雙語(yǔ)《小約翰》 十

X
十

Even before he was fairly awake，he was vaguely conscious that something strange had happened to him while he slept．Still he was not anxious to know what，or to look about him．He would rather return to the dream which was slowly fading like a rising mist—Robinetta had come to be with him again，and had stroked his hair as she used to do—and he had seen his father once more，and Presto， in the garden with the pool．
當(dāng)他有些微知覺(jué)，覺(jué)得在他的睡眠中起了一點(diǎn)特別事情的時(shí)候，他還沒(méi)有完全醒過(guò)來(lái)。但他不希望知道，也不愿意四顧。他要再回到宛如懶散的煙霧，正在徐徐消失著的那夢(mèng)中——其中是榮兒又來(lái)訪他了，而且一如從前，撫摩他的頭發(fā)——其中他又曾在有池的園子里，看見(jiàn)了他的父親和普烈斯多。

“Oh！That hurt！Who did that？”Johannes opened his eyes，and in the grey morning light，he saw a little man standing at his side who had pulled his hair．He himself was in bed，and the light was dim and subdued，as in a room．
“噢！這好痛！是誰(shuí)干的？”約翰睜開(kāi)眼，在黎明中，他就在左近看見(jiàn)一個(gè)小小的形體，還覺(jué)出一只正在拉他頭發(fā)的手來(lái)。他躺在床上，晨光微薄而平均，如在一間屋子里。

But the face which bent over him at once carried him back to all the misery and distress of the past evening．It was Pluizer's face， less boguey-like and more human，but as ugly and terrifying as ever．
然而那俯向著他的臉，卻將他昨日的一切困苦和一切憂郁都叫醒了。這是穿鑿的臉，鬼樣較少，人樣較多，但還如昨晚一樣的可憎和可怕。

“Oh，no！Let me dream！”cried Johannes．
“唉，不！讓我做夢(mèng)。”他懇求道。

But Pluizer shook him．“Are you crazy，sluggard？ Dreaming is folly；you will never get any further by that．A man must work and think and search；that is what you are a man for．”
然而穿鑿搖撼他：“你瘋了么，懶貨？夢(mèng)是癡呆，你在那里走不通的。人須工作，思想，尋覓——因此，他才是一個(gè)人！”

“I do not want to be a man．I want to dream．”
“我情愿不是人，我要做夢(mèng)！”

“I cannot help that；you must．You are now in my charge，and you must work and seek with me．With me alone can you ever find the thing you want．And I will not give in till we have found it．”
“那你就無(wú)法可救。你應(yīng)該，現(xiàn)在你在我的守護(hù)之下了，你須和我一同工作并且思想。只有和我，你能夠覓得你所希望的東西。而且直到覓得了那個(gè)為止，我也不愿意離開(kāi)你?！?/span>

Johannes felt a vague dismay；still，a stronger will coerced and drove him．He involuntarily submitted．
約翰從這外觀上，感到了無(wú)限的憂懼。然而他卻仿佛被一種不能抵御的威力，壓制和強(qiáng)迫了。他不知不覺(jué)地降伏了。

The sand-hills，trees，and flowers had vanished．He was in a small dimly-lighted room；outside，as far as he could see，there were houses，and more houses，dingy and grey，in long dull rows．
岡阜、樹(shù)木和花卉是過(guò)去了。他在一間狹窄的微明的小屋里——他望見(jiàn)外面，凡目力所及，是房屋又房屋，作成長(zhǎng)長(zhǎng)的一式的排列，黯淡而且模胡。

Smoke rose from every one of them in thick wreaths，and made a sort of brown fog in the streets．And along those streets men were hurrying，like great black ants．A mingled，dull clamour came up from the throng without ceasing．
煙氣到處升作沉重的環(huán)，并且淡棕色霧似的，降到街道上。街上是人們忙亂地往來(lái)，正如大的黑色的螞蟻。騷亂的轟鬧，混沌而不絕地從那人堆里升騰起來(lái)。

“Look，Johannes，”said Pluizer．“Now is not that a fine sight？ Those are men，and all the houses，whichever way you look，and as far as you can see—even beyond the blue towers there—are full of men—quite full from top to bottom．Is not that wonderful？ That is rather different from a sand-hill！”
“看呀，約翰！”穿鑿說(shuō)，“這豈不有點(diǎn)好看么？這就是一切人們和一切房子們，一如你所望見(jiàn)的那樣遠(yuǎn)——比那藍(lán)的塔還遠(yuǎn)些——也滿是人們，從底下塞到上面。這不值得注意么？比起螞蟻堆來(lái)，這是完全兩樣的?！?/span>

Johannes listened with alarmed curiosity，as though some huge and hideous monster had risen up before him．He felt as if he stood on the creature's back，and could see the black blood flowing through its great arteries，and the murky breath streaming from its hundred nostrils．And the portentous hum of that terrible voice filled him with fears．
約翰懷著恐怖的好奇心傾聽(tīng)，似乎人示給了他一條偉大的可怕的大怪物。他仿佛就站在這大怪物的背上，又仿佛看見(jiàn)黑血在厚的血管中流過(guò)，以及昏暗的呼吸從百數(shù)鼻孔里升騰。當(dāng)那駭人的聲音將要兆兇的怒吼之前，就使他恐怖。

“Look how fast the men walk，”P(pán)luizer went on．“You can see that they are in a hurry and are seeking something，cannot you？ But the amusing thing is，that not one of them knows exactly what he is seeking．When they have been seeking for some little time，some one comes to meet them—his name is Hein．”
“看哪，人們都怎樣地跑著呵，約翰，”穿鑿?fù)抡f(shuō)，“你可以看出，他們有所奔忙，并且有所尋覓，對(duì)不對(duì)？那卻好玩，他自己正在尋覓什么，卻誰(shuí)都不大知道。倘若他們尋覓了一會(huì)兒，他們便遇見(jiàn)一個(gè)誰(shuí)，那名叫永終的……”

“Who is he？”asked Johannes．
“那是什么人呢？”約翰問(wèn)。

“Oh，a very good friend of mine．I will introduce you to him some day．Then Hein says to them，‘Are you looking for me？’To which most of them reply，‘Oh no．I do not want you！’But then Hein says again，‘But there is nothing to be found but me．’So they have to be satisfied with Hein．”
“我的好相識(shí)之一，我早要給他紹介你了。那永終便說(shuō)：‘你在尋覓我么？’大多數(shù)大概回答道：‘阿，不，我沒(méi)有想到你！’但永終卻又反駁道：‘除了我，你卻不能覓得別的?！谑撬麄兙椭坏煤陀澜K滿足了?！?/span>

Johannes understood that he meant death．
約翰懂得，他是說(shuō)著死。

“And is it always，always so？”
“而且這永是，永是這么下去么？”

“To be sure，always．And yet，day after day，a new crowd come on，who begin forthwith to seek they know not what，and they seek and seek till at last they find Hein．This has been going on for a good while already，and so it will continue for some time yet．”
“一定，永是。然而每日又來(lái)一堆新的人，即刻又尋覓起來(lái)，不知道為什么，而尋覓又尋覓，直到他們終于覓得永終——這已經(jīng)這樣地經(jīng)過(guò)了好一會(huì)兒了，也還要這樣地經(jīng)過(guò)好一會(huì)兒的。”

“And shall I never find anything，Pluizer—nothing but—？”
“我也覓不到別的東西么，穿鑿，除了……”

“Ay，you will find Hein some day，sure enough！but that does not matter；seek all the same—for ever be seeking．”
“是呵，永終是你一定會(huì)覓得一回的，然而這不算什么。只是尋覓罷！不斷地尋覓！”

“But the Book，Pluizer，you were to make me find the Book．”
“但是那書(shū)兒，穿鑿，你曾要使我覓得的那書(shū)兒?！?/span>

“Well who knows？ I have not taken back my word．We must seek it diligently．At any rate we know where to look for it；Wistik taught us that．And there are folks who spend all their lives in the search without even knowing so much as that．Those are the men of science，Johannes．But then Hein comes and it is all over with their search．”
“唔，誰(shuí)知道呢！我沒(méi)有說(shuō)謊。我們應(yīng)該尋覓，尋覓。我們尋覓什么，我們還知道得很少。這是將知教給我們的。也有這樣的人，他們一生中尋覓著，只為要知道他們正在尋覓著什么——這是哲學(xué)家。約翰。然而倘若永終一到，那也就和他們的尋覓都去了?！?/span>

“That is horrible，Pluizer！”
“這可怕，穿鑿！”

“Oh no，not at all！Hein is a very kind creature；but he is misunderstood．”
“阿，不然，全不然。永終是一個(gè)實(shí)在忠厚的人。他被看錯(cuò)了?！?/span>

Some one was heard on the staircase outside the bedroom door．Tramp，tramp，up the wooden steps—tramp，tramp，—nearer and nearer．Then some one tapped at the door，and it was as though iron rapped against the panel．
有人在門(mén)前的梯子上躓著腳。橐橐！橐橐！在木梯上面響。于是有人叩門(mén)了，仿佛是鐵敲著木似的。

A tall man came in．He had deep-set eyes and long lean hands．A cold draught blew into the room．
一個(gè)長(zhǎng)的，瘦的男人進(jìn)來(lái)了。他有深陷的眼睛和長(zhǎng)而瘦的手。一陣?yán)滹L(fēng)透過(guò)了那小屋。

“Good-day，”said Pluizer，“so it is you！Sit down．We were just speaking of you．How are you getting on？”
“哦，這樣！”穿鑿說(shuō)，“你來(lái)了，坐下罷！我們正談到你。你好么？”

“Busy，busy！”said the tall man，and he wiped the cold dews from his bald，bony forehead．
“工作！許多工作！”那長(zhǎng)人說(shuō)，一面拭著自己的冒出的灰白的額上的冷汗。

Without moving Johannes looked timidly into the deep-set eyes which were fixed on his．They were grave and gloomy，but not cruel， not angry．After a few minutes he breathed more freely and his heart beat less wildly．
不動(dòng)而膽怯的約翰看著那僵視著他的深陷的眼睛。眼睛是嚴(yán)正而且黑暗，然而并不殘忍，也無(wú)敵意。幾瞬息之后，他又呼吸得較為自由，他的心也跳得不大劇烈了。

“This is Johannes，”said Pluizer．“He has heard of a certain book in which it is written why everything is as it is，and we are now going to seek it together，are we not？”And Pluizer laughed significantly．
“這是約翰，”穿鑿說(shuō)，“他曾經(jīng)聽(tīng)說(shuō)有那么一本書(shū)兒，里面記著，為什么一切是這樣，像這似的，而且我們還要一同去尋覓，是么？”穿鑿一面別有許多用意地微笑著。

“Ay，indeed？ That is well！”said Death kindly，and he nodded to Johannes．
“唉，這樣，唔，這是正當(dāng)?shù)?！”死親愛(ài)地說(shuō)，且向約翰點(diǎn)頭。

“He is afraid he will not find it，but I tell him first to seek it diligently．”
“他怕覓不到那個(gè)呢——但我告訴他，他首先須要實(shí)在勤懇地尋覓?！?/span>

“To be sure，”said Death．“Seek diligently，that is the best way．”
“誠(chéng)然，”死說(shuō)，“勤懇地尋覓那是正當(dāng)?shù)摹！?/span>

“He thought，too，that you were very dreadful．But you see， Johannes，that you were mistaken．”
“他以為你許是很殘忍。但你看罷，約翰，你錯(cuò)了，對(duì)不對(duì)？”

“Oh yes，”said Death good-humouredly，“men speak much evil of me．I am not attractive to look upon，but I mean well， nevertheless．”
“唉，是呵！”死親愛(ài)地說(shuō)，“人說(shuō)我許多壞處。我沒(méi)有勝人的外觀，但我以為這也還好?！?/span>

He smiled faintly，as one who is occupied with more serious matters than those he is speaking of．Then he took his dark gaze from Johannes's face，and looked out thoughtfully over the great city．
他疲乏地微笑，如一個(gè)忙碌于一件正在議論的嚴(yán)重事情的人。于是他的黑暗的眼光從約翰彎到遠(yuǎn)方，并且在大都市上沉思地恍忽著。

For a long time Johannes dared not speak；but at last he said in a low voice—
約翰長(zhǎng)久不敢說(shuō)話，終于他低聲說(shuō)：

“Are you going to take me with you？”
“你現(xiàn)在要帶著我么？”

“What do you mean，my child？”said Death，roused from his meditations．“No，not now．You must grow up and become a good man．”
“你想什么，我的孩子？”死說(shuō)，從他的夢(mèng)幻中仰視著，“不，現(xiàn)在還不。你應(yīng)該長(zhǎng)大，且成一個(gè)好人?！?/span>

“I will not grow to be a man like all the rest．”
“我不愿意是一個(gè)人，如同其他那樣的。”

“Come，come，”said Death，“there is no help for it．”
“去罷，去罷！”死說(shuō)，“這無(wú)從辦起?！?/span>

And it was easy to hear that this was a frequent phrase with him．He went on—
人可以聽(tīng)出他來(lái)，這是他的一種常用的語(yǔ)氣。他接續(xù)著：

“My friend Pluizer can teach you how to become a good man．There are various ways of being good，but Pluizer can teach you admirably．It is a very fine and noble thing to be a good man．You must never look down on a good man，my little fellow．”
“人怎地能成一個(gè)好人，我的朋友穿鑿可以教你的。這也有各樣的方法，但穿鑿教得最出色。成一個(gè)好人，實(shí)在是很好看、很值得期望的事。你不可以低廉地估計(jì)它，年青小子！”

“Seek，think，look about you，”said Pluizer．
“尋覓，思想，觀察?！贝╄徴f(shuō)。

“To be sure，to be sure，”said Death．And then he inquired of Pluizer：“To whom will you take him？”
“誠(chéng)然，誠(chéng)然，”死說(shuō)——于是對(duì)著穿鑿道：“你想領(lǐng)他到誰(shuí)那里去呢？”

“To Doctor Cypher，my old pupil．”
“到號(hào)碼博士那里，我的老學(xué)生。”

“Ah yes，—a very good pupil．A very capital example of a man！ Almost perfect in his own way．”
“唉，是呀，那是一個(gè)好學(xué)生，人的模范。在他這一類(lèi)里，幾乎完備了?！?/span>

“Shall I see Robinetta again？”asked Johannes，trembling．
“我會(huì)再見(jiàn)榮兒么？”約翰抖著問(wèn)。

“What does the boy mean？”asked Death．
“那孩子想誰(shuí)呀？”死問(wèn)。

“Oh，he was in love，and fancied that he was an elf．Ha，ha，ha！”laughed Pluizer spitefully．
“唉，他曾經(jīng)被愛(ài)了，至今還在幻想成一個(gè)妖精，嘻嘻嘻。”穿鑿陰險(xiǎn)地微笑著。

“No，no，my little man，that will never do，”said Death．“You will soon forget all that when you are with Doctor Cypher．Those who seek what you seek must give up everything else．All or nothing．”
“不然，我的孩子，這不相干，”死說(shuō)，“這樣的事情，你在號(hào)碼博士那里便沒(méi)有了。誰(shuí)要尋覓你所尋覓的，他應(yīng)該將所有別的都忘掉。一切或全無(wú)?！?/span>

“I shall make a real man of him．I will let him see some day what being in love really means，and then he will cast it from him altogether．”
“我要以一鑄將他造成一個(gè)人，我要指示他什么是戀愛(ài)，他就早要想穿了?！?/span>

And Pluizer laughed heartily．Death again fixed his black eyes on poor Johannes，who had some difficulty in refraining from sobbing．But he was ashamed to cry in the presence of Death．
穿鑿又復(fù)高興地笑起來(lái)——死又將他的黑眼睛放在可憐的約翰上，那竭力忍住他的嗚咽的。因?yàn)樗谒烂媲靶呃ⅰ?/span>

Death suddenly rose．“I must be going，”said he．“I am wasting my time in talk，and there is much to be done．Good-bye， Johannes！—We shall meet again．But you must not be afraid of me．”
死驟然起立。“我應(yīng)該去了，”他說(shuō)，“我談過(guò)了我的時(shí)間。這里還有許多事情做。好天，約翰，我們要再見(jiàn)了。你只不可在我面前有害怕。”

“I am not afraid of you；I wish you would take me with you．”
“我在你面前沒(méi)有害怕——我情愿你帶著我。請(qǐng)！帶我去罷！”

But Death gently pushed him away；he was used to such entreaties．
死卻溫和地拒絕了他，這一類(lèi)的請(qǐng)求，他是聽(tīng)?wèi)T了的。

“No，Johannes．—Go now to your work in life；seek and see！ Ask me no more．I will ask you some day，and that will be quite soon enough．”
“不，約翰，你現(xiàn)在去工作，尋覓和觀察罷。不要再請(qǐng)求我。我只招呼一次，而且夠是時(shí)候的。”

When he had disappeared Pluizer again began to behave in the wildest fashion．He leaped over the seats，turned somersaults， climbed up the cupboard and chimney-shelf，and played break-neck tricks at the open window．
他一消失，穿鑿又完全恣肆了。他跳過(guò)椅子，順著地面滑走，爬上柜子和煙突去，還在開(kāi)著的窗間，耍出許多可以折斷頸子的技藝。

“Well，that was Hein，my good friend Hein！”said he．“Did you not like him greatly？ A little unattractive and bony-looking，perhaps．But he can be very jolly too，when he takes pleasure in his work．Sometimes it bores him；it is rather monotonous．”
“這就是那永終呵，我的好朋友永終！”他大聲說(shuō)，“你看不出他好來(lái)么？他確也見(jiàn)得有點(diǎn)兒可憎，面且很陰慘。但倘在他的工作上有了他的歡喜，他也能很高興的，然而這工作常常使他無(wú)聊。這事也單調(diào)一點(diǎn)。”

“Pluizer，who tells him where he is to go next？”
“他該到那里去，是誰(shuí)告訴他的呢，穿鑿？”

Pluizer stared at Johannes with a look of cunning inquiry．
穿鑿猜疑地，偵察地用一目斜睨著約翰。

“What makes you ask？—He goes where he pleases—He takes those he can catch．”
“你為什么問(wèn)這個(gè)？他走他自己的路。他一得來(lái)，他就帶著?！?/span>

Later，Johannes came to see that it was not so．But as yet he knew no better，and thought that Pluizer was always right．
后來(lái)，約翰別有見(jiàn)地了。但現(xiàn)在他卻沒(méi)有知道得更分明，且相信穿鑿所說(shuō)的總該是真實(shí)的。

They went out and up the street，moving among the swarming throng．The men in their black clothes bustled about，laughing and talking so gaily that Johannes could not help wondering．He saw how Pluizer nodded to several，but no one returned the greeting；they all looked in front of them as if they did not even see him．
他們?cè)诮值郎献?，輾轉(zhuǎn)著穿過(guò)蠕動(dòng)的人堆。黑色的人們交錯(cuò)奔波著，笑著，喋喋著，顯得這樣地高興而且無(wú)愁，不免使約翰詫異。他看見(jiàn)穿鑿向許多人們點(diǎn)頭，卻沒(méi)有一個(gè)人回禮，大家都看著自己的前面，仿佛他們一無(wú)所見(jiàn)似的。

“They go by and laugh now，”said Pluizer，“as if they none of them knew me．But that is only make-believe．When I am alone with one of them they cannot pretend not to know me，and then they are not so light-hearted．”
“現(xiàn)在他們走著，笑著，似乎他們之中沒(méi)有一個(gè)認(rèn)識(shí)我。但這不過(guò)是景象。倘或我單獨(dú)和他們?cè)谝惶帲麄兙筒辉倌軌蚍裾J(rèn)我，而且他們也就失卻了興趣了。”

And as they went on Johannes was presently aware of some one following them．When he looked round he saw that the tall pale figure was striding on among the people，with long noiseless steps．He nodded to Johannes．
在路上，約翰覺(jué)得有人跟在他后面走。他一回顧，他看出是那用了不可聞的大踏步，在人們中間往來(lái)的，長(zhǎng)的蒼白的人。他向約翰點(diǎn)頭。

“Do the people see him too？”asked Johannes of Pluizer．
“人們也看見(jiàn)他么？”約翰問(wèn)穿鑿。

“Certainly，but they do not choose to know him．Well，I pardon them for their arrogance！”
“一定，他們個(gè)個(gè)，然而他們連他也不愿意認(rèn)識(shí)。唔，我喜歡讓他們高傲?！?/span>

The crowd and the turmoil produced a sort of bewilderment which made Johannes forget his woes．The narrow streets and the high houses，which cut the blue heavens above into straight strips， the people going up and down them，the shuffling of feet and the clatter of vehicles，ousted the visions and dreams of the night，as a storm dissipates the images in a pool of water．It seemed to him that there was nothing in the world but walls，and windows，and men．He felt as if he too must do the same，and rush and push in the seething， breathless whirl．
那混亂和喧鬧使約翰昏聵了，這即刻又使他忘卻了他的憂愁。狹窄的街道和將天的蔚藍(lán)分成長(zhǎng)條的高的房屋，沿屋走著的人們，腳步的橐橐和車(chē)子的隆隆，擾亂了那夜的舊的幻覺(jué)和夢(mèng)境，正如暴風(fēng)之于水鏡上的影象一般。這在他，仿佛是人們之外更無(wú)別物存在——仿佛他應(yīng)該在無(wú)休無(wú)歇的絕息的擾亂里，一同做，一同跑。

Presently they came to a quieter neighbourhood，where a large house stood，with plain grey windows．It looked stern and unkindly．Everything was silent within，and Johannes smelt a mixture of sour， unfamiliar odours，with a damp，cellar-like atmosphere for their background．In a room filled with strange-looking instruments sat a lonely man．He was surrounded by books，and glass and copper objects，all unknown to Johannes．A single ray of sunshine fell into the room above his head，and sparkled on flasks full of bright-coloured liquids．The man was gazing fixedly through a copper tube and did not look up．
于是他們到了沉靜的都市的一部分，那地方站著一所大房屋，有著大而素樸的窗門(mén)。這顯得無(wú)情而且嚴(yán)厲。里面是靜靜的，約翰還覺(jué)到一種不熟悉的刺鼻的氣味夾著鈍濁的地窖氣作為底子的混合。一間小屋，里面是奇異的家具，還坐著一個(gè)孤寂的人。他被許多書(shū)籍、玻璃杯和銅的器具圍繞著，那些也都是約翰所不熟悉的。一道寂寞的日光從他頭上照入屋中，并且在盛著美色液體的玻璃杯間閃爍。那人努力地在一個(gè)黃銅管里注視，也并不抬頭。

As Johannes approached he could hear him murmuring，
當(dāng)約翰走得較近時(shí)，他聽(tīng)到他怎樣地喃喃著：

“Wistik，Wistik！”
“將知！將知！”

By the man's side，on a long black board，lay something white and furry which Johannes could not see very clearly．
那人旁邊，在一個(gè)長(zhǎng)的黑架子上，躺著一點(diǎn)他所不很能夠辨別的白東西。

“Good-morning，doctor，”said Pluizer；but the doctor did not move．
“好早晨，博士先生?！贝╄徴f(shuō)，然而那博士還是不抬頭。

But Johannes was startled，for the white object which he was watching intently，suddenly began to move convulsively．What he had seen was the white fur of a rabbit lying on its back．The head， with the mobile nose，was fixed in an iron clamp，and its four little legs were firmly bound to its body．The hopeless effort to get free was soon over，then the little creature lay still again，and only the rapid movement of its bleeding throat showed that it was still alive．
于是約翰吃驚了，因?yàn)樗诮吡μ揭暤哪前讝|西，突然起了痙攣的顫抖的運(yùn)動(dòng)。他所見(jiàn)的是一只兔身上的白茸皮。有那動(dòng)著的鼻子的小頭，向下縛在鐵架上，四條腿是在身上緊緊地綁起來(lái)。那想要擺脫的絕望的試驗(yàn)，只經(jīng)過(guò)了一瞬息，這小動(dòng)物便又靜靜地躺著了，只是那流血的頸子的急速的顫動(dòng)，還在顯示它沒(méi)有死。

And Johannes saw its round，gentle eye staring wide in helpless terror，and he felt as if he recognised the poor little beast．Was not that the soft little body against which he had slept that first delightful night with the elves？ Old memories crowded in his mind；he flew to the rabbit．
約翰還看見(jiàn)那圓圓的仁厚的眼睛，圓睜在它的無(wú)力的恐怖中，并且他仿佛有些熟識(shí)。唉，當(dāng)那最初的有幸的妖夜里，在這柔軟的，而現(xiàn)在是帶著急速的恐怖的喘息而顫動(dòng)著的小身體上，他曾經(jīng)枕過(guò)自己的頭。他的過(guò)去生活的一切記念，用了威力逼起他來(lái)了。他并不想，他卻直闖到那小動(dòng)物面前去：

“Wait，wait！Poor rabbit！I will release you！”and he hastily tried to cut the cords which bound the tender little paws．
“等一等！等一等！可憐的小鬼，我要幫助你。”他并且急急地想解開(kāi)那緊縛著嫩腳的繩子來(lái)。

But his hands were tightly clutched，and a sharp laugh sounded in his ear．
但他的手同時(shí)也被緊緊地捏住了，耳邊還響著尖利的笑聲。

“What do you mean by this，Johannes？ Are you still such a baby？ What must the doctor think of you？”
“這是什么意思，約翰？你還是這樣孩子氣么？那博士對(duì)你得怎樣想呢？”

“What does the boy want？ What brings him here？”asked the doctor in surprise．
“那孩子要怎樣？他在這里干什么？”那博士驚訝地問(wèn)。

“He wants to become a man，so I have brought him to you．But he is still young and childish．That is not the way to find what you are seeking，Johannes．”
“他要成一個(gè)人，因此我?guī)侥氵@里來(lái)的。然而他還太小，也太孩子氣。要尋覓你所尋覓的，這樣可不是那條路呵，約翰！”

“No，that is not the way，”said the doctor．
“是的，那樣的路不是那正當(dāng)?shù)??！辈┦空f(shuō)。

“Doctor，set the rabbit free！”
“博士先生，放掉那小兔罷！”

But Pluizer held him by both hands till he hurt him．
穿鑿掐住了他的兩手，至使他發(fā)起抖來(lái)。

“What did we agree on，little man？”he whispered in his ear．“To seek diligently，was it not？ We are not on the sand-hills now， with Windekind and the dumb brutes．We are to be men—men．Do you understand？ If you mean to remain a child，if you are not strong enough to help me，I will send you about your business and you may seek by yourself．”
“我們?cè)鯓蛹s定的，小孩子？”他向他附耳說(shuō)，“我們須尋覓，是不是？我們?cè)谶@里并非在沙岡上旋兒身邊和無(wú)理性的畜類(lèi)里面。我們要是人類(lèi)——人類(lèi)！你懂得么？倘或你愿意止于一個(gè)小孩子，倘或你不夠強(qiáng)，來(lái)幫助我，我就使你走，那就獨(dú)自去尋覓！”

Johannes was silent，and believed him．He would be strong．He shut his eyes so that he might not see the rabbit．
約翰默然，并且相信了，他愿意強(qiáng)。他閉了眼睛，想看不見(jiàn)那小兔。

“My dear boy，”said the doctor，“you seem still too tender-hearted to begin．To be sure—the first time it is horrible to look on．I myself，for some time，was most averse to it，and avoided it as far as possible．But it is indispensable；and you must remember we are men and not brutes，and the advancement of mankind and of science is of more importance than a few rabbits．”
“可愛(ài)的孩子！”博士說(shuō)，“你在開(kāi)初似乎還有一點(diǎn)仁厚，那是的確，第一回是看去很有些不舒服的。我本身就永不愿意看，我只要能避開(kāi)就避開(kāi)。然而這是不能免的，你還應(yīng)該懂得：我們正是人類(lèi)而非動(dòng)物，而且人類(lèi)的和科學(xué)的尊榮，是遠(yuǎn)出于幾匹小兔的尊榮之上的。”

“Do you hear？”said Pluizer，—“science and mankind．”
“你聽(tīng)到么？”穿鑿說(shuō)，“科學(xué)和人類(lèi)！”

“The man of science，”the doctor went on，“stands far above all other men．But he must make all the smaller feelings which are common to the vulgar give way to the one grand idea of science．Will you be such a man？ Is that your vocation，my boy？”
“科學(xué)的人，”博士接著說(shuō)，“高于一切此外的人們。然而他也就應(yīng)該將平常人的小感觸，為了那大事業(yè)、科學(xué)，作為犧牲。你愿意做一個(gè)這樣的人么？你覺(jué)得這是你的本分么，我的小孩子？”

Johannes hesitated；he did not know justly what a vocation might be—any more than the cockchafer．
約翰遲疑著，他不大懂得“本分”這一個(gè)詞，正如那金蟲(chóng)一樣。

“I want to find the book of which Wistik spoke，”said he．
“我要覓得那書(shū)兒，”他說(shuō)，“那將知說(shuō)過(guò)的?！?/span>

The doctor looked surprised and asked，“Wistik？”
博士驚訝了，并且問(wèn)：“將知？”

Pluizer hastened to reply．“He will，doctor；I know he really will．He desires to seek the highest wisdom and to understand the true nature of tilings．”
但穿鑿卻迅速地說(shuō)道：“他要這個(gè)，博士，我很明白的。他要尋覓那最高的智慧，他要給萬(wàn)有立一個(gè)根基?！?/span>

Johannes nodded，“Yes！”So far as he understood the matter， that was what he meant．
約翰點(diǎn)頭。“是的！”他對(duì)于這話所懂得的那些，即是他的目的。

“Very well；but then you must be strong，Johannes，and not timid and soft-hearted．Then I can help you．But remember：all or nothing．”
“唉，那你就應(yīng)該強(qiáng)，約翰，不要小氣以及軟心。那么我就要幫助你了。然而你打算打算罷：一切或全無(wú)?！?/span>

And with trembling fingers Johannes helped to tighten the relaxed cords round the rabbit's little paws．
于是約翰用發(fā)抖的手，又將那解開(kāi)的繩幫同捆在小兔的四爪上。