2.A boy and a girl 少年偶遇
Saint Valentine’s Day, 1675, was the day that changed my life for ever, though I did not know it then.
1675年的圣瓦伦丁节是永远改变我命运的一天，尽管当时我对此一无所知。
I was fourteen. My mother had been ill and was not eating very well, so I went out to find something that she liked — good, fresh fish, caught from clear water.
那年我十四岁。母亲一直生病，胃口不好，所以我出门去找她喜欢吃的东西——从清澈水域捕获的新鲜好鱼。
I went first along the Lynn river that runs through our valley, then I turned into Bagworthy Water. Though I knew that this river led to Doone valley, I did not think about it. I went on catching fish and moving up the river, then suddenly found myself standing at the bottom of the cliffs outside Doone valley.
我先沿着流经我们山谷的林恩河走，然后转入了巴格沃特河。虽然我知道这条河通向杜恩谷，但我当时并没多想。我继续捕鱼并沿河而上，突然发现自己站在了杜恩谷外的悬崖脚下。
In front of me was a waterfall, a steep hill of smooth, fast-moving water. It was a wild, lonely place, surrounded by tall trees, and it was already getting late. I knew I should turn for home — but I also wanted very much to see what was at the top of that waterfall. It looked a dangerous climb, but if I did not climb it, I would always remember that I was too frightened to do it.
在我面前是一道瀑布，水流湍急平滑，形成陡峭的水幕。这是一个荒凉偏僻的地方，四周环绕着高大的树木，天色也已渐晚。我知道我该回家了——但我又非常想看看瀑布顶端是什么样子。攀爬看起来十分危险，但如果我不爬上去，我会永远记得自己是因为太害怕才不敢尝试的。
So I climbed.
于是我开始攀登。
The water beat against my legs, once knocking me down so that I nearly drowned, but I pulled myself up and went on. When I reached the top at last, my arms and legs were aching and my feet were cut by the rocks. I fell in the grass, exhausted.
水流冲击着我的双腿，有一次甚至把我冲倒，差点淹死，但我挣扎着爬起来继续前进。当我终于到达顶端时，四肢酸痛，双脚也被岩石划破了。我筋疲力尽地倒在草地上。
When I opened my eyes, for a few seconds I didn’t know where I was. But, kneeling beside me, touching my face with a leaf, was a very young girl.
当我睁开眼睛时，有几秒钟不知道自己身在何处。但是，跪在我身边、用一片叶子轻触我脸庞的，是一个非常年幼的女孩。
‘Oh, I’m so glad,’ she whispered softly, as I sat up and looked at her. ‘Now you’ll try to be better, won’t you?’
“哦，我真高兴，”当我坐起身看着她时，她轻声低语道，“现在你会努力好起来的，对吗？”
I had never heard as sweet a sound as this girl’s voice, nor seen anything as beautiful as the large dark eyes that watched me, full of care and wonder. I stared at her without speaking, noticing her long, shining black hair.
我从未听过像这女孩声音般甜美的音色，也从未见过像注视我的那双大而黑的眼睛般美丽的事物，那眼神充满了关切与惊奇。我说不出话来，只是凝视着她，注意到她那乌黑闪亮的长发。
‘What is your name?’ she said, ‘and how did you get here, and what have you got in your bag?’
“你叫什么名字？”她说，“你怎么到这儿来的？包里装的是什么？”
‘They’re fish for my mother,’ I said. ‘Very special fish. But I’ll give you some, if you like.’
“这是给我母亲的鱼，”我说，“非常特别的鱼。但如果你喜欢，我可以分给你一些。”
‘Dear me — you re so proud of them, when they’re only fish! But look at your feet — they’re bleeding. Let me tie something round them for you.’
“天哪——不过是些鱼罢了，你却这么引以为豪！可是看看你的脚——都在流血了。让我找点东西帮你包扎一下吧。”
‘Oh, I’m not worried about them,’ I said bravely. ‘My name’s John Ridd. What’s your name?’
“噢，我不担心这个，”我勇敢地说，“我叫约翰·里德。你叫什么名字？”
‘Lorna Doone,’ she answered, in a soft voice, and looked down at the grass. She seemed afraid of her own name. ‘Lorna Doone. Didn’t you know?’
“洛娜·杜恩，”她用柔和的声音回答，低头看着草地。她似乎对自己的名字感到畏惧。“洛娜·杜恩。你不知道吗？”
I stood up and touched her hand, and tried to make her look at me, but she turned away. I felt sorry for her — and even more sorry when she started to cry.
我站起来握住她的手，试图让她看着我，但她却转过头去。我为她感到难过——当她开始哭泣时，我更心疼了。
‘Don’t cry,’ I said. ‘I’m sure you’ve never done any harm. I’ll give you all my fish, Lorna, and catch some more for my mother.’
“别哭，”我说，“我相信你从没做过任何坏事。洛娜，我把所有的鱼都给你，我会再为母亲捕一些。”
But she looked so sad, with the tears running down her face, that my heart ached for her and I gave her a kiss. At once my face turned red — here was I, just a simple farmer’s boy, but she, though young, was clearly a lady and far above me.
但她看起来那么悲伤，泪水顺着脸颊流下，我的心为她而痛，于是我吻了她一下。我的脸立刻红了——我只是个单纯的农家少年，而她虽然年幼，却显然是一位小姐，地位远在我之上。
She turned her head away, and I felt I should go. But I couldn’t. She turned back to look at me.
她转过头去，我觉得自己该走了。但我迈不开步子。她又回过头来看我。
‘You must go,’ she said. ‘They will kill us if they find us together. You have found a way up into the valley, which they could never believe. You must go now, but when your feet are better, you can come and tell me how they are.’ She smiled at me, and I could see that she liked me.
“你必须走，”她说，“如果他们发现我们在一起，会杀了我们的。你找到了一条进入山谷的路，这简直让他们难以置信。你现在必须离开，但等你的脚好了，你可以再来告诉我恢复得怎么样。”她对我微笑，我能看出她喜欢我。
We talked for a while longer, but then a shout came down the valley. Lorna’s face changed from playfulness to fear. We whispered our goodbyes, then Lorna ran away from me and lay in the grass, pretending to be asleep. I hid behind some rocks, and saw twelve cruel-looking men come walking down the valley, looking for Lorna. One of them — the biggest of them all, a man with a long black beard — found her. ‘Here she is,’ he said. ‘Here’s our little Queen.’ He picked her up and kissed her so hard that I heard him. Then he put her on his shoulders, and carried her away. But as she went up the valley on the back of this frightening man, Lorna turned and secretly held up her hand to me.
我们又聊了一会儿，但随后山谷里传来一声喊叫。洛娜的表情从顽皮变成了恐惧。我们低声互道再见，然后洛娜从我身边跑开，躺在草地上假装睡着。我躲在一些岩石后面，看见十二个面目狰狞的男人沿着山谷走来寻找洛娜。其中一人——也是他们中最高大的，留着黑色长胡子——发现了她。“在这儿呢，”他说，“我们的小女王在这儿。”他把她抱起来用力亲了一口，声音大得我都听见了。然后他把她扛在肩上带走了。但当她趴在这个可怕男人的背上往山谷上方走去时，洛娜转过身来，偷偷向我举起了手。
Now I had to find a way out of the valley and get home. I almost broke my neck several times, climbing down the mountain, and I did not get home until long after dark. My mother was angry with me, but I would not say where I had been.
现在我得想办法走出山谷回家。下山时我好几次差点摔断脖子，直到天黑很久之后才到家。母亲很生我的气，但我拒绝透露自己去了哪里。
After my adventure, I thought a lot about the strange little girl I had met in Doone valley. But I never really imagined I would go back to the valley again. So after a while I thought less about her, and got on with my work on the farm.
经历了那次冒险后，我常常想起在杜恩谷遇到的那个奇怪的小女孩。但我从未真正想过自己还会再回到那个山谷。所以过了一阵子，我便不再那么频繁地想念她，而是继续忙农场里的活计了。
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