《风语河岸柳》第5章 给癞蛤蟆先生的教训(6)

Soon he came to a small town and decided¹ to have lunch in the pub² there. He was very hungry after his long walk.

不久他来到了一座小镇，便决定在那儿的酒馆用午餐。走了那么长的路，他已经非常饿了。

Halfway³ through his meal, he heard a sound that he knew very well indeed. Poop-poop! The car stopped outside and the people in it came into the pub to have lunch.

吃到半截，他听到了他实在是非常熟悉的声音。扑扑-扑扑！汽车停在了外面，车上的人下来走进酒馆来用餐。

Shaking with excitement, Toad⁴ paid his bill and hurried out.

癞蛤蟆兴奋得浑身发抖，他付完账冲了出去。

He walked slowly round the car, looking at it lovingly.

他跑到汽车跟前绕着它来回走，用爱抚的目光盯着它。

Every-body was having lunch and the street was empty.

每个人都在吃午饭，街道里空无一人。

'I wonder, 'Toad said to himself, 'I wonder if this kind of car starts easily?'

我想知道，癞蛤蟆自言自语，我想知道这种汽车是不是容易发动？

It started very easily, and Toad found himself in the driver's seat.

很容易就启动了，癞蛤蟆发现他坐在了驾驶室。

He did not know how it happened, but a minute later he was driving out of the town, forgetting right and wrong, for-getting everything except this wonderful, beautiful madness.

他不知道是怎么发生的，反正一分钟之后，他已驶出了小镇，除了这美妙迷人的疯狂，他忘记了对与错，忘记了一切。

Faster and faster he drove⁵, singing and laughing, as the car ate up the miles.

当汽车驶出数英里时，他不断地加大马力，唱着，笑着，把汽车开得越来越快。

Once again he knew that he was Toad-Toad the dreamer, Toad the adventurer, Toad the terror⁶ of the open road!

他再一次认识到他是蛤蟆——集梦想家，冒险家，还有公路上的恐怖分子于一身的癞蛤蟆！

'You are a dangerous criminal⁷, 'said the Judge.

你是一个危险的犯人，法官说，

'You stole a valuable motor-car, and you drove like a madman. It's surprising that you didn't kill somebody.

你偷了昂贵的汽车，还像疯子似的驾车。真奇怪你居然没有撞倒人。

And finally, you were very rude indeed to the police when they arrested you.

最后当警察逮捕你时，你还对他们非常粗鲁。

Because of all this, I am sending you to prison for twenty years. Guards! Take the prisoner⁸ away! '

基于此，我判你入狱二十年。卫士！把犯人带下去！

And so, shouting and crying, Toad was taken away. He was taken to an old dark castle, pushed into the smallest and darkest room below the ground, and the door was locked behind him.

癞蛤蟆叫嚷着哭喊着，被带到一座破旧黑暗的城堡，推进了一间地下最小最黑的房子里，然后门在他身后锁上了。

1 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

2 pub   

n.[英]旅馆，小店，酒馆

参考例句：

• He is the landlord of this pub.他是这家酒店的店主。
• They saw that four large men marched into the pub.他们看到四个彪形大汉走进了酒吧。

3 halfway   

adj.中途的，不彻底的，部分的；adv.半路地，在中途，在半途

参考例句：

• We had got only halfway when it began to get dark.走到半路，天就黑了。
• In study the worst danger is give up halfway.在学习上，最忌讳的是有始无终。

4 toad   

n.蟾蜍，癞蛤蟆

参考例句：

• Both the toad and frog are amphibian.蟾蜍和青蛙都是两栖动物。
• Many kinds of toad hibernate in winter.许多种蟾蜍在冬天都会冬眠。

5 drove   

vbl.驾驶，drive的过去式；n.畜群

参考例句：

• He drove at a speed of sixty miles per hour.他以每小时60英里的速度开车。
• They drove foreign goods out of the market.他们把外国货驱逐出市场。

6 terror   

n.恐怖；可怖的人(事)

参考例句：

• We were in mortal terror of being found out. 我们非常害怕被发现。
• That guy is a proper terror. 那家伙真是讨厌。

7 criminal   

n.罪犯，犯人，刑事；adj.犯了罪的，罪的，有罪的

参考例句：

• He is a habitual criminal.他是一个惯犯。
• We captured the criminal.我们捕获了那个犯人。

8 prisoner   

n.俘虏，囚犯，被监禁的人

参考例句：

• The soldier reported that a prisoner was at large.士兵报告说一名囚犯在逃。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。