一个响亮的女高音在通向比塔减地理教室的走廊门后叫道，“一、二、三、四，”然后带着疲倦的口气说，“照做。”

"Malthusian Drill," explained the Head Mistress. "Most of our girls are freemartins, of course. I'm a freemartin myself."

“马尔萨斯操，”校长解释道，“当然，我们的姑娘大部分都是不孕女，我自己就是。”

She smiled at Bernard.

她对伯纳笑了笑。

But we have about eight hundred unsterilized ones who need constant drilling.

但是我们还有大约八百个没有绝育的姑娘需要经常操练。

In the Beta-Minus geography room John learnt that,a savage reservation is a place which,owing to unfavourable climatic or geological conditions, or poverty of natural resources,

约翰在比塔减教室的地理课学到了这样的东西, 野蛮人保留地是由于气候或地理条件不利，或天然资源缺乏，

has not been worth the expense of civilizing.

不值得花费功夫去文明化的地区。

A click; the room was darkened; and suddenly, on the screen above the Master's head, there were the Penitentes of Acoma prostrating themselves before Our Lady, and wailing as John had heard them wail,confessing their sins before Jesus on the Cross, before the eagle image of Pookong.

咔哒一声，房间黑了。老师头顶的银幕上,突然出现了阿科马的悔罪人匍匐在圣母像面前的样子。他们也匍匐在十字架上的耶稣面前和菩公的鹰像面前，哀号着悔罪（那是约翰以前听见过的）。

The young Etonians fairly shouted with laughter.

年轻的伊顿学生喊叫起来，大笑起来。

Still wailing, the Penitentes rose to their feet, stripped off their upper garments and, with knotted whips, began to beat themselves, blow after blow.

悔罪人站起身子，仍然哀号着，脱下了上衣，开始一鞭一鞭地抽打自己。

Redoubled, the laughted drowned even the amplified record of their groans.

笑声增加了四倍，悔罪人的呻吟声虽被放大，却仍被笑声淹没了。

"But why do they laugh?" asked the Savage in a pained bewilderment.

“可他们在笑什么？”野蛮人感到痛心的困惑，问道。

"Why?" The Provost turned towards him a still broadly grinning face.

“为什么？”院长向他转过仍然满是笑意的脸。

Why? But because it's so extraordinarily funny.

为什么？不就是因为好笑得太不平常了嘛。

In the cinematographic twilight, Bernard risked a gesture which, in the past, even total darkness would hardly have emboldened him to make.

在电影的昏暗里伯纳冒险做出了他以前即使在漆黑之中也不敢做的动作。

Strong in his new importance, he put his arm around the Head Mistress's waist.

他仗恃新获得的重要身份伸出胳臂，搂住了女校长的腰。

It yielded, willowily.

对方如杨柳轻摇般承受了。

He was just about to snatch a kiss or two and perhaps a gentle pinch, when the shutters clicked open again.

他正打算偷吻她一两次，或是轻轻捏她一把，百叶窗咔嗒一声又打开了。