双语·《伊索寓言》 牛棚里的雄鹿

THE STAG IN THE OX-STALL

A Stag, chased from his lair by the hounds, took refuge in a farmyard, and, entering a stable where a number of oxen were stalled, thrust himself under a pile of hay in a vacant stall, where he lay concealed, all but the tips of his horns. Presently one of the Oxen said to him, “What has induced you to come in here? Aren't you aware of the risk you are running of being captured by the herdsmen?” To which he replied, “Pray let me stay for the present. When night comes I shall easily escape under cover of the dark.” In the course of the afternoon more than one of the farm-hands came in, to attend to the wants of the cattle, but not one of them noticed the presence of the Stag, who accordingly began to congratulate himself on his escape and to express his gratitude to the Oxen. “We wish you well,” said the one who had spoken before, “but you are not out of danger yet. If the master comes, you will certainly be found out, for nothing ever escapes his keen eyes.” Presently, sure enough, in he came, and made a great to-do about the way the Oxen were kept. “The beasts are starving,” he cried, “here, give them more hay, and put plenty of litter under them.” As he spoke, he seized an armful himself from the pile where the Stag lay concealed, and at once detected him. Calling his men, he had him seized at once and killed for the table.

牛棚里的雄鹿

一只雄鹿被猎狗追踪，他从自己的藏身处跑出来，躲到了一处农家宅院，藏进一间牛棚。他看到一个空牛栏中堆了一堆干草，便一头扎了进去，藏了起来，只是鹿角的尖还露在外面。不久，一头公牛对他说：“你是怎么跑到这里来的呀？你不知道你这么做可能会被牧人抓住吗？”雄鹿说：“求求你让我先在这儿躲一会儿吧。等天黑了，我就能趁着黑暗逃跑了。”那天下午，好几个农场里的人进了牛棚，照料牲口，但是都没有发现雄鹿。雄鹿心中庆幸自己逃脱了厄运，于是向公牛表示感谢。之前跟他说话的那头牛回答说：“我们很希望你能平安，不过你还没有脱离危险呢。如果主人来了，你肯定会被发现的，什么东西都逃不过他敏锐的眼睛。”不一会儿，主人来了，因为公牛的状况折腾了一大通。他大叫道：“牲口们全都饿了，快来给他们添草，给他们身下多放些褥草。”他说话的时候，离雄鹿藏身的草垛只有一步之遥，他很快就发现了雄鹿，马上叫来了人，抓住了鹿并将鹿杀了，把鹿肉当作了晚餐。