吹小号的天鹅 第23期:到蒙大拿去(2)

 　　"Montana," said their father, "is a state of the Union.

　　“蒙大拿，”他们的父亲说，“是美国的一个州。

　　And there, in a lovely valley surrounded by high mountains, are the Red Rock Lakes, which nature has designed especially for swans.

　　在那儿，在高山环绕着的一个可爱的峡谷里，有一个红石湖，那是大自然特地给天鹅们定做的。

　　In these lakes you will enjoy warm water, arising from hidden springs.

　　在那些湖里你能享用到从看不见的泉眼里涌出来的温水。

　　Here, ice never forms, no matter how cold the nights.

　　在哪里，不管夜里有多么冷，湖水也不会结冰。

　　In the Red Rock Lakes, you will find other Trumpeter Swans, as well as the lesser¹ waterfowl--the geese and the ducks.

　　在这个红石湖，你会找到其他的号手天鹅，还有一些为数不多的水鸟——野鹅和野鸭们。

　　There are few enemies. No gunners.

　　这里几乎没有敌人。也没有带枪的猎人。

　　Plenty of muskrat² houses. Free grain. Games every day.

　　到处是麝鼠窝。谷粒随便吃。每天都有游戏玩。

　　What more can a swan ask, in the long, long cold of winter?"

　　在一个长长的，长长的寒冬里，一只天鹅还能再求什么呢？”

　　Louis listened to all this in amazement³. He wanted to ask his father how they would learn to fly and how they would find Montana even after they learned to fly.

　　路易斯惊奇地听着这一切。他想问他的父亲他们怎样才能学会飞翔，而且，就算他们都学会了飞翔，又怎样才可以找到蒙大拿。

　　He began to worry about getting lost. But he wasn't able to ask any questions. He just had to listen.

　　他开始担心到时候会迷路了。可是他却不能问任何问题。他只有在那里听。

　　One of his brothers spoke⁴ up.

　　他的一个哥哥大声说起来。

　　"Father," he said, "you said we would fly south.

　　“爸爸，”他说，“你说我们要往南飞。

　　I don't know how to fly. I've never been up in the air."

　　可我不知道怎么才能飞。我从没上过天呀。”

　　"True," replied the cob. "But flying is largely a matter of having the right attitude--plus, of course, good wing feathers.

　　“是的，”雄天鹅回答，“不过飞翔主要是要有个正确姿势的问题——当然了，此外你还得有好的翅膀羽毛。

　　Flying consists of three parts.

　　飞翔由三个部分组成。

　　First, the takeoff, during which there is a lot of fuss and commotion⁵, a lot of splashing and rapid beating of the wings.

　　第一，起飞，这期间你会有一阵子混乱和骚动，还要溅起无数的水花，不停地迅速拍打翅膀。

　　Second, the ascent⁶, or gaining of altitude--this requires hard work and fast wing action.

　　第二，上升，或者说高度的增加——这需要艰苦的努力和翅膀的快速扇动。

　　Third, the leveling-off,

　　第三，平飞，

　　the steady elevated flight, high in air, wings beating slower now, beating strongly and regularly, carrying us swiftly and surely from zone to zone as we cry ko-hoh, ko-hoh,

　　稳稳地高飞，飞到高空里去，现在翅膀拍打的速度要慢些了，但却有力均匀得多，在我们高唱着吭—嗬，吭—嗬的时候，翅膀则迅速而又稳妥地带着我们从一个地方飞到另一个地方，

　　with all the earth stretched out far below."

　　让整个大地在我们的身下延伸。”

　　"It sounds very nice," said the cygnet, "but I'm not sure I can do it.

　　“听起来很美，”这只小天鹅说，“可我不知道我能否做到这一点。

　　I might get dizzy way up there--if I look down."

　　在天空中我也许会头晕的——如果我往下看的话。”

　　"Don't look down!" said his father. "Look straight ahead. And don't lose your nerve.

　　“别往下看！”他的父亲说，“要一直往前看。不要慌。

　　Besides, swans do not get dizzy--they feel wonderful in the air. They feel exalted⁷."

　　再说，天鹅们是从不会头晕的——他们在空中的感觉非常好。他们会感到志得意满。”

　　"What does "exalted" mean?" asked the cygnet.

　　“‘志得意满’是什么意思？”这只小天鹅问。

　　"It means you will feel strong, glad, firm, high, proud, successful, satisfied, powerful, and elevated--as though you had conquered life and had a high purpose."

　　“它的意思是说你会感到强大，兴奋，坚定，高大，骄傲，成功，满足，有威力，崇高——好像你已经征服了生活并有了一个高尚的目标一样。”

　　Louis listened to all this with great attention.The idea of flying frightened him.

　　路易斯非常专心地听着这些话。想到飞翔他便有些恐惧。

　　"I won't be able to say ko-hoh," he thought. "I wonder whether a swan can fly if he has no voice and can't say ko-hoh."

　　“我不能说‘吭—嗬’”，他想，“我不知道如果一只天鹅没有嗓子也不能说‘吭—嗬’的话是否还可以飞翔。”

1 lesser   

adj.次要的，较小的；adv.较小地，较少地

参考例句：

• Kept some of the lesser players out.不让那些次要的球员参加联赛。
• She has also been affected,but to a lesser degree.她也受到波及，但程度较轻。

2 muskrat   

n.麝香鼠

参考例句：

• Muskrat fur almost equals beaver fur in quality.麝鼠皮在质量上几乎和海獭皮不相上下。
• I saw a muskrat come out of a hole in the ice.我看到一只麝鼠从冰里面钻出来。

3 amazement   

n.惊奇，惊讶

参考例句：

• All those around him looked at him with amazement.周围的人都对他投射出惊异的眼光。
• He looked at me in blank amazement.他带着迷茫惊诧的神情望着我。

4 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

5 commotion   

n.骚动，动乱

参考例句：

• They made a commotion by yelling at each other in the theatre.他们在剧院里相互争吵，引起了一阵骚乱。
• Suddenly the whole street was in commotion.突然间，整条街道变得一片混乱。

6 ascent   

n.(声望或地位)提高；上升，升高；登高

参考例句：

• His rapid ascent in the social scale was surprising.他的社会地位提高之迅速令人吃惊。
• Burke pushed the button and the elevator began its slow ascent.伯克按动电钮，电梯开始缓慢上升。

7 exalted   

adj.(地位等)高的，崇高的；尊贵的，高尚的

参考例句：

• Their loveliness and holiness in accordance with their exalted station.他们的美丽和圣洁也与他们的崇高地位相称。
• He received respect because he was a person of exalted rank.他因为是个地位崇高的人而受到尊敬。