我们听到跳舞的踢踏声，

We caught the tread of dancing feet,

我们在月光下的街道游逛，

We loitered down the moonlit street,

在一家妓院门前停步。

And stopped beneath the harlot’s house.

门内，在一片骚音之上，

Inside, above the din and fray,

我们听到下作的乐师正演奏

We heard the loud musicians play

施特劳斯的《真诚的爱》。

The ‘Treues Liebes Herz’ of Strauss.

仿佛一个机器的怪物，

Like strange mechanical grotesques,

跳着怪诞的阿拉伯舞蹈，

Making fantastic arabesques,

影子在屏风之间穿梭。

The shadows raced across the blind.

我们看着舞者魔鬼似地旋转，

We watched the ghostly dancers spin

应和笛管和小提琴的音乐，

To sound of horn and violin,

像一片黑色叶子随着风儿翻卷。

Like black leaves wheeling in the wind.

仿佛铁丝牵引的玩偶，

Like wire-pulled automatons,

仅有轮廓的瘦骷髅

Slim silhouetted skeletons

侧身穿过缓慢的四人舞，

Went sidling through the slow quadrille,

于是他们相互手拉手，

Then took each other by the hand,

跳起庄严的萨拉班德舞；

And danced a stately saraband;

他们的笑声激起尖厉的回响。

Their laughter echoed thin and shrill.

有时，装有发条的木偶

Sometimes a clockwork puppet pressed

将一个幻影情人抱在胸口，

A phantom lover to her breast,

有时，他们似乎在努力地歌唱，

Sometimes they seemed to try to sing.

有时，一个恐怖的傀儡

Sometimes a horrible marionette

走出来，坐在台阶上

Came out, and smoked its cigarette

吸烟，就像一个真正的活人。

Upon the steps like a live thing.

于是，我转身对我的情人说，

Then, turning to my love, I said,

“死者正和死者在跳舞，

‘The dead are dancing with the dead,

尘土正围着尘土旋转。”

The dust is whirling with the dust.’

但是她，她听到小提琴声，

But she—she heard the violin,

将我扔在一边，走进去；

And left my side, and entered in:

爱就此进入了情欲的屋子。

Love passed into the house of lust.

接着音调突然变了味，

Then suddenly the tune went false,

舞者厌倦了华尔兹，

The dancers wearied of the waltz,

那些影子也停止了旋转，

The shadows ceased to wheel and whirl.

黎明穿着一双银色的凉鞋，

And down the long and silent street,

像一位受了惊吓的姑娘，

The dawn, with silver-sandalled feet,

悄悄地溜进这安静的长街。

Crept like a frightened girl.