英国语文第四册第18期:船上的猴子(3)（打印版）

Jack was afraid to come down, and only after three days passed in his lofty place of refuge did hunger force him to descend.

杰克不敢下来，三天后，它饿得实在不行了，才从高耸的避难处跑下来。

He chose the moment when I was sitting on deck, and swinging himself by a rope,

它下来时，我正坐在甲板上。它悠在一根绳子上。

he dropped suddenly into my lap, looking so piteously at me for pardon,

突然掉到我的大腿上。可怜兮兮地看着我，请求我的原谅，

that I not only forgave him myself, but saved him from further punishment.

我不仅原谅了他，还让它免于遭受进一步的惩罚。

Soon after this I took another vessel, and Jack and I parted, never to meet again.

过了不久，我乘坐另一艘船，于是就和杰克分开了，从此再没有见过面。

Among the rules of the port of London is one which forbids, under a heavy penalty, the firing of a gun from any vessel lying there.

伦敦港的规则中，有一条是禁止从船上开枪，否则将遭受重罚。

An armed ship had just come in from a long voyage, during which she had touched at several places,

一艘武装船只刚结束一次长途航行返港，在这期间她曾在多处停靠，

and at each of them had fired a salute on anchoring.

每次驳船后它都会鸣礼炮。

A monkey that was on board, naturally wondering why this was omitted when he saw the anchor dropped at London,

一只在船上的猴子，自然会纳闷，当它看到船锚在伦敦港落下后，

resolved, rather than that it should not take place, that he would fire the salute himself!

却没有鸣礼炮。他决定，要自己来鸣这个礼炮！

Accordingly, while the attention of all on board was engaged with the arrival of the ship,

因此，当船上所有人都在关注船只到港时，

he went to the cooking-place, and with the tongs took out a live coal, which he applied to the touch-hole of one of the guns;

它就跑到厨房，用钳子取出一块活煤，涂在其中一把枪支的点火孔上。

and forthwith the whole neighbourhood was startled by the roar of the cannon.

接着，整个街区的人都被大炮的轰鸣声吓到了。

The captain of the vessel was prosecuted for breaking the law;

船长因触犯法律而被起诉；

and he could only clear himself by proving that the cannon had been fired by the monkey.

他只能证明大炮是猴子发射的，才能使自己清白。