吹小號的天鵝 第61期:夏天的尾聲(4)

Chapter 14 Boston

第十四章 波士頓

Louis liked Boston the minute he saw it from the sky.

路易斯剛從空中看到波士頓，就喜歡上了它。

Far beneath him was a river. Near the river was apark.

他身下的遠處是一條河。河邊有一個公園。

In the park was a lake. In the lake was an island.

公園里有一個湖。湖中有個小島。

On the shore was a dock. Tied to the dock was a boatshaped like a swan. The place looked ideal.

岸邊有個碼頭。碼頭邊系著一艘外形酷似天鵝的船。這個地方看起來很理想。

There was even a very fine hotel nearby.

附近還有一家很不錯的旅館呢。

Louis circled twice, then glided down and splashed to a stop in the lake.

路易斯轉(zhuǎn)了兩個圈子，然后才滑翔下來，濺起一陣水花，停到湖面上。

Several ducks swam up to look him over. The park was called the Public Garden.

幾只鴨子游過來看著他。這個公園被稱作大眾公園。

Everybody in Boston knows about it and goes there to sit on benches in the sun,

波士頓的每個人都熟悉它，喜歡坐到里面的長椅子上曬太陽，

to stroll about, to feed the pigeons and the squirrels, and to ride the Swan Boat.

在園中漫步，喂鴿子和松鼠們，乘坐天鵝游艇。

A ride costs twenty-five cents for grown-ups, fifteen cents for children.

成人坐一次這種船要花二十五美分，孩子們則只需十五美分。

After a short rest and a bite to eat, Louis swam over to the dock and climbed out on the shore.

小憩片刻后，又吃了點東西，路易斯才游過碼頭爬到岸上。

The man who was taking tickets for the Swan Boat ride seemed surprised to see an enormouswhite swan wearing so many things around his neck.

那個正在收天鵝游艇票的男人看到一只脖子上掛著許多東西的大白天鵝后似乎很吃驚。

"Hello!" said the Boatman.

“你好!”這個游艇老板說。

Louis lifted his trumpet. "Ko-hoh!" he replied.

路易斯舉起他的小號。“吭—嗬!”他回答。

At the sound, every bird in the park looked up.

一聽到這聲音，公園里的每只鳥兒都抬起了頭。

The Boatman jumped. Boston residents as far as a mile away looked up and said, "What's that?"

游艇老板跳了起來。連那些遠在一英里外的波士頓居民也都抬頭說道：“那是什么聲音?”

Nobody in Boston had ever heard a Trumpeter Swan.

波士頓人還從來沒聽過號手天鵝的叫聲呢。

The sound made a big impression.

這聲音引起了極大的反響。

People eating a late breakfast in the Ritz Hotel on Arlington Street looked up from their food.

在阿林頓街的里茲飯店吃著被推遲的早餐的人們都從他們的食物上抬起頭。

Waiters and bellboys said, "What's that?"

服務員和侍應生都說：“那是什么聲音?”

The man in charge of the Swan Boat was probably the most surprised man in Boston.

負責管理這艘天鵝游艇的男人大概是波士頓最吃驚的男人了。

He examined Louis's trumpet, his moneybag, his lifesaving medal, his slate, and his chalkpencil.

他仔細地看了看路易斯的小號，錢袋，救生獎章，石板，石筆。

Then he asked Louis what he wanted. Louis wrote on his slate: "Have trumpet. Need work."

然后他問路易斯他想要什么。路易斯在他的石板上寫道：“我有小號。我要工作。”

"O.k.," said the Boatman. "You've got yourself a job.

“OK，”游艇老板說，“你有工作了。

A boat leaves here in five minutes for a trip around the lake.

一艘游艇每五分鐘就會從這里開始繞全湖航行一圈。

Your job will be to swim in front of the boat, leading the way and blowing your horn."

你的工作是到時候游在船的前面，吹著你的喇叭做導航。”

"What salary do I get?" asked Louis on his slate.

“我能得到多少薪水?”路易斯在他的石板上問。

"We'll settle that later, when we see how you make out," said the Boatman. "This is just atryout."

“以后再定吧，等我們覺得你勝任時再說，”游艇老板說，“這只是一次試用。”