【双语有声阅读】内卡河上木筏行(3)

Grazing the right-bank dike¹ and aiming carefully for the middle arch of the stone bndge below;

 

顺流而下，擦过堤岸的右侧边缘，小心地对准下游石桥的中孔滑下。

I watched them in this way,and lost all this time hoping to see one of them hit the pridge-pier and wreck² itself sometime or other,

我就这样望着它们，在对什么时候能看到它们撞在桥墩，成为残骸的憧憬中迷失了自我。

but was always disappointed.

然而，我总是失望。

马克吐温.jpg

 

One was smashed there one morning, but I had just stepped into my room a moment to light a pipe, so I lost it.

 

一天早晨，有一条木筏粉碎在那里，不过却是在我刚踏进房间去点烟时撞击的，因此我还是错过了。

While I was looking down upon the rafts that morning in Heilbronn, the daredevil spirit of adventure came suddenly upon me，and I said to my comrades:

在海尔布隆的那个早晨，当我俯瞰着木筏时，蛮勇的冒险精神突然产生，我对我的同伴们说：

I am going to Heidelberg on a raft.

我准备乘木筏去海徳堡。

Will you venture with me?

你们和我一起去冒险吗？

Their faces paled a little, but they assented³ with as good a grace as they could.

他们的脸色吓得苍白，不过还是尽可能优雅地表示赞同。

Harris wanted to cable his mother—thought it his duty to do that, as he was all she had in this world.

哈里斯想给他的母亲发一封电报—认为这是他的职责，因为他是母亲在这个世界上唯一的亲人。

so, while he attended to this, I went down to the longest and finest raft and hailed the captain with a heary Ahoy, shipmate!

因此，他去发电报了。与此同时，我跑上那条最长、最好的木筏，热情地向舵手打招呼道：嗨，你们好啊

Which put us upon pleasant terms at once, and we entered upon business.

这一问候立刻使气氛活跃起来，接着我们便进入了正题。

I said we were on a pedestrian tour to Heidelberg, and would like to take passage with him.I said this partly thorough young Z, who spoke⁴ German very well,

我说，我们原本是要徒步旅行到海徳堡去的，但现在打算乘坐他们的木筏去那里。我的这些话有一部分是通过蔡德先生翻译的，他的德语说得很好；

and partly through Mr.X who spoke it peculiarly.

另一部分则是通过爱克司先生翻译的，他的德语说得相当地道。

I can understand German as well as the maniac⁵ that invented it, but I talk it best through an interpreter.

我能像发明它的狂人一样听明白德语，不过我要通过翻译才能把它说好。

The captain hitched⁶ up his trousers, then shifted his quid thoughtfully.

木筏上的舵手提提裤子，边嚼着烟草块，边思考，

Presently he said just what I was expecting he would say-that he had no license⁷ to carry passengers,

正如我 所预料的，他说他没有运送旅客的执照，

and therefore was afraid the law would be after him in case the matter got noised about or any accident happened.

万一这件事宣扬出去或者出了什么事故，他就会被追查。

1 dike   

n.堤，沟；v.开沟排水

参考例句：

• They dug a dike along walls of the school.他们沿校墙挖沟。
• Fortunately,the flood did not break the dike.还好，这场大水没有把堤坝冲坏。

2 wreck   

n.失事，遇难；沉船；vt.(船等)失事，遇难

参考例句：

• Weather may have been a factor in the wreck.天气可能是造成这次失事的原因之一。
• No one can wreck the friendship between us.没有人能够破坏我们之间的友谊。

3 assented   

同意，赞成( assent的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The judge assented to allow the prisoner to speak. 法官同意允许犯人申辩。
• "No," assented Tom, "they don't kill the women -- they're too noble. “对，”汤姆表示赞同地说，“他们不杀女人——真伟大！

4 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

5 maniac   

n.精神癫狂的人；疯子

参考例句：

• Be careful!That man is driving like a maniac!注意！那个人开车像个疯子一样！
• You were acting like a maniac,and you threatened her with a bomb!你像一个疯子，你用炸弹恐吓她！

6 hitched   

（免费）搭乘他人之车( hitch的过去式和过去分词 )； 搭便车； 攀上； 跃上

参考例句：

• They hitched a ride in a truck. 他们搭乘了一辆路过的货车。
• We hitched a ride in a truck yesterday. 我们昨天顺便搭乘了一辆卡车。

7 license   

n.执照，许可证，特许；v.许可，特许

参考例句：

• The foreign guest has a license on the person.这个外国客人随身携带执照。
• The driver was arrested for having false license plates on his car.司机由于使用假车牌而被捕。