小说原文
The Captain viewed the subject in quite a different light. He appeared to entertain a belief that the interview at which he had assisted was so very satisfactory and encouraging, as to be only a step or two removed from a regular betrothal of Florence to Walter; and that the late transaction had immensely forwarded, if not thoroughly established, the Whittingtonian hopes. Stimulated by this conviction, and by the improvement in the spirits of his old friend, and by his own consequent gaiety, he even attempted, in favouring them with the ballad of 'Lovely Peg' for the third time in one evening, to make an extemporaneous substitution of the name 'Florence;' but finding this difficult, on account of the word Peg invariably rhyming to leg (in which personal beauty the original was described as having excelled all competitors), he hit upon the happy thought of changing it to Fle-e-eg; which he accordingly did, with an archness almost supernatural, and a voice quite vociferous, notwithstanding that the time was close at band when he must seek the abode of the dreadful Mrs MacStinger.
船长却从完全不同的角度来看这个问题。他似乎相信，他曾给予帮助的这次会晤令人十分称心满意和欢欣鼓舞，它离弗洛伦斯与沃尔特正式订婚只差一两步了。在这种信心的激励下，在他老朋友情绪好转以及他自己随之而来的欢乐心情的鼓舞下，有一天晚上，当他第三次为他们唱《可爱的佩格姑娘》这支民歌的时候，他甚至试图即席用弗洛伦斯的名字来代替；但他发现佩格这个词总是要跟莱格①（腿）这个词押韵（民歌中描写女主人公的腿长得十分美丽，她的生理上的这个优点使她压倒了所有的竞争者），于是灵机一动，就把它改成弗洛—莱格；虽然他必须回到可怕的麦克斯廷杰太太的住所的时候就要到了，可是他仍旧那样唱起来，唱时那副诡诈的神气几乎是超自然的，而且声音十分喧闹。
Mrs Pipchin's constitution was made of such hard metal, in spite of its liability to the fleshly weaknesses of standing in need of repose after chops, and of requiring to be coaxed to sleep by the soporific agency of sweet-breads, that it utterly set at naught the predictions of Mrs Wickam, and showed no symptoms of decline. Yet, as Paul's rapt interest in the old lady continued unbated, Mrs Wickam would not budge an inch from the position she had taken up. Fortifying and entrenching herself on the strong ground of her Uncle's Betsey Jane, she advised Miss Berry, as a friend, to prepare herself for the worst; and forewarned her that her aunt might, at any time, be expected to go off suddenly, like a powder-mill.
皮普钦太太的体质是由这样坚硬的金属做成的，它虽然难免身躯虚弱，需要在吃过排骨之后休息休息，也需要依赖小羊胰脏的催眠作用才能进入梦乡，但它使威肯姆大嫂的预言完全落了空，没有显露出衰老的任何症状。然而，由于保罗对这位老太太全神贯注的兴趣并没有减弱，所以威肯姆大嫂也不愿意从她原先的立场上后退一英寸。她以她舅舅的女儿贝特西·简为坚强后盾，挖掘壕沟，构筑要塞，防卫着自己的地段，因此她以一位朋友的身份劝告贝里小姐要为发生最坏的情况作好准备，并预先警告她，她的姑妈在任何时候都可能像火药厂一样突然爆炸。
Poor Berry took it all in good part, and drudged and slaved away as usual; perfectly convinced that Mrs Pipchin was one of the most meritorious persons in the world, and making every day innumerable sacrifices of herself upon the altar of that noble old woman. But all these immolations of Berry were somehow carried to the credit of Mrs Pipchin by Mrs Pipchin's friends and admirers; and were made to harmonise with, and carry out, that melancholy fact of the deceased Mr Pipchin having broken his heart in the Peruvian mines.
可怜的贝里毫无恶感地接受了所有这些劝告，并跟往常一样，像奴隶一样拼命做着苦工；她完全相信，皮普钦太太是世界上最值得称颂的人之一，自愿作出无数牺牲，奉献给那位尊贵的老女人的祭坛。可是贝里所作出的所有这些牺牲却被皮普钦太太的朋友们与崇拜者们记为皮普钦太太的功劳，而且还跟那件令人伤感的事实——已故的皮普钦先生是在秘鲁的矿井伤心而死的——联系起来，认为两者是一脉相承的。
For example, there was an honest grocer and general dealer in the retail line of business, between whom and Mrs Pipchin there was a small memorandum book, with a greasy red cover, perpetually in question, and concerning which divers secret councils and conferences were continually being held between the parties to that register, on the mat in the passage, and with closed doors in the parlour. Nor were there wanting dark hints from Master Bitherstone (whose temper had been made revengeful by the solar heats of India acting on his blood), of balances unsettled, and of a failure, on one occasion within his memory, in the supply of moist sugar at tea-time. This grocer being a bachelor and not a man who looked upon the surface for beauty, had once made honourable offers for the hand of Berry, which Mrs Pipchin had, with contumely and scorn, rejected. Everybody said how laudable this was in Mrs Pipchin, relict of a man who had died of the Peruvian mines; and what a staunch, high, independent spirit the old lady had. But nobody said anything about poor Berry, who cried for six weeks (being soundly rated by her good aunt all the time), and lapsed into a state of hopeless spinsterhood.
例如，有一位经营食品、杂货和一般零售业的诚实的商人，与皮普钦太太之间有一本油腻的红封面的小备忘录，它总是不断地引起争议；为了这一点，登记册涉及的各方经常在铺了席子的走廊里或在关着门的客厅里举行各种秘密的磋商与会议。比瑟斯通少爷（由于印度的太阳热对他的血液发生作用的缘故，因此他产生了一副爱报复的脾气）也屡次隐约地暗示，钱款收支不符，差额没有结清；他还记得，有一次喝茶的时候，没有供应潮湿的糖。这位商人是个单身汉，并不看重外表的漂亮，一次规规矩矩地向贝里求婚，但皮普钦太太却傲慢无礼地刻薄挖苦他，把他的求婚给拒绝了。人人都说，皮普钦太太，一位死在秘鲁矿井的男子的遗孀，这样做是多么值得称赞，还说这位老太太有着多么坚强、高尚与独立的精神。可是对可怜的贝里却没有一个人说过一句话；她哭了六个星期（她善良的姑妈一直在严厉地斥责她），并落到一个绝望的老处女的处境。
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①英文中腿（leg）这个词的发音为莱格。

重点解释
注释：assist n. 帮助；助攻
vi. 参加；出席
vt. 帮助；促进
assist in 帮助
例句：
(1) Could I assist you, madam?
我能帮助你吗，太太？
(2) Perhaps I could assist in some way.
也许我能帮上什么忙。
(3) Assist in charge of foreign affairs.
协助分管外事方面工作。
(4) Could you assist me with the luggage?
可不可以帮我搬行李？
(5) Good glasses will assist you to read .
好的眼镜能有助于你阅读。
(6) Earth and Nature are always present to assist.
地球和大自然总是在场来协助。
(7) When all assist , the job will be done quickly .
大家都帮忙，工作很快就会做完？
(8) Universal DNA databases would assist that process.
全面的DNA数据库将有助于此。

carry vt. 拿，扛；携带；支持；搬运
vi. 能达到；被携带；被搬运
n. 运载；[计] 进位；射程
[ 复数carries 过去式carried 过去分词carried 现在分词carrying ]
词组：
carry out vt. 执行，实行；贯彻；实现；完成
carry on 继续
carry forward 发扬；推进
carry through 贯彻；完成；坚持下去
carry in 携带；输入
carry with 进行
carry on with 继续；与…调情
carry around 随身携带
carry away 运走；使失去自制力
carry off 夺去；获得；使丧命；成功地处理
carry over ..留到以后处理；继续存在
fetch and carry 做杂务，打杂
carry trade 套利交易；套息交易；利差交易；息差交易
carry about 带着；随身携带
carry the torch 开战；奋斗；单恋
carry weight 有影响；重要；有分量
carry up 建高（房屋），追溯
carry back vt. 运回；拿回；使回想；使回忆起
carry bag n. 手提袋；厚纸袋
carry the can 代人受过；背黑锅；单独承担困难的任务
例句：
(1) I need you to carry all the bags.
我需要你帮我提所有的包。
(2) Don't carry too much money.
别带太多钱在身上。
(3) I am sorry we don't carry that brand.
我很抱歉我们没有这种牌子。
(4) If one engine fails, the other can carry on.
如果一台引擎失灵，另一台还能够继续工作。
(5) Others carry silver in hopes of finding money.
也有人会带上银制品，希望能够发财。
(6) We bought the bookcases in the new cash and carry.
我们在这个新开的现款取货商店买了这几个书橱。