Chapter 7 第七章-双语名著无障碍阅读丛书——《动物农场Animal Farm》

Chapter VII It was a bitter winter.The stormy weather was followed by sleet and snow, and then by a hard frost which did not break till well into February.The animals carried on as best they could with the rebuilding of the windmill,well knowing that the outside world was watching them and that the envious human beings would rejoice and triumph if the mill were not finished on time. Out of spite,the human beings pretended not to believe that it was Snowball who had destroyed the windmill:they said that it had fallen down because the walls were too thin.The animals knew that this was not the case. Still,it had been decided to build the walls three feet thick this time instead of eighteen inches as before,which meant collecting much larger quantities of stone.For a long time the quarry was full of snowdrifts and nothing could be done.Some progress was made in the dry frosty weather that followed,but it was cruel work,and the animals could not feel so hopeful about it as they had felt before.They were always cold,and usually hungry as well.Only Boxer and Clover never lost heart.Squealer made excellent speeches on the joy of service and the dignity of labour,but the other animals found more inspiration in Boxer's strength and his never-failing cry of"I will work harder!" In January food fell short.The corn ration was drastically reduced,and it was announced that an extra potato ration would be issued to make up for it. ·094· 第七章 ①sleet[sli]n.雨雹 这是个严寒的冬季。暴风雨天气过后，又是冻雨又 是大雪的，随后是天寒地冻，一直持续到了二月。动物 们竭尽全力，坚持奋战在重建风车的工地上，心里很清 楚，外界一直在注视着他们，倘若风车不能如期竣工， 充满了嫉妒心的人类一定会高兴不已。 出于仇恨的心理，人类假装不相信是雪球摧毁了 ②rejoice[ri'd33isg欣喜 ③spite[spait]m,怨恨 风车：他们说，风车之所以倒塌，是因为墙体太薄了。 动物们知道，情况并非如此。尽管如此，他们还是决 定，墙壁的厚度由先前的十八英寸增加到三英尺，这 就意味着要收集更多石料。很长一段时间里，采石场 布满了积雪，根本无法开工。等到随后出现了干冷天气， 工程才稍有进展，但那是十分艰辛的活儿。关于风车 工程，动物们不可能像先前那样充满希望了。他们一 直忍受着寒冷和饥饿。只有拳击手和苜蓿从未心灰意 冷过。尖嗓子巧舌如簧，大谈服务的快乐，劳动的尊严。 但是，其他动物所受到的鼓舞，更多的还是来自拳击 手旺盛的精力和他那句念念不忘的“我要更加卖力干 活儿”的话。 到了一月，饲料出现短缺。谷物饲料的配额急剧缩 drastically ['draestikoli]ad. 激烈地 减。农场宣布，要施行额外的土豆配额，以弥补不足。 随后，动物们发现，由于覆盖物不够厚实，收进来后堆 ·095· ChapterVII Then it was discovered that the greater part of the potato crop had been frosted in the clamps,which had not been covered thickly enough.The potatoes had become soft and discoloured,and only a few were edible.For days at a time the animals had nothing to eat but chaff and mangels.Starvation seemed to stare them in the face. It was vitally necessary to conceal this fact from the outside world. Emboldened by the collapse of the windmill,the human beings were inventing fresh lies about Animal Farm.Once again it was being put about that all the animals were dying of famine and disease,and that they were continually fighting among themselves and had resorted to cannibalism and infanticide. Napoleon was well aware of the bad results that might follow if the real facts of the food situation were known,and he decided to make use of Mr.Whymper to spread a contrary impression.Hitherto the animals had had little or no contact with Whymper on his weekly visits:now,however,a few selected animals, mostly sheep,were instructed to remark casually in his hearing that rations had been increased.In addition,Napoleon ordered the almost empty bins in the store-shed to be filled nearly to the brim with sand,which was then covered up with what remained of the grain and meal.On some suitable pretext Whymper was led through the store-shed and allowed to catch a glimpse of the bins.He was deceived,and continued to report to the outside world that there was no food shortage on Animal Farm. Nevertheless,towards the end of January it became obvious that it would be necessary to procure some more grain from somewhere.In these days Napoleon rarely appeared in public,but spent all his time in the farmhouse,which was guarded at each door by fierce-looking dogs.When he did emerge,it was in a ceremonial manner,with an escort of six dogs who closely surrounded him and growled if anyone came too near.Frequently he did not even appear on Sunday mornings,but issued his orders through one of the other pigs,usually Squealer. One Sunday morning Squealer announced that the hens,who had just come in to lay again,must surrender their eggs.Napoleon had accepted,through ·096· 第七章 积在一块儿的土豆受了冻，柔软变色了，只有极少部分 可以食用。有时候一连几天，动物们只能吃谷糠和甜菜。 ①edible[edibl]a.可食 看起来，他们面临着饥荒了。 (用)的 ②chaT[jan,谷壳 定要对外界隐瞒这个事实，这一点至关重要。 风车倒塌后，人类的腰杆子挺直了。他们正编造着关 于动物农场的新谣言。到处又在风传着，说所有动物 3 embolden [im'bauldan]v. 忍饥挨饿，疾病缠身，挣扎在死亡线上。动物内部争 给…壮胆 斗不断，而且故态复萌，互相残食，宰杀幼崽。拿破 仑心知肚明，外界若是知晓了他们饲料供应的真实状 infanticide [in'faentisaid]n. 况，将会产生多么严重的后果。他决定启用温佩尔先 杀害婴儿 ⑤hitherto[hios'tur]ad.迄今 生，要让他传播一些相反的印象。迄今为止，温佩尔 先生每个星期光顾农场时，动物们极少同他接触。不 过，现在，拿破仑精挑细选了极少数动物，主要是绵 羊，吩附他们议论饲料增加的事情，语气要显得若无 其事，让温佩尔先生听到。此外，拿破仑还责令动物 们把饲料棚内那些差不多空了的饲料槽装上沙子，装 到快要满了，再把仅存的一点点谷物饲料覆盖在面上。 找到合适的借口，把温佩尔先生领进饲料棚，让他看 看那些饲料槽。受了蒙骗之后，他继续对外界报告说， 动物农场不存在饲料短缺的问题。 尽管如此，到了一月底时，情况己经很明显了， 必须要想方设法从哪儿再弄到一些饲料。那些日子里， 拿破仑极少在公众面前抛头露面，而是整天待在农场 主住宅里。住宅里的每一道门都由面目狰狞的狗把守 着。拿破仑即便在外面亮相，那也是八面威风，犹如 盛典，六条狗如影随形，相伴左右。若是有哪只动物 靠得太近，狗便会狂吠起来。即便是在星期天，拿破 仑都常常不露面，而是通过其他猪宣布他的指令，通 ⑥escort['eska:t]n.陪同 常是通过尖嗓子。 有个星期天上午，尖嗓子宣布，所有开始下蛋的母 鸡都必须把蛋交出来。通过温佩尔先生，拿破仑已经签 ·097· ChapterVII Whymper,a contract for four hundred eggs a week.The price of these would pay for enough grain and meal to keep the farm going till summer came on and conditions were easier. When the hens heard this,they raised a terrible outcry.They had been warned earlier that this sacrifice might be necessary,but had not believed that it would really happen.They were just getting their clutches ready for the spring sitting, and they protested that to take the eggs away now was murder.For the first time since the expulsion of Jones,there was something resembling a rebellion.Led by three young Black Minorca pullets,the hens made a determined effort to thwart Napoleon's wishes.Their method was to fly up to the rafters and there lay their eggs,which smashed to pieces on the floor.Napoleon acted swiftly and ruthlessly.He ordered the hens'rations to be stopped,and decreed that any animal giving so much as a grain of corn to a hen should be punished by death. The dogs saw to it that these orders were carried out.For five days the hens held out,then they capitulated and went back to their nesting boxes.Nine hens had died in the meantime.Their bodies were buried in the orchard,and it was given out that they had died of coccidiosis.Whymper heard nothing of this affair, and the eggs were duly delivered,a grocer's van driving up to the farm once a week to take them away. All this while no more had been seen of Snowball.He was rumoured to be hiding on one of the neighbouring farms,either Foxwood or Pinchfield. Napoleon was by this time on slightly better terms with the other farmers than before.It happened that there was in the yard a pile of timber which had been stacked there ten years earlier when a beech spinney was cleared.It was well seasoned,and Whymper had advised Napoleon to sell it;both Mr.Pilkington and Mr.Frederick were anxious to buy it.Napoleon was hesitating between the two,unable to make up his mind.It was noticed that whenever he seemed on the point of coming to an agreement with Frederick,Snowball was declared to be in hiding at Foxwood,while,when he inclined toward Pilkington,Snowball was said to be at Pinchfield ·098· 第七章 订了一份每个星期提供四百枚鸡蛋的合同。鸡蛋出售后 所得收入可购买到足够多的谷物和饲料，让农场维持到 夏天情况好转了。 母鸡听到这个决定后，大惊失色，略咯大叫了起 来。她们早些时候便得到了提醒，说有可能需要她们 做出这样的牺牲，但她们不相信事情果然会发生。她 们其实已经积赞齐了蛋，准备春季坐窝来着。她们抗 ①resemble[ri'zembl]v.类似 议着说，要把她们下的蛋拿走，这无异于谋杀。自从 琼斯被驱逐之后，头一次出现了这样的反抗集会。由 ②pullet[pulit]m.小母鸡 三只米诺卡小黑鸡'领头，母鸡们决定搏一把，挫败拿 ③thwart[0w3xtlg反对：阻 破仑的计划。她们使用的方法是，飞到椽子上去下蛋， 挠 蛋掉落到地上就摔碎了。拿破仑迅速采取行动，残忍 ④ruthlessly[ru0 Misli]ad.残 无情。他责令停止给母鸡发放饲料。而且还下令，若 忍地 是有动物给母鸡哪怕是一粒谷物，都要被处以死刑。 ⑤decree[di'kri:],发布（命 那些狗负责落实这两道命令。母鸡们坚持了五天，最 令) 后还是就范了，返回到了她们的窝里。这期间，死了 capitulate [ka'pitjuleit]v. 停止抵抗 六只母鸡。她们的遗体被掩埋在果园中。对外的说法是， 她们死于球虫病。温佩尔对这件事情毫不知情，因为 7 coccidiosis [kok.sidi'ousis] 几.球虫病 农场按时提供了鸡蛋。有辆食物专用篷车每个星期开 ⑧van [vaen]n.大篷货车 进一次农场来把鸡蛋运走。 整个这段时间里，谁也没有看见过雪球。有传言说， 他藏匿在附近的一座农场，或在狐狸林，或在窄地。相 比从前，拿破仑这段时间里同其他农场的关系略有改 善。院落里正好有一堆木材。十年前，农场清理一片山 ⑨timber[imba]n.木材 @beech[bitf]n.山毛榉 毛榉树林时，木材就堆在那儿了。木材已经完全风干， ①spinney[spini].矮林 温佩尔建议拿破仑把木材卖了。皮尔金顿和弗里德里克 两个人都迫切想要购买。拿破仑举棋不定，不知道该卖 给他们哪一位。大家注意到，每当他似乎快要同弗里德 里克达成协议时，就会有动物报告说，雪球藏匿在孤狸 林农场。而当他倾向于同皮尔金顿签约时，就会有动物 来报告说，雪球藏匿在窄地农场。 1米诺卡鸡(Minorca)是一种西班牙蛋用鸡，羽毛有黑、白、黄等颜色。 ·099· ChapterVII Suddenly,early in the spring,an alarming thing was discovered.Snowball was secretly frequenting the farm by night!The animals were so disturbed that they could hardly sleep in their stalls.Every night,it was said,he came creeping in under cover of darkness and performed all kinds of mischief.He stole the corn,he upset the milk-pails,he broke the eggs,he trampled the seedbeds, he gnawed the bark off the fruit trees.Whenever anything went wrong it became usual to attribute it to Snowball.If a window was broken or a drain was blocked up,someone was certain to say that Snowball had come in the night and done it,and when the key of the store-shed was lost,the whole farm was convinced that Snowball had thrown it down the well.Curiously enough,they went on believing this even after the mislaid key was found under a sack of meal.The cows declared unanimously that Snowball crept into their stalls and milked them in their sleep.The rats,which had been troublesome that winter, were also said to be in league with Snowball. Napoleon decreed that there should be a full investigation into Snowball's activities.With his dogs in attendance he set out and made a careful tour of inspection of the farm buildings,the other animals following at a respectful distance.At every few steps Napoleon stopped and snuffed the ground for traces of Snowball's footsteps,which,he said,he could detect by the smell.He snuffed in every corner,in the barn,in the cow-shed,in the henhouses,in the vegetable garden,and found traces of Snowball almost everywhere.He would put his snout to the ground,give several deep sniffs,and exclaim in a terrible voice,"Snowball!He has been here!I can smell him distinctly!"and at the word"Snowball"all the dogs let out blood-curdling growls and showed their side teeth. The animals were thoroughly frightened.It seemed to them as though Snowball were some kind of invisible influence,pervading the air about them and menacing them with all kinds of dangers.In the evening Squealer called them together,and with an alarmed expression on his face told them that he had some serious news to report. ·100· 第七章 开春时节，农场上突然发生了一件令人惊诧的事 情。雪球夜间秘密潜入了农场！动物们惊恐不安起来， 几乎无法在自己的窝棚睡踏实觉。据说，雪球每天夜里 都会趁着夜色潜入农场，进行各种各样的破坏捣乱活 动：盗窃谷物、打翻奶桶、捣碎鸡蛋、踩踏苗圃、啃咬 ①gnaw[nx],咬新，咬坏 ②bark[bckn.树皮 果树皮。但凡出了什么乱子，动物们都会习惯地把它归 咎到雪球头上。倘若某块窗户玻璃打破了，某处下水道 堵塞了，某只动物肯定会说，雪球夜间来过了，是他干 的。若是饲料棚的钥匙丢了，整座农场的动物都相信， 是雪球把钥匙扔进井里面了。很不可思议的是，即便后 来发现，钥匙是被不知哪位动物错放在了饲料袋下面， ③sack[sek]n.麻袋 动物们还是相信上面的说法。奶牛们口径一致地声称， 雪球夜间潜入到她们的窝棚里，趁着她们熟睡之际挤走 了奶。耗子们冬天里够捣乱的，据说他们同雪球勾结在 一块儿了。 拿破仑下达了命令，关于雪球的种种行径，必须来 一次彻底调查。他开始对农场的窝棚来一次仔细认真的 查看，那些狗陪伴在他左右，其他动物充满着敬仰之情， 远远地跟在后面。拿破仑每走上几步便会驻足不前，嗅 嗅地面，寻找雪球蹄子印的蛛丝马迹，因为他说了， 他可以嗅出雪球的蹄子印。他嗅过了每一个角落，包括 大谷仓、奶牛棚、母鸡舍、菜园。他几乎在每一处地方 ④snout[snaut]n.(动物的) 都发现了雪球的踪迹。他会把口鼻凑近地面，深深地吸 口鸟部 气，然后情绪激动地发出恐怖的声音：“雪球！他到过 这儿呢！我能够清晰地嗅出他的气味来！”那些狗听到 “雪球”这两个字时，全都张开了血盆大口，露出獠牙， 狂吠起来。 动物们给彻底地吓坏了。他们似乎觉得，雪球是某 ⑤pervade[pa'veid,弥漫 种看不见摸不着的影响力量，弥散在他们的周围，威胁 着他们，让他们感受到所有危险。傍晚时分，尖嗓子把 动物们召集到一块儿，脸上流露出惊恐不安的表情，告 诉动物们，他要公布一条重要消息。 ·101· ChapterVII "Comrades!"cried Squealer,making little nervous skips,"a most terrible thing has been discovered.Snowball has sold himself to Frederick of Pinchfield Farm,who is even now plotting to attack us and take our farm away from us! Snowball is to act as his guide when the attack begins.But there is worse than that.We had thought that Snowball's rebellion was caused simply by his vanity and ambition.But we were wrong,comrades.Do you know what the real reason was?Snowball was in league with Jones from the very start!He was Jones's secret agent all the time.It has all been proved by documents which he left behind him and which we have only just discovered.To my mind this explains a great deal,comrades.Did we not see for ourselves how he attempted fortunately without success to get us defeated and destroyed at the Battle of the Cowshed?" The animals were stupefied This was a wickedness far outdoing Snowball's destruction of the windmill.But it was some minutes before they could fully take it in.They all remembered,or thought they remembered,how they had seen Snowball charging ahead of them at the Battle of the Cowshed,how he had rallied and encouraged them at every turn,and how he had not paused for an instant even when the pellets from Jones's gun had wounded his back.At first it was a little difficult to see how this fitted in with his being on Jones's side.Even Boxer,who seldom asked questions,was puzzled.He lay down,tucked his fore hoofs beneath him,shut his eyes,and with a hard effort managed to formulate his thoughts. "I do not believe that,"he said."Snowball fought bravely at the Battle of the Cowshed.I saw him myself.Did we not give him'Animal Hero,first Class,' immediately afterwards?" "That was our mistake,comrade.For we know now it is all written down in the secret documents that we have found that in reality he was trying to lure us to our doom.” “But he was wounded,.”said Boxer..“We all saw him running with blood.." ·102· 第七章 “同志们！”尖嗓子大声说，身子稍稍紧张地蹦了 蹦，“我们已经发现了一件十分可怕的事情。雪球已经 把自己出卖给窄地农场的弗里德里克了。此人正蠢蠢欲 动，设计对我们发起进攻，把农场从我们手上抢夺过 去！进攻行动一旦开始，雪球拟担任向导。但是，还有 比这更加槽糕的情况。我们先前认为，雪球之所以有了 反叛之心，纯粹是虚荣和野心作祟。但是，我们想错了， 同志们啊，你们知道真实原因是什么吗？雪球从一开始 便与琼斯狼狈为奸！长期以来，他一直充当琼斯的密 探。他留下了一些文件，我们刚刚发现了那些文件。这 一切从文件中得到了证明。我觉得这己经很说明问题啦， 同志们。‘牛棚之战’爆发时，幸运的是，他的企图没 有得逞，没有让我们全军覆没。这一点我们不是都已经 ①stupefy['stjupifai]v使茫 亲眼见识过了吗？” 然 动物们目瞪口呆。这一招可比雪球摧毁风车要邪恶 得多啊。但是，过了好几分钟，他们才完全领悟过来。 他们全都记得，或者认为自己记得，“牛棚之战”中， ②rally[rli重整（溃军 他们看到雪球如何一马当先，冲锋在前。他如何在每一 等) 个关键时刻鼓舞大家的士气，振作起大家的精神。即便 在琼斯举枪射击，子弹伤着他的背部时，他也片刻都没 有停止战斗。起初，他们一时间难以理解，雪球怎么会 ③tuck[twk],把（两腿）蜷 曲在胸前 站在琼斯一边。连极少提出疑问的拳击手都感到迷惑不 ④formulate[fa:mjulei间k构 解了。他躺了下来，两个前蹄曲在身子的下面，闭上眼 想出 睛，费心劳神地想要理清自己的思路。 “我不相信这个说法，”他说，“‘牛棚之战’中， 雪球英勇无畏，我是亲眼见识过了的。我们事后不是立 刻授予他‘一级动物英雄’勋章了吗？” “那是我们的失误啊，同志。我们现在已经知道了， ⑤lurc[Ujun.引诱 他实际上想要让我们走向灭亡，这一切都在那些秘密文 件中记载着呢。” “但他负了伤啊，”拳击手说，“我们都看见他流着 血还在奔跑来着。” ·103·