88 Nevertheless，my mind was not pacifiedand full of a restless curiosity，at last I returned to the door。Without hindrance I inserted my key，opened it，and entered。Bartleby was not to be seen。I looked round anxiously，peeped behindhis screenbut it was very plain that he was gone。Upon more closely examiningthe place，I surmised that for an indefinite period Bartleby must have ate，dressed，and slept in my office，and that too without plate，mirror，or bed。The cushioned seat of a rickety old sofa in one corner bore the faint impress of a lean，reclining form。Rolled away under his desk，I found a blanketunder the empty grate，a blacking box and brushon a chair，a tin basin，withsoap and a ragged towelin a newspaper a few crumbs of ginger-nuts and a morsel of cheese。Yet，thought I，it is evident enough that Bartleby has been making his home here，keeping bachelor’s hall all by himself。Immediately then the thought came sweeping across me，What miserable friendlessness and loneliness are here revealed！Hispoverty is greatbut his solitude，how horrible！Think of it。Of a Sunday，Wall street is deserted as Petraand every night of every day it is an emptiness。This building，too，which of week-days hums with industry and life，at nightfallechoes with sheer vacancy，and all through Sunday is forlorn。And here Bartleby makes his homesole spectator of a solitude which he has seen all populous—asort of innocent and transformed Marius brooding among the ruins of Carthage！
89 For the first time in my life a feeling of overpowering stingingmelancholyseized me。Before，I had never experienced aught but a not-unpleasing sadness。The bond of a mon humanity now drew me irresistibly to gloom。A fraternal melancholy！For both I and Bartleby were sons of Adam。I remembered the bright silks and sparkling faces I had seen that day，in gala trim，swan-like sailing downthe Mississippi of Broadwayand I contrasted them with the pallid copyist，and thought to myself，Ah，happiness courts the light，so we deem the world is gaybut misery hides aloof，so we deem that misery there is none。These sad fancyings—chimeras，doubtless，of a sick and silly brain—led on to other and more special thoughts，concerning the eccentricities of Bartleby。Presentiments of strange discoveries hovered round me。The scrivener’s pale form appeared to me laid out，among uncaring strangers，in its shivering winding sheet。
pacified：adj。平靜的
rickety：adj。搖晃的，東倒西歪的
grate：n。（門、窗等的）格柵
solitude：n。孤獨
Petra：疪特拉，阿拉伯被遺棄的古城
Marius：馬裏阿斯（公元157—36），羅馬將軍
Carthage：（北非）迦太基，於公元142年被羅馬所滅
aught：n。任何事物，任何一切
fraternal：adj。兄弟般的
gala：adj。節日的
deem：v。認為
aloof：adv。遠離地
chimera：n。夢幻
presentiment：n。預感
90 Suddenly I was attracted by Bartleby’s closed desk，the key in open sight left in the lock。
91 I mean no mischief，seek the gratification of no heartlesscuriosity，thought Ibesides，the desk is mine，and its contents，too，so I will make bold to look within。Everything was methodically arranged，the papers smoothly placed。The pigeon holes were deep，and removing the files of documents，I groped into their recesses。Presently I felt something there，and dragged it out。It was an oldbandanna handkerchief，heavy and knotted。I opened it，and saw it was a savings’bank。
92 I now recalled all the quiet mysteries which I had noted in the man。I remembered that he never spoke but to answerthat，though at intervals he had considerable time to himself，yet I had never seen him reading—no，not even a newspaperthat for long periods he would stand looking out，at his pale window behind the screen，upon the dead brick wallI was quite sure he never visited any refectory or eating housewhile his pale face clearly indicated that he never drankbeer like Turkey，or tea and coffee even，like other menthat he never went anywhere in particular that I could learnnever went out for a walk，unless，indeed，that was the case at presentthat he had declined telling who he was，or whence he came，or whether he had any relatives in the worldthat though so thin and pale，he never plained of ill health。And more than all，I remembered a certain unconscious air of pallid—how shall I call it？—of pallid haughtiness，say，or rather an austere reserve about him，which had positively awed me into my tame pliance with his eccentricities，when I had feared to ask him to do the slightest incidental thing for me，even though I might know，from his long-continued motionlessness，that behind his screen he must be standing in one of those dead-wall reveries of his。
93 Revolving all these things，and coupling them with the recently discovered fact，that he made my office his constant abiding place and home，and not forgetful of his morbid moodinessrevolving all these things，a prudential feeling began to steal over me。My first emotions had been those of pure melancholy and sincerest pitybut just in proportion as the forlornness of Bartleby grew and grewto my imagination，did that same melancholy merge into fear，that pity into repulsion。So true it is，and so terrible，took that up to a certainpoint the thought or sight of misery enlists our best affectionsbut，in certain special cases，beyond that point it does not。They err who would assert that invariably this is owing to the inherent selfishness of the human heart。It rather proceeds froma certain hopelessness of remedying excessive and organic ill。To a sensitive being，pity is not seldom pain。And when at last it is perceived that such pity cannot lead to effectual succor，mon sense bids the soul be rid of it。What I saw that morning persuaded me that the scrivener was the victim of innate and incurable disorder。I might give alms to his bodybut his body did not pain himit was his soul that suffered，and his soul I could not reach。
gratification：n。滿足
grope：v。（暗中）摸索，探索
recesse：n。壁凹
bandanna：n。大手帕
refectory：n。餐廳
whence：adv。從何處
haughtiness：n。傲慢
austere：adj。嚴苛的
reserve：n。中規中矩
morbid：adj。不健康的
prudential：adj。謹慎的
repulsion：n。排斥，嚴拒，反感，厭惡
succor：n。援助，幫助
alms（單複數同）：n。施舍物，救濟金94I did not acplish the purpose of going to Trinity Church thatmorning。Somehow，the things I had seen disqualified me for the time from church-going。Iwalked homeward，thinking what I would do with Bartleby。Finally，I resolved upon this—I would put certain calm questions to him the next morning，touching his history，etc。，and if he declined to answer them openly and reservedly（and I supposed he would prefer not），then to give him a twenty dollar bill over and above whatever I might owe him，and tell him his services were no longer requiredbut that if in any other way I could assist him，I would be happy to do so，especially if he desired to return to his native place，wherever that might be，I would willingly help to defray the expenses。Moreover，if，after reaching home，hefound himself at any time in want of aid，a letter from him would be sure of a reply。
95 The next morning came。
96 “Bartleby，”said I，gently calling to him behind his screen。
97 No reply。
98 “Bartleby，”said I，in a still gentler tone，“e hereI am not going to ask you to do any thing you would prefer not to do—I simply wish to speak to you。”
99 Upon this he noiselessly slid into view。
100 “Will you tell me，Bartleby，where you were born？”
101 “I would prefer not to。”
102 “Will you tell me any thing about yourself？”
103 “I would prefer not to。”
104 “But what reasonable objection can you have to speak to me？I feel friendly towards you。”
105 He did not look at me while I spoke，but kept his glance fixed upon my bustof Cicero，which as I then sat，was directly behind me，some six inches above my head。
106 “What is your answer，Bartleby？”said I，after waiting a considerable time for a reply，during which his countenance remained immovable，only there was thefaintest conceivable tremor of the white attenuated mouth。
107 “At present I prefer to give no answer，”he said，and retired into his hermitage。
108 It was rather weak in me I confess，but his manner，on this occasion，nettled me。Not only did there seem to lurk in it a certain disdain，but his perverseness seemed ungrateful，considering the undeniable good usage and indulgence he had received from me。
109 Again I sat ruminating what I should do。Mortified as I was at his behavior，and resolved as I had been to dismiss him when I entered my office，nevertheless I strangely felt something superstitious knocking at my heart，and forbiddingme to carry out my purpose，and denouncing me for a villain if I dared to breathe one bitter word against this forlornest of mankind。At last，familiarly drawing my chair behind his screen，I sat down and said：“Bartleby，never mind，then，about revealing your historybut let me entreat you，as a friend，to ply as far as may be with the usages of this office。Say now，you will help to examine papers to-morrow or next day：in short，say now，that in a day or two you will begin to be a little reasonable：—say so，Bartleby。”
評注：從86段到109段的描寫可以看出巴特爾比過著一種與世隔絕的生活，不僅是肉體上的隔絕，而且是一種精神上的隔絕。
110 “At present I would prefer not to be a little reasonable，”was his mildly cadaverous reply。
111 Just then the folding-doors opened，and Nippers approached。He seemed suffering from an unusually bad night’s rest，induced by severer indigestion than mon。He overheard those final words of Bartleby。
112 “Prefer not，eh？”gritted Nippers—“I’d prefer him，if I were you，sir，”addressing me—“I’d prefer himI’d give him preferences，the stubborn mule！What is it，sir，pray，that he prefers not to do now？”
defray：v。支付
tremor：n。顫抖
attenuated：adj。細的，變細的
nettle：v。激怒
disdain：n。輕蔑；蔑視
mortified：adj。使蒙屈辱的
entreat：v。懇求
grit：v。憤怒地咬牙113 Bartleby moved not a limb。
114 “Mr。Nippers，”said I，“I’d prefer that you would withdraw for the present。”
115 Somehow，of late，I had got into the way of involuntarily using this word“prefer”upon all sorts of not exactly suitable occasions。And I trembled to thinkthat my contact with the scrivener had already and seriously affected me in a mental way。And what further and deeper aberration might it not yet produce？Thisapprehension had not been without efficacy in determining me to summary measures。
評注：在第115和第125段，我們可以看出巴特爾比的存在以及他不妥協的態度，潛移默化地影響了辦公室裏的其他抄寫員和老律師。
116 As Nippers，looking very sour and sulky，was departing，Turkey blandly and deferentially approached。
117 “With submission，sir，”said he，“yesterday I was thinking aboutBartleby here，and I think that if he would but prefer to take a quart of good ale every day，it would do much towards mending him，and enabling him to assist in examining his papers。”
118 “So you have got the word，too，”said I，slightly excited。
119 “With submission，what word，sir，”asked Turkey，respectfully crowding himself into the contracted space behind the screen，and by so doing，making me jostle the scrivener。“What word，sir？”
120 “I would prefer to be left alone here，”said Bartleby，as if offended at being mobbed in his privacy。
121 “That’s the word，Turkey，”said I—“that’s it。”
122 “Oh，prefer？oh yes—queer word。I never use it myself。But，sir，as I was saying，if he would but prefer—”
123 “Turkey，”interrupted I，“you will please withdraw。”
124 “Oh，certainly，sir，if you prefer that I should。”
125 As he opened the folding-door to retire，Nippers at his desk caught a glimpse of me，and asked whether I would prefer to have a certain paper copied on blue paper or white。He did not in the least roguishly accent the word prefer。It was plain that it involuntarily rolled from his tongue。I thought to myself，surely I must get rid of a demented man，who already has in some degree turned the tongues，if not the heads of myself and clerks。But I thought it prudent not to break the dismission at once。
aberration：n。越軌的行為
sulky：adj。慍怒的
blandly：adv。溫和的
deferentially：adv。恭敬地
quart：n。誇脫（英美幹量或液量單位）
ale：n。啤酒（尤指淡色啤酒）
jostle：v。（用肘）撞
roguishly：adv。淘氣地，頑皮地
accent：v。重讀
demented：adj。發狂的126 The next day I noticed that Bartleby did nothing but stand at his window inhis dead-wall revery。Upon asking him why he did not write，he said that he had decided upon doing no more writing。
127 “Why，how now？what next？”exclaimed I，“do no more writing？”
128 “No more。”
129 “And what is the reason？”
130 “Do you not see the reason for yourself，”he indifferently replied。
131 I looked steadfastly at him，and perceived that his eyes looked dull and glazed。Instantly it occurred to me，that his unexampled diligencein copying by his dim window for the first few weeks of his stay with me might have temporarilyimpaired his vision。
132 I was touched。I said something in condolence with him。I hintedthat of course he did wisely in abstaining from writing for a whileand urged him to embrace that opportunity of taking wholesome exercise in the open air。This，however，he did not do。A few days after this，my other clerks being absent，and being in a great hurry to dispatch certain letters by the mail，I thought that，havingnothing else earthly to do，Bartleby would surely be less inflexible than usual，and carry these letters to the post-office。But he blankly declined。So，muchto my inconvenience，I went myself。
133 Still added days went by。Whether Bartleby’s eyes improved or not，I could not say。To all appearance，I thought they did。But when I asked him if they did，he vouchsafed no answer。At all events，he would do no copying。At last，in reply to my urgings，he informed me that he had permanently given up copying。
134 “What！”exclaimed I“suppose your eyes should get entirely well—better than ever before—would you not copy then？”
135 “I have given up copying，”he answered，and slid aside。
136 He remained as ever，a fixture in my chamber。Nay—if that were possible—he became still more of a fixture than before。What was to be done？He would do nothing in the office：why should he stay there？In plain fact，he had now beea millstone to me，not only useless as a necklace，but afflictive to bear。Yet I was sorry for him。I speak less than truth when I say that，on his own account，he occasioned me uneasiness。If he would but have named a single relative or friend，I would instantly have written，and urged their taking the poor fellow away to some convenient retreat。But he seemed alone，absolutely alone in the universe。A bit of wreck in the mid Atlantic。At length，necessities connected with my business tyrannized over all other considerations。Decently as I could，I told Bartleby that in six days’time he must unconditionally leave the office。I warned him to take measures，in the interval，for procuring some other abode。I offered to assist him in this endeavor，if he himself would but take the first step towards a removal。“And when you finally quit me，Bartleby，”added I，“I shallsee that you go not away entirely unprovided。Six days from this hour，remember。”
137 At the expiration of that period，I peeped behind the screen，and lo！Bartleby was there。
138 I buttoned up my coat，balanced myselfadvanced slowly towards him，touched his shoulder，and said，“The time has eyou must quit this placeI am sorry for youhere is moneybut you must go。”
139 “I would prefer not，”he replied，with his back still towards me。
140 “You must。”
141 He remained silent。
142 Now I had an unbounded confidence in this man’s mon honesty。He had frequently restored to me sixpences and shillings carelessly dropped upon the floor，for I am apt to be very reckless in such shirt-button affairs。The proceeding，then，which followed will not be deemed extraordinary。
143 “Bartleby，”said I，“I owe you twelve dollars on accounthere are thirty-twothe odd twenty are yours。—Will you take it？”and I handed the bills towards him。
144 But he made no motion。
145 “I will leave them here then，”putting them under a weight on the table。Then taking my hat and cane and going to the door I tranquilly turned and added—“After you have removed your things from these offices，Bartleby，you will of course lock the door—since every one is now gone for the day but you—and if you please，slip your key underneath the mat，so that I may have it in the morning。Ishall not see you againso good-bye to you。If，hereafter，in your new place ofabode，I can be of any service to you，do not fail to advise me by letter。Good-bye，Bartleby，and fare you well。”
unexampled：adj。空前的，無前例的
impair：v。損害
condolence：n。吊唁，哀悼
abstain from：戒，避免，避開
occasion：v。引起
tyrannize over：壓倒了
abode：n。住所，住處
unbounded：adj。無限的
hereafter：adv。此後
146 But he answered not a wordlike the last column of some ruined temple，he remained standing mute and solitary in the middle of the otherwise deserted room。