後他讓我馬上回家吃點藥。”

’Oh， Beth！‘

“哦，貝絲！”

’Don‘t be frightened！ I read about scarlet fever in Mother’s book。 I took some of this medicine and I feel a little better now，‘ said Beth putting her cold hands on her hot forehead。

“不要害怕！我在媽媽的書裡讀到過猩紅熱。我吃了些這種藥，現在感覺好點了，”貝絲把冰冷的手放在滾燙的額頭上說。

Use your dictionary to find out what these childhood illnesses are。 Which did you have as a child？ Tick（√）。

□chicken pox □measles □mumps □German measles

What must you do when you have one of these illnesses？

Page 50

Jo picked up the book and read a page。 Then she looked at Beth’s throat。 It was very red。

喬拿起書讀了一頁。然後她看了看貝絲的喉嚨。它非常紅。

‘I’m going to ask Hannah what to do。 She knows about illnesses，‘ said Jo。

“我去問問漢娜怎麼辦。她瞭解疾病，”喬說。

’Tell Amy not to come near me！‘ said Beth anxiously。 ’She mustn‘t catch it， too。’

“告訴艾米別走近我！”貝絲擔心地說。“她不可以感染上它。”

Jo went to find Hannah。 After looking at Beth‘s throat and asking her some questions， Hannah said， ’We must call Doctor Bangs， Jo。 Don‘t worry！ It’s probably only a bad cold。 Amy must go to Aunt March‘s for a few days and one of you girls can stay at home and keep Beth company。 Who do you want， Beth？’

喬去找漢娜。漢娜檢查了貝絲的喉嚨並問了她幾個問題後說：“我們必須請邦斯醫生，喬。別擔心！可能只是重感冒。艾米必須到馬奇姑姑家去住幾天，你們一個人可以呆在家裡陪貝絲。你想要誰，貝絲？”

‘Jo， please。’

“喬吧。”

Amy didn‘t want to go to Aunt March’s。 She wanted to stay with her family。 When Laurie arrived a little later she was sobbing on the sofa。 She told him the news。

艾米不想去馬奇姑姑家。她想和家人待在一起。過了一會兒，勞裡來了，她正坐在沙發上哭泣。她把訊息告訴了他。

‘Why do I have to go away？’ she asked between sobs。

“為什麼我必須離開？”她抽泣著問。

‘You don’t want scarlet fever， do you？‘ replied Laurie。 ’Listen！ Go to Aunt March‘s and I promise to visit you every day and take you for a drive in my carriage。’

“你不會想要猩紅熱吧？”勞裡回答。“聽話！去馬奇姑姑家吧，我答應每天都去看你，並坐我的馬車帶你去兜風。”

So finally she agreed to go。

最後她同意去了。

Page 52

9 DARK DAYS

9黑暗的日子

Beth had scarlet fever， and she was very ill。 She was worse than Hannah or the doctor expected。 Jo and Meg didn‘t know much about looking after ill people so Hannah looked after Beth。 She was an excellent nurse。 Jo helped。 She sat next to Beth’s bed day and night and watched her。 The doctor came twice a day， but Beth didn‘t get better。 She got worse。 Meg wanted to write and tell their mother to come home but Hannah said， ’No， don‘t say anything to your mother yet。 We don’t want to worry her。‘

貝絲得了猩紅熱，病得很重。她的情況比漢娜和醫生預想的還要糟。喬和梅格不太懂照顧病人，所以是漢娜照顧貝絲。她是一位優秀的護士。喬幫忙。她日日夜夜坐在貝絲的床邊看著她。醫生每天來兩次，但是貝絲沒有好轉。她變得更糟。梅格想寫信叫她們的媽媽回家來，可漢娜說：“不行，先別跟你媽媽說。我們不想讓她擔心。”

A letter arrived from Washington。 Their father was ill again。 Their mother had to stay and look after him。 She couldn’t come home。

華盛頓那邊來了一封信。他們的父親又病了。他們的母親不得不留下來照顧他。她不能回家了。

The days seemed very dark now and the house seemed empty。 It was very quiet。 Nobody laughed。 Nobody sang。 Meg and Jo worked and waited with heavy hearts。 They missed their sweet， unselfish little sister。 Everybody missed the little girl。 Mr Laurence locked his grand piano because nobody came to play it。 The milkman， the baker， the grocer and the butcher all asked about her。 The neighbors sent all kinds of nice things for her and their good wishes。 Even poor Mrs Hummel came to the house to say sorry。 The girls were surprised to discover how many friends shy little Beth had。

現在天似乎很黑，房子似乎空了。非常安靜。沒有人笑。沒有人唱歌。梅格和喬工作著，懷著沉重的心情等待著。他們想念他們可愛、無私的小妹妹。每個人都想念這個小女孩。勞倫斯老先生鎖上了他的大鋼琴，因為沒人來彈。送奶工、麵包師、雜貨店老闆和肉店老闆都問及過貝絲。鄰居們給她送去了各種各樣的好東西，並送上了他們的祝福。就連可憐的哈梅爾太太也到家裡來道歉。女孩們驚奇地發現害羞的小貝絲有那麼多朋友。

On the first day of December a cold wind blew and it snowed。

12月的第一天，颳起了寒風，下起了雪。

Page 53

Doctor Bangs came the following morning。 He looked at Beth and held her hot hand in his。 Then he turned to Hannah and said in a low voice， ‘Tell Mrs March to come home。’

邦斯大夫第二天早上來了。他看著貝絲，把她滾燙的手握在自己的手裡。然後他轉向漢娜低聲說：“告訴馬奇太太回家來。”

Jo ran downstairs， wrote a short telegram to her mother and went out into the snowstorm to send it。 She was soon back。 While she was taking off her cloak， Laurie came with a letter from Mr Brooke。 It said that Mr March was getting better again。 Jo was happy to hear this but she couldn‘t smile。

喬跑下樓給母親寫了一封短電報，然後冒著暴風雪出去寄了出去。她很快就回來了。她脫斗篷時，勞裡帶來了布魯克先生的一封信。信上說馬奇先生的病又好了。聽到這些話，喬很高興，可她笑不出來。

’What is it， Jo？‘Laurie asked。 ’Is Beth worse？‘

“什麼事，喬？”勞裡問。“貝絲更糟？”

’Doctor Bangs told us to send for Mother。‘

“邦斯大夫讓我們叫媽媽來。”

’Oh， Jo。 I‘m very sorry，’ cried Laurie。

“哦，喬。我很抱歉，”勞裡喊道。

Tears started to run down Jo‘s cheeks。 Laurie took her hand and whispered， ’I‘m here。 Hold on to me， Jo， dear！’

淚水順著喬的臉頰流了下來。勞裡握住她的手，小聲說：“我在這兒。抓著我，喬，親愛的！”

She couldn‘t speak。 She held her friend’s hand and cried。 After a few minutes she began to feel better。 She dried her tears and looked at Laurie with a grateful face。

她不能說話。她握住勞裡的手哭了起來。幾分鐘後，她開始感覺好些了。她擦乾眼淚，感激地看著勞裡。

‘Thank you， Laurie，’ she said。 ‘You are a good friend。’

“謝謝你，勞裡，”她說。“你真是個好朋友。”

‘Jo， I have something to tell you。 Something nice，’ Laurie said。 ‘I sent a telegram to your mother yesterday。 She’s on her way home at this moment。 Did I do the right thing？‘ Jo threw her arms around Laurie’s neck。

“喬，我有事要告訴你。好事，”勞裡說。“我昨天給你母親發了一封電報。她現在正在回家的路上。我做的對嗎？”喬伸出雙臂摟住勞裡的脖子。

‘Oh， Laurie！ Oh， Mother！’ she cried happily。 ‘Yes， you did。 I am so glad！’

“哦，勞裡！哦，媽媽！”她高興地叫道。“嗯，你做得對。我真高興！”

Complete the sentences。

A good friend is ________________________。

A good friend always _______________________。

Share your ideas with the other students in the class。

Page 54

For the rest of the day a breath of fresh air seemed to blow through the house。 Something better than sunshine brightened the quiet rooms。 When the girls met， their pale faces broke into smiles。 They hugged one another and whispered， ‘Mother’s coming！ Mother‘s coming！’

這一天剩下的時間裡，一股新鮮空氣似乎吹進了房子。比陽光更好的東西使安靜的房間更明亮。當女孩們見面時，她們蒼白的臉上突然露出了笑容。他們互相擁抱著低聲說：“媽媽要回來了！媽媽要回來了！”

The snow continued to fall all day。 The hours passed very slowly。 The doctor came and told them to expect a change in Beth‘s condition， for better or worse， at about midnight。 Hannah lay down on the sofa and fell fast asleep。 Mr Laurence walked anxiously up and down the parlor。 Laurie lay on the rug and looked into the fire。

雪持續下了一整天。時間過得很慢。醫生來了，告訴他們貝絲的病情在午夜左右會有所好轉或惡化。漢娜躺在沙發上很快就睡著了。勞倫斯老先生在客廳裡焦急地走來走去。勞裡躺在地毯上，看著爐火。

The girls didn’t sleep at all that night。 The house was very quiet but outside the wind was whistling in the trees。 Just after midnight Laurie went to the station to pick up Mrs March。 It was snowing hard。 Two hours later Jo was looking out of the window of Beth‘s room when she heard a noise。 She looked round。 Meg was sitting on the floor with her hands over her face。 Hannah was still asleep。

女孩們那天晚上根本沒睡。房子裡很安靜，但外面的風在樹林裡呼嘯。午夜剛過，勞裡去車站接馬奇太太。雪下得很大。兩個小時後，喬正從貝絲房間的窗戶往外看，這時她聽到了一點響聲。她向四周看了看。梅格坐在地上，雙手捂著臉。漢娜還在睡覺。

’Beth‘s dead and Meg’s afraid to tell me，‘ Jo thought。 She ran to the bed。 Beth’s face was very pale and peaceful。 There was no sign of suffering on it any more。

“貝絲死了，梅格不敢告訴我，”喬想。她跑到床前。貝絲的臉色蒼白而平靜。它再也沒有痛苦的跡象了。

Jo kissed her sister‘s head and whispered softly， ’Goodbye， my Beth。 Goodbye， my darling！‘

喬吻了吻她妹妹的頭，輕輕地低聲說：“再見，我的貝絲。再見，親愛的！”

Then Hannah woke up。 She hurried to the bed and looked at Beth。 She held the small hands in her large ones and put her ear to the pale lips。 Then she looked up and smiled at Jo。

然後漢娜醒了。她匆匆走到床邊看著貝絲。她用兩隻大手捧著兩隻小手，把耳朵貼在蒼白的嘴唇上。然後她抬起頭對喬微笑。

’She‘s sleeping，’ she whispered。 ‘She’s breathing easily now！ She‘s going to get better！’

“她在睡覺，”她低聲說。“她現在呼吸順暢了！她會好起來的！”

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A little later the doctor arrived。 After shaking the snow off his coat， he went upstairs to look at Beth。

過了一會兒醫生來了。他把外套上的雪抖掉後，上樓看了看貝絲。

‘Yes， my dears，’ he said。 ‘The little girl is going to get better。’

“是的，親愛的，”他說。“小姑娘會好起來的。”

Meg and Jo sat on the stairs and hugged each other。 Then they hugged Hannah。

梅格和喬坐在樓梯上互相擁抱。然後他們擁抱了漢娜。

Very early the next morning the world outside was white and frozen， but Meg found a white rose in the garden。

第二天大清早，外面的世界一片雪白，冰封了，可梅格在花園裡發現了一朵白玫瑰。

When Beth opened her eyes later that morning， the first things she saw were her mother‘s face and the white rose next to her bed。 She smiled and fell asleep again。

那天早上晚些時候，當貝絲睜開眼睛時，她首先看到的是她母親的臉和床邊的那朵白玫瑰。她微笑著又睡著了。

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10 A LOST GLOVE

10一隻丟失的手套

The following day was strange but it was very happy。 Mrs March didn’t want to move from Beth‘s side， so Hannah prepared a wonderful breakfast and took it upstairs to her。 While she was eating it， Mrs March talked to Jo and Meg about their father， and about the terrible journey home through the snowstorm with Laurie。

第二天有點奇怪，但很開心。馬奇太太不願離開貝絲身邊，所以漢娜做了一頓豐盛的早餐，拿到樓上給她。馬奇太太邊吃邊對喬和梅格談起他們的父親，以及和勞裡一起冒著暴風雪回家的可怕旅程。

After breakfast Meg and Jo slept for an hour or two because they were very tired。 In the afternoon Mrs March went to Aunt March’s。 Amy cried with joy when she saw her mother。 She was so happy to see her again。 They sat for a while and talked。‘

早飯後，梅格和喬睡了一兩個小時，因為她們太累了。下午馬奇太太去了馬奇姑姑家。艾米看到她媽媽時高興得哭了。她很高興再次見到她。他們坐下來聊了一會兒。”

’At first I was sad，‘ said Amy。 ’But Laurie came every day。 He was very kind。 I had a lot of time to think and I thought about myself。 I know that I‘m selfish but I’m going to try hard to be different。 Beth isn‘t selfish， and everyone loves her。 I’m going to try and be like Beth。‘

“開始我很難過，”艾米說。可勞裡每天都來。他非常善良。我有很多時間去思考，並且考慮了我自己。我知道我很自私，但我要努力與眾不同。貝絲不自私，每個人都愛她。我要努力像貝絲一樣。”

’I‘m very pleased， Amy，’ Mrs March said。 ‘You can come home soon but you must be patient for a bit longer。 Now I must hurry back to Beth。’

“我很高興，艾米，”馬奇太太說。“你很快就可以回家了，但你必須再多等一會兒。現在我得趕緊回貝絲那兒去。”

That evening while Meg was writing to her father， Jo went upstairs to Beth‘s room。 There was a worried look on her face。

那天晚上梅格在給父親寫信時，喬上樓到了貝絲的房間。她臉上有一種擔心的神色。

’What‘s the matter， dear？’ asked Mrs March。

“怎麼了，親愛的？”馬奇太太問。

‘I want to tell you something， Mother。’

“我想告訴你一些事，媽媽。”

‘About Meg？’

“關於梅格？”

‘How did you know？ Yes， it’s about her。 It‘s a little thing， but it worries me。’

“你怎麼知道的？是的，是關於她的。這是件小事，但讓我擔心。”

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‘Beth is asleep now，’ said Mrs March。 ‘Sit down and tell me all about it。’

“貝絲現在睡著了，”馬奇太太說。“坐下告訴我怎麼回事。”

‘Well，’ began Jo， ‘last summer Meg left a pair of gloves at the Laurence’s house。 Laurie sent only one of them back。 He thinks that Mr Brooke has the other one。 He told me that Mr Brooke likes Meg。 But he doesn‘t want to say anything to her because she is very young and he is poor。 Isn’t that terrible？‘

“嗯，”喬開始說，“去年夏天梅格把一副手套留在了勞倫斯家。勞裡只送了一個回來。他認為布魯克先生有另一個。他告訴我布魯克先生喜歡梅格。但他不想對她說什麼，因為她很年輕，而他很窮。難道不可怕嗎？”

’Does Meg like him？‘ asked Mrs March， with an anxious look。

“梅格喜歡他嗎？”馬奇太太帶著焦慮的神情問。

’Goodness me！ I don‘t know。 I don’t know anything about love！‘ cried Jo。 ’In stories girls in love are usually nervous。 They don‘t eat and become thin and they do silly things。 Meg eats and drinks and sleeps like a normal person。’

“天哪！我不知道。我對愛情一無所知！”喬喊道。在故事中，戀愛中的女孩通常都很緊張。她們不吃，變瘦，做傻事。梅格吃、喝、睡和正常人一樣。”

‘Perhaps Meg is not interested in John， then？’

“那麼也許梅格對約翰不感興趣？”

‘Who？’ cried Jo， surprised。

“誰？”喬驚訝地叫道。

‘Mr Brooke。 I started calling him ”John“ at the hospital， and he likes it，’ said Mrs March。

“布魯克先生。我在醫院開始叫他‘約翰’，他喜歡這樣，”馬奇太太說。

When she saw Jo‘s shocked face， she continued， ’My dear， don‘t be angry。 He was very kind to me， and to Father， too and， yes， I like him a lot。 He’s an excellent young man。 He talked to us about Meg。 He loves her but he didn‘t want to tell her without getting our permission first。 He wants to marry her one day。 But this must be a secret between you and me。 Don’t say anything to Meg about it！ I can‘t agree to a marriage yet。 Meg’s too young。‘

當她看到喬震驚的臉時，她接著說：“親愛的，別生氣。他對我很好，對爸爸也很好，是的，我很喜歡他。他是個很優秀的年輕人。他跟我們說了梅格的事。他愛她，但他不想在沒有得到我們允許的情況下告訴她。他希望有一天能娶她。但這必須是你我之間的秘密。別把這事告訴梅格！我還不能同意結婚。梅格太年輕了。”

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’But he wants to take her away from us！ He can‘t do that， Mother！ This is Meg’s home。 She must stay here with us。‘

“但是他想把她從我們身邊帶走！他不能那樣做，媽媽！這是梅格的家。她必須留在這裡和我們在一起。”

Mrs March sighed。 Jo continued。

馬奇太太嘆了口氣。喬繼續說。

’Let‘s send him away， Mother。 Let’s not say anything about this to Meg。 Then we can all be happy together forever and ever。‘

“我們把他送走吧，媽媽。我們別跟梅格說這事。這樣我們就可以永遠幸福地在一起了。”

’Jo， it is natural and right for children to leave their families and make homes of their own，‘ said Mrs March。 ’But I‘d like to keep my girls for as long as possible。 Meg is only seventeen and John can’t give her a home yet。 Twenty is a good age for her to get married。 Your father and I agree about that。 If Meg and John love each other， they can wait and test their love while they are waiting。‘

“喬，孩子們離開家庭，建立自己的家，這是很自然也很正確的，”馬奇太太說。“但我想讓我的女兒們呆得越久越好。梅格只有17歲，約翰還不能給她一個家。她二十歲是結婚的好年齡。你父親和我都同意。如果梅格和約翰相愛，他們可以在等待的過程中等待並考驗他們的愛情。”

’But isn‘t it better for her to marry a rich man？’ asked Jo。

“但是讓她嫁給一個有錢人不是更好嗎？”喬問。

‘Money is a good and useful thing， Jo，’ Mrs March replied。 ‘But it’s better to be happy than rich in life。 John has a good heart， and a good man‘s heart is better than a fortune。’

“錢是好的而且有用的東西，喬，”馬奇太太回答。“但生活快樂總比富有好。約翰有一顆善良的心，而一顆善良的心勝過一筆財富。”

‘I understand， Mother， and I agree with you。 But it’s a pity that we have to grow up and our lives have to change。‘

“我理解，媽媽，我也同意你。但遺憾的是，我們必須長大，我們的生活必須改變。”

What is more important to a person in Mrs March’s eyes， a good heart or a fortune？ How do you know her opinion？

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Just then Meg opened the door and came in quietly。 She was carrying the letter to her father。 She gave it to Mrs March to read。

正在這時梅格開啟門，輕輕地走了進來。她正拿著寄給父親的信。她把信給馬奇太太看。

‘What were you two talking about， Jo？’ she asked。

“你們倆在說些什麼，喬？”她問。

‘Nothing， Meg。 Come on。 Let’s go to bed。‘

“沒什麼，梅格。來吧。咱們上床睡覺吧。”

Mrs March gave Meg her letter and said， ’That‘s a very nice letter， dear。 Please send my love to John。’

馬奇太太把信給梅格說：“這是封很好的信，親愛的。請代我向約翰問好。”

‘Do you call him ”John“？’ asked Meg， smiling。

“你叫他‘約翰’嗎？”梅格笑著問。

‘Yes， dear。 He’s like a son to us， and we like him a lot，‘ replied Mrs March。

“是的，親愛的。他就像我們的兒子一樣，我們都很喜歡他。”馬奇太太說。

’I‘m glad because I think that he is very lonely，’ said Meg。 ‘Good night， Mother dear。 I’m so very happy that you are here。‘

“我很高興，因為我覺得他很孤獨，”梅格說。“晚安，親愛的媽媽。我很高興你能來。

After kissing her daughter goodnight， Mrs March thought， ’She‘s ready to fall in love with him。’

在和女兒吻別後，馬奇太太想：“她準備愛上他了。”

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11 LAURIE‘S LETTERS

11勞裡的信

Meg knew that Jo had a secret。 She could see it in her face。 Laurie also knew。 He asked her to tell him but Jo refused to say anything。 This made Laurie angry。

梅格知道喬有個秘密。她能從她臉上看出來。勞裡也知道。他讓喬告訴他，但喬什麼也不肯說。這使勞裡很生氣。

’It‘s about Meg and Mr Brooke，’ he thought， and he decided to discover her secret。

“是梅格和布魯克先生的事，”他想，決定發現她的秘密。

A few days passed。 Then suddenly there was a change in Meg。 She looked worried all the time and she didn‘t say very much。 She was nervous。

幾天過去了。然後梅格突然有了變化。她看起來一直很擔心，也沒說多少話。她很緊張。

’It‘s love，’ said Jo to her mother。 ‘What can we do？’

“這是愛情，”喬對她媽媽說。“我們該怎麼辦？”

‘Nothing，’ replied Mrs March。 ‘We must wait for Father to arrive。’

“沒什麼，”馬奇太太回答。“我們得等爸爸來。”

The next day there was a letter in the post box for Meg。 Jo brought it in and gave it to her sister。 Then she sat down next to her mother and continued her knitting。 Suddenly Mrs March and Jo heard a strange sound。 They looked up。 It was Meg。 Her face was white and she looked frightened。

第二天，郵箱裡有一封梅格的信。喬把它拿進來遞給她姐姐。然後她坐在媽媽旁邊繼續織毛衣。突然，馬奇太太和喬聽到一種奇怪的聲音。他們抬起頭。這是梅格。她臉色蒼白，看上去很害怕。

‘What is it， dear？’ cried her mother。

“怎麼了，親愛的？”她母親喊道。

‘Oh， Jo！ Why did you do it？’ cried Meg。

“哦，喬！你為什麼這麼做？”梅格嚷道。

‘What？ I didn’t do anything，‘ replied Jo， confused。

“什麼？“我什麼也沒做，”喬迷惑地回答。

’You did！ You and that boy！ You sent the letter！‘And Meg took another letter out of her pocket and threw it at Jo。

“你做的！你和那個男孩！你把信寄出去了！”梅格從她口袋裡掏出另一封信扔給喬。

Jo and Mrs March read it。 It was a love letter to Meg from John Brooke。 He said that he wanted to marry her。

喬和馬奇太太讀了它。這是約翰·布魯克寫給梅格的一封情書。他說他想娶她。

’Laurie！ The villain！‘ cried Jo。 ’He was angry because I didn‘t tell him my secret。’

“勞裡！惡棍！”喬喊道。“他生氣是因為我沒有告訴他我的秘密。”

She wanted to go and find him immediately。

喬想馬上去找他。

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Mrs March stopped her。

馬奇太太攔住了她。

‘Wait， Jo！’ she said。 ‘Meg！ Did you reply to the letter？’

“等等，喬！”她說。“梅格！你回信了嗎？”

‘Yes，’ said Meg sadly。

“是的，”梅格悲傷地說。

‘What did you say？’

“你說了什麼？”

‘I told him that I am too young to think about marriage。 I said he must speak to Father because I don’t want any secrets。 I asked him to be my friend。‘

“我告訴他，我還太年輕，還不能考慮結婚的事。我說他必須告訴父親，因為我不想隱瞞。我請求他做我的朋友。”

Mrs March smiled and Jo laughed。

馬奇太太笑了，喬笑了。

’Then I received this note from him today，‘ continued Meg。 ’He says that he didn‘t send me a letter。 He says it was probably one of Jo’s tricks。‘

“然後我今天收到了他的條子，”梅格接著說。“他說他沒有給我寄過信。他說那可能是喬的一個詭計。”

Jo took the note and looked at it carefully。

喬拿過紙條，仔細地看了看。

’It‘s alright， Meg。 Mr Brooke didn’t write this note。 Laurie did，‘ she said。

“沒事了，梅格。這張條子不是布魯克先生寫的。是勞裡乾的，”她說。

’Go and ask Laurie to come here， Jo，‘ said Mrs March。 ’I want to talk to him。‘

“去叫勞裡到這兒來，喬，”馬奇太太說。“我想和他談談。”

While Jo was out of the room， Mrs March told Meg about Mr Brooke’s feelings for her。

喬不在房間時，馬奇太太告訴了梅格布魯克先生對她的感情。

‘Do you love him， Meg？’ she asked。

“你愛他嗎，梅格？”她問。

‘I’m not interested in love at the moment，‘ replied Meg nervously。 ’Please don‘t tell John about the letters。 And tell Jo and Laurie not to say anything。’

“目前我對愛情不感興趣，”梅格緊張地回答。“請不要把信的事告訴約翰。告訴喬和勞裡什麼也別說。”

Laurie knew that he was in trouble because Mrs March looked very serious。 She sent the girls away and closed the parlor door。 When they came out half an hour later， Laurie looked very unhappy。 Jo felt sorry for him。 He apologized to Meg and promised never to tell Mr Brooke about the letters or note。 Meg accepted his apology and they were all friends again。

勞裡知道他有麻煩了，因為馬奇太太看上去很嚴肅。她把姑娘們打發走，關上了客廳的門。半小時後他們出來時，勞裡看上去很不高興。喬為他感到難過。他向梅格道歉，並保證永遠不會告訴布魯克先生那些信和便條的事。梅格接受了他的道歉，他們又成了朋友。

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12 A SPECIAL CHRISTMAS PRESENT

12 一份特別的聖誕禮物

The weather was very good that winter。 Christmas Day was sunny and bright， so Jo and Laurie went into the garden and made a snowman for Beth。 They put flowers and fresh fruit for her in its hand。 Jo brought her downstairs to see it and Beth laughed at its funny face。 She was much better but she was still very thin and weak。 After that there were presents for everyone。

那年冬天天氣很好。聖誕節陽光明媚，喬和勞裡走進花園，給貝絲堆了一個雪人。他們把鮮花和新鮮的水果放在她的手中。喬帶她下樓去看它，貝絲嘲笑著它那張滑稽的臉。她好多了，但還是很瘦很虛弱。之後給每個人都準備了禮物。

Later that morning Laurie came back。 There was a mysterious smile on his face when he opened the parlor door。

那天上午晚些時候，勞裡回來了。當他開啟客廳的門時，臉上露出了神秘的微笑。

‘Here’s another Christmas present for the March family！‘ he said。 He disappeared behind the door and a tall man walked into the room。 It was Mr March！ Suddenly the parlor was full of confusion and noise。 Meg， Jo and Amy all ran to their father and hugged and kissed him again and again。 Then Mrs March hugged and kissed him。 Everyone was talking at the same time。

“這兒有給馬奇一家的另一份聖誕禮物！”他說。他消失在門後，一個高個子男人走進了房間。是馬奇先生！客廳裡突然充滿了混亂和嘈雜。梅格、喬和艾米都跑向她們的父親，一次又一次地擁抱、親吻他。然後馬奇太太擁抱他，吻他。每個人都在同時說話。

’Hush！ Remember Beth！‘ Mrs March said。 ’Beth was sleeping upstairs。‘

“噓！想想貝絲！”馬奇太太說。“貝絲在樓上睡覺。”

But it was too late。 Beth was already at the door。 She stopped， looked at the scene and then she ran straight into the arms of her father。

但已經太遲了。貝絲已經到了門口。她停了下來，看了看眼前的情景，然後徑直撲進了父親的懷裡。

It was the happiest Christmas they could remember。 Hannah cooked a fat turkey and there was plum pudding and jelly。 Everything was delicious。 Mr Laurence， Mr Brooke and Laurie ate with them and after dinner they all sang songs and told stories about the past。 After the guests left， the March family sat together around the fire。

這是他們記憶中最快樂的聖誕節。漢娜煮了一隻肥火雞，還有葡萄乾布丁和果凍。一切都很好吃。勞倫斯老先生、布魯克先生和勞裡和他們一起吃飯。晚飯後，他們都唱著歌，講著過去的故事。客人們走後，馬奇一家圍坐在火爐旁。

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Mr March looked at the four young faces around him with satisfaction。

馬奇先生滿意地看著他周圍的四張年輕的臉。

’It was a difficult year for my little girls， I know，‘ he said to them。 ’But you were very brave。‘ He took Meg’s hands in his。

“我知道，對我的女兒們來說，這是艱難的一年，”他對她們說。“但是你們很勇敢。他把梅格的手握在自己手裡。

‘Meg， your white hands are now rough and red with hard work。 They were pretty before but they are prettier to me now。 I’m proud of you。‘

“梅格，你白皙的雙手由於勞作變得又紅又粗糙了。它們以前很漂亮，但現在對我來說更漂亮了。我為你感到驕傲。”

Then he looked at Jo。

然後他看著喬。

’You were my noisy， wild boy！‘ he said。 ’But now I can see a good， strong woman with a tender heart in front of me。 I‘m very happy。’

“你是我吵鬧的野孩子！”他說。“但現在我看到一個善良、堅強的女人，有一顆溫柔的心在我面前。我很高興。”

‘What about Beth？’ asked Amy。

“貝絲呢？”艾米問。

‘Beth！ Dear， good little Beth！’ said Mr March。 He looked at her small， thin body and held her tightly。

“貝絲！親愛的、善良的小貝絲！”馬奇先生說。他看著她瘦小的身體，緊緊地摟著她。

‘We nearly lost her。 Now I’m going to keep her safe forever。‘ Then it was Amy’s turn。

“我們差點失去了她。現在我要永遠保護她。”然後就輪到艾米了。

‘I watched Amy today，’ Mr March said。 ‘She is kinder and more helpful than she was。 She thinks more about other people and less about herself。 I am proud to have a daughter like her。 I’m proud of all my wonderful little women！‘

“今天我看了艾米，”馬奇先生說。她比以前更善良，更樂於助人。她多為別人著想，少為自己著想。我很自豪有一個像她這樣的女兒。我為我所有了不起的小婦人感到驕傲！”

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13 A VISIT FROM AUNT MARCH

13馬奇姑姑的來訪

Mr March and Beth spent the next day in the parlor。 Mr March sat in a big armchair and Beth lay on the sofa。 Mrs March， Meg， Jo and Amy didn’t do any housework that morning。 They only wanted to look after their two invalids。 Sometimes Mr and Mrs March looked at each other anxiously and then they looked at Meg。 Meg was quiet。 She jumped when the bell rang and her face turned red when she heard John Brooke‘s name。

馬奇先生和貝絲第二天呆在客廳裡。馬奇先生坐在一張大扶手椅上，貝絲躺在沙發上。馬奇太太、梅格、喬和艾米那天早上什麼家務活也沒做。他們只想照顧他們的兩個病人。有時馬奇先生和馬奇太太焦慮地互相看了一眼，然後又看著梅格。梅格是安靜的。鈴響時她跳了起來，聽到約翰·布魯克的名字時她的臉變紅了。

In the afternoon when they were alone together， Jo asked Meg， ’When Mr Brooke speaks to you about getting married， what are you going to say to him？‘

下午他們倆單獨在一起時，喬問梅格：“當布魯克先生對你說要結婚的事時，你打算對他說什麼？”

’I‘m going to say that I agree with Father。 I’m too young to get engaged，‘ Meg replied。 ’Then I‘m going to ask him if we can be friends。’

“我要說我同意爸爸的看法。我太年輕了，不能訂婚，”梅格回答。“然後我要去問他我們能不能做朋友。”

‘I don’t believe you，‘ said Jo。

“我不相信你，”喬說。

Suddenly they heard a noise in the hall and then there was a tap on the door。 Jo opened it and Mr Brooke walked in。

突然，他們聽到大廳裡有響聲，然後是敲門聲。喬開啟門，布魯克先生走了進來。

’Good afternoon，‘ he said。 ’I came for my umbrella。 I left it here yesterday。‘

“下午好，”他說。“我來取傘。我昨天忘在這兒了。”

The girls’ faces turned red。 Mr Brooke was a little confused。

女孩們的臉都變紅了。布魯克先生有點糊塗了。

‘Err…And how is your father？’ he asked。

“呃…你父親好嗎？”他問。

‘He’s well，‘ Jo said quickly。 ’I‘m going to tell him you’re here。‘ And she ran out。

“他還好，”喬很快地說。“我去告訴他你來了。”她跑了出去。

’I‘m sure that Mother would like to see you， too，’ said Meg， and she stood up to go。

“我肯定媽媽也想見到你，”梅格說，她站起身要走。

‘Please stay， Meg。 Don’t be afraid of me，‘ Mr Brooke said quickly。

“梅格，請留下來。別怕我，”布魯克先生很快地說。

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Meg wanted to be friendly so she put out her hand and said， ’How can I be？ You were so kind to Father in Washington。 How can I thank you for that？‘

梅格想表示友好，所以她伸出手說，“我怎麼能這樣呢？你在華盛頓對父親太好了。為此我該怎麼感謝你呢？”

’Say that you love me a little bit， Meg，‘ he replied tenderly。 ’I love you so very much。‘

“說你愛我一點點，梅格，”他溫柔地回答。“我非常愛你。”

Meg felt confused and happy at the same time。 She didn’t know what to do。

梅格既感到困惑又感到快樂。她不知道該怎麼辦。

‘I’m too young，‘ she said。

“我太小了，”她說。

’I can wait and perhaps you can learn to love me。。。‘

“我可以等，也許你可以學著愛我……”

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Just at that moment Aunt March arrived。 She knew about Mr March’s arrival and she wanted to see her nephew。 She went straight to the parlor and opened the door。 The two young people were very surprised。 Meg turned white then red and Mr Brooke quickly disappeared into the study。

正在這時，馬奇姑姑來了。她知道馬奇先生的到來，她想見她的侄子。她徑直走進客廳，打開了門。這兩個年輕人非常驚訝。梅格臉色先是白了又紅了，布魯克先生很快消失在了書房裡。

‘What’s going on here？‘ the old lady cried。 ’What was that young man saying to you？‘

“這裡發生了什麼事？”老太太喊道。“那個年輕人對你說了什麼？”

’Nothing， Aunt March。 Mr Brooke came to get his umbrella。 He‘s one of father’s friends。‘

“沒什麼，馬奇姑姑。布魯克先生來拿他的傘。他是父親的一個朋友。”

’Brooke！ The Laurence boy‘s tutor！’ said Aunt March loudly。 ‘Now I understand。 Jo told me everything。 I hope you aren’t going to marry him！‘

“布魯克！那男孩的家庭教師！”馬奇姑姑大聲說。“現在我明白了。喬把一切都告訴我了。我希望你不要嫁給他！”

’Hush， Aunt！ He‘s in the next room，’ said Meg。 She wanted to go and find her mother but the old lady stopped her。

“噓，姑姑！他在隔壁房間，”梅格說。她想去找她的母親，但老太太阻止了她。

‘Stay here and listen to me！’ she said。 ‘Don’t marry that man。 He hasn‘t got any money and I refuse to give you any of my money if you marry him。’

“呆在這兒聽我說！”她說。“不要嫁給那個男人。他沒有錢，如果你嫁給他，我也不會把我的錢給你。”

This made Meg angry。 Suddenly she felt brave and independent。 ‘I don’t want your money， Aunt！‘ she replied。 ’And it isn‘t your business who I marry！’

這使梅格很生氣。她突然感到勇敢和獨立。“我不要你的錢，姑姑！”她回答。“我嫁給誰也不關你的事！”

Aunt March was shocked。 Meg was usually a very quiet and polite girl。

馬奇姑姑很震驚。梅格通常是一個非常安靜有禮貌的女孩。

‘My dear，’ she said， in a more friendly tone。 ‘This man hasn’t got any rich relations。‘

“親愛的，”她用一種更友好的語氣說。“這個人沒有什麼有錢的親戚。”

’No， but he has many good friends。‘

“是的，但他有許多好朋友。”

’And he hasn‘t got a good job。’

“而且他還沒有找到一份好工作。”

‘Oh， not yet， but Mr Laurence is going to help him，’ Meg replied。

“哦，現在沒有，可勞倫斯老先生會幫助他的，”梅格回答道。

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Meg looked very serious。

梅格看上去很嚴肅。

‘John is a good man， Aunt。 And he’s got lots of talent。 He‘s hard-working， energetic and brave。 Mother and Father like and respect him。 I’m proud that he loves me。‘

“約翰是個好人，姑姑。他很有天賦。他工作努力，精力充沛，勇敢。媽媽和爸爸喜歡他，尊敬他。我為他愛我感到驕傲。”

’He knows that you have got rich relations， dear，‘ replied the old lady。 ’That‘s why he loves you！’

“他知道你有有錢的親戚，親愛的，”老太太回答說。“這就是他愛你的原因！”

‘Aunt March， how can you say that？’ cried Meg。 ‘It isn’t true。 And anyway， I‘m not afraid of being poor。 I’m poor now and I‘m happy。 I know that I can be happy with John because he loves me， and I。。。’

“馬奇姑姑，您怎麼能這麼說？”梅格嚷道。“這不是真的。無論如何，我並不害怕貧窮。我現在很窮，但我很快樂。我知道和約翰在一起會很幸福，因為他愛我，而且我……”

Meg stopped suddenly。 What was she saying？ Did she really love John？ And was John listening in the next room？

梅格突然停了下來。她在說什麼？她真的愛約翰嗎？約翰在隔壁聽嗎？

Aunt March was angry with Meg。 She wanted a rich and important husband for her pretty niece， not a poor man with no future。

馬奇姑姑對梅格很生氣。她想為她漂亮的侄孫女找一個有錢有勢的丈夫，而不是一個沒有前途的窮人。

‘I’m very disappointed in you， Meg！‘ she said。 ’Don‘t expect anything from me when you get married！’ And she walked out and slammed the door in Meg‘s face。

“我對你很失望，梅格！”她說。“你結婚時不要期望從我這裡得到任何東西！”她走出去，當著梅格的面砰地關上了門。

Meg didn’t know whether to laugh or cry。 But before she could decide， Mr Brooke came in。 He took her hands in his。

梅格不知道該笑還是該哭。但她還沒作決定，布魯克先生走了進來。他握住她的手。

‘Thank you for defending me， Meg。 Now I know you love me a little bit。’

“謝謝你為我辯護，梅格。現在我知道你有那麼一點愛我。”

‘Yes， John。 I do，’ she whispered。

“是的，約翰。是的，”她低聲說。

Who do you agree with？

Aunt March or Meg？

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Five minutes later Jo went to look for her sister。 She gasped with surprise when she opened the parlor door。 Meg was sitting on Mr Brooke‘s knee and she looked very happy！

五分鐘後，喬去找她的妹妹。當她開啟客廳的門時，她驚訝地喘著氣。梅格坐在布魯克先生的膝蓋上，她看起來非常高興！

When she saw Jo， she jumped up immediately and looked a bit shy。 But Mr Brooke laughed。

當她看到喬時，她立刻跳了起來，看上去有點害羞。但布魯克先生笑了。

’Sister Jo！‘ he said。 ’Congratulate us！‘

“喬妹妹！”他說。“祝賀我們！”

Jo was horrified。 She turned and ran up the stairs。 Her mother and father were in the bedroom。

喬嚇壞了。她轉身跑上樓梯。她的父母在臥室裡。

’Please！ Go downstairs quickly！‘ she cried。 ’Mr Brooke is behaving very badly and Meg likes it！‘

“請！快下樓！”她哭了。“布魯克先生的行為很惡劣，梅格喜歡這樣！”

Mr and Mrs March hurried down to the parlor and Jo told Beth and Amy the news。 They thought it was very exciting。

馬奇夫婦急忙下樓來到客廳，喬把這個訊息告訴了貝絲和艾米。他們覺得很刺激。

That afternoon Mr Brooke spoke to Meg’s parents about his plans for the future。 They were in the parlor for a long time。 Mr Brooke had very clear ideas and finally Mr and Mrs March agree to the marriage。

那天下午布魯克先生和梅格的父母談了他未來的計劃。他們在客廳裡待了很長時間。布魯克先生的想法很明確，最後馬奇先生和馬奇太太同意了這樁婚事。

That evening Mr Brooke stayed for supper。 Everybody except Jo was very happy。

那天晚上布魯克先生留下來吃晚飯。除了喬，每個人都很高興。

‘You can’t say that nothing pleasant ever happens in this family now， Meg，‘ Said Amy。

“你現在不能說這個家沒發生過什麼愉快的事了，梅格，”艾米說。

’No， I can‘t，’ replied Meg smiling。

“不，我不能，”梅格笑著回答。

‘But three years！ It’s a long time to wait。‘ Amy was looking forward to a wedding in the family。

“但三年！要等很久了。”艾米正期待著家裡舉行婚禮。

’It isn‘t，’ Meg was serious now。 ‘I have a lot of things to learn before I get married。’

“不是的，”梅格現在是認真的了。“結婚前我還有很多東西要學。”

Then Laurie and Mr Laurence arrived。 Laurie gave Meg a bouquet of flowers and Mr Brooke invited them both to the wedding。

這時勞裡和勞倫斯老先生來了。勞裡送給梅格一束花，布魯克先生邀請他們倆參加婚禮。

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Later， when everyone else was talking and laughing， Laurie went to speak to Jo。 She was sitting on her own in a corner of the room。

後來，當大家都有說有笑時，勞裡走過去對喬說話。她獨自坐在房間的一個角落裡。

‘What’s the matter， Jo？‘ he said。 ’You don‘t look very happy。’

“怎麼了，喬？”他說。“你看起來不太高興。”

‘I’m sad because I‘m going to lose my best friend，’ she replied， and sighed deeply。

“我很難過，因為我就要失去我最好的朋友了，”她答道，深深地嘆了口氣。

‘But you’ve got me，‘ Laurie said。 I’m your friend， too， you know。‘

“可你有我呀，”勞裡說。“我也是你的朋友，你知道的。”

’I know， Laurie。 Thank you。 And you‘re a very good friend。’ She looked around the room at her family and friends。 They were all happy。 It was a pleasant sight and she started to smile。 She didn‘t want to think about the future。 She wanted to enjoy the moment and remember it forever。

“我知道，勞裡。謝謝你！你是我的好朋友。她環視了一下房間裡的家人和朋友。他們都很高興。這是一個令人愉快的景象，她開始微笑。她不想去考慮未來。她想享受這一刻，並永遠記住它。