英国语文第四册(双语):布鲁斯和蜘蛛(2)
Its head grew steady—again it went,
它的头变得平稳——当它再次抬起时，
And travelled a half yard higher;
爬了半码那么高；
'Twas a delicate thread it had to tread,
这是它必须行走的微妙路程，
And a road where its feet would tire.
在这条路上，它的双脚会感到疲惫。
Again it fell, and swung below;
它再一次跌下来，摇摆不定；
But up it quickly mounted,
但是它迅速地攀爬起来，
Till up and down, now fast, now slow,
向上、向下、一下快、一下慢，
Nine brave attempts were counted.
已经进行了九次这样勇敢的尝试。
"Sure," said the king, "that foolish thing
“当然，”国王说，“这种愚蠢的事情
Will strive no more to climb,
不必再努力地往上爬，
When it toils so hard to reach and cling,
很难爬上它的网，也很难抓住，
And tumbles every time."
它每次都跌下来。”
But up the insect went once more;
但是这个昆虫再一次爬起来；
Ah me! 'tis an anxious minute:
哎，我啊！这真是让人焦虑的时刻：
He's only a foot from his cobweb door;
它离蛛网之门只剩一英尺的距离了；
Oh, say, will he lose or win it?
噢，你说，它会输，还是会赢？
Steadily, steadily, inch by inch,
一寸，一寸，平稳地，
Higher and higher he got.
它爬得越来越高。
And a bold little run at the very last pinch
最后关头，它大胆地小跑了一下
Put him into the wished-for spot.
把它带到了心仪的地方。
"Bravo! bravo!" the king cried out;
“万岁！万岁！”国王喊道；
"All honour to those who try:
“所有的荣誉都属于那些勇于尝试的人：
The spider up there defied despair; —
蜘蛛不顾绝望地爬上去；——
He conquered, and why should not I?"
它征服了，为什么我不可以呢？”
And Bruce of Scotland braced his mind,
苏格兰的布鲁斯做好准备，
And gossips tell the tale,
流言蜚语把消息传了出去，
That he tried once more as he tried before,
然后他开始像以前一样再次尝试，
And that time he did not fail.
这次他没有失败。
Pay goodly heed, all ye who read,
对周围你看到的事物，给予密切的关注，
And beware of saying, "I can't;"
小心地说“我不能；”
'Tis a cowardly word, and apt to lead
这是懦弱的话语，容易造成
To idleness, folly, and want.
懒惰，愚蠢，和欲望。
—Eliza Cook
——伊丽莎白·库克
