Their visits to Mrs. Philips were now productive of the most interesting intelligence. Every day added something to their knowledge of the officers' names and connections. Their lodgings¹ were not long a secret, and at length they began to know the officers themselves. Mr. Philips visited them all, and this opened to his nieces a source of felicity unknown before. They could talk of nothing but officers; and Mr. Bingley's large fortune, the mention of which gave animation² to their mother, was worthless in their eyes when opposed to the regimentals of an ensign.

从此她们每次拜访腓力普太太都获得了最有趣的消息。她们每天都会打听到几个军官的名字和他们的社会关系。军官们的住宅不久就让大家知道了，再后来小姐们就直接跟他们搞熟了，腓力普先生一一拜访了那些军官，这真是替她的姨侄女们开辟了一道意想不到的幸福源泉。她们现在开口闭口都离不开那些军官。在这以前，只要提到彬格莱先生的偌大财产，她们的母亲就会眉飞色舞，如今跟军官们的制服对比起来，她们就觉得偌大的财产简直一钱不值了。

After listening one morning to their effusions on this subject, Mr. Bennet coolly observed,

一天早晨，班纳特先生听到她们滔滔不绝地谈到这个问题，他不禁冷言冷语地说：

"From all that I can collect by your manner of talking, you must be two of the silliest girls in the country. I have suspected it some time, but I am now convinced."

“看你们谈话的神气，我觉得你们真是些再蠢不过的女孩子。以前我不过半信半疑，现在我可完全相信了。”

Catherine was disconcerted, and made no answer; but Lydia, with perfect indifference³, continued to express her admiration⁴ of Captain Carter, and her hope of seeing him in the course of the day, as he was going the next morning to London.

咖苔琳一听此话，颇感不安，可是并没有回答。丽迪雅却完全没有把爸爸的话当一回事，还是接着说下去，说她自己多么爱慕卡特上尉，还希望当天能够跟他见面，因为他明天上午就要到伦敦去。

"I am astonished, my dear," said Mrs. Bennet, "that you should be so ready to think your own children silly. If I wished to think slightingly of any body's children, it should not be of my own, however."

班纳特太太对她丈夫说：“我真奇怪，亲爱的，你总喜欢说你自己的孩子蠢。要是我呀，什么人的孩子我都可以看不起，可是我决不会看不起自己的孩子。”

"If my children are silly I must hope to be always sensible of it."

“要是我自己的孩子果真蠢，我决不愿意没有自知之明。”

"Yes -- but as it happens, they are all of them very clever."

“你说得不错，可是事实上，她们却一个个都很聪明。”