A241: Englischsprachige Übersetzungen, Seite 13

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“SENEVER KW.”
And I like you,” sheusszontaneously, taking both my hands
in hers and hissing them. “I always have... always shall.”
"tell me all,” I implored, “all, all.”
She continued as we slowly made our way in the sun over the
field.
"To begin with," I said to myself, 'he is a mere child. I like
him in a motherly sort of fashion.' But then when the time came
for you to go away
She passed for a moment and then went on.
“When the hour actually came... I didn’t mean to
don’t know what made me, but I could not help coming up to you,
and when I came I didn’t mean to hiss you, but
"Go on, go on,” I said.
"And then all of a sudden I told you to leave the room. You
must have thought it was all a hoax, didn’t you?"
"I don’t understand you.”
That is what I am sure you have thought the whole time. I
wanted to write to you, but what would have been the good?” Well,
the reason that I sent you away was..I suddenly had a
fright.'
'I know.”
"If you knew, why did I never hear a word more from you'?
she exclaimed reproachfully.
"Why were you frightened?" I asked, beginning by degrees to
grasp her meaning.
because I thought there was someone coming.
"You thought"
I thought 1 heard footsteps in the passage. Yes, footsteps.
I thought it was And oh, I was so frightened it would
have been so terrible. I can't bear to think of it. But no one
was there—no one. He came home quite late that evening. You
had been gone long ago."
As she related this I was conscious of something within me
turning to stone. And when she ended her story I felt as if I must
ask her “ Who are you?” I turned involuntarily towards the herbour,
where I saw the sails of our boat gleaming, and I thought to myself,
"What ages, what infinite ages, we have been wondering on this
island." For I had landed on it with a woman whom I had loved,
and now a stranger walked at my side. I found it impossible to
utter a word. But she hardly noticed; she was hanging on my arm,
andInibuted my silence doubtless to tender sentiment. And I was
thing of him. So he had never said anything. She doesn’t know,
she never has known, that he saw her lying at my feet. He had
gone away onus-toe from the door as quietly as he had come,
gone out and not come in till hours afterwards. He had come in
late and said nothing. He had lived at her side for years, and not
betrayed his knowledge by a single word. He had forgiven her
and she never knew.