Hit’s big asa courthouse he thought quietly，with a surge of peace and joy whose reason he could not have thought into words，being too young for that：They are safe from him。People whose lives are a part of this peace and dignity are beyond his touch，he no more to them than a buzzing wasp：capable of stinging for a little moment but that’s allthe spell of this peace and dignity rendering even the barnsand stable and cribs which belong to it impervious to the puny flames he might contrive。。。this，the peace and joy，ebbing for an instant as he looked again atthe stiff black back，the stiff and implacable limp of the figure which was notdwarfed by the house，for the reason that it had never looked big anywhere and which now，against the serene columned backdrop，had more than ever that impervious quality of something cut ruthlessly from tin，depthless，as though，sidewiseto the sun，it would cast no shadow。Watching him，the boy remarked the absolutely undeviating course which his father held and saw the stiff foot e squarely down in a pile of fresh droppings where a horse had stood in the drive and which his father could have avoided by a simple change of stride。But it ebbed only for a moment，though he could not have thought this into words either，walkingon in the spell of the house，which he could even want but without envy，without sorrow，certainly never with that ravening and jealous rage which unknown to him walked in the iron like black coat before him。Maybe he will feel it too。Maybe it will even change him now from what maybe he couldn’t help but be。
評注：在描寫德斯潘的大宅時，作者故意使用了courthouse一詞，暗示了兒子將因為這所大宅受道德和親情的審判。描寫兒子內心活動的這一段也很妙，這座大宅在他看來是美好和平靜的象征，是與他毫不相關的另外一個世界。他的意識清楚地表明他不願意破壞它，是對父權的一種思想上的反叛。
shaggy：adj。（頭發和胡子）蓬亂的
irascible：adj。暴躁的，易怒的
have a word with：與……交談
outrageous：adj。極不尋常的，駭人的
repercuss：v。回蕩，回響
divulge：v。泄漏，吐露
cedar：n。雪鬆
honeysuckle：n。（植物名）忍冬
sojourn：v。短暫停留
render：v。實施
crib：n。牛舍
impervious：adj。不受影響的
puny：adj。微不足道的
contrive：v。策劃
ebb：v。衰退
implacable：adj。堅定的
dwarf：v。使……相形見絀
serene：adj。平靜的
column：n。柱子
undeviating：adj。不偏不倚的
squarely：adv。端端正正的
could have avoided是虛擬語氣，這表明了父親行為早有預謀，是一種蓄意的破壞。
42 They crossed the portico。Now he could hear his father’s stiff foot as it came down on the boards with clocklike finality，a sound out of all proportion to the displacement of the body it bore and which was not dwarfed either by the white door before it，as though it had attained to a sort of vicious and raveningminimum not to be dwarfed by anything—the flat，wide，black hat，the formal coat of broadcloth which had once been black but which had now the friction-glazed greenish cast of the bodies of old house flies，the lifted sleeve which was too large，the lifted hand like a curled claw。The door opened so promptly that the boy knew the Negro must have been watching them all the time，an old man withneat grizzled hair，in a linen jacket，who stood barring the door with his body，saying，“Wipe yo foots，white man，fo you e in here。Major ain’t home nohow。”
評注：最後這一句也是黑人英語，應該為“wipe your feet，white man，for you e inhere。Major is not at home now。”美國南方的種族關係在這裏表現得頗為耐人尋味，它不單單是白人對黑人的壓迫和歧視，也有莊園主對窮白人的壓迫。在這裏，斯諾普斯家族就是所謂的窮白人，他覺得自己比黑人奴仆高貴，而黑人奴仆在莊園工作，又看不起這類窮白人，他們的衝突就是種族主義罪惡的體現。
43 “Get out of my way，nigger，”his father said，without heat too，flinging the door back and the Negro also and entering，his hat still on his head。And nowthe boy saw the prints of the stiff foot on the doorjamb and saw them appear onthe pale rug behind the machinelike deliberation of the foot which seemed to bear（or transmit）twice the weight which the body passed。The Negro was shouting“Miss Lula！Miss Lula！”somewhere behind them，then the boy，deluged as though by a warm wave by a suave turn of carpeted stair and a pendant glitter of chandeliers and a mute gleam of gold frames，heard the swift feet and saw her too，alady—perhaps he had never seen her like before either—in a gray，smooth gown with lace at the throat and an apron tied at the waist and the sleeves turned back，wiping cake or biscuit dough from her hands with a towel as she came up the hall，looking not at his father at all but at the tracks on the blond rug withan expression of incredulous amazement。
portico：n。柱廊
out of all proportion to：與……不對稱，（相對於）……過分
friction：n。摩擦
promptly：adv。及時的
grizzled：adj。（頭發）灰白的
linen：n。亞麻
bar：v。擋住
fling：v。猛推（門，窗等）
doorjamb：n。門框，門框兩側的直木
transmit：v。傳導，發射
pass：v。包含
deluge：v。大量湧來
suave：adj。溫文爾雅的
pendant：n。垂飾，掛件
glitter：n。閃耀
chandelier：n。水晶吊燈
dough：n。麵團
incredulous：adj。不能相信的，不願相信的
44 “I tried，”the Negro cried。“I tole him to。。。”
45 “Will you please go away？”she said in a shaking voice。“Major de Spain is not at home。Will you please go away？”
46 His father had not spoken again。He did not speak again。He didnot even look at her。He just stood stiff in the center of the rug，in his hat，the shaggyiron-gray brows twitching slightly above the pebble-colored eyes as he appearedto examine the house with brief deliberation。Then with the same deliberation he turnedthe boy watched him pivot on the good leg and saw the stiff foot drag round the arc of the turning，leaving a final long and fading smear。His father never looked at it，he never once looked down at the rug。The Negro held the door。It closed behind them，upon the hysteric and indistinguishable woman-wail。His father stopped at the top of the steps and scraped his boot clean on the edge of it。At the gate he stopped again。He stood for a moment，planted stiffly on the stiff foot，looking back at the house。“Pretty and white，ain’t it？”he said。“That’s sweat。Nigger sweat。Maybe it ain’t white enough yet to suit him。Maybe he wants to mix some white sweat with it。”
47 Two hours later the boy was chopping wood behind the house within which his mother and aunt and the two sisters（the mother and aunt，not the two girls，he knew thateven at this distance and muffled by walls the flatloud voices of the two girls emanated an incorrigible idle inertia）were setting up the stove to prepare a meal，when he heard the hooves and saw the linen-clad man on a finesorrel mare，whom he recognized even before he saw the rolled rug in front of the Negro youth following on a fat bay carriage horse—a suffused，angry face vanishing，still at full gallop，beyond the corner of the house where his father and brother were sitting in the two tilted chairsand a moment later，almost before he could have put the axe down，he heard the hooves again andwatched the sorrel mare go back out of the yard，already galloping again。Then his father began to shout one of the sisters’names，who presently emerged backward from the kitchen door dragging the rolled rug along the ground byone end while the other sister walked behind it。
twitch：v。抽動，抽搐
deliberation：n。從容，謹慎
pivot：v。以……為軸旋轉
smear：n。汙穢，油漬
muffle：v。使聲音減弱
emanate：v。散發
incorrigible：adj。不可救藥的
inertia：n。惰性
hoof：n。蹄子
bay：n。在這裏指紅棕色的馬
suffuse：v。彌漫
gallop：n。疾馳
tilt：v。傾斜
48 “If you ain’t going to tote，go on and set up the washpot，”the first said。
49 “You，Sarty！”the second shouted，“Set up the wash pot！”His father appeared at the door，framed against that shabbiness，as he had been against that other bland perfection，impervious to either，the mother’s anxious face at his shoulder。
50 “Go on，”the father said。“Pick it up。”The two sisters stooped，broad，lethargicstooping，they presented an incredible expanse of pale cloth and a flutter of tawdry ribbons。
51 “If I thought enough of a rug to have to git hit all the way from France Iwouldn’t keep hit where folks ing in would have to tromp on hit，”the firstsaid。They raised the rug。
52 “Abner，”the mother said。“Let me do it。”
53 “You go back and git dinner，”his father said。“I’ll tend to this。”
54 From the woodpile through the rest of the afternoon the boy watched them，the rug spread flat in the dust beside the bubbling wash-pot，the two sisters stooping over it with that profound and lethargic reluctance，while the father stood over them in turn，implacable and grim，driving them though never raising hisvoice again。He could smell the harsh homemade lye they were usinghe saw his mother e to the door once and look toward them with an expression not anxiousnow but very like despairhe saw his father turn，and he fell to with the axe and saw from the corner of his eye his father raise from the ground a flattish fragment of field stone and examine it and return to the pot，and this time his mother actually spoke：“Abner。Abner。Please don’t。Please，Abner。”
55 It still hung there while they ate the cold food and then went to bed，scattered without order or claim up and down the two rooms，his mother in one bed，where his father would later lie，the older brother in the other，himself，the aunt，and the two sisters on pallets on the floor。But his fatherwas not in bed yet。The last thing the boy remembered was the depthless，harsh silhouette of the hat and coat bending over the rug and it seemed to him that he had not even closed his eyes when the silhouette was standing over him，the fire almost dead behind it，the stiff foot prodding him awake。“Catch up the mule，”his father said。
tote：v。搬，抬
stoop：v。俯身，彎腰
lethargic：adj。無精打采的
incredible：adj。難以置信的
tawdry：adj。廉價的，不值錢的
bubble：v。冒泡泡
profound：adj。強烈的，深切的
reluctance：n。不情願
implacable：adj。對……毫不寬容的
lye：n。堿液
fragment：n。碎片
pallet：n。臨時使用的床墊
silhouette：n。輪廓，側影
prod：v。刺，捅
56 When he returned with the mule his father was standing in the black door，the rolled rug over his shoulder。“Ain’t you going to ride？”he said。
57 “No。Give me your foot。”
58 He bent his knee into his father’s hand，the wiry，surprising power flowedsmoothly，rising，he rising with it，on to the mule’s bare back（they had owneda saddle oncethe boy could remember it though not when or where）and with thesame effortlessness his father swung the rug up in front of him。Now in the starlight they retraced the afternoon’s path，up the dusty road rife with honeysuckle，through the gate and up the black tunnel of the drive to thelightless house，where he sat on the mule and felt the rough warp of the rug drag across his thighs and vanish。
59 “Don’t you want me to help？”he whispered。His father did not answer and now he heard again that stiff foot striking the hollow portico with that wooden and clocklike deliberation，that outrageous overstatement of the weight it carried。The rug，hunched，not flung（the boy could tell that even in the darkness）from his father’s shoulder struck the angle of wall and floor with a sound unbelievably loud，thunderous，then the foot again，unhurried and enormousa light came on in the house and the boy sat，tense，breathing steadily and quietly and just a little fast，though the foot itself did not increase its beat at all，descending the steps nownow the boy could see him。
60 “Don’t you want to ride now？”he whispered。“We kin both ride now，”the light within the house altering now，flaring up and sinking，He’sing down thestairs now，he thought。He had already ridden the mule up beside the horse blockpresently his father was up behind him and he doubled the reins over and slashed the mule across the neck，but before the animal could begin to trot the hard，thin arm came round him，the hard，knotted hand jerking the mule back to a walk。
61 In the first red rays of the sun they were in the lot，putting plow gear on the mules。This time the sorrel mare was in the lot before he heard it at all，the rider collarless and even bareheaded，trembling，speaking in a shaking voice as the woman in the house had done，his father merely looking up once before stooping again to the hame he was buckling，so that the man on the mare spoke to his stooping back：
62 “You must realize you have ruined that rug。Wasn’t there anybody here，anyof your women。。。”he ceased，shaking，the boy watching him，the older brother leaning now in the stable door，chewing，blinking slowly and steadily at nothing apparently。“It cost a hundred dollars。But you never had a hundred dollars。Younever will。So I’m going to charge you twenty bushels of corn against your crop。I’ll add it in your contract and when you e to the missary you can sign it。That won’t keep Mrs。de Spain quiet but maybe it will teach you to wipe yourfeet off before you enter her house again。”
63 Then he was gone。The boy looked at his father，who still had not spoken or even looked up again，who was now adjusting the logger-head in the hame。
64 “Pap，”he said。His father looked at him—the inscrutable face，the shaggy brows beneath which the gray eyes glinted coldly。Suddenly theboy went towardhim，fast，stopping as suddenly。“You done the best you could！”he cried。“If he wanted hit done different why didn’t he wait and tell you how？He won’t git notwenty bushels！He won’t git none！We’ll gether hit and hide hit！I kin watch。。。”
65 “Did you put the cutter back in that straight stock like I toldyou？”
rife：adj。普遍存在的
flare up：突然的燃燒（這裏指燈的突然點亮）
slash：v。猛削，猛打
buckle：v。用扣環扣住
stable：n。馬廄
bushel：n。蒲式耳（穀物，蔬菜的容量單位，一蒲式耳等於8加侖或64升）
inscrutable：adj。高深莫測的
glint：v。閃耀，閃光
66 “No sir，”he said。
67 “Then go do it。”
68 That was Wednesday。During the rest of that week he worked steadily，atwhat was within his scope and some which was beyond it，with an industry that did not need to be driven nor even manded twicehe had this from his mother，with the difference that some at least of what he did he liked to do，such as splitting wood with the half-size axe which his mother and aunt had earned，or savedmoney somehow，to present him with at Christmas。In pany withthe two older women（and on one afternoon，even one of the sisters），he built pens for the shoat and the cow which were a part of his father’s contract with the landlord，andone afternoon，his father being absent，gone somewhere on one of the mules，he went to the field。
69 They were running a middle buster now，his brother holding the plow straight while he handled the reins，and walking beside the straining mule，the rich black soil shearing cool and damp against his bare ankles，he thought maybe this is the end of it。Maybe even that twenty bushels that seems hard to have to pay for just a rug will be a cheap price for him to stop forever and always from being what he used to bethinking，dreaming now，so that his brother had to speak sharply to him to mind the mule：Maybe he even won’t collect the twenty bushels。Maybe it will all add up and balance and vanish—corn，rug，firethe terrorand grief，the being pulled two ways like between two teams of horses—gone，done with for ever and ever。
70 Then it was Saturdayhe looked up from beneath the mule he washarnessingand saw his father in the black coat and hat。“Not that，”his father said。“Thewagon gear。”And then，two hours later，sitting in the wagon bed behind his father and brother on the seat，the wagon acplished a final curve，and he saw the weathered paintless store with its tattered tobacco-and patent-medicine posters and the tethered wagons and saddle animals below the gallery。He mounted the gnawed steps behind his father and brother，and there again was the lane of quiet，watching faces for the three of them to walk through。He saw the man in spectacles sitting at the plank table and he did not need to be told this was a Justice of the Peacehe sent one glare of fierce，exultant，partisan defiance at theman in collar and cravat now，whom he had seen but twice beforein his life，and that on a galloping horse，who now wore on his face an expression not of rage but of amazed unbelief which the boy could not have known was at the incredible circumstance of being sued by one of his own tenants，and came and stood againsthis father and cried at the justice：“He ain’t done it！He ain’t burnt。。。”