It was late summer and the children were sitting with Joe on the beach.
夏末时节，孩子们正和乔一起坐在海滩上。
“We have to go home tonight,” said Jessie sadly.
“我们今晚就得回家了，”杰西难过地说。
“Grandfather says he wants to take us on a trip before school begins,” said Henry.
“爷爷说他想在开学前带我们去旅行，”亨利说。
“I don’t mind going home,” said Violet. “I miss Grandfather, and he must have been lonesome, even if he didn’t say so.”
“我不介意回家，”维奥莱特说，“我想念爷爷，他一定很孤单，只是没说出口罢了。”
“I hope we can come again next summer,” said Henry. “We have had such a good time.”
“希望明年夏天我们还能再来，”亨利说，“我们玩得太开心了。”
“I’m glad we can sit down and talk quietly,” said Joe, “because I want to tell you something. I hope you won’t feel too bad about it.”
“很高兴我们能坐下来静静谈谈，”乔说，“因为我有件事要告诉你们。希望你们听了不要太难过。”
“What is it?” asked Henry quickly.
“什么事？”亨利急忙问道。
“It’s about the cave and the shell-pile,” said Joe.
“是关于那个山洞和贝壳堆的事，”乔说。
“Oh, yes,” said Jessie. “Tell us the whole story, Joe.”
“哦，对，”杰西说，“乔，把整件事都告诉我们吧。”
“I know you would like to dig in that cave now. You found it, and you found the Indian things in it. But somebody ought to dig there who understands it.”
“我知道你们现在想去挖那个山洞。是你们发现了它，还在里面找到了印第安人的物品。但应该由懂行的人来挖掘。”
“Meaning yourself?” asked Henry.
“你是指你自己吗？”亨利问。
“No, not alone,” replied Joe. “Your grandfather, my Uncle James, is letting a lot of men come to work at the cave. They are coming over with all their tools to dig very carefully so that they won’t miss anything.”
“不，不只是我，”乔回答，“你们的爷爷，也就是我的詹姆斯叔叔，已经安排了许多人来山洞工作。他们会带着所有工具过来，非常小心地挖掘，以免遗漏任何东西。”
“That’s all right,” said Benny. “Couldn’t we watch them?”
“那好吧，”本尼说，“我们不能在旁边看吗？”
“Sometimes you could,” said Joe. “Sometimes you couldn’t. You see they are going to blow the top off the cave.”
“有时候可以，”乔说，“有时候不行。要知道，他们准备炸掉山洞的顶部。”
He watched the children as he said this.
他说这话时注视着孩子们的表情。
“Oh, boy!” cried Benny. “That’s the day I’d like to come.”
“哇！”本尼喊道，“那天我一定要来。”
“You would!” said Joe. “That’s just the day you can’t come.”
“你当然想！”乔说，“可偏偏那天你不能来。”
Benny suddenly began yelling at the top of his voice, “I want to come the day they blow the top off the cave!”
本尼突然扯着嗓子大喊起来：“炸山洞顶的那天我一定要来！”
And then he began to howl. Throwing himself down on the sand, he howled and yelled just as loudly as he could.
接着他开始嚎啕大哭。他扑倒在沙滩上，拼命地嚎叫呐喊。
“My!” cried Joe, who had not heard Benny howl before. “Can’t you stop him? Does he do that often?”
“天哪！”乔叫道，他以前从没听过本尼这样嚎哭，“你们没法让他停下来吗？他经常这样吗？”
“No, not often,” shouted Jessie over the noise.
“不，不常这样，”杰西在嘈杂声中大声回答。
“Listen, Benny,” said Violet. “Stop crying and I’ll build you a sand house.”
“听着，本尼，”维奥莱特说，“别哭了，我给你搭个沙子房子。”
But Benny still howled.
可本尼还是哭个不停。
“Look here, Benny!” said Henry finally. “What will Joe think?”
“喂，本尼！”亨利终于开口了，“乔会怎么看你？”
In spite of anything they could say, Benny yelled on and on.
不管大家怎么说，本尼还是一个劲地喊叫。
“I’m sorry,” Henry said to Joe at last. “He will stop some time. Some day he’ll grow up.”
“真抱歉，”亨利最后对乔说，“他总会停下来的。总有一天他会长大的。”
Just then a voice said very softly, “Please—” It was Captain Daniel.
就在这时，一个声音轻轻说道：“请问——”是丹尼尔船长。
“I came over,” he began, but stopped because of the noise.
“我过来是想……”他刚开口，就被吵闹声打断了。
Benny opened one eye.
本尼睁开了一只眼睛。
Captain Daniel went on a little louder, “I came over to see if you’d like to go with me when I get my lobsters.”
丹尼尔船长提高了一点音量继续说：“我来是想问问你们，愿不愿意跟我一起去收龙虾。”
At this, Benny opened the other eye and stopped howling. “I would,” he said.
听到这话，本尼睁开了另一只眼睛，也不哭了。“我愿意去，”他说。
“Whew!” said Joe. “What a noise that was!”
“呼！”乔感叹道，“刚才那动静可真大！”
“It was for sure,” said Captain Daniel. “I heard it down in my boat.”
“确实够响的，”丹尼尔船长说，“我在船上都听见了。”
“He hasn’t howled all summer until today,” said Henry. “He’s getting over it.”
“整个夏天他都没这么哭过，直到今天，”亨利说，“他正在慢慢克服这个毛病。”
“I hope so,” said Joe.
“希望如此，”乔说。
“We’d like to go with you very much, Captain Daniel,” said Jessie.
“我们非常愿意跟您一起去，丹尼尔船长，”杰西说。
“Any time,” said the captain.
“随时欢迎，”船长说。
“Let’s go right now,” said Benny, just as if he had never cried at all.
“我们现在就走吧，”本尼说，仿佛刚才根本没哭过一样。
“All right, Captain, we’re ready to go,” said Henry.
“好的，船长，我们准备好了，”亨利说。
Then everyone jumped up and climbed over the rocks with Captain Daniel to the motorboat.
于是大家都跳了起来，跟着丹尼尔船长翻过岩石，来到了机动船旁。
As they scrambled into the boat, Benny asked, “Is it fun to get lobsters, Captain Daniel?”
当他们争先恐后爬上船时，本尼问道：“丹尼尔船长，捕龙虾好玩吗？”
“I enjoy it,” answered the captain. “Your grandfather enjoys it, too. I promised him to take you out once before you went home.”
“我很喜欢，”船长回答，“你们的爷爷也喜欢。我答应过他，在你们回家前带你们出海一次。”
There was a pail of fish-heads for bait in the bottom of the boat and a big empty box. Captain Daniel told them all where to sit.
船底放着一桶用作诱饵的鱼头和一个空的大箱子。丹尼尔船长安排了大家的座位。
“Sorry,” said Captain Daniel, looking at Watch, “I don’t think we’d better take the dog along. Can’t you leave him?”
“抱歉，”丹尼尔船长看着沃奇说，“我觉得最好别带狗去。能不能把它留下？”
“I am not going either,” said Joe. “I have to telephone a lot of people. Don’t you think Watch would stay with me?”
“我也不去了，”乔说，“我得给很多人打电话。让沃奇陪我好吗？”
“He will if Jessie tells him,” said Henry.
“只要杰西吩咐一声，它就会留下的，”亨利说。
“Listen, Watch,” said Jessie. “Sit down here. Stay with Joe.”
“听着，沃奇，”杰西说，“坐在这儿，陪着乔。”
Watch obeyed and sat down.
沃奇听话地坐了下来。
“Good dog,” said Jessie. “He understands.”
“乖狗狗，”杰西说，“它听懂了。”
Soon Captain Daniel started the motor, and the children waved good-by to Joe.
很快，丹尼尔船长启动了马达，孩子们向乔挥手告别。
“How nice this is!” cried Jessie. She put her fingers in the water.
“这感觉真好！”杰西欢呼道，把手伸进了水里。
“I wish you had asked us to go with you before,” said Henry. “It’s wonderful!”
“真希望您早点叫上我们，”亨利说，“太棒了！”
“Why is that red board floating out there?” asked Benny, pointing.
“那边为什么漂着一块红板子？”本尼指着远方问。
“Good boy!” cried Captain Daniel, very pleased. “That’s one of my lobster floats. It shows the place where I have a lobster pot in the water. Good sharp eyes you have, Benny, to notice that.”
“好孩子！”丹尼尔船长高兴地称赞道，“那是我的一个龙虾浮标。它标记着我在水下放龙虾笼的位置。本尼，你的眼力真好，居然注意到了。”
As they came near the red board, Captain Daniel stopped the motor.
当船靠近那块红板时，丹尼尔船长关掉了马达。
“Can you reach it, Henry?” he asked, as the boat stopped.
船停稳后，他问：“亨利，你能够得着吗？”
Henry caught the red float and began to lift it out of the water. A lot of rope came up, and at last a heavy lobster pot.
亨利抓住红色浮标，开始往上提。一大串绳子被拉了上来，最后是一个沉甸甸的龙虾笼。
“Oh, you caught some lobsters!” shouted Benny. “Aren’t they queer? These are different from real lobsters—they’re green.”
“噢，抓到龙虾了！”本尼大叫，“它们长得好奇怪啊！跟真正的龙虾不一样——它们是绿色的。”
“All lobsters are green, Benny,” said Jessie. “They turn red when they are cooked.”
“所有的龙虾都是绿色的，本尼，”杰西解释道，“煮熟了就会变红。”
“Will these turn red, too?” asked Benny, looking at the claws.
“这些也会变红吗？”本尼盯着龙虾钳问。
“Sure,” said Captain Daniel. He opened the lobster pot and took out three lobsters. He threw one back into the ocean. “Too small,” said Captain Daniel. “We’ll let it grow some more.” The other two he put into the box.
“当然会，”丹尼尔船长说。他打开笼子取出三只龙虾，把其中一只扔回了海里。“这只太小了，”船长说，“让它再长长吧。”另外两只则被他放进了箱子里。
“Don’t pick them up, Benny,” warned Henry. “You’ve got to look out for those big claws.”
“别用手拿，本尼，”亨利提醒道，“小心那些大钳子。”
Captain Daniel baited the lobster pot with old fish-heads, shut it, and let it down again into the water. Then he started the motor, and away they went.
丹尼尔船长用旧鱼头重新装好诱饵，关上笼子，再次放入水中。然后他启动马达，船又出发了。
“The one who sees the next float first gets all the lobsters in it,” said Captain Daniel.
“谁先看到下一个浮标，笼子里的龙虾就全归谁，”丹尼尔船长宣布。
“What color is it?” asked Benny.
“是什么颜色的？”本尼问。
“Oh, that would be telling. Each one is a different color,” answered the captain.
“哎呀，那可不能说。每个浮标的颜色都不一样，”船长回答。
All the children stared hard at the water. They could see nothing but waves.
孩子们都目不转睛地盯着水面，却除了波浪什么也没看见。
“Ho, isn’t that another float?” said Henry suddenly, as they went past a blue board.
“嘿，那不是又一个浮标吗？”经过一块蓝板时，亨利突然说道。
“Yes, that’s one,” said the captain. “I hope there will be lobsters in it.”
“是的，那是一个，”船长说，“希望里面有龙虾。”
Henry caught the blue float. “Pull hard,” said the captain. “It’s deep here and there will be more rope. Want any help?”
亨利抓住了蓝色浮标。“用力拉，”船长说，“这里水深，绳子会更长。需要帮忙吗？”
“No,” said Henry. It was hard work. The rope seemed to go straight to the bottom of the ocean. At last the lobster pot came in sight.
“不用，”亨利说。这可是个体力活。绳子似乎一直延伸到海底深处。终于，龙虾笼露出了水面。
“Empty!” cried Jessie. “Too bad!”
“空的！”杰西叫道，“真可惜！”
“Yes,” said Captain Daniel, taking in the lobster pot. “It often happens. This is the best one some days. Do you notice that the bait is gone?”
“是啊，”丹尼尔船长边收起笼子边说，“这种情况常有。有时候这个笼子收获最多呢。你们注意到诱饵没了吗？”
He baited the pot again and let it down.
他重新放好诱饵，又把笼子沉了下去。
“The next one will be yours, also, Henry. Hope for better luck,” said the captain.
“下一个也归你拉，亨利。祝你好运，”船长说。
Soon Benny said, “This float is white. Or maybe it’s a wave.”
不一会儿，本尼说：“这个浮标是白色的。或者也许只是个浪花。”
“No, it’s a float,” said Captain Daniel, laughing. “Henry will have to give you a lobster for finding this float.”
“不，是个浮标，”丹尼尔船长笑着说，“亨利得奖励你一只龙虾，因为是你发现的。”
Everyone watched as Henry pulled in the lobster pot. At last it came to the top.
大家都注视着亨利拉龙虾笼。终于，笼子被拉到了水面上。
“Oh, there are a lot!” cried Henry. “It’s a pile of claws. There must be four lobsters. No, five!”
“哇，好多啊！”亨利叫道，“一堆钳子！肯定有四只龙虾。不对，五只！”
“Six!” said Jessie, as Captain Daniel dropped them one by one into the box. “Isn’t that enough for our dinner? Six lobsters? You and Joe will have to come to dinner, too, to help us eat them.”
“六只！”杰西数着，丹尼尔船长把它们一只只放进箱子里，“晚饭吃这些够了吧？六只龙虾！你和乔也得来一起吃，帮我们消灭它们。”
“Yes, thank you, and I’ll boil them for you,” said Captain Daniel. “I have a big wide kettle. When you take the meat out of the shells it is ready to eat.”
“好啊，谢谢邀请，我来给你们煮，”丹尼尔船长说，“我有口大锅。把肉从壳里剥出来就可以吃了。”
“But I don’t know how to take the meat out,” said Jessie.
“可是我不会剥虾肉，”杰西说。
“Joe will show you,” said the captain.
“乔会教你的，”船长说。
“Let’s do it outdoors,” said Jessie.
“我们在户外弄吧，”杰西提议。
After they had pulled in a few more lobster pots, Captain Daniel headed the boat back to the island.
又收了几个龙虾笼后，丹尼尔船长驾船返回了小岛。
“You caught fifteen lobsters,” said Benny. “That’s a lot!”
“我们抓了十五只龙虾，”本尼说，“真不少！”
“Not very many,” said the captain when they had reached the island again. “Some days I get two or three dozen. And six of these lobsters are yours.”
“不算多，”回到岛上后船长说，“有时候我能抓到两三打呢。这其中有六只是你们的。”
When the lobsters had been cooked, Joe sat down on the sand with his young cousins to take out the lobster meat. Jessie and Henry worked, but Violet and Benny just watched.
龙虾煮好后，乔和表弟表妹们坐在沙滩上剥虾肉。杰西和亨利在干活，维奥莱特和本尼只是在旁边看着。
While they were working, Benny said, “Please let me come when they blow the top off the cave.”
趁着大家忙活的时候，本尼说：“求求你们，炸山洞顶的时候让我去吧。”
Joe looked a little worried. He remembered what had happened before when he said “No.” And so he said, “Benny, I’m sorry, but only the ones who will do the work can come.”
乔显得有些为难。他记得上次拒绝时发生的事，于是他说：“本尼，对不起，只有参与工作的人才能去。”
“Will you be here?” asked Violet.
“你会在场吗？”维奥莱特问。
“Yes, Violet. I have to come. You see this is my work. All the things will go in a museum bigger than Uncle James’ museum. You found some wonderful things.”
“会的，维奥莱特。我必须去。你看，这是我的工作。所有出土文物都将进入一个比詹姆斯叔叔的博物馆更大的展馆。你们发现了一些了不起的东西。”
“Oh, Joe, I’d like to have this for my work, too!” said Henry. “Would you teach me?”
“噢，乔，我也想把这当作我的工作！”亨利说，“你能教我吗？”
“Yes, Henry, I’d like to. You never can tell what will happen. We might work together.”
“当然，亨利，我很乐意。世事难料，说不定将来我们能一起工作呢。”
“Will you tell us everything the men find?” asked Jessie.
“工人们发现的所有东西你都会告诉我们吗？”杰西问。
“Oh, my, yes!” replied Joe. “You can see every single thing after they have dug it out. I’m glad you don’t feel too bad about not doing the digging.”
“哦，那当然！”乔回答，“他们挖出来后，每一件你们都能看到。很高兴你们没有因为不能亲自挖掘而太难过。”
“We understand,” said Henry. “It will be better this way.”
“我们明白，”亨利说，“这样安排更好。”
“Now the lobster meat is all out,” said Jessie. “How shall we fix it, Joe?”
“虾肉都剥好了，”杰西说，“乔，我们怎么做着吃呢？”
“Some people like it cold,” began Joe.
“有些人喜欢凉拌……”乔刚开口。
“Oh, but I want to cook just once more on the stove,” cried Jessie.
“噢，可我还想在炉子上再做一次饭，”杰西嚷道。
Joe smiled. “Then have a stew. Put the lobster meat in milk with butter and salt, and eat it hot.”
乔笑了：“那就做炖菜吧。把虾肉放进牛奶里，加上黄油和盐，趁热吃。”
“That sounds good,” said Jessie.
“听起来不错，”杰西说。
The stew was delicious. When they were eating, Henry said, “I have an idea. Let’s come back here weekends until it gets too cold to come.”
炖菜美味极了。吃饭时，亨利说：“我有个主意。以后周末我们都回来吧，直到天气冷得来不了为止。”
“Wonderful,” said Jessie. “Now we won’t have much packing to do. We’ve eaten all the food.”
“太好了，”杰西说，“这样我们就不用收拾太多东西了。食物也都吃光了。”
Violet put the dishes in the cupboard while Jessie put the towels and blankets in boxes to be taken home and washed. Henry stood the rest of the boxes along the wall and shut all the windows. They left the museum just as it was.
维奥莱特把餐具放进橱柜，杰西把毛巾和毯子装箱带回家清洗。亨利把剩下的箱子靠墙放好，关上了所有的窗户。他们让博物馆保持着原样离开了。
Benny carried Violet’s paints, pen, and her work-bag. She carried the violin herself.
本尼帮维奥莱特拿着颜料、钢笔和针线包，她自己背着小提琴。
“Good-by, barn!” said Benny, when Henry shut the door. “I am not going to cry.”
“再见了，谷仓！”亨利关门时，本尼说道，“我才不哭呢。”
“Good for you, Benny!” said Henry. “Just keep thinking how lonesome Grandfather has been.”
“好样的，本尼！”亨利说，“想想爷爷有多孤单就好了。”
“I want to go home now,” said Benny. “I want to sleep in my real bed.”
“我现在就想回家，”本尼说，“我想睡在自己真正的床上。”
Henry laughed. A real bed seemed very good to him, too.
亨利笑了。对他来说，一张真正的床也显得无比美好。
Captain Daniel took the children over to the mainland. When they saw their grandfather waiting for them in the car, they ran to him and all began to talk at once.
丹尼尔船长把孩子们送到了大陆。当他们看到爷爷在车里等着时，全都跑过去，七嘴八舌地说了起来。
“Get in, get in!” said Mr. Alden. “I want to hear all about it, but I can’t understand four people all talking at the same time.”
“上车，快上车！”奥尔登先生说，“我想听听所有的事，可四个人同时说话我根本听不清。”
But the children could hardly wait to take turns. They told him about the floats and the lobsters and the cave.
可孩子们迫不及待，轮流讲了起来。他们告诉他关于浮标、龙虾和山洞的事。
“They are going to blow the top off the cave, Grandfather!” cried Benny.
“爷爷，他们要炸掉山洞的顶了！”本尼喊道。
“Really?” said Mr. Alden, who of course knew all about it. “What a noise that will make!”
“是吗？”奥尔登先生说，其实他早就知道了，“那动静肯定不小！”
“Joe won’t be home for good until later,” said Jessie. “He said to tell you that he would stay with Captain Daniel. He won’t move into the little yellow house.”
“乔暂时不会彻底搬回家住，”杰西说，“他让我们转告您，他会住在丹尼尔船长那里。他不会搬进那座小黄屋了。”
“I should say he won’t!” cried Mr. Alden.
“他当然不该搬进去！”奥尔登先生大声说。
For a minute, the children were too surprised to say anything.
一时间，孩子们惊讶得说不出话来。
Then Henry said, “Grandfather, that’s one thing we can’t understand. Why didn’t we ever get to go into that little yellow house? Doesn’t it belong to you?”
然后亨利问：“爷爷，有一件事我们想不通。为什么从来不让我们进那座小黄屋？它不属于您吗？”
Mr. Alden looked at his grandchildren. Then he said quietly, “That’s another story.”
奥尔登先生看着孙辈们，轻声说道：“那就是另一个故事了。”
“We won’t ask about it now,” said Jessie quickly. “You have been so wonderful to us. Thank you for our summer on the island.”
“我们现在不问这个了，”杰西连忙说，“您对我们太好了。谢谢您让我们在岛上度过了这个夏天。”
“That’s all right,” said Mr. Alden, smiling again. “I’m glad to have you all at home. I believe I shall even be glad to hear Watch bark at the milkman tomorrow morning.”
“没关系，”奥尔登先生又笑了起来，“很高兴你们都回家了。我想明天早上就算听到沃奇对着送奶工叫，我也会觉得高兴的。”
That night, when Jessie was going to bed in her own room, she thought she heard Benny calling.
那天晚上，杰西正准备在自己房间睡觉时，好像听到本尼在叫她。
“Did you call me, Benny?” she asked, going into her little brother’s room.
“本尼，你叫我了吗？”她走进弟弟的房间问道。
“Yes,” said Benny very slowly, for he was almost asleep. “I said Joe is going to live with us, and he’s my best friend in all the world.”
“嗯，”本尼慢吞吞地说，他已经快睡着了，“我说乔要和我们一起住了，他是全世界我最好的朋友。”
“Yes, I know he is,” said Jessie, pulling up the blanket.
“是啊，我知道他是，”杰西说着帮他拉好被子。
“I mean all but you, Jessie, of course, and Violet, and Grandfather—”
“我是说除了你，杰西，当然还有维奥莱特和爷爷……”
“And Watch?” asked Jessie.
“还有沃奇呢？”杰西问。
“Yes, of course Watch, and Henry—”
“对，当然还有沃奇，还有亨利……”
He stopped.
他停顿了一下。
“And Captain Daniel—”
“还有丹尼尔船长……”
Jessie saw that Benny’s eyes were shut. He had gone to sleep naming his friends. But it did not matter, thought Jessie, smiling. For it would have taken a long time to name all of Benny’s friends.
杰西发现本尼已经闭上了眼睛。他在数朋友的名字时睡着了。但这没关系，杰西微笑着想，因为要把本尼所有的朋友都数一遍，可得花上好长时间呢。
And downstairs, the children’s real best friend settled back in his big chair to make plans for them.
而在楼下，孩子们真正最好的朋友正靠在安乐椅里，为他们筹划着未来。
0 条评论