Nick-knock, nick-knock, went the cradle; the candle-flame stretched itself tall, and began jigging up and down; the water dribbled from the matron's elbows, and the song galloped on to the end of the verse, Mrs Durbeyfield regarding her daughter the while. Even now, when burdened with a young family, Joan Durbeyfield was a passionate lover of tune. No ditty floated into Blackmoor Vale from the outer world but Tess's mother caught up its notation in a week.
摇篮砰吱砰吱地摇着;烛焰伸长了,开始上下摇曳起来;德北菲尔德太太仔细注视着她的女儿,洗衣水从她的胳膊肘上流下来,《花斑母牛》也很快唱到了一段的末尾。甚至现在,琼·德北菲尔德太太身上压着一群孩子的重担,她也十分喜欢唱歌。只要有小调从外面的世界传入黑荒原谷,苔丝的母亲就能在一星期里学会它的曲子。

There still faintly beamed from the woman's features something of the freshness, and even the prettiness, of her youth; rendering it probable that the personal charms which Tess could boast of were in main part her mother's gift, and therefore unknightly, unhistorical.
在德北菲尔德太太的面目上,还依稀闪耀着一些她当年年轻时候的鲜艳甚至美丽的光辉;这表明也许苔丝可以引为自豪的她身上的美貌,主要是来自她母亲的恩赐,而不是她的骑士血统和历史渊源带来的。

'I'll rock the cradle for 'ee, mother,' said the daughter gently. 'Or I'll take off my best frock and help you wring up? I thought you had finished long ago.'
“我来摇摇篮吧,妈妈,”女儿轻声说。“要不我把我身上这件最好的衣服脱下来,帮你把衣服拧干了吧?我还以为你早已经洗完了呢。”

Her mother bore Tess no ill-will for leaving the house-work to her single-handed efforts for so long; indeed, Joan seldom up-braided her thereon at any time, feeling but slightly the lack of Tess's assistance whilst her instinctive plan for relieving herself of her labours lay in postponing them. To-night, however, she wis even in a blither mood than usual. There was a dreaminess, a preoccupation, an exaltation, in the maternal look which the girl could not understand.
苔丝把家务事留给母亲一个人做,在外面玩得这么久,但母亲并没有埋怨她。说实在的,琼从来都很少因为这个责怪女儿,她只是稍微感到没有苔丝帮忙,要是想让自己干活轻松些,就只能把活儿推到后面去。但是今天晚上,她好像比平常要快乐些。在母亲的脸上,有一种女儿不明白的朦胧恍馏、心不在焉和洋洋得意的神情。 

'Well, I'm glad you've come,' her mother said, as soon as the last note had passed out of her. 'I want to go and fetch your father; but what's more'n that, I want to tell 'ee what have happened. Y'll be fess enough, my poppet, when th'st know!' (Mrs Durbeyfield habitually spoke the dialect; her daughter, who had passed the Sixth Standard in the National School under a London-trained mistress, spoke two languages; the dialect at home, more or less; ordinary English abroad and to persons of quality.)
“噢,你回来得正好,”她母亲刚把最后一个音唱完就开口说。“我正要出去找你的父亲;不过还有比这更重要的,我要告诉你刚才发生的事。我的小宝贝,你听了一定要高兴的!”德北菲尔德太太习惯于说土话;她的女儿在国立小学里经过伦敦培养的女教师的教育,已经读完了第六年级,因而讲两种语言:在家里或多或少讲土话;在外面和对有教养的人讲普通英语。