My wife and I were especially fond of animals. Pluto was our favorite pet and playmate.
我和妻子都特别喜欢动物。布鲁托是我们最喜欢的宠物和玩伴。
The cat was a remarkably beautiful animal, entirely black and 1)sagacious to an astonishing degree. In speaking of his intelligence, my wife made frequent 2)allusion to the ancient popular notion, which regarded all black cats as witches in disguise.
这只猫很漂亮，全身乌黑，并且惊人地聪明。说到它的灵性，妻子经常会提到古老的传说——所有的黑猫都是女巫伪装而成的。
The cat attended me wherever I went about the house. Our friendship lasted, in this manner, for several years, during which my general temperament and character through the 3)instrumentality of the 4)Fiend 5)Intemperance had experienced a radical alteration for the worse. He was made to feel the change in my disposition.
无论我走到房子里的哪个地方，这只猫都跟在我左右。就这样，我们的友谊持续了好几年。而在这几年中，由于酗酒成性，我的脾气和性格变得很糟糕。他也开始领教到了我的坏脾气。
One night, returning home, much 6)intoxicated, I fancied that the cat avoided my presence. I seized him, when, in his fright at my violence, he 7)inflicted a slight wound upon my hand with his teeth. The fury of a demon instantly possessed me. I took from my pocket a pen-knife, deliberately cut one of its eyes!
一天晚上，我喝得烂醉。回到家以后，我以为这只猫在躲着我。我一把抓住了它。它害怕我对它施暴，就用牙齿在我手上轻轻地咬了一口。我突然像恶魔般大发雷霆，从口袋里掏出一把刀，将它的一只眼珠挖了出来。
When reason returned with the morning—when I had slept off the 8)fumes of the night’s 9)debauch—I experienced a sentiment half of horror, half of 10)remorse, for the crime of which I had been guilty. In the meantime the cat slowly recovered. He went about the house as usual, but fled in extreme terror at my approach. I had so much of my old heart left. But this feeling soon gave place to irritation.
第二天酒醒以后，我恢复了理智。我对于自己所犯的罪孽又悔恨又恐惧。与此同时，这只猫也慢慢康复了。它和往常一样，在屋子里四处走动，但只要我一走近，它就惊慌地逃走。我感到很悲伤。但是不久这种悲伤就变成了恼怒。
One morning, in cool blood, I slipped a 11)noose about its neck and hung it to the limb of a tree. On the night of the day, I was aroused from sleep by the cry of fire. The whole house was blazing. My entire worldly wealth was swallowed up, and I resigned myself 12)thenceforward to despair.
一天早晨，我残忍地用套索勒住它的脖子，并把它吊在了树枝上。当天夜里，我在梦中被失火引发的叫喊声惊醒。整个房子都着火了。我所有的财产都付之一炬，我从此万念俱灰。
On the day succeeding the fire, I visited the ruins. The walls, with one exception, had fallen in. I approached and saw, as if 13)graven in 14)brass 15)relief upon the white surface, the figure of a 16)gigantic cat. The impression was given with an accuracy truly marvelous. There was a rope about the animal’s neck. For months I could not rid myself of the 17)phantasm of the cat. I went so far as to regret the loss of the animal.
失火的第二天，我去查看那堆废墟。所有的墙都倒了，唯独一面墙仅存。我走上前去，看见这面白墙上有只大猫的图像，像黄铜浮雕一般，细致得惊人。那只猫的脖子上还有一根绞索。有好几个月，这只猫的样子都在我脑海里阴魂不散。我甚至后悔失去了它。
One night, as I sat in a den, my attention was suddenly drawn to some black object, 18)reposing upon the head of one of the immense 19)hogsheads of 20)Rum. I approached it, and touched it with my hand. It was a black cat—closely resembling Pluto in every respect but one. This cat had a large, although indefinite 21)splotch of white, covering nearly the whole region of the breast. Upon my touching him, he immediately arose, rubbed against my hand, and appeared delighted. I at once offered to purchase it off the landlord; but this person knew nothing of it.
一天晚上，我坐在一家酒吧里，突然注意到有一个黑色的东西卧在一个巨大的朗姆酒的酒桶上。我走近用手去摸它，原来是一只黑猫——几乎和布鲁托一模一样，除了胸前有一大片不太清楚的白斑。我刚用手去摸它，它就立刻跳了起来，蹭我的手，表现出很高兴的样子。我马上向店主提出要买下它，谁知他也不知道这只猫的来历。
When it reached the house it 22)domesticated itself at once, and became immediately a great favorite with my wife.
这只猫一到我家就立刻变得很温顺，并且立刻博得了我妻子的欢心。
For my own part, I soon found a dislike to it arising within me.
不久，我就渐渐对它产生了厌恶之情。
What added, no doubt, to my hatred of the beast, was the discovery, on the morning after I brought it home, that, like Pluto, it also had been deprived of one of its eyes.
把它带回家的第二天早上，我就发现它像布鲁托一样，也被挖掉了一只眼睛。这一发现，无疑加深了我对它的厌恶。
With my 23)aversion to this cat, however, its partiality for myself seemed to increase. Whenever I sat, it would spring upon my knees, covering me with its loathsome caresses. If I arose to walk it would get between my feet and thus nearly throw me down.
虽然我很讨厌这只猫，它却越来越喜欢我。只要我一坐下，它就跳到我膝盖上，在我身上讨厌地蹭个不停。如果我站起来走路，它会趴在我两脚中间，差点把我绊倒。
During the day the creature left me no moment alone; and, in the night, I 24)started, hourly, from dreams of 25)unutterable fear.
白天，它没有一刻不在我左右；而晚上，我会不断从无法言表的噩梦中惊醒。
So the 26)moodiness of my usual temper increased to hatred of all things.
于是我的脾气越来越坏，开始痛恨一切。
One day my wife accompanied me into the cellar. The cat followed me down the steep stairs, and, nearly throwing me 27)headlong, 28)exasperated me to madness. Uplifting an axe, I aimed a blow at the animal. But this blow was arrested by the hand of my wife. 29)Goaded, by the interference, into a rage more than demoniacal, I withdrew my arm from her grasp and buried the axe in her brain. She fell dead upon the spot, without a groan.
一天，我妻子跟着我到地窖去办点事。那只猫也跟着我走下陡峭的楼梯，几乎害我头朝下摔下去。我气得发疯，抡起一把斧子准备对着它砍下去，但这时我的妻子却伸出手来制止我。对于她的干涉我极为恼怒，我怒气冲天，挣脱了她的手，斧子一下子就砍在了她头上。她当场就倒下了，连一声呻吟都没有。
This 30)hideous murder accomplished, I set myself forthwith, and with entire deliberation, to the task of concealing the body. Many projects entered my mind. Finally I determined to wall it up in the cellar—as the monks of the middle ages are recorded to have walled up their victims. For a purpose such as this the cellar was well adapted. Its walls were loosely constructed, and had lately been 31)plastered throughout with a rough plaster, which the 32)dampness of the atmosphere had prevented from hardening. I made no doubt that I could readily displace the bricks at this point, insert the corpse, and wall the wall up as before, so that no eye could detect anything suspicious.
出了人命之后，我立刻仔细考虑藏匿尸体。我想了许多方案。最后我决定像中世纪的僧侣对待他们的牺牲品那样，把尸体砌在地窖的墙壁里。而这个地窖非常适合用来藏匿尸体。地窖的墙壁结构很松，最近刚刚用粗灰泥粉刷过，由于空气潮湿，还没全部变干。我确信我可以很容易地把这部分的砖挖开，把尸体塞进去，再像以前一样把墙砌好，这样就没有人会发现可疑之处了。
By means of a 33)crow-bar I easily 34)dislodged the bricks, and, having carefully deposited the body against the inner wall, I 35)propped it in that position, while, with little trouble, I re-laid the whole structure as it originally stood.
我用一根铁棍很容易地把砖撬了下来，然后小心地把尸体靠在内墙放好，我一边撑住使它不倒下来，一边毫不费力地重新把墙砌成了原来的样子。
My next step was to look for the beast which had been the cause of so much wretchedness. But it appeared that the crafty animal had been alarmed at the violence of my previous anger, and afraid to present itself in my present mood.
下一步我要去找那只猫，它是这一切不幸的根源。但是似乎这个狡猾的小东西被我刚才的怒气吓得不见踪影，不敢出现在我的面前。
The second and the third day passed, and still my tormentor came not. The guilt of my dark deed disturbed me but little. Some few inquiries had been made, but these had been readily answered. Even a search had been instituted—but of course nothing was to be discovered.
第二天过去了，第三天过去了，那只折磨我的猫还是没有回来。我犯下的不为人知的罪行没怎么使我不安。有人来调查过几次，我也有问必答。甚至还来搜查过一次——当然一无所获。
Upon the fourth day of the assassination, a party of the police came, very unex-pectedly, into the house, and proceeded again to make rigorous investigation of the premises. Secure, however, in the 36)inscrutability of my place of concealment, I felt no embarrassment whatsoever. They descended into the cellar. I walked the cellar from end to end calmly. The police were thoroughly satisfied and prepared to depart. The glee at my heart was too strong to be restrained.
到了第四天，突然来了一帮警察，又一次开始仔细搜查。我藏匿尸体的地方很安全，所以我一点也不慌张。警察们到地窖搜查时。我若无其事地从地窖这头走到那头。当警察们彻底满意，并准备离开时，我简直无法抑制心中的喜悦。
“Gentlemen,” I said at last, as the party ascended the steps, “I delight to have 37)allayed your suspicions. By the way, this—this is a very well constructed house.” And here, through the mere excitement, I rapped heavily, with a cane which I held in my hand, upon that very portion of the brick-work behind which stood the corpse of the wife of my bosom.
“先生们，”当他们走上楼梯时，我终于说话了。“很高兴能消除你们对我的怀疑。我可以说这——这房子的结构真的非常好。” 说到这儿，我十分激动地用手上的一根棍子重重地敲了敲那堵砖墙，我妻子的尸体就藏在那里面。
No sooner had the 38)reverberation of my blows sunk into silence than I was answered by a voice from within the tomb—by a cry, at first 39)muffled and broken, like the sobbing of a child, and then quickly swelling into one long, loud, and continuous scream—a howl—a wailing shriek, half of horror and half of triumph, such as might have arisen only out of hell.
我敲墙发出的声音余音未绝，就有声音从坟墓中响应——一开始是低沉的、断断续续的哭声，像小孩的抽泣声，很快，就变成一种拖长、嘹亮而连续的尖叫——一阵嚎叫、一种恐怖和得意掺半、似乎只有从地狱才会发出的惨叫声。
For one instant the party upon the stairs remained motionless, through extremity of terror and of awe. In the next, a dozen 40)stout arms were tolling at the wall. It fell 41)bodily. The corpse, stood erect before the eyes of the spectators. Upon its head, with red extended mouth and solitary eye of fire, sat the hideous beast whose craft had seduced me into murder, and whose informing voice had consigned me to the hangman. I had walled the monster up within the tomb!
好一会儿，站在楼梯上的那帮警察由于恐惧而一动不动。过了一会儿，十几只粗壮的手臂就忙着拆墙了。那堵墙整个倒了下来。那具尸体直立在大伙儿面前。在尸体的头上，竟坐着那只丑恶的猫，张着血盆大口，一只眼睛放着火一样的光。它狡猾地诱使我杀了自己的妻子，又用叫声把我送到刽子手手中。原来我把它也砌进墙里了。
小资料 
埃德加·爱伦·坡（1809—1849），美国作家、诗人、文艺评论家。爱伦·坡被誉为“侦探小说的鼻祖”，其小说风格怪异离奇，充满恐怖气氛。他提倡“为艺术而艺术”，宣扬唯美主义和神秘主义。1841年他发表的《莫格街谋杀案》是公认最早的侦探小说；1842年发表的《玛丽·罗杰神秘案件》，纯粹用推理形式破案；其他如《金甲虫》、《你就是杀人凶手》、《被盗窃的信》等五部小说成功创造了五种推理小说模式。萧伯纳曾声称：“美国出了两个伟大的作家——埃德加·爱伦·坡和马克·吐温。”