美国语文第四册 第137期:道德勇气(4)

 　　The first dawn of comfort came to him in vowing¹ to himself that he would stand by that boy through thick and thin,  他发誓要支持那个孩子面对困难，因为他这个晚上做的好事，

　　and cheer him, and help him, and bear his burdens, for the good deed done that night. 他要鼓励他，帮助他，帮他分担，这给他带来一丝安慰。

　　Then he resolved to write home next day and tell his mother all, and what a coward her son had been. 他决定第二天给家里写封信，告诉母亲发生的一切，告诉她自己曾经是个胆小鬼。

　　And then peace came to him as he resolved, lastly, to bear his testimony² next morning. 他下定决心要在第二天早上证明自己，这时他感到平静了。

　　The morning would be harder than the night to begin with, but he felt that he could not afford to let one chance slip. 他想到第二天早上可能会更难，可是他再也不能失去另一次机会了。

　　Several times he faltered³, for the Devil showed him, first, all his old friends calling him "Saint," and "Squaretoes," and a dozen hard names, 他动摇了好几次，心里的魔鬼暗示他，他的老朋友都会称他“圣人”、“老古板”等难听的称呼，

　　and whispered to him that his motives⁴ would be misunderstood, and he would be left alone with the new boy; 魔鬼小声告诉他别人会误解他的动机，说他会和新来的男孩一起众叛亲离；

　　whereas, it was his duty to keep all means of influence, that he might do good to the largest number. 可是，只有战胜各种各样的不良影响，才能做最有益的事情。

　　And then came the more subtle temptation, shall I not be showing myself braver than others by doing this? 更狡猾的诱惑出现了，“我不这么逞强不行吗？

　　Have I any right to begin it now? 我必须现在开始吗？

　　Ought I not rather to pray in my own study, letting other boys know that I do so,  我是不是应该在书房祷告，让别人了解我这么做，

　　and trying to lead them to it, while in public, at least, I should go on as I have done? 并努力引导他们，可是在公开场合，还和以前一样？

　　However, his good angel was too strong that night, and he turned on his side and slept, tired of trying to reason,  可是他的好天使那晚太强大了，他翻了个身准备睡觉了，他已经厌烦推理，

　　but resolved to follow the impulse which had been so strong, and in which he had found peace. 决心按照那股强烈的让他找到内心平静的冲动去做。

　　Next morning he was up and washed and dressed, all but his jacket and waistcoat, 第二天早上，洗完脸穿好衣服，没有穿外套和西装背心，

　　just as the ten minutes' bell began to ring, and then in the face of the whole room he knelt down to pray. 预备的钟声响起的时候，当着全屋人的面，他跪下来祷告。

　　Not five words could he say,—the bell mocked him; he was listening for every whisper in the room,—what were they all thinking of him? 还没说五个字，铃声就响了起来，像在嘲笑他；他注意听着别人的耳语，他们会怎么想他呢？

1 vowing   

起誓，发誓（vow的现在分词形式）

参考例句：

• President Bush is vowing to help Minneapolis rebuild its collapsed bridge. 布什总统承诺将帮助明尼阿波利斯重建坍塌的大桥。
• President Bush is vowing to help Minneapolis rebuild this collapse bridge. 布什总统发誓要帮助明尼阿波利斯重建起这座坍塌的桥梁。

2 testimony   

n.证词；见证，证明

参考例句：

• The testimony given by him is dubious.他所作的证据是可疑的。
• He was called in to bear testimony to what the police officer said.他被传入为警官所说的话作证。

3 faltered   

（嗓音）颤抖( falter的过去式和过去分词 )； 支吾其词； 蹒跚； 摇晃

参考例句：

• He faltered out a few words. 他支吾地说出了几句。
• "Er - but he has such a longhead!" the man faltered. 他不好意思似的嚅嗫着：“这孩子脑袋真长。”

4 motives   

n.动机，目的( motive的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• to impeach sb's motives 怀疑某人的动机
• His motives are unclear. 他的用意不明。