《能言馬與男孩》 第十章 南來(lái)隱士

CHAPTER TEN THE HERMIT OF THE SOUTHERN MARCH

第十章　南來(lái)隱士

AFTER they had ridden for several hours down the valley, it widened out and they could see what was ahead of them. The river which they had been following here joined a broader river, wide and turbulent, which flowed from their left to their right, towards the east. Beyond this new river a delightful country rose gently in low hills, ridge beyond ridge, to the Northern Mountains themselves. To the right there were rocky pinnacles, one or two of them with snow clinging to the ledges. To the left, pine-clad slopes, frowning cliffs, narrow gorges, and blue peaks stretched away as far as the eye could reach. He could no longer make out Mount Pire. Straight ahead the mountain range sank to a wooded saddle which of course must be the pass from Archenland into Narnia.

他們?cè)谏焦壤矧T行了幾個(gè)小時(shí)之后，山谷變得寬闊了，他們可以看得見(jiàn)前邊的景象了。他們一路沿著走過(guò)來(lái)的那條河，在這里和一條更加寬闊、洶涌的大河匯合在一起。大河從他們的左邊流淌到右邊，一直向東流去。在這條大河的后面，有一個(gè)更加美麗的國(guó)度，山丘逐漸升高，山丘外還有山丘，一直連接到北方的群山。右邊有幾個(gè)塔形的巖石，其中兩三個(gè)頂部的突出部分還積著雪。左邊是密布著松樹(shù)的山坡，峭壁，狹窄的山谷，藍(lán)色的山峰，一直伸展到眼睛可以看到的地方。他們?cè)僖舱J(rèn)不出皮爾峰了。在筆直的正前方，山脈凹了下去，形成一個(gè)樹(shù)木茂密的馬鞍狀，這里一定就是從阿欽蘭進(jìn)入納尼亞的關(guān)卡了。

"Broo-hoo-hoo, the North, the green North !" neighed Bree: and certainly the lower hills looked greener and fresher than anything that Aravis and Shasta, with their southern-bred eyes,had ever imagined. Spirits rose as they clattered down to the water' s-meet of the two rivers.

“布羅——呵呵，北方，綠色的北方。”布里嘶鳴著。阿拉維斯和沙斯塔的眼睛都是在南方長(zhǎng)成的，所以低矮的小山看起來(lái)比他們所能夠想象到的任何東西都要更加翠綠，更加新鮮。當(dāng)他們走到兩條河的交匯處，他們更加精神了。

The eastern-flowing river, which was pouring from the higher mountains at the western end of the range, was far too swift and too broken with rapids for them to think of swimming it;but after some casting about, up and down the bank, they found a place shallow enough to wade. The roar and clatter of water, the great swirl against the horses' fetlocks, the cool, stirring air and the darting dragon-flies, filled Shasta with a strange excitement.

向東奔騰而去的大河是從西邊的高山上傾瀉下來(lái)的，速度太快，太湍急，他們不敢游泳過(guò)去。但是在岸上尋找了半天，終于找到了一個(gè)淺的足夠涉水過(guò)去的地方。嘩啦啦的水聲，沖刷在馬蹄茸毛上的漩渦，清涼的，舞動(dòng)的空氣，飛來(lái)飛去的蜻蜓，都使沙斯塔的心里充滿(mǎn)了興奮之情。

"Friends,we are in Archenland !" said Bree proudly as he splashed and churned his way out on the Northern bank. "I think that river we' ve just crossed is called the Winding Arrow." "I hope we 're in time," murmured Hwin.

“朋友們，我們已經(jīng)到阿欽蘭了。”布里潑著水，搖晃著上岸，驕傲地說(shuō)道，“我想我們剛剛渡過(guò)的河流就叫做旋箭河。”“希望我們及時(shí)趕到了。”赫溫喃喃地說(shuō)道。

Then they began going up, slowly and zigzagging a good deal, for the hills were steep. It was all open park-like country with no roads or houses in sight. Scattered trees, never thick enough to be a forest, were everywhere. Shasta, who had lived all his life in an almost tree-less grassland, had never seen so many or so many kinds. If you had been there you would probably have known (he didn' t) that he was seeing oaks, beeches, silver birches, rowans, and sweet chestnuts. Rabbits scurried away in every direction as they advanced, and presently they saw a whole herd of fallow deer making off among the trees. "Isn't it simply glorious !" said Aravis.

然后他們開(kāi)始攀登，緩慢曲折地，因?yàn)樯蕉己芏盖?。這里是完全開(kāi)放的，公園一樣的鄉(xiāng)野，視線(xiàn)中沒(méi)有任何道路和房子。樹(shù)木到處都是，但沒(méi)有茂密到足夠成為森林。沙斯塔以前都生活在一個(gè)幾乎沒(méi)有樹(shù)木的草原上，從來(lái)都沒(méi)有看到過(guò)這么多的樹(shù)，這么多種類(lèi)的樹(shù)。如果你也在那里，你可能知道( 他可不知道就) 他看到的是橡樹(shù)、山毛棒、白樺、花楸、栗子樹(shù)呢。當(dāng)他們前進(jìn)的時(shí)候，野兔就向四面八方逃走，不久他們就看到一群棕色黇鹿從林木之間逃走了。“這地方真是美極了。”阿拉維斯說(shuō)道。

At the first ridge Shasta turned in the saddle and looked back. There was no sign of Tashbaan;the desert, unbroken except by the narrow green crack which they had travelled down, spread to the horizon.

登上第一個(gè)山脊的時(shí)候，沙斯塔從馬鞍上向后望去，再也沒(méi)有塔什班城的一點(diǎn)痕跡了。茫茫的大沙漠一直綿延到地平線(xiàn)上，唯一隔斷沙漠的，就是剛才他們走過(guò)的那一道狹窄的翠綠的裂痕。

"Hullo !" he said suddenly."What's that !"

“喂，”他突然說(shuō)道，“那是什么!”

"What's what ?" said Bree,turning round.Hwin and Aravis did the same.

“什么?”布里轉(zhuǎn)過(guò)身說(shuō)道。赫溫和阿拉維斯也都轉(zhuǎn)過(guò)身來(lái)。

"That,"said Shasta, pointing..It looks like smoke. Is it a fire ?"

“那里。”沙斯塔指著說(shuō)，“那看起來(lái)好像是煙，著火了嗎?”

"Sand-storm, I should say,"said Bree.

“我覺(jué)得是沙暴。”布里說(shuō)。

"Not much wind to raise it,"said Aravis.

“風(fēng)沒(méi)有大到可以產(chǎn)生沙暴。”阿拉維斯說(shuō)道。

"Oh !"exclaimed Hwin..Look ! There are things flashing in it. Look ! They' re helmets-and armour. And it' s moving: moving this way."

“噢!”赫溫喊道，“看，有些東西在閃光?？矗卿摽?mdash;—盔甲。它們正在移動(dòng)，朝著這個(gè)方向。”

"By Tash !"said Aravis."It' s the army.It' s Rabadash." "Oh course it is," said Hwin."Just what I was afraid of. Quick !We must get to Anvard before it. " And without another word she whisked round and began galloping North.Bree tossed his head and did the same.

“噢，塔什神啊!”阿拉維斯說(shuō)道，“那是軍隊(duì)，屬于羅八達(dá)的。” “當(dāng)然是。”赫溫說(shuō)道，“這正是我擔(dān)心的事情。我們必須在它的前面趕到安瓦德。”赫溫不再說(shuō)話(huà)，轉(zhuǎn)過(guò)身來(lái)，開(kāi)始朝著北邊奔跑。布里晃了晃它的腦袋，也一樣向著北方奔跑起來(lái)。

"Come on, Bree, come on,"yelled Aravis over her shoulder.

“快點(diǎn)，布里，快點(diǎn)。”阿拉維斯回頭喊道。

The race was very gruelling for the Horses. As they topped each ridge they found another valley and another ridge beyond it; and though they knew they were going in more or less the right direction, no one knew how far it was to Anvard. From the top of the second ridge Shasta looked back again. Instead of a dust-cloud well out in the desert he now saw a black, moving mass, rather like ants,on the far bank of the Winding Arrow. They were doubtless looking for a ford.

對(duì)于馬兒們來(lái)說(shuō)，這是一次極為緊張的競(jìng)跑。當(dāng)他們到達(dá)每個(gè)山脊的頂端的時(shí)候，總是會(huì)發(fā)現(xiàn)前面有另一個(gè)山脊。盡管他們知道他們走的方向是正確的，但是沒(méi)有人知道離安瓦德有多遠(yuǎn)。在第二個(gè)山脊上，沙斯塔再次回頭望過(guò)去?，F(xiàn)在看到的不是從沙漠里冒起來(lái)的一陣煙，而是一團(tuán)黑漆漆的東西，看起來(lái)像是螞蟻。正在旋箭河的河岸上移動(dòng)。毫無(wú)疑問(wèn)，他們正在尋找可以涉水過(guò)來(lái)的地方。

"They' re on the river !"he yelled wildly.

“他們到河邊了。”他驚呼道。

"Quick !Quick !"shouted Aravis..We might as well not have come at all if we don' t reach Anvard in time. Gallop, Bree, gallop. Remember you're a warhorse."

“快!快!”阿拉維斯大聲喊道，“如果我們不能及時(shí)地趕到安瓦德，我們就等于從來(lái)沒(méi)有來(lái)過(guò)?？炫?，布里，快跑。記住你是一匹戰(zhàn)馬。”

It was all Shasta could do to prevent himself from shouting out similar instructions;but he thought,.The poor chap' s doing all he can already,"and held his tongue. And certainly both Horses were doing, if not all they could, all they thought they could; which is not quite the same thing. Bree had caught up with Hwin and they thundered side by side over the turf. It didn' t look as if Hwin could possibly keep it up much longer.

沙斯塔能做的，只是阻止他自己喊出類(lèi)似于指示的話(huà)。但是他想：“可憐的家伙們已經(jīng)做了他們能做的一切”。但他沒(méi)有說(shuō)出口。當(dāng)然，這兩匹馬，如果不是筋疲力盡，也都以為自己筋疲力盡了，這兩者可不是同一回事。布里已經(jīng)追上了赫溫，他們并駕齊驅(qū)地穿過(guò)草地?？雌饋?lái)赫溫可能不能堅(jiān)持更久了。

At that moment everyone' s feelings were completely altered by a sound from behind. It was not the sound they had been expecting to hear-the noise of hoofs and jingling armour, mixed, perhaps, with Calormene battle-cries. Yet Shasta knew it at once. It was the same snarling roar he had heard that moonlit night when they first met Aravis and Hwin. Bree knew it too. His eyes gleamed red and his ears lay flat back on his skull. And Bree now discovered that he had not really been going as fast-not quite as fast-as he could. Shasta felt the change at once. Now they were really going all out. In a few seconds they were well ahead of Hwin.

就在這個(gè)關(guān)鍵的時(shí)刻，每個(gè)人都感覺(jué)到后面的聲音改變了。并不是他們意料中會(huì)聽(tīng)到的聲音——馬蹄的嗒嗒聲和盔甲的叮當(dāng)聲，或者還摻雜著卡樂(lè)門(mén)人的吶喊聲。然而，沙斯塔立刻聽(tīng)出來(lái)了。這是他們?cè)谠旅髦沟谝淮斡龅桨⒗S斯和赫溫的時(shí)候，聽(tīng)到的咆哮聲。布里也馬上明白了，他的眼睛發(fā)光，兩個(gè)耳朵靠后貼在它的腦袋上。布里這個(gè)時(shí)候才發(fā)現(xiàn)，他并沒(méi)有真正盡力地在跑——并沒(méi)有足夠的快——像他能夠做到的那樣。沙斯塔立刻感覺(jué)到了變化。現(xiàn)在他們真的是在用盡全力在跑，不出幾秒鐘，就超過(guò)了赫溫。

"It' s not fair,"thought Shasta.. I did think we' d be safe from lions here !"

“真不順利。”沙斯塔想到，“我還以為這里比較安全，已經(jīng)遠(yuǎn)離獅子了呢。”

He looked over his shoulder.Everything was only too clear.

他回過(guò)頭去看。所有的一切都看得很清楚。

A huge tawny creature, its body low to the ground, like a cat streaking across the lawn to a tree when a strange dog has got into the garden, was behind them. And it was nearer every second and half second.

一只巨大的黃褐色生物，軀體低垂到地上，正跟隨在他們的身后，就好像一只陌生的狗闖入到花園的時(shí)候，一只貓正跑過(guò)草地要竄到樹(shù)上去一樣。轉(zhuǎn)眼之間，那動(dòng)物越來(lái)越近了。

He looked forward again and saw something which he did not take in, or even think about. Their way was barred by a smooth green wall about ten feet high. In the middle of that wall there was a gate, open. In the middle of the gateway stood a tall man dressed, down to his bare feet, in a robe coloured like autumn leaves, leaning on a straight staff. His beard fell almost to his knees.

他再次向前看了看，看到了之前他沒(méi)有注意到，甚至沒(méi)有想到的事情。他們前進(jìn)的路被一道十英尺高的光滑綠色墻壁擋住了。在墻垣的中間有一個(gè)大門(mén)，門(mén)里邊站著一個(gè)很高的男人，光著腳穿一件秋葉色的長(zhǎng)袍，身子歪斜著靠在一根筆直的手杖上。他的胡須很長(zhǎng)，幾乎到他的膝蓋了。

Shasta saw all this in a glance and looked back again. The lion had almost got Hwin now. It was making snaps at her hind legs, and there was no hope now in her foam-flecked, wide-eyed face.

沙斯塔一瞥就看到了一切，他回過(guò)頭去看，獅子現(xiàn)在幾乎要抓到赫溫了。獅子正在向她的腿撲去，此刻赫溫汗跡斑斑，圓睜的眼睛上已經(jīng)露出了絕望的神色。

"Stop," bellowed Shasta in Bree's ear. "Must go back. Must help !"

“停，”沙斯塔在布里的耳邊大聲喊道，“我們必須回去，必須回去救她。”

Bree always said afterwards that he never heard, or never understood this;and as he was in general a very truthful horse we must accept his word.

布里在后來(lái)總是說(shuō)他從來(lái)沒(méi)有聽(tīng)到過(guò)這句話(huà)，或者從來(lái)沒(méi)有聽(tīng)懂這句話(huà)，一般來(lái)說(shuō)，他是一匹十分忠實(shí)的馬，我們必須要相信他的話(huà)。

Shasta slipped his feet out of the stirrups, slid both his legs over the left side, hesitated for one hideous hundredth of a second, and jumped. It hurt horribly and nearly winded him; but before he knew how it hurt him he was staggering back to help Aravis. He had never done anything like this in his life before and hardly knew why he was doing it now.

沙斯塔從馬鐙中抽出了兩只腳，只猶豫了百分之一秒的可怕時(shí)間，就從馬的左邊跳了下來(lái)。他受了重傷，腰幾乎閃了，但他還沒(méi)有弄清楚自己受了什么傷，就立刻蹣跚著走回去救阿拉維斯了。他一生都沒(méi)有做過(guò)這類(lèi)的事情，現(xiàn)在也不清楚自己為什么要這樣做。

One of the most terrible noises in the world, a horse' s scream, broke from Hwin' s lips. Aravis was stooping low over Hwin' s neck and seemed to be trying to draw her sword. And now all three-Aravis, Hwin, and the lion were almost on top of Shasta. Before they reached him the lion rose on its hind legs, larger than you would have believed a lion could be, and jabbed at Aravis with its right paw. Shasta could see all the terrible claws extended. Aravis screamed and reeled in the saddle. The lion was tearing her shoulders. Shasta, half mad with horror, managed to lurch towards the brute. He had no weapon, not even a stick or a stone. He shouted out, idiotically, at the lion as one would at a dog."Go home ! Go home !" For a fraction of a second he was staring right into its wide-opened, raging mouth. Then, to his utter astonishment, the lion, still on its hind legs, checked itself suddenly, turned head over heels, picked itself up,and rushed away.

世界上最可怕的聲音——一匹馬兒的哀鳴聲，從赫溫的嘴里發(fā)了出來(lái)。阿拉維斯正低下身來(lái)趴在赫溫的脖子上，好像試圖拔出刀來(lái)?，F(xiàn)在，他們?nèi)齻€(gè)——阿拉維斯，赫溫和獅子，幾乎都在沙斯塔的頭頂上。他們還沒(méi)有靠近他，那獅子便用后腿站了起來(lái)( 你簡(jiǎn)直沒(méi)辦法相信他軀體的巨大)，伸出前腿的右爪子，猛然間撲向阿拉維斯。沙斯塔看得見(jiàn)那全部伸開(kāi)來(lái)的爪子。阿拉維斯尖叫著，在馬鞍上搖搖晃晃，獅子在扯著她的肩膀。沙斯塔，幾乎害怕到半瘋了，試圖向野獸撲過(guò)去。他沒(méi)有武器，甚至沒(méi)有一根棍子或者一塊石頭。他大喊著，像傻子一樣，就好像獅子就是一只狗一樣。“回家去，回家去。”在危機(jī)時(shí)刻，他緊盯著那長(zhǎng)得大大的，兇狠的獅子的嘴巴。然后，讓他十分詫異的是，獅子仍舊用后腿站立著，突然控制住自己，變得俯首貼地了，并且迅速地跑掉了。

Shasta did not for a moment suppose it had gone for good. He turned and raced for the gate in the green wall which, now for the first time, he remembered seeing. Hwin, stumbling and nearly fainting, was just entering the gate: Aravis still kept her seat but her back was covered with blood.

沙斯塔一時(shí)間還以為獅子并沒(méi)有真的跑掉。他轉(zhuǎn)過(guò)身，向著綠色城墻的大門(mén)跑去，現(xiàn)在他第一次記起自己看過(guò)那面墻。赫溫腳步蹣跚，幾乎要暈過(guò)去了，剛剛進(jìn)入那個(gè)大門(mén)。阿拉維斯仍然保持坐在馬鞍上，但她的背上已經(jīng)被鮮血覆蓋了。

"Come in, my daughter, come in," the robed and bearded man was saying, and then"Come in, my son"as Shasta panted up to him. He heard the gate closed behind him;and the bearded stranger was already helping Aravis off her horse.

“進(jìn)來(lái)，我的女兒，進(jìn)來(lái)吧。”穿長(zhǎng)袍的長(zhǎng)須老人說(shuō)。然后，當(dāng)沙斯塔氣喘吁吁地跑向他那里的時(shí)候，他又說(shuō)“進(jìn)來(lái)吧，我的兒子。”沙斯塔聽(tīng)到大門(mén)在他身后關(guān)上，奇怪的長(zhǎng)須老人已經(jīng)在幫助阿拉維斯下馬了。

They were in a wide and perfectly circular enclosure,protected by a high wall of green turf. A pool of perfectly still water, so full that the water was almost exactly level with the ground, lay before him. At one end of the pool, completely overshadowing it with its branches, there grew the hugest and most beautiful tree that Shasta had ever seen. Beyond the pool was a little low house of stone roofed with deep and ancient thatch. There was a sound of bleating and over at the far side of the enclosure there were some goats. The level ground was completely covered with the finest grass.

他們?cè)谝粋€(gè)寬闊的，圓形的圍場(chǎng)里，四周有一道高高的綠色草皮疊成的高墻保護(hù)。他們面前是一汪池水，十分平靜，水面和地面一樣高。池水的另一邊，生長(zhǎng)著沙斯塔從來(lái)都沒(méi)有見(jiàn)過(guò)的，最大、最美麗的樹(shù)木，樹(shù)葉繁茂，遮蔽著池塘。池塘的后面是一間低矮的小石頭房子，茅草屋頂又厚又舊。從遠(yuǎn)處有著一些山羊的圍場(chǎng)那邊傳來(lái)羊的叫聲。平地上完全地覆蓋著肥美的青草。

"Are-are-are you,"panted Shasta..Are you King Lune of Archenland ?"

“你是……是……是”沙斯塔喘著氣問(wèn)道，“你是阿欽蘭的倫恩國(guó)王嗎?”

The old man shook his head."No,"he replied in a quiet voice,"I am the Hermit of the Southern March. And now, my son, waste no time on questions, but obey. This damsel is wounded. Your horses are spent. Rabadash is at this moment finding a ford over the Winding Arrow. If you run now, without a moment' s rest, you will still be in time to warn King Lune."

老人搖了搖頭，“不，”他低聲回應(yīng)道，“我是南來(lái)的隱士。親愛(ài)的，不要浪費(fèi)時(shí)間問(wèn)問(wèn)題了，按照我說(shuō)的去做。這位小姐受傷了，你的馬已經(jīng)沒(méi)有力氣了。羅八達(dá)此時(shí)在旋箭河上已經(jīng)找到了可以涉水而過(guò)的地方。如果你現(xiàn)在跑過(guò)去，一刻也不休息的話(huà)，你將仍然來(lái)得及向倫恩國(guó)王示警。”

Shasta' s heart fainted at these words for he felt he had no strength left. And he writhed inside at what seemed the cruelty and unfairness of the demand. He had not yet learned that if you do one good deed your reward usually is to be set to do another and harder and better one.But all he said out loud was:

沙斯塔聽(tīng)到這些話(huà)心涼了一半，因?yàn)樗杏X(jué)自己的力量都消失了。他內(nèi)心苦惱，認(rèn)為這要求對(duì)于他太不公平了。他還沒(méi)有學(xué)到，如果你做了一件好事，你得到的獎(jiǎng)勵(lì)常常是去做另外一件更難更好的事情。但沙斯塔只是大聲問(wèn)道：

"Where is the King ?"

“國(guó)王在哪?”

The Hermit turned and pointed with his staff..Look,"he said..There is another gate, right opposite to the one you entered by.Open it and go straight ahead: always straight ahead, over level or steep,over smooth or rough, over dry or wet.I know by my art that you will find King Lune straight ahead.But run, run: always run."

隱士轉(zhuǎn)過(guò)身，用他的手杖指示道：“看，”他說(shuō)，“那里還有一扇門(mén)，正好對(duì)著你進(jìn)來(lái)的那扇門(mén)。打開(kāi)它，筆直地往前走，一直保持筆直，經(jīng)過(guò)平地和陡峭的地方，經(jīng)過(guò)順利或者不順利的地方，經(jīng)過(guò)干燥或者潮濕的地方。我知道，憑借法術(shù)，你只要筆直地前進(jìn)，就能夠找到倫恩國(guó)王。但是你要跑，跑，始終奔跑。”

Shasta nodded his head,ran to the northern gate and disappeared beyond it.Then the Hermit took Aravis,whom he had all this time been supporting with his left arm,and half led, half carried her into the house.After a long time he came out again.

沙斯塔點(diǎn)了點(diǎn)頭，朝著北邊的那門(mén)跑去，然后消失了。隱士剛剛一直用左臂支撐著阿拉維斯，這時(shí)候他半扶著她進(jìn)入了房間。好久之后，他再次從里面出來(lái)。

"Now, cousins,"he said to the Horses."It is your turn."

“現(xiàn)在，伙計(jì)們，”他對(duì)馬兒們說(shuō)道，“輪到你們了。”

Without waiting for an answer-and indeed they were too exhausted to speak-he took the bridles and saddles off both of them. Then he rubbed them both down,so well that a groom in a King' s stable could not have done it better.

沒(méi)有等他們回答——事實(shí)上他們已經(jīng)筋疲力盡到無(wú)法說(shuō)話(huà)了——他為他們卸下馬鞍和馬嚼，用力按摩兩匹馬兒的全身，按摩得太好，即使是國(guó)王的侍從也不能做得更好。

"There, cousins,"he said,.dismiss it all from your minds and be comforted. Here is water and there is grass. You shall have a hot mash when I have milked my other cousins, the goats."

“聽(tīng)著，伙計(jì)們，”他說(shuō)，“請(qǐng)把一切都拋開(kāi)吧。放寬心，這里有水，那里有青草。等到我給其他的伙計(jì)們——山羊們——擠完奶，你們就有羊奶喝了。”

"Sir,"said Hwin, finding her voice at last,.will the Tarkheena live ? Has the lion killed her ?"

“先生，”赫溫終于緩過(guò)氣來(lái)了，它問(wèn)道，“泰坎希娜還活著嗎?獅子殺了她嗎?”

"I who know many present things by my art,"replied the Hermit with a smile,.have yet little knowledge of things future. Therefore I do not know whether any man or woman or beast in the whole world will be alive when the sun sets tonight.But be of good hope.The damsel is likely to live as long as any of her age."

“根據(jù)我的魔法，我知道很多正在發(fā)生的事情，”隱士微笑道，“但未來(lái)的事情就沒(méi)法預(yù)測(cè)那么多。因此我不知道任何人或動(dòng)物在日落時(shí)是否還活著。不過(guò)還是要心懷希望，這位少女有可能活得比她的同齡人都久。”

When Aravis came to herself she found that she was lying on her face on a low bed of extraordinary softness in a cool, bare room with walls of undressed stone. She couldn' t understand why she had been laid on her face;but when she tried to turn and felt the hot, burning pains all over her back, she remembered, and realized why. She couldn' t understand what delightfully springy stuff the bed was made of, because it was made of heather (which is the best bedding) and heather was a thing she had never seen or heard of.

當(dāng)阿拉維斯蘇醒過(guò)來(lái)的時(shí)候，她發(fā)現(xiàn)自己正躺在一張?zhí)貏e柔軟的床上，房間里什么陳設(shè)也沒(méi)有，石頭墻也是未經(jīng)雕琢的、粗糙的。她不明白為什么要安排她俯臥;但當(dāng)她想要翻身的時(shí)候，背上感覺(jué)到了灼熱的，十分疼痛的感覺(jué)，她想起來(lái)了，意識(shí)到了為什么會(huì)這樣。她不明白這床是用什么舒適又有彈性的材料做的，因?yàn)檫@床是用石南荒原草( 最好的墊褥) 做成的，她從來(lái)沒(méi)有見(jiàn)過(guò)或聽(tīng)過(guò)這種草。

The door opened and the Hermit entered, carrying a large wooden bowl in his hand. After carefully setting this down, he came to the bedside, and asked:

門(mén)打開(kāi)了，然后隱士走了進(jìn)來(lái)，手里拿著一個(gè)大木碗。他小心翼翼地將碗放下后，來(lái)到床邊，問(wèn)：

"How do you find yourself, my daughter ?" "My back is very sore, father," said Aravis,"but there is nothing else wrong with me."

“你覺(jué)得自己怎么樣，我的女兒?”“我的后背很痛，父親，”阿拉維斯說(shuō)道，“但是沒(méi)有其他的問(wèn)題了。”

He knelt beside her, laid his hand on her forehead, and felt her pulse.

他跪在她的旁邊，將手放到她的額頭上，感受她的體溫。“沒(méi)有發(fā)燒，”他說(shuō)，“你會(huì)好的。事實(shí)上，明天你就沒(méi)有任何理由繼續(xù)躺著了?，F(xiàn)在，請(qǐng)把這個(gè)喝掉。”

"There is no fever," he said."You will do well. Indeed there is no reason why you should not get up tomorrow. But now,drink this."

He fetched the wooden bowl and held it to her lips. Aravis couldn' t help making a face when she tasted it, for goats' milk is rather a shock when you are not used to it. But she was very thirsty and managed to drink it all and felt better when she had finished.

他拿起木碗送到她的唇邊。阿拉維斯喝下去的時(shí)候禁不住做了一個(gè)鬼臉，因?yàn)檫€沒(méi)有習(xí)慣羊奶味道的時(shí)候總是震驚的。但是她很口渴，所以設(shè)法將羊奶全部喝掉了，當(dāng)她喝完之后，感覺(jué)好多了。

"Now, my daughter, you may sleep when you wish," said the Hermit. "For your wounds are washed and dressed and though they smart they are no more serious than if they had been the cuts of a whip. It must have been a very strange lion;for insteadof catching you out of the saddle and getting his teeth into you, he has only drawn his claws across your back.Ten scratches: sore, but not deep or dangerous."

“現(xiàn)在，我的女兒，你可以安安穩(wěn)穩(wěn)地睡一會(huì)兒。”隱士說(shuō)道，“因?yàn)槟愕膫诙家呀?jīng)洗過(guò)，并且敷了藥包好了，傷口雖然很痛，但是并不比鞭打產(chǎn)生的傷痕嚴(yán)重。這肯定是一頭非常奇怪的獅子，它并沒(méi)有用牙齒咬到你的肉里，將你從馬鞍上拽下來(lái)，而是用爪子在你的背上撓了一下。十道抓痕，痛，但是并不深也不會(huì)危及生命。”

"I say !" said Aravis."I have had luck. "

“要我說(shuō)，”阿拉維斯說(shuō)道，“是我運(yùn)氣好。”

"Daughter," said the Hermit, "I have now lived a hundred and nine winters in this world and have never yet met any such thing as Luck. There is something about all this that I do not understand: but if ever we need to know it, you may be sure that we shall."

“女兒啊，”隱士說(shuō)道，“我已經(jīng)在世界上活了一百零九個(gè)冬天了，但從來(lái)沒(méi)有碰到過(guò)類(lèi)似于運(yùn)氣的東西。關(guān)于這一切，有些東西我沒(méi)有搞懂，但是我確實(shí)需要去弄明白，你不妨確信我們一定會(huì)弄明白的。”

"And what about Rabadash and his two hundred horse ?" asked Aravis.

“那么羅八達(dá)和他的二百人馬怎么樣了?”阿拉維斯問(wèn)道。

"They will not pass this way, I think,"said the Hermit. "They must have found a ford by now well to the east of us. From there they will try to ride straight to Anvard."

“他們不會(huì)經(jīng)過(guò)這條路，我認(rèn)為。”隱士說(shuō)道，“現(xiàn)在他們一定已經(jīng)找到了一條離我們東邊一點(diǎn)的路，他們將試圖筆直地騎行到安瓦德。”

"Poor Shasta !" said Aravis."Has he far to go ? Will he get there first ?"

“可憐的沙斯塔。”阿拉維斯說(shuō)道，“他要跑很遠(yuǎn)嗎?他能夠先到達(dá)嗎?”

"There is good hope of it,"said the old man. Aravis lay down again (on her side this time) and said, "Have I been asleep for a long time ? It seems to be getting dark."

“很有可能。”老人說(shuō)道。阿拉維斯再次躺了下來(lái)( 這回是側(cè)躺著)，她說(shuō)：“我已經(jīng)睡了很長(zhǎng)時(shí)間碼?好像天已經(jīng)黑下來(lái)了。”

The Hermit was looking out of the only window, which faced north. "This is not the darkness of night, " he said presently. "The clouds are falling down from Stormness Head. Our foul weather always comes from there in these parts. There will be thick fog tonight."

隱士從唯一的窗子望了出去，窗子朝向北方。“這不是夜晚的黑暗，”他立刻說(shuō)道，“云朵們從暴風(fēng)雨峰洶涌而下，我們這里的惡劣天氣都是從那一部分來(lái)的。今晚將會(huì)有很大的霧。”

Next day, except for her sore back, Aravis felt so well that after breakfast (which was porridge and cream) the Hermit said she could get up. And of course she at once went out to speak to the Horses. The weather had changed and the whole of that green enclosure was filled, like a great green cup, with sunlight. It was a very peaceful place, lonely and quiet.

第二天，除了后背疼痛，阿拉維斯感覺(jué)很好，所以在用過(guò)早餐( 早餐是粥和奶油) 之后，隱士說(shuō)她可以起床了。當(dāng)然，她立刻就去和兩匹馬兒說(shuō)話(huà)。天氣變好了，整個(gè)圍場(chǎng)好像綠色的巨大杯子，里面裝滿(mǎn)了陽(yáng)光。這是個(gè)非常和平的地方，孤獨(dú)而且安靜。

Hwin at once trotted across to Aravis and gave her a horse-kiss.

赫溫立刻跑了過(guò)來(lái)，給阿拉維斯一個(gè)馬兒的親吻。

"But where' s Bree ?"said Aravis when each had asked after the other' s health and sleep.

“布里呢?”當(dāng)他們互相問(wèn)過(guò)彼此的健康和睡眠之后，阿拉維斯問(wèn)道。

"Over there,"said Hwin,pointing with her nose to the far side of the circle..And I wish you' d come and talk to him. There' s something wrong,I can' t get a word out of him."

“在那邊。”赫溫說(shuō)，用她的鼻子指著圍場(chǎng)的另一邊，“而且我希望你能和他說(shuō)說(shuō)話(huà)。感覺(jué)有些事情不對(duì)，我沒(méi)辦法從他那里問(wèn)出來(lái)。”

They strolled across and found Bree lying with his face towards the wall, and though he must have heard them coming, he never turned his head or spoke a word.

他們慢慢地走過(guò)去，發(fā)現(xiàn)布里面對(duì)著墻躺著，他一定已經(jīng)聽(tīng)到

"Good morning, Bree,"said Aravis..How are you this morning ?"

他們過(guò)來(lái)了，但是根本不轉(zhuǎn)過(guò)他的頭，也不說(shuō)話(huà)。

Bree muttered something that no one could hear. "The Hermit says that Shasta probably got to King Lune in time,"continued Aravis,.so it looks as if all our troubles are over.Narnia,at last, Bree !"

“早，布里。”阿拉維斯說(shuō)道，“你今天早上還好嗎?”布里喃喃地說(shuō)了些什么，但是沒(méi)有人能聽(tīng)懂。

"I shall never see Narnia,"said Bree in a low voice.

“隱士說(shuō)，沙斯塔可能及時(shí)地找到了國(guó)王倫恩。”阿拉維斯繼續(xù)說(shuō)，“所以看起來(lái)我們的困難已經(jīng)解決了。我們最終要到納尼亞去了，布里。”

"Aren' t you well, Bree dear ?"said Aravis.

“我將永遠(yuǎn)不會(huì)再看到納尼亞了。”布里用他低沉的聲音說(shuō)道。

Bree turned round at last, his face mournful as only a horse' s can be.

“你身體不好嗎?親愛(ài)的布里。”阿拉維斯說(shuō)道。布里最終轉(zhuǎn)過(guò)身來(lái)，他的臉上寫(xiě)滿(mǎn)了哀痛，只有馬兒才會(huì)這樣。

"I shall go back to Calormen,"he said.

“我要回到卡樂(lè)門(mén)去。”他說(shuō)。

"What ?"said Aravis..Back to slavery !"

“什么?”阿拉維斯說(shuō)道，“回去做奴隸嗎?”

"Yes,"said Bree..Slavery is all I' m fit for. How can I ever show my face among the free Horses of Narnia ? -I who left a mare and a girl and a boy to be eaten by lions while I galloped all I could to save my own wretched skin !"

“是的，”布里說(shuō)，“我只合適做奴隸。我有什么臉去見(jiàn)納尼亞那些自由的馬啊?我是丟下了一匹母馬，一個(gè)女孩和一個(gè)男孩，讓他們被獅子吃掉，卻為了自己活命，使出渾身力氣逃跑的馬。”

"We all ran as hard as we could,"said Hwin.

“我們所有人都盡我們的力量逃跑啊。”赫溫說(shuō)道。

"Shasta didn' t !"snorted Bree..At least he ran in the right direction: ran back.And that is what shames me most of all. I, who called myself a warhorse and boasted of a hundred fights, to be beaten by a little human boy—a child,a mere foal, who had never held a sword nor had any good nurture or example in his life !"

“沙斯塔沒(méi)有。”布里喘息著說(shuō)道，“至少他是按照正確的方向跑的。他跑了回去，這是最讓我感覺(jué)到羞愧的。我，自稱(chēng)自己是一匹戰(zhàn)馬，身經(jīng)百戰(zhàn)，但是卻被一個(gè)小小的人類(lèi)男孩比了下去。一個(gè)孩子，不過(guò)是一頭駒子，一輩子都沒(méi)有拿過(guò)劍，也沒(méi)有受到過(guò)好的教育，沒(méi)有見(jiàn)到過(guò)任何榜樣。”“

"I know," said Aravis."I felt just the same. Shasta was marvellous. I' m just as bad as you, Bree. I' ve been snubbing him and looking down on him ever since you met us and now he turns out to be the best of us all. But I think it would be better to stay and say we' re sorry than to go back to Calormen."

我懂。”阿拉維斯說(shuō)道，“我有同樣地感覺(jué)。沙斯塔很了不起。我和你一樣糟糕，布里。自從遇到你們，我一直都瞧不起他，怠慢他，現(xiàn)在他轉(zhuǎn)過(guò)身來(lái)成為我們所有人中最好的。但是我認(rèn)為，還是應(yīng)該留下來(lái)對(duì)他說(shuō)我們很抱歉，這要比回到卡樂(lè)門(mén)更好一些。”

"It's all very well for you," said Bree. "You haven't disgraced yourself.But I' ve lost everything."

“這辦法對(duì)你來(lái)說(shuō)很好。”布里說(shuō)，“你并沒(méi)有給自己丟臉。但是我卻丟掉了一切。”

"My good Horse,"said the Hermit, who had approached them unnoticed because his bare feet made so little noise on that sweet, dewy grass..My good Horse, you' ve lost nothing but your self-conceit. No, no, cousin. Don't put back your ears and shake your mane at me. If you are really so humbled as you sounded a minute ago, you must learn to listen to sense. You' re not quite the great Horse you had come to think, from living among poor dumb horses. Of course you were braver and cleverer than them. You could hardly help being that.It doesn' t follow that you' ll be anyone very special in Narnia. But as long as you know you' re nobody special, you' ll be a very decent sort of Horse, on the whole, and taking one thing with another. And now, if you and my other four-footed cousin will come round to the kitchen door we' ll see about the other half of that mash."

“我的好馬兒，”隱士說(shuō)道，大家沒(méi)有察覺(jué)到他的到來(lái)，是因?yàn)樗庵_踩在清香的沾滿(mǎn)露水的草地上沒(méi)有任何聲音，“我的好馬，你除了失去了自己的自命不凡外沒(méi)有失去任何東西。不，不，我的老伙計(jì)，別對(duì)著我把耳朵朝后，也別抖動(dòng)你的鬃毛。如果你確實(shí)像你一分鐘之前說(shuō)的那樣謙虛，你就應(yīng)該學(xué)著去聽(tīng)更理智的聲音。你一直都生活在那些安靜的可憐的馬兒之間，你會(huì)自然地認(rèn)為自己是最了不起的馬兒。其實(shí)不是這樣的。當(dāng)然，你比它們要更加勇敢，更加聰明。你很難不這樣，但這不能說(shuō)明你在納尼亞就是什么杰出的馬兒。但是只要你現(xiàn)在知道自己沒(méi)有什么特別的，總的看來(lái)，你是一匹很不錯(cuò)的馬。而且現(xiàn)在，如果你能和我們另一位四足的老伙計(jì)一起繞到廚房門(mén)口來(lái)，我們就為你準(zhǔn)備另外半份飼料了。”