名著·汤姆叔叔的小屋 - 第42节


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  拍卖人用响亮的声音叫人们让出一点地方,随后他宣布拍卖开始。大家让出了一片空地,投标拍卖就此开始。很快名单上那几个男奴以高价卖了出去,这显示市场存在相当大的需求。他们中间有两个人被赫利买走了。

   "Come, now, young un," said the auctioneer, giving the boy a touch with his hammer, "be up and show your springs, now.""

  小家伙,轮到你了,"拍卖人一边叫着,一边用槌子敲了孩子一下,"去让大家看看你的机灵劲儿。"

   "Put us two up togedder, togedder,--do please, Mas'r," said the old woman, holding fast to her boy.

  老太婆紧紧地抱着她的孩子,叫道:"把我们一块卖掉吧,一块卖吧,求求你,老爷。"

   "Be off," said the man, gruffly, pushing her hands away; "you come last. Now, darkey, spring;" and, with the word, he pushed the boy toward the block, while a deep, heavy groan rose behind him. The boy paused, and looked back; but there was no time to stay, and, dashing the tears from his large, bright eyes, he was up in a moment.His fine figure, alert limbs, and bright face, raised an instant competition, and half a dozen bids simultaneously met the ear of the auctioneer. Anxious, half-frightened, he looked from side to side, as he heard the clatter of contending bids,--now here, now there,--till the hammer fell. Haley had got him. He was pushed from the block toward his new master, but stopped one moment, and looked back, when his poor old mother, trembling in every limb, held out her shaking hands toward him.

  拍卖人态度恶劣地吼道:"滚开!"然后用力推开她的双手,"最后才是你。赶快,小黑球,跳上去。"他把孩子推到台子上,他的身边传来老妇人那悲痛的哀号声。孩子停住脚步,转过头看看。但他不能停留了,他用手抹去那双明亮大眼睛中的泪水,然后一下子跳到了台上。因为他长得聪明机灵,体型匀称,身手敏捷,立刻成为了拍卖会的竞争投标对象。拍卖人同时听到五、六个人在喊价。小黑孩儿听着嘈杂的叫价声,又心急,又害怕,他到处张望直到木槌一声落下,他被赫利买到了。他被人推到新主人面前。他停下来,回头看到他的母亲全身在颤抖,朝他伸出同样颤抖的双手。

   "Buy me too, Mas'r, for de dear Lord's sake!--buy me,--I shall die if you don't!""

  买下我吧,老爷,看在上帝的份上!--买下我吧--不然,我就要死了!"

  买下你,你不也得死吗?你这不是给我找麻烦吗?不行。"赫利说完,转身就走了。

   The bidding for the poor old creature was summary. The man who had addressed Haley, and who seemed not destitute of compassion, bought her for a trifle, and the spectators began to disperse.

  老太婆被拍卖时没费什么时问。刚才和赫利说话的那个男人好像动了恻隐之心,花了几个钱买下了她,随后围观的人群就散开了。

   The poor victims of the sale, who had been brought up in one place together for years, gathered round the despairing old mother, whose agony was pitiful to see.

  这些被拍卖掉的奴隶曾经在一起生活过许多年,他们围在老太婆周围,看到她那伤心欲绝的样子真是令人寒心。

   "Couldn't dey leave me one? Mas'r allers said I should have one,--he did," she repeated over and over, in heart-broken tones."

  他们为什么不能给我留下一个?老爷答应过给我留下一个的。"她用那令人心碎的声音一遍又一遍地说着。

   "Trust in the Lord, Aunt Hagar," said the oldest of the men, sorrowfully."

  黑格大妈,你要相信上帝。"那个年龄最大的黑奴悲伤地劝道。

  这有什么用?"黑格边说边悲伤地抽泣着。

   "Mother, mother,--don't! don't!" said the boy. "They say you 's got a good master.""

  妈,你别哭了!别哭了!别人都说你遇到了一个好主人。"孩子叫道。

   "I don't care,--I don't care. O, Albert! oh, my boy! you 's my last baby. Lord, how ken I?""

  那又能怎么样。亚伯特,我的孩子!我可就只剩下你这么一个孩子了。上帝呀,你叫我怎么能够不伤心呢!"

   "Come, take her off, can't some of ye?" said Haley, dryly; "don't do no good for her to go on that ar way."

  赫利冷冷地说:"你们几个人就不能把她推开吗?她这么哭下去一点用处都没有。"

   The old men of the company, partly by persuasion and partly by force, loosed the poor creature's last despairing hold, and, as they led her off to her new master's wagon, strove to comfort her.

  这个可怜的老太婆死死地抱住她的儿子,几个年纪较大的人一边劝她一边拉她,最后终于使她松开双手,一边安慰着她,一边把她领到新主人的马车前。

  好啦!"赫利说着,把买到的三个黑人奴隶弄到一起,掏出好几把手铐,把他们分别铐了起来,又用一条长铁链将这些手铐串接起来,随后把他们往监狱的方向赶去。

   A few days saw Haley, with his possessions, safely deposited on one of the Ohio boats. It was the commencement of his gang, to be augmented, as the boat moved on, by various other merchandise of the same kind, which he, or his agent, had stored for him in various points along shore.

  几天后,赫利带着他的奴隶,坐上了一条行驶在俄亥俄河上的轮船。在沿河的几个码头上,赫利和他的经纪人还寄存了许多奴隶,他们和赫利新买的几个黑奴一样都是上好的货色。顺河而下,赫利的财富会越来越多,而现在仅仅只是个开始。

   The La Belle Riviere, as brave and beautiful a boat as ever walked the waters of her namesake river, was floating gayly down the stream, under a brilliant sky, the stripes and stars of free America waving and fluttering over head; the guards crowded with well-dressed ladies and gentlemen walking and enjoying the delightful day. All was full of life, buoyant and rejoicing;--all but Haley's gang, who were stored, with other freight, on the lower deck, and who, somehow, did not seem to appreciate their various privileges, as they sat in a knot, talking to each other in low tones.

  赫利他们乘坐的这艘轮船,华丽无比,和俄亥俄河有一个相同的名字--美丽河。现在,"美丽河"号轮船正沿河顺流直下。万里晴空,阳光明媚,船桅上的美利坚星条旗随风飘扬,穿戴考究的绅士淑女们在甲板上悠闲地散着步,尽情享受着美好时光。人们意兴盎然,愉快轻松,可赫利的黑奴们却并非如此。他们和货物一起堆放在船舱的底部,不知什么原因,他们似乎对自己所受的待遇很不满意。此时他们正聚在一块儿,低声地交谈着。

   "Boys," said Haley, coming up, briskly, "I hope you keep up good heart, and are cheerful. Now, no sulks, ye see; keep stiff upper lip, boys; do well by me, and I'll do well by you.""

  小伙子们,"赫利踏着轻快的脚步走到他们面前说道,"都振作起精神,快活起来,别愁眉苦脸的,知道吗?坚强点,小伙子们。乖乖地跟着我,我不会让你们吃亏的。"

   The boys addressed responded the invariable "Yes, Mas'r," for ages the watchword of poor Africa; but it's to be owned they did not look particularly cheerful; they had their various little prejudices in favor of wives, mothers, sisters, and children, seen for the last time,--and though "they that wasted them required of them mirth," it was not instantly forthcoming.

  这群小伙子一齐答道:"是的,老爷!"多少年来,这些可怜的非洲后代对"是的,老爷!"这一回答已经习惯了,这句话已经成为他们的口头禅。可事实上他们并不快活,因为这时他们心里想的是自己的妻子、母亲、姐妹和孩子,因为他们即将天各一方了。尽管掠夺他们的主人想叫他们强作欢颜,可要马上做到这点,也不是件容易的事情。

  广告上注明叫"约翰,30岁"的那个黑奴把被铐着的两只手放到汤姆的膝盖上,说道:"我有老婆,可是她还压根儿不知道我现在的状况,可怜的姑娘哟!"

   "Where does she live?" said Tom.

  汤姆问道:"她住在哪里?"

   "In a tavern a piece down here," said John; "I wish, now, I _could_ see her once more in this world," he added.Poor John! It _was_ rather natural; and the tears that fell, as he spoke, came as naturally as if he had been a white man. Tom drew a long breath from a sore heart, and tried, in his poor way, to comfort him.

  约翰说:"就住在离这里不远处的一个旅店里。唉,真希望这辈子还能和她再见上一面。"约翰真是苦命!他说着说着,不禁泪流满面。这情不自禁流下的泪水和白人所流下的泪水没有什么不同。汤姆不禁心酸地长叹口气,他很想安慰一下约翰,却实在想不到什么好办法。

   And over head, in the cabin, sat fathers and mothers, husbands and wives; and merry, dancing children moved round among them, like so many little butterflies, and everything was going on quite easy and comfortable.

  在这些黑奴上面的船舱里,坐着许多父亲和母亲,丈夫和妻子,孩子们快活地在他们四周跳来跳去,像一群蝴蝶一样。所有的一切是那么的轻松而愉快。

   "O, mamma," said a boy, who had just come up from below, "there's a negro trader on board, and he's brought four or five slaves down there."

  一个刚从轮船底舱跑上来的小男孩说:"哎呀,妈妈,船上有个奴隶贩子,船舱底下有四、五个他带来的黑奴。"

  真可怜!"那位母亲悲愤地说道。

   "What's that?" said another lady."

  怎么回事?"一位夫人问道。

   "Some poor slaves below," said the mother."

  船舱底部关着些可怜的黑奴。"那位母亲说。

   "And they've got chains on," said the boy."

  他们还被铁链拴在一起呢。"男孩又说。

   "What a shame to our country that such sights are to be seen!" said another lady."

  光天化日之下竟会有这样的事情发生,这真是我们美利坚的耻辱!"另一位太太说道。

  这种事也很难讲,"一位身份高贵的太太说道。她坐在自己的特等舱门口,手里做着针线活,身边是她的两个孩子--一男一女,正在那儿打打闹闹。"我去过南方,我觉得黑奴的日子挺好,如果他们变为自由人,日子也许还没这么好呢。"

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名著·汤姆叔叔的小屋 - 第42节