《能言馬與男孩》第2期:沙斯塔出奔(2)

"And now, O my host," said the Tarkaan, "I have a mind to buy that boy of yours."

“哦，我的主人啊，”泰坎說道，“我有意買下你那個孩子。”

"O my master," replied the fisherman (and Shasta knew by the wheedling tone the greedy look that was probably coming into his face as he said it), "what price could induce your servant, poor though he is, to sell into slavery his only child and his own flesh? Has not one of the poets said, `Natural affection is stronger than soup and offspring more precious than carbuncles?"'

“啊，我的王爺，”漁夫答道(沙斯塔從那阿諛媚的聲調就想象得出他說話時可能在臉上露出來的貪婪神色)，“你的僕人儘管很窮，你出多大的價可以促使他把他的獨生子、親骨肉出賣爲奴呢?不是有一位詩人說過嗎：‘天生的慈愛比濃場強烈，子孫比紅寶玉更有價值’?”

"It is even so," replied the guest dryly. "But another poet has likewise said, "He who attempts to deceive the judicious is already baring his own back for the scourge." Do not load your aged mouth with falsehoods. This boy is manifestly no son of yours, for your cheek is as dark as mine but the boy is fair and white like the accursed but beautiful barbarians who inhabit the remote North."

“儘管如此，”客人冷冰冰地答道，“另一位詩人說過這樣的話：‘企圖欺騙明智審慎者的人，已經暴露出他的背脊，快要挨鞭苔了。’你年邁的嘴巴可別謊話連篇。這孩子顯然不是你的親生兒子，因爲你的面頰跟我的面頰一樣漆黑、而這孩子的面頰生得漂亮雪白，就像住在遙遠北方的、受到指責卻很美麗的野蠻人一樣。”

"How well it was said," answered the fisherman, "that Swords can be kept off with shields but the Eye of Wisdom pierces through every defence! Know then, O my formidable guest, that because of my extreme poverty I have never married and have no child. But in that same year in which the Tisroc (may he live for ever) began his august and beneficent reign, on a night when the moon was at her full, it pleased the gods to deprive me of my sleep. Therefore I arose from my bed in this hovel and went forth to the beach to refresh myself with looking upon the water and the moon and breathing the cool air. And presently I heard a noise as of oars coming to me across the water and then, as it were, a weak cry. And shortly after, the tide brought to the land a little boat in which there was nothing but a man lean with extreme hunger and thirst who seemed to have died but a few moments before (for he was still warm), and an empty water—skin, and a child, still living. "Doubtless," said I, "these unfortunates have escapedfrom the wreck of a great ship, but by the admirable designs of the gods, the elder has starved himself to keep the child alive and has perished in sight of land." Accordingly, remembering how the gods never fail to reward those who befriend the destitute, and being moved by compassion (for your servant is a man of tender heart) —"

“有句話說得真好，”漁夫答道，“刀劍可以用盾牌抵擋，智慧的眼睛卻洞穿一切防禦。我的令人生畏的客人啊，因爲我窮得厲害，我從來沒有結過婚，更沒有兒子。但就在蒂斯羅克(願他萬壽無疆)開始他威嚴而造福的統治那一年裏，一天晚上，月亮圓圓的，衆神一時高興，使我睡不成覺。所以我就在這小屋裏起了牀，走出家門，到海灘上去，看看海水和月亮，呼吸呼吸涼快的空氣，給自己提神醒腦。不一會兒我便聽見一個聲音，像是槳在水面上向我划過來的聲音，接着，我又聽見了一種彷彿是微弱的哭泣的聲音。不久，湖水把一條小船衝上岸來，船裏別無他物，只有一個因極端飢渴而瘦弱的男子(他似乎是幾分鐘以前才死去的，因爲他的身體依舊是溫暖的)，一隻空空的貯水皮囊，以及一個還活着的孩了。‘毫無疑問，’我說，‘這兩個不幸的人是從一艘失事大船中逃出來的，但出於神祗的令人欽佩的設計，年長的那一位自己不吃不喝，使孩子得以活了下來，他自己見到陸地時便死了。’所以。牢記着神祗從來不會不京嘉獎同赤貧者友好的人，受憐憫之心的推動(因爲你的僕人是個軟心腸的人)——”

"Leave out all these idle words in your own praise," interrupted the Tarkaan. "It is enough to know that you took the child — and have had ten times the worth of his daily bread out of him in labour, as anyone can see. And now tell me at once what price you put on him, for I am wearied with your loquacity."

“撇開你所有這些自我稱讚的廢話吧，”泰坎打斷他的話，說道，“你收下了這個孩子，我知道這一點就足夠了——隨便什麼人都看得出來，你從這孩子的勞動中獲得的利益，其價值十倍於他日常吃的麪包。你對這孩子要價多少，現在就立刻告訴我吧，我對你那滔滔不絕的說話，已經感到厭倦了。”

"You yourself have wisely said," answered Arsheesh, "that the boy's labour has been to me of inestimable value. This must be taken into account in fixing the price. For if I sell the boy I must undoubtedly either buy or hire another to do his work."

“你自己已經明智地說過了，”阿什伊什回答道，“這孩子的勞動對我有無法估計的價值。因爲，如果我把這孩子賣掉，毫無疑問，我就得另外買一個或租一個孩子，來幹他所幹的活兒。”

"I'll give you fifteen crescents for him," said the Tarkaan.

“我願意出十五個克利申買這孩子。”泰坎說。

"Fifteen!" cried Arsheesh in a voice that was something between a whine and a scream. "Fifteen! For the prop of my old age and the delight of my eyes! Do not mock my grey beard, Tarkaan though you be. My price is seventy."

“十五個！”阿什伊什叫了起來，那聲調介於嗚咽和尖叫之間。“十五個克利申！出這點錢就想弄走我老年的依靠和心中的喜悅！別嘲弄我這把白鬍子了，儘管你是位泰坎。我定的價格是七十個克利申。”

At this point Shasta got up and tiptoed away. He had heard all he wanted, for he had open listened when men were bargaining in the village and knew how it was done. He was quite certain that Arsheesh would sell him in the end for something much more than fifteen crescents and much less than seventy, but that he and the Tarkaan would take hours in getting to an agreement.

沙斯塔聽到這兒便站起身來，掂着腳走開了。他已經聽見了他要聽到的一切，因爲他時常聽見大人們在村子裏討價還價，知道交易是怎麼做成的。他心裏已經十分肯定，阿什伊什末了會以大大超過十五個克利申又大大低於七十個克利申的價格把他賣出去的，但阿什伊什和泰坎還要磨上好幾個鐘頭才能達成協議哩。—

You must not imagine that Shasta felt at all as you and I would feel if we had just overheard our parents talking about selling us for slaves. For one thing, his life was already little better than slavery; for all he knew, the lordly stranger on the great horse might be kinder to him than Arsheesh. For another, the story about his own discovery in the boat had filled him with excitement and with a sense of relief. He had often been uneasy because, try as he might, he had never been able to love the fisherman, and he knew that a boy ought to love his father. And now, apparently, he was no relation to Arsheesh at all. That took a great weight off his mind. "Why, I might be anyone!" he thought. "I might be the son of a Tarkaan myself — or the son of the Tisroc (may he live for ever) or of a god!"

你可千萬別認爲，沙斯塔會像我們一樣感到難過——如果我們偷聽到我們的父母談論把我們賣身爲奴的話。他壓根兒不難受。一則是他的生活已經比奴隸生活好不了多少，說不定那位騎着大馬的王爺似的陌生人，會比阿什伊什待他仁慈一點也未可知哩；二則是那個說是在小船裏發現了他的故事，使他心中十分激動，而且還有一種安慰之感。他曾經時常於心不安：無論他怎麼努力，他可從來沒有愛過這漁夫，而他心裏是明白的，一個孩子應該愛他的父親。可現在，事情明明白白，他壓根兒跟阿什伊什毫無血緣關係。這就把他心上的沉重負擔卸掉了。“呀，我可能是隨便什麼人！”他想，“我可能就是—個泰坎的親生兒子——或者是蒂斯羅克(願他萬壽無疆)的兒子——或者是一個神抵的兒子！”