MAY 12.

5月12日

I know not whether some deceitful spirits haunt this spot, or whether it be the warm, celestial fancy in my own heart which makes everything around me seem like paradise.

真不知是附近有蛊惑的精灵出没于此呢，还是因为心中热烈美妙的奇思异想把我周围的一切都变得如天堂般美好。

In front of the house is a fountain, —a fountain to which I am bound by a charm like Melusina and her sisters. Descending a gentle slope, you come to an arch, where, some twenty steps lower down, water of the clearest crystal gushes from the marble rock. The narrow wall which encloses it above, the tall trees which encircle the spot, and the coolness of the place itself, —everything imparts a pleasant but sublime impression. Not a day passes on which I do not spend an hour there. The young maidens come from the town to fetch water, —innocent and necessary employment, and formerly the occupation of the daughters of kings. As I take my rest there, the idea of the old patriarchal life is awakened around me. I see them, our old ancestors, how they formed their friendships and contracted alliances at the fountain—side; and I feel how fountains and streams were guarded by beneficent spirits. He who is a stranger to these sensations has never really enjoyed cool repose at the side of a fountain after the fatigue of a weary summer day.

屋前有一个泉眼，我就像美人鱼梅露西娜和她的姐妹们一样对这个泉眼着了迷。走下一段缓坡，来到一座拱门前，再往下走二十级台阶，便能看见一股至清的泉水从大理石岩缝中喷涌而出。绕泉而砌的矮墙，周围浓郁的高大树木，以及此地原本的阴凉冷清——这一切既令人心旷神怡，又令人叹为观止。每天我都去那儿呆一个小时，天天如此。城里年轻的姑娘们都来这儿打水，这是种普通而必需的家务活，以前就连国王的女儿也要干这种活儿。每当我坐在那儿小憩，古代宗法社会的画面便会浮现在我的眼前。我们的祖先们在泉边结识、联姻，仁慈善良的精灵们守护在清泉和溪流边。令人疲倦的酷暑过后，如果没能在这清凉的泉边小憩一下，便无法与我产生这种共鸣。