03 David the orphan(7)

So when I returned to Blunderstone， Peggotty had become Mrs Barkis， and I was glad to think of her in her own house，with a husband to take care of her. At home， my stepfather and his sister did not seem pleased to see me， and were clearly trying to find a way of getting rid of me. As they considered school too expensive， they finally arranged for me to start work， although I was still only ten years old, and very small for my age. I was sent to London，to work in a warehouse in the east of the city， near the river. My job was to wash bottles， which would then be filled with wine， or to pack the filled bottles in cases. I was paid only six shillings a week. There were several other boys who worked with me，but I was the only one who had been to school. All the warehouse workers were coarse， rough people, who were used to working in dirty conditions for long hours. No words can describe the horror I felt， when I realized what my life was going to be like from now on. I was deeply ashamed at having such a job and I was also afraid that I would forget everything I had learnt from my mother and my teachers. I would never find friends like Traddles or Steerforth， or be able to get a better position in life. It was an extremely unhappy time for me.
就这样，当我回到布兰德斯通时，辟果提已经成了巴克斯太太了。想到她能住上自己的房子，并有丈夫照顾她，我就很高兴。到家中，继父和他姐姐似乎并不乐意见到我，很明显，他们正设法寻找打发我的办法。因为考虑到学校开销太大，最后他们决定给我安排工作，尽管我当时只有10岁，并且看上去不到10岁。我被送到伦敦，在市区东郊一条小河旁的仓库里工作。
　　我的工作是洗刷那些用来装酒的瓶子，或者把灌了酒的瓶子集装成箱。他们只付我一星期6先令的工钱。那儿还有其他一些孩子和我一起干活，但我是唯一上过学的。所有仓库工人都很粗鲁、庸俗，他们已经习惯于在肮脏的环境下连续工作数小时。当我意识到我的生活从此之后便是这个模样，我就产生一种不可名状的恐惧。我为做这样的工作感到十分羞愧，我害怕我会把母亲和老师们教给我的知识都忘光。我再也找不到像特拉德和斯提福兹那样的朋友了，也不可能有更好的生活境遇。那一段生活我过得很不愉快。