Preface

The hint of this Romance (or Tale) was taken from a passage in one of my Sermons, which (as it is to be presumed very few have read) I shall here take the liberty to quote. The passage is this.

‘At this moment is there one of us present, however we may have departed from the Lord, disobeyed his will, and disregarded his word — is there one of us who would, at this moment, accept all that man could bestow¹, or earth afford, to resign the hope of his salvation²? — No, there is not one — not such a fool on earth, were the enemy of mankind to traverse it with the offer!’

This passage suggested the idea of ‘Melmoth the Wanderer.’ The Reader will find that idea developed in the following pages, with what power or success he is to decide.

The ‘Spaniard’s Tale’ has been censured³ by a friend to whom I read it, as containing too much attempt at the revivification of the horrors of Radcliffe-Romance, of the persecutions of convents, and the terrors of the Inquisition.

I defended myself, by trying to point out to my friend, that I had made the misery⁴ of conventual life depend less on the startling adventures one meets with in romances, than on that irritating series of petty torments⁵ which constitutes the misery of life in general, and which, amid the tideless stagnation⁶ of monastic existence, solitude⁷ gives its inmates⁸ leisure to invent, and power combined with malignity⁹, the full disposition¹⁰ to practise. I trust this defence will operate more on the conviction of the Reader, than it did on that of my friend.

For the rest of the Romance, there are some parts of it which I have borrowed from real life.

The story of John Sandal and Elinor Mortimer is founded in fact.

The original from which the Wife of Walberg is imperfectly sketched¹¹ is a living woman, and long may she live.

I cannot again appear before the public in so unseemly a character as that of a writer of romances, without regretting the necessity that compels me to it. Did my profession furnish me with the means of subsistence, I should hold myself culpable¹² indeed in having recourse to any other, but — am I allowed the choice?

Dublin,

31st August 1820

1 bestow   

v.把…赠与，把…授予；花费

参考例句：

• He wished to bestow great honors upon the hero.他希望将那些伟大的荣誉授予这位英雄。
• What great inspiration wiII you bestow on me?你有什么伟大的灵感能馈赠给我？

2 salvation   

n.（尤指基督）救世，超度，拯救，解困

参考例句：

• Salvation lay in political reform.解救办法在于政治改革。
• Christians hope and pray for salvation.基督教徒希望并祈祷灵魂得救。

3 censured   

v.指责，非难，谴责( censure的过去式 )

参考例句：

• They were censured as traitors. 他们被指责为叛徒。 来自辞典例句
• The judge censured the driver but didn't fine him. 法官责备了司机但没罚他款。 来自辞典例句

4 misery   

n.痛苦，苦恼，苦难；悲惨的境遇，贫苦

参考例句：

• Business depression usually causes misery among the working class.商业不景气常使工薪阶层受苦。
• He has rescued me from the mire of misery.他把我从苦海里救了出来。

5 torments   

（肉体或精神上的）折磨，痛苦( torment的名词复数 )； 造成痛苦的事物[人]

参考例句：

• He released me from my torments. 他解除了我的痛苦。
• He suffered torments from his aching teeth. 他牙痛得难受。

6 stagnation   

n. 停滞

参考例句：

• Poor economic policies led to a long period of stagnation and decline. 糟糕的经济政策道致了长时间的经济萧条和下滑。
• Motion is absolute while stagnation is relative. 运动是绝对的，而静止是相对的。

7 solitude   

n. 孤独; 独居,荒僻之地,幽静的地方

参考例句：

• People need a chance to reflect on spiritual matters in solitude. 人们需要独处的机会来反思精神上的事情。
• They searched for a place where they could live in solitude. 他们寻找一个可以过隐居生活的地方。

8 inmates   

n.囚犯( inmate的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• One of the inmates has escaped. 被收容的人中有一个逃跑了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The inmates were moved to an undisclosed location. 监狱里的囚犯被转移到一个秘密处所。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 malignity   

n.极度的恶意，恶毒；（病的）恶性

参考例句：

• The little witch put a mock malignity into her beautiful eyes, and Joseph, trembling with sincere horror, hurried out praying and ejaculating "wicked" as he went. 这个小女巫那双美丽的眼睛里添上一种嘲弄的恶毒神气。约瑟夫真的吓得直抖，赶紧跑出去，一边跑一边祷告，还嚷着“恶毒！” 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Outside, the pitiless rain fell, fell steadily, with a fierce malignity that was all too human. 外面下着无情的雨，不断地下着，简直跟通人性那样凶狠而恶毒。 来自辞典例句

10 disposition   

n.性情，性格；意向，倾向；排列，部署

参考例句：

• He has made a good disposition of his property.他已对财产作了妥善处理。
• He has a cheerful disposition.他性情开朗。

11 sketched   

v.草拟（sketch的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• The historical article sketched the major events of the decade. 这篇有关历史的文章概述了这十年中的重大事件。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He sketched the situation in a few vivid words. 他用几句生动的语言简述了局势。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

12 culpable   

adj.有罪的，该受谴责的

参考例句：

• The judge found the man culpable.法官认为那个人有罪。
• Their decision to do nothing makes them culpable.他们不采取任何行动的决定使他们难辞其咎。