《远大前程》第1章 匹普与一位陌生人相遇(4)

Because Joe and I were in the same position of being scolded¹ by Mrs Joe，we were good friends，and Joe protected me from her anger whenever he could．So when I ran breathless into the kitchen，he gave me a friendly warning³．‘She's out look-ing for you，Pip！And she's got the stick with her！’This stick had been used so often for beating me that it was now quite smooth．

因为我和乔都处于被乔夫人责骂的地位，我们俩是好朋友，乔随时都在保护我免遭她的怒斥。所以，当我上气不接下气地跑进厨房时，他给了我一个友好的忠告：“她正在外面找你，匹普！她还拿了条棍子！”这条棍子过去常用来敲打我，它现在是非常光滑了。

Just then Mrs Joe rushed in．

正在这时，乔夫人闯了进来。

‘Where have you been，you young monkey？’she shouted．I jumped behind Joe to avoid being hit with the stick．

“到哪里去了，你这个小淘气鬼？”她大叫着，我跳着躲到乔的背后，以避开她棍子的毒打。

Only to the churchyard，I whispered，starting to cry．

只去了教堂墓地，我小声嘟囔着，接着哭了起来。

Churchyard！If I hadn't brought you up，you'd be in the churchyard with our parents．

教堂墓地！如果不是我照顾你，你早就和我们的父母被埋在教堂墓地里了。

You'll send me to the church-yard one day！Now let me get your supper ready，both of you！

有一天你会把我送到坟墓去！现在，我给你们准备晚餐，你们俩！

For the rest of the evening，I thought of nothing but the stranger on the marshes⁴．Sometimes，as the wind blew round the house，I imagined I heard his voice outside，and I thought with horror⁵ of the young man who ate boys hearts．

晚上休息时，我其它的事情都不想，只考虑沼泽地里那个陌生人。有时，当风在房屋周围掠过时，我想自己听到外面他的声音，还想起吞吃小孩子心脏的那个可怕的年轻人。

Just before I went to bed，we heard the sound of a big gun on the marshes．Was that a gun，Joe？I asked．

我刚要睡觉，我们听到从沼泽地传来的一阵枪声。乔，那枪声是干什么的？我问道。

Ah！said Joe．Another convict's escaped．One got away last night．They always fire the gun when one escapes．

噢！乔说，又有一个囚犯逃走了，昨晚上有一个囚犯逃跑了。当有囚犯逃跑时，他们总是要开火。

Who fires the gun？I asked．Joe shook his head to warn² me．

向谁开的枪？我问道，乔摇摇头警告我。

Too many questions，frowned my sister．If you must know it's the men in the prison-ships who fire the gun．

问得太多了，我的姐姐皱着眉头说，你要是知道关在船上监狱的那些人，就明白向谁开枪了。

I wonder who is put into prison-ships，and why？I asked，in a general way，quietly desperate⁶ to know the answer．

我想知道谁被关在船上监狱里，为什么他们被关在那里？我追问道，通常，我非常想知道这类问题的答案。

1 scolded   

v.责骂，斥责( scold的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He scolded them for arriving late. 他嫌他们迟到，训了他们一通。
• The boy was scolded by his mother for breaking the looking glass. 那小孩因打破了镜子而被他妈妈责骂。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 warn   

vt.警告，注意，远离；vi.提醒

参考例句：

• I must warn you that my patience is almost at an end.我必须警告你我已经没有耐心了。
• If you warn me in advance,I will have your order ready for you.你若预先通知我，我就能给您准备好了。

3 warning   

n.警告，告诫，训诫，警戒，警报

参考例句：

• The other side paid no attention to our warning.对方不重视我方的警告。
• He realized that his doctor was warning him off drink.他意识到医生在告诫他戒酒。

4 marshes   

n.沼泽，湿地( marsh的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Cows were grazing on the marshes. 牛群在湿地上吃草。
• We had to cross the marshes. 我们不得不穿过那片沼泽地。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 horror   

n.惊骇，恐怖，惨事，极端厌恶

参考例句：

• The public has been awakened to the full horror of the situation.公众完全意识到了这一状况的可怕程度。
• The thought of working nights fills me with abject horror.一想到要夜间工作我就觉得惨兮兮的。

6 desperate   

adj.不顾死活的，危急的，令人绝望的，极渴望的

参考例句：

• They made a desperate attempt to save the company.他们为挽救公司作孤注一掷的努力。
• The city is suffering a desperate shortage of water.这个城市严重缺水。