吹小号的天鹅 第40期:小号(2)

You can imagine the noise in the music store whenthe cob crashed through the window.

你能想像得出当雄天鹅从橱窗冲进乐器店时惹出的乱子有多大。

At the moment the glass broke, one of the clerkswas showing a bass drum to a customer,

就在玻璃爆碎的瞬间，一个店员正在给一个顾客看低音鼓，

and the clerk was so startled at seeing a big whitebird come flying through the window,

可当他一看到这只从窗口飞进来的白色大鸟，

he hit the drum a tremendous wallop.

就不由得拼命地敲起鼓来。

"Bom!" went the drum.

“蹦!”鼓这么响。

"Crash!" went the splinters of flying glass.

“哗啦!”飞舞的玻璃碎片喊。

When the salesgirl fainted, she fell against the keys of the piano.

刚才那个女营业员昏倒的时候，恰好仰面倒在钢琴的键子上。

"Rrrongee-rrrongee-rrongee!" went the piano.

“嗡—嗡—嗡!”钢琴呻吟。

The owner of the store grabbed his shotgun,

店主抓起他的鸟枪就打，

which went off by mistake, blasting a hole in the ceiling and sending down a shower of plaster.

可惜没瞄准，反倒把天花板打出一个大洞。屋里顿时下了一场石膏雨。

Everything was flying around and falling and making a noise.

所有的东西都到处乱飞乱落，响起了一片嘈杂声。

"Bom!" went the drum.

“蹦!”鼓这么响。

"Plunk!" went the banjo.

“砰!”班卓琴唱。

"Rrrongee-rrrongee-rrrongee!" went the piano.

“嗡—嗡—嗡!”钢琴呻吟。

"Ump!" went the bull fiddle.

“唉!”低音提琴感叹。

"Help!" screamed a clerk. "We've been robbed."

“救命!”一个店员尖叫。“我们被抢了。”

"Make way!" shouted the owner.

“让开!”店主大喊。

He ran for the door, stepped outside, and fired another shot--bang!--at the disappearing bird.

他跑向门口，站到门外又开了一枪——梆!--他射向那只正在飞远的鸟。

His shot was too late.

他打得太晚了。

The cob was safe in the sky, beyond the range of gunfire.

雄天鹅已经到了空中，安全地飞在射程之外了。

He was headed home, toward the southwest, high above the roofs and spires of Billings.

他正在比林斯的屋顶和塔尖上空，往西南方的家那边飞呢。

In his beak was the trumpet.

他的嘴里叼着的正是那把小号。

In his heart was the pain of having committed a crime.

他的心因刚才所犯的罪行而痛苦。

"I have robbed a store," he said to himself.

“我洗劫了一家商店，”他自语，

"I have become a thief.

“我成了一个贼了。

What a miserable fate for a bird of my excellent character and high ideals!

对一只像我这样有着优秀品质和崇高理想的鸟儿来说，这是多么悲惨的命运呀!

Why did I do this?

我为什么要这么做?

What led me to commit this awful crime?

是什么诱使我犯下了这可怕的罪行?

My past life has been blameless--a model of good behavior and correct conduct.

我过去的生活可是清清白白的——我一直是行为良好品行端正的模范呀。

I am by nature law-abiding.

我天生就是个守法良民嘛。

Why, oh, why did I do this?"

可为什么，噢，为什么我要那么做?”

Then the answer came to him, as he flew steadily on through the evening sky.

当他稳稳地在夜空中飞着的时候，答案出来了。

"I did it to help my son.

“我做的这一切都是为了帮助我的儿子。

I did it for love of my son Louis."

我是出于对我儿子路易斯的爱才这么做的。”