美国语文第五册 第149期:鹌鹑(2)

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　　but be merciful and kind to him, and he will visit your barnyard,  如果人们仁慈友好地对待它们，鹌鹑将飞抵农家谷仓，

　　and sing for you upon the boughs² of the apple tree by your gateway³.  在农家院门口的苹果树枝干上尽情鸣唱。

　　When warm May first wooes the young flowers to open and receive her breath,  五月明媚的阳光，鹌鹑首先祈求花蕾怒放，它们才能接受花朵的温馨抚爱，

　　then begin the cares and responsibilities of wedded⁴ life.  然后开始履行婚姻生活的责任。

　　Away fly the happy pair to seek some grassy⁵ tussock,  年轻鹌鹑双宿双飞到处寻找茂密的草丛，

　　where, safe from the eye of the hawk⁶ and the nose of the fox, they may rear their expectant brood in peace. 在那里它们才能逃避猛鸷的利爪袭击，才能躲过嗅觉灵敏的狐狸，安心舒适地孵化自己的宝贝。

　　Oats harvest arrives, and the fields are waving with yellow grain.  燕麦收获的季节到了，田野里落满金黄的谷粒。

　　Now be wary⁷, O kind-hearted cradler, and tread not into those pure white eggs ready to burst with life!  鹌鹑觉得还是要谨慎为妙。噢，善良的摇篮母亲，绝不会踩踏纯净洁白的蛋，那些即将叽喳欲出的生命！

　　Soon there is a peeping sound heard, and lo! 很快，“唧唧”声愈发清晰，瞧！

　　a proud mother walketh magnificently in the midst of her children, scratching and picking, and teaching them how to swallow.  肩负生命重大意义的骄傲母亲，在孩子们中间踱步，不时地为它们抓挠啄理，教它们如何吞咽。

　　Happy she, if she may be permitted to bring them up to maturity⁸, and uncompelled to renew her joys in another nest.  如果她能将幼雏培养长大，无需被迫重新垒窝筑巢，即可再度开始母亲的快乐，那么，她该有多么幸福自在！

　　The assiduities of a mother have a beauty and a sacredness about them that command respect and reverence⁹ in all animal nature,  母亲勤勉意味对子女爱恋与神圣职责，这一信仰支撑她尊重敬畏所有动物的天性，

　　human or inhuman—what a lie does that word carry—except, perhaps, in monsters, insects, and fish.  人类或非人类皆然。或许，除了怪兽、昆虫或鱼类并不具备。

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