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摸彩：雪莉·杰克逊短篇小说选

摸彩|The Lottery

属类： 双语小说 【分类】双语小说 -[作者: 雪莉-杰克逊] 阅读：[15602]
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六月二十七日的清晨，碧空如洗，阳光灿烂。这一天似乎带着盛夏时节清新的暖意款款而来，朵朵鲜花在怒放，繁茂的青草也绿油油地生长着。大约十点钟光景，村子里的人们开始在邮局和银行之间的广场上聚集起来。在一些城镇，由于人口众多，摸彩要花上两天的时间，所以不得不在六月二十六日就开始了，而这个村子只有三百来号人，整个摸彩活动不会超过两个小时，所以在上午十点钟开始一点儿问题也没有，甚至可以让村民们及时赶回家按时吃上午饭。

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The morning of June 27th was clear and sunny, with the fresh warmth of a full-summer day; the flowers were blossoming profusely and the grass was richly green. The people of the village began to gather in the square, between the post office and the bank, around ten o’clock; in some towns there were so many people that the lottery took two days and had to be started on June 26th, but in this village, where there were only about three hundred people, the whole lottery took less than two hours, so it could begin at ten o’clock in the morning and still be through in time to allow the villagers to get home for noon dinner.

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当然，孩子们首先聚在了一起，学校刚放暑假，对于大多数孩子来说，一下子获得自由的感觉反而让他们有些坐卧不安。他们在开始打闹之前，往往会先安静地凑成一堆儿，谈论的话题仍然是课堂和老师，还有书本及学校管理人员对他们的训诫。波比·马丁已经在他的口袋里装满了石头，其他的孩子也很快学他的样子，挑选那些最光滑、最圆滚的石头塞满了口袋。波比和哈利·琼斯还有迪克·戴拉克洛莱——村里人会把这个名字发成“戴拉克洛伊”的音——最终在广场的一角把石头堆成了挺大的一堆，并且守护着它，免受其他孩子的打劫。女孩子们站在一边，三五成群地彼此聊着天，不时地扭过头去看这些男孩子，同时也在看那些在尘土中蜂拥而至的孩子，或者那些紧紧拉住大哥哥大姐姐们的手，跌跌撞撞走过来的更小的孩子。

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The children assembled first, of course. School was recently over for the summer, and the feeling of liberty sat uneasily on most of them; they tended to gather together quietly for a while before they broke into boisterous play, and their talk was still of the classroom and the teacher, of books and reprimands. Bobby Martin had already stuffed his pockets full of stones, and the other boys soon followed his example, selecting the smoothest and roundest stones; Bobby and Harry Jones and Dickie Delacroix—the villagers pronounced this name “Dellacroy”—eventually made a great pile of stones in one corner of the square and guarded it against the raids of the other boys. The girls stood aside, talking among themselves, looking over their shoulders at the boys, and the very small children rolled in the dust or clung to the hands of their older brothers or sisters.

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很快，男人们也聚集在了一起，一边瞅着自己的孩子，一边谈论着播种和雨水、拖拉机和税收。他们站在一起，离角落里的那堆石头有点儿远，嘴里小声地说着玩笑话，嘴角露出微笑而非放声大笑。女人们穿着褪了色的家居服和运动毛衫，紧随着她们的男人也来到了广场。当她们来到自己的丈夫身边时，彼此相互打着招呼，交流着一些家长里短。女人们在丈夫身旁站立甫定，便马上召唤自己的孩子，一直喊上四五次，孩子们才不太情愿地过来。波比·马丁的妈妈没有一把抓住他，他便在妈妈的臂弯下笑着跑开，又奔回了石头堆。直到他的父亲大声呵斥他，波比才又老实麻溜地回来，站到了他父亲和大哥中间。

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Soon the men began to gather, surveying their own children, speaking of planting and rain, tractors and taxes. They stood together, away from the pile of stones in the corner, and their jokes were quiet and they smiled rather than laughed. The women, wearing faded house dresses and sweaters, came shortly after their menfolk. They greeted one another and exchanged bits of gossip as they went to join their husbands. Soon the women, standing by their husbands, began to call to their children, and the children came reluctantly, having to be called four or five times. Bobby Martin ducked under his mother’s grasping hand and ran, laughing, back to the pile of stones. His father spoke up sharply, and Bobby came quickly and took his place between his father and his oldest brother.

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此次摸彩——该活动犹如广场舞、青少年俱乐部项目，或者万圣节的节目——由萨默斯先生主持，这位先生有足够的时间和精力专注于公民活动。他是一位快活的男人，长着一张圆脸，经营着煤炭生意，但人们常常为他感到惋惜，因为他没有子嗣而且老婆还是位悍妇。他到达广场的时候，随身还带着一个黑色的木箱子。这时，从村民中传来一阵窃窃私语声，他挥了挥手，大声喊道：“老乡们，今天有点儿晚了。”邮政局局长格雷乌斯先生跟在萨默斯先生的身后，他拿着一个三脚板凳，并把板凳放在了广场的中心位置，而萨默斯先生则把黑木箱子放在了凳子上面。村民们和凳子保持着距离，在他们和凳子之间留出了一片空场。这时，萨默斯先生说道：“有人愿意给我搭把手吗？”人们一开始有些迟疑，马丁先生和他的大儿子巴克斯特先犹豫了一下，然后走上前来，用手把住凳子上的箱子，而萨默斯先生开始搅动箱子里的纸片。

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The lottery was conducted—as were the square dances, the teen-age club, the Halloween program—by Mr. Summers, who had time and energy to devote to civic activities. He was a round-faced, jovial man and he ran the coal business, and people were sorry for him, because he had no children and his wife was a scold. When he arrived in the square, carrying the black wooden box, there was a murmur of conversation among the villagers, and he waved and called, “Little late today, folks.” The postmaster, Mr. Graves, followed him, carrying a three-legged stool, and the stool, was put in the center of the square and Mr. Summers set the black box down on it. The villagers kept their distance, leaving a space between themselves and the stool, and when Mr. Summers said, “Some of you fellows want to give me a hand?” there was a hesitation before two men, Mr. Martin and his oldest son, Baxter, came forward to hold the box steady on the stool while Mr. Summers stirred up the papers inside it.

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最初用于摸彩的装备在很多年以前就丢失了，现在放在板凳上的黑箱子，在镇子上最年长的华纳老汉出生之前就已经开始使用了。萨默斯先生不止一次地对村民们说要做一个新箱子，但没人愿意费事，以至于现在的这个黑箱子被赋予了很多传统。有种说法，现在的这个箱子是由老箱子的残片制成的，而原来的箱子是由第一个定居在这儿的村民打造的。每一年，在摸完彩之后，萨默斯先生又会重提做一个新箱子的事，但是每年最后都会不了了之，一切照旧。于是，这个箱子一年比一年破烂不堪，现在它已经不再是全黑的了，一侧已经斑驳破裂，露出了原木的颜色，有的部分已经褪色或者被染成了其他颜色。

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The original paraphernalia for the lottery had been lost long ago, and the black box now resting on the stool had been put into use even before Old Man Warner, the oldest man in town, was born. Mr. Summers spoke frequently to the villagers about making a new box, but no one liked to upset even as much tradition as was represented by the black box. There was a story that the present box had been made with some pieces of the box that had preceded it, the one that had been constructed when the first people settled down to make a village here. Every year, after the lottery, Mr. Summers began talking again about a new box, but every year the subject was allowed to fade off without anything’s being done. The black box grew shabbier each year; by now it was no longer completely black but splintered badly along one side to show the original wood color, and in some places faded or stained.

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马丁先生和他的大儿子巴克斯特稳稳地把扶着凳子上的黑箱子，直到萨默斯先生用手把纸片彻底搅拌均匀为止。因为仪式中的很多细节已经被忘记或者被废弃，所以萨默斯先生成功地用纸片代替了用了好几代的木片。萨默斯先生认为，当一个村子很小的时候，用木片是丝毫没有问题的，可现在村子里的人口已经超过三百了，而且很有可能继续增加，那就有必要采用某种更适合的东西，能把它轻易地投入黑箱子里。在摸彩的头一天晚上，萨默斯先生和格雷乌斯先生就把纸片做好，把它们放到了箱子中，然后把箱子搬到萨默斯先生煤炭公司的保险柜中锁好，直到第二天早上萨默斯先生作好把它带到广场上的准备。一年中的其他时光，箱子都会被撂到一边，有时搁在某处，有时又放在另一个地方。它会在格雷乌斯先生的谷仓里挨过一年，另外一年又会在邮局落脚，有时它也会被放在马丁杂货店的架子上，摆在那里而没人理睬。

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Mr. Martin and his oldest son, Baxter, held the black box securely on the stool until Mr. Summers had stirred the papers thoroughly with his hand. Because so much of the ritual had been forgotten or discarded, Mr. Summers had been successful in having slips of paper substituted for the chips of wood that had been used for generations. Chips of wood, Mr. Summers had argued, had been all very well when the village was tiny, but now that the population was more than three hundred and likely to keep on growing, it was necessary to use something that would fit more easily into the black box. The night before the lottery, Mr. Summers and Mr. Graves made up the slips of paper and put them in the box, and it was then taken to the safe of Mr. Summers’ coal company and locked up until Mr. Summers was ready to take it to the square next morning. The rest of the year, the box was put away, sometimes one place, sometimes another; it had spent one year in Mr. Graves’s barn and another year underfoot in the post office, and sometimes it was set on a shelf in the Martin grocery and left there.

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在萨默斯先生宣布摸彩开始之前，还有很多杂七杂八的事情要处理。要列出一些名单——家族族长的名字、每个家族各个户主的名字、每个家庭各个成员的名字。邮政局局长要主持萨默斯先生宣誓就任摸彩主持人的仪式，萨默斯先生要像模像样地宣誓就职。有人还会想起曾经一度还有某种仪式，也是由摸彩官员所实施的，他要领诵一阵敷衍了事的朗诵会。那是些没腔没调的话语，而这些话语他每年都要口若悬河地一口气按时说一遍。有些人还认为，在摸彩官员讲话或者诵读时，他只需站立在那儿就行了；而有的人则认为，他应该在人群中四处走动。但是在很多年前，仪式的这个部分被获许取消了。另外，还有一种致敬的仪式，摸彩官员要向每个上前从箱子中摸彩的人致辞，但是随着时间的推移，这个环节也省略掉了。直到现在，人们才觉得摸彩官员对每个向他走来的人说上一两句话还是很有必要的。而萨默斯先生对这一切程序都熟稔于心，他穿着干净的白衬衣和蓝色的牛仔裤，一只手漫不经心地搭在黑箱子上，当他没完没了地跟格雷乌斯先生和马丁一家谈话时，他显得煞是庄重。

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There was a great deal of fussing to be done before Mr. Summers declared the lottery open. There were the lists to make up—of heads of families, heads of households in each family, members of each household in each family. There was the proper swearing-in of Mr. Summers by the postmaster, as the official of the lottery; at one time, some people remembered, there had been a recital of some sort, performed by the official of the lottery, a perfunctory, tuneless chant that had been rattled off duly each year; some people believed that the official of the lottery used to stand just so when he said or sang it, others believed that he was supposed to walk among the people, but years and years ago this part of the ritual had been allowed to lapse. There had been, also, a ritual salute, which the official of the lottery had had to use in addressing each person who came up to draw from the box, but this also had changed with time, until now it was felt necessary only for the official to speak to each person approaching. Mr. Summers was very good at all this; in his clean white shirt and blue jeans, with one hand resting carelessly on the black box, he seemed very proper and important as he talked interminably to Mr. Graves and the Martins.

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就在萨默斯先生终于谈完了话，转身面向聚集的村民时，哈钦逊太太沿着小路匆匆忙忙地来到了广场，她的毛衫披在肩上，赶到人群后面时毛衫滑落到了地上。“我彻彻底底地把今儿这个日子给忘了。”她冲着紧挨着她的戴拉克洛莱太太说道，她俩都轻声笑了起来。“我还以为我们家那位出去摞木材去了，”哈钦逊太太继续说道，“等我再向窗外瞟了几眼，发现孩子们也不见了，我才想起来今天是二十七号了，就一溜小跑过来了。”她在围裙上擦干了手，戴拉克洛莱太太说道：“不过你来得正好，他们还在那儿没完没了地说呢。”

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Just as Mr. Summers finally left off talking and turned to the assembled villagers, Mrs. Hutchinson came hurriedly along the path to the square, her sweater thrown over her shoulders, and slid into place in the back of the crowd. “Clean forgot what day it was,” she said to Mrs. Delacroix, who stood next to her, and they both laughed softly. “Thought my old man was out back stacking wood,” Mrs. Hutchinson went on, “and then I looked out the window and the kids was gone, and then I remembered it was the twenty-seventh and came a-running.” She dried her hands on her apron, and Mrs. Delacroix said, “You’re in time, though. They’re still talking away up there.”

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哈钦逊太太伸长脖子透过人群向里面张望，看见自己的丈夫和孩子们正站在接近最前排的地方。她轻拍了一下戴拉克洛莱太太的手臂，示意有空再聊，然后开始向人群中挤去。人们善意地侧过身子给她闪开一条道让她过去。有两三个人用正好能让整个人群都听到的声音说道：“哈钦逊，你老婆来啦。”还有“比尔，她终于到了。”哈钦逊太太挤到了她丈夫身边，而萨默斯先生一直在等着她，他此时高兴地说道：“苔茜，我原以为我们会在没有你的情况下，继续下面的活动呢。”哈钦逊太太露齿一笑，说道：“你不会让我把碟子、碗什么的扔在水槽里不管吧，喏，是吧，乔？”人群中传来一阵轻笑。哈钦逊太太到了以后，人们又挤挤擦擦推推搡搡地各就其位了。

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Mrs. Hutchinson craned her neck to see through the crowd and found her husband and children standing near the front. She tapped Mrs. Delacroix on the arm as a farewell and began to make her way through the crowd. The people separated good-humoredly to let her through; two or three people said, in voices just loud enough to be heard across the crowd, “Here comes your Missus, Hutchinson,” and “Bill, she made it after all.” Mrs. Hutchinson reached her husband, and Mr. Summers, who had been waiting, said cheerfully, “Thought we were going to have to get on without you, Tessie.” Mrs. Hutchinson said, grinning, “Wouldn’t have me leave m’dishes in the sink, now, would you, Joe?” and soft laughter ran through the crowd as the people stirred back into position after Mrs. Hutchinson’s arrival.

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“好了，请大家安静，”萨默斯先生严肃地说道，“我想我们最好现在就开始吧，等把这事做完，大家就可以该干吗干吗了，还有谁没来吗？”

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“Well, now,” Mr. Summers said soberly, “guess we better get started, get this over with, so’s we can go back to work. Anybody ain’t here?”

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“邓巴没来，”有几个人说道，“还有邓巴，邓巴。”

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“Dunbar,” several people said. “Dunbar, Dunbar.”

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萨默斯先生查看了一下手中的名单。“克莱德·邓巴，”他说道，“没错，他摔断了腿，对吧？谁能替他抽呢？”

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Mr. Summers consulted his list. “Clyde Dunbar,” he said. “That’s right. He’s broke his leg, hasn’t he? Who’s drawing for him?”

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“我来替他抽，我想我可以。”一个女人应声答道，萨默斯先生转身看着她。“邓巴的老婆替她丈夫抽，”萨默斯先生又接着说，“你们家没有一个成年的男孩替你做这事吗，詹妮？”虽然萨默斯先生和村里的其他人都很清楚地知道这个问题的答案，但问这样的问题是摸彩官员例行公事的正式程序。所以，在邓巴太太回答之前，萨默斯先生出于礼貌，煞有介事地等待着这个已知的答案。

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“Me, I guess,” a woman said, and Mr. Summers turned to look at her. “Wife draws for her husband,” Mr. Summers said. “Don’t you have a grown boy to do it for you, Janey?” Although Mr. Summers and everyone else in the village knew the answer perfectly well, it was the business of the official of the lottery to ask such questions formally. Mr. Summers waited with an expression of polite interest while Mrs. Dunbar answered.

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“霍瑞斯还不到十六岁，”邓巴太太遗憾地说道，“我想今年我得自己替一下我家老头子了。”

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“Horace’s not but sixteen yet,” Mrs. Dunbar said regretfully. “Guess I gotta fill in for the old man this year.”

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“好的，”萨默斯先生说道，他在手中的名单上做了一个标注。然后又问道，“沃特森家的小子今年还抽吗？”

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“Right,” Mr. Summers said. He made a note on the list he was holding. Then he asked, “Watson boy drawing this year?”

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人群中一个高个子男孩举起了手，“在这儿，”他说道，“我替我妈和我自己抽。”人群中传来一些声音，有人说：“好小子，杰克。”还有人说：“很高兴看见你母亲找到男人为她做这件事了。”他听了紧张地眨巴着眼睛，低下了头。

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A tall boy in the crowd raised his hand. “Here,” he said. “I m drawing for m’mother and me.” He blinked his eyes nervously and ducked his head as several voices in the crowd said things like “Good fellow, Jack,” and “Glad to see your mother’s got a man to do it.”

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“好了，”萨默斯先生说道，“我想每个人都到了，华纳老汉也到了吗？”

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“Well,” Mr. Summers said, “guess that’s everyone. Old Man Warner make it?”

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“我在这儿。”人群中传来一个声音，萨默斯先生点了点头。

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“Here,” a voice said. and Mr. Summers nodded.

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萨默斯先生看着名单，清了清嗓子，“大家都准备好了吗？”他喊道。这时人群突然安静了下来。“现在，我会叫各位的名字——首先是族长——叫到名字的人到跟前来，从箱子中抽取一张纸，把纸片拿在手中，不要打开，不要看，直到每个人都抽取了纸片，大家都清楚了吗？”

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A sudden hush fell on the crowd as Mr. Summers cleared his throat and looked at the list. “All ready?” he called. “Now, I’ll read the names—heads of families first—and the men come up and take a paper out of the box. Keep the paper folded in your hand without looking at it until everyone has had a turn. Everything clear?”

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人们对这一套程序早已司空见惯，所以他们并没有全神贯注地听指令，但大多数人还是大气不敢出，舔了舔嘴唇，不再左顾右盼。这时，萨默斯先生高高地举起了一只手，叫道：“亚当斯。”一个男人拨开人群，走上前来。“你好，史蒂夫。”萨默斯先生招呼道，亚当斯先生也回复道：“你好，乔。”他们彼此勉强一本正经却又不安地咧嘴笑了笑。然后，亚当斯先生来到黑箱子跟前，从里面抽出了一张折好的纸片。他紧紧地攥着纸片的一角，转过身匆忙地回到了人群中他原来站的位置。这地方和他的家人还有一段距离。他并没有低头瞧一眼手上的东西。

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The people had done it so many times that they only half listened to the directions; most of them were quiet, wetting their lips, not looking around. Then Mr. Summers raised one hand high and said, “Adams.” A man disengaged himself from the crowd and came forward. “Hi, Steve,” Mr. Summers said, and Mr. Adams said, “Hi, Joe.” They grinned at one another humorlessly and nervously. Then Mr. Adams reached into the black box and took out a folded paper. He held it firmly by one corner as he turned and went hastily back to his place in the crowd, where he stood a little apart from his family, not looking down at his hand.

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“艾伦，”萨默斯先生叫道，“安蒂森……本萨姆。”

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“Allen,” Mr. Summers said. “Anderson.... Bentham.”

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“好像距离上次摸彩压根就没隔多长时间似的，”戴拉克洛莱太太对着后排的格雷乌斯太太说道。“就好像最近的一次在上周我们才弄完。”

22
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“Seems like there’s no time at all between lotteries any more,” Mrs. Delacroix said to Mrs. Graves in the back row. “Seems like we got through with the last one only last week.”

23
-

“时间确实过得飞快。”格雷乌斯太太说道。

23
-

“Time sure goes fast,” Mrs. Graves said.

24
-

“克拉克……戴拉克洛莱。”

24
-

“Clark.... Delacroix.”

25
-

“轮到我们家老头子了。”戴拉克洛莱太太说。当她丈夫走上前时，她屏住了呼吸。

25
-

“There goes my old man,” Mrs. Delacroix said. She held her breath while her husband went forward.

26
-

“邓巴。”萨默斯先生叫道，邓巴太太从容地走到了箱子前，而有一个妇女还在催促，“快去呀，詹妮。”另一个妇女接茬道：“她不是过去了吗。”

26
-

“Dunbar,” Mr. Summers said, and Mrs. Dunbar went steadily to the box while one of the women said, “Go on, Janey,” and another said, “There she goes.”

27
-

“下一个该我们了。”格雷乌斯太太说道。格雷乌斯先生在她的注视下从箱子一侧绕过来，很严肃地跟萨默斯先生打了个招呼，然后从箱子里挑了一张折好的纸片。到目前为止，人群中很多男人在他们的大手中都握着一张折好的小纸片，所有的人正神经质般提心吊胆地把纸片翻过来掉过去。邓巴太太和两个儿子站在一起，她的手里也正攥着纸片。

27
-

“We’re next,” Mrs. Graves said. She watched while Mr. Graves came around from the side of the box, greeted Mr. Summers gravely, and selected a slip of paper from the box. By now, all through the crowd there were men holding the small folded papers in their large hands, turning them over and over nervously. Mrs. Dunbar and her two sons stood together, Mrs. Dunbar holding the slip of paper.

28
-

“哈伯特……哈钦逊。”

28
-

“Harburt.... Hutchinson.”

29
-

“赶紧过去，比尔。”哈钦逊太太催道，她附近的人都笑了起来。

29
-

“Get up there, Bill,” Mrs. Hutchinson said, and the people near her laughed.

30
-

“琼斯。”

30
-

“Jones.”

31
-

“他们确实在说，”亚当斯先生对站在他身边的华纳老汉说道，“北边的村子那里正在讨论放弃摸彩活动。”

31
-

“They do say,” Mr. Adams said to Old Man Warner, who stood next to him, “that over in the north village they’re talking of giving up the lottery.”

32
-

华纳老汉嗤之以鼻地哼了一下，“一群头脑发热的傻瓜，”他说道，“听这些年轻人的就没什么好事。接下来你就知道，他们还想回到山洞里生活呢，人们都不再劳作，那样的生活也就能过一阵子。过去有种说法，‘六月里摸彩，玉米熟得快。’否则的话，你首先要知道，我们只能吃炖鸡草和橡子了。摸彩祖祖辈辈都在做。”他还怒气冲冲地补充道，“看着年轻的乔·萨默斯杵在那儿跟每个人开玩笑就够糟的了。”

32
-

Old Man Warner snorted. “Pack of crazy fools,” he said. “Listening to the young folks, nothing’s good enough for them. Next thing you know, they’ll be wanting to go back to living in caves, nobody work any more, live that way for a while. Used to be a saying about ‘Lottery in June, corn be heavy soon.’ First thing you know, we’d all be eating stewed chickweed and acorns. There’s always been a lottery,” he added petulantly. “Bad enough to see young Joe Summers up there joking with everybody.”

33
-

“一些地方已经废除了摸彩活动。”亚当斯太太说道。

33
-

“Some places have already quit lotteries,” Mrs. Adams said.

34
-

“要是那样，除了麻烦，什么也不会得到，”华纳老汉不容置疑地说道，“一群年少无知的生瓜蛋子。”

34
-

“Nothing but trouble in that,” Old Man Warner said stoutly. “Pack of young fools.”

35
-

“马丁。”波比·马丁注视着他父亲走上前去。“奥威尔戴克……珀西。”

35
-

“Martin.” And Bobby Martin watched his father go forward. “Overdyke.... Percy.”

36
-

“我希望他们能快点儿，”邓巴太太对她的大儿子说道，“我希望他们能快点儿。”

36
-

“I wish they’d hurry,” Mrs. Dunbar said to her older son. “I wish they’d hurry.”

37
-

“他们就快抽完了。”她的儿子说道。

37
-

“They’re almost through,” her son said.

38
-

“你准备好跑着去告诉你爹结果吧。”邓巴太太说道。

38
-

“You get ready to run tell Dad,” Mrs. Dunbar said.

39
-

萨默斯先生叫了自己的名字，然后一本正经地走上前，从箱子中抽出了一张纸片。随后，他又喊道：“华纳。”

39
-

Mr. Summers called his own name and then stepped forward precisely and selected a slip from the box. Then he called, “Warner.”

40
-

“今年是我参加摸彩的第七十七个年头了。”华纳老汉一边穿过人群，一边嘟囔道，“这是第七十七次了。”

40
-

“Seventy-seventh year I been in the lottery,” Old Man Warner said as he went through the crowd. “Seventy-seventh time.”

41
-

“沃特森。”那个高个头的男孩穿过人群，有点儿手足无措地来到了箱子前。这时听见人群中有人在喊：“别紧张，杰克。”萨默斯先生也安慰道：“别慌，孩子。”

41
-

“Watson.” The tall boy came awkwardly through the crowd. Someone said, “Don’t be nervous, Jack,” and Mr. Summers said, “Take your time, son.”

42
-

“扎尼尼。”

42
-

“Zanini.”

43
-

此后，是很长时间的一段停顿，一种令人窒息的停顿，直到萨默斯先生拿着他的纸片，高高举在空中，只听他说道：“好了，伙计们。”有那么一小会儿，没人走动，随后所有的纸片都被打开了。突然，女人们纷纷张嘴，急切地问道，“是谁？”“谁抽到了？”“是邓巴家吗？”“是沃特森家吗？”过了一会儿，又在七嘴八舌，接着有个声音说，“是哈钦逊，是比尔。”“比尔·哈钦逊抽到了它。”

43
-

After that, there was a long pause, a breathless pause, until Mr. Summers. holding his slip of paper in the air, said, “All right, fellows.” For a minute, no one moved, and then all the slips of paper were opened. Suddenly, all the women began to speak at once, saving, “Who is it?” “Who’s got it?” “Is it the Dunbars?” “Is it the Watsons?” Then the voices began to say, “It’s Hutchinson. It’s Bill,” “Bill Hutchinson’s got it.”

44
-

“快去告诉你父亲。”邓巴太太对她的大儿子吩咐道。

44
-

“Go tell your father,” Mrs. Dunbar said to her older son.

45
-

人们开始四下张望，想观察一下哈钦逊一家人的反应。比尔·哈钦逊一声不响地站着，眼睛直勾勾地盯着手上的纸片。突然，苔茜·哈钦逊冲着萨默斯先生大声嚷道：“你没给他足够的时间让他抽取自己想要的纸片，我看见你这样做了，这不公平！”

45
-

People began to look around to see the Hutchinsons. Bill Hutchinson was standing quiet, staring down at the paper in his hand. Suddenly, Tessie Hutchinson shouted to Mr. Summers, “You didn’t give him time enough to take any paper he wanted. I saw you. It wasn’t fair!”

46
-

“别耍赖，苔茜。”戴拉克洛莱太太喊道，格雷乌斯太太也附和道：“我们所有人的机会都是均等的。”

46
-

“Be a good sport, Tessie,” Mrs. Delacroix called, and Mrs. Graves said, “All of us took the same chance.”

47
-

“闭嘴，苔茜。”比尔·哈钦逊说道。

47
-

“Shut up, Tessie,” Bill Hutchinson said.

48
-

“好吧，大家听好了，”萨默斯先生说道，“刚才我们做得挺利索了，现在我们还要更利索些，好让我们能够及时做完这事。”他说完又看了看下一张单子。“比尔，”他说道，“你为哈钦逊家族摸彩，哈钦逊家族还有别的家庭吗？”

48
-

“Well, everyone,” Mr. Summers said, “that was done pretty fast, and now we’ve got to be hurrying a little more to get done in time.” He consulted his next list. “Bill,” he said, “you draw for the Hutchinson family. You got any other households in the Hutchinsons?”

49
-

“还有唐和爱娃，”哈钦逊太太大声喊叫道，“让她们也来试试运气！”

49
-

“There’s Don and Eva,” Mrs. Hutchinson yelled. “Make them take their chance!”

50
-

“女儿们是和她们的婆家一起摸彩的，苔茜，”萨默斯先生柔声说道，“这一点你和大伙儿都很清楚。”

50
-

“Daughters draw with their husbands’ families, Tessie,” Mr. Summers said gently. “You know that as well as anyone else.”

51
-

“这不公平。”苔茜还是执拗地说。

51
-

“It wasn’t fair,” Tessie said.

52
-

“我不这样想，乔，”比尔·哈钦逊抱歉地说道，“我女儿和她们婆家一块儿摸彩，这很公平，我除了几个未成年的孩子，家里没有别的人了。”

52
-

“I guess not, Joe,” Bill Hutchinson said regretfully. “My daughter draws with her husband’s family, that’s only fair. And I’ve got no other family except the kids.”

53
-

“那么，就整个家族来看，是你来摸彩，”萨默斯先生解释道，“就整个家庭来说，也是你来摸彩，对吧？”

53
-

“Then, as far as drawing for families is concerned, it’s you,” Mr. Summers said in explanation, “and as far as drawing for households is concerned, that’s you, too. Right?”

54
-

“对的。”比尔·哈钦逊说道。

54
-

“Right,” Bill Hutchinson said.

55
-

“比尔，你有几个年幼的孩子？”萨默斯先生一本正经地问道。

55
-

“How many kids, Bill?” Mr. Summers asked formally.

56
-

“三个。”比尔·哈钦逊说道。

56
-

“Three,” Bill Hutchinson said. “There’s Bill, Jr., and Nancy, and little Dave. And Tessie and me.”

57
-

“就是小比尔、南希和小戴夫，还有苔茜和我自己。”

57
-

“All right, then,” Mr. Summers said. “Harry, you got their tickets back?”

58
-

“那么，好吧，”萨默斯先生说道，“哈利，你把他们的票都收回来了吗？”

58
-

Mr. Graves nodded and held up the slips of paper. “Put them in the box, then,” Mr. Summers directed. “Take Bill’s and put it in.”

59
-

格雷乌斯先生点了点头，举起了手中的好几张纸片。“那么把它们放到箱子里吧，”萨默斯先生示意道，“拿上比尔的签，把它也投进去。”

59
-

“I think we ought to start over,” Mrs. Hutchinson said, as quietly as she could. “I tell you it wasn’t fair. You didn’t give him time enough to choose. Everybody saw that.”

60
-

“我觉得我们应该重新来一遍，”哈钦逊太太尽量心平气和地说道，“我告诉过你这不公平，你没有给他足够的时间来选择，大家都看到了。”

60
-

Mr. Graves had selected the five slips and put them in the box, and he dropped all the papers but those onto the ground, where the breeze caught them and lifted them off.

61
-

格雷乌斯先生已经选择了五张纸片，把它们又投入了箱子，他把其他人的纸片都扔到了地上，这时微风乍起，又把它们从地上吹了起来。

61
-

“Listen, everybody,” Mrs. Hutchinson was saying to the people around her.

62
-

“大家都听我说。”哈钦逊太太正冲着她周边的人唠叨着说。

62
-

“Ready, Bill?” Mr. Summers asked, and Bill Hutchinson, with one quick glance around at his wife and children, nodded.

63
-

“准备好了吗，比尔？”萨默斯先生问道。而比尔·哈钦逊快速地环视了一下他的妻子和孩子们，点了点头。

63
-

“Remember,” Mr. Summers said, “take the slips and keep them folded until each person has taken one. Harry, you help little Dave.” Mr. Graves took the hand of the little boy, who came willingly with him up to the box. “Take a paper out of the box, Davy,” Mr. Summers said. Davy put his hand into the box and laughed. “Take just one paper,” Mr. Summers said. “Harry, you hold it for him.” Mr. Graves took the child’s hand and removed the folded paper from the tight fist and held it while little Dave stood next to him and looked up at him wonderingly.

64
-

“记住了，”萨默斯先生说，“抽取一张纸片，先不要打开，直到五个人都抽完。哈利，你帮一下小戴夫。”格雷乌斯先生拉着那个小男孩的一只手，小戴夫屁颠屁颠地跟着他来到箱子前。“从箱子里抽出一张纸，戴维。”萨默斯先生说道。戴维把他的小手伸进了箱子，咧开嘴呵呵地笑出了声。“只能拿一张啊。”萨默斯先生赶紧嘱咐道。“哈利，你替他拿着吧。”格雷乌斯先生举着孩子的小手，把折叠的纸片从孩子紧攥的拳头中拿了出来，自己拿着。而小戴维站在他身旁，好奇地抬眼望着他。

64
-

“Nancy next,” Mr. Summers said. Nancy was twelve, and her school friends breathed heavily as she went forward, switching her skirt, and took a slip daintily from the box. “Bill, Jr.,” Mr. Summers said, and Billy, his face red and his feet overlarge, nearly knocked the box over as he got a paper out. “Tessie,” Mr. Summers said. She hesitated for a minute, looking around defiantly, and then set her lips and went up to the box. She snatched a paper out and held it behind her.

65
-

“下一个南希，南希下一个。”萨默斯先生接着说。南希十二岁了，她晃动着裙摆走上前去，姿势优雅地从箱子中抽出了一张纸。与此同时，她的同学们的呼吸都变得急促了起来。“小比尔，”萨默斯又叫道。当脸蛋红扑扑的，长着一双大脚的比利从箱子里抽出纸片时，差点儿打翻了箱子。“苔茜。”萨默斯先生叫道。她犹豫了一小会儿，挑战似的四下看了看，然后紧抿着嘴唇，走到了箱子前。她迅速地抽出了一张纸，背过手拿着它。

65
-

“Bill,” Mr. Summers said, and Bill Hutchinson reached into the box and felt around, bringing his hand out at last with the slip of paper in it.

66
-

“比尔。”萨默斯先生点了最后一个名字，比尔·哈钦逊走到箱子前面，伸手在箱子里摸了一圈，最后拿出了一张纸片。

66
-

The crowd was quiet. A girl whispered, “I hope it’s not Nancy,” and the sound of the whisper reached the edges of the crowd.

67
-

人群安静了下来。一个女孩小声说道：“我希望不是南希。”这个轻声低语竟然传到了人群的外围。

67
-

“It’s not the way it used to be,” Old Man Warner said clearly. “People ain’t the way they used to be.”

68
-

“过去可不是这么干的，”华纳老汉明确地说道，“人们都不按原来的套路出牌了。”

68
-

“All right,” Mr. Summers said. “Open the papers. Harry, you open little Dave’s.”

69
-

“好了，”萨默斯先生说道，“把纸片打开吧。哈利，你替小戴夫把纸片打开。”

69
-

Mr. Graves opened the slip of paper and there was a general sigh through the crowd as he held it up and everyone could see that it was blank. Nancy and Bill, Jr., opened theirs at the same time, and both beamed and laughed, turning around to the crowd and holding their slips of paper above their heads.

70
-

格雷乌斯先生把纸片打开了，当他把纸片高高举起时，每个人都能看见纸是空白的，人群中的大部分人发出一阵叹息声。南希和小比尔也同时打开了他们手中的纸片，两个人都面露喜色，开口笑了起来，转身面向人群，把纸片高高举过头顶。

70
-

“Tessie,” Mr. Summers said. There was a pause, and then Mr. Summers looked at Bill Hutchinson, and Bill unfolded his paper and showed it. It was blank.

71
-

“苔茜。”萨默斯先生说道。这时时间好像停顿了下来，萨默斯先生看着比尔·哈钦逊，比尔打开了他的纸片，把纸片展示给大家看，也是空白的。

71
-

“It’s Tessie,” Mr. Summers said, and his voice was hushed. “Show us her paper, Bill.”

72
-

“那就是苔茜了，”萨默斯先生说道，他的声音很小，“比尔，让我们看看她的纸片吧。”

72
-

Bill Hutchinson went over to his wife and forced the slip of paper out of her hand. It had a black spot on it, the black spot Mr. Summers had made the night before with the heavy pencil in the coal-company office. Bill Hutchinson held it up, and there was a stir in the crowd.

73
-

比尔·哈钦逊走向他的妻子，把纸片从她手里夺了下来。上面有一个黑点，这个黑点是萨默斯先生头天晚上在他煤炭公司的办公室里用很粗的铅笔画下来的。比尔·哈钦逊把它举了起来，人群中出现了一阵骚动。

73
-

“All right, folks,” Mr. Summers said. “Let’s finish quickly.”

74
-

“好了，老乡们，”萨默斯先生说道，“让我们赶快结束吧。”

74
-

Although the villagers had forgotten the ritual and lost the original black box, they still remembered to use stones. The pile of stones the boys had made earlier was ready; there were stones on the ground with the blowing scraps of paper that had come out of the box. Mrs. Delacroix selected a stone so large she had to pick it up with both hands and turned to Mrs. Dunbar. “Come on,” she said. “Hurry up.”

75
-

虽然村民们已经忘记了这个仪式中的很多程序，也记不清黑箱子最初的模样了，但他们仍然记得要用石头。男孩子们早些时候堆起的石头已经准备好了，地上也有的是石头，石头边满是箱子里取出来的被风吹得乱飞的纸片。戴拉克洛莱挑了一块大石头，她不得不用双手抱着，扭脸冲着邓巴太太说道，“来吧，”她说，“快点儿。”

75
-

Mr. Dunbar had small stones in both hands, and she said, gasping for breath, “I can’t run at all. You’ll have to go ahead and I’ll catch up with you.”

76
-

邓巴太太双手拿了一些小石块，她气喘吁吁地说：“我根本跑不动，你先去，我随后会赶上你的。”

76
-

The children had stones already, and someone gave little Davy Hutchinson a few pebbles.

77
-

孩子们也已经拿好了石块，还有人给了小戴维·哈钦逊几块鹅卵石。

77
-

Tessie Hutchinson was in the center of a cleared space by now, and she held her hands out desperately as the villagers moved in on her. “It isn’t fair,” she said. A stone hit her on the side of the head.

78
-

此时，苔茜·哈钦逊身处被清空的广场中心，当村民们步步逼近时，她绝望地伸出了双手。“这不公平。”她喊道。一块石头打在了她脑袋的一侧。华纳老汉招呼着众人，“大家都来，都来。”史蒂夫·亚当斯在村民队伍的前面，他的旁边是格雷乌斯太太。

78
-

Old Man Warner was saying, “Come on, come on, everyone.” Steve Adams was in the front of the crowd of villagers, with Mrs. Graves beside him.

79
-

“这不公平，这不应该。”哈钦逊太太惊恐地尖叫着。就在这时，他们扑向了她。

79
-

“It isn’t fair, it isn’t right,” Mrs. Hutchinson screamed, and then they were upon her.

序号 英文/音标 中文解释 更多操作

profuse

[prə'fjuːs]

adj.很多的;丰富的;慷慨的;浪费的

lottery

['lɒtəri]

n.彩票

villager

['vɪlɪdʒə(r)]

n.村民

uneasily

[ʌn'iːzɪli]

adv.不安地;局促地

reprimand

['reprɪmɑːnd]

n.训斥;谴责

Martin

['ma:tɪn]

n.马丁(男子名)

Harry

['hæri]

vt.不断骚扰;打扰;侵扰;侵掠

tractor

['træktə(r)]

n.【C】拖拉机;牵引车

gossip

['ɡɒsɪp]

n.流言蜚语;爱说长道短的人;闲话

murmur

['mɜːmə(r)]

n. 低沉连续的声音(如风的沙沙声、流水的淙淙声等);

conversation

[ˌkɒnvə'seɪʃn]

n.谈话;会话

Warner

['wɔːnə]

n.报警器;警告者

shabby

['ʃæbi]

adj.破旧的;寒酸的;低劣的，无耻的;卑劣的

splinter

['splɪntə(r)]

n. 【C】(木头、玻璃、骨头等的)裂片，破片，尖片;

stain

[steɪn]

n.污点;瑕疵;着色剂;染料

thorough

['θʌrə]

adj.彻底的;完全的;详尽的;细致深入的

discard

[dɪs'kɑːd]

vt.丢弃;抛弃

fuss

[fʌs]

n.(神经质的)兴奋，激动；紧张；急躁;

rattle

['rætl]

vi. 发出格吱声；呱哒响;

duly

['djuːli]

adv.的确;当然地;适当地

lapse

[læps]

n.过失;流逝;间隔;堕落;失效

felted

['feltɪd]

v. 把 ... 制成毡(使 ... 粘结)

apron

['eɪprən]

n.围裙;停机坪;台口;遮挡板

crane

[kreɪn]

n.起重机

missis

[ˈmɪsɪz]

n.太太;妻子

Bill

[bɪl]

①帐单；清单;

sober

['səʊbə(r)]

a. 清醒的；未醉的;

regretful

[rɪ'ɡretfl]

adj.惋惜的;遗憾的;后悔的

Jack

[dʒæk]

n.杰克(男子名)

hush

[hʌʃ]

n.肃静;安静;沉默

disengage

[ˌdɪsɪn'ɡeɪdʒ]

v.解除;解开;使脱离

humorless

['hjuːməlɪs]

adj.缺乏幽默感的

Allen

[ˈælən]

n.阿伦，艾伦(男子名，涵义：英俊;好看的)

Clark

[klɑːk]

n.克拉克(男子名);克拉克(新泽西州社区)

snort

[snɔːt]

vi. 喷鼻息；鼓鼻;

Lottery

['lɒtəri]

n.彩票

stew

[stjuː]

n.炖汤;焖;烦恼

stout

[staʊt]

adj.强壮的;肥胖的;牢固的;坚定的

breathless

['breθləs]

adj.喘不过气来的

grind

[ɡraɪnd]

v.磨;压迫;碾碎;磨得吱吱响;逐渐停顿

liftable

[lɪftəbl]

a.1. 可以举起的

Billy

['bɪli]

n.棍棒;警棍;【英纺】粗纱机

defiant

[dɪ'faɪənt]

adj.挑衅的;目中无人

snatch

[snætʃ]

n.抢夺;一阵;一点点

Nancy

['nænsi]

n.南希(女子名)

earlier

['ɜːlɪə]

adj.早的;初期的

scrap

[skræp]

n.碎片;废品;少许;瘦小的人;争斗;打架

pick

[pɪkt]

采摘，挑选；

pebble

['pebl]

n.鹅卵石

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