《書蟲》雙語聽讀3級上 三個陌生人03

前情提要：

過了一會兒，牧羊人家的門再一次被敲響了，這個人神色歡快，也相對粗犷，酒喝多後，他借着歌聲唱出了他的工作，原來他是一個劊子手，來絞死卡斯特橋監獄裡那個鐘表匠--那個鐘表匠沒有活幹，孩子們都沒吃的，是以偷了一頭羊。是以，他要被絞死了！

故事原文：

3 The third stranger 第三個陌生人

Just then，there was another knock on the door．People seemed frightened，and Shepherd Fennel was slow to call out，for the third time，the welcoming words，'Come in！’

就在這時，又傳來了一陣敲門聲。人們有些恐慌，牧羊人芬内爾好半天才第三次說出了那句歡迎的話：“請進！”

The door was gently opened，and another stranger stood in the doorway．He was a little man，with fair hair，and was tidily dressed．‘Can you tell me the way to—？’he began，but stopped speaking when his eyes fell on the stranger in grey，who，at that moment，started singing again.

門被輕輕推開了，又一位陌生人站在了門口。他身材矮小、頭發金黃、衣着整潔。“能不能告訴我怎麼去——？”他剛一開口，目光就落到了灰衣人身上，于是便閉上了嘴。灰衣人又開口唱了起來。

Tomorrow is my working day，

明天是我的工作日，

Honest shepherds all—

誠實的牧羊人們——

Working with the little piece of rope.

我的用具是那一小截繩子。

A sheep has lost its life，and the thief must pay the price.

一頭羊喪了命，竊賊必須付出代價。

He'll find some peace with God，we hope！

但願他在上帝那兒得到安甯！

The man by the fire repeated cheerfully in his deep voice：

壁爐邊的那個男人用低沉的聲音歡快地重複着：

All this time the third stranger had stood in the doorway，and now everyone turned to look at him．They saw to their surprise that his face was white，his hands were shaking，and his eyes were fixed in horror on the man in grey．A moment later he turned，and ran away into the darkness and the rain.

在此期間，第三個陌生人一直站在門口，直到此刻人們才轉過來看着他。他們驚奇地發現，他臉色蒼白、雙手發抖，眼睛驚恐地盯着灰衣人。不一會兒，他轉身跑進了大雨滂沱的黑夜。

‘Who can that be？’asked Shepherd Fennel.

“他會是誰呢？”牧羊人芬内爾問道。

No one answered．The room was silent，although there were more than twenty people in it，and nothing could be heard except the rain beating on the windows.

沒人回答。盡管屋子裡有二十多個人，此刻卻一片沉默，靜得隻能聽到雨點打在窗戶上的聲音。

The stillness was broken by a bang．It was the sound of a gun，and it came from Casterbridge.

寂靜被“砰”的一聲巨響打破了。那是一聲槍響，從卡斯特橋方向傳來。

‘What does that mean？’cried several people at once.

“怎麼回事？”立刻就有幾個人叫了起來。

‘A prisoner's escaped from Casterbridge prison—that's what it means，’replied the man in grey，jumping up from his chair．‘I wonder if it's my man？’

“有犯人從卡斯特橋監獄逃出來了——就是這麼回事，”灰衣人說着，從椅子上跳了起來，“我想知道是不是我要絞死的那個人？”

‘It must be！’said the shepherd．‘And I think we've seen him！The little man who looked in at the door just now，and shook like a leaf when he saw ye and heard your song！’

“一定是！”牧羊人說，“而且我想我們見過他！剛才那個從門口往屋裡張望的小個子，他見到你唱歌時抖得像一片樹葉！”

‘His face was as white as a sheet，’said the fiddler.

“他的臉白得像床單。”拉小提琴的人說。

‘His hands shook like an old man's，’said a farm worker.

“他的手抖得像個老頭。”一個農場勞工說。

‘His heart seemed as heavy as a stone，’said Mrs Fennel.

“看樣子，他的心情也沉重得像壓着塊石頭。”芬内爾太太說。

‘True，’said the man by the fire．‘His face was white，his hands shook，and he ran like the wind — it's all true.’

“沒錯，”壁爐邊的男人說，“他臉色煞白，手哆哆嗦嗦，像一陣風似的跑了——沒錯。”

‘We were all wondering what made him run off like that，’said one of the women，'and now‘it is explained.’

“我們剛才還納悶他幹嗎那樣落荒而逃呢，”一個女人說，“現在真相大白了。”

‘Is there a policeman here？’asked the hangman.

“這裡有警察嗎？”劊子手問道。

One of the men came slowly forward，pushed by his friends．‘I'm one of the king's officers，sir，’he said.

其中一人被朋友們推着慢慢走上前來。“我是國王手下的軍官，先生。”他答道。

‘Then take some of these men at once，follow the criminal，and bring him back here．He hasn't gone far，I'm sure.’

“那就馬上從這一屋子人中挑幾個，追上那個犯人，把他帶到這兒來。他還沒跑多遠，我敢肯定。”

‘I will，sir，I will，when I've got my uniform．I'll go home and put it on，and come back here immediately！’

“好的，先生，我穿上制服就去。我回家穿制服，馬上就回來！”

‘Uniform！Never mind about your uniform！The man'll be far away by that time！’

“制服！别管你的制服啦！到那會兒犯人早跑遠了！”

‘But I must have my uniform！There's the king's name on it in gold — I can't arrest a man without my uniform on.’

“可我必須穿上制服！那上面有國王的名字，金色的——我不穿制服就不能逮捕人。”

‘I'm a king's man myself，’said the man in grey coldly，'and I order you to find and arrest this man at once！Now then，all the men in the house must come with us．Are you ready？’

“我自己也是國王的下屬，”灰衣人冷冷地說，“我指令你馬上去追捕這個人！聽着，屋裡所有的男人都得跟我們去。你們準備好了嗎？”

The men left the cottage to start their search，and the women ran upstairs to see the new baby，who had begun to cry loudly．But the living room did not stay empty for long．A few minutes later the first stranger came quietly back into the house．He cut himself a large piece of cake，and drank another mug of mead．He was still eating when another man came in just as quietly．It was the man in grey.

男人們離開了小屋開始搜尋，女人們則跑到樓上去照看開始放聲大哭的嬰兒。不過客廳并沒有空下來多久。幾分鐘後，第一個陌生人悄悄回到了小屋裡。他給自己切了一大塊蛋糕，又喝了一杯蜂蜜酒。他還沒吃完，另一個人也悄悄走了進來。是那個灰衣人。

‘Oh，you here？’said the hangman，smiling．‘I thought you had gone to help look for the prisoner.’

“噢，你也在這兒嗎？”劊子手微笑着說，“我還以為你幫忙找犯人去了呢。”

‘And I thought you had gone too，’replied the other.

“我也以為你去了呢。”那人回答道。

‘Well，I felt that there were enough people without me，’said the man in grey，helping himself to the mead.

“呃，我覺得人夠多了，不差我一個。”灰衣人邊說邊給自己倒了點蜂蜜酒。

‘I felt the same as you.’

“我跟你想的一樣。”

‘These shepherd-people can easily find the man because they know this hilly country．They'll have him ready for me by the morning，and it'll be no trouble to me at all.’

“這些牧羊人很容易就能找到那個人，因為他們對這山村很熟悉。他們會在天亮前抓住他的，我根本不用費勁。”

‘Yes，they'll find him．We'll save ourselves all that trouble.’

“是啊，他們會找到他的。我們用不着費勁。”

‘True，true．Well，I'm going to Casterbridge．Are you going the same way？We could walk together.’

“沒錯，沒錯。呃，我要去卡斯特橋了。你也去那兒嗎？咱們可以搭個伴走。”

‘No，I'm sorry to say I'm going the other way.’And after finishing their mead，the two men shook hands warmly，said goodbye to each other，and went their different ways.

“不，很不巧，我要去另一個方向。”喝完酒，兩個男人熱情地握手作别，分别朝不同的方向走去。

Out on the hills，the shepherd and his friends were getting cold and wet in their search for the prisoner．They had no luck at all until they reached the top of a hill，where a single tree stood．Suddenly they saw the man who they were looking for，standing next to the tree.

山上，牧羊人和他的朋友們為尋找犯人而弄得渾身又冷又濕。他們很不走運，直到來到一座山頂，那兒挺立着一棵孤零零的樹。突然，他們看見要找的人就站在樹的旁邊。

‘Your money or your life！’cried the policeman loudly.

“不給錢就要你的命！”警察高聲喊道。

‘No，no，’whispered the shepherd．‘That's what robbers say，not good，honest people like us！’

“不對，不對，”牧羊人悄聲說，“那是強盜們喊的話，不是我們這種誠實的好人該喊的！”

‘Well，I must say something，mustn't I？Ye don't realize how difficult it is to remember what to say！’

“呃，我總得說點什麼，不是嗎？你不知道要記住自己該說什麼有多難！”

The little man now seemed to notice them for the first time．‘Well，travellers，did I hear you speak to me？’he asked.

那個小個子男人似乎這才注意到他們。“哦，二位路人，你們剛才是在跟我說話嗎？”他問道。

‘You did，’replied the policeman．‘We arrest ye for not waiting in Casterbridge prison for your hanging tomorrow！’

“沒錯，”警察回答道，“我們要逮捕你，因為你本該在卡斯特橋監獄等待明天的絞刑！”

The little man did not seem at all afraid，and to everyone's surprise agreed with great politeness to go back to the shepherd's cottage．When they arrived there，they discovered that two officers from Casterbridge prison，and a judge who lived nearby，were waiting for them.

小個子男人看起來一點都不害怕，更令大家驚訝的是，他很禮貌地同意回到牧羊人的小屋去。到了之後，他們發現卡斯特橋監獄的兩名典獄官和一名住在附近的法官已經等在了那裡。

‘Gentlemen，’said the policeman，'I've brought back your prisoner — here he is！’

“先生們，”警察說，“我把你們的犯人帶回來了——就是他！”

‘But this is not our man！’cried one of the prison officers.

“但這不是我們要抓的人！”其中一名典獄官叫道。

‘What？’said the judge．‘Haven't you got the right man？’

“什麼？”法官說道，“你們沒抓對人？”

‘But then who can this man be？’asked the policeman.

“那這個人是誰？”警察問。

‘I don't know，’said the prison officer．‘But our prisoner is very different．He's tall and thin，with a deep，musical voice.’

“我不認識，”典獄官說，“不過我們的犯人跟他很不一樣。犯人又高又瘦，嗓音低沉悅耳。”

‘That was the stranger who sat by the fire！’cried Fennel.

“就是那個坐在壁爐邊的陌生人！”芬内爾叫道。

The little man now spoke to the judge for the first time．‘Sir，’he said，'I must explain．I've done nothing wrong — my only crime is that the prisoner is my brother．Today I was on my way to visit him in Casterbridge prison for the last time，when I got lost in the dark．I stopped here to ask the way，and when I opened the door，I saw my brother sitting by the fire．Right next to him was the hangman who'd come to take his life！My brother looked at me，and I knew he meant，“Don't tell them who I am，or I'll die！”I was too frightened to do anything except turn and run away.’

小個子男人終于開了口，沖着法官說話了。“先生，”他說，“我必須解釋一下。我并沒做什麼壞事——我唯一的過錯就是，那個犯人是我兄弟。我今天原本打算去卡斯特橋監獄見他最後一面，但卻在黑暗中迷了路。我在這裡停下來打算問路，推開門卻看到我兄弟就坐在壁爐邊，身旁就是來取他性命的劊子手！我兄弟看了我一眼，我就明白了他的意思：'别告訴他們我是誰，不然我就死定了！'我害怕極了，隻好轉身跑開了。”

‘And do you know where your brother is now？’

“那你知道你兄弟現在在哪裡嗎？”

‘No，sir．I haven't seen him since I left the cottage.’

“不知道，先生。我離開小屋後就沒再見過他。”

‘And what's his job？’

“他是幹什麼的？”

‘He's a clockmaker，sir.’

“他是鐘表匠，先生。”

‘He said he worked with wheels，’said Shepherd Fennel．‘He meant the wheels of clocks and watches，I suppose.’

“他說過他是和輪子打交道的，”牧羊人芬内爾說，“我猜他指的是鐘表的齒輪。”

‘Well，we must let this poor man go，’said the judge．‘Clearly，it's his brother who is the wanted man.’

“呃，我們得放這個可憐人走，”法官說，“很明顯，他的兄弟才是我們要找的人。”

And so the little man left the cottage with a sad，slow step.

于是，小個子男人邁着憂傷的步子慢慢走出了小屋。

The next morning，men were out on the hills again，searching for the clever thief．But the shepherds and farm workers did not look very carefully．They did not think the man should hang，just for stealing a sheep，and they liked the wonderful coolness that he showed，when sitting next to the hangman at the shepherd's party．So the prisoner was never found，and the man in grey never did his morning's work in Casterbridge，nor ever met again the friendly stranger who had sung the hangman's song with him by the shepherd's fire.

第二天早晨，人們再次來到山上尋找那個機敏的竊賊。不過，牧羊人和農場勞工們并沒有仔細尋找。他們覺得那個人僅僅是偷了一頭羊，不應該被絞死。他們還很欣賞在牧羊人家的聚會上，他坐在劊子手旁邊時所表現出的沉着冷靜。是以，那個犯人一直也沒被抓到，而灰衣人也一直沒能完成他那天早上在卡斯特橋的工作。打那以後，他再沒見過那個友善的陌生人，那個在牧羊人家壁爐邊和他一起唱劊子手之歌的人。

The grass has long been green on the graves of Shepherd Fennel and his wife，and the baby whose health was drunk that night is now an old lady．But the arrival of the three strangers at the shepherd's cottage，and all that happened afterwards，is a story as well known as ever in the hills and valleys around Casterbridge.

牧羊人芬内爾夫妻倆的墓地上早已是綠草茵茵了，而那個嬰兒——那天晚上，人們曾為她的健康祝福——如今也成了一位老婦人。然而，三個陌生人來到牧羊人小屋的事情以及此後發生的一切，卻一直在卡斯特橋周圍的山巒谷地中傳誦不已。

核心語言點：

• tidily adv．neat，orderly 整潔地；整齊地
• stillness n．quietness，calmness，without any activity 甯靜；安甯
• uniform n．a particular type of clothing worn by all the members of a group or organization such as the police 制服
• arrest v．(police）take somebody away because they think he/she has done something illegal 逮捕
• in search for look for 尋找
• whisper v．to speak or say something very quietly，using your breath rather than your voice 悄聲說；耳語
• wanted adj．someone who is wanted is being looked for by the police 被警方追捕的；被通緝的
• coolness n．quality of being calm and not nervous 冷靜
• grave n．the place in the ground where a dead body is buried 墳墓