“They don’t count. No biguns?”
“他们不算数。没大家伙了？”
Piggy eyed the advancing figure carefully. Nowadays he sometimes found that he saw more clearly if he removed his glasses and shifted the one lens to the other eye; but even through the good eye, after what had happened, Ralph remained unmistakably Ralph. He came now out of the coconut trees, limping, dirty, with dead leaves hanging from his shock of yellow hair. One eye was a slit in his puffy cheek and a great scab had formed on his right knee. He paused for a moment and peered at the figure on the platform.
猪崽子留心地盯着朝他走来的人影。现在他有时候觉得，倘若除去眼镜，把一块镜片戴到另一只眼睛上，倒可以看得更清楚一点；但即使用这只好眼睛来看，在发生了所有这些事情以后，拉尔夫还是拉尔夫，绝对不会错。此刻拉尔夫正从椰子林中一瘸一拐地走出来，身上很脏，乱蓬蓬的金黄头发上挂着枯叶。在他浮肿的脸颊上，一只眼睛肿得像条裂缝；在他右膝上还有一大块伤疤。他停了一会儿，眯起眼睛看着平台上的人影。
“Not that I know of.”
“据我所知并没有。”
“Oh — Samneric. They’re collecting wood.”
“噢——还有萨姆埃里克。他们俩在拾柴火。”
“Piggy? Are you the only one left?”
“猪崽子？剩下的就你一个？”
Ralph climbed on to the platform carefully. The coarse grass was still worn away where the assembly used to sit; the fragile white conch still gleamed by the polished seat. Ralph sat down in the grass facing the chief’s seat and the conch. Piggy knelt at his left, and for a long minute there was silence.
拉尔夫小心地爬上了平台。在原先与会者常坐的地方，被磨损的粗壮的野草尚未长好；在磨得挺亮的座位旁，易碎的白色海螺仍在闪闪发光。拉尔夫坐在野草中，面对着头儿的座位和海螺。猪崽子跪在他左边，两个人好久都没有说话。
“There’s some littluns.”
“还有几个小家伙。”
At last Ralph cleared his throat and whispered something.
终于拉尔夫先清了清嗓子，小声地说起了什么。
“Nobody else?”
“没有别人了吗？”
“Piggy.”
“猪崽子。”
“You’re still chief.”
“你还是头头。”
“Piggy.”
“猪崽子。”
Ralph spoke up.
拉尔夫提高声音说：
“Call an assembly?”
“召集大会？”
“I got the conch.”
“我有海螺。”
“What we going to do?”
“咱们该怎么办呢？”
“That was Simon.”
“那是西蒙。”
Piggy nodded at the conch.
猪崽子朝海螺点点头。
“Simon.”
“西蒙。”
Ralph laughed again.
拉尔夫又哈哈大笑。
Piggy whispered back.
猪崽子轻声细气地回答道：
“That was murder.”
“那是谋杀呀。”
“Uh?”
“嗯？”
“What you say?”
“你说什么呀？”
“Piggy.”
“猪崽子。”
“Uh?”
“嗯？”
Piggy said nothing but nodded, solemnly. They continued to sit, gazing with impaired sight at the chief’s seat and the glittering lagoon. The green light and the glossy patches of sunshine played over their befouled bodies.
猪崽子一言不发，只是严肃地点点头。他们继续坐着，以一种受损伤者的眼光凝视着头儿的座位和闪闪发亮的环礁湖。绿色的反光和日照的光斑在他们弄脏了的身上晃动个不停。
“Uh?”
“嗯？”
At length Ralph got up and went to the conch. He took the shell caressingly with both hands and knelt, leaning against the trunk.
最后拉尔夫站起来走向海螺。他用双手爱抚地捧起贝壳，倚着树干跪下去。
“You stop it!” said Piggy, shrilly. “What good’re you doing talking like that?”
“别说了！”猪崽子尖叫道。“你老那样唠叨有什么好处？”
He jumped to his feet and stood over Ralph.
他跳了起来，站在那里低头看着拉尔夫。
“You said that before.”
“你说过了。”
“You could –“
“你可以——”
“You are. Over us.”
“你是头头，是管我们的。”
At last Ralph stopped. He was shivering.
拉尔夫终于停下不笑了，他浑身打战。
“Ralph! Stop laughing like that. Look, there ain’t no need, Ralph! What’s the others going to think?”
“拉尔夫！别那样笑了。光看着那儿可没必要，拉尔夫！别人会怎么想呢？”
Ralph laughed sharply as he said the word and Piggy frowned.
拉尔夫说着尖声大笑起来，猪崽子皱起了眉头。
“It was dark. There was that — that bloody dance. There was lightning and thunder and rain. We was scared!”
“那时天昏地暗。加上——那该死的狂舞。再加上又是闪电，又是霹雳，又是暴雨。咱们全吓坏了！”
“We was scared!” said Piggy excitedly. “Anything might have happened. It wasn’t — what you said.”
“咱们全吓坏了！”猪崽子激动地说道。“什么事情都会发生的。那可不是——像你说的那样。”
“You were outside. Outside the circle. You never really came in. Didn’t you see what we — what they did?”
“你在外面，在圆圈的外面。你从来没有真正进到圈子里过。难道你没有看出咱们干的——他们干的事情吗？”
Ralph’s voice, low and stricken, stopped Piggy’s gestures. He bent down and waited. Ralph, cradling the conch, rocked himself to and fro.
拉尔夫的话音低沉而又苦恼，使得猪崽子停止了做手势，弯下腰等着。拉尔夫兜着海螺，身子前后摇晃。
“He may still be –“
“他可能仍然是——”
“No.”
“不。”
“I wasn’t scared,” said Ralph slowly, “I was — I don’t know what I was.”
“我没有吓坏，”拉尔夫慢吞吞地说，“我只是——我也不知道自己当时怎么了。”
“It was an accident,” said Piggy suddenly, “that’s what it was. An accident.” His voice shrilled again. “Coming in the dark — he hadn’t no business crawling like that out of the dark. He was batty. He asked for it.” He gesticulated widely again. “It was an accident.”
“那是一次意外事情，”猪崽子突然说道，“就是那么一回事，一次碰巧发生的事情。”他尖声锐气地又说。“走进了一片漆黑当中——他没有必要那样从黑暗中爬出来。他疯了，自食其果。”猪崽子又大做起手势来。“一场飞来横祸。”
“P’raps he was only pretending –“
“也许他只是装作——”
Piggy’s voice trailed off at the sight of Ralph’s face.
看到拉尔夫的表情，猪崽子的话音越来越轻。
Ralph continued to rock to and fro.
拉尔夫还在前后摇晃着。
“Don’t you understand, Piggy? The things we did –“
“猪崽子，你不明白吗？咱们所干的事情——”
“Oh, Piggy!”
“哦，猪崽子！”
There was loathing, and at the same time a kind of feverish excitement, in his voice.
拉尔夫的声音中带着厌恶，同时又带着一种狂热的兴奋。
“Didn’t you see, Piggy?”
“猪崽子，难道你没看见吗？”
“Not all that well. I only got one eye now. You ought to know that, Ralph.”
“没看清楚。现在我只有一只眼睛了。拉尔夫，你应当是了解的。”
He was gesticulating, searching for a formula.
他做着手势，想找句客套话说说。
Piggy nodded eagerly.
猪崽子急切地点着头。
“We’ll live on our own, the four of us –“
“咱们靠自己的力量过活，咱们四个——”
Piggy shook his head.
猪崽子摇摇头。
“But we were! All of us!”
“但是咱们跳过！咱们全都跳过！”
“You didn’t see what they did –“
“你没看见他们干的事情——”
Piggy paused, then went on.
猪崽子停了一下，继续说道：
“Not us till last. They never noticed in the dark. Anyway you said I was only on the outside.”
“咱们俩是后来才跳的。他们在一团漆黑中根本没注意到。不管怎样，你说过我只是在圈子外面——”
“Look, Ralph. We got to forget this. We can’t do no good thinking about it, see?”
“我说，拉尔夫，咱们该把那件事忘掉。尽想着它可没什么好处，明白吗？”
“So was I,” muttered Ralph, “I was on the outside too.”
“那我也是的，”拉尔夫嗫嚅着，“我也在外面。”
“And look, Ralph”– Piggy glanced round quickly, then leaned close –“don’t let on we was in that dance. Not to Samneric.”
“我说，拉尔夫，”猪崽子匆匆往四下看了看，然后把身子倾向拉尔夫——“可别泄漏咱们跳过那个舞，就是对萨姆埃里克也别漏风。”
“That’s right. We was on the outside. We never done nothing, we never seen nothing.”
“对呀，咱们在外面，咱们什么也没干过，什么也没看见。”
He touched Ralph’s bare shoulder and Ralph shuddered at the human contact.
他摸摸拉尔夫光光的肩膀，这种人体的接触却使拉尔夫颤抖了一下。
“I’m frightened. Of us. I want to go home. Oh God, I want to go home.”
“我可吓坏了，咱们全都吓坏了。我想要回家。天哪，我真想回家。”
“It was an accident,” said Piggy stubbornly, “and that’s that.”
“那是意外事情，”猪崽子执拗地说，“情况就是那样。”
“Four of us. We aren’t enough to keep the fire burning.”
“就咱们四个，要维持火堆人手可不够。”
“We’ll try. See? I lit it.”
“咱们试试看，怎么样？我来点火。”
Samneric came dragging a great log out of the forest. They dumped it by the fire and turned to the pool. Ralph jumped to his feet.
萨姆埃里克拖着一根大树身从森林里出来。他们俩把大树身往火堆边一倒，转身走向水潭。拉尔夫跳起来喊道：
Sam touched a scratch on his forehead and then hurriedly took his hand away. Eric fingered his split lip.
萨姆摸摸前额上的伤痕，又匆忙把手移开。埃里克用手指摸摸裂开的嘴唇。
“After the feast,” said Sam in a stifled voice. Eric nodded. “Yes, after the feast.”
“在吃了猪肉以后，”萨姆以沉闷的话音回答。埃里克点点头说。“对，在吃了猪肉以后。”
The twins were very surprised to see Ralph. They flushed and looked past him into the air.
双胞胎看到拉尔夫，吃了一惊。他们红着脸蛋，眼光越过他，看着空中。
“We just been in the forest –“
“我们刚才在森林里——”
“They’re going to bathe, Ralph.”
“他们俩打算去洗澡，拉尔夫。”
Ralph examined his toes.
拉尔夫低头打量着自己的脚趾。
“Yes. We were very tired,” repeated Sam, “so we left early. Was it a good –“
“是呀，我们太累了，”萨姆重复说道，“所以早就走了，那不是一次很好的——”
Piggy cleaned his lens.
猪崽子擦擦眼镜片。
Memory of the dance that none of them had attended shook all four boys convulsively.
四个孩子都没有参加那次跳舞，但提起它却使他们全都不寒而栗。
“We left early,” said Piggy quickly, “because we were tired.”
“我们早就走了，”猪崽子急忙说，“因为我们累了。”
The air was heavy with unspoken knowledge. Sam twisted and the obscene word shot out of him. “– dance?”
大家心照不宣，气氛很沉闷。萨姆的身子动了一动，那个令人厌恶的字眼脱口而出。“——跳舞？”
“Better get it over.”
“最好搞搞清楚。”
“We left early.”
“我们早就走了。”
“So did we –“
“我们也早就走了——”
The twins checked a moment, then walked on.
双胞胎愣了一下，随后走过来。
“You got lost after the…”
“你们俩是在出什么事情以后迷路的？”
“– we were very tired.”
“——我们累得要命。”
“– we got lost last night.”
“——我们昨天夜里迷了路——”
“– very early –“
“——老早就走了——”
“– to get wood for the fire –“
“——在找柴火生火堆——”
“Hullo. Fancy meeting you, Ralph.”
“哈啰。没想到会碰上你，拉尔夫。”
“Hi! You two!”
“嘿！你们俩站住！”
Robert nodded.
罗伯特直点头。
“He’s going to take us hunting.”
“他还要带我们去打猎。”
“You could see who I was.”
“你看得出我是谁。”
Roger clambered up the ladder-like cliff.
罗杰爬上了梯子似的悬崖。
He jerked his head in the direction of the distant shelters where a thread of white smoke climbed up the sky. Roger, sitting on the very edge of the cliff, looked somberly back at the island as he worked with his fingers at a loose tooth. His gaze settled on the top of the distant mountain and Robert changed the unspoken subject.
罗伯特把头朝远处窝棚那个方向侧过去，看到一缕白烟冉冉升向空中。罗杰坐在悬崖的边沿上，一面阴沉地往后看着这岛，一面用手指拨弄着那只松动了的牙齿。他的目光停留在远山的顶上，没有接话。罗伯特换了个话题。
“Halt! Who goes there?”
“站住！谁在那儿？”
“The chief said we got to challenge everyone.”
“头领说了，谁都要盘问。”
Roger peered up.
罗杰仰起脸仔细往上看。
Roger advanced.
罗杰往前走一点。
When Roger came to the neck of land that joined the Castle Rock to the mainland he was not surprised to be challenged. He had reckoned, during the terrible night, on finding at least some of the tribe holding out against the horrors of the island in the safest place.
罗杰走到连接城堡岩和岛屿主体部分的隘口处的时候，受到了盘问，他并没有感到奇怪。他已经估计到，在那个可怕的黑夜里，杰克那一伙人当中至少有几个会躲在最安全的地方，在恐怖中坚持着。
“Look at this.”
“瞧这个。”
A log had been jammed under the topmost rock and another lever under that. Robert leaned lightly on the lever and the rock groaned. A full effort would send the rock thundering down to the neck of land. Roger admired.
在最高的一块岩石下已经塞着一根圆木，下面还有一根杠杆。罗伯特把身子稍微倾斜一点压在杠杆上，岩石发出轧轧的响声。要是他用足力气就会把这块岩石隆隆地直送下隘口。罗杰钦佩不已。
The voice rang out sharply from on high, where the diminishing crags were balanced one on another.
从城堡岩高处传来了尖厉的问话声，那儿正在风化的岩互相依托，保持着平衡。
“Couldn’t I? Climb up and see.”
“我拦不住？上来瞧瞧吧。”
“Advance, friend.”
“往前走，朋友。”
“He’s a proper chief, isn’t he?”
“他可是个真正的头领，是不是？”
“Roger.”
“罗杰。”
“You couldn’t stop me coming if I wanted.”
“我要上来你可拦不住。”
“I never heard him.”
“我从来没有听他说过。”
“I don’t know. He didn’t say. He got angry and made us tie Wilfred up. He’s been”– he giggled excitedly –“he’s been tied for hours, waiting –“
“我不晓得。他没说。他发脾气了，叫我们把威尔弗雷德捆起来。他已经被”——罗伯特兴奋地格格笑起来——“他已经被捆了几个钟头，正等着——”
The chief was sitting there, naked to the waist, his face blocked out in white and red. The tribe lay in a semicircle before him. The newly beaten and untied Wilfred was sniffing noisily in the background. Roger squatted with the rest.
头领正坐在那儿，光着上身，脸上涂着红的和白的颜色。一伙人在他面前围成半圆坐着。在他们的后面，刚被打过、已松了绑的威尔弗雷德正大声地抽噎。罗杰跟别人蹲坐在一起。
“But didn’t the chief say why?”
“可头领没说过为什么吗？”
Sitting on the tremendous rock in the torrid sun, Roger received this news as an illumination. He ceased to work at his tooth and sat still, assimilating the possibilities of irresponsible authority. Then, without another word, he climbed down the back of the rocks toward the cave and the rest of the tribe.
在酷热的阳光底下，罗杰坐在大岩石上，听到这个消息，得到一种启发。他不再拨弄自己的牙齿，仍然坐在那儿，寻思着这种不负责任的权威的种种可能性。随后，他一言不发，从城堡岩背后往下，向岩穴和杰克一伙人所在的地方爬去。
“Tomorrow,” went on the chief, “we shall hunt again.”
“明—天，”头领继续说道，“我们又要去打猎了。”
“He’s going to beat Wilfred.”
“他要揍威尔弗雷德。”
“What for?”
“为啥？”
Robert shook his head doubtfully.
罗伯特疑惑地晃了晃脑袋。
“Some of you will stay here to improve the cave and defend the gate. I shall take a few hunters with me and bring back meat. The defenders of the gate will see that the others don’t sneak in.”
“你们中的一部分人呆在这儿把岩穴弄弄好，守卫住大门。我将带几个猎手去，弄点肉回来。守大门的人可得看着点，别让旁人偷偷地溜进来——”
He pointed at this savage and that with his spear.
他用长矛指指这个野蛮人，又指指那个野蛮人。
Stanley lifted his forearm off the rock and held up an interrogative finger.
斯坦利从岩石上抬起了前臂，竖起了一根手指，表示要发问。
In the silence that followed, each savage flinched away from his individual memory.
紧接着一片沉默，野蛮人各自在回忆，都很害怕，不敢想下去。
The chief was vague but earnest.
头领回答得含含糊糊，可态度倒挺认真。
Half-relieved, half-daunted by the implication of further terrors, the savages murmured again.
在联想还会再遇到的种种恐怖时，他们一方面暂时得到了一点解脱，另一方面又感到一点震慑，这些野蛮人又嘀咕起来。
“No! How could we — kill — it?”
“不！咱们怎么能——杀掉——它呢？”
He squirmed and looked down.
他踌躇不安地扭着身子，低着头往下面看。
“He came — disguised. He may come again even though we gave him the head of our kill to eat. So watch; and be careful.”
“它化了装来的。即使咱们杀了猪，把猪头给它吃，它说不定还会来。所以得提防着，得当心点。”
“Why should they try to sneak in, Chief?”
“头领，为什么他们要偷偷地溜进来呢？”
A savage raised his hand and the chief turned a bleak, painted face toward him.
一个野蛮人举起了手，头领把他那张阴冷的、涂着颜色的花脸转向他。
The chief paused. They saw a triangle of startling pink dart out, pass along his lips and vanish again.
头领停住了。大伙儿看到他粉红色的舌尖令人吃惊地朝外伸出，舔了舔嘴唇，又缩了回去。
“Well?”
“怎么啦？”
“But didn’t we, didn’t we –?”
“但咱们能不能，能不能——？”
The semicircle shuddered and muttered in agreement.
围成半圆的孩子们震颤不已，喃喃地一致表示同意。
“No!”
“不！”
“They will. They’ll try to spoil things we do. So the watchers at the gate must be careful. And then –“
“他们会的。他们要破坏咱们所干的事情。所以看守大门的一定得多加小心，还有——”
“– and then, the beast might try to come in. You remember how he crawled –“
“——还有；野兽也想要进来。你们该记得它是怎么爬的吧——”
“So leave the mountain alone,” said the chief, solemnly, “and give it the head if you go hunting.”
“别再介意山上的事了，”头领正儿八经地说道，“要是去打猎就把猪头献给它。”
The chief nodded.
头领点点头。
“The rest of you can go to sleep as soon as the sun sets. But us three, Maurice, Roger and me, we’ve got work to do. We’ll leave just before sunset –“
“你们其余的人太阳一落就可以去睡觉。但我们三个，莫里斯，罗杰和我，我们还有活儿要干。我们将要在太阳刚落山的时候出发——”
The tribe considered this; and then were shaken, as if by a flow of wind. The chief saw the effect of his words and stood abruptly.
那一伙人都细想着这话，随后哆嗦起来，就像是吹过一阵烈风。头领看到了自己那番话的效果，猛地一站。
Bill put up his hand.
比尔举起了手。
“Chief.”
“头领。”
“Yes?”
“嗯？”
“What’ll we use for lighting the fire?”
“咱们用什么来生火呢？”
Stanley flicked his finger again.
斯坦利轻击着手指又说：
“But tomorrow we’ll hunt and when we’ve got meat we’ll have a feast –“
“但是明—天我们将去打猎，弄到肉大家就大吃一顿——”
“I expect the beast disguised itself.”
“我想野兽把它自己伪装了起来。”
“Maurice –“
“莫里斯——”
“Where was their fire?”
“他们的火堆在什么地方？”
“Back at the old place by the fire rock.”
“在老地方，靠着生火堆那岩石的后面。”
“We shall take fire from the others. Listen. Tomorrow we’ll hunt and get meat. Tonight I’ll go along with two hunters — who’ll come?”
“我们将从别人那儿去取火种来。听着，明—天我们去打猎，搞点肉。今天夜里我要跟两个猎手一起去——，谁愿意去？”
“Perhaps,” said the chief. A theological speculation presented itself. “We’d better keep on the right side of him, anyhow. You can’t tell what he might do.”
“也许会的，”头领说道。这是一种想当然的神学上的猜测。“不管怎样，咱们最好还是防着它一点。吃不准它会干出什么事来。”
The chief’s blush was hidden by the white and red clay. Into his uncertain silence the tribe spilled their murmur once more. Then the chief held up his hand.
头领的脸红了，但在红的白的黏土掩盖下，人们看不见他的脸色。他拿不准怎么回答是好，沉默了片刻，那伙人乘机又一次低声说起话来。随后头领举起了手。
Maurice and Roger put up their hands.
莫里斯和罗杰举了手。
“Yes, Chief?”
“是，头领？”
Maurice put up his hand.
莫里斯举起手。
Again the murmur swelled and died away.
又响起了一阵叽里咕噜的声音，随之又静了下去。
The chief waved his objection aside.
头领挥挥手，对他提出的异议置之不理。
“– or a boat.”
“——或者一艘船。”
“We’ll keep along by the sands. Then if he comes we’ll do our, our dance again.”
“我们要直沿着沙滩走。这样，要是它来了，我们就又可跳我们的，又可跳我们的舞了。”
“If only we could make a radio!”
“要是咱们能做个无线电收发机该多好啊！”
“We don’t want another night without fire.”
“夜里可不能再没有火堆了。”
Piggy handed Ralph his glasses and waited to receive back his sight. The wood was damp; and this was the third time they had lighted it. Ralph stood back, speaking to himself.
猪崽子把眼镜递给拉尔夫，要等拿回来之后才能看得清东西。柴火很潮湿，他们这已是第三次点火了。拉尔夫往后一站，自言自语地说道：
“Or a plane –“
“或者造一架飞机——”
“But what happens if we meet –“
“但是会发生什么事呢，要是我们碰上——”
He looked round guiltily at the three boys standing by. This was the first time he had admitted the double function of the fire. Certainly one was to send up a beckoning column of smoke; but the other was to be a hearth now and a comfort until they slept. Eric breathed on the wood till it glowed and sent out a little flame. A billow of white and yellow smoke reeked up. Piggy took back his glasses and looked at the smoke with pleasure.
他内疚地望望站在旁边的三个孩子。这是他第一次承认火堆具有双重功用。确实，一方面火堆是为了使召唤的烟柱袅袅而升；但另一方面火堆也像一只火炉，能使他们舒服地入睡。埃里克往柴火上吹气，柴堆上闪出了火光，接着出现了一小簇火苗。一股黄白相间的浓烟向上散发。猪崽子拿回了自己的眼镜，高兴地看着烟柱。
Ralph dredged in his fading knowledge of the world.
拉尔夫对于这个世界的认识越来越淡薄，但他还是费力地思考着。
“Only the three of us?”
“就靠我们三个吗？”
“We might get taken prisoner by the Reds.”
“咱们说不定会被红种人抓住当俘虏。”
“They’d be better than –“
“他们也总比那个好，比——”
“If I pull logs, I get my asthma bad. I wish I didn’t, Ralph, but there it is.”
“要是我跑东跑西地去拉木头，气喘病就会犯得更重。我希望不犯，拉尔夫，可就是要犯。”
The three boys went into the forest and fetched armfuls of rotten wood. Once more the smoke rose, yellow and thick.
三个孩子走进了森林，带回了一抱抱枯枝烂木。烟又一次升了起来，又黄又浓。
“Let’s get something to eat.”
“咱们找点吃的吧。”
“Smoke’s getting thinner.”
“烟越来越淡了。”
“Sucks to your ass-mar.”
“去你的鸡—喘病。”
Eric pushed back his hair.
埃里克往脑后捋着头发。
The response was mechanical.
得到的是死板板的回答。
“We need more wood already, even when it’s wet.”
“咱们需要更多的柴火，即使是湿的也罢。”
Together they went to the fruit trees, carrying their spears, saying little, cramming in haste. When they came out of the forest again the sun was setting and only embers glowed in the fire, and there was no smoke.
他们带着长矛一块儿走到了野果树林，也不多说话，就狼吞虎咽地吃起来。待他们走出树林时，夕阳西下，只有余烬发出一些光，烟却没有了。
“He said something about a dead man.” He flushed painfully at this admission that he had been present at the dance. He made urging motions at the smoke and with his body. “Don’t stop — go on up!”
“他讲起过死人什么的——”拉尔夫痛苦地涨红了脸，这一下他等于不打自招：跳舞时他也在场。他身子冲着烟做出催促的动作。“别停下——往上加！”
Ralph remembered the ungainly figure on a parachute.
拉尔夫记起了降落伞下那个丑陋的人形。
“My asthma –“
“我的气喘病——”
He would not name people and Sam finished the sentence for him by nodding along the beach.
他没有点出人来，萨姆朝沿海的方向点点头，算是代他说完了这句话。
“Up there it was small. But this has got to be a big one.”
“山上的火堆小，这可准是个大火堆呢。”
Sam knelt by Eric.
萨姆跪在埃里克身边。
“We kept the fire going up there.”
“在那上面咱们维持着火堆。”
Ralph carried a fragment to the fire and watched the smoke that drifted into the dusk.
拉尔夫拿了一片木柴投到火堆里，注视着飘向暮色之中的烟。
“Don’t you understand? What’s the good of wishing for radios and boats?”
“难道你们不明白？光想着收发机和船有啥用？”
“Well — what is the good?”
“嗯——那又有什么用呢？”
He held out his hand and twisted the fingers into a fist.
他伸出一只手，手指捏紧，攥成一个拳头。
“Eric!” cried Ralph in a shocked voice. “Don’t talk like that!”
“埃里克！”拉尔夫吃惊地叫喊道。“别那样瞎说！”
Ralph tried indignantly to remember. There was something good about a fire. Something overwhelmingly good.
拉尔夫火冒三丈，他竭力回想着，火堆是有用处的，某种绝妙而又无法形容的用处。
“There’s only one thing we can do to get out of this mess. Anyone can play at hunting, anyone can get us meat –“
“要从这种混乱中摆脱出来，咱们只有一件事可做。谁都可以拿打猎当游戏，谁都可以替咱们搞到肉——”
“I can’t carry any more wood,” said Eric. “I’m tired.”
“我再也搬不动柴火了，”埃里克说。“我累了。”
“Of course! If we don’t make smoke –“
“当然啰！要是咱们不去生烟——”
Ralph cleared his throat.
拉尔夫清清嗓子。
“Ralph’s told you often enough,” said Piggy moodily. “How else are we going to be rescued?”
“拉尔夫跟你们讲过许许多多次了，”猪崽子不高兴地说道。“除此之外咱们怎么才可以得救呢？”
“I’m too tired. And what’s the good?”
“我太累了，再说那有什么用呢？”
He squatted before them in the crowding dusk.
在一片越来越浓的暮色当中，拉尔夫蹲坐在他们面前。
“We’ve got to keep it going.”
“咱们一定要使烟老飘着。”
He looked from face to face. Then, at the moment of greatest passion and conviction, that curtain flapped in his head and he forgot what he had been driving at. He knelt there, his fist clenched, gazing solemnly from one to the other. Then the curtain whisked back.
拉尔夫看看这个的脸，又看看那个的脸。他激动万分，非常自信，可脑中却垂下了一道帘幕，一时忘记了自己是在讲些什么。他跪在那儿，紧攥拳头，板着面孔，看看这个，又看看那个。随后帘幕又忽然收回了。
Eric flung himself down.
埃里克纵身往地上一趴。
The fire was dying on them.
他们说话的时候，火堆正在渐渐地熄灭。
Sam nodded vigorously.
萨姆使劲地点头。
“Yeah?”
“哎？”
“Piggy.”
“猪崽子。”
“– not in the dark –“
“——在黑暗中弄不到柴火——”
“– not at night –“
“——在夜里弄不到柴火——”
He led the way to the first shelter, which still stood, though battered. The bed leaves lay within, dry and noisy to the touch. In the next shelter a littlun was talking in his sleep. The four biguns crept into the shelter and burrowed under the leaves. The twins lay together and Ralph and Piggy at the other end. For a while there was the continual creak and rustle of leaves as they tried for comfort.
他领头走向第一个窝棚，窝棚虽然七歪八倒，还算竖立着。里面铺着睡觉用的枯叶，摸上去窸窣作声。邻近的窝棚里有个小家伙在说梦话。四个大家伙爬进了窝棚，钻在树叶下面。双胞胎躺在一块儿，拉尔夫和猪崽子躺在另一头。他们尽量想睡得舒服点，所以弄得枯叶堆窸窸窣窣地响了好一阵子。
“Let the fire go then, for tonight.”
“今儿晚上火堆就随它去罢。”
“We can light it every morning,” said Piggy. “Nobody ain’t going to see smoke in the dark.”
“咱们可以每天早晨点火，”猪崽子说。“黑暗里没人会看见烟。”
Ralph stood up, feeling curiously defenseless with the darkness pressing in.
拉尔夫站了起来，随着暮色逐渐深沉，他产生了一种奇怪的失去防护的感觉。
“Oh, yes. So we’ve got to make smoke; and more smoke –“
“噢，对了。所以咱们必须生火并弄出烟来，更多的烟——”
“But we can’t keep it going! Look at that!”
“但是咱们没法让火堆一直维持着！看那边！”
“– up there.”
“——在那上面。”
“It was different when the fire was –“
“那可不一样，火堆在——”
“We can’t get any more wood, Ralph –“
“拉尔夫，咱们弄不到更多的柴火了——”
“Two to mind the fire,” said Ralph, half to himself, “that’s twelve hours a day.”
“派两个人管火，”拉尔夫有点像是自言自语地说道，“每天十二个小时。”
“All right?”
“好吗？”
Ralph turned restlessly in the leaves. Dartmoor was wild and so were the ponies. But the attraction of wildness had gone.
拉尔夫在枯叶堆中焦躁不安地翻来覆去。达特穆尔[3]一片荒芜，小马也是野生的。然而荒野的魅力却已经消失殆尽。【注：[3] 德文郡的地名，位于英格兰西南部高地，德文郡南部。已决犯监狱。】
At length, save for an occasional rustle, the shelter was silent. An oblong of blackness relieved with brilliant spangles hung before them and there was the hollow sound of surf on the reef. Ralph settled himself for his nightly game of supposing…
后来，除了偶尔的窸窣声外，窝棚终于平静了下来。在他们面前挂着的，是那繁星闪烁的椭圆形夜空，此外还传来了一阵阵浪拍礁石的空洞的响声。拉尔夫定下心来作各式各样的假设，就像他每天夜里所做的那样……
Supposing they could be transported home by jet, then before morning they would land at that big airfield in Wiltshire. They would go by car; no, for things to be perfect they would go by train; all the way down to Devon and take that cottage again. Then at the foot of the garden the wild ponies would come and look over the wall…
假定他们被喷气机送回家，那么在早晨之前他们就会在威尔特郡[1]的大机场着陆。他们将再乘汽车；不，要更十全十美点，他们将乘火车，直下德文[2]，再到那所村舍去。那时候，野生的小马又会跑到花园的尽头来，在围墙上窥探着……【注：[1] 英格兰南部一郡。[2] 德文郡，英格兰西南部一郡。】
“S’pose so.”
“还好。”
“Ralph! Ralph!”
“拉尔夫！拉尔夫！”
His mind skated to a consideration of a tamed town where savagery could not set foot. What could be safer than the bus center with its lamps and wheels?
他的思想又滑到了一个不容野蛮人插足的平凡的文明小镇。还有什么地方能比带车灯和车轮的公共汽车总站更安全呢？
All at once, Ralph was dancing round a lamp standard. There was a bus crawling out of the bus station, a strange bus…
拉尔夫好像突然绕着电杆跳起了舞。这时从车站里慢慢地爬出了一辆公共汽车，一辆奇形怪状的汽车……
“What is it?”
“怎么啦？”
From the darkness of the further end of the shelter came a dreadful moaning and they shattered the leaves in their fear. Sam and Eric, locked in an embrace, were fighting each other.
从窝棚的黑沉沉的另一头传来了一种令人生畏的呜咽声，他们俩吓得把树叶乱扯乱拉。萨姆和埃里克互相紧抱着，正在对打。
“Bomb happy.”
“疯疯癫癫。”
“Sam! Sam!”
“萨姆！萨姆！”
“What d’you mean?”
“这话怎么讲？”
“Round the bend.”
“神经错乱。”
Presently all was quiet again.
一会儿一切又都平静下来。
“Get rescued.”
“要得救。”
“I don’t know where she is now. And I haven’t got an envelope and a stamp. An’ there isn’t a mailbox. Or a postman.”
“我不知道眼下她在哪儿。我没有信封，没有邮票。再说既没有邮箱，也没有邮递员。”
“I mean it,” whispered Piggy. “If we don’t get home soon we’ll be barmy.”
“我是想说，”猪崽子低声说道。“要不赶快回家咱们都会发疯。”
Piggy rebuked him with dignity.
猪崽子庄严地指责他。
Ralph pushed the damp tendrils of hair out of his eyes.
拉尔夫把湿漉漉的鬈发从眼边撩开。
The success of his tiny joke overcame Ralph. His sniggers became uncontrollable, his body jumped and twitched.
猪崽子小小的玩笑成功地征服了拉尔夫。拉尔夫的窃笑变得不可控制，他前仰后倒地大笑起来。
“Crackers;”
“发狂。”
Piggy spoke softly to Ralph.
猪崽子轻轻地对拉尔夫说：
“Don’t make a noise like that –“
“别那样大声折腾——”
“You write a letter to your auntie.”
“写封信给你姨妈。”
For the first time that day, and despite the crowding blackness, Ralph sniggered.
尽管夜色更加深沉，拉尔夫却吃吃地笑了起来，这是那一天他第一次笑。
“We got to get out of this.”
“咱们一定得摆脱这个地方。”
“Sorry.”
“对不起。”
Piggy considered this solemnly.
猪崽子一本正经地考虑着这个建议。
“Hey — Eric!”
“嘿——埃里克！”
“I haven’t said anything all that funny.”
“我可没说什么，有那么好笑——”
“Be quiet — and listen.”
“静一点——听。”
“I can’t hear anything.”
“我听不到有什么声音。”
Ralph heaved over among the leaves. He had reason to be thankful that his dream was broken, for the bus had been nearer and more distinct.
拉尔夫在枯叶堆中喘着粗气。他有理由为自己的美梦被打破而欣慰，因为公共汽车已经越来越近，越来越清楚了。
“Ralph! You been making a noise again. Do be quiet, Ralph — because.”
“——拉尔夫！你又闹了一阵。安静点吧，拉尔夫——因为……”
“Listen. Listen for a long time.”
“听，再多听一会儿。”
“I still can’t hear anything.”
“我还是什么也没听见。”
Ralph continued to snigger though his chest hurt. His twitchings exhausted him till he lay, breathless and woebegone, waiting for the next spasm. During one of these pauses he was ambushed by sleep.
拉尔夫还是吃吃地笑个不停，尽管把胸口都笑痛了。他扭来扭去，终于筋疲力尽、气喘吁吁地躺下，愁眉苦脸地等着下一次发作。他这样笑一阵停一阵，随后在一次间歇中昏昏入睡。
Ralph lay down carefully, to the accompaniment of a long sigh from the leaves. Eric moaned something and then lay still. The darkness, save for the useless oblong of stars, was blanket-thick.
拉尔夫小心地躺了下去，从枯叶堆中发出了一声长叹。埃里克呜咽地说着什么，接着又静静地睡着了。除了无济于事的闪着微光的椭圆星群外，夜色深沉，像蒙上了一层毯子。
“There’s something moving outside.”
“外面有什么东西在移动。”
Quite clearly and emphatically, and only a yard or so away from the back of the shelter, a stick cracked. The blood roared again in Ralph’s ears, confused images chased each other through his mind. A composite of these things was prowling round the shelters. He could feel Piggy’s head against his shoulder and the convulsive grip of a hand.
从窝棚后面只有一二码处的地方，非常清晰有力地传来了树枝被折断的咔嚓声。拉尔夫又觉得耳朵发热，混乱不堪的形象你追我赶地穿过了他的脑海。这些东西的混合物正绕着窝棚潜行。他觉察到猪崽子的脑袋靠在自己的肩上，一只发抖的手紧紧地抓住他。
Ralph’s head prickled. The sound of his blood drowned all else and then subsided.
拉尔夫的脑袋瓜像被针刺似的痛起来。热血沸腾，使他什么也听不见，接着又平静下来。
“Why — because?”
“为什么——因为？”
A voice whispered horribly outside.
窝棚外面响起了恐怖的耳语声。
Then there was a vicious snarling in the mouth of the shelter and the plunge and thump of living things. Someone tripped over Ralph and Piggy’s corner became a complication of snarls and crashes and flying limbs. Ralph hit out; then he and what seemed like a dozen others were rolling over and over, hitting, biting, scratching. He was torn and jolted, found fingers in his mouth and bit them. A fist withdrew and came back like a piston, so that the whole shelter exploded into light. Ralph twisted sideways on top of a writhing body and felt hot breath on his cheek. He began to pound the mouth below him, using his clenched fist as a hammer; he hit with more and more passionate hysteria as the face became slippery. A knee jerked up between his legs and he fell sideways, busying himself with his pain, and the fight rolled over him. Then the shelter collapsed with smothering finality; and the anonymous shapes fought their way out and through. Dark figures drew themselves out of the wreckage and flitted away, till the screams of the littluns and Piggy’s gasps were once more audible.
接着在窝棚口发出了一阵恶意的嚎叫，几个活东西猛地闯将进来。有的绊倒在拉尔夫和猪崽子的角落，结果乱成一团：又是哇哇乱叫，又是拳打脚踢，一片稀里哗啦。拉尔夫挥拳出去，随之他跟似乎十几个别的东西扭住滚来滚去：打着、咬着、抓着。拉尔夫被撕拉着，被人猛击，他发现口中有别人的手指，便一口咬下去。一只拳头缩了回去，又像活塞似的回击过来，整个窝棚被捅得摇摇欲坠，外面的光漏到了里面来。拉尔夫把身子扭向一边，骑到一个七扭八歪的身体上，感到有股热气喷上了他的脸颊。他抡起紧握的拳头，像铁锤似的往身子下面的嘴巴上砸；他挥拳猛打，越打越狂热，越打越歇斯底里，拳下的面孔变得滑腻起来。谁的膝盖在拉尔夫两腿当中猛地向上一顶，拉尔夫翻滚到一侧，他忙抚摸着自己的痛处，可对方又滚压到他身上乱打。然后窝棚令人窒息地最终倒坍下来；不知名的这些人挣扎着夺路而出。黑乎乎的人影从倒塌的窝棚中钻了出来，飞快地逃去，临末又可以听见小家伙们的尖号声和猪崽子的喘气声了。
“Piggy — Piggy –“
“猪崽子——猪崽子——”
Something brushed against the back of the shelter. Piggy kept still for a moment, then he had his asthma. He arched his back and crashed among the leaves with his legs. Ralph rolled away from him.
有什么东西擦到窝棚的后部。猪崽子又强忍了一阵子，随即他的气喘病发了。他弓起后背，双腿砰地砸到枯叶堆里。拉尔夫从他身边滚开去。
“Shut up and listen.”
“别讲话，快听。”
“Piggy — where are you, Piggy?”
“猪崽子——猪崽子，你在哪儿？”
“Don’t say anything.”
“别吱声。”
Ralph’s mouth was against Piggy’s ear.
拉尔夫的嘴巴贴着猪崽子的耳朵。
He clung to Ralph and reached to get his breath.
他紧紧抓住拉尔夫，终于使自己的呼吸恢复了正常。
“It’s come!” gasped Piggy. “It’s real!”
“它来了！”猪崽子气急败坏地说。“是真的！”
Desperately, Ralph prayed that the beast would prefer littluns.
拉尔夫在绝望之中祈求野兽宁可选择小家伙。
“Piggy, come outside. I want you, Piggy.”
“猪崽子，出来。我要你猪崽子出来。”
“Ralph! Ralph!”
“拉尔夫！拉尔夫！”
Ralph called out in a quavering voice.
拉尔夫用颤抖的声音喊道：
“That was Jack and his hunters,” said Ralph bitterly. “Why can’t they leave us alone?”
“那是杰克和他的猎手们，”拉尔夫痛苦地说。“为什么他们老是要惹咱们呢？”
Samneric came close and peered at Ralph.
萨姆埃里克走近来，盯着拉尔夫。
“All you littluns, go to sleep. We’ve had a fight with the others. Now go to sleep.”
“小家伙们，你们全去睡。我们在跟别人打架，马上睡吧。”
They hauled Piggy clear of the wreckage and leaned him against a tree. The night was cool and purged of immediate terror. Piggy’s breathing was a little easier.
他们把猪崽子从废墟堆中拖出来，让他靠在一棵树上。夜是冷飕飕的，直接的恐怖消逝了。猪崽子的呼吸也平静了一些。
“I think so –“
“我想没事——”
“Did you get hurt, Piggy?”
“猪崽子，你受伤了吗？”
“Not much.”
“还好。”
“– I got busted.”
“——我被人打了。”
“We gave them something to think about,” said Sam. Honesty compelled him to go on. “At least you did. I got mixed up with myself in a corner.”
“咱们给了他们一点教训，”萨姆说。他人老实，接着又说。“至少你们打了，我一个人缩在角落里。”
“So did I. How’s Piggy?”
“我也被打了，猪崽子怎么样？”
“What did you do?”
“你怎么干的？”
“I gave one of ’em what for,” said Ralph, “I smashed him up all right. He won’t want to come and fight us again in a hurry.”
“我揍了一个家伙，”拉尔夫说，“我砸得他够呛，他不会再赶着来跟咱们干一仗了。”
“So did I,” said Eric. “When I woke up one was kicking me in the face. I got an awful bloody face, I think, Ralph. But I did him in the end.”
“我也是，”埃里克说。“我醒来的时候觉得有人在踢我的脸。拉尔夫，我觉得我的脸上被踢得一塌糊涂，但我毕竟也给了他个一报还一报。”
“Are you two all right?”
“你们俩没事？”
“I got my knee up,” said Eric with simple pride, “and I hit him with it in the pills. You should have heard him holler! He won’t come back in a hurry either. So we didn’t do too badly.”
“我把膝盖缩起来，”埃里克扬扬得意地说道，“我用膝盖猛顶了一下他的卵蛋。你该听见他痛得乱叫！他也不会再忙着赶回来了。咱们干得不赖呀。”
Ralph moved suddenly in the dark; but then he heard Eric working his mouth.
拉尔夫在黑暗中蓦地动了动；可随之他听到埃里克用手在嘴里拨弄的声音。
“Jus’ a tooth loose.”
“一颗牙齿有点松动。”
“What’s the matter?”
“怎么啦？”
Piggy drew up his legs.
猪崽子把两条腿曲起来。
“I know. They didn’t come for the conch. They came for something else. Ralph — what am I going to do?”
“我晓得，他们不是为海螺而来的，他们是为了别的东西。拉尔夫——我该怎么办呢？”
“I thought they wanted the conch.”
“我想他们是要抢海螺。”
“You all right, Piggy?”
“猪崽子，你没事？”
Ralph trotted down the pale beach and jumped on to the platform. The conch still glimmered by the chief’s seat. He gazed for a moment or two, then went back to Piggy.
拉尔夫快步跑下了灰白色的海滩，跳到了平台上。海螺仍然在头儿的座位上微微闪光。他盯着看了一会儿，随后又返回猪崽子跟前。
“They didn’t take the conch.”
“他们没拿走海螺。”
Far off along the bowstave of beach, three figures trotted toward the Castle Rock. They kept away from the forest and down by the water. Occasionally they sang softly; occasionally they turned cartwheels down by the moving streak of phosphorescence. The chief led then, trotting steadily, exulting in his achievement. He was a chief now in truth; and he made stabbing motions with his spear. From his left hand dangled Piggy’s broken glasses.
远远的，沿着弓形的海滩，三个人影快步走向城堡岩。他们避开树林，沿着海边往前走。他们时而轻轻地唱着歌；时而沿着移动着的狭长的磷光带横翻着筋斗往前。头领领着他们，小跑步地一直往前，杰克为自己的成功而欢欣鼓舞。现在他真正是个头领了，他手持长矛东戳戳西刺刺。悬挂在他左手摇晃着的，是猪崽子破碎了的眼镜。
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