MORNING. Brilliant sunshine is piercing through the frozen lacework on the window-panes into the nursery. —-
早晨。明亮的阳光穿过窗格上的冰霜花纹照进了儿童房。 —-

Vanya, a boy of six, with a cropped head and a nose like a button, and his sister Nina, a short, chubby, curly-headed girl of four, wake up and look crossly at each other through the bars of their cots.
六岁的男孩瓦尼亚像个扣子一样有着短发和一个小突颚，他的四岁的妹妹妮娜是个矮矮胖胖、卷发蓬松的女孩，他俩从自己的婴儿床的栏杆间生气地互相瞪着对方。

“Oo-oo-oo! naughty children!” grumbles their nurse. —-
“呜呜呜！小坏蛋！”他们的保姆嘟囔着。 —-

“Good people have had their breakfast already, while you can’t get your eyes open.”
“好孩子们早就吃完早餐了，而你们连眼睛都睁不开。”

The sunbeams frolic over the rugs, the walls, and nurse’s skirts, and seem inviting the children to join in their play, but they take no notice. —-
阳光躍動在地毯、墙壁和保姆的裙子上，似乎邀请着孩子们一起玩耍，但他们却毫不理会。 —-

They have woken up in a bad humour. Nina pouts, makes a grimace, and begins to whine:
他们一觉醒来就心情不好。妮娜噘起嘴，做出鬼脸，开始啜泣道：

“Brea-eakfast, nurse, breakfast!”
“早、早餐，保姆，早餐！”

Vanya knits his brows and ponders what to pitch upon to howl over. —-
瓦尼亚皱起眉头，思索着要哪件事情大吼一声。 —-

He has already begun screwing up his eyes and opening his mouth, but at that instant the voice of mamma reaches them from the drawing-room, saying: —-
他已经开始皱眉眯起眼睛张开嘴巴，但就在那一刻，妈妈的声音从客厅里传来： —-

“Don’t forget to give the cat her milk, she has a family now!”
“不要忘记给猫奶喝，她有了一家人！”

The children’s puckered countenances grow smooth again as they look at each other in astonishment. Then both at once begin shouting, jump out of their cots, and filling the air with piercing shrieks, run barefoot, in their nightgowns, to the kitchen.
孩子们发皱的脸上露出惊讶的表情，然后他们同时开始尖叫，光着脚丫穿着睡衣跑向厨房。

“The cat has puppies!” they cry. “The cat has got puppies!”
“猫生了小狗！”他们喊道。“猫生了小狗！”

Under the bench in the kitchen there stands a small box, the one in which Stepan brings coal when he lights the fire. —-
厨房的长凳下面有一个小盒子，用来点火的时候斯捷潘拿煤炭的盒子。 —-

The cat is peeping out of the box. There is an expression of extreme exhaustion on her grey face; —-
猫从盒子里探出头来。她灰色的脸上写满了极度消瘦的表情； —-

her green eyes, with their narrow black pupils, have a languid, sentimental look. —-
她那狭窄的瞳孔里有一种虚弱和多愁善感的神态。 —-

From her face it is clear that the only thing lacking to complete her happiness is the presence in the box of “him,” the father of her children, to whom she had abandoned herself so recklessly! —-
从她的脸上可以清楚地看出，唯一缺少的是“他”——她孩子们的父亲，她曾经如此草率地抛弃了自己的人！ —-

She wants to mew, and opens her mouth wide, but nothing but a hiss comes from her throat; —-
她想喵喵叫，张开嘴巴，但只有一声嘶嘶声从她的喉咙里出来； —-

the squealing of the kittens is audible.
小猫的尖叫声可以听到。

The children squat on their heels before the box, and, motionless, holding their breath, gaze at the cat. —-
孩子们蹲在盒子前，一动不动，屏住呼吸，凝视着猫。 —-

. . . They are surprised, impressed, and do not hear nurse grumbling as she pursues them. —-
他们感到惊讶，震撼，完全没有听到保姆的抱怨声。 —-

The most genuine delight shines in the eyes of both.
他们双眼中闪烁着最真切的喜悦。

Domestic animals play a scarcely noticed but undoubtedly beneficial part in the education and life of children. —-
家养动物在儿童的教育和生活中扮演着一种不容忽视但无疑有益的角色。 —-

Which of us does not remember powerful but magnanimous dogs, lazy lapdogs, birds dying in captivity, dull-witted but haughty turkeys, mild old tabby cats, who forgave us when we trod on their tails for fun and caused them agonising pain? —-
我们当中有谁不记得有力量但宽宏大量的狗，懒洋洋的宠物狗，困在囚笼里的鸟，愚蠢但傲慢的火鸡，和蔼可亲的老猫咪们，在我们为了好玩踩到它们的尾巴上并造成它们剧痛时宽恕了我们的行为？ —-

I even fancy, sometimes, that the patience, the fidelity, the readiness to forgive, and the sincerity which are characteristic of our domestic animals have a far stronger and more definite effect on the mind of a child than the long exhortations of some dry, pale Karl Karlovitch, or the misty expositions of a governess, trying to prove to children that water is made up of hydrogen and oxygen.
有时候，我甚至觉得，家养动物所特有的耐心、忠诚、宽容和真诚对于孩子的思维产生的影响要远远超过干燥苍白的卡尔·卡尔洛维奇的长篇劝诫，或者女家庭教师模糊的解释，试图向孩子们证明水是由氢和氧组成的。

“What little things!” says Nina, opening her eyes wide and going off into a joyous laugh. —-
“多么小的东西！”妮娜睁大眼睛开心地笑着。 —-

“They are like mice!”
“它们像老鼠！”

“One, two, three,” Vanya counts. “Three kittens. —-
“一、二、三，”瓦尼亚数数道。“三只小猫咪。 —-

So there is one for you, one for me, and one for somebody else, too.”
一个给你，一个给我，还有一个给别人。”

“Murrm . . . murrm . . .” purrs the mother, flattered by their attention. “Murrm.”
母猫受到他们的关注而感到荣幸地发出咕噜噜的声音。“咕噜噜。”

After gazing at the kittens, the children take them from under the cat, and begin squeezing them in their hands, then, not satisfied with this, they put them in the skirts of their nightgowns, and run into the other rooms.
看完小猫后，孩子们把它们从猫身下拿出来，用手挤压它们，然后不满足于此，他们把小猫放在睡衣的裙摆里，跑进其他房间。

“Mamma, the cat has got pups!” they shout.
“妈妈，猫生了小猫！”他们大声喊道。

Mamma is sitting in the drawing-room with some unknown gentleman. —-
妈妈和一个陌生的先生坐在客厅里。 —-

Seeing the children unwashed, undressed, with their nightgowns held up high, she is embarrassed, and looks at them severely.
看到孩子们不洗脸、不穿衣服，还把睡袍提得高高的，她感到尴尬，严肃地看着他们。

“Let your nightgowns down, disgraceful children,” she says. —-
“把睡袍放下去，丢脸的孩子们，”她说。 —-

“Go out of the room, or I will punish you.”
“离开房间，否则我会惩罚你们。”

But the children do not notice either mamma’s threats or the presence of a stranger. —-
但孩子们既没有注意到妈妈的威胁，也没有注意到陌生人的存在。 —-

They put the kittens down on the carpet, and go off into deafening squeals. —-
他们把小猫放在地毯上，然后尖声尖叫着离开了。 —-

The mother walks round them, mewing imploringly. —-
妈妈在他们周围走来走去，痛苦地喵喵叫。 —-

When, a little afterwards, the children are dragged off to the nursery, dressed, made to say their prayers, and given their breakfast, they are full of a passionate desire to get away from these prosaic duties as quickly as possible, and to run to the kitchen again.
不久之后，孩子们被拉到了托儿所里，穿上衣服，做了祷告，吃了早饭，他们渴望尽快摆脱这些平凡的事务，再次跑到厨房。

Their habitual pursuits and games are thrown completely into the background.
他们习惯性的活动和游戏完全被搁置了一边。

The kittens throw everything into the shade by making their appearance in the world, and supply the great sensation of the day. —-
小猫的出现使一切都黯然失色，成为当天的最大轰动。 —-

If Nina or Vanya had been offered forty pounds of sweets or ten thousand kopecks for each kitten, they would have rejected such a barter without the slightest hesitation. —-
即使给尼娜或瓦尼亚每只小猫提供四十磅的糖果或一万卢布，他们也会毫不犹豫地拒绝这样的交易。 —-

In spite of the heated protests of the nurse and the cook, the children persist in sitting by the cat’s box in the kitchen, busy with the kittens till dinner-time. —-
尽管保姆和厨师强烈抗议，孩子们仍然坚持在厨房里坐在猫的箱子旁边，忙着照看小猫，直到吃晚饭的时候。 —-

Their faces are earnest and concentrated and express anxiety. —-
他们的脸庞是认真和集中的，表达了焦虑。 —-

They are worried not so much by the present as by the future of the kittens. —-
他们的忧虑并不是现在，而是小猫的未来。 —-

They decide that one kitten shall remain at home with the old cat to be a comfort to her mother, while the second shall go to their summer villa, and the third shall live in the cellar, where there are ever so many rats.
他们决定让一只小猫留在家里陪伴老猫，给她带来安慰；第二只小猫去他们的夏季别墅；第三只小猫则住在地下室，那里有很多老鼠。

“But why don’t they look at us?” Nina wondered. —-
“但为什么他们不看着我们？”妮娜想知道。 —-

“Their eyes are blind like the beggars’.”
“他们的眼睛像乞丐一样瞎了。”

Vanya, too, is perturbed by this question. —-
凡亚也被这个问题困扰着。 —-

He tries to open one kitten’s eyes, and spends a long time puffing and breathing hard over it, but his operation is unsuccessful. —-
他试着打开一只小猫的眼睛，用了很长时间费力的呼吸在上面，但他的操作没有成功。 —-

They are a good deal troubled, too, by the circumstance that the kittens obstinately refuse the milk and the meat that is offered to them. —-
小猫们固执地拒绝了提供给它们的牛奶和肉，这让他们很困惑。 —-

Everything that is put before their little noses is eaten by their grey mamma.
所有放在它们小鼻子前面的东西都被它们灰色的妈妈吃掉了。

“Let’s build the kittens little houses,” Vanya suggests. —-
“我们来给小猫建造小房子吧，”凡亚建议道。 —-

“They shall live in different houses, and the cat shall come and pay them visits. . . .”
“它们可以住在不同的房子里，猫可以来拜访它们……”

Cardboard hat-boxes are put in the different corners of the kitchen and the kittens are installed in them. —-
厚纸板帽盒放在厨房的不同角落，并将小猫安顿在其中。 —-

But this division turns out to be premature; —-
但这种分配结果是过早的； —-

the cat, still wearing an imploring and sentimental expression on her face, goes the round of all the hat-boxes, and carries off her children to their original position.
猫仍然带着乞求和感伤的表情，绕着所有帽盒走了一遍，把孩子们带回到原来的位置。

“The cat’s their mother,” observed Vanya, “but who is their father?”
“猫是他们的母亲，”凡亚观察到，“但谁是他们的父亲？”

“Yes, who is their father?” repeats Nina.
“是的，谁是他们的父亲？”妮娜重复道。

“They must have a father.”
“他们一定有一个父亲。”

Vanya and Nina are a long time deciding who is to be the kittens’ father, and, in the end, their choice falls on a big dark-red horse without a tail, which is lying in the store-cupboard under the stairs, together with other relics of toys that have outlived their day. —-
尽管长时间摇摆不定，最后他们选择了一个没有尾巴的大红马作为小猫的父亲，它躺在楼梯下的储藏室里，和其他无用的玩具一起。 —-

They drag him up out of the store-cupboard and stand him by the box.
他们把它从储藏室里拉出来，站在盒子旁边。

“Mind now!” they admonish him, “stand here and see they behave themselves properly.”
“注意！”他们告诫他，“站在这里，确保它们举止得体。”

All this is said and done in the gravest way, with an expression of anxiety on their faces. —-
他俩以极其严肃的方式说了这些话，脸上露出焦虑的表情。 —-

Vanya and Nina refuse to recognise the existence of any world but the box of kittens. —-
凡娅和妮娜拒绝承认除了小猫盒子之外的世界的存在。 —-

Their joy knows no bounds. But they have to pass through bitter, agonising moments, too.
他们的喜悦无限。但他们也不得不经历痛苦和焦虑的时刻。

Just before dinner, Vanya is sitting in his father’s study, gazing dreamily at the table. —-
晚饭前，凡娅坐在父亲的书房里，迷糊地看着桌子。 —-

A kitten is moving about by the lamp, on stamped note paper. —-
小猫在灯光下，在盖有邮票的纸上来回走动。 —-

Vanya is watching its movements, and thrusting first a pencil, then a match into its little mouth. —-
凡娅观察着它的动作，先后塞进它的小嘴里一支铅笔，然后一根火柴。 —-

. . . All at once, as though he has sprung out of the floor, his father is beside the table.
突然间，好像他从地板上窜出来一样，他父亲就站在桌子旁边。

“What’s this?” Vanya hears, in an angry voice.
“这是什么？”凡娅听到愤怒的声音。

“It’s . . . it’s the kitty, papa. . . .”
“这…这是小猫，爸爸…”

“I’ll give it you; look what you have done, you naughty boy! You’ve dirtied all my paper!”
“我会打你的！看看你弄得我所有的纸都脏了！你这个顽皮的孩子！把这个可恶的东西拿走，斯捷潘！”

To Vanya’s great surprise his papa does not share his partiality for the kittens, and, instead of being moved to enthusiasm and delight, he pulls Vanya’s ear and shouts:
令凡娅大为惊讶的是，他的父亲并不像他那样喜欢小猫，而是拽着凡娅的耳朵大声喊道：

“Stepan, take away this horrid thing.”
“斯捷潘，把这个可怕的东西拿走。”

At dinner, too, there is a scene. . . . During the second course there is suddenly the sound of a shrill mew. —-
在晚餐时，也发生了一幕……在第二道菜上，突然传来了尖锐的猫叫声。 —-

They begin to investigate its origin, and discover a kitten under Nina’s pinafore.
他们开始调查声音的来源，发现尼娜的罩裙下有一只小猫。

“Nina, leave the table!” cries her father angrily. —-
“尼娜，快离开餐桌！”父亲生气地喊道。 —-

“Throw the kittens in the cesspool! I won’t have the nasty things in the house! . . .”
“把小猫扔进化粪池里！我不希望这些讨厌的东西进屋……”

Vanya and Nina are horrified. Death in the cesspool, apart from its cruelty, threatens to rob the cat and the wooden horse of their children, to lay waste the cat’s box, to destroy their plans for the future, that fair future in which one cat will be a comfort to its old mother, another will live in the country, while the third will catch rats in the cellar. —-
万尼亚和尼娜感到震惊。化粪池里的死亡，除了残忍之外，还会威胁到猫和木马的孩子们，破坏猫盒的计划，摧毁他们对未来的规划。在那个美好的未来里，一只猫会给它年迈的母亲带来安慰，另一只会生活在乡村，第三只会在地下室捉老鼠。 —-

The children begin to cry and entreat that the kittens may be spared. —-
孩子们开始哭泣，并恳求留下小猫。 —-

Their father consents, but on the condition that the children do not go into the kitchen and touch the kittens.
父亲同意了，但条件是孩子们不能进厨房接触小猫。

After dinner, Vanya and Nina slouch about the rooms, feeling depressed. —-
晚餐后，万尼亚和尼娜懒洋洋地在房间里闲逛，感到沮丧。 —-

The prohibition of visits to the kitchen has reduced them to dejection. —-
禁止进厨房的规定使他们变得沮丧。 —-

They refuse sweets, are naughty, and are rude to their mother. —-
他们拒绝甜食，调皮捣蛋，对母亲没礼貌。 —-

When their uncle Petrusha comes in the evening, they draw him aside, and complain to him of their father, who wanted to throw the kittens into the cesspool.
晚上他们的叔叔佩特鲁夏进来时，他们把他拉到一边，向他抱怨他们的父亲，说他想把小猫扔进化粪池。

“Uncle Petrusha, tell mamma to have the kittens taken to the nursery,” the children beg their uncle, “do-o tell her.”
“佩特鲁夏叔叔，请告诉妈妈把小猫带到儿童房，”孩子们恳求着他叔叔，”拜托了，拜托了。”

“There, there . . . very well,” says their uncle, waving them off. “All right.”
“好了好了，”他们的叔叔挥挥手，说道，”好吧。”

Uncle Petrusha does not usually come alone. —-
佩特鲁夏叔叔通常不是一个人来的。 —-

He is accompanied by Nero, a big black dog of Danish breed, with drooping ears, and a tail as hard as a stick. —-
他带着尼罗，一只大黑狗，丹麦品种，耳朵下垂，尾巴像木棍一样硬。 —-

The dog is silent, morose, and full of a sense of his own dignity. —-
这只狗沉默、忧郁，充满自己的尊严感。 —-

He takes not the slightest notice of the children, and when he passes them hits them with his tail as though they were chairs. —-
他对孩子们毫不理会，当他经过他们时，用尾巴撞他们，就像撞椅子一样。 —-

The children hate him from the bottom of their hearts, but on this occasion, practical considerations override sentiment.
孩子们从心底里讨厌他，但在这种情况下，实际考虑超过了感情。

“I say, Nina,” says Vanya, opening his eyes wide. —-
“尼娜，我说,”瓦尼娜睁大眼睛说。 —-

“Let Nero be their father, instead of the horse! —-
“让尼禄成为他们的父亲，而不是马! —-

The horse is dead and he is alive, you see.”
马死了，他还活着，你看到了。”

They are waiting the whole evening for the moment when papa will sit down to his cards and it will be possible to take Nero to the kitchen without being observed. —-
他们整晚都在等待爸爸坐下打牌的时刻，这样就可以将尼禄带到厨房而不被注意到。 —-

. . . At last, papa sits down to cards, mamma is busy with the samovar and not noticing the children. . . .
…最后，爸爸坐下来打牌，妈妈在忙着烧水壶，没有注意到孩子们…

The happy moment arrives.
快乐的时刻到了。

“Come along!” Vanya whispers to his sister.
“快来！”瓦尼娜对妹妹低声说。

But, at that moment, Stepan comes in and, with a snigger, announces:
但就在那一刻，斯特潘走进来，咯咯地笑着报告说：

“Nero has eaten the kittens, madam.”
“尼禄吃了小猫，夫人。”

Nina and Vanya turn pale and look at Stepan with horror.
小妮娜和瓦尼娜脸色苍白，恐惧地看着斯特潘。

“He really has . . .” laughs the footman, “he went to the box and gobbled them up.”
“他真的吃了…”这个仆人笑着说，“他去了箱子那里把它们都吞下去了。”

The children expect that all the people in the house will be aghast and fall upon the miscreant Nero. But they all sit calmly in their seats, and only express surprise at the appetite of the huge dog. —-
孩子们期待着全家人都会震惊并对这个罪犯尼禄进行谴责。但他们都坐在那里平静地坐着，只是对这只巨大的狗的胃口表示惊讶。 —-

Papa and mamma laugh. Nero walks about by the table, wags his tail, and licks his lips complacently . —-
爸爸和妈妈笑了。尼禄走到桌子旁边，摇着尾巴，满意地舔了舔嘴唇。 —-

. . the cat is the only one who is uneasy. —-
. . 猫是唯一一个不安的人。 —-

With her tail in the air she walks about the rooms, looking suspiciously at people and mewing plaintively.
她高高地抬起尾巴，在房间里走来走去，怀疑地看着人们，用可怜的声音喵喵叫着。

“Children, it’s past nine,” cries mamma, “it’s bedtime.”
“孩子们，九点过了，”妈妈喊道，“该睡觉了。”

Vanya and Nina go to bed, shed tears, and spend a long time thinking about the injured cat, and the cruel, insolent, and unpunished Nero.
凡亚和妮娜去睡觉了，他们流泪，花了很长时间想着那只受伤的猫，还有那只残忍、傲慢而不受惩罚的尼禄。

A DAY IN THE COUNTRY BETWEEN eight and nine o’clock in the morning.
在乡间的一天早晨八点到九点之间。

A dark leaden-coloured mass is creeping over the sky towards the sun. —-
一团深灰色的云块正在天空中向太阳逼近。 —-

Red zigzags of lightning gleam here and there across it. There is a sound of far-away rumbling. —-
红色的闪电在其中的某处闪耀着。有远处的隆隆声。 —-

A warm wind frolics over the grass, bends the trees, and stirs up the dust. —-
一股暖风在草地上嬉戏，弯曲了树木，扬起了尘土。 —-

In a minute there will be a spurt of May rain and a real storm will begin.
再过一分钟就会有五月的雨水喷涌而下，一场真正的暴风雨将会开始。

Fyokla, a little beggar-girl of six, is running through the village, looking for Terenty the cobbler. —-
福克拉，一个六岁的小要饭女孩，正穿过村庄，寻找鞋匠特伦蒂。 —-

The white-haired, barefoot child is pale. —-
这个白发苍苍、赤脚的孩子脸色苍白。 —-

Her eyes are wide-open, her lips are trembling.
她瞪大着眼睛，嘴唇颤抖着。

“Uncle, where is Terenty?” she asks every one she meets. No one answers. —-
“叔叔，特伦蒂在哪里？”她问每个人都没人回答。 —-

They are all preoccupied with the approaching storm and take refuge in their huts. —-
他们都忙着闪过来的暴风雨，躲进了自己的小屋。 —-

At last she meets Silanty Silitch, the sacristan, Terenty’s bosom friend. —-
最后她遇见了Silanty Silitch，是Terenty的密友，教堂看守。 —-

He is coming along, staggering from the wind.
他摇摇晃晃地走过来，被风吹得东倒西歪。

“Uncle, where is Terenty?”
“叔叔，Terenty在哪里？”

“At the kitchen-gardens,” answers Silanty.
“在菜园里，”Silanty回答。

The beggar-girl runs behind the huts to the kitchen-gardens and there finds Terenty; —-
乞丐女孩跑到小屋后面的菜园里找到了Terenty； —-

the tall old man with a thin, pock-marked face, very long legs, and bare feet, dressed in a woman’s tattered jacket, is standing near the vegetable plots, looking with drowsy, drunken eyes at the dark storm-cloud. —-
那位高个子老人长着一个瘦削、布满痘疮的脸，腿很长，光着脚，穿着一个妇女的破旧外套，站在菜地旁边，迷糊、醉醺醺地看着乌云密布的暴风云。 —-

On his long crane-like legs he sways in the wind like a starling-cote.
他那犀利的长腿在风中摇摆，就像一只松鸟窝。

“Uncle Terenty!” the white-headed beggar-girl addresses him. “Uncle, darling!”
“Terenty叔叔！”白发的乞丐女孩称呼他。“叔叔，亲爱的！”

Terenty bends down to Fyokla, and his grim, drunken face is overspread with a smile, such as come into people’s faces when they look at something little, foolish, and absurd, but warmly loved.
Terenty弯下腰来看着Fyokla，他那酒醉的脸上露出一种微笑，这种笑容通常出现在人们看到一些小小、愚蠢而又深爱着的东西时。

“Ah! servant of God, Fyokia,” he says, lisping tenderly, “where have you come from?”
“啊！上帝的仆人，Fyokla，”他温柔地说着，“你是从哪里来的？”

“Uncle Terenty,” says Fyokia, with a sob, tugging at the lapel of the cobbler’s coat. —-
“Terenty叔叔，”Fyokla哭着扯着裁缝外套的翻领。 —-

“Brother Danilka has had an accident! Come along!”
“弟弟丹尼尔卡出事了！快过来！”

“What sort of accident? Ough, what thunder! Holy, holy, holy. . . . What sort of accident?”
“什么事故？哦，雷声！圣洁，圣洁，圣洁……出了什么事故？”

“In the count’s copse Danilka stuck his hand into a hole in a tree, and he can’t get it out. —-
“在庄园里，丹尼尔卡把手插进树洞里，现在拔不出来了。” —-

Come along, uncle, do be kind and pull his hand out!”
“叔叔，请你好心过来帮忙把他的手拔出来！”

“How was it he put his hand in? What for?”
“他是怎么把手伸进去的？他为什么要这么做？”

“He wanted to get a cuckoo’s egg out of the hole for me.”
“他想为我从洞里取出一个布谷鸟蛋。”

“The day has hardly begun and already you are in trouble. . . . —-
“天才刚刚开始，你就遇到麻烦了……” —-

” Terenty shook his head and spat deliberately. “Well, what am I to do with you now? —-
特伦蒂摇了摇头，故意地吐了口唾沫。“那么我现在该怎么办呢？ —-

I must come . . . I must, may the wolf gobble you up, you naughty children! —-
“我得来……我必须来，恶狼要吃掉你们这些淘气的孩子！” —-

Come, little orphan!”
“来吧，小孤儿！”

Terenty comes out of the kitchen-garden and, lifting high his long legs, begins striding down the village street. —-
特伦蒂走出菜园，高高抬起长腿，在村子的街道上大步向前走去。 —-

He walks quickly without stopping or looking from side to side, as though he were shoved from behind or afraid of pursuit. —-
他快速行走，不停留，也不向两边看，仿佛被人从后面推着或害怕被追赶。 —-

Fyokla can hardly keep up with him.
菲奥克拉几乎赶不上他。

They come out of the village and turn along the dusty road towards the count’s copse that lies dark blue in the distance. —-
他们走出村子，沿着尘土飞扬的路向远处的庄园林地转去。 —-

It is about a mile and a half away. The clouds have by now covered the sun, and soon afterwards there is not a speck of blue left in the sky. It grows dark.
距离大约一英里和半。乌云已经遮住了太阳，不久之后天空不再有一丝蓝色。变得黑暗起来。

“Holy, holy, holy . . .” whispers Fyokla, hurrying after Terenty. —-
“圣哉，圣哉，圣哉……” 菲奥克拉低声说着，急忙跟在特伦蒂后面。 —-

The first rain-drops, big and heavy, lie, dark dots on the dusty road. —-
第一滴雨水，大而沉重，像黑色的点落在尘土飞扬的路上。 —-

A big drop falls on Fyokla’s cheek and glides like a tear down her chin.
一滴大雨水滴在菲奥克拉的脸颊上，沿着她的下巴滑下，像一滴眼泪。

“The rain has begun,” mutters the cobbler, kicking up the dust with his bare, bony feet. —-
“雨开始了。”鞋匠嘟哝着，用他那赤裸瘦骨嶙峋的双脚踢起了尘土。 —-

“That’s fine, Fyokla, old girl. The grass and the trees are fed by the rain, as we are by bread. And as for the thunder, don’t you be frightened, little orphan. —-
“没关系啦，费奥克拉，老姑娘。草木靠雨水生长，我们靠面包养活。至于雷声，小孤儿别害怕。” —-

Why should it kill a little thing like you?”
“它为什么要杀死像你这样的小家伙呢？”

As soon as the rain begins, the wind drops. —-
雨一开始，风就停了。 —-

The only sound is the patter of rain dropping like fine shot on the young rye and the parched road.
只有雨点像细小的炮弹一样敲打在嫩麦和干裂的道路上，发出声响。

“We shall get soaked, Fyolka,” mutters Terenty. “There won’t be a dry spot left on us. . . —-
“费约尔卡，我们会被淋湿的，”特伦提嘀咕着。“我们身上就不会剩下一块干的地方了……” —-

. Ho-ho, my girl! It’s run down my neck! But don’t be frightened, silly. . . . —-
“嘿嘿，我的姑娘！它流进了我的脖子里！但别害怕，傻瓜……” —-

The grass will be dry again, the earth will be dry again, and we shall be dry again. —-
草地会再次变干，土地会再次变干，我们也会再次变干。 —-

There is the same sun for us all.”
太阳对我们所有人都是一样的。”

A flash of lightning, some fourteen feet long, gleams above their heads. —-
一道闪电，长约十四英尺，闪耀在他们的头顶上。 —-

There is a loud peal of thunder, and it seems to Fyokla that something big, heavy, and round is rolling over the sky and tearing it open, exactly over her head.
随之而来的是一声巨响，费奥克拉觉得有一件大而沉重的东西在天空中滚动，正好在她的头顶上撕开它。

“Holy, holy, holy . . .” says Terenty, crossing himself. —-
“圣哉、圣哉、圣哉……”特伦提做了个十字。 —-

“Don’t be afraid, little orphan! It is not from spite that it thunders.”
“别害怕，小孤儿！打雷并不是出于恶意。”

Terenty’s and Fyokla’s feet are covered with lumps of heavy, wet clay. —-
特伦提和费奥克拉的脚上覆盖着沉重湿润的泥块。 —-

It is slippery and difficult to walk, but Terenty strides on more and more rapidly. —-
地面湿滑又难以行走，但特伦提步伐越来越快。 —-

The weak little beggar-girl is breathless and ready to drop.
这个虚弱的乞丐女孩喘不过气来，随时都准备倒下。

But at last they go into the count’s copse. —-
最后，他们走进了伯爵的树林。 —-

The washed trees, stirred by a gust of wind, drop a perfect waterfall upon them. —-
被一阵风吹动的树林向他们倾泻下一场完美的瀑布。 —-

Terenty stumbles over stumps and begins to slacken his pace.
特伦蒂绊倒在树桩上，开始放慢脚步。

“Whereabouts is Danilka?” he asks. “Lead me to him.”
“丹尼尔卡在哪里？”他问道。“带我去找他。”

Fyokla leads him into a thicket, and, after going a quarter of a mile, points to Danilka. —-
菲奥克拉带他走进丛林深处，走了四分之一英里后，指着丹尼尔卡。 —-

Her brother, a little fellow of eight, with hair as red as ochre and a pale sickly face, stands leaning against a tree, and, with his head on one side, looking sideways at the sky. —-
丹尼尔卡是个八岁的小家伙，头发红得像黄土，脸色苍白病态，他斜靠在一棵树上，歪着头斜视着天空。 —-

In one hand he holds his shabby old cap, the other is hidden in an old lime tree. —-
他手里拿着旧旧的破帽子，另一只手隐藏在一棵老椴树里。 —-

The boy is gazing at the stormy sky, and apparently not thinking of his trouble. —-
这个男孩凝视着暴风雨的天空，显然并没有思考他的困境。 —-

Hearing footsteps and seeing the cobbler he gives a sickly smile and says:
听到脚步声并看到皮匠，他露出一个虚弱的微笑说道:

“A terrible lot of thunder, Terenty. . . . I’ve never heard so much thunder in all my life.”
“特伦蒂，雷声真可怕……我一辈子都没听过这么多雷声。”

“And where is your hand?”
“你的手在哪里？”

“In the hole. . . . Pull it out, please, Terenty!”
“在洞里，特伦蒂，请把它拉出来！”

The wood had broken at the edge of the hole and jammed Danilka’s hand: —-
木材在洞口处断裂，卡住了丹尼尔卡的手： —-

he could push it farther in, but could not pull it out. —-
他可以把手推得更深，但无法把它拉出来。 —-

Terenty snaps off the broken piece, and the boy’s hand, red and crushed, is released.
特伦蒂折断断裂的木头，男孩红肿受伤的手被释放出来。

“It’s terrible how it’s thundering,” the boy says again, rubbing his hand. —-
“好可怕，打雷了”，男孩再次说道，揉了揉手。 —-

“What makes it thunder, Terenty?”
“什么让它打雷，特伦提？”

“One cloud runs against the other,” answers the cobbler. —-
“是云彼此碰撞所致”，修鞋匠回答。 —-

The party come out of the copse, and walk along the edge of it towards the darkened road. —-
一行人从树丛中走出来，沿着树丛的边缘向黑暗的道路走去。 —-

The thunder gradually abates, and its rumbling is heard far away beyond the village.
雷声渐渐减弱，随后远远地从村子那边传来。

“The ducks flew by here the other day, Terenty,” says Danilka, still rubbing his hand. —-
“大雁前几天飞过这里，特伦提”，丹尼尔卡说着，还在揉手。 —-

“They must be nesting in the Gniliya Zaimishtcha marshes. . . . —-
“他们可能在格尼利亚·扎伊米什奇亚沼泽里筑巢……” —-

Fyolka, would you like me to show you a nightingale’s nest?”
“菲奥尔卡，你想让我带你去看夜莺的巢吗？”

“Don’t touch it, you might disturb them,” says Terenty, wringing the water out of his cap. —-
“别摸它，可能会惊扰它们”，特伦提说着，从帽子上拧出水。 —-

“The nightingale is a singing-bird, without sin. —-
“夜莺是一种唱歌的鸟，没有罪过。 —-

He has had a voice given him in his throat, to praise God and gladden the heart of man. —-
“他喉中有一只声音，是为了赞美上帝，让人们心情愉快。 —-

It’s a sin to disturb him.”
“打扰他是一种罪过。”

“What about the sparrow?”
“那麻雀呢？”

“The sparrow doesn’t matter, he’s a bad, spiteful bird. He is like a pickpocket in his ways. —-
“麻雀不重要，它是一种邪恶、恶意的鸟。它的行为像一个扒手。 —-

He doesn’t like man to be happy. When Christ was crucified it was the sparrow brought nails to the Jews, and called ‘alive! alive!’”
“它不喜欢人们快乐。当基督被钉在十字架上时，正是麻雀给犹太人拿来了钉子，并大声喊着‘活的！活的！’”。

A bright patch of blue appears in the sky.
天空中出现了一块明亮的蓝色斑点。

“Look!” says Terenty. “An ant-heap burst open by the rain! They’ve been flooded, the rogues!”
“看!”特伦蒂说道, “雨把蚁窝冲塌了！它们都被淹了，这些小家伙们！”

They bend over the ant-heap. The downpour has damaged it; —-
他们弯下身子看蚁窝，暴雨已经把它弄坏了； —-

the insects are scurrying to and fro in the mud, agitated, and busily trying to carry away their drowned companions.
昆虫们在泥浆中来回跑动，不安地忙着搬运那些溺水的同伴。

“You needn’t be in such a taking, you won’t die of it!” says Terenty, grinning. —-
“你们没必要这么慌张，不会因此而死！”特伦蒂咧嘴一笑。 —-

“As soon as the sun warms you, you’ll come to your senses again. . . . —-
“只要太阳把你们暖和了，你们就会恢复神智…… —-

It’s a lesson to you, you stupids. You won’t settle on low ground another time.”
这对你们来说是个教训，你们这些愚蠢的东西。下次你们就别落户在低地了。”

They go on.
他们继续前行。

“And here are some bees,” cries Danilka, pointing to the branch of a young oak tree.
“这里还有一些蜜蜂!”丹尼尔卡喊道，指着一棵年轻橡树的枝条。

The drenched and chilled bees are huddled together on the branch. —-
被淋湿和寒冷的蜜蜂挤在一起，停在枝条上。 —-

There are so many of them that neither bark nor leaf can be seen. Many of them are settled on one another.
有这么多蜜蜂，树皮和叶子都被遮住了。有许多蜜蜂都停在彼此身上。

“That’s a swarm of bees,” Terenty informs them. —-
“那是一群蜜蜂，”特伦蒂告诉他们。 —-

“They were flying looking for a home, and when the rain came down upon them they settled. —-
“它们正在飞行寻找家园，当雨下起来它们就停下来了。 —-

If a swarm is flying, you need only sprinkle water on them to make them settle. —-
如果一群蜜蜂正在飞行，只需往它们身上洒水，它们就会停下来。 —-

Now if, say, you wanted to take the swarm, you would bend the branch with them into a sack and shake it, and they all fall in.”
现在假如说你想捉住这群蜜蜂，你会把它们连同枝条一起弯曲进一个袋子里摇晃，它们就会全部掉进去。”

Little Fyokla suddenly frowns and rubs her neck vigorously. —-
小费奥克拉突然皱起眉头，猛烈地揉自己的脖子。 —-

Her brother looks at her neck, and sees a big swelling on it.
她的哥哥看着她的脖子，看到了一个大肿块。

“Hey-hey!” laughs the cobbler. “Do you know where you got that from, Fyokia, old girl? —-
“嘿嘿！”皮匠笑了起来。“费奥基娅，老姑娘，你知道那是从哪里来的吗？ —-

There are Spanish flies on some tree in the wood. —-
森林里有一棵树上有西班牙苍蝇。 —-

The rain has trickled off them, and a drop has fallen on your neck —that’s what has made the swelling.”
雨水从它们身上滴下来，一滴滴落在你的脖子上——这就是造成肿块的原因。”

The sun appears from behind the clouds and floods the wood, the fields, and the three friends with its warm light. —-
太阳从云朵后面露出来，用它的温暖光照亮着森林、田野和三个朋友。 —-

The dark menacing cloud has gone far away and taken the storm with it. —-
那片黑暗威胁的云朵已经远去，带走了暴风雨。 —-

The air is warm and fragrant. There is a scent of bird-cherry, meadowsweet, and lilies-of-the-valley.
空气温暖而芬芳。有着鸟樱桃、美丽的蜜莲和麝香百合的香气。

“That herb is given when your nose bleeds,” says Terenty, pointing to a woolly-looking flower. —-
“当你流鼻血时，这种草是有用的。”特伦蒂指着一朵毛茸茸的花说道。 —-

“It does good.”
“它有益处。”

They hear a whistle and a rumble, but not such a rumble as the storm- clouds carried away. —-
他们听到一声哨响和一阵轰鸣，但不像暴风云带走的那种轰鸣声。 —-

A goods train races by before the eyes of Terenty, Danilka, and Fyokla. —-
一列货车在特伦蒂、达尼尔卡和费奥克拉的眼前飞驰而过。 —-

The engine, panting and puffing out black smoke, drags more than twenty vans after it. —-
机车喘着气，喷出黑烟，拖着超过二十节货车。 —-

Its power is tremendous. The children are interested to know how an engine, not alive and without the help of horses, can move and drag such weights, and Terenty undertakes to explain it to them:
它的动力十分强大。孩子们对于一辆机车如何在没有活动力和马匹帮助下移动和拖动这么大的重量感到很好奇，特伦蒂答应给他们解释一下：

“It’s all the steam’s doing, children. . . . The steam does the work. . . . —-
“这一切都是蒸汽的功劳，孩子们……蒸汽才是工作的来源……。 —-

You see, it shoves under that thing near the wheels, and it . . —-
你看，它被推到靠近车轮的东西下面，然后… —-

. you see . . . it works. . . .”
你看…它起作用…

They cross the railway line, and, going down from the embankment, walk towards the river. —-
他们穿过铁路线，从堤坝下来，朝着河流走去。 —-

They walk not with any object, but just at random, and talk all the way. . . —-
他们并没有特定目的地随意散步，一路上聊天… —-

. Danilka asks questions, Terenty answers them. . . .
丹尼尔卡问问题，特伦蒂回答…

Terenty answers all his questions, and there is no secret in Nature which baffles him. —-
特伦蒂回答他的所有问题，自然界中没有困扰他的秘密。 —-

He knows everything. Thus, for example, he knows the names of all the wild flowers, animals, and stones. —-
他什么都知道，比如他知道野花、动物和石头的名字。 —-

He knows what herbs cure diseases, he has no difficulty in telling the age of a horse or a cow. —-
他知道什么草药可以治疗疾病，他可以轻松地判断马或牛的年龄。 —-

Looking at the sunset, at the moon, or the birds, he can tell what sort of weather it will be next day. —-
看着日落、月亮或鸟儿，他可以预测明天的天气。 —-

And indeed, it is not only Terenty who is so wise. —-
实际上，不仅特伦蒂这样聪明。 —-

Silanty Silitch, the innkeeper, the market-gardener, the shepherd, and all the villagers, generally speaking, know as much as he does. —-
席兰蒂·西利奇，旅店老板，种植园主，牧羊人，村民们普遍掌握与他一样的知识。 —-

These people have learned not from books, but in the fields, in the wood, on the river bank. —-
这些人的学问不来自书本，而是来自田野、森林和河岸。 —-

Their teachers have been the birds themselves, when they sang to them, the sun when it left a glow of crimson behind it at setting, the very trees, and wild herbs.
他们的老师是鸟儿，当它们给他们唱歌时；是太阳，当它在夕阳中留下一抹深红时；是树木和野草。

Danilka looks at Terenty and greedily drinks in every word. —-
丹尼尔卡看着特伦蒂，贪婪地聆听每个字。 —-

In spring, before one is weary of the warmth and the monotonous green of the fields, when everything is fresh and full of fragrance, who would not want to hear about the golden may-beetles, about the cranes, about the gurgling streams, and the corn mounting into ear?
在春天，在人们对暖和和绿色田野的单调感到厌倦之前，当一切都新鲜且充满芬芳时，有谁不想听听金色五月甲虫、鹤、流水淙淙，以及谷物穗子一路上的故事呢？

The two of them, the cobbler and the orphan, walk about the fields, talk unceasingly, and are not weary. —-
两人，鞋匠和孤儿，在田间走动，毫不疲倦地交谈着。 —-

They could wander about the world endlessly. —-
他们可以在世界上漫游无休。 —-

They walk, and in their talk of the beauty of the earth do not notice the frail little beggar-girl tripping after them. —-
他们步行，他们谈论地球的美丽，没有注意到紧随其后的虚弱的乞丐女孩。 —-

She is breathless and moves with a lagging step. There are tears in her eyes; —-
她上气不接下气，走得很慢。她的眼里有泪水。 —-

she would be glad to stop these inexhaustible wanderers, but to whom and where can she go? —-
她很想阻止这些不知疲倦的漫游者，但她能去见谁，去哪里呢？ —-

She has no home or people of her own; whether she likes it or not, she must walk and listen to their talk.
她没有家人或亲人，不管她喜不喜欢，她都必须走路听着他们的谈话。

Towards midday, all three sit down on the river bank. —-
到了中午，三个人都坐在河边。 —-

Danilka takes out of his bag a piece of bread, soaked and reduced to a mash, and they begin to eat. —-
丹尼尔卡从包里拿出一块泡得烂糊状的面包，他们开始吃。 —-

Terenty says a prayer when he has eaten the bread, then stretches himself on the sandy bank and falls asleep. —-
当他把面包吃完后，特伦蒂祷告完毕，然后躺在沙滩上睡着了。 —-

While he is asleep, the boy gazes at the water, pondering. —-
当他睡着时，男孩凝视着水面，思索着。 —-

He has many different things to think of. —-
他有很多不同的事情要考虑。 —-

He has just seen the storm, the bees, the ants, the train. —-
他刚刚看到了风暴、蜜蜂、蚂蚁和火车。 —-

Now, before his eyes, fishes are whisking about. —-
现在，在他眼前，鱼儿在迅速游动。 —-

Some are two inches long and more, others are no bigger than one’s nail. —-
有些鱼长达两英寸还多，有些不到指甲那么大。 —-

A viper, with its head held high, is swimming from one bank to the other.
一条蝮蛇高高抬起头，在两岸来回游动。

Only towards the evening our wanderers return to the village. —-
直到傍晚，我们的漫游者才回到村子里。 —-

The children go for the night to a deserted barn, where the corn of the commune used to be kept, while Terenty, leaving them, goes to the tavern. —-
孩子们晚上去了一个荒废的谷仓，那里曾经存放着公社的玉米，而泰伦特则留下去了酒馆。 —-

The children lie huddled together on the straw, dozing.
孩子们蜷缩在稻草上，打瞌睡。

The boy does not sleep. He gazes into the darkness, and it seems to him that he is seeing all that he has seen in the day: —-
男孩没能入睡。他凝视着黑暗，感觉自己看到了白天所见的一切：暴风云、明媚的阳光、鸟儿、鱼儿，还有那高大瘦削的泰伦特。 —-

the storm-clouds, the bright sunshine, the birds, the fish, lanky Terenty. —-
他所受的印象太多了，再加上疲惫和饥饿，让他难以入眠； —-

The number of his impressions, together with exhaustion and hunger, are too much for him; —-
他感到像着了火一样的燥热，左右翻来覆去。 —-

he is as hot as though he were on fire, and tosses from, side to side. —-
他渴望有人能听他在黑暗中心里所思所想，但却没有人可以倾诉。 —-

He longs to tell someone all that is haunting him now in the darkness and agitating his soul, but there is no one to tell. —-
弗约克拉太小，无法理解。 —-

Fyokla is too little and could not understand.
“明天我会告诉泰伦特的。”男孩想。

“I’ll tell Terenty to-morrow,” thinks the boy.
孩子们睡着了，梦到了无家可归的鞋匠，而深夜里，泰伦特走到他们身边，给他们做了个十字架的手势，还往他们头下放了块面包。

The children fall asleep thinking of the homeless cobbler, and, in the night, Terenty comes to them, makes the sign of the cross over them, and puts bread under their heads. —-
无人看见他的爱。只有在天空中飘浮着的月亮是见证，它透过荒废的谷仓的墙上的漏洞亲切地窥视着。 —-

And no one sees his love. It is seen only by the moon which floats in the sky and peeps caressingly through the holes in the wall of the deserted barn.
男孩 “沃洛迪亚来了！”有人在院子里喊道。

BOYS “VOLODYA’S come!” someone shouted in the yard.
“主人沃洛迪亚来了！”厨子娜塔利娅大叫着跑进餐厅。

“Master Volodya’s here!” bawled Natalya the cook, running into the dining-room. —-
“哦，天哪！” —-

“Oh, my goodness!”
整个科罗洛夫家族都冲向窗户，他们期待着沃洛迪亚的到来。

The whole Korolyov family, who had been expecting their Volodya from hour to hour, rushed to the windows. —-
PO: dissection —-

At the front door stood a wide sledge, with three white horses in a cloud of steam. —-
门前停着一辆宽敞的雪橇，身后三匹白马正冒着一团蒸汽。 —-

The sledge was empty, for Volodya was already in the hall, untying his hood with red and chilly fingers. —-
大雪橇是空的，因为沃洛迪亚已经在大厅里解开他红红的、冰凉的手指戴着的兜帽。 —-

His school overcoat, his cap, his snowboots, and the hair on his temples were all white with frost, and his whole figure from head to foot diffused such a pleasant, fresh smell of the snow that the very sight of him made one want to shiver and say “brrr!”
他的学校外套，帽子，雪靴和太阳穴的头发都被霜雪覆盖，他从头到脚都散发出雪的清新芬芳的气味，看到他就让人忍不住打寒战，说一声“嗯！”

His mother and aunt ran to kiss and hug him. —-
他的妈妈和姑姑跑过去亲吻和拥抱他。 —-

Natalya plumped down at his feet and began pulling off his snowboots, his sisters shrieked with delight, the doors creaked and banged, and Volodya’s father, in his waistcoat and shirt-sleeves, ran out into the hall with scissors in his hand, and cried out in alarm:
娜塔莉娅砰的一声坐在他脚边，开始脱他的雪靴，他的姐姐们高兴地尖叫着，门吱吱呀呀地响了起来，沃洛迪亚的父亲穿着背心和衬衣袖子，手里拿着剪刀，惊慌失措地跑进大厅，大叫道：

“We were expecting you all yesterday? Did you come all right? Had a good journey? Mercy on us! —-
“昨天我们都在等你吗？你安全到了吗？一路顺风？天啊！ —-

you might let him say ‘how do you do’ to his father! —-
让他给他爸爸打个招呼嘛！ —-

I am his father after all!”
毕竟我是他爸爸！”

“Bow-wow!” barked the huge black dog, Milord, in a deep bass, tapping with his tail on the walls and furniture.
“汪汪！”黑色巨大的狗米洛德发出低音的吠声，在墙壁和家具上用尾巴敲打着。

For two minutes there was nothing but a general hubbub of joy. —-
两分钟里只有欢乐的喧闹声。 —-

After the first outburst of delight was over the Korolyovs noticed that there was, besides their Volodya, another small person in the hall, wrapped up in scarves and shawls and white with frost. —-
在第一次喜悦的爆发结束后，科罗利约夫注意到大厅里除了他们的沃洛迪亚，还有一个裹着围巾和披肩、霜雪覆盖的小人物。 —-

He was standing perfectly still in a corner, in the shadow of a big fox-lined overcoat.
他站在一个角落里一动不动，在一件大狐狸皮衣服的阴影中。

“Volodya darling, who is it?” asked his mother, in a whisper.
“沃洛迪亚亲爱的，这是谁？”他的妈妈小声问。

“Oh!” cried Volodya. “This is—let me introduce my friend Lentilov, a schoolfellow in the second class. —-
“哦！”沃洛迪亚叫道。“这是——让我介绍一下我的朋友莱恩季洛夫，一个二年级的同学。 —-

. . . I have brought him to stay with us.”
……我带他来我们家住。”

“Delighted to hear it! You are very welcome,” the father said cordially. —-
“非常高兴听到这个！欢迎你，”父亲热情地说道。 —-

“Excuse me, I’ve been at work without my coat. . . . Please come in! —-
“对不起，我在工作时没有带上外套……请进！” —-

Natalya, help Mr. Lentilov off with his things. —-
“纳塔利娅，帮助Lentilov先生脱掉他的东西。” —-

Mercy on us, do turn that dog out! He is unendurable!”
“天哪，把那只狗赶出去！它真是让人无法忍受！”

A few minutes later, Volodya and his friend Lentilov, somewhat dazed by their noisy welcome, and still red from the outside cold, were sitting down to tea. —-
“几分钟后，Volodya和他的朋友Lentilov，被他们喧闹的欢迎略感迷惑，还略带寒冷的脸庞坐下来品茶。” —-

The winter sun, making its way through the snow and the frozen tracery on the window-panes, gleamed on the samovar, and plunged its pure rays in the tea-basin. —-
“冬日的阳光穿过窗玻璃上的雪和冻结的纹饰，在茶壶上闪耀，把它纯净的光芒投入茶杯里。” —-

The room was warm, and the boys felt as though the warmth and the frost were struggling together with a tingling sensation in their bodies.
“房间里很暖和，男孩们感觉到温暖和寒冷在他们的身体里搏斗着，引起一种刺痛的感觉。”

“Well, Christmas will soon be here,” the father said in a pleasant sing- song voice, rolling a cigarette of dark reddish tobacco. —-
“嗯，圣诞节很快就到了，”父亲用悦耳的歌声说道，他正在卷一支深红色的烟卷。 —-

“It doesn’t seem long since the summer, when mamma was crying at your going . . . —-
“好像不久之前，当妈妈因为你的离去而哭泣……现在你又回来了……时间飞逝，我的孩子。” —-

and here you are back again. . . . Time flies, my boy. —-
“在你来得及喊出来之前，年老已经降临在你身上。” —-

Before you have time to cry out, old age is upon you. —-
“Lentilov先生，请多吃点，自己来吧！我们不拘礼节！” —-

Mr. Lentilov, take some more, please help yourself! —-
“Volodya的三个妹妹，卡特亚，索尼娅和玛莎（最大的11岁），坐在桌子旁，从未把眼睛离开新来的人。” —-

We don’t stand on ceremony!”
“Lentilov和Volodya身高和年纪相同，但他的脸不像Volodya那样圆润，皮肤也不那么白。

Volodya’s three sisters, Katya, Sonya, and Masha (the eldest was eleven), sat at the table and never took their eyes off the newcomer.
“他瘦瘦的，眼睛小小的，唇厚厚的，头发像刷子一样竖着，脸上有雀斑。”

Lentilov was of the same height and age as Volodya, but not as round- faced and fair-skinned. —-
“请欣赏一下最佳湖景。”福佳想起新婚早蜜月那些建筑奇迹般的世界，“这让我愉快。” —-

He was thin, dark, and freckled; his hair stood up like a brush, his eyes were small, and his lips were thick. —-
“Lentilov惊讶地看着这幅照片，他通常不喜欢这样的景色，但他却对这个地方感到莫名的吸引。” —-

He was, in fact, distinctly ugly, and if he had not been wearing the school uniform, he might have been taken for the son of a cook. —-
他实际上相当丑，如果他没有穿校服的话，可能会被认为是厨师的儿子。 —-

He seemed morose, did not speak, and never once smiled. —-
他似乎郁郁寡欢，不说话，从未笑过一次。 —-

The little girls, staring at him, immediately came to the conclusion that he must be a very clever and learned person. —-
那些小女孩盯着他看，并立刻得出结论，他一定是个非常聪明和博学的人。 —-

He seemed to be thinking about something all the time, and was so absorbed in his own thoughts, that, whenever he was spoken to, he started, threw his head back, and asked to have the question repeated.
他似乎一直在思考着什么，对自己的思绪如此专注，以至于每当有人跟他说话时，他都会惊起，抬头问人家再说一遍。

The little girls noticed that Volodya, who had always been so merry and talkative, also said very little, did not smile at all, and hardly seemed to be glad to be home. —-
小女孩们注意到，原本总是快乐而健谈的沃洛迪亚也变得说得很少，一点也不微笑，几乎不似乎高兴回家了。 —-

All the time they were at tea he only once addressed his sisters, and then he said something so strange. —-
他们喝茶的时候，他只有一次和妹妹们说话，那时他说了一些很奇怪的话。 —-

He pointed to the samovar and said:
他指着茶壶说：

“In California they don’t drink tea, but gin.”
“在加利福尼亚，他们不喝茶，而是喝杜松子酒。”

He, too, seemed absorbed in his own thoughts, and, to judge by the looks that passed between him and his friend Lentilov, their thoughts were the same.
他也似乎陷入了自己的思考中，根据他和朋友伦提洛夫之间的目光来判断，他们的思想是一样的。

After tea, they all went into the nursery. —-
茶后，他们都走进了儿童房。 —-

The girls and their father took up the work that had been interrupted by the arrival of the boys. —-
女孩们和父亲接着刚才被男孩们打断的工作。 —-

They were making flowers and frills for the Christmas tree out of paper of different colours. —-
他们用不同颜色的纸制作圣诞树上的花和饰边。 —-

It was an attractive and noisy occupation. —-
这是一个吸引人且嘈杂的活动。 —-

Every fresh flower was greeted by the little girls with shrieks of delight, even of awe, as though the flower had dropped straight from heaven; —-
每一朵新花都会引起女孩们的欢叫，甚至是敬畏的声音，仿佛这朵花直接从天堂掉下来一样； —-

their father was in ecstasies too, and every now and then he threw the scissors on the floor, in vexation at their bluntness. —-
他们的父亲也非常兴奋，不时地因剪刀变钝而把它们扔在地板上。 —-

Their mother kept running into the nursery with an anxious face, asking:
她们的母亲带着焦急的表情一直跑进儿童房，问道：“谁拿走了我的剪刀？伊万·尼古拉伊奇，你又拿走我的剪刀了吗？”

“Who has taken my scissors? Ivan Nikolaitch, have you taken my scissors again?”
“天哪！连一把剪刀也不许我拥有！”他们的父亲用哭丧的声音回答道，然后仰靠在椅子上，假装自己是个深受伤害的人。

“Mercy on us! I’m not even allowed a pair of scissors! —-
但一分钟后，他又欢天喜地起来。 —-

” their father would respond in a lachrymose voice, and, flinging himself back in his chair, he would pretend to be a deeply injured man; —-
在以前的假期里，弗拉迪米尔也参与过圣诞树的准备，或者在院子里跑去看看看门人和牧羊人正在筑起的雪山。 —-

but a minute later, he would be in ecstasies again.
但这一次，弗拉迪米尔和伦提洛夫对彩纸毫不关心，一次也没有进过马厩。

On his former holidays Volodya, too, had taken part in the preparations for the Christmas tree, or had been running in the yard to look at the snow mountain that the watchman and the shepherd were building. —-
他们坐在窗前低声交谈起来； —-

But this time Volodya and Lentilov took no notice whatever of the coloured paper, and did not once go into the stable. —-
然后他们打开一本地图册仔细看着一张地图。 —-

They sat in the window and began whispering to one another; —-
“首先是彼尔姆……”伦提洛夫小声说道，“然后去秋明，然后是托木斯克……” —-

then they opened an atlas and looked carefully at a map.
“然后……然后……堪察加。在那里萨摩耶人会一只一只地带我们通过白令海峡……”

“First to Perm . . .” Lentilov said, in an undertone, “from there to Tiumen, then Tomsk . . . —-
“然后……我们就在美国了……那里有很多毛皮动物……” —-

then . . . then . . . Kamchatka. There the Samoyedes take one over Behring’s Straits in boats . . —-
“还有加利福尼亚吗？”弗拉迪米尔问道。 —-

. . And then we are in America. . . . There are lots of furry animals there. . . .”
“加利福尼亚在更低的地方……我们只要到达美国，加利福尼亚就不远了……我们还可以靠打猎和抢劫谋生……”

“And California?” asked Volodya.
“And California?”问弗拉迪米尔。

“California is lower down. . . . We’ve only to get to America and California is not far off. —-
“加利福尼亚在下面……我们只要到达美国，加利福尼亚就不远了……我们还可以靠打猎和抢劫谋生……” —-

. . . And one can get a living by hunting and plunder.”
“…然后我们就在美国了……那里有很多毛皮动物……”

All day long Lentilov avoided the little girls, and seemed to look at them with suspicion. —-
整天以来， Lentilov 都避开了那些小女孩，似乎对她们表示怀疑。 —-

In the evening he happened to be left alone with them for five minutes or so. —-
晚上他碰巧和她们独处了5分钟左右。 —-

It was awkward to be silent.
沉默了真尴尬。

He cleared his throat morosely, rubbed his left hand against his right, looked sullenly at Katya and asked:
他不高兴地清了一下嗓子，用左手擦右手，在凯特娅面前忧郁地看了一眼，问道：

“Have you read Mayne Reid?”
“你读过梅恩·里德的书吗？”

“No, I haven’t. . . . I say, can you skate?”
“没有。。。我说，你会滑冰吗？”

Absorbed in his own reflections, Lentilov made no reply to this question; —-
Lentilov沉浸在自己的思考中，对这个问题没有回答； —-

he simply puffed out his cheeks, and gave a long sigh as though he were very hot. —-
他只是鼓起腮帮子，发出一声长叹，好像很热一样。 —-

He looked up at Katya once more and said:
他再次抬头看了一眼凯特娅，说道：

“When a herd of bisons stampedes across the prairie the earth trembles, and the frightened mustangs kick and neigh.”
“当一群野牛狂奔穿过大草原时，大地会颤抖，受惊的野马会踢腾嘶鸣。”

He smiled impressively and added:
他显得自信满满地笑了笑，补充道：

“And the Indians attack the trains, too. But worst of all are the mosquitoes and the termites.”
“而且印第安人也会袭击火车。但最糟糕的是蚊子和白蚁。”

“Why, what’s that?”
“什么？”

“They’re something like ants, but with wings. They bite fearfully. Do you know who I am?”
“它们有点像蚂蚁，但有翅膀。咬人非常厉害。你知道我是谁吗？”

“Mr. Lentilov.”
“Lentilov先生。”

“No, I am Montehomo, the Hawk’s Claw, Chief of the Ever Victorious.”
“不，我是蒙特霍莫，鹰之爪，永胜之主。”

Masha, the youngest, looked at him, then into the darkness out of window and said, wondering:
最小的玛莎看着他，然后望向窗外的黑暗，想着说：

“And we had lentils for supper yesterday.”
“而昨晚我们晚餐吃的是扁豆。”

Lentilov’s incomprehensible utterances, and the way he was always whispering with Volodya, and the way Volodya seemed now to be always thinking about something instead of playing . —-
伦提洛夫难以理解的话语，以及他总是和弗洛迪亚低声交谈的方式，还有弗洛迪亚似乎总是在想些事情而不是玩耍的样子。 —-

. . all this was strange and mysterious. —-
所有这一切都很奇怪和神秘。 —-

And the two elder girls, Katya and Sonya, began to keep a sharp look-out on the boys. —-
大女儿卡特亚和索尼娅开始密切关注着哥哥们。 —-

At night, when the boys had gone to bed, the girls crept to their bedroom door, and listened to what they were saying. —-
晚上，当男孩们上床睡觉时，姐妹们悄悄地蹑手蹑脚地靠近他们房间的门，听他们在说些什么。 —-

Ah, what they discovered! The boys were planning to run away to America to dig for gold: —-
啊，她们发现了些什么！男孩们正计划逃到美国去挖金子： —-

they had everything ready for the journey, a pistol, two knives, biscuits, a burning glass to serve instead of matches, a compass, and four roubles in cash. —-
他们准备好了一切旅程所需的东西，一把手枪，两把刀，饼干，一个替代火柴的燃烧镜，一个指南针和四卢布现金。 —-

They learned that the boys would have to walk some thousands of miles, and would have to fight tigers and savages on the road: —-
她们了解到男孩们将不得不步行数千英里，在路上将不得不与老虎和野蛮人作战： —-

then they would get gold and ivory, slay their enemies, become pirates, drink gin, and finally marry beautiful maidens, and make a plantation.
然后他们将得到金子和象牙，杀死敌人，成为海盗，喝杜松子酒，最后娶到美丽的少女，建立一个种植园。

The boys interrupted each other in their excitement. —-
男孩们在兴奋中互相打断了对方。 —-

Throughout the conversation, Lentilov called himself “Montehomo, the Hawk’s Claw,” and Volodya was “my pale-face brother!”
在整个对话中，伦提洛夫称自己为“蒙特霍莫，鹰之爪”，而弗洛迪亚则是“我的白脸兄弟！”

“Mind you don’t tell mamma,” said Katya, as they went back to bed. —-
“记住不要告诉妈妈，”卡特亚说着，她们回到了床上。 —-

“Volodya will bring us gold and ivory from America, but if you tell mamma he won’t be allowed to go.”
“弗洛迪亚会从美国给我们带回金子和象牙，但如果你告诉妈妈，他将不被允许去。”

The day before Christmas Eve, Lentilov spent the whole day poring over the map of Asia and making notes, while Volodya, with a languid and swollen face that looked as though it had been stung by a bee, walked about the rooms and ate nothing. —-
圣诞节前一天，伦蒂洛夫整天沉迷于亚洲地图，并做笔记，而弗洛迪亚则满脸懒散肿胀，看起来像被蜜蜂蜇过一样，他在房间里踱来踱去，一口饭也没吃。 —-

And once he stood still before the holy image in the nursery, crossed himself, and said:
有一次，他在儿童房里停下，站在圣像前，交叉着双臂，说道：

“Lord, forgive me a sinner; Lord, have pity on my poor unhappy mamma!”
“主啊，原谅我这个罪人吧；主啊，怜悯我那可怜而不幸的妈妈吧！”

In the evening he burst out crying. On saying good-night he gave his father a long hug, and then hugged his mother and sisters. —-
晚上他突然哭了起来。在晚安的时候，他紧紧地拥抱了爸爸，然后又拥抱了妈妈和姐姐们。 —-

Katya and Sonya knew what was the matter, but little Masha was puzzled, completely puzzled. —-
卡茨亚和索尼亚知道出了什么事，但小玛莎有点困惑，完全搞不懂。 —-

Every time she looked at Lentilov she grew thoughtful and said with a sigh:
每次她看着伦蒂洛夫时，她都变得思考起来，并叹了口气说：

“When Lent comes, nurse says we shall have to eat peas and lentils.”
“护士说，等到四旬齐天时，我们就得吃豌豆和扁豆。”

Early in the morning of Christmas Eve, Katya and Sonya slipped quietly out of bed, and went to find out how the boys meant to run away to America. —-
在圣诞节前一天的清晨，卡茨亚和索尼亚悄悄地从床上爬起来，去看男孩们打算如何逃到美国。 —-

They crept to their door.
他们蹑手蹑脚地走到他们的房门前。

“Then you don’t mean to go?” Lentilov was saying angrily. —-
“那么你不打算走了？”伦蒂洛夫生气地问道。 —-

“Speak out: aren’t you going?”
“说出来：你不打算走了？”

“Oh dear,” Volodya wept softly. “How can I go? I feel so unhappy about mamma.”
“哦，亲爱的，”弗洛迪亚轻声哭泣着。“我怎么能走呢？我对妈妈感到如此不幸。”

“My pale-face brother, I pray you, let us set off. —-
“我苍白的兄弟，请你，让我们出发吧。 —-

You declared you were going, you egged me on, and now the time comes, you funk it!”
你宣布过你要走，你鼓励我，现在时候到了，你软了！”

“I . . . I . . . I’m not funking it, but I . . . I . . . I’m sorry for mamma.”
“我…我…我不是在软弱，但是…但是…我为妈妈感到难过。”

“Say once and for all, are you going or are you not?”
“说清楚，你到底去还是不去？”

“I am going, only . . . wait a little . . . I want to be at home a little.”
“我去，只是…等一下…我想待在家里一会儿。”

“In that case I will go by myself,” Lentilov declared. “I can get on without you. —-
“既然这样，那我一个人去好了。”冷提洛夫宣布道，“我一个人也能行。” —-

And you wanted to hunt tigers and fight! —-
“你还想打猛虎，战斗呢！” —-

Since that’s how it is, give me back my cartridges!”
“既然是这样，把我的子弹还给我！”

At this Volodya cried so bitterly that his sisters could not help crying too. Silence followed.
听到这句话，弗洛迪亚哭得如此伤心，他的姐姐们也情不自禁地跟着哭。接着陷入了沉默。

“So you are not coming?” Lentilov began again.
“那你不来了？”冷提洛夫又开始问。

“I . . . I . . . I am coming!”
“我……我……我来了！”

“Well, put on your things, then.”
“那就穿好衣服。”

And Lentilov tried to cheer Volodya up by singing the praises of America, growling like a tiger, pretending to be a steamer, scolding him, and promising to give him all the ivory and lions’ and tigers’ skins.
冷提洛夫试图通过赞美美国、像虎一样咆哮、假装是一艘轮船、责骂他、并承诺给他所有的象牙、狮子和老虎皮来鼓励弗洛迪亚。

And this thin, dark boy, with his freckles and his bristling shock of hair, impressed the little girls as an extraordinary remarkable person. —-
这个瘦瘦的深色男孩，带着雀斑和凌乱的头发，给小女孩们留下了非凡的印象。 —-

He was a hero, a determined character, who knew no fear, and he growled so ferociously, that, standing at the door, they really might imagine there was a tiger or lion inside. —-
他是一个英雄，一个坚定无畏的人物，他咆哮得如此凶猛，站在门口的人们真以为里面有一只老虎或狮子。 —-

When the little girls went back to their room and dressed, Katya’s eyes were full of tears, and she said:
当小女孩们回到自己的房间换装时，卡夏的眼睛里充满了泪水，她说道：

“Oh, I feel so frightened!”
“哦，我感到害怕！”

Everything was as usual till two o’clock, when they sat down to dinner. —-
直到两点钟吃午饭时，一切还都和往常一样。 —-

Then it appeared that the boys were not in the house. —-
然后发现男孩们不在家里。 —-

They sent to the servants’ quarters, to the stables, to the bailiff’s cottage. —-
他们派人去仆人住处，去马厩，去地产管家的小屋。 —-

They were not to be found. They sent into the village— they were not there.
他们找不到他们。他们去了村子里 - 他们不在那里。

At tea, too, the boys were still absent, and by supper-time Volodya’s mother was dreadfully uneasy, and even shed tears.
到了茶点时间，男孩们仍然不在，到了晚饭时间，沃洛迪亚的母亲极为担心，甚至流泪了。

Late in the evening they sent again to the village, they searched everywhere, and walked along the river bank with lanterns. —-
深夜他们又发出村子里，他们到处搜寻，并带着灯笼沿着河岸走。 —-

Heavens! what a fuss there was!
天哪！出现了多大的骚动啊！

Next day the police officer came, and a paper of some sort was written out in the dining-room. —-
第二天，警察来了，还在餐厅写了张纸。 —-

Their mother cried. . . .
他们的母亲哭了起来。. . .

All of a sudden a sledge stopped at the door, with three white horses in a cloud of steam.
突然间，一辆带着三匹雪白马匹的雪橇停在门前，雾气中。

“Volodya’s come,” someone shouted in the yard.
“沃洛迪亚来了！”院子里有人喊道。

“Master Volodya’s here!” bawled Natalya, running into the dining-room. —-
“主人沃洛迪亚在这！”纳塔利娅跑进餐厅大喊。 —-

And Milord barked his deep bass, “bow-wow.”
米洛德发出了低沉的吠声，“汪汪”。

It seemed that the boys had been stopped in the Arcade, where they had gone from shop to shop asking where they could get gunpowder.
似乎男孩们在拱廊里被截住了，他们从一个商店到另一个商店，问能在哪里买到火药。

Volodya burst into sobs as soon as he came into the hall, and flung himself on his mother’s neck. —-
沃洛迪亚一进门就哭了起来，扑到母亲的脖子上。 —-

The little girls, trembling, wondered with terror what would happen next. —-
小女孩们颤抖着，恐惧地想知道接下来会发生什么。 —-

They saw their father take Volodya and Lentilov into his study, and there he talked to them a long while.
他们看到他们的父亲把沃洛迪亚和伦提洛夫带进了他的书房，然后他与他们谈了很长时间。

“Is this a proper thing to do?” their father said to them. —-
“这是一件合适的事情吗？”他们的父亲对他们说。 —-

“I only pray they won’t hear of it at school, you would both be expelled. —-
“我只希望他们在学校不会听到这件事，你们两个都会被开除的。 —-

You ought to be ashamed, Mr. Lentilov, really. It’s not at all the thing to do! —-
你们应该感到羞耻，伦提洛夫先生，真的。这根本不是应该做的事情！ —-

You began it, and I hope you will be punished by your parents. —-
是你先动手的，我希望你父母会惩罚你。 —-

How could you? Where did you spend the night?”
你怎么能这样做？你在哪里度过了一夜？

“At the station,” Lentilov answered proudly.
“在车站，”伦提洛夫骄傲地回答。

Then Volodya went to bed, and had a compress, steeped in vinegar, on his forehead.
然后沃洛迪亚上床睡觉，额头上敷上了用醋泡的湿敷物。

A telegram was sent off, and next day a lady, Lentilov’s mother, made her appearance and bore off her son.
发送了一封电报，第二天一位女士，伦提洛夫的母亲，出现了并带走了她的儿子。

Lentilov looked morose and haughty to the end, and he did not utter a single word at taking leave of the little girls. —-
伦提洛夫一直看起来愠怒而傲慢，并在与小女孩告别时没有说一句话。 —-

But he took Katya’s book and wrote in it as a souvenir: —-
但他拿走了卡蒂亚的书，并在上面写了一段留念：“蒙特霍莫，鹰爪，永不败北首领。” —-

“Montehomo, the Hawk’s Claw, Chief of the Ever Victorious.”