林肯的故事朗读（听读戴维回了家）

★ 第8章 ★

We decided that Alan would stay hidden in the fields, while I walked to Queensferry to find Mr. Rankeillor. Alan promised not to come out until he heard me return. In order to be sure that it was me, he taught me to whistle a little Gaelic song. I have never forgotten it. I think that it will run in my head when Ilie dying. Every time it comes to me, I think of that last day of my travels, with Alan whistling opposite me in the grass, while the first light of the sun touched his face.

我们决定，艾伦藏在田野里而我则步行到昆斯费里去找兰基勒先生。艾伦答应他直到听到我回来才出来。为了确认是我，他教我吹一首盖尔语小曲。我从来没有忘记它。我想这首歌会在我弥留之际时索绕在我脑中。每当我想起这首歌，我就想到我们一起旅行的最后一天：在草丛中，艾伦躺在我对面吹着口哨，早晨的第一缕阳光抚摸着他的脸。

Soon I arrived in Queensferry. When I saw people looking strangely at me, and realized how dirty my clothes were, I began to feel afraid. Would Mr. Rankeillor want to talk to me? How could I prove who I was? I had no papers with me. I was too ashamed to ask any of the townspeople for help, so I walked up and down, not knowing what to do.

我很快就到了昆斯费里。当我看到人们奇怪地看着我时，我意识到我的衣服有多么脏，我开始害怕了。兰基勒先生想和我说话吗?我怎样证明我自己?我随身没带任何证明文件。我太羞愧了，以至于不敢向任何市民求助，于是我走来走去，不知道该做什么。

By midday, I was tired and hungry. I stopped in front of a large house, with clean windows, flowers in the garden, and a dog sitting on the doorstep.

到了正午我又累又饿。我在一座大房子前停住了，那房子窗户洁净，园子里有花，门阶上一条狗卧立着。

Suddenly the door opened, and a large, well-dressed, kind-looking man came out.

门突然间开了，一个身材高大、穿着考究、和蔼可亲的人走了出来。

'What are you doing here, my lad?' he asked.

“小伙子，你在这儿干嘛?”他问道。

'I'm looking for Mr. Rankeillor's house, sir,' I answered.

“我在找兰基勒先生的家，先生。”我答道。

'Well, I'm Rankeillor, and this is my house. Who are you?'

“唔，我就是兰基勒，而且这就是我的家。你是谁?”

'My name is David Balfour,' I replied.

“我叫戴维·鲍尔弗。”

'David Balfour?' he repeated and looked closely at me. 'Come inside, Mr Balfour, and we'll talk.'

“戴维·鲍尔弗?”他重复着，细盯着我。“进来，鲍尔弗先生，我们谈一谈。”

In Mr. Rankeillor's comfortable sitting-room, I told him the story of my early life and explained that my uncle had paid Captain Hoseason to kidnap me and take me to sea.

在兰基勒先生舒适的客厅里，我给他讲述了我早年的故事，告诉他我的叔叔买通霍齐亚森船长诱拐了我并把我带到了海上。

The lawyer listened carefully. 'I heard that Hoseason's ship went down near the island of Mulltwo months ago,' he said. 'What have you been doing since then?'

律师认真地听着。“我听说霍齐亚森的船两个月前在马尔岛附近沉了。”他说道，“你从那以后一直在干什么?”

'I can easily tell you, sir,' I replied, 'but if I tell you, a friend's life may be in danger. Promise me that you will not get him into trouble, or tell the soldiers about him!'

“告诉你很容易，先生，”我答道，“但如果告诉你，一位朋友的生命将受到威胁。答应我你不要使他陷入麻烦或向士兵告发他!”

Although he looked a little worried at first, he promised, and I told him the rest of my adventures. While I talked, his eyes were closed and he seemed to be asleep, but I discovered soon afterward that he had understood and remembered everything.

虽然起初他看起来有点担心，但他答应了，我告诉他我其余的冒险经历。我讲时，他闭着眼，看起来像睡着了，但之后不久我发现他明白了并记住了所有事情。

When spoke the name of Alan Breck, he opened his eyes and sat up. 'Don't use unnecessary names, Mr. Balfour,' he said. 'A lawyer has to be very careful when discussing Highlanders. I don't think I heard your friend's name very well. Let's call him—Mr. Thomson.'

当我提到艾伦·布雷克这个名字时，他睁开了眼并坐正了。“不要用不必要的名字，鲍尔弗先生。”他说道，“律师在讨论苏格兰高地人时得非常小心。我认为我没太听清你朋友的名字。就让我们称他——汤姆森先生吧。”

'Of course,' I thought, 'all over Scotland people are talking about Alan, now that he's accused of the murder of Colin Campbell.' I was sure that Rankeillor had recognized his name. But I just smiled, and continued my story, using the name of Mr. Thomson instead of Alan Breck.

“当然，”我想，“全苏格兰的人都在谈论艾伦，既然他被指控谋杀了科林·坎贝尔的话。”我确信兰基勒已认出了他的名字。但我只是微微一笑，继续讲我的故事，用汤姆森先生这个名字代替艾伦·布雷克。

'Well, well,' said the lawyer, when I had finished, 'what an exciting adventure! You will have to write it down one day! I had heard of you, Mr. David, from your friends in Essendean, who wrote to me when they had no word from you. Your uncle then told me that he had given you money to study in Europe, but I did not think that was true. I'm afraid we all know that Ebenezer Balfour is not a very good or honest man! Then Captain Hoseason appeared, saying that you were lost when his ship went down. But now I understand what really happened, and I know that you are David Balfour.' He put a hand on my shoulder in a fatherly way and continued. 'You'll want to know about the house of Shaws. It's a strange story. When they were young, your father Alexander and his younger brother Ebenezer loved the same girl. Your father was always a kind, loving brother, so when the girl decided to marry him, Alexander left Cramond and let Ebenezer have the house and farmland. Well, I think it was a bad mistake. What happened was that your parents were always very poor, and Ebenezer became more and more interested in money. He never married, of course.'

“唔，唔，”我讲完以后律师说道，“多惊险的经历啊!你真应该有朝一日把它写下来!我曾经从你在埃森丁的朋友那里听说过你，戴维先生，他们在没有你的消息时曾经写信给我。当时你的叔叔告诉我说他已经给你钱让你在欧洲学习，但我当时就想那不是真的。我想我们都知道埃比尼泽·鲍尔弗先生并不是一个好人或老实人!后来霍齐亚森船长出现了，说他的船下沉时你就不见了。但现在我知道真的发生了什么事。我知道你就是戴维·鲍尔弗。”他慈父般地把手放在我的肩上并继续说：“你可能想知道肖家大院的有关情况。是一个奇特的故事。你父亲亚历山大和他的弟弟埃比尼泽年轻时爱上了同一个女孩。你父亲一直是一个友善的、讨人喜欢的兄弟，所以那个女孩决定嫁给他时他便离开了克莱蒙德并把房子和农田留给了埃比尼泽。唔，我想这是一个大错。所发生的事情是，你的父母一直很穷，而埃比尼泽越来越对金钱感兴趣。他从未结婚，当然了。”

'Well, sir,' I said, 'and now, what will happen?'

“那么，先生，”我说，“现在又会怎么样呢?”

'Now that your father is dead,' replied the lawyer, 'you own the house of Shaws and the farms around it. But Ebenezer won't accept that, and it will be expensive if he wants us to prove it in court. In fact, we must stay out of court, if possible. The kidnapping will be difficult to prove, and we don't want people asking questions about your friend Mr. Thomson. No, I think that we should leave Ebenezer at Shaws, where he's been for twenty-five years, and ask him to pay you some money every year, instead of giving you the house. What do you think?'

“既然你的父亲去世了，”律师回答说，“你就拥有肖家大院和周围的农场。但埃比尼泽不会接受，如果他要我们在法庭上证明这一点那将花销很大。事实上我们必须尽可能不去法庭。这次诱拐很难证明，我们也不愿意让别人问一些关于你朋友汤姆森的问题。对，我想我们应该让埃比尼泽留在肖家大院，他在那儿已经待了25年了。而且我们可以要求他每年给你一些钱而不是要他把房子还你。你认为怎么样?”

'That sounds excellent to me, sir,' I replied. 'But I think that we could accuse my uncle of kidnapping me. It's easier to prove than you think. Listen,' and I described my plan to him.

“那样听起来很棒，先生。”我回答，“但我想我们可以控告我叔叔诱拐了我。证明起来比你想像得容易。听着，”我然后向他描述了我的计划。

He was very pleased with it. 'Yes, Mr. David, very good! If we can catch Ebenezer like that, he can't refuse to give you some of the money that belongs to you!' He called his secretary, Torrance. 'You must come with us tonight, Torrance. You'll have to listen to the conversation you hear，and write it all down. And bring the Balfour papers with you.' Then he turned to me. 'But if I accept your plan, Mr. David, I'll have to meet your friend Mr. Thomson, who may be, I only say maybe, a criminal.' He was silent for a while, thinking deeply, then went on, 'Well, let's talk of something different. Do you know, the other day, I saw Torrance in the street? But because I wasn't wearing my glasses, I didn't recognize him! My own secretary! Ha-ha-ha!' and he laughed happily at himself.

他对此很高兴。“是，戴维先生，很好!如果我们能那样套住埃比尼泽的话，他不可能拒绝把本属于你的一些钱还给你!”他大叫他的秘书托伦斯：“你必须今晚和我们一起来，托伦斯。你必须认真听你听到的，并将其记录下来。并且带来与鲍尔弗家族有关的文件。”接着他转身对我说：“但是如果我接受了你的计划，戴维先生，我必须见一下你的朋友汤姆森先生。他可能是，我只是说可能是，一个罪犯。”他沉默了一会儿，沉思着，然后接着说;“好了，让我们聊一下别的什么事情。你知道吗?前几天我在街上看见了托伦斯，但因为当时我没带眼镜，我没有认出他来!我自己的秘书!哈哈哈!”他还自嘲地开怀大笑。

I smiled politely. 'Perhaps he's getting old,' I thought.

我礼貌地微微一笑。“可能他变老了，”我想。

But later that evening, when Mr. Rankeillor, Torrance, and I were walking out of Queensferry, the lawyer suddenly cried out, laughing, 'Well, how stupid of me! I've forgotten my glasses!' And I understood why he had told me the story about Torrance. Now he could meet Alan, a man wanted for murder, and if the soldiers asked him later for information he could say that he never saw Alan clearly and could not possibly recognize him.

但这之后那天晚上，我、兰基勒先生和托伦斯走出昆斯费里后，兰基勒这位律师突然笑着叫道：“唉，我多思蠢！我忘了我的眼镜!”于是我明白了他为什么给我讲托伦斯的故事。他现在可以见到正被人通缉捉拿的艾伦了，一旦士兵日后问他有关情况，他会讲他从未看清艾伦，也不可能认出他。

When we arrived near Alan's hiding-place, I whistled the little Highland song. When he appeared, we explained to him what we wanted him to do, and he readily agreed.

当我们靠近艾伦隐蔽的地方时，我用口哨吹起了那首高地小曲。艾伦出来以后，我们对他解释想让他做什么，他欣然同意了。

So the four of us continued walking until we reached the house of Shaws.

于是我们四个人继续前行，直到到了肖家大院。

罗伯特·路易斯·斯蒂文森(1850——1894)是英国著名的小说家和散文家。他出生于苏格兰爱丁堡一个富裕人家，祖父和父亲都是土木工程师，以建筑灯塔著名。或许是受家庭影响，他于一八六七年进爱丁堡大学读土木工程，但是后来改学法律。

在《诱拐》这部作品里，斯蒂文森以其一以贯之的创作风格，向我们讲述了一个紧张刺激、扣人心弦的故事，同时塑造了一系列让人难忘的人物形象。主人公戴维·鲍尔弗不必多说，读者从他的历险故事中自能感受到他的机智勇敢，活脱脱一个少年英雄的形象跃然纸上;其他人物不管正邪，都各有其貌，栩栩如生，随着故事的展开，让我们逐一看到了送戴维上路的神父坎贝尔的忠厚，想要独吞家产的戴维叔叔埃比尼译·鲍尔弗的奸诈，与埃比尼译·鲍尔弗共谋诱拐戴维的船长霍西森的贪婪，与戴维同甘共苦的艾伦对事业的坚贞、对朋友的忠诚，以及帮戴维讨回公道的律师兰基勒的诚信，等等。

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