第一冊第13篇：小客棧的樂趣
James Boswell 詹姆斯·鮑斯韋爾
We dined at an excellent inn at Chapelhouse(2), where Dr. Johnson expatiated on the felicity of England in its taverns and inns, and triumphed over(3) the French for not having, in any perfection, the tavern life. "There is no private house," said he, "in which people can enjoy themselves so well as at a capital tavern. Let there be ever so great plenty of good things(4), ever so much grandeur, ever so much elegance, ever so much desire that everybody should be easy, in the nature of things(5) it cannot be: there must always be some degree of care and anxiety. The master of the house is anxious to entertain his guests; the guests are anxious to be agreeable to him; and no man but a very impudent dog(6) indeed can as freely command what is in another’s house as if it were his own(7). Whereas at a tavern there is a general freedom from anxiety. You are sure you are welcome; the more noise you make, the more trouble you give, the more good things you call for, the welcomer you are. No servants(8) will attend you with the alacrity which waiters(9) do, who are excited with the prospect of an immediate reward(10) in proportion as(11) they please. No, sir; there is nothing which has as yet been contrived by man, by which so much happiness is produced as by a good tavern or inn.
中文譯文：
我們在查普爾壕斯一家極好的小客棧里吃飯，約翰遜博土在那兒詳細敘述了英格蘭的小客棧和小旅館的妙處，并得意洋洋地指出法國人沒有任何這等完美的小客棧生活。"任何私人住宅，"他說，"都不能使人們象在一家頂好的小客棧里那樣舒適愉快。盡管那里好東西應有盡有，盡管屋宇是那樣的宏偉，陳設是那樣的雅致，盡管主人一心一意要讓每個人都感到自由自在，而實標上這是不可能實現(xiàn)的.相反，那里總是有著某種程度的顧慮和急切的心情.屋主人要小心地招待客人，客人要留神地迎合主人.除了非常無禮的魯莽家伙，決沒有人在別人的屋于里會象在自己家里那樣可以隨心所欲，頤指氣使。然而在小客棧里就根本沒有這種顧慮了.在這里，你肯定是受歡迎的，你嗓門越大，你越添麻煩，你要的好東西越多，你就越受歡迎。沒有一個仆人會象受到小費刺激的店倌那樣殷勤地侍候你，因為店倌的侍候越中意，你給小費越慷慨。投有的，先生，在人類迄今所創(chuàng)造的一切事物中，投有什么能象一家優(yōu)美的鄉(xiāng)村小客棧或者小旅館那樣給人們提供那么多的樂趣。
英文注釋：
(1)tavern： 英國鄉(xiāng)村中供給酒萊的小客棧o
(2) Chapelhouse： 查普爾壕斯，英國倫敦附近的一個小村鎮(zhèn)。
(3) triumphed over： 因勝過而表現(xiàn)欣喜。
(4) Let there be ever so…： 此句中Let表示假設。
(5) in the nature of things： 按照事物的性質，實際上。
(6) no man but a very impudent dog： 也可譯作"除了真正不懂禮貌的畜生外，誰也不……"。a very impudent dog此處指極其無禮的魯莽漢。
(7) as if it were his own： 行為方式狀語，內含與事實相反的情況，所以動詞用虛擬語氣。
(8) servants： 此處指私人住宅(private house)里的仆人。
(9) waiters： 此處指tavern里的店倌。
(10) an immediate reward： 能立即到手的報酬，意即小費。 .
(11)in proportion as：與……成比例。通常用in proportion to…，后面接從句時用as。這句的意思是他們所得的小費多少與他們取悅顧客的程度成正比
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