Here were great oaks and splendid evergreens with trunks like mossy pillars, from the branches of which hung garlands of ivy and mistletoe, and persimmon trees, the odour of which pervaded every nook and corner of the wood—an illusive, fragrant something that made the heart glad. In places the wild muscadine and scuppernong vines stretched from tree to tree, making arbours which were always full of butterflies and buzzing insects. It was delightful to lose ourselves in the green hollows of that tangled wood in the late afternoon, and to smell the cool, delicious odours that came up from the earth at the close of day.
山上有巨大的橡树,也有四季常青的树木。这些树的树干就像包裹着青苔的圆柱,树枝上挂满了常春藤和槲寄生的花环。附近还有柿子树,果实的甜美气息弥漫在密林中的每一个角落——这种虚幻朦胧的香味令人心情愉悦。野生的圆叶葡萄和斯卡巴农葡萄连成了一大片,葡萄藤上总会落满了各种各样的蝴蝶和嗡嗡飞舞的昆虫。在一天临近结束的黄昏时分,谷地散发着清爽宜人的气息,置身其间,的确令人心旷神怡。
Our cottage was a sort of rough camp, beautifully situated on the top of the mountain among oaks and pines. The small rooms were arranged on each side of a long open hall. Round the house was a wide piazza, where the mountain winds blew, sweet with all wood-scents. We lived on the piazza most of the time—there we worked, ate and played. At the back door there was a great butternut tree, round which the steps had been built, and in front the trees stood so close that I could touch them and feel the wind shake their branches, or the leaves twirl downward in the autumn blast.
我们的小屋只是个有些粗糙的露营地,但是它优雅地坐落在橡树和松树环绕的山顶之上。房子的四面都有一个开放的门厅,门厅的外围是一圈宽广的游廊。山风从这里吹过,带来了树木的醇香。我们大部分时间都住在游廊里——这里也是我们劳作、吃饭和玩耍的地方。房子后门还有一棵巨大的灰胡桃树,人们在它的周围修建了台阶。我离这些树木是如此之近,可以轻易地摸到被风吹拂的树枝,还有在阵阵秋风中滚动的树叶。
Many visitors came to Fern Quarry. In the evening, by the campfire, the men played cards and whiled away the hours in talk and sport.
弗恩采石场有很多到访的游客。夜晚,男人们聚集在篝火旁玩扑克牌,或者是聊天消磨时光。