Like the wasps， before I finally went into winter quarters in November， I used to resort to the northeast side of Walden， which the sun， reflected from the pitch pine woods and the stony shore，made the fireside of the pond； it is so much pleasanter and wholesomer to be warmed by the sun while you can be， than by an artificial fire.  I thus warmed myself by the still glowing embers which the summer， like a departed hunter， had left. When I came to build my chimney I studied masonry.  My bricks，being second-hand ones， required to be cleaned with a trowel， so that I learned more than usual of the qualities of bricks and trowels.  The mortar on them was fifty years old， and was said to be still growing harder； but this is one of those sayings which men love to repeat whether they are true or not.  Such sayings themselves grow harder and adhere more firmly with age， and it would take many blows with a trowel to clean an old wiseacre of them. Many of the villages of Mesopotamia are built of second-hand bricks of a very good quality， obtained from the ruins of Babylon， and the cement on them is older and probably harder still.  However that may be， I was struck by the peculiar toughness of the steel which bore so many violent blows without being worn out.  As my bricks had been in a chimney before， though I did not read the name of Nebuchadnezzar on them， I picked out its many fireplace bricks as I could find， to save work and waste， and I filled the spaces between the bricks about the fireplace with stones from the pond shore， and also made my mortar with the white sand from the same place.  I lingered most about the fireplace， as the most vital part of the house.  Indeed， I worked so deliberately， that though I commenced at the ground in the morning， a course of bricks raised a few inches above the floor served for my pillow at night； yet I did not get a stiff neck for it that I remember； my stiff neck is of older date. I took a poet to board for a fortnight about those times， which caused me to be put to it for room.  He brought his own knife，though I had two， and we used to scour them by thrusting them into the earth.  He shared with me the labors of cooking.  I was pleased to see my work rising so square and solid by degrees， and reflected，that， if it proceeded slowly， it was calculated to endure a long time.  The chimney is to some extent an independent structure，standing on the ground， and rising through the house to the heavens；even after the house is burned it still stands sometimes， and its importance and independence are apparent.  This was toward the end of summer.  It was now November.

　　The north wind had already begun to cool the pond， though it took many weeks of steady blowing to accomplish it， it is so deep. When I began to have a fire at evening， before I plastered my house，the chimney carried smoke particularly well， because of the numerous chinks between the boards.  Yet I passed some cheerful evenings in that cool and airy apartment， surrounded by the rough brown boards full of knots， and rafters with the bark on high overhead.  My house never pleased my eye so much after it was plastered， though I was obliged to confess that it was more comfortable.  Should not every apartment in which man dwells be lofty enough to create some obscurity overhead， where flickering shadows may play at evening about the rafters？  These forms are more agreeable to the fancy and imagination than fresco paintings or other the most expensive furniture.  I now first began to inhabit my house， I may say， when I began to use it for warmth as well as shelter.  I had got a couple of old fire-dogs to keep the wood from the hearth， and it did me good to see the soot form on the back of the chimney which I had built， and I poked the fire with more right and more satisfaction than usual.  My dwelling was small， and I could hardly entertain an echo in it； but it seemed larger for being a single apartment and remote from neighbors.  All the attractions of a house were concentrated in one room； it was kitchen， chamber， parlor， and keeping-room； and whatever satisfaction parent or child， master or servant， derive from living in a house， I enjoyed it all.  Cato says， the master of a family （patremfamilias） must have in his rustic villa "cellam oleariam， vinariam， dolia multa， uti lubeat caritatem expectare， et rei， et virtuti， et gloriae erit，" that is，"an oil and wine cellar， many casks， so that it may be pleasant to expect hard times； it will be for his advantage， and virtue， and glory."  I had in my cellar a firkin of potatoes， about two quarts of peas with the weevil in them， and on my shelf a little rice， a jug of molasses， and of rye and Indian meal a peck each.

　　到十一月，就像那些黃蜂一樣，在我躲避冬天之前，我也先到瓦爾登的東北岸去，在那里，太陽從蒼松林和石岸上反映過來，成了湖上的爐火；趁你還能做到的時候，曝日取暖，這樣做比生火取暖更加愉快，也更加衛生。夏天像獵人一樣已經走掉了，我就這樣烤著它所留下來的還在發光的余火。

　　當我造煙囪的時候，我研究了泥水工的手藝。我的磚頭都是舊貨，必須用瓦刀刮干凈，這樣我對磚頭和瓦刀的性質有了超出一般的了解。上面的灰漿已經有五十年歷史，據說它愈經久愈牢固；就是這一種話，人們最愛反復他說，不管它們對不對。這種話的本身也愈經久而愈牢固了，必需用瓦刀一再猛擊之，才能粉碎它，使一個自作聰明的老人不再說這種話。美索不達米亞的許多村子都是用從巴比倫廢墟里揀來的質地很好的舊磚頭造的，它們上面的水泥也許更老，也該更牢啦。不管怎么樣，那瓦刀真厲害，用力猛擊，絲毫無損于鋼刃，簡直叫我吃驚。我砌壁爐用的磚，都是以前一個煙囪里面的磚頭，雖然并未刻上尼布甲尼撒的名字，我盡量揀。有多少就揀多少，以便減少工作和浪費，我在壁爐周圍的磚頭之間填塞了湖岸上的圓石，并且就用湖中的白沙來做我的灰漿。

　　我為爐灶花了很多時間，把它作為寒舍最緊要的一部分。真的，我工作得很精細，雖然我是一清早就從地上開始工作的，到晚上卻只疊起了離地不過數英寸高，我睡地板剛好用它代替枕頭；然而我記得我并沒有睡成了硬頭頸；我的硬頭頸倒是從前睡出來的。大約是這時候，我招待一個詩人來住了半個月，這使我騰不出地方來。他帶來了他自己的刀子，我卻有兩柄呢，我們常常把刀子插進地里，這樣來把它們擦干凈。他幫我做飯。

　　看到我的爐灶，方方正正、結結實實，漸漸升高起來，真是高興，我想，雖說進展很慢，但據說這就可以更堅固些。在某種程度上，煙囪是一個獨立體，站在地上，穿過屋子，升上天空；就是房子燒掉了，它有時候還站著，它的獨立性和重要性是顯而易見的。當時還是快近夏末。現在卻是十一月了。

　　北風已經開始把湖水吹涼，雖然還要不斷地再吹幾個星期才能結冰，湖太深了。當我第一天晚上生了火，煙在煙囪里通行無阻，異常美妙，因為墻壁有很多漏風的縫，那時我還沒有給板壁涂上灰漿。然而，我在這寒冷通風的房間內過了幾個愉快的晚上，四周盡是些有節疤的棕色木板，而椽木是連樹皮的，高高的在頭頂上頁。后來涂上了灰漿，我就格外喜歡我的房子。我不能不承認這樣格外舒服。人住的每一所房子難道不應該頂上很高，高得有些隱晦的感覺嗎？到了晚上，火光投射的影子就可以在椽木之上跳躍了。

　　這種影子的形態，比起壁畫或最值錢的家具來，應該是更適合于幻覺與想象的。現在我可以說，我是第一次住在我自己的房子里了，第一次用以蔽風雨，并且取暖了。我還用了兩個舊的薪架以使木柴脫空，當我看到我親手造的煙囪的背后積起了煙怠，我很欣慰，我比平常更加有權威、更加滿意地撥火。固然我的房子很小，無法引起回聲；但作為一個單獨的房間，和鄰居又離得很遠，這就顯得大一點了。一幢房屋內應有的一切都集中在這一個房間內；它是廚房，寢室，客廳兼儲藏室；無論是父母或孩子，主人或仆役，他們住在一個房子里所得到的一切，我統統享受到了。卡托說，一個家庭的主人（patr emfa-milias）必須在他的鄉居別墅中，具有“cellam oleariam，vinariam ，dolia m ulta，uti lubeat caritatem expectare，etrei，et virtuti，et gloriae erit，”

　　也就是說，“一個放油放酒的地窖，放進許多桶去預防艱難的日子，這是于他有利的，有價值的，光榮的。”在我的地窖中，我有一小桶的土豆，大約兩夸脫的豌豆，連帶它們的象鼻蟲，在我的架上，還有一點兒米，一缸糖漿，還有黑麥和印第安玉米粉，各一配克。

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