“The cold is delightful，” said the Snow Man; “but do tell me tell me; only you must not clank your chain so; for it jars all through me when you do that.”
“Away， away!” barked the yard-dog; “I'll tell you; they said I was a pretty little fellow once; then I used to lie in a velvet-covered chair， up at the master's house， and sit in the mistress's lap. They used to kiss my nose， and wipe my paws with an embroidered handkerchief， and I was called 'Ami， dear Ami， sweet Ami.' But after a while I grew too big for them， and they sent me away to the housekeeper's room; so I came to live on the lower story. You can look into the room from where you stand， and see where I was master once; for I was indeed master to the housekeeper. It was certainly a smaller room than those up stairs; but I was more comfortable; for I was not being continually taken hold of and pulled about by the children as I had been. I received quite as good food， or even better. I had my own cushion， and there was a stove—it is the finest thing in the world at this season of the year. I used to go under the stove， and lie down quite beneath it. Ah， I still dream of that stove. Away， away!”
“冷是很舒服的，”雪人说道。“说吧，讲吧!只是你别把链子弄得那么响，因为那声音搞得我身体里嘎轧轧地响呢。”“汪!汪!”看家狗叫着，“我曾经是一条小狗仔。他们说我又小又可爱，在院内那时我睡在绒窝里;躺在大主子的膝头上，鼻子受人吻，脚掌由他们拿绣花巾擦。我的名字叫”美上美“，叫”玲珑玲珑小宝贝“。但是，后来他们说我太大了，於是他们就把我送给了管家，我就到了地下室!从你站的那里，你可以望进那地下室去，你可以看见那里屋子的里面，我曾经做过那里的主人。因为和管家在一起，我就是那里的主人。那儿当然不如上边那么漂亮，可是下边更舒服一些。我不像在上面那样挨孩子们揪，挨孩子们拽。我吃的和从前一样好，而且多得多!我有自己的垫子，而且还有火炉，那东西在这个时节可算是世界上最美的东西了!我缩成一团躲在它下面，完全看不见。啊，那个火炉，我至今还在梦见它呢。汪!汪!”
“Does a stove look beautiful?” asked the Snow Man， “is it at all like me?”
“It is just the reverse of you，” said the dog; “it's as black as a crow， and has a long neck and a brass knob; it eats firewood， so that fire spurts out of its mouth. We should keep on one side， or under it， to be comfortable. You can see it through the window， from where you stand.”
Then the Snow Man looked， and saw a bright polished thing with a brazen knob， and fire gleaming from the lower part of it. The Snow Man felt quite a strange sensation come over him; it was very odd， he knew not what it meant， and he could not account for it. But there are people who are not men of snow， who understand what it is. “And why did you leave her?” asked the Snow Man， for it seemed to him that the stove must be of the female sex. “How could you give up such a comfortable place?”
“火炉就那么好看?”雪人问道。“它像我吗?”“它和你完全相反!漆黑的!有一个长脖子，带上一个黄铜大肚皮。它吃的是劈柴，所以身子里的火便从嘴里冒出来。你须得站在它的旁边，靠得近近的，或者钻到它的底下去，那真是舒服极了!从你站的那里你可以从窗子望到它那儿!”雪人瞧了瞧，他果然看见一个擦得珵亮有个大肚皮的东西，火光从它下截身子露出来。雪人产生了一种奇怪的感情，他有一种自己也说不清的感觉，他的身上产生了某种他不知道的东西，而这种东西却是所有的人，只要他不是雪人，都知道的。“你又是怎么离开她的呢?”雪人说道，他觉得那东西必定是个女性。“为甚么你会离开这样一个地方?”
“I was obliged，” replied the yard-dog. “They turned me out of doors， and chained me up here. I had bitten the youngest of my master's sons in the leg， because he kicked away the bone I was gnawing. 'Bone for bone，' I thought; but they were so angry， and from that time I have been fastened with a chain， and lost my bone. Don't you hear how hoarse I am. Away， away! I can't talk any more like other dogs. Away， away， that is the end of it all.”
But the Snow Man was no longer listening. He was looking into the housekeeper's room on the lower storey; where the stove stood on its four iron legs， looking about the same size as the Snow Man himself. “What a strange crackling I feel within me，” he said. “Shall I ever get in there? It is an innocent wish， and innocent wishes are sure to be fulfilled. I must go in there and lean against her， even if I have to break the window.”
“我不得不这么做，”看家狗说道，“他们把我赶了出来，拿链子把我锁在这里。我咬了最小的那位少爷一口，因为他把我正啃着的骨头一脚踢开了。以骨报骨，我是这么想的!可是他们都火了。从那时起我便被锁住了，我那清亮的声音也变没有了。你听我现在的声音多沙：汪!汪!这便是结局。”雪人没有再听下去。他仍旧望着女管家的地下室，望着她那间火炉在四条铁腿上站在里面的屋子里。火炉看去就和雪人自己一样大小。“我体内嘎嘎轧轧的!”他说道。“我永远也进不到里面去吗?这是一个很天真无邪的愿望，而我们的天真无邪的愿望该会是得到满足的。这是我的最大愿望，我唯一的愿望。如果这个愿望不能得到满足，那也真是很不公平的了。我必定要进去，我一定要在她的身上偎一偎，那怕我必须打破窗子。”
“You must never go in there，” said the yard-dog， “for if you approach the stove， you'll melt away， away.”
“I might as well go，” said the Snow Man， “for I think I am breaking up as it is.”
“你永远也进不去的，”看家狗说道，“要是走近火炉那你也就完了!汪!”“我已经和完了差不多了，”雪人说道，“我要裂了，我觉得。”
During the whole day the Snow Man stood looking in through the window， and in the twilight hour the room became still more inviting， for from the stove came a gentle glow， not like the sun or the moon; no， only the bright light which gleams from a stove when it has been well fed. When the door of the stove was opened， the flames darted out of its mouth; this is customary with all stoves. The light of the flames fell directly on the face and breast of the Snow Man with a ruddy gleam. “I can endure it no longer，” said he; “how beautiful it looks when it stretches out its tongue?”
雪人整天站着望着窗子里边。漆黑的夜里屋子更加诱人。火炉里发出的光是如此地柔和，不像月亮也不像太阳那样发光。不，只有火炉里面有点甚么东西的时候才能发这样的光。若是炉门打开，火焰便冲了出来，这是它的习惯。火焰明晃晃地照在雪人的白脸庞上，红红的，一直红到他的胸部。“我受不了啦!”他说道，“她把舌头伸出来的那个样子多么好看!”
The night was long， but did not appear so to the Snow Man， who stood there enjoying his own reflections， and crackling with the cold. In the morning， the window-panes of the housekeeper's room were covered with ice. They were the most beautiful ice-flowers any Snow Man could desire， but they concealed the stove. These window-panes would not thaw， and he could see nothing of the stove， which he pictured to himself， as if it had been a lovely human being. The snow crackled and the wind whistled around him; it was just the kind of frosty weather a Snow Man might thoroughly enjoy. But he did not enjoy it; how， indeed， could he enjoy anything when he was “stove sick?”
夜很长，但是对雪人却不如此。他怀着美好的想像站在那里，他的思绪挨冻发冷，冷得轧轧地响。
清晨，地下室的窗子上冻结了冰，现出了任何雪人所能要求的最美丽的冰花，但是冰花挡住了火炉。玻璃上的冰不化开，他不能看到她。他身上嘎嘎轧轧地响，这是最令雪人高兴的一个寒冷天气，可是他却高兴不起来。他本来能够而且也应该感到很幸福，可是他不幸福，他患了对火炉的单相思病。
“That is terrible disease for a Snow Man，” said the yard-dog; “I have suffered from it myself， but I got over it. Away， away，” he barked and then he added， “the weather is going to change.” And the weather did change; it began to thaw. As the warmth increased， the Snow Man decreased. He said nothing and made no complaint， which is a sure sign. One morning he broke， and sunk down altogether; and， behold， where he had stood， something like a broomstick remained sticking up in the ground. It was the pole round which the boys had built him up. “Ah， now I understand why he had such a great longing for the stove，” said the yard-dog. “Why， there's the shovel that is used for cleaning out the stove， fastened to the pole.” The Snow Man had a stove scraper in his body; that was what moved him so. “But it's all over now. Away， away.” And soon the winter passed. “Away， away，” barked the hoarse yard-dog.
“这对雪人可是一种很糟糕的病，”看家狗说道，“我曾经患过这种病，但是我已经挺过来了。汪!汪!——现在天气要变化了。”
天气变了，开始解冻了。
解冻的天气在持续，雪人在萎缩。他没有说甚么，他没有抱怨，这是最说明病情的徵兆。
一天早晨，他坍塌了。在他站过的地方，朝上立着一根扫帚把儿一类的东西，孩子们便是围着这根扫帚把儿堆起他来的。“这下子我明白他的单相思病了!”看家狗说道，“雪人的体内有一把扒火棍，这东西在他的身体内搅和。现在这一切都过去了!汪!汪!”不久冬季也就过去了。“汪!汪!”看家狗叫道;
But the girls in the house sang，“Woods, your bright green garments don! Willows, your woolly gloves put on! Lark and cuckoo, daily sing-- February has brought the spring! My heart joins in your song so sweet; Come out ,dear sun,the world to greet!"
And nobody thought of the Snow-man.
但是院子里的小女孩们在唱："冒呀冒，车叶草!冒出芽儿嫩又鲜，垂呀垂，柳树儿，垂下你那秀枝柔如毛，来呀来，唱呀唱，小杜鹃、小百灵，唱出一个早春来!
我跟你们唱，咕咕，唧唧!
来呀来，亲爱的太阳，请常常来!"接着便再没有人想着雪人了。