从此以后，好长一段时间过去了。国王克利斯蒂安七世坐上了丹麦的王位，他那时还是一个年轻人。从那时起，有许多事情发生了，有许多东西改变了，或者已经改变过了。海和沼泽地变成了茂盛的草原；荒地变成了耕地。在西尤兰的那些茅屋的掩蔽下，苹果树和玫瑰花生出来了。自然，你得仔细看才能发现它们，因为它们为了避免刺骨的东西，都藏起来了。在这个地方人们很可能以为回到了远古时代里去——比克利斯蒂安七世统治的时代还要远。现在的尤兰仍然和那时一样，它深黄色的荒地，它的古冢，它的海市蜃楼和它的一些交叉的、多沙的、高低不平的道路，向天际展开去。朝西走，许多河流向海湾流去，扩展成为沼泽地和草原。环绕着它们的一起沙丘，像峰峦起伏的阿尔卑斯山脉一样，耸立在海的周围，只有那些黏土形成的高高的海岸线才把它们切断。浪涛每年在这儿咬去几口，使得那些悬崖绝壁下塌，好像被地震摇撼过一次似的。它现在是这样，在许多年以前，当那幸福的一对乘着华丽的船在它沿岸航行的时候，它也是这样。
It was a Sunday，towards the end of September，the sun was shining，and the chiming of the church bells in the Bay of Nissum was carried along by the breeze like a chain of sounds. The churches there are almost entirely built of hewn blocks of stone，each like a piece of rock. The North Sea might foamfoam vi.起泡沫，冒汗水 vt.使起泡沫n.泡沫，水沫 over them and they would not be disturbed. Nearly all of them are without steeples，and the bells are hung outside between two beams. The service was over，and the congregationcongregation n.集合，集会，[宗］圣会 passed out into the churchyard，where not a tree or bush was to be seen； no flowers were planted there，and they had not placed a single wreath upon any of the graves. It is just the same now. Rough mounds show where the dead have been buried，and rank grass，tossed by the wind，grows thickly over the whole churchyard，here and there a grave has a sort of monument，a block of halfdecayed wood，rudely cut in the shape of a coffin，the blocks are brought from the forest of West Jutland，but the forest is the sea itself，and the inhabitants find beams，and planks，and fragments which the waves have cast upon the beach. One of these blocks had been placed by loving hands on a childs grave，and one of the women who had come out of the church walked up to it，she stood there，her eyes resting on the weatherbeaten memorial，and a few moments afterwards her husband joined her. They were both silent，but he took her hand，and they walked together across the purple heath，over moor and meadow towards the sandhills. For a long time they went on without speaking.
那是9月的最后的一天——一个星期天，一个阳光很好的一天。教堂的钟声，像一连串音乐似的，向尼松湾沿岸飘来。这儿所有的教堂全像整齐的巨石，而每一个教堂就是一个石块。西海可以在它们上面滚过来，但它们仍然可以屹立不动。这些教堂大多数都没有尖塔；钟总是悬在空中的两根横木之间。礼拜做完以后，信徒们就走出上帝的屋子，到教堂的墓地里去。在那个时候，正像现在一样，一棵树，一个灌木林也没有。这儿没有人种过一株花；坟墓上也没有人放过一个花圈。粗陋的土丘就说明是埋葬死人的处所。整个墓地上只有被风吹得零乱的荒草。各处偶尔有一个纪念物从墓里露出来：它是一块半朽的木头，曾经做成一个类似棺材的东西。这块木头是从西部的森林——大海——里运来的。大海为这些沿岸的居民生长出大梁和板子，把它们像柴火一样漂到岸上来；风和浪涛很快就腐蚀掉这些木块。一个小孩子的墓上就有这样一个木块，从教堂里走出的女人中有一位就向它走去。她站着不动，呆呆地望着这块半朽的纪念物。不一会儿，她的丈夫也来了。他们一句话也没有讲。他挽着她的手，离开这座坟墓，一同走过那深黄色的荒地，走过沼泽地，走过那些沙丘。他们沉默地走了很久。
“It was a good sermonsermon n.训诫，说教，布道 today.” the man said at last，“If we had not God to trust in，we should have nothing.”
“今天牧师的讲道很不错，”丈夫说，“如果我们没有上帝，我们就什么也没有了。”
“Yes，” replied the woman，“He sends joy and sorrow，and He has a right to send them. Tomorrow our little son would have been five years old if we had been permitted to keep him.”
“是的，”妻子回答说，“他给我们快乐，也给我们悲愁，而他是有这种权利给我们的！到明天，我们亲爱的孩子就有五周岁了——如果上帝准许我们保留住他的话。”
“It is no use fretting，wife.” said the man. “The boy is well provided for. He is where we hope and praypray v.祈祷，恳求，请 to go to.”
“不要这样苦痛吧，那不会有什么好处的，”丈夫说，“他现在一切都好！他现在所在的地方，正是我们希望去的地方。”
They said nothing more，but went out towards their houses among the sandhills. All at once，in front of one of the houses where the sea grass did not keep the sand down with its twining roots，what seemed to be a column of smoke rose up. A gust of wind rushed between the hills，hurling the particles of sand high into the air，another gust，and the strings of fish hung up to dry flapped and beat violently against the walls of the cottage，then everything was quiet once more，and the sun shone with renewed heat.
他们没有再说什么别的话，只是继续向前走，回到他们在沙丘之间的屋子里去。忽然间，在一个沙丘旁，在一个没有海水挡住的流沙的地带，升起了一股浓烟。这是一阵吹进沙丘的狂风，向空中卷起了许多细沙。接着又扫过来另一阵风，它使挂在绳子上的鱼乱打着屋子的墙。于是一切又变得沉寂，太阳射出炽热的光。
The man and his wife went into the cottage. They had soon taken off their Sunday clothes and come out again，hurrying over the dunes which stood there like great waves of sand suddenly arrested in their course，while the sandweeds and dune grass with its bluishbluish adj.带蓝色的 stalks spread a changing colour over them. A few neighbours also came out，and helped each other to draw the boats higher up on the beach. The wind now blew more keenly，it was chilly and cold，and when they went back over the sandhills，sand and little sharp stones blew into their faces. The waves rose high，crested with white foam，and the wind cut off their crests，scattering the foam far and wide.
丈夫和妻子走进屋子里去，立刻换下星期日穿的整齐的衣服，然后他们急忙向那沙丘走去。这些沙丘像忽然停止了波动的浪涛。海草的淡蓝色的梗子和沙草把白沙染成种种颜色。有好几个邻居来一同把许多船只拖到沙上更高的地方。风吹得更厉害。天气冷得刺骨；当他们再回到沙丘间来的时候，沙和小尖石子向他们的脸上打来。浪涛卷起漂白色的泡沫，而风却把浪头截断，使泡沫向四周飞溅。
Evening came，there was a swelling roar in the air，a wailing or moaning like the voices of despairingdespairing adj.绝望的，失望的） spirits，that sounded above the thunder of the waves. The fishermans little cottage was on the very margin，and the sand rattled against the window panes，every now and then a violent gust of wind shook the house to its foundation. It was dark，but about midnight the moon would rise. Later on the air became clearer，but the storm swept over the perturbed sea with undiminishedundiminished adj.没有减少的 furyfury n.狂怒，狂暴，激烈，狂怒的人，the fisher folks had long since gone to bed，but in such weather there was no chance of closing an eye. Presently there was a tapping at the window，the door was opened，and a voice said，“Theres a large ship stranded on the farthest reef.”
黑夜到来了。空中充满了一种时刻在扩大的呼啸。它哀鸣着，号叫着，好像一群失望的精灵要淹没一切浪涛的声音——虽然渔人的茅屋就紧贴在近旁。沙子在窗玻璃上敲打。忽然，一股暴风袭来，把整个房子都撼动了。天是黑的，但是到半夜的时候，月亮就要升起来了。空中很晴朗，但是风暴仍然来势汹汹，扫着这深沉的大海。渔人们早已上床了，但在这样的天气中，要合上眼睛是不可能的。不一会儿，他们就听到有人在窗子上敲。门打开了，一个声音说：“有一条大船在最远的那个沙滩上搁浅了！”