And in fact the poor young people were in great need of protection.
实际上，这些可怜的年轻人非常需要保护。

　　They had never been so near the destruction of their hopesas at this moment, when they thought themselves certain oftheir fulfilment.
他们从未如此接近他们希望的破灭，就在这一刻，当他们以为自己一定会实现愿望时。

　　The reader cannot but have recognized in Jacob our oldfriend, or rather enemy, Isaac Boxtel, and has guessed, nodoubt, that this worthy had followed from the Buytenhof toLoewestein the object of his love and the object of hishatred, – the black tulip and Cornelius van Baerle.
读者无法不认出雅各布是我们的老朋友，或者说是敌人，艾萨克·博克斯特尔，他想必已经猜到这位尊贵的先生已经从比特霍夫到洛维斯坦来到这里，寻找他所爱和所恨之物——那朵黑郁金香和科内利斯·范巴尔勒。

　　What no one but a tulip-fancier, and an envioustulip-fancier, could have discovered, – the existence ofthe bulbs and the endeavours of the prisoner, – jealousyhad enabled Boxtel, if not to discover, at least to guess.
除了郁金香专家，且是一个嫉妒的郁金香爱好者，才能发现的事实——鳄梨球的存在和囚犯的努力——嫉妒使博克斯特尔能够猜出。

　　We have seen him, more successful under the name of Jacobthan under that of Isaac, gain the friendship of Gryphus,which for several months he cultivated by means of the bestGenievre ever distilled from the Texel to Antwerp, and helulled the suspicion of the jealous turnkey by holding outto him the flattering prospect of his designing to marryRosa.
他以雅各布的名字比以艾萨克的名字更为成功，通过制作从特克塞尔到安特卫普最好的琴酒，赢得了格里非斯的友谊，几个月来他努力通过最好的琴酒满足这位嫉妒的看守，同时通过向他描绘前所未有的博学且被格里非斯监视的囚犯的形象，劝说他表示这位聪明的囚犯与撒旦勾结，有损殿下奥兰治亲王的利益。

　　Besides thus offering a bait to the ambition of the father,he managed, at the same time, to interest his zeal as ajailer, picturing to him in the blackest colours the learnedprisoner whom Gryphus had in his keeping, and who, as thesham Jacob had it, was in league with Satan, to thedetriment of his Highness the Prince of Orange.
他曾向格里非斯提出结婚的美好前景，通过提到婚姻和爱情，成功避开了他可能引起的所有怀疑度。

At first he had also made some way with Rosa; —
一开始他也在罗莎身上十分得意， —

not, indeed,in her affections, but inasmuch as, by talking to her ofmarriage and of love, he had evaded all the suspicions whichhe might otherwise have excited.
不是在她的感情方面，而是通过谈论婚姻和爱情，而找到了可以避免引起怀疑的办法。

　　We have seen how his imprudence in following Rosa into thegarden had unmasked him in the eyes of the young damsel, andhow the instinctive fears of Cornelius had put the twolovers on their guard against him.
我们看到，当雅各布跟随罗莎进入花园时，他的轻率暴露了自己在年轻女仆的眼中，而科内利斯的直觉恐惧使两位恋人对他提高警惕。

The reader will remember that the first cause of uneasinesswas given to the prisoner by the rage of Jacob when Gryphuscrushed the first bulb. —
读者会记得引起囚犯不安的第一个原因是当格里非斯摧毁了第一颗鳄梨球时，雅各布的愤怒变得更加猛烈， —

In that moment Boxtel’s exasperationwas the more fierce, as, though suspecting that Corneliuspossessed a second bulb, he by no means felt sure of it.
在那一刻，由于格里非斯的所作所为，博克斯特尔的激怒是更加猛烈的，虽然他怀疑科内利斯拥有第二颗球，并不完全确定。

　　From that moment he began to dodge the steps of Rosa, notonly following her to the garden, but also to the lobbies.
从那一刻起，他开始跟踪罗莎的脚步，不仅跟着她去花园，也跟着她去走廊。

　　Only as this time he followed her in the night, andbare-footed, he was neither seen nor heard except once, whenRosa thought she saw something like a shadow on thestaircase.
但这次他夜间跟着她，并且赤脚，除了一次，罗莎认为自己在楼梯上看到了像影子一样的东西。

　　Her discovery, however, was made too late, as Boxtel hadheard from the mouth of the prisoner himself that a secondbulb existed.
然而她的发现太迟了，因为博克斯特尔已经从囚犯自己嘴里听说第二个鳄梨球的存在，

　　Taken in by the stratagem of Rosa, who had feigned to put itin the ground, and entertaining no doubt that this littlefarce had been played in order to force him to betrayhimself, he redoubled his precaution, and employed everymeans suggested by his crafty nature to watch the otherswithout being watched himself.
被罗莎的计谋所骗，他误以为鳄梨球被埋在土里，而且他毫不怀疑这个小把戏是为了迫使他暴露自己而进行的，于是他加倍小心谨慎，运用他阴险的天性，采取一切可能的方式监视其他人而不被监视。

He saw Rosa conveying a large flower-pot of whiteearthenware from her father’s kitchen to her bedroom. —
他看到罗莎将一个大白陶瓷花盆从她父亲的厨房搬到她的卧室。 —

He sawRosa washing in pails of water her pretty little hands,begrimed as they were with the mould which she had handled,to give her tulip the best soil possible.
他看到罗莎在水桶里洗她那美丽的小手，被她处理土壤弄脏了，为了给她的郁金香提供最好的土壤。

　　And at last he hired, just opposite Rosa’s window, a littleattic, distant enough not to allow him to be recognized withthe naked eye, but sufficiently near to enable him, with thehelp of his telescope, to watch everything that was going onat the Loewestein in Rosa’s room, just as at Dort he hadwatched the dry-room of Cornelius.
最后，他在罗莎的窗户对面租了一个小阁楼，离得足够远，不会让他只用肉眼就被认出，但足够近，让他用望远镜观察到罗莎房间里的一切，就像在多德他在那里观察科尔内利尔干室的时候一样。

　　He had not been installed more than three days in his atticbefore all his doubts were removed.
在安装他的阁楼不到三天之内，他的所有疑虑都消除了。

　　From morning to sunset the flower-pot was in the window,and, like those charming female figures of Mieris andMetzys, Rosa appeared at that window as in a frame, formedby the first budding sprays of the wild vine and thehoneysuckle encircling her window.
从早到晚，花盆都放在窗台上，而罗莎就像那些迷人的女性形象一样出现在窗户那里，周围是窗户上盘绕的野葡萄和忍冬的嫩芽。

　　Rosa watched the flower-pot with an interest which betrayedto Boxtel the real value of the object enclosed in it.
罗莎对花盆的兴趣表明了被盛在其中的物品的真正价值，这让波克斯特尔感到确信无疑。

　　This object could not be anything else but the second bulb,that is to say, the quintessence of all the hopes of theprisoner.
这个物件除了监禁者的所有希望的精华，再没别的，它不可能是别的。

　　When the nights threatened to be too cold, Rosa took in theflower-pot.
当夜晚变得太冷的时候，罗莎会把花盆收进屋里。

　　Well, it was then quite evident she was following theinstructions of Cornelius, who was afraid of the bulb beingkilled by frost.
噢，那很明显，她是在遵循科尔内利尔的指示，科尔内利尔怕球茎会被霜冻杀死。

　　When the sun became too hot, Rosa likewise took in the potfrom eleven in the morning until two in the afternoon.
当太阳变得太热的时候，罗莎也会在上午十一点到下午两点的时候将花盆收进屋里。

　　Another proof: Cornelius was afraid lest the soil shouldbecome too dry.
另一个证据是：科尔内利尔担心土壤变得太干燥。

But when the first leaves peeped out of the earth Boxtel wasfully convinced; —
但当第一片叶子从土地里钻出来的时候，波克斯特尔已经完全确信。 —

and his telescope left him no longer in anyuncertainty before they had grown one inch in height.
在这些叶子长出一英寸之前，他的望远镜不再让他存在任何疑虑。

　　Cornelius possessed two bulbs, and the second was intrustedto the love and care of Rosa.
科尔内利尔拥有两个球茎，第二个球茎受到了罗莎的爱和关怀。

　　For it may well be imagined that the tender secret of thetwo lovers had not escaped the prying curiosity of Boxtel.
因为可以想象，这两位恋人的深情秘密是不会逃过波克斯特尔好奇的眼睛的。

　　The question, therefore, was how to wrest the second bulbfrom the care of Rosa.
因此问题是如何从罗莎手中夺取第二盏灯泡。

　　Certainly this was no easy task.
这绝对不是一件容易的事情。

　　Rosa watched over her tulip as a mother over her child, or adove over her eggs.
罗莎像母亲看守着她的郁金香，或者鸽子看守着她的蛋。

　　Rosa never left her room during the day, and, more thanthat, strange to say, she never left it in the evening.
罗莎白天从不离开她的房间，更奇怪的是，她晚上也从不离开。

　　For seven days Boxtel in vain watched Rosa; she was alwaysat her post.
七天里，巴克斯特一直在无功而返地监视罗莎; 她总是在自己的岗位上。

　　This happened during those seven days which made Corneliusso unhappy, depriving him at the same time of all news ofRosa and of his tulip.
这发生在那七天里，使康奈利厄斯如此不快乐，同时也剥夺了他对罗莎和他的郁金香一切消息。

　　Would the coolness between Rosa and Cornelius last for ever?
罗莎和康奈利厄斯之间的冷漠会持续到永远吗？

　　This would have made the theft much more difficult thanMynheer Isaac had at first expected.
这样做将会使盗窃比伊萨克先生一开始所预料的更加困难。

We say the theft, for Isaac had simply made up his mind tosteal the tulip; —
我们说盗窃，因为伊萨克已经决定偷走这盏郁金香; —

and as it grew in the most profoundsecrecy, and as, moreover, his word, being that of arenowned tulip-grower, would any day be taken against thatof an unknown girl without any knowledge of horticulture, oragainst that of a prisoner convicted of high treason, heconfidently hoped that, having once got possession of thebulb, he would be certain to obtain the prize; —
由于它在深藏的秘密中生长，而且再加上他的话语，作为著名的郁金香种植者，随时都会被认为是对无知园艺的女子或对被定罪为高级叛国罪的囚犯的话语，他有信心一旦拿到灯泡，他就肯定能够获得奖励; —

and then thetulip, instead of being called Tulipa nigra Barlaensis,would go down to posterity under the name of Tulipa nigraBoxtellensis or Boxtellea.
然后这盏郁金香，不再被称为“Tulipa nigra Barlaensis”，将被传世为“Tulipa nigra Boxtellensis”或“Boxtellea”。

　　Mynheer Isaac had not yet quite decided which of these twonames he would give to the tulip, but, as both meant thesame thing, this was, after all, not the important point.
伊萨克先生还没有完全决定将这两个名字中的哪一个给予这盏郁金香，但是，由于两者含义相同，毕竟这不是重点。

　　The point was to steal the tulip. But in order that Boxtelmight steal the tulip, it was necessary that Rosa shouldleave her room.
关键是偷窃这盏郁金香。但为了让巴克斯特能够偷走这盏郁金香，必须让罗莎离开她的房间。

　　Great therefore was his joy when he saw the usual eveningmeetings of the lovers resumed.
因此，当他看到恋人们恢复了平常的夜间会面时，他的喜悦之情溢于言表。

He first of all took advantage of Rosa’s absence to makehimself fully acquainted with all the peculiarities of thedoor of her chamber. —
他首先利用罗莎不在时，全面了解了她房间的门的所有特点。 —

The lock was a double one and in goodorder, but Rosa always took the key with her.
锁是双重的，而且状态良好，但罗莎总是带着钥匙。

　　Boxtel at first entertained an idea of stealing the key, butit soon occurred to him, not only that it would beexceedingly difficult to abstract it from her pocket, butalso that, when she perceived her loss, she would not leaveher room until the lock was changed, and then Boxtel’s firsttheft would be useless.
最初，波克斯特尔曾想偷走钥匙，但很快他意识到，不仅从她口袋里拿走钥匙将非常困难，而且一旦她发现丢失了，她不会离开房间，直到锁被更换，那时波克斯特尔的第一个盗窃行为将是无效的。

He thought it, therefore, better to employ a differentexpedient. —
因此，他认为最好采用不同的方法。 —

He collected as many keys as he could, and triedall of them during one of those delightful hours which Rosaand Cornelius passed together at the grating of the cell.
他收集了尽可能多的钥匙，并在罗莎和科内利厄斯在牢房的铁栅栏前度过的那些愉快的时光里尝试了所有这些钥匙。

　　Two of the keys entered the lock, and one of them turnedround once, but not the second time.
其中两把钥匙可以插入锁中，其中一把钥匙转动一次，但第二次没有。

　　There was, therefore, only a little to be done to this key.
所以这把钥匙只需要稍微修整一下。

　　Boxtel covered it with a slight coat of wax, and when hethus renewed the experiment, the obstacle which preventedthe key from being turned a second time left its impressionon the wax.
波克斯特尔涂上了一层轻微的蜡，并在这种情况下重新进行试验，阻止钥匙第二次转动的障碍物在蜡上留下了印记。

　　It cost Boxtel two days more to bring his key to perfection,with the aid of a small file.
波克斯特尔花了两天的时间，借助一把小锉刀，把他的钥匙完善了。

　　Rosa’s door thus opened without noise and withoutdifficulty, and Boxtel found himself in her room alone withthe tulip.
罗莎的房门因此可以毫无声息、毫不费力地打开，波克斯特尔独自一人进入她的房间，与郁金香相处。

The first guilty act of Boxtel had been to climb over a wallin order to dig up the tulip; —
波克斯特尔的第一个罪行是爬墙挖出郁金香； —

the second, to introducehimself into the dry-room of Cornelius, through an openwindow; —
第二个是通过一个开着窗户进入科内利厄斯的干燥室； —

and the third, to enter Rosa’s room by means of afalse key.
第三个是用假钥匙进入罗莎的房间。

　　Thus envy urged Boxtel on with rapid steps in the career ofcrime.
于是嫉妒推动波克斯特尔在犯罪的道路上快速前进。

　　Boxtel, as we have said, was alone with the tulip.
正如我们所说，波克斯特尔独自与郁金香在一起。

　　A common thief would have taken the pot under his arm, andcarried it off.
一个普通的小偷会把花盆夹在胳膊下，带走。

　　But Boxtel was not a common thief, and he reflected.
但是Boxtel并不是一个普通的小偷，他深思熟虑。

It was not yet certain, although very probable, that thetulip would flower black; —
现在还不能确定，尽管非常有可能，郁金香会开出黑色的花； —

if, therefore, he stole it now, henot only might be committing a useless crime, but also thetheft might be discovered in the time which must elapseuntil the flower should open.
因此，如果他现在偷走它，不仅可能犯了一个无用的罪行，而且在花开放之前必须经过的时间内可能会被发现这个偷窃行为。

　　He therefore – as being in possession of the key, he mightenter Rosa’s chamber whenever he liked – thought it betterto wait and to take it either an hour before or afteropening, and to start on the instant to Haarlem, where thetulip would be before the judges of the committee before anyone else could put in a reclamation.
因此，他（因为拥有钥匙，他可以随时进入Rosa的房间）认为最好是等待，要么在开放的前一个小时，要么在后一个小时拿走，然后立即启程到哈勒姆，这样郁金香就会在其他人之前出现在委员会的法官面前。

　　Should any one then reclaim it, Boxtel would in his turncharge him or her with theft.
如果有人要求归还它，Boxtel将反过来指控他们窃取了它。

　　This was a deep-laid scheme, and quite worthy of its author.
这是一个巧妙的计划，完全配得上它的作者。

　　Thus, every evening during that delightful hour which thetwo lovers passed together at the grated window, Boxtelentered Rosa’s chamber to watch the progress which the blacktulip had made towards flowering.
因此，每天晚上在两位恋人在格栅窗前度过的那个愉快的时刻里，Boxtel进入Rosa的房间，观察黑郁金香开花的进展。

On the evening at which we have arrived he was going toenter according to custom; —
在我们到达的这个晚上，他要按照惯例进入； —

but the two lovers, as we haveseen, only exchanged a few words before Cornelius sent Rosaback to watch over the tulip.
但是如我们所见，两位恋人在Cornelius让Rosa回去看守郁金香之前只交换了几句话。

　　Seeing Rosa enter her room ten minutes after she had leftit, Boxtel guessed that the tulip had opened, or was aboutto open.
看到Rosa离开房间十分钟后又进入，Boxtel猜想郁金香已经开花，或者即将开花。

During that night, therefore, the great blow was to bestruck. —
因此，那个晚上，致命一击将要发生。 —

Boxtel presented himself before Gryphus with adouble supply of Genievre, that is to say, with a bottle ineach pocket.
Boxtel给Gryphus提供了双倍量的杜松子酒，也就是说，每只口袋里装了一瓶。

　　Gryphus being once fuddled, Boxtel was very nearly master ofthe house.
Gryphus一旦喝醉，Boxtel几乎就掌握了整个房子。

At eleven o’clock Gryphus was dead drunk. —
晚上十一点，Gryphus已经喝得烂醉如泥。 —

At two in themorning Boxtel saw Rosa leaving the chamber; —
凌晨两点，Boxtel看见Rosa离开了房间； —

but evidentlyshe held in her arms something which she carried with greatcare.
但显然她怀里抱着一样东西，她怀抱着这个东西非常小心。

　　He did not doubt that this was the black tulip which was inflower.
他毫不怀疑这就是那朵盛开的黑郁金香。

　　But what was she going to do with it? Would she set out thatinstant to Haarlem with it?
但她打算怎么处理这朵花呢？她会立刻拿着它去哈勒姆吗？

　　It was not possible that a young girl should undertake sucha journey alone during the night.
一个年轻女孩不太可能独自在夜间进行这样的旅行。

　　Was she only going to show the tulip to Cornelius? This wasmore likely.
她只是要把郁金香给科尼利厄斯看吗？这更可能。

　　He followed Rosa in his stocking feet, walking on tiptoe.
他光着袜子跟随着玫瑰，踮着脚尖走路。

He saw her approach the grated window. He heard her callingCornelius. —
他看到她靠近铁窗。他听到她呼唤科尼利厄斯。 —

By the light of the dark lantern he saw the tulipopen, and black as the night in which he was hidden.
他通过暗灯的光看到了郁金香绽放，黑得像他藏身的夜晚。

He heard the plan concerted between Cornelius and Rosa tosend a messenger to Haarlem. —
他听到科尼利厄斯和玫瑰商定派人前往哈勒姆的计划。 —

He saw the lips of the loversmeet, and then heard Cornelius send Rosa away.
他看到恋人们的唇相互触碰，然后听到科尼利厄斯让玫瑰离开。

　　He saw Rosa extinguish the light and return to her chamber.
他看到玫瑰熄灭灯光，回到自己的房间。

　　Ten minutes after, he saw her leave the room again, and lockit twice.
十分钟后，他看到她再次离开房间，并锁了两次。

Boxtel, who saw all this whilst hiding himself on thelanding-place of the staircase above, descended step by stepfrom his story as Rosa descended from hers; —
博克斯特尔躲藏在楼上的楼梯平台上，看到了这一切；当玫瑰从楼梯最低的台阶踏上时，他也一步步地从自己的楼层下来。 —

so that, whenshe touched with her light foot the lowest step of thestaircase, Boxtel touched with a still lighter hand the lockof Rosa’s chamber.
所以，当她用轻盈的脚踩到楼梯的最低一级台阶时，博克斯特尔用轻得更多的手轻轻触到了玫瑰的房间门锁。

　　And in that hand, it must be understood, he held the falsekey which opened Rosa’s door as easily as did the real one.
而在那只手中，必须知道，他握着打开玫瑰房门的假钥匙，就像真钥匙一样容易。

　　And this is why, in the beginning of the chapter, we saidthat the poor young people were in great need of theprotection of God.
这就是为什么在这一章的开头，我们说这些贫困的年轻人非常需要上帝的保护。