麦琪的礼物(欧.亨利)
麦琪(magic)，指《圣经》所记载耶稣降生时从东方来耶路撒冷给他送礼的三个贤人：“光明之神”梅尔基奥尔赠送黄金表示尊贵，“洁白者”加斯帕赠送乳香象征神圣，巴尔撒泽赠送没药预示着基督后来遭受迫害而死。麦琪首开圣诞赠送礼物的风俗。
One dollar and eighty-seven cents. That was all. And sixty cents of it was in pennies. Pennies saved one and two at a time by bulldozing the grocer and the vegetable man and the butcher until one’s cheeks burned with the silent imputation of parsimony that such c;ose dea;ing implied. Three times Della counted it. One dollar and eighty-even cents. And the next day would be Christmas.
一元八角七分。全在这儿了。其中六分还是零钱凑起来的。这些小钱是每次一个两个向杂货店、菜贩和肉店的老板硬扣下来的；人家虽然没有明说，自己总是觉得这种掂斤拨两的交易未免落个吝啬的恶名，当时羞得脸红。德拉数了三遍。数来数去还是一块八角七分钱。而第二天就是圣诞节了。
There was clearly nothing to do but flop down on the shabby little couch and howl. So Della did it. Which instigates the moral reflection that life is made up of sobs, sniffles, and smiles, with sniffles predominating.
除了倒在那张破旧的小踏上大哭一场之外，显然没有别的办法。德拉就这么办了。这就使一种精神上的感慨油然而生，认为人生是由啜泣、抽咽和微笑组成的，其中抽咽占主导地位。
While the mistress of the home is gadually subsiding from the first stage to the second, take a look at the home. A furnished flat at $8 per week. It did not exactly beggar description, but it certainly had word on the lookout for the mendicancy squad.
趁着家的女主人悲伤逐渐由第一级降到第二级的时候，让我们来看看她的家吧！一套备有家具的公寓，租金每周八元钱。虽然不能说绝对的难以形容实际上，确实与贫民窟也相差无几了。
In the vestibule below was a letter-box into which no letter would go, and an electric button from which no mortal finger could coax a ring. Also appertaining thereunto was a card bearing the name “Mr.James Dillingham Young”.
楼下的甬道里有一个信箱，但是永远不会有信件投进去；还有一个电铃，鬼才能把它按响。那里还贴着一张名片，上面写着“杰姆斯.狄林汉.杨先生”几个字。
The “Dillingham” had been flung to the breeze during a former period of prosperity when its possessor was being paid $30 per week. Now,when the income was shrunk to $20, the letters of “Dillingham” looked blurred, as though they were thinking seriously of contracting to a modest and unassuming D. But whenver Mr.James Dillingham Young came home and reached his falt above he was called “Jim” and GREatly hugged by Mrs James Dillingham Young, alreadly introduced to you as Della . Which is all very good..
“狄林汉”这个名号是主人先前富裕时，也就是每周赚30元时，一时高兴，加在姓名之间的，现在进款减缩到20元了，“狄林汉”几个字看起来有些模糊，仿佛它们正在慎重地考虑是否缩成一个质朴而谦虚的“狄”字为妙。但是每逢杰姆斯.狄林汉.杨先生回家上楼，走进房门时。杰姆斯.狄林汉.杨太太——就是前面已经介绍过的德拉——总是把他叫做“杰姆”，并且热烈地拥抱他。这当然是很好的。
