《风语河岸柳》第7章 重返蛤蟆宅第(4)

'There- is- an -underground- tunnel, ' said the Badger¹ slowly, 'which goes from the river bank near here, right up into the middle of Toad² Hall. '

有-个-地-下-通-道，獾缓缓地说，从附近的河岸刚好通到蛤蟆宅第的中部。

' Don't be silly, Badger! cried Toad. ' Of course there isn't! I know Toad Hall, inside and outside, and—'

别荒唐了，獾！癞蛤蟆叫了起来。当然没有！我熟悉蛤蟆宅第的里里外外，而且—

' My young friend, ' said the Badger calmly, ' your father—who was a great friend of mine— told me many things that he didn't tell you.

我的年轻朋友，獾平静地说，你父亲—我最好的朋友—告诉过我许多没对你提过的事情。

Don't tell my son about this tunnel, he said to me. He's a good boy, but he talks far too much. '

‘不要把这个通道告诉我儿子，’他对我说，‘他是好孩子，但他话太多。’

Toad opened his mouth to argue, and then decided³ not to .

癞蛤蟆张大嘴巴准备争辩，马上又决定放弃了。

'I asked Otter⁴, ' continued the Badger, ' to do some spy work for us. He pretended to be a gardener and went to the back door of the Hall, asking for work.

我让水獭，獾继续道。为我们作了些侦察。他扮成园丁去宅子后门找活干。

During the conversation he learnt that tomorrow night there will be a big birthday par-ty— the Chief Weasel's, I think— in the dining-hall.

在交谈中，他了解到明天晚上那儿将举行大型的生日晚会—我想是黄鼠狼头头的—在餐厅里。

All the weasels will be there, eating and drinking and laughing, and making a lot of noise. '

所有的黄鼠狼将在那儿吃喝玩乐，并制造出许多噪声。

' But the stoats will still be on guard on the walls, ' said the Rat.

但是大白鼬肯定还会在墙头上巡逻，水鼠说道。

'True, 'agreed the Badger. 'But the weasels, you see, know that, so they won't have any guns or sticks with them at the party.

是的，獾赞同道，但是你要明白，正是因为黄鼠狼知道有人放哨，他们在舞会上就不会随身带枪棍之类的。

And the tunnel comes up into that little room right next to the dining-hall. We only have to—'

而地道刚好通到餐厅隔壁的那所小房间，我们只要—

'—run into the dining-hall—' cried the Mole⁵.

—冲进厅—鼹鼠叫道。

'—with our guns and sticks and knives—'shouted the Rat.

带着我们的枪、棍和刀—水鼠喊道。

'and chase them and beat them and hit them! 'cried the Toad, greatly excited. He ran round and round the room, jumping over the chairs.

然后赶他们，揍他们，砍他们！蛤蟆也叫了起来，他异常激动，跨过椅子，在房间里跑圈儿。

1 badger   

v.一再烦扰，一再要求，纠缠

参考例句：

• Now that our debts are squared.Don't badger me with them any more.我们的债务两清了。从此以后不要再纠缠我了。
• If you badger him long enough,I'm sure he'll agree.只要你天天纠缠他，我相信他会同意。

2 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。

3 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。

4 otter   

n.水獭

参考例句：

• The economists say the competition otter to the brink of extinction.经济学家们说，竞争把海獭推到了灭绝的边缘。
• She collared my black wool coat with otter pelts.她把我的黑呢上衣镶上了水獭领。

5 mole   

n.胎块；痣；克分子

参考例句：

• She had a tiny mole on her cheek.她的面颊上有一颗小黑痣。
• The young girl felt very self- conscious about the large mole on her chin.那位年轻姑娘对自己下巴上的一颗大痣感到很不自在。