'No, thank you, Mrs Mann. Not a drop' he waved the bottle away.
“不用,谢谢,麦恩太太。一点也不用。”班布尔先生推开了酒瓶。
'Just a little drop, Mr Bumble, with cold water,' said Mrs Man persuasively .
“就一点点,班布尔先生,已经掺了水的。”麦恩太太极力劝说。
Mr Bumble coughed. 'What is it?' he aksed, looking at the bottle with interest.
班布尔咳一下,兴致勃勃地看着酒饼问“里面装的是什么?”
'Gin. I keep it for the children's medicine drink.'
“是杜松子酒,给孩子们做药用的。”
'You gave the children gin, Mrs Mann?' asked Mr Bumble, watching as she mixed his drink.
“麦恩太太,你让孩子们喝酒?”班布尔先生出声质问,却盯着麦恩太太给他倒的酒。
'Only with medicine, sir. I don't like to see them suffer.'
“只是做药用,先生,想他们少受点苦。”
'You're a good woman, Mrs Mann,' Mr Bumble drank half his glass immediately. 'I'll tell the board about you. Now - the reason why i'm here. Oliver Twist is nine years old today. We've never been able to discovery anything about his parents.'
“你真是个好人,麦恩太太。”班布尔先生迅速喝了半杯酒。“我会在董事会上推举你的。现在――说说我为什么到这来。今天是奥利弗·特维斯特9岁的生日,我们还没找到有关他父母的任何线索。”
'Then how did he get his name?'
“那他名字是怎么来的?”
'I gave it to him,' said Mr Bumble proudly. 'We follow the alphabet. The last one was an S - Swubble. Then it was T, so this one is Twist. The next one will be Unwin. Anyway, Oliver Twist is now old enough to return to the workhouse. Bring him here, please.' While Mrs Mann went to get him, Mr Bumble finished the rest of his gin.
“我给他取的”班布尔先生自豪地说。“我们查了字母表,上一个是S-斯瓦布尔;这个是T,也就是特维斯特;接下来应该是恩文. 不管怎么说,奥利弗已经9岁,可以接回济贫院了。请把他带到这儿来。”麦恩太太去领奥利弗时,班布尔先生将剩下的杜松子酒喝了。
Oliver, his face and hands now almost clean, was led into the room.
奥利弗带进屋时,脸和手都很干净了。
'Will you come along with me, Oliver?' asked Mr Bumble in a loud voice.
Oliver was very glad to be free of Mrs Mann's violence, but he said nothing because she was angrily shaking her finger at him. However, as the gate closed behind Oliver, he brust into tears. He was leaving behind the other children, the only friends he had, and he realized at that moment how lonely he was in the world.
“奥利弗,你要和我一起走吗?”班布尔先生大声问。奥利弗巴不得离开麦恩太太的托儿所,但他没说一句话,因为麦恩太太正气势汹汹朝他挥拳手。然而,当托儿院的门关上时,奥利弗突然哭了起来,他离开了其他的孩子,也离开了他唯一的朋友,那一刻他意识到了他在这世上有多孤单。
Mr Bumble walked on with long steps, with Oliver on his short little legs running beside him. The feeling of contentment produced by gin-and-water had now disappeared, and the beadle was in a bad mood once more.
班布尔先生大步流星地走着,奥利弗迈着小短腿跟在后面跑。喝掺水杜松子酒后的满足感已经蒸发了,现在他又是那个暴脾气的干事了。
Back at the workhouse, Oliver was taken to see the board. He stood in front of ten fat men who were sitting around a table.
回到济贫院,奥利弗被带到董事会。他站在十个胖胖的绅士围坐的圆桌前。
'What's your name, boy?' asked a particularly fat man with a very round red face.
“孩子,你叫什么?”一个红脸膛的胖绅士问。
Oliver was frightened at the sight of so many people, and started to cry.
奥利弗一见这么多人,吓得直哆嗦,就哭了起来。
'Why are you crying?'
“你哭什么?”
The beadle hit him on the back, and so naturally Oliver cried even more.
干事在他背上打了一下,打得奥利弗嚎啕大哭。
'The boy is a fool,' one member of the board announced.
“这孩子是个傻子。”董事会的人说。
'You know you have no father or mother,' said the first man.'and that you have been brought up with other orphans.'
“你知道你无父无母”起初说话的那人说,“是教区将你扶养长大的。”
'Yes, sir' replied Oliver, crying bitterly.
“我知道 ,先生”奥利弗回答时哭得很伤心。
'Why is the boy crying?' repeated the other man, puzzled.
“你在哭什么?”又一绅士问道,实在难以理解他在哭什么。
'You have come here to be educated.' continued the fat man. 'so you will start working here tomorrow at six o'clock.
“你来这儿是接受教育的。”胖绅士继续说,“明早6点你要来这工作。”
Oliver was led away to a large room, where, on a rough hard bed, he cried himself to sleep.
奥利弗被带进一间大收容室,躺在高低不平的硬床上,抽抽搭搭地睡着了。
The room in the workhouse where the boys were fed was a large stone hall, and at one end the master and two woman served the food. This consisted of a bowl of thin soup three times a day, with a piece of bread on Sundays. The boys ate everything and were always hungry. The bowls never needed washing. The boys polished them with their spoons until they shone. After three months of this slow starvation, one of the boys told the others he was so hungry that one night he might eat the boy who slept next to him. He had a wild hungry eye, and the other boys believed him. After a long discussion, they decided that one of them should ask for more food after supper that evening, and Oliver was chosen.
济贫院里孩子进食的场所一间宽敞的大定。大厅一端有大师傅和两位女人负责给他们打饭。一日三餐都是一碗稀粥,星期日还会有一块面包。孩子们喝完粥还是饿,便用勺子把碗刮得干干净净到都不用洗了。这样三个月后,一个男孩跟其他的男孩说他太饿了,可能晚上会吃了睡在他旁边的小孩,他眼冒凶光,其他男孩相信他真会那样做。经过长时间的讨论,他们推举谁在当晚喝完粥后到大师傅那再要些粥,奥利弗中签了。
The evening arrived: the soup was served, and the bowls were empty again in a few seconds. Oliver went up to the master, with his bowl in his hand. He felt very frightened, but also desperate with hungry.
当晚,济贫院供应的汤,花不了多少时间,碗就见底了。奥利弗站起来,端着他的碗,走向大师傅。他很怕但真的是很饿。
'Please sir, i want some more.'
“对不起,先生,我还要点。”
The master was a fat, healthy man, but he turned very pale. He looked at the little boy in front of him with amazement. Nobody else spoke.
大师傅是个身强力壮的胖子,但他的脸刷地变白了。他错愕地看着站在他面前的男孩,周围没人说一句话。
'What ?' he asked at last, in a faint voice.
“什么?”大师傅最后开口问,声音有气无力。
'Please sir,'replied Oliver, 'i want some more.'
“对不起,先生”奥利弗答道,“我还要点。”
The master hit him with the serving spoon, then seized Oliver's arms and shouted for the beadle. The beadle came quickly, heard the dreamful news, and immediately ran to tell the board.
大师傅拿起汤勺打了奥利弗一下,双手抓住奥利弗的胳膊,尖声叫喊,干事快来。干事冲进房间,听到这梦靥般的消息,立马报告董事会去了。
'He asked for more?'Mr Limbkins, the fattest board member, asked in horror.'Bumble - Is this really true?'
“还要?”董事会最胖的利姆金斯先生问。“班布尔,是这样吗?”
'The boy will be hanged!'said the man who earlier called Oliver a fool. 'You see if i'm not right.'
“这男孩会被绞死的”早前说奥利弗是个傻子的人说,“到时,你看我说的对不对。”
Oliver was led away to be locked up, and a reward was offered anybody who would take him away and use him for work.
奥利弗被走锁了起来,好处就是没人会叫他起来工作了。
中英双语《雾都孤儿》:第一章奥利弗的童年(二)更多译文:
PS:本书为牛津系列简易读物,有著名作家查理德·罗杰根据英国作家查尔斯·狄更斯的同名小说改写。英文为书虫系列原文,译文是笔者翻译。
另本文仅因个人兴趣而译,故本文谢绝转载和各种商业用途,同时承诺若出现任何责任由作者承担,必要时简书可删除文章。
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