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第12章 A Poor Rule(2)

第一种类型是你喜欢的雀斑脸、塌鼻梁的姑娘。第二种是莫德·亚当斯类型的。第三种是布格楼画中的女人。艾琳·欣克尔是第四种。她是纯洁无瑕市镇的女市长。同她相比,特洛伊的海伦只能算是洗衣妇,一千个金苹果都得判给她。

The Parisian Restaurant was within a radiusradius n.半径, 范围, 辐射光线, 有效航程, 范围, 界限. Even from beyond its circumference men rode in to Paloma to win her smiles. They got them. One meal—one smile—one dollar. But, with all her impartialityimpartiality n.不偏不倚, 公正, 公平, Ileen seemed to favor three of her admirers above the rest. According to the rules of politeness, I will mention myself last.

巴黎饭馆像个圆心,吸引着半径数英里的顾客。即使在它影响范围之外的地方,也有人骑马赶到帕洛马来博她一笑。他们总能如愿以偿。一顿饭——笑一笑——一块钱。不过,尽管艾琳对她的爱慕者一视同仁,她似乎特别赏识其中的三个。根据礼貌的原则,我最后才提我自己。

The first was an artificial product known as Bryan Jacks—a name that had obviously met with reversesreverse n.相反, 背面, 反面, 倒退 adj.相反的, 倒转的,颠倒的 vt.颠倒, 倒转. Jacks was the outcome of paved cities. He was a small man made of some material resembling flexible sandstone. His hair was the color of a brick Quaker meetinghouse, his eyes were twin cranberries, his mouth was like the apertureaperture n.孔, 穴, 缝隙, (照相机, 望远镜等的)光圈, 孔径 under a droplettershere sign.

第一个是名叫布赖恩·杰克斯的人工产物。这个名字显然碰到过许多钉子。杰克斯是铺柏油马路的大城市的产物。他五短身材,像是柔韧的砂岩之类的材料做的。他头发的颜色如同砖砌的资格会教徒聚会所;他的眼睛好像两颗酸果蔓的果实;他的嘴则像信箱的投信口。

He knew every city from Bangor to San Francisco, thence north to Portland, thence S. 45 E. to a given point in Florida. He had mastered every art, trade, game, business, profession, and sport in the world, had been present at, or hurrying on his way to, every headline event that had ever occurred between oceans since he was five years old. You might open the atlas, place your finger at randomrandom n.随意, 任意 adj.任意的, 随便的, 胡乱的 adv.胡乱地 upon the name of a town, and Jacks would tell you the front names of three prominent citizens before you could close it again. He spoke patronizingly and even disrespectfully of Broadway, Beacon Hill, Michigan, Euclid, and Fifth avenues, and the St. Louis Four Courts. Compared with him as a cosmopolitecosmopolite 世界公民 adj.属于世界的, 见闻很广博的, the Wandering Jew would have seemed a mere hermit. He had learned everything the world could teach him, and he would tell you about it.

从东北的班戈到西海岸的旧金山,往北到波特兰,再往南偏东四十五度到佛罗里达的特定的一点,这个范围里的每一个城市他都熟悉。世界上的各种技艺、行当、游戏、事务、职业和运动,他无不精通。从五岁开始,东西海岸之间发生的每一重大事件,他都亲眼目睹,或者正赶去参加。你可以打开地图册,随便指点一个城市,杰克斯在你合上地图册之前就能把那里三个著名人士的小名告诉你。他谈到百老汇路、灯塔山、密执安路、尤克利德路、五马路以及圣路易四大院时,态度大大咧咧,甚至带有轻蔑。如果要同他比见多识广,那么到处流浪的犹太人简直像是隐士了。世界能教给他的东西,他都已学会,他还愿意讲给你听听。

I hate to be reminded of Pollocks Course of Time, and so do you, but every time I saw Jacks I would think of the poets description of another poet by the name of G. G. Byron who “Drank early, deeply drank—drank draughts that common millions might have quenchedquench vt.结束, 熄灭,淬火 vi.熄灭, 平息, then died of thirst because there was no more to drink.”

我不愿意听人们提到波洛克的《时间的历程》,对你也是如此,可我一看到杰克斯,就会想起这位诗人描写另一位诗人拜伦时所用的话,他说拜伦“饮得早,饮得深——他的量超过了芸芸众生,然后渴死了,因为无可再饮。”

That fitted Jacks, except that, instead of dying, he came to Paloma, which was about the same thing. He was a telegrapher and station—and express-agent at seventyfive dollars a month. Why a young man who knew everything and could do everything was content to serve in such an obscureobscure adj.暗的, 朦胧的, 模糊的, 晦涩的 vt.使暗, 使不明显 capacity I never could understand, although he let out a hint once that it was as a personal favor to the president and stockholders of the S. P. Ry. Co.

这几句话很符合杰克斯的情况,只不过他没有死,却到帕洛马来了,这同死也相差无几。他是铁路服务员兼客货运售票员,每月工资七十五元。一个什么都懂,什么都会的青年人,怎么会甘心干这样一份默默无闻的差使,我怎么都不明白,尽管有一次他露了点儿口风说,他这么干是他个人给南太平洋铁路公司的董事长及股东们帮个忙。

One more line of description, and I turn Jacks over to you. He wore bright blue clothes, yellow shoes, and a bow tie made of the same cloth as his shirt.

我再形容两句,就把杰克斯交给你们了。他穿一套鲜蓝色的衣服,脚踏黄皮鞋,打的领结和衬衫的料子一样。

My rival No.2 was Bud Cunningham, whose services had been engaged by a ranch near Paloma to assist in compelling refractoryrefractory adj.难控制的, 难熔的 cattle to keep within the bounds of decorumdecorum n.礼貌 and order. Bud was the only cowboy off the stage that I ever saw who looked like one on it. He wore the sombrero, the chaps, and the handkerchief tied at the back of his neck.

我的第二号情敌是巴德·坎宁安,他在帕洛马附近的一个牧场上工作,协助把不听话的牛群管得俯首帖耳。我见过的舞台下的牧人中,惟有巴德像是舞台上的牧人。他戴着阔边帽,穿着皮套裤,脖子上围着一块手帕,结打在后面。

Twice a week Bud rode in from the Val Verde Ranch to sup at the Parisian Restaurant. He rode a manyhighhanded Kentucky horse at a tremendously fast lopelope v.(使)大步慢跑 n.大步慢跑, which animal he would rein up so suddenly under the big mesquite at the corner of the brush shelter that his hoofs would plough canals yards long in the loam.

巴德每周两次从绿谷牧场骑马进城,来巴黎饭馆就餐。他骑着一匹专横跋扈的肯塔基马,快得吓人。跑到凉棚角上的牧豆树边时,他猛地勒住缰绳,马蹄在肥土上犁出好几码长的沟。

Jacks and I were regular boarders at the restaurant, of course.

当然,杰克斯和我是饭馆的常客。

The front room of the Hinkle House was as neat a little parlorparlor n.客厅, 会客室, 店营业室, 业务室 adj.客厅的 as there was in the blackwaxy country. It was all willow rockingchairs, and homeknit tidies, and albums, and conch shells in a row. And a little upright piano in one comer.

在这个到处都是黑蜡样泥土的地方,欣克尔家的前房可算是很整洁的小客厅了。客厅里的柳条摇椅上垫着手织的罩布,摆着不少照相册和一排海螺壳。角落里还有一架竖式小钢琴。

Here Jacks and Bud and I—or sometimes one or two of us, according to our goodluckused to sit of evenings when the tide of trade was over, and “visit” Miss Hinkle.

杰克斯、巴德和我——有时凭运气只有我们中间的一个或两个人——等饭馆生意忙过之后,晚上常去那里坐坐,“拜访”欣克尔小姐。

Ileen was a girl of ideas. She was destined for higher things (if there can be anything higher) than taking in dollars all day through a barbedwire wicket. She had read and listened and thought. Her looks would have formed a career for a less ambitiousambitious adj.有雄心的, 野心勃勃的 girl, but, rising superior to mere beauty, she must establish something in the nature of a salon—the only one in Paloma.

艾琳是个很有思想的姑娘。她不该整天坐在铁丝网后面收钱,而注定要过高人一等的生活,如果还有什么比目前的工作位置更高的话。她勤于阅读、倾听和思索。换一个志趣不高的姑娘,单凭容貌,就能干出一番事业,但是艾琳超越了单纯的容貌美,她要建立一个文艺沙龙之类的东西——帕洛马独一无二的沙龙。

“Dont you think that Shakespeare was a great writer?” she would ask, with such a pretty little knit of her arched brows that the late Ignatius Donnelly, himself, had he seen it, could scarcely have saved his Bacon.

“你认为莎士比亚是不是伟大的作家?”她稍微皱起弯弯的眉毛问道。她的模样那么俊俏,如果已故的伊格内修斯·唐纳利本人见到她的话,就很难袒护他的培根了。

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