Mrs. Packletide’s Tiger

文/赫克托·休·芒羅 譯/王鑫昊 審訂/寧一中

It was Mrs. Packletide’s pleasure and intention that she should shoot a tiger.Not that the lust to kill had suddenly descended on her, or that she felt that she would leave India safer and more wholesome than she had found it, with one fraction less of wild beast per million of inhabitants. The compelling motive for her sudden deviation22 deviation偏離；違背。towards the footsteps of Nimrod33寧錄，英勇的獵戶(hù)。出自《圣經(jīng)·創(chuàng)世記》10∶8—10∶9。was the fact that Loona Bimberton had recently been carried eleven miles in an aeroplane by an Algerian aviator, and talked of nothing else; only a personally procured44 procure（設(shè)法）獲得。tiger-skin and a heavy harvest of Press photographs could successfully counter that sort of thing. Mrs. Packletide had already arranged in her mind the lunch she would give at her house in Curzon Street, ostensibly in Loona Bimberton’s

帕克泰德夫人打死一只老虎，這可是能讓她高興的事。不是因?yàn)樗蝗痪蛯?duì)老虎動(dòng)了殺機(jī)，也不是因?yàn)樗X(jué)得在印度，讓每百萬(wàn)居民中的野獸數(shù)量稍少一點(diǎn)，就會(huì)使印度比以前更安全一些。促使她突然轉(zhuǎn)向、步寧錄后塵的動(dòng)機(jī)是：魯娜·賓波頓最近乘了一架阿爾及利亞飛行員開(kāi)的飛機(jī)，飛了11英里，而后除了對(duì)此事喋喋不休外，就不談其他的事；只有親自獵虎獲取一張虎皮，有大量照片見(jiàn)諸報(bào)刊，才可能成功抵制此事。帕克泰德夫人心中早已策劃好，她要在寇松街的住所辦一場(chǎng)午宴，表面上是為了請(qǐng)魯娜·賓波頓，卻把那張虎皮毯擺在最顯眼的honour, with a tiger-skin rug occupying most of the foreground and all of the conversation. She had also already designed in her mind the tiger-claw broach that she was going to give Loona Bimberton on her next birthday. In a world that is supposed to be chiefly swayed5sway支配；影響。by hunger and by love Mrs. Packletide was an exception; her movements and motives were largely governed by dislike of Loona Bimberton.位置，所有的交談也不離虎皮毯這件事。要在魯娜·賓波頓下次生日時(shí)送她的虎爪胸針，帕克泰德夫人也早在心中設(shè)計(jì)好了。在一個(gè)人們本應(yīng)主要受饑餓與愛(ài)情支配的世界里，帕克泰德夫人卻是個(gè)例外；控制她的行為與動(dòng)機(jī)的，主要是對(duì)魯娜·賓波頓的厭惡。

[2] Circumstances proved propitious6propitious吉利的。.Mrs. Packletide had offered a thousand rupees for the opportunity of shooting a tiger without over-much risk or exertion,and it so happened that a neighbouring village could boast of being the favoured rendezvous7rendezvous光顧的場(chǎng)所。of an animal of respectable antecedents, which had been driven by the increasing infirmities of age to abandon game-killing and con fi ne its appetite to the smaller domestic animals.The prospect of earning the thousand rupees had stimulated the sporting8sporting好賭的；投機(jī)的。and commercial instinct of the villagers; children were posted night and day on the outskirts of the local jungle to head the tiger back in the unlikely event of his attempting to roam away to fresh huntinggrounds, and the cheaper kinds of goats were left about with elaborate carelessness to keep him satisfied with his present quarters. The one great anxiety

[2]一切都順風(fēng)順?biāo)Ｅ量颂┑路蛉艘褢屹p一千盧比，不用冒多大風(fēng)險(xiǎn)、費(fèi)多大氣力就有機(jī)會(huì)打到一只老虎。正巧，鄰近村莊揚(yáng)言稱(chēng)，有一只品種名貴的老虎喜歡在當(dāng)?shù)爻鰶](méi)，已經(jīng)老態(tài)龍鐘，日益體衰，難以獵食，只靠捕一些小點(diǎn)兒的家畜填填肚皮。村民們一想到有一千盧比可賺，湊湊熱鬧掙點(diǎn)錢(qián)的心便激起來(lái)了。無(wú)論白天黑夜，都有孩子們?cè)诋?dāng)?shù)氐膮擦指浇咽卣緧彛f(wàn)一老虎要轉(zhuǎn)向新獵場(chǎng)（這種可能性很小），他們會(huì)把它趕回去。精心挑選的幾只便宜些的山羊，也故意隨便散放著，讓老虎對(duì)自己當(dāng)前的棲息場(chǎng)所感到滿(mǎn)足。唯一讓人們特別擔(dān)心的是，老虎在那位夫人定好的射獵日期前因年邁而一命嗚呼。白天was lest he should die of old age before the date appointed for the memsahib’s shoot. Mothers carrying their babies home through the jungle after the day’s work in the fi elds hushed their singing lest they might curtail the restful sleep of the venerable herd-robber.干完田里的活兒，母親們帶著孩子穿過(guò)叢林回家時(shí)，也不高聲唱歌，就怕驚擾那位“尊貴的畜獵者”寧?kù)o的休息。

[3] The great night duly arrived, moonlit and cloudless. A platform had been constructed in a comfortable and conveniently placed tree, and thereon crouched Mrs. Packletide and her paid companion,Miss Mebbin. A goat, gifted with a particularly persistent bleat9bleat羊的咩咩聲。, such as even a partially deaf tiger might be reasonably expected to hear on a still night, was tethered at the correct distance. With an accurately sighted rifle and a thumb-nail pack of patience cards the sportswoman awaited the coming of the quarry.

[3]美好的夜晚如期而至，明月朗朗，萬(wàn)里無(wú)云。在一棵舒適而又位置便利的樹(shù)上搭建了一座平臺(tái)，帕克泰德夫人和她雇來(lái)的同伴梅賓小姐就趴在上面。距離不遠(yuǎn)不近的地方拴著一只山羊，不斷發(fā)出咩咩的叫聲，是那種在這寂靜的夜晚、哪怕一只半聾的老虎也能聽(tīng)得見(jiàn)的聲響。手持一桿校準(zhǔn)的獵槍?zhuān)瑤е桓蔽⑿蛦稳思埮疲@位女獵手就守在此處等著老虎的到來(lái)。

[4] “I suppose we are in some danger?” said Miss Mebbin.

[5] She was not actually nervous about the wild beast, but she had a morbid dread of performing an atom100 atom一點(diǎn)兒。more service than she had been paid for.

[6] “Nonsense,” said Mrs. Packletide;“it’s a very old tiger. It couldn’t spring up here even if it wanted to.”

[7] “If it’s an old tiger I think you ought to get it cheaper. A thousand rupees is a lot of money.”

[8] Louisa Mebbin adopted a protective elder-sister attitude towards money

[4]“我想咱們現(xiàn)在有些危險(xiǎn)啊？”梅賓小姐說(shuō)。

[5]她倒不是因這只野獸感到緊張，而是服務(wù)范圍哪怕超過(guò)一丁點(diǎn)兒報(bào)酬所值，她就會(huì)心神不安。

[6]“胡說(shuō)，”帕克泰德夫人說(shuō)道，“這是只年邁的虎。就是它想跳起來(lái)也跳不動(dòng)啊。”

[7]“若這只虎上了年紀(jì)，我想，你就該少出點(diǎn)錢(qián)。一千盧比可不是小數(shù)目。”

[8]對(duì)于金錢(qián)，無(wú)論是哪一國(guó)家的貨幣，無(wú)論多大面值，in general, irrespective of11irrespective of不管；無(wú)論。nationality or denomination12denomination面額。. Her energetic intervention had saved many a trouble from dissipating13dissipate揮霍（金錢(qián)等）。itself in tips in some Moscow hotel, and francs and centimes14centime生丁（法國(guó)貨幣單位）。clung to her instinctively under circumstances which would have driven them headlong from less sympathetic hands. Her speculations as to the market depreciation of tiger remnants15remnant剩余部分；殘余；幸存者；零料。were cut short by the appearance on the scene of the animal itself. As soon as it caught sight of the tethered goat it lay flat on the earth,seemingly less from a desire to take advantage of all available cover than for the purpose of snatching a short rest before commencing the grand attack.露易莎·梅賓都持有一種大姐大的保護(hù)態(tài)度。因?yàn)榕簧妫谀箍颇陈灭^節(jié)省了不少錢(qián)，沒(méi)當(dāng)小費(fèi)付出去；法郎和生丁也本能地貼著她，在某些場(chǎng)合,若是不會(huì)節(jié)省的人，早就把這些錢(qián)拱手給了他人。她正在想著老虎的零料貶值的事，突然老虎出現(xiàn)了，打斷了她的思考。一看到那只拴著的山羊，老虎就平臥在地，似乎并非利用一切條件作掩護(hù)，而是在展開(kāi)猛攻之前，先搶時(shí)間稍事休息。

[9] “I believe it’s ill,” said Louisa Mebbin, loudly in Hindustani16Hindustani印度斯坦語(yǔ)。, for the bene fi t of the village headman, who was in ambush in a neighbouring tree.

[10] “Hush!” said Mrs. Packletide,and at that moment the tiger commenced ambling17amble（馬）緩行；從容地走；漫步。towards his victim.

[11] “Now, now!” urged Miss Mebbin with some excitement; “If he doesn’t touch the goat we needn’t pay for it.”(The bait was an extra.)

[12] The ri fl e fl ashed out with a loud report, and the great tawny18tawny黃褐色的。beast sprang to one side and then rolled over

[9]“我想它肯定病了。”露易莎·梅賓操著印度斯坦語(yǔ)喊道。聲音不小，為了讓埋伏在臨旁樹(shù)上的村長(zhǎng)聽(tīng)到。

[10]“噓！”帕克泰德夫人說(shuō)，就在這時(shí)，那只老虎站了起來(lái)，開(kāi)始慢慢地靠近獵物。

[11]“快，快！”梅賓小姐略顯激動(dòng)地催促著，“老虎要是沒(méi)咬上那只羊，咱們就不用付錢(qián)了。”（羊作誘餌的錢(qián)另算。）

[12]獵槍“砰”的一聲，發(fā)出了一陣巨響。那只碩大的黃褐色猛獸跳向一邊，然后滾in the stillness of death. In a moment a crowd of excited natives had swarmed19swarm擠滿(mǎn)。on to the scene, and their shouting speedily carried the glad news to the village,where a thumping20thumping重?fù)簟f tom-toms211 tom-tom桶子鼓；咚咚鼓。took up the chorus of triumph. And their triumph and rejoicing found a ready echo in the heart of Mrs. Packletide; already that luncheon-party in Curzon Street seemed immeasurably nearer.到地上，一動(dòng)不動(dòng)地，死了。霎時(shí)，一群興奮不已的當(dāng)?shù)卮迕穹鋼矶粒?jiàn)到此象，他們歡呼雀躍，這個(gè)好消息迅速傳進(jìn)村子，村里鑼鼓喧天，如勝利的合唱般響徹村落。村民勝利的喜悅自然也在帕克泰德夫人心中產(chǎn)生共鳴；寇松街的午宴似乎指日可待了。

[13] It was Louisa Mebbin who drew attention to the fact that the goat was in death-throes22deaththroes臨終的劇痛；死前的掙扎。from a mortal bulletwound, while no trace of the rifle’s deadly work could be found on the tiger. Evidently the wrong animal had been hit, and the beast of prey had succumbed23succumb屈服；死亡。to heart-failure, caused by the sudden report of the ri fl e, accelerated by senile24senile衰老的；高齡所致的。decay. Mrs. Packletide was pardonably annoyed at the discovery; but,at any rate, she was the possessor of a dead tiger, and the villagers, anxious for their thousand rupees, gladly connived25connive默許；附合。at the fi ction that she had shot the beast.And Miss Mebbin was a paid companion. Therefore did Mrs. Packletide face the cameras with a light heart, and her pictured fame reached from the pages of theTexas Weekly Snapshotto the illustrated Monday supplement of theNovoe Vremya. As for Loona Bimber-

[13]還是露易莎·梅賓提醒大家注意，身中致命的槍傷、臨死掙扎的是那只羊，而在老虎身上見(jiàn)不到任何槍傷的痕跡。顯然，獵槍打錯(cuò)了對(duì)象，老虎的死是由于突然的一聲槍響，加之高齡和衰弱的身體，心臟病發(fā)而亡。帕克泰德夫人對(duì)這一發(fā)現(xiàn)有些氣惱，這也情有可原；但無(wú)論如何，一只老虎總算到手，而村民們因?qū)σ磺ПR比的熱望，也欣然默許是她射殺了這只野獸。而梅賓小姐是花錢(qián)雇來(lái)的。就這樣，帕克泰德夫人面對(duì)照相機(jī)，心情很輕松。從《得克薩斯每周快照》到俄國(guó)的《新時(shí)代》星期一插圖增刊，打虎照使她聲名鵲起。魯娜·賓波頓呢，她一連好幾周對(duì)有插圖的報(bào)紙看都不看，收到虎爪胸針的贈(zèng)禮ton, she refused to look at an illustrated paper for weeks, and her letter of thanks for the gift of a tiger-claw broach was a model of repressed emotions. The luncheon-party she declined; there are limits beyond which repressed emotions become dangerous.后寫(xiě)答謝信時(shí)，她對(duì)情緒的克制堪稱(chēng)典范。對(duì)那場(chǎng)午宴，她謝絕了；情緒的克制畢竟有個(gè)限度，超出限度就危險(xiǎn)了。

[14] From Curzon Street the tigerskin rug travelled down to the Manor House26manor house（中世紀(jì)莊園主的）宅邸。, and was duly inspected and admired by the county, and it seemed a fi tting and appropriate thing when Mrs.Packletide went to the County Costume Ball27costume ball化裝舞會(huì)。in the character of Diana28羅馬神話中的處女守護(hù)神，狩獵女神和月亮女神。.

[15] “How amused every one would be if they knew what really happened,”said Louisa Mebbin a few days after the ball.

[16] “What do you mean?” asked Mrs. Packletide quickly.

[17] “How you shot the goat and frightened the tiger to death,” said Miss Mebbin, with her disagreeably pleasant laugh.

[18] “No one would believe it,” said Mrs. Packletide, her face changing colour as rapidly as though it were going through a book of patterns before posttime.

[19] “Loona Bimberton would,” said Miss Mebbin. Mrs. Packletide’s face settled on an unbecoming29unbecoming不合身的；不相配的；難看的。shade of

[14]那張虎皮毯從寇松街一路運(yùn)到了領(lǐng)主莊園，果然全郡的人都去瞻仰。繼而當(dāng)?shù)嘏e行化裝舞會(huì)時(shí)，帕克泰德夫人裝扮成獵神戴安娜，真是恰當(dāng)不過(guò)。

[15]“大家若知道了真相，該會(huì)覺(jué)得多么可笑。”舞會(huì)幾天后，露易莎·梅賓說(shuō)道。

[16]“什么意思？”帕克泰德夫人急急地問(wèn)。

[17]“就是你怎么打死了羊，嚇?biāo)懒死匣⒌氖掳　！泵焚e小姐回答，臉上的笑容令人很是不快。

[18]“沒(méi)人會(huì)相信的。”帕克泰德夫人說(shuō)。她的臉色急劇變化著，像是在寄送之前，急速地翻閱一本畫(huà)冊(cè)一樣。

[19]“魯娜·賓波頓就會(huì)吧。”梅賓小姐說(shuō)。帕克泰德夫人頓時(shí)臉色發(fā)青，煞是難看。

[20]“你不會(huì)泄密吧？”她問(wèn)道。

[21]“我看準(zhǔn)了達(dá)爾菁附greenish white.

[20] “You surely wouldn’t give me away?” she asked.

[21] “I’ve seen a weekend cottage near Darking that I should rather like to buy,” said Miss Mebbin with seeming irrelevance. “Six hundred and eighty,freehold. Quite a bargain, only I don’t happen to have the money.”

[22] Louisa Mebbin’s pretty weekend cottage, christened30christen給……施洗禮；(施洗時(shí))為……命名，給……取名為。by her “Les Fauves,” and gay in summer-time with its garden borders31border（草坪邊等的）狹長(zhǎng)花壇。of tiger-lilies322 tiger-lily卷丹，又稱(chēng)虎皮百合，百合科百合屬植物。,is the wonder and admiration of her friends.

[23] “It is a marvel how Louisa manages to do it,” is the general verdict.

[24] Mrs. Packletide indulges in no more big-game shooting.

[25] “The incidental expenses are so heavy,” she confides to inquiring friends. ■近的一幢度假別墅，想買(mǎi)下來(lái)。”梅賓小姐好似漫不經(jīng)心地說(shuō)道，“680鎊，產(chǎn)權(quán)終身，真劃算，只是不巧，我就缺這筆錢(qián)。”

[22]露易莎·梅賓給她美麗的度假別墅取名為“野獸”。夏天，花園里開(kāi)滿(mǎn)卷丹花，一派生機(jī)盎然。在朋友們眼里，這套別墅堪稱(chēng)奇觀，大家贊不絕口。

[23]“露易莎·梅賓居然買(mǎi)上了這么好的別墅，真是不可思議。”人們都這么說(shuō)。

[24]帕克泰德夫人從此不再沉迷于打猛獸了。

[25]“額外的花銷(xiāo)太大。”她對(duì)探問(wèn)究竟的朋友們坦露道。 □