名著·汤姆叔叔的小屋 - 第20节


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  当然,"山姆说,"老爷可以依照你自己的意愿去做,如果老爷认为走大路好,我们就走大路,对于我们来说,走哪条路都一样。我也认为大路比较好。"

   "She would naturally go a lonesome way," said Haley, thinking aloud, and not minding Sam's remark."

  她自然会走人少的路。"赫利一边想着,一边小声说着。他并没有理会山姆在说什么。

   "Dar an't no sayin'," said Sam; "gals is pecular; they never does nothin' ye thinks they will; mose gen'lly the contrary. Gals is nat'lly made contrary; and so, if you thinks they've gone one road, it is sartin you'd better go t' other, and then you'll be sure to find 'em. Now, my private 'pinion is, Lizy took der road; so I think we'd better take de straight one.""

  那也不一定都是对的,"山姆说,"女人有时非常怪,她们做事情经常异于常人,多数情况下是和常人完全相反。她们经常反其道而行之。所以,如果你认为她们走的是这条路,那你最好选择另一条路去追,这样你就可以捉到她们。根据我的了解,莉兹会选择大路,所以我们还是从大路去追吧。"

   This profound generic view of the female sex did not seem to dispose Haley particularly to the straight road, and he announced decidedly that he should go the other, and asked Sam when they should come to it.

  这一套关于女人的意味深长的话并没让赫利下决心走大路去抓莉兹,相反,他决定选择另一条路去追莉兹,并问山姆他们什么时候可以到那儿。

   "A little piece ahead," said Sam, giving a wink to Andy with the eye which was on Andy's side of the head; and he added, gravely, "but I've studded on de matter, and I'm quite clar we ought not to go dat ar way. I nebber been over it no way. It's despit lonesome, and we might lose our way,--whar we'd come to, de Lord only knows.""

  离前面不远。"山姆说。他用靠近艾迪的那只眼向艾迪使了个眼色,接着又坚定地补充说,"我仔细考虑了这件事,我敢保证我们不应该走土路,我从没走过这条路,而且路上行人又很少,说不定我们会迷路的,到时只有上帝知道我们会走到哪儿去了。"

  不管怎样,我都要走土路。"赫利说。

   "Now I think on 't, I think I hearn 'em tell that dat ar road was all fenced up and down by der creek, and thar, an't it, Andy?""

  我又想起件事,我听人说这条路靠近河的那段有栅栏挡着,是吗,艾迪?"

   Andy wasn't certain; he'd only "hearn tell" about that road, but never been over it. In short, he was strictly noncommittal.

  艾迪对此没有把握,他只是听人说过这条路,但并没有真正走过一次,所以他只有含混地答应着。

   Haley, accustomed to strike the balance of probabilities between lies of greater or lesser magnitude, thought that it lay in favor of the dirt road aforesaid. The mention of the thing he thought he perceived was involuntary on Sam's part at first, and his confused attempts to dissuade him he set down to a desperate lying on second thoughts, as being unwilling to implicate Liza.

  赫利很善于权衡大小谎言的可能性。经过权衡,他还是认为走土路比较稳妥。他觉得,山姆之所以坚持走土路是因为他在无意中说漏了嘴,只是因为他不愿自己抓到艾莉查所以才编造各种理由,企图让自己不再坚持走土路。

   When, therefore, Sam indicated the road, Haley plunged briskly into it, followed by Sam and Andy.

  因此当山姆提出走大路时,赫利轻快地打马走向土路,后面紧跟着山姆和艾迪。

  实际上这条土路是一条老路,直接通向河边,只是新路修好之后,就被弃用多年了。前一个小时,他们走得比较顺利,但不久路被切断了,路上到处是大小的农田和栅栏,它们阻止了他们的去路,不能再往前走了。实际上,山姆对这条路很熟悉,他知道路已经被封闭了。但艾迪却不知道这种情况,所以他只是骑马跟着向前走去,他只是偶尔抱怨几句,发些牢骚,大声抱怨说一些这崎岖的路会伤害杰瑞的脚之类的话而已。

   "Now, I jest give yer warning," said Haley, "I know yer; yer won't get me to turn off this road, with all yer fussin'--so you shet up!""

  我警告你们,"赫利说,"我了解你们的秉性,不管你们说什么,我也不会改变路线的。都给我把嘴闭上。"

   "Mas'r will go his own way!" said Sam, with rueful submission, at the same time winking most Portentously to Andy, whose delight was now very near the explosive point."

  老爷,随你了。"山姆说,脸上是一副委屈的神情,但同时他却得意地朝艾迪眨着眼睛。艾迪高兴得几乎要喜形于色了。

   Sam was in wonderful spirits,--professed to keep a very brisk lookout,--at one time exclaiming that he saw "a gal's bonnet" on the top of some distant eminence, or calling to Andy "if that thar wasn't `Lizy' down in the hollow;" always making these exclamations in some rough or craggy part of the road, where the sudden quickening of speed was a special inconvenience to all parties concerned, and thus keeping Haley in a state of constant commotion.

  山姆的兴致也很高,故意说要仔细搜索一下,有一次他大声说,他看见远处山坡上有一顶女人的帽子,有一次他又对艾迪喊道,那山谷中的人不就是莉兹吗!他总在崎岖和乱石林立的地段大声喊叫,或者在某些地段催马加速前行,这无论对人还是马匹都是难以做到的。而这使得赫利无时不处于兴奋和忐忑不安之中。

   After riding about an hour in this way, the whole party made a precipitate and tumultuous descent into a barn-yard belonging to a large farming establishment. Not a soul was in sight, all the hands being employed in the fields; but, as the barn stood conspicuously and plainly square across the road, it was evident that their journey in that direction had reached a decided finale.

  在这条路上大约走了一个小时后,他们来到一个院子里,那是一个大农场的谷仓。他们没有发现什么人,大家都到田里干活去了。这个谷仓,正好建在路的中间,所以明显的事实是,沿着这条路再走下去是没路可走的了。

  老爷,我不是告诉过你吗?一个外地人怎么会比当地人更清楚这里的情况呢?"山姆以一种受到冤枉的口气说。

   "You rascal!" said Haley, "you knew all about this.""

  你这个强盗,"赫利说,"你很清楚所有这些事情。"

   "Didn't I tell yer I _knowd_, and yer wouldn't believe me? I telled Mas'r 't was all shet up, and fenced up, and I didn't spect we could get through,--Andy heard me.""

  我不是明白告诉过你吗?但你不相信我的话,那你说我还能说什么呢?我告诉老爷说,这条路被封堵了,路上还有栅栏,我不确信我们能通过,艾迪可是听到我说的了。"

   It was all too true to be disputed, and the unlucky man had to pocket his wrath with the best grace he was able, and all three faced to the right about, and took up their line of march for the highway.

  这些都是真话,容不得赫利再说什么,倒霉的主人只好以他最好的优雅来掩饰自己的愤怒。于是三个人只好拨转马头,向右走上了大路。

   In consequence of all the various delays, it was about three-quarters of an hour after Eliza had laid her child to sleep in the village tavern that the party came riding into the same place. Eliza was standing by the window, looking out in another direction, when Sam's quick eye caught a glimpse of her. Haley and Andy were two yards behind. At this crisis, Sam contrived to have his hat blown off, and uttered a loud and characteristic ejaculation, which startled her at once; she drew suddenly back; the whole train swept by the window, round to the front door.

  由于这各式各样的耽搁,当他们到达T村时,艾莉查已经让孩子在村中的旅店睡了一个半小时了。艾莉查站在窗前,观察着另外一个方向的动静。此时,山姆那双机灵的眼睛发现了她,后面两码处,就是赫利和艾迪。说时迟,那时快,山姆故意让风刮掉了头上的帽子,并极具特色地高叫了一声。这声叫喊惊动了艾莉查,她立刻缩回身,三个人骑着马从窗前一掠而过,到屋子的前门去了。

  刹那间,艾莉查好像突然拥有了一千倍的活力。她的房间有扇朝向河边的门。她一把抱起孩子,跳下一级级台阶,朝着河边猛跑过去。正当她即将消失身形于河岸下时,奴隶贩子一眼发现了她。他翻身下马,大声喊着山姆和艾迪,自己已像追赶一只小鹿一样朝艾莉查追来。一瞬间,艾莉查几乎脚不沾地地飞到河边,追捕她的人紧跟在身后。在老天给予绝望者的非凡力量的帮助下,她纵身一跳,越过岸边的混水,跳到了远处的冰筏上。那是拼死的一跳,只有在疯狂或绝望时才会有这样的一跳。看着艾莉查这样的跳跃,赫利、山姆、艾迪都本能地大喊起来,同时举起了双手。

   The huge green fragment of ice on which she alighted pitched and creaked as her weight came on it, but she staid there not a moment. With wild cries and desperate energy she leaped to another and still another cake; stumbling--leaping--slipping-- springing upwards again! Her shoes are gone--her stockings cut from her feet--while blood marked every step; but she saw nothing, felt nothing, till dimly, as in a dream, she saw the Ohio side, and a man helping her up the bank.

  她跳上去的那块巨大的绿色冰筏在她身体的重压下左摇右晃,发出了咯吱吱的响声,但她不能有片刻停留,她狂叫着用尽力气跳到了一块冰筏上,接着是另一块,滑倒了,站起来再跳。鞋子掉了,袜子划破了,每走一步都留下斑斑血迹。但她什么也不看,什么也不听,身上也没什么感觉,最后,好像在梦中似的,她隐约看到了俄亥俄河的岸边,一个男子把她扶上了岸。

   "Yer a brave gal, now, whoever ye ar!" said the man, with an oath."

  不论你是谁,你都是很勇敢的,我敢发誓!"那个人说道。

   Eliza recognized the voice and face for a man who owned a farm not far from her old home.

  听到这个声音,艾莉查通过面容认出了那个人。他是她老家附近一个农场的主人。

   "O, Mr. Symmes!--save me--do save me--do hide me!" said Elia."

  噢,西姆斯先生,救救我,千万要救我,你把我藏起来吧!"艾莉查说。

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名著·汤姆叔叔的小屋 - 第20节