"What's all this about, Ed?" said Peter.
“这到底是怎么一回事，爱德？”彼得问。
And now we come to one of the nastiest things in this story. Up to that moment Edmund had been feeling sick, and sulky, and annoyed with Lucy for being right, but he hadn't made up his mind what to do. When Peter suddenly asked him the question he decided all at once to do the meanest and most spiteful thing he could think of. He decided to let Lucy down.
现在我们写到这个故事中最令人不愉快的部分。在这以前，爱德蒙一直感到很不舒服，一直在生露茜的气，但对露茜究竟采取什么行动，他一时还没有拿定主意。现在彼得突如其来地问起他这个问题，他就把心一横，决定干出他所能想到的最不光彩的事情，来整一下露茜。
"Tell us, Ed," said Susan.
“告诉我们，爱德。”苏珊说。
And Edmund gave a very superior look as if he were far older than Lucy (there was really only a year's difference) and then a little snigger and said, "Oh, yes, Lucy and I have been playing - pretending that all her story about a country in the wardrobe is true. just for fun, of course. There's nothing there really."
爱德蒙显出老成持重的样子，好像他比露茜要大得多(实际上两人只相差一岁)。他噗嗤一笑说：“噢，对啦，露茜和我一直在做游戏，她故意说上次讲的衣橱里有个国家的故事是真的。当然喽，我们只是开开玩笑，其实，那儿什么东西也没有。”
Poor Lucy gave Edmund one look and rushed out of the room.
可怜的露茜看了爱德蒙一眼，便一口气奔到了屋外。
Edmund, who was becoming a nastier person every minute, thought that he had scored a great success, and went on at once to say, "There she goes again. What's the matter with her? That's the worst of young kids, they always -"
爱德蒙现在变得越来越不像话了，他自以为已经取得了极大的成功，立刻接下去说道：“她又去啦，她是有什么问题吗？这是小孩子最糟糕的地方，他们老是……”
"Look here," said Peter, turning on him savagely, "shut up! You've been perfectly beastly to Lu ever since she started this nonsense about the wardrobe, and now you go playing games with her about it and setting her off again. I believe you did it simply out of spite."
“听我说，”彼得转过身来，两眼盯住了他，说：“住口！自从她上次说了这些关于衣橱的胡话以来，你对她总是凶声凶气的，现在你跟她一起躲进了衣橱里作游戏，又把她气走了。我看，你这样做完全不怀好意。”
"But it's all nonsense," said Edmund, very taken aback.
“但她讲的通通都是胡说八道。”爱德蒙说，彼得的话使他大吃一惊。
"Of course it's all nonsense," said Peter, "that's just the point. Lu was perfectly all right when we left home, but since we've been down here she seems to be either going queer in the head or else turning into a most frightful liar. But whichever it is, what good do you think you'll do by jeering and nagging at her one day and encouraging her the next?"
“当然都是胡言乱语，”彼得说，“问题的严重性就在这里。在家的时候，露是好好的，但到了乡下以后，她看上去要么神经不很正常，要么就是谎话连篇。但无论是哪种情况，你想想看，你今天嘲笑她，对她喋喋不休说个不停，明天你又去怂恿她，这对她有什么帮助？”
"I thought - I thought," said Edmund, but he couldn't think of anything to say.
“我原来想……我原来想，”爱德蒙说，可是他又想不出说什么好。
"You didn't think anything at all," said Peter, "it's just spite. You've always liked being beastly to anyone smaller than yourself, we've seen that at school before now."
“你根本没想这些，”彼得说，“就是不管不顾。你对比你小的孩子总喜欢这一套，我们以前在学校里就经常看到你这样。”
"Do stop it," said Susan, "it won't make things any better having a row between you two. Let's go and find Lucy."
“别说了，”苏珊说，“你们互相埋怨有什么用，我们还是去找找露茜吧。”
It was not surprising that when they found Lucy, a good deal later, everyone could see that she had been crying. Nothing they could say to her made any difference. She stuck to her story and said:
他们找了好长一段时间，才找到了露茜。果然不出大家所料，她正哭的伤心。无论他们怎么说，露茜都坚持她说的情况是真的。
"I don't care what you think, and I don't care what you say. You can tell the Professor or you can write to Mother or you can do anything you like. I know I've met a Faun in there and - I wish I'd stayed there and you are all beasts, beasts."
“不管你们怎么想，也不管你们怎么说，我都无所谓。你们可以去告诉教授，也可以写信告诉妈妈，随便你们怎么做都可以。我知道我在那里碰见了一个羊怪而且……我真希望我留在那里，你们都是老顽固，老顽固。”
It was an unpleasant evening. Lucy was miserable and Edmund was beginning to feel that his plan wasn't working as well as he had expected. The two older ones were really beginning to think that Lucy was out of her mind. They stood in the passage talking about it in whispers long after she had gone to bed.
这是一个十分不愉快的夜晚。露茜感到很委屈，爱德蒙也开始感到，他的计划并没有像他预料的那样奏效。那两个年龄大些的孩子却真以为露茜的精神不大正常。在她入睡以后很久，他们还站在走廊里小声议论着。
The result was the next morning they decided that they really would go and tell the whole thing to the Professor.
议论的结果是，第二天早上，他们决定把全部情况都去告诉教授。
"He'll write to Father if he thinks there is really something wrong with Lu," said Peter, "it's getting beyond us."
“假如他也认为露茜真的有什么毛病，他将写信去告诉爸爸，”彼得说，“我们可管不了这样的事。”
So they went and knocked at the study door, and the Professor said "Come in," and got up and found chairs for them and said he was quite at their disposal. Then he sat listening to them with the tips of his fingers pressed together and never interrupting, till they had finished the whole story. After that he said nothing for quite a long time. Then he cleared his throat and said the last thing either of them expected:"How do you know," he asked, "that your sister's story is not true?"
于是，他们就去敲老教授书房的门。教授说了声“请进”，便站起身来，找了椅子让他们坐下，还说有事尽管来找他，他乐意为他们效劳。然后他坐下来，将手指合拢，静静地听他们把整个故事讲完。听完以后，他好长时间没有吭声，最后他清了清嗓子，出乎意外地问道：“你们怎能断定露茜讲的故事就不是真的呢？”
"Oh, but -" began Susan, and then stopped. Anyone could see from the old man's face that he was perfectly serious. Then Susan pulled herself together and said, "But Edmund said they had only been pretending."
“哦，但是……”苏珊刚想开口又停住了。从老人的脸色可以看出，他是十分严肃的。过了一会儿，苏珊鼓起了勇气说：“但是爱德蒙亲口告诉我们，他们只是假装说说玩的。”
"That is a point," said the Professor, "which certainly deserves consideration; very careful consideration. For instance - if you will excuse me for asking the question - does your experience lead you to regard your brother or your sister as the more reliable? I mean, which is the more truthful?"
“有一点，”教授说，“值得考虑，很慎重地考虑。这么说吧——请原谅我提出这个问题——根据你们的经验，你们认为是你们的弟弟还是你们的妹妹更可靠？我的意思是，哪个更诚实？”
"That's just the funny thing about it, sir," said Peter. "Up till now, I'd have said Lucy every time."
“这真是一个十分有趣的问题，先生，”彼得说，“直到现在为止，我应该说，露茜要比爱德蒙诚实。”
"And what do you think, my dear?" said the Professor, turning to Susan.
“那你认为怎样呢，我亲爱的孩子？”教授转过头来又问苏珊。
"Well," said Susan, "in general, I'd say the same as Peter, but this couldn't be true - all this about the wood and the Faun."
“嗯，”苏珊说，“我嘛，基本上和彼得的看法相同。但关于森林和羊怪的故事总不可能是真的。”
"That is more than I know," said the Professor, "and a charge of lying against someone whom you have always found truthful is a very serious thing; a very serious thing indeed."
“这个问题我就不清楚了，”教授说，“但是，随口指责一个你们都认为是诚实的人说谎，这倒是一个非常严重的问题。”
"We were afraid it mightn't even be lying," said Susan, "we thought there might be something wrong with Lucy."
“我们担心的倒不是露茜说谎，”苏珊说，“我们认为很可能露茜精神有了毛病。”
"Madness, you mean?" said the Professor quite coolly. "Oh, you can make your minds easy about that. One has only to look at her and talk to her to see that she is not mad."
“你的意思是说她发了疯？”教授非常冷静地说，“哦，这个你们很容易判断。你们只要观察观察她的脸色，再和她交谈交谈，就可以断定出来了。”
"But then," said Susan, and stopped. She had never dreamed that a grown-up would talk like the Professor and didn't know what to think.
“但是……”苏珊刚开口又不说了。她做梦也没想到像教授这样的大人会说出这种话来，她真被搞糊涂了。
"Logic!" said the Professor half to himself. "Why don't they teach logic at these schools? There are only three possibilities. Either your sister is telling lies, or she is mad, or she is telling the truth. You know she doesn't tell lies and it is obvious that she is not mad For the moment then and unless any further evidence turns up, we must assume that she is telling the truth."
“逻辑！”教授多半自言自语地说，“现在这些学校为什么不教你们一点逻辑呢？这件事只有三种可能：或是你们的妹妹说了谎，或者是她精神不正常，要不，她讲的就是真话。你们都说她向来不说谎，她的精神又没有什么问题。那么在发现更充分的证据之前，我们就只能假定她讲的是真实的。”
Susan looked at him very hard and was quite sure from the expression on his face that he was no making fun of them.
苏珊两眼紧盯着他，从他脸上的表情，她可以肯定他不是在和他们开玩笑。
"But how could it be true, sir?" said Peter.
“但是，这怎么可能呢，先生？”彼得问。
"Why do you say that?" asked the Professor.
“为什么就一定不可能呢？”教授反问了一句。
"Well, for one thing," said Peter, "if it was true why doesn't everyone find this country every time they go to the wardrobe? I mean, there was nothing there when we looked; even Lucy didn't pretend the was."
“好吧，首先，”彼得说，“假如是真的，为什么不是每个人每次到橱里都能发现那个国家呢？有一次，我们到橱里看的时候，根本没有发现什么别的情况，还是露茜亲自领着我们去看的呢，她自己也没有说她看到了旁的东西。”
"What has that to do with it?" said the Professor.
“这有什么关系呢？”教授说。
"Well, sir, if things are real, they're there all the time."
“有关系，先生。如果是真的，那些东西就应该始终都在那里。”
"Are they?" said the Professor, and Peter did'nt know quite what to say.
“始终？”教授问道，彼得不知如何回答才完全正确。
"But there was no time," said Susan. "Lucy had no time to have gone anywhere, even if there was such a place. She came running after us the very moment we were out of the room. It was less than minute, and she pretended to have been away for hours."
“但是露茜躲在橱里只有一眨眼工夫，”苏珊说，“即使橱里有这么一个地方，她也不曾有时间去呀。我们刚从空屋里出来，她就跟在我们后面溜出来了，前后还不到一分钟，她却硬是说离开了好几个钟头。”
"That is the very thing that makes her story so likely to be true," said the Professor. "If there really a door in this house that leads to some other world (and I should warn you that this is a very strange house, and even I know very little about it) - if, I say, she had got into another world, I should not be at a surprised to find that the other world had a separate time of its own; so that however long you stay there it would never take up any of our time. On the other hand, I don't think many girls of her age would invent that idea for themselves. If she had been pretending, she would have hidden for a reasonable time before coming out and telling her story."
“正因为如此，她说的故事才更像真的，”教授说，“如果这间屋里真的有一个门通向某一个别的世界(我得提醒你们，这是一栋非常神秘的房屋，即使是我，对它也了解很少)——就算她真的到了另一个世界，那我们也不应该感到奇怪，那个世界一定有它自己的时间概念，所以不管你在那儿逗留多久，也不会占去我们这个世界的任何一点时间。另外我还认为，像她这样年龄的女孩子，是不可能自己编造出这样的故事来的。假如她想说谎，她就会在里面多藏一段时间，然后再出来讲她的故事。”
"But do you really mean, sir," said Peter, "that there could be other worlds - all over the place, just round the corner - like that?"
“可是先生，你真的认为，“彼得问道，“在这栋房屋里，譬如说，就在附近，到处都有可能有别的世界吗？”
"Nothing is more probable," said the Professor, taking off his spectacles and beginning to polish them, while he muttered to himself, "I wonder what they do teach them at these schools."
“这是非常可能的，”教授说，他一边摘下眼镜擦擦干净，一边又自言自语，“我真想知道他们在学校里教了这些孩子什么东西。”
"But what are we to do?" said Susan. She felt that the conversation was beginning to get off the point.
“可是我们要怎么做？”苏珊说，她感到这场谈话已经开始离题了。
"My dear young lady," said the Professor, suddenly looking up with a very sharp expression at both of them, "there is one plan which no one has yet suggested and which is well worth trying."
“我亲爱的小女士，”教授突然抬起头来，用一种非常严肃的神情看着他俩说，“有一个计划值得一试，但谁也没有提起过。”
"What's that?" said Susan.
“什么计划？”苏珊问。
"We might all try minding our own business," said he. And that was the end of that conversation.
“这个我们就别去管它了。”他说。那次谈话就这样结束了。
After this things were a good deal better for Lucy. Peter saw to it that Edmund stopped jeering at her, and neither she nor anyone else felt inclined to talk about the wardrobe at all. It had become a rather alarming subject. And so for a time it looked as if all the adventures were coming to an end; but that was not to be.
彼得做了许多工作，使爱德蒙不再嘲笑露茜，她和别人都不想再谈衣橱的事，这已成了使人不快的话题。所以，在相当长的一段时间里，一切奇遇似乎都已成了过去，但事实却并不如此。
This house of the Professor's - which even he knew so little about - was so old and famous that people from all over England used to come and ask permission to see over it. It was the sort of house that is mentioned in guide books and even in histories; and well it might be, for all manner of stories were told about it, some of them even stranger than the one I am telling you now. And when parties of sightseers arrived and asked to see the house, the Professor always gave them permission, and Mrs Macready, the housekeeper, showed them round, telling them about the pictures and the armour, and the rare books in the library. Mrs Macready was not fond of children, and did not like to be interrupted when she was telling visitors all the things she knew. She had said to Susan and Peter almost on the first morning (along with a good many other instructions), "And please remember you're to keep out of the way whenever I'm taking a party over the house."
教授的这栋房屋——即使他自己，也了解得很少——是这样古老，又是这样闻名，全国各地的人都常常要求来此参观，这所房屋在旅游指南一类的书上，甚至在历史书上，都有所记载，在各式各样的故事中都谈到过，其中有些故事比我现在对你讲的这个故事还要离奇。每当观光的人要求进屋看看的时候，教授总是满口答应，女管家玛卡蕾蒂太太就带领着他们到各处转转，给他们介绍图画，盔甲，以及图书馆里稀有的书籍。玛卡蕾蒂太太不很喜欢孩子，当她给客人们滔滔不绝地讲述她所知道的各种掌故时，她是不喜欢别人从旁边插嘴打扰的。几乎在孩子们来的第一天早上，她就向苏珊和彼得交代说(同时还交待了许多别的规矩)：“请你们记着，我领人参观的时候，你们要躲远一点儿。”
"Just as if any of us would want to waste half the morning trailing round with a crowd of strange grown-ups!" said Edmund, and the other three thought the same. That was how the adventures began for the second time.
“就好像我们当中会有人故意要跟一群陌生的大人浪费半天似的。”爱德蒙说。其余三人也有同样的想法。谁知，第二次奇遇就是由此引起的。
A few mornings later Peter and Edmund were looking at the suit of armour and wondering if they could take it to bits when the two girls rushed into the room and said, "Look out! Here comes the Macready and a whole gang with her."
几天以后，彼得和爱德蒙正望着那副盔甲出神，想试试能否把它拆卸下来，两个女孩忽然奔进屋里说：“小心！玛卡蕾蒂带着一群人来了。”
"Sharp's the word," said Peter, and all four made off through the door at the far end of the room. But when they had got out into the Green Room and beyond it, into the Library, they suddenly heard voices ahead of them, and realized that Mrs Macready must be bringing her party of sightseers up the back stairs - instead of up the front stairs as they had expected. And after that - whether it was that they lost their heads, or that Mrs Macready was trying to catch them, or that some magic in the house had come to life and was chasing them into Narnia they seemed to find themselves being followed everywhere, until at last Susan said, "Oh bother those trippers! Here - let's get into the Wardrobe Room till they've passed. No one will follow us in there." But the moment they were inside they heard the voices in the passage - and then someone fumbling at the door - and then they saw the handle turning.
“快走，”彼得说，四个人很快就从另外一头的门溜掉了。他们溜出来以后先进了那间休息室，后来又跑到了图书馆，这时他们突然听到前面有说话的声音，他们都以为玛卡蕾蒂太太带着观光的人群到后楼去了，而没有像他们预料的那样到前楼来。以后，不知是他们自己昏了头，还是玛卡蕾蒂太太要来抓他们，还是这所住宅的魔法再次显现，要把他们赶往纳尼亚，他们似乎感到每到一处都有人跟踪着。最后，苏珊说：“哦，这些游客真够讨厌！这儿，让我们躲到放衣橱的那间空屋里去吧，等他们走了以后再说，谁也不会跟我们到那儿去的。”但他们刚进空屋，就听见走廊里有人在讲话，接着又是摸门的声音，一看，门把手已经在转动了。
"Quick!" said Peter, "there's nowhere else," and flung open the wardrobe. All four of them bundled inside it and sat there, panting, in the dark. Peter held the door closed but did not shut it; for, of course, he remembered, as every sensible person does, that you should never never shut yourself up in a wardrobe.
“快！”彼得说，“没有别的地方可躲了。”他猛地一下推开了橱门。四个人蜷缩在黑咕隆咚的衣橱里边，不停地喘气。彼得带上了橱门，但没有把它关紧，因为像每一个明智的人一样，他当然记得这一点，永远永远不要把你自己关在衣橱里面。
Chapter 6
第六章
INTO THE FOREST
进入森林
"I wish the Macready would hurry up and take all these people away," said Susan presently, "I'm getting horribly cramped."
“我希望玛卡蕾蒂快点把这些人带走，”不一会儿，苏珊说，“我抽筋越来越厉害了。”
"And what a filthy smell of camphor!" said Edmund.
“樟脑的气味真难闻！”爱德蒙说。
"I expect the pockets of these coats are full of it," said Susan, "to keep away the moths."
“我倒希望这些外衣的口袋里多放些樟脑丸，”苏珊说，“这样就不会有蛾子了。”
"There's something sticking into my back," said Peter.
“有什么东西戳到我背上了。”彼得说。
"And isn't it cold?" said Susan.
“而且还冷丝丝的？”苏珊问。
"Now that you mention it, it is cold," said Peter, "and hang it all, it's wet too. What's the matter with this place? I'm sitting on something wet. It's getting wetter every minute." He struggled to his feet.
“你这么一说，我倒真的冷起来了。”彼得说，“真该死，这里还潮呼呼的呢。这到底是怎么啦?我坐的地方一下子变得湿漉漉的了。”他一下子跳了起来。
"Let's get out," said Edmund, "they've gone."
“我们还是出去吧。”爱德蒙说，“他们已经走啦。”
"O-o-oh!" said Susan suddenly, and everyone asked her what was the matter.
“哦——哦！”苏珊突然尖叫一声，大家都问她是怎么一回事。
"I'm sitting against a tree," said Susan, "and look! It's getting light - over there."
“我正靠着一棵树坐着，”苏珊说，“看！那边有亮光。”
"By Jove, you're right," said Peter, "and look there - and there. It's trees all round. And this wet stuff is snow. Why, I do believe we've got into Lucy's wood after all."
“天哪，你是对的，”彼得说，“瞧那儿，还有那儿，到处都是树。潮呼呼的东西是雪。啊，我现在真的相信我们也到了露茜来过的森林里了。”
And now there was no mistaking it and all four children stood blinking in the daylight of a winter day. Behind them were coats hanging on pegs, in front of them were snow-covered trees.
彼得的话一点也不错。四个孩子全站在那儿，在冬天阳光的照耀下，他们眨巴着眼睛。在他们后面是挂在衣钩上的外套，在他们面前是覆盖着雪的树木。
Peter turned at once to Lucy."I apologize for not believing you," he said, "I'm sorry. Will you shake hands?"
彼得转过身对露茜说：“我以前不相信你说的话，现在我向你道歉。真对不起，让我们握手，好吗？”
"Of course," said Lucy, and did.
“好。”露茜一边说，一边和他握手。
"And now," said Susan, "what do we do next?"
“那么现在，”苏珊说，“我们下一步该怎么办？”
"Do?" said Peter, "why, go and explore the wood, of course."
“怎么办？”彼得说，“还用说吗，当然到森林里去探险。”
"Ugh!" said Susan, stamping her feet, "it's pretty cold. What about putting on some of these coats?"
“啊！”苏珊跺着脚说，“这里真冷，拿几件外套先穿上，你们说好吗？”
"They're not ours," said Peter doubtfully.
“那些衣服不是我们的。”彼得犹豫地说。
"I am sure nobody would mind," said Susan, "it isn't as if we wanted to take them out of the house; we shan't take them even out of the wardrobe."
“我相信谁也不会有什么意见，”苏珊说，“我们又不想把它们带到屋外去，我们甚至不会把它们带出衣橱。”
"I never thought of that, Su," said Peter. "Of course, now you put it that way, I see. No one could say you had bagged a coat as long as you leave it in the wardrobe where you found it. And I suppose this whole country is in the wardrobe."
“我倒没考虑到这一点，苏，”彼得说，“经你这么一说，我看当然可以。只要你们在橱里什么地方拿的，还放在什么地方，就不会有谁说你们是小偷了。据我猜测，这整个国家就在衣橱里边。”
They immediately carried out Susan's very sensible plan. The coats were rather too big for them so that they came down to their heels and looked more like royal robes than coats when they had put them on. But they all felt a good deal warmer and each thought the others looked better in their new get-up and more suitable to the landscape.
于是，他们就立即执行了苏珊的这个合情合理的计划。衣服太大，他们套在身上，一直拖到脚后跟，就像是穿了皇家长袍似的。但他们都感到暖和多了，相互一打量，也都觉得这样打扮显得更好看了，与冰天雪地的风光也更相配了。
"We can pretend we are Arctic explorers," said Lucy.
“我们可以装扮成北极探险家。”露茜说。
"This is going to be exciting enough without pretending," said Peter, as he began leading the way forward into the forest. There were heavy darkish clouds overhead and it looked as if there might be more snow before night.
“就这样，不用什么打扮，也够威风的了。”彼得一边说，一边领着大家朝森林前进。头上乌云密布，似乎在傍晚前还要下一场大雪。
"I say," began Edmund presently, "oughtn't we to be bearing a bit more to the left, that is, if we are aiming for the lamp-post?" He had forgotten for the moment that he must pretend never to have been in the wood before. The moment the words were out of his mouth he realized that he had given himself away. Everyone stopped; everyone stared at him. Peter whistled.
“听我说，”走了一会儿以后爱德蒙说，“如果我们要到灯柱那边去的话，我们就应该向左边靠一点儿。”他一时忘记了，他必须装得像是他以前没来过这儿。话刚说出口，他就意识到自己露了马脚。大家停了下来，都盯住他看。彼得吹了一声口哨。
"So you really were here," he said, "that time Lu said she'd met you in here - and you made out she was telling lies."
“你原来到过这儿，”他说，“那次露茜说在这儿碰见你，你却一口咬定她说谎。”
There was a dead silence. "Well, of all the poisonous little beasts -" said Peter, and shrugged his shoulders and said no more. There seemed, indeed, no more to say, and presently the four resumed their journey; but Edmund was saying to himself, "I'll pay you all out for this, you pack of stuck-up, selfsatisfied prigs."
接着是死一般的沉寂。“唉，各种各样难对付的人都有……”彼得说着，耸了耸肩膀，就没有往下再说什么。看来，也确实没有更多的话可说了，过了一会儿，四个人又重新开始他们的旅程。只有爱德蒙心里暗暗在想，“我总有一天要惩罚你们一下，你们这一伙自命不凡的伪君子。”
"Where are we going anyway?" said Susan, chiefly for the sake of changing the subject.
“我们到底往哪里走啊？”苏珊问道，她这样说，主要是为了岔开刚才的话题。
"I think Lu ought to be the leader," said Peter, "goodness knows she deserves it. Where will you take us, Lu?"
“我看，应当让露茜作向导，”彼得说，“也只有她配作向导。露，你打算带我们上哪儿去？”
"What about going to see Mr Tumnus?" said Lucy. "He's the nice Faun I told you about."
“去看看图姆纳斯先生，好不好？”露茜答道，“他就是我对你们讲过的那个善良的羊怪。”
Everyone agreed to this and off they went walking briskly and stamping their feet. Lucy proved a good leader. At first she wondered whether she would be able to find the way, but she recognized an oddlooking tree on one place and a stump in another and brought them on to where the ground became uneven and into the little valley and at last to the very door of Mr Tumnus's cave. But there a terrible surprise awaited them.
大家一致同意这个建议，于是就立即出发。他们一边轻快地跑着，一边跺着脚。事实证明，露茜是个好向导。起初，她担心自己找不到路，但她在一个地方认出了一棵长得古里古怪的树，后来又认出了一个树桩，终于把大家带到了一个崎岖不平的地方，然后进了那个小山谷，没多久就到了图姆纳斯先生的洞口，但他们所看到的却是一幅十分可怕的景象，他们都大吃一惊。
The door had been wrenched off its hinges and broken to bits. Inside, the cave was dark and cold and had the damp feel and smell of a place that had not been lived in for several days. Snow had drifted in from the doorway and was heaped on the floor, mixed with something black, which turned out to be the charred sticks and ashes from the fire. Someone had apparently flung it about the room and then stamped it out. The crockery lay smashed on the floor and the picture of the Faun's father had been slashed into shreds with a knife.
门已被扭脱了下来，断成了好几截，洞内又黑又冷，又潮湿，满是霉味。看来，这个地方已有好些日子没有人住了。雪从洞口吹进来，堆积在门口，里面还混杂着一些黑糊糊的东西，再一看，是烧剩下来的木炭屑和炭灰。很明显，是有人把烧着的柴火扔到了洞内，然后又把它们踩灭了。陶罐打碎在地上，羊怪父亲的画像被人用刀子砍成了碎片。
"This is a pretty good wash-out," said Edmund, "not much good coming here."
“这地方糟蹋的简直不成样子，”爱德蒙说，“到这儿来有啥意思。”
"What is this?" said Peter, stooping down. He had just noticed a piece of paper which had been nailed through the carpet to the floor.
“这是什么？”彼得一边蹲下身子一边说。他发现地毯上钉有一张纸。
"Is there anything written on it?" asked Susan.
“上面写些什么吗？”苏珊问。
"Yes, I think there is," answered Peter, "but I can't read it in this light. Let's get out into the open air."
“是的，上面好象有字，”彼得回答，“但在这儿看不清楚，我们还是拿到外面去看吧。”
They all went out in the daylight and crowded round Peter as he read out the following words:
他们都跑到了洞外，围着彼得听他念道：
The former occupant of these premises, the Faun Tumnus, is under arrest and awaiting his trial on a charge of High Treason against her Imperial Majesty Jadis, Queen of Narnia, Chatelaine of Cair Paravel, Empress of the Lone Islands, etc., also of comforting her said Majesty's enemies, harbouring spies and fraternizing with Humans.
本处原主羊怪图姆纳斯，因反对纳尼亚女王、凯尔帕拉维尔城堡的女主人、孤独群岛女皇简蒂丝陛下，庇护女王陛下的敌人，窝藏奸细，与人类友好，罪行严重，现已被捕，即将受审。
signed MAUGRIM, Captain of the Secret Police, LONG LIVE THE QUEEN
（签名）保安局长封列士·尤尔夫，女王陛下万岁！
The children stared at each other.
孩子们互相瞪着眼睛。
"I don't know that I'm going to like this place after all," said Susan.
“我说不上我到底是否喜欢这个地方。”苏珊说。
"Who is this Queen, Lu?" said Peter. "Do you know anything about her?"
“这个女王是谁，露？”彼得问，“你知道她的情况吗？”
"She isn't a real queen at all," answered Lucy, "she's a horrible witch, the White Witch. Everyone all the wood people - hate her. She has made an enchantment over the whole country so that it is always winter here and never Christmas."
“她根本不是一个真正的女王，”露茜回答说，“她是个可怕的女巫，就是那个白女巫。森林里所有的人都恨她。她对全国都施行了一种妖术，所以这里一年到头都是冬天，始终没有圣诞节。”
"I - I wonder if there's any point in going on," said Susan. "I mean, it doesn't seem particularly safe here and it looks as if it won't be much fun either. And it's getting colder every minute, and we've brought nothing to eat. What about just going home?"
“我，我怀疑继续走下去是不是有什么意义，”苏珊说，“我是说，这里似乎不十分安全，也没有多少有趣的地方。天气越来越冷，我们又没带吃的东西。要不现在就回家吧？”
"Oh, but we can't, we can't," said Lucy suddenly, "don't you see? We can't just go home, not after this. It is all on my account that the poor Faun has got into this trouble. He hid me from the Witch and showed me the way back. That's what it means by comforting the Queen's enemies and fraternizing with Humans. We simply must try to rescue him."
“哦，但是我们不能，我们不能，”露茜马上说，“难道你们还不清楚吗？既然清楚了，我们就不能这样回家。都是为了我，可怜的羊怪才闯下了这样大的祸。靠了他的掩护，我才没有遭到女巫的毒手，他告诉了我回去的路。这张纸上说他庇护女王的敌人，与人类友好就是指这些。我们必须赶快想办法救他。”
"A lot we could do!" said Edmund, "when we haven't even got anything to eat!"
“我们能做什么！”爱德蒙说，“我们甚至连吃的东西也没有！”
"Shut up - you!" said Peter, who was still very angry with Edmund. "What do you think, Susan?"
“你，住嘴！”彼得说，他还在对爱德蒙生气，“你的意见呢，苏珊？”
"I've a horrid feeling that Lu is right," said Susan. "I don't want to go a step further and I wish we'd never come. But I think we must try to do something for Mr Whatever-his-name is - I mean the Faun."
“我的感觉很不好，露茜是对的，”苏珊说，“我一步也不想往前走了，真希望我们从来没来过这儿。但我想，我们必须替那个先生——他叫什么名字？我记不清楚了——我说的是那个羊怪，想想办法。”
"That's what I feel too," said Peter. "I'm worried about having no food with us. I'd vote for going back and getting something from the larder, only there doesn't seem to be any certainty of getting into this country again when once you've got out of it. I think we'll have to go on."
“我也这样想，”彼得说，“我担心我们身上没带吃的东西，我同意回去拿点儿食品再来。但是，我们一出去以后，恐怕就不能再到这个国家来。我看，我们得继续前进。”
"So do I," said both the girls.
“我也这样想。”两个女孩子异口同声地说。
"If only we knew where the poor chap was imprisoned!" said Peter.
“要是我们知道这个可怜的人被囚禁在什么地方就好了！”彼得说。
They were all still wondering what to do next, when Lucy said, "Look! There's a robin, with such a red breast. It's the first bird I've seen here. I say! - I wonder can birds talk in Narnia? It almost looks as if it wanted to say something to us." Then she turned to the Robin and said, "Please, can you tell us where Tumnus the Faun has been taken to?" As she said this she took a step towards the bird. It at once flew away but only as far as to the next tree. There it perched and looked at them very hard as if it understood all they had been saying. Almost without noticing that they had done so, the four children went a step or two nearer to it. At this the Robin flew away again to the next tree and once more looked at them very hard. (You couldn't have found a robin with a redder chest or a brighter eye.)
大家默不作声，考虑着下一步该怎么办。突然，露茜对大家说：“看！那里有一只知更鸟，它的胸脯是多么的红啊。它是我在这儿看到的第一只鸟。哎呀，我真想知道纳尼亚的鸟儿会讲话吗？它看来好像有什么话要对我们说似的。”说着，她就转过身对知更鸟说：“请问，你知道图姆纳斯先生被押送到什么地方去了吗？”她说着，又朝着鸟儿走近了一步。那知更鸟立即就跳着飞走了，不过它就落在紧紧相邻的一棵树上。它停在那儿，紧紧地盯着他们，好像它完全懂得他们说的话似的。四个孩子几乎把什么都忘了，一起向它靠近了一两步。看到他们走近了，那鸟儿又飞到了另外一棵树上，仍然紧盯着他们。（你肯定没看到过胸脯比它还要红、眼睛比它还要亮的知更鸟。）
"Do you know," said Lucy, "I really believe he means us to follow him."
“你们觉得吗，”露茜说，“我真的相信它是要我们跟着它走呢。”
"I've an idea he does," said Susan. "What do you think, Peter?"
“我看也是这样。”苏珊说，“彼得，你看呢？”
"Well, we might as well try it," answered Peter.
“嗯，我们可以试试。”彼得说。
The Robin appeared to understand the matter thoroughly. It kept going from tree to tree, always a few yards ahead of them, but always so near that they could easily follow it. In this way it led them on, slightly downhill. Wherever the Robin alighted a little shower of snow would fall off the branch. Presently the clouds parted overhead and the winter sun came out and the snow all around them grew dazzlingly bright. They had been travelling in this way for about half an hour, with the two girls in front, when Edmund said to Peter, "if you're not still too high and mighty to talk to me, I've something to say which you'd better listen to."
那知更鸟好像完全懂事似的，它不断地从一棵树飞到另一棵树，总是飞落在他们前面仅仅几码远的地方，使他们很容易跟上它。它就这样引着他们慢慢地走下山坡。它每停一处，那儿的树枝上就掉下一阵雪来。没过多久，头上的乌云散开了，太阳出来了，茫茫雪原变得更加耀眼晶莹。他们就这样一直走了大约半个小时，两个女孩子一直走在前面。这时，爱德蒙对彼得说：“如果你们不再这样高傲自大、目中无人，我有话要对你们说，你们最好听听。”
"What is it?" asked Peter.
“你要说什么？”彼得问。
"Hush! Not so loud," said Edmund, "there's no good frightening the girls. But have you realized what we're doing?"
“嗬！小声点，”爱德蒙说，“别吓了女孩子。你有没有意识到我们是在干什么吗？”
"What?" said Peter, lowering his voice to a whisper.
“什么？”彼得压低了声音问。
"We're following a guide we know nothing about. How do we know which side that bird is on? Why shouldn't it be leading us into a trap?"
“我们跟随的这个向导，它的情况我们一点也不清楚。我们怎么知道那鸟儿站在哪一边呢？难道它就不会把我们带到危险的地方去吗？”
"That's a nasty idea. Still - a robin, you know. They're good birds in all the stories I've ever read. I'm sure a robin wouldn't be on the wrong side."
“这是一个荒唐的想法。在我读过的所有的故事中，知更鸟都是善良的鸟儿。我敢肯定，知更鸟不会站在错误的一边。”
"It if comes to that, which is the right side? How do we know that the Fauns are in the right and the Queen (yes, I know we've been told she's a witch) is in the wrong? We don't really know anything about either."
“就算是这样吧，哪一边是正确的呢？我们又怎么知道羊怪是正确的，而女王（是的，我知道人家告诉我们她是女巫）是错误的呢？他们两边的情况我们的确一点也不知道。”
"The Faun saved Lucy."
“羊怪救了露茜的命。”
"He said he did. But how do we know? And there's another thing too. Has anyone the least idea of the way home from here?"
“这是羊怪自己这样说的，我们又哪里知道呢？另外，又有谁知道回家去的路呢？”
"Great Scott!" said Peter, "I hadn't thought of that."
“天哪！”彼得说，“这些问题我还没有认真考虑过呢。”
"And no chance of dinner either," said Edmund.
“而且饭也吃不上。”爱德蒙说。
Chapter 7
第七章
A DAY WITH THE BEAVERS
在海狸家的一天
WHILE the two boys were whispering behind, both the girls suddenly cried "Oh!" and stopped.
正当两个男孩在后面低声谈话的时候，两个女孩突然“哦！”地一声停住了脚步。
"The robin!" cried Lucy, "the robin. It's flown away." And so it had - right out of sight.
“知更鸟！”露茜喊道，“知更鸟飞走啦。”它真的飞走了，一点踪影也看不见了。
"And now what are we to do?" said Edmund, giving Peter a look which was as much as to say "What did I tell you?"
“现在我们怎么办？”爱德蒙说，他看了彼得一眼，像是在说“我跟你说什么来着？”
"Sh! Look!" said Susan.
“嘘！看！”苏珊说。
"What?" said Peter.
“什么？”彼得问。
"There's something moving among the trees over there to the left."
“那儿靠左边点儿，树林中有什么东西在动。”
They all stared as hard as they could, and no one felt very comfortable.
他们拼命睁大眼睛搜索，看得眼睛都感到有点难受。
"There it goes again," said Susan presently.
“它又动了。”过了一会儿，苏珊说。
"I saw it that time too," said Peter. "It's still there. It's just gone behind that big tree."
“这次我也看到了，”彼得说，“它还在那儿，这会儿跑到那棵大树后面去了。”
"What is it?" asked Lucy, trying very hard not to sound nervous.
“那是什么东西呀？”露茜问道，她竭力装出不害怕的样子。
"Whatever it is," said Peter, "it's dodging us. It's something that doesn't want to be seen."
“谁知道它是什么？”彼得说，“它老是躲着我们，就怕被人看见。”
"Let's go home," said Susan. And then, though nobody said it out loud, everyone suddenly realized the same fact that Edmund had whispered to Peter at the end of the last chapter. They were lost.
“我们回去吧。”苏珊说。这时，虽然谁也没有大声说出来，但每个人都突然意识到一个事实，正如刚才爱德蒙和彼得低声谈话时最后说到的，他们迷路了。
"What's it like?" said Lucy.
“它像什么呀？”露茜问。
"It's - it's a kind of animal," said Susan, and then, "Look! Look! Quick! There it is."
“它是，它是一种动物。”苏珊说，接着她说，“看！看！快！它在那儿。”
They all saw it this time, a whiskered furry face which had looked out at them from behind a tree. But this time it didn't immediately draw back. Instead, the animal put its paw against its mouth just as humans put their finger on their lips when they are signalling to you to be quiet. Then it disappeared again. The children, all stood holding their breath.
这一次他们都看清楚了，一张长满了络腮胡子的毛茸茸的脸，从一棵树后面探出来看着他们。但这一回它并没有立即缩回去，却用它的爪子对着嘴巴，就好像人们把手指头放在嘴唇上，示意别人安静下来的样子。然后它又消失了。孩子们都屏住呼吸，站在那儿。
A moment later the stranger came out from behind the tree, glanced all round as if it were afraid someone was watching, said "Hush", made signs to them to join it in the thicker bit of wood where it was standing, and then once more disappeared.
过了一会儿，这个奇怪的动物又从那棵树后面出来。它向四周看了一下，好像害怕有人注意似的，向他们“嘘”了一声，并打着手势，招呼他们到它所在的那块密林中去，接着它又消失了。
"I know what it is," said Peter, "it's a beaver. I saw the tail."
“我知道它是什么，”彼得说，“它是海狸，我看见了它的尾巴。”
"It wants us to go to it," said Susan, "and it is warning us not to make a noise."
“它要我们到那里去，”苏珊说，“它叫我们别做声。”
"I know," said Peter. "The question is, are we to go to it or not? What do you think, Lu?"
“我知道，”彼得说，“问题是我们去还是不去？你怎么想，露？”
"I think it's a nice beaver," said Lucy.
“我想它是一只好海狸。”露茜说。
"Yes, but how do we know?" said Edmund.
“很好，但是我们怎么知道？”爱德蒙问。
"Shan't we have to risk it?" said Susan. "I mean, it's no good just standing here and I feel I want some dinner."
“我们得冒一次险，不是吗？”苏珊说，“我是说，老站在这儿没有用。我肚子饿了。”
At this moment the Beaver again popped its head out from behind the tree and beckoned earnestly to them.
这时，海狸又突然从树后探出头来，向他们诚恳地点头示意。
"Come on," said Peter,"let's give it a try. All keep close together. We ought to be a match for one beaver if it turns out to be an enemy."
“来吧，”彼得说，“让我们试它一试。我们都靠紧点儿，如果海狸是敌人，我们就跟它干一仗。”
So the children all got close together and walked up to the tree and in behind it, and there, sure enough, they found the Beaver; but it still drew back, saying to them in a hoarse throaty whisper, "Further in, come further in. Right in here. We're not safe in the open!"
于是，孩子们紧靠在一起，朝着那棵树走过去，一直走到树后面海狸原先站的地方，但海狸却从那里又继续朝后退去了。它压低了嗓门用一种嘶哑的声音对他们说：“往里，再往里，到我这儿来，在外面有危险！”
Only when it had led them into a dark spot where four trees grew so close together that their boughs met and the brown earth and pine needles could be seen underfoot because no snow had been able to fall there, did it begin to talk to them.
它把他们一直引到一个非常幽暗的地方。那里有四棵树紧挨在一起，树枝与树枝连成一片，雪落不到下面来，因而地上可以看见褐色的泥土和松针。他们到了这儿以后，海狸才开始和他们说话。
"Are you the Sons of Adam and the Daughters of Eve?" it said.
“你们是亚当的儿子和夏娃的女儿吗？”它问。
"We're some of them," said Peter.
“我们是他们中的几个。”彼得答道。
"S-s-s-sh!" said the Beaver, "not so loud please. We're not safe even here."
“嘘——！”海狸说，“请别这么大声，即使在这儿，我们还是不够安全。”
"Why, who are you afraid of?" said Peter. "There's no one here but ourselves."
“哎呀，你怕谁？”彼得说，“这里除了我们以外，再也没旁的人了。”
"There are the trees," said the Beaver. "They're always listening. Most of them are on our side, but there are trees that would betray us to her; you know who I mean," and it nodded its head several times.
“这里有树，”海狸说，“它们老把耳朵竖着。它们当中绝大多数站在我们一边，但也有背叛我们倒向她那一边的，你们知道我指的是谁。”它点了几下头说道。
"If it comes to talking about sides," said Edmund, "how do we know you're a friend?"
“要是说到两边的话，”爱德蒙说，“我们怎们知道你是朋友而不是敌人？”
"Not meaning to be rude, Mr Beaver," added Peter, "but you see, we're strangers."
“你别见怪，海狸先生，”彼得解释说，“可是你看，我们彼此之间还不熟悉呢。”
"Quite right, quite right," said the Beaver. "Here is my token." With these words it held up to them a little white object. They all looked at it in surprise, till suddenly Lucy said, "Oh, of course. It's my handkerchief - the one I gave to poor Mr Tumnus."
“说得不错，说得不错，”海狸说，“这是我的信物。”说着，它拿出一件白色的小东西。孩子们都惊讶地注视着。突然，露茜说道：“哦，对了。这是我的手帕，是我送给可怜的图姆纳斯先生的。”
"That's right," said the Beaver. "Poor fellow, he got wind of the arrest before it actually happened and handed this over to me. He said that if anything happened to him I must meet you here and take you on to -" Here the Beaver's voice sank into silence and it gave one or two very mysterious nods. Then signalling to the children to stand as close around it as they possibly could, so that their faces were actually tickled by its whiskers, it added in a low whisper - "They say Aslan is on the move - perhaps has already landed."
“不错，”海狸说，“我可怜的伙伴，他在被捕以前听到了风声，就把这手帕交给我，说如果他有什么意外，我就必须在这个地方与你们会面，并领你们到……”说到这里，海狸的声音低得听不见了。它非常神秘的向孩子们点点头，又向他们做了一下手势，叫他们尽量靠近它站着，以致孩子们的脸都碰到了它的胡子，感到痒痒的。它低声地补充说：“据说阿斯兰正在活动，也许已经登陆了。”
And now a very curious thing happened. None of the children knew who Aslan was any more than you do; but the moment the Beaver had spoken these words everyone felt quite different. Perhaps it has sometimes happened to you in a dream that someone says something which you don't understand but in the dream it feels as if it had some enormous meaning - either a terrifying one which turns the whole dream into a nightmare or else a lovely meaning too lovely to put into words, which makes the dream so beautiful that you remember it all your life and are always wishing you could get into that dream again. It was like that now. At the name of Aslan each one of the children felt something jump in its inside. Edmund felt a sensation of mysterious horror. Peter felt suddenly brave and adventurous. Susan felt as if some delicious smell or some delightful strain of music had just floated by her. And Lucy got the feeling you have when you wake up in the morning and realize that it is the beginning of the holidays or the beginning of summer.
现在，一个非常奇怪的事情发生了。这些孩子们和你一样，一点也不知道阿斯兰是谁。但海狸一提起阿斯兰，他们每个人身上就有一种异样的感觉。也许有时你在梦中碰到过类似的情况。往往你在白天听到一样新鲜事情，到了梦中，它的意义就大得非常出奇——不是导致一场可怕的噩梦，就是美好的无法用语言表达，使你终身难忘，巴不得能不断重温这个美梦。现在的情况就是这样。一听到阿斯兰的名字，每个孩子都感到心里有一样东西在跃动。爱德蒙感到有一种莫名其妙的恐惧，彼得感到突然变得无所畏惧了，苏珊感到有一种芬芳的气息和一首美妙动听的乐曲在她身旁荡漾，露茜呢，感到特别兴奋和喜悦，就像你在某一个早上醒来想到假期或夏季就要从今天开始时的心情一样。
"And what about Mr Tumnus," said Lucy, "where is he?"
“图姆纳斯先生怎么样了，”露茜说，“他在哪儿？”
"S-s-s-sh," said the Beaver, "not here. I must bring you where we can have a real talk and also dinner."
“嘘——”海狸说，“这儿不是说话的地方，我必须带你们到一个可以真正交谈和吃饭的去处。”
No one except Edmund felt any difficulty about trusting the beaver now, and everyone, including Edmund, was very glad to hear the word "dinner".
现在除了爱德蒙以外，谁也不怀疑海狸了，每个人包括爱德蒙在内都很高兴听到“吃饭”这个词儿。
They therefore all hurried along behind their new friend who led them at a surprisingly quick pace, and always in the thickest parts of the forest, for over an hour. Everyone was feeling very tired and very hungry when suddenly the trees began to get thinner in front of them and the ground to fall steeply downhill. A minute later they came out under the open sky (the sun was still shining) and found themselves looking down on a fine sight.
所以，他们全都跟在这位新朋友后面急急忙忙地朝前走去了。海狸的速度快的令人吃惊，领着他们在森林里最浓密的地方走了一个多小时。正当大家感到疲惫不堪、饥饿难忍的时候，前面的树木变得稀疏了，地面的坡度也变陡了。向下没走几步，他们就走出了树林。头顶上是晴朗蔚蓝的天空，太阳依旧照耀着，举目四望，冰清玉洁，风光如画。
They were standing on the edge of a steep, narrow valley at the bottom of which ran - at least it would have been running if it hadn't been frozen - a fairly large river. Just below them a dam had been built across this river, and when they saw it everyone suddenly remembered that of course beavers are always making dams and felt quite sure that Mr Beaver had made this one. They also noticed that he now had a sort of modest expression on his, face - the sort of look people have when you are visiting a garden they've made or reading a story they've written. So it was only common politeness when Susan said, "What a lovely dam!" And Mr Beaver didn't say "Hush" this time but "Merely a trifle! Merely a trifle! And it isn't really finished!"
他们现在站在一个又陡又狭的山谷边上，要不是封冻，谷底准会是一条汹涌澎湃的大河。就在他们脚下，有一条水坝穿河而过。他们一看见水坝，就猛地想到海狸很会筑坝，而且他们几乎可以肯定，脚下的这条水坝就是这位海狸先生筑的。他们也注意到，它的脸上露出一种特别谦虚的表情，就像你去参观人家的一个园地或阅读人家写的一本书时，你所看到的园丁或作者本人常有的那种表情一样。苏珊说：“这条水坝筑的多好啊！”海狸先生这一次没有说“别做声”，却连声说：“只不过是个小玩意儿！只不过是个小玩意儿！它还没有全部完成呢！”当然，海狸这样说只是出于惯常的礼貌。
Above the dam there was what ought to have been a deep pool but was now, of course, a level floor of dark green ice. And below the dam, much lower down, was more ice, but instead of being smooth this was all frozen into the foamy and wavy shapes in which the water had been rushing along at the very moment when the frost came. And where the water had been trickling over and spurting through the dam there was now a glittering wall of icicles, as if the side of the dam had been covered all over with flowers and wreaths and festoons of the purest sugar. And out in the middle, and partly on top of the dam was a funny little house shaped rather like an enormous beehive and from a hole in the roof smoke was going up, so that when you saw it (especially if you were hungry) you at once thought of cooking and became hungrier than you were before.
在坝的上游一侧，原来是个很深的水池，而现在一眼看去却是一片平坦的暗绿色的冰池。坝的下游一侧要低得多，结的冰更多，但不像上游那样平滑，全部冻成了泡沫的形状，现出波浪起伏的样子，原来，在河流结冰以前，河水过坝以后就是这样飞奔而下，溅起无数的浪花。坝的一侧在原先漫水和过水的地方现在成了一堵闪闪发光的冰墙，上面好像挂满了许多晶莹洁白的鲜花、花环和花冠。在大坝的中间，有一间十分有趣的小屋，样子就像一个巨大的蜂箱，这时从屋顶的一个洞中正冒出炊烟。所以你一看到它，特别是在肚子饿得咕咕叫的时候，你就会立刻想到已经有什么东西煮在锅里了，肚子就会饿得更慌。
That was what the others chiefly noticed, but Edmund noticed something else. A little lower down the river there was another small river which came down another small valley to join it. And looking up that valley, Edmund could see two small hills, and he was almost sure they were the two hills which the White Witch had pointed out to him when he parted from her at the lamp-post that other day. And then between them, he thought, must be her palace, only a mile off or less. And he thought about Turkish Delight and about being a King ("And I wonder how Peter will like that?" he asked himself) and horrible ideas came into his head.
这些是其他三个孩子看到的主要情景，而爱德蒙却注意到了别的东西。顺着这条河流往下不远的地方，还有一条小河，它是从另外一个小山谷里流出来和这条大河汇合的。爱德蒙抬头向那个山谷望去，看见有两座小山，他几乎能肯定，它们就是那天白女巫与他在灯柱那儿分别时指给他看的那两座小山。他想，那两座小山之间一定就是她的宫殿，离他大约只有一英里远，甚至还不到。他想起了土耳其软糖，想起了当国王（“我不知道彼得将会怎样喜欢这些东西呢？”他问自己），一个可怕的念头在他的头脑里产生了。
"Here we are," said Mr Beaver, "and it looks as if Mrs Beaver is expecting us. I'll lead the way. But be careful and don't slip."
“我们到家啦，”海狸说，“看来我的太太正等着我们呢。好，我来带路，但是请大家小心点儿，不要滑倒。”
The top of the dam was wide enough to walk on, though not (for humans) a very nice place to walk because it was covered with ice, and though the frozen pool was level with it on one side, there was a nasty drop to the lower river on the other. Along this route Mr Beaver led them in single file right out to the middle where they could look a long way up the river and a long way down it. And when they had reached the middle they were at the door of the house.
坝顶相当宽，上面完全可以走路，但是对人类来说，终究有些不便，因为上面覆盖着冰雪，另外，朝下看看，虽然结满了冰的水池是平坦的，但在另一侧，落差还很大，有些怕人。海狸先生领着他们成单行走到坝的中间。站在这里他们可以看到，沿着那条河流向上有一条很长的路，沿着河流向下也有一条很长的路。他们一到坝的中间，就到了那间小屋的门口了。
"Here we are, Mrs Beaver," said Mr Beaver, "I've found them. Here are the Sons and Daughters of Adam and Eve - and they all went in."
“我们到家啦，海狸太太，”海狸先生说，“我找到他们了。他们就是亚当和夏娃的儿女，他们都到这儿来啦。”
The first thing Lucy noticed as she went in was a burring sound, and the first thing she saw was a kindlooking old she-beaver sitting in the corner with a thread in her mouth working busily at her sewing machine, and it was from it that the sound came. She stopped her work and got up as soon as the children came in.
露茜走进屋，立刻听到一种“咔嚓”“咔嚓”的声音，看到一个面容慈祥的海狸老妈妈。她嘴里咬着一根线，坐在角落里，正忙着踏缝纫机，那种“咔嚓”“咔嚓”的声音就是从缝纫机上发出来的。孩子们一进屋，她随即就把手中的活儿停了下来，起身迎接。
"So you've come at last!" she said, holding out both her wrinkled old paws. "At last! To think that ever I should live to see this day! The potatoes are on boiling and the kettle's singing and I daresay, Mr Beaver, you'll get us some fish."
“终于把你们盼来了！”她伸出两只满是皱纹的苍老的爪子说，“你们终于来了！我做梦也没有想到我还能看到这一天！土豆煮在锅里，水壶已经响了，海狸先生，我敢说你还会给我们搞来些鲜鱼哩。”
"That I will," said Mr Beaver, and he went out of the house (Peter went with him), and across the ice of the deep pool to where he had a little hole in the ice which he kept open every day with his hatchet. They took a pail with them. Mr Beaver sat down quietly at the edge of the hole (he didn't seem to mind it being so chilly), looked hard into it, then suddenly shot in his paw, and before you could say Jack Robinson had whisked out a beautiful trout. Then he did it all over again until they had a fine catch of fish.
“我会的。”海狸先生说着，提了一个桶，就走出了屋子，彼得也跟着一起走了。他们越过结满冰的深池，来到一个地方，这里冰上有一个小窟窿，这是海狸每天用斧子凿开的。海狸先生静悄悄地往洞边一坐（天这么冷，他似乎也不在乎），目不转睛地注视着洞里的河水，突然，他把爪子伸进水中，说时迟，那时快，它一下子就逮住了一条漂亮的鳟鱼。就这样，他一连逮到了许多好鱼。
Meanwhile the girls were helping Mrs Beaver to fill the kettle and lay the table and cut the bread and put the plates in the oven to heat and draw a huge jug of beer for Mr Beaver from a barrel which stood in one corner of the house, and to put on the frying-pan and get the dripping hot. Lucy thought the Beavers had a very snug little home though it was not at all like Mr Tumnus's cave. There were no books or pictures, and instead of beds there were bunks, like on board ship, built into the wall. And there were hams and strings of onions hanging from the roof, and against the walls were gum boots and oilskins and hatchets and pairs of shears and spades and trowels and things for carrying mortar in and fishing-rods and fishing-nets and sacks. And the cloth on the table, though very clean, was very rough.
在海狸和彼得出去捕鱼的时候，两个女孩子帮助海狸太太把水壶灌满，收拾吃饭桌子，切面包，热菜，又从屋角的一个桶中替海狸先生舀出一大杯啤酒。最后，他们把煎鱼的锅子放到炉子上，倒进油烧热。露茜认为，海狸夫妇的家虽然完全不像图姆纳斯先生的窑洞，却也非常小巧舒适。室内没有书，没有画，两个墙洞便是他们的床，看上去就像轮船上倚壁而设的地铺一样。屋顶下面挂着火腿和一串串的洋葱，靠墙放着胶靴、油布、斧子、羊毛剪、铲、泥刀，和其他运灰泥的工具，还有钓鱼竿、鱼网和鱼篓。桌上的台布虽然粗糙，却很干净。
Just as the frying-pan was nicely hissing Peter and Mr Beaver came in with the fish which Mr Beaver had already opened with his knife and cleaned out in the open air. You can think how good the new-caught fish smelled while they were frying and how the hungry children longed for them to be done and how very much hungrier still they had become before Mr Beaver said, "Now we're nearly ready." Susan drained the potatoes and then put them all back in the empty pot to dry on the side of the range while Lucy was helping Mrs Beaver to dish up the trout, so that in a very few minutes everyone was drawing up their stools (it was all three-legged stools in the Beavers' house except for Mrs Beaver's own special rockingchair beside the fire) and preparing to enjoy themselves. There was a jug of creamy milk for the children (Mr Beaver stuck to beer) and a great big lump of deep yellow butter in the middle of the table from which everyone took as much as he wanted to go with his potatoes, and all the children thought - and I agree with them - that there's nothing to beat good freshwater fish if you eat it when it has been alive half an hour ago and has come out of the pan half a minute ago. And when they had finished the fish Mrs Beaver brought unexpectedly out of the oven a great and gloriously sticky marmalade roll, steaming hot, and at the same time moved the kettle on to the fire, so that when they had finished the marmalade roll the tea was made and ready to be poured out. And when each person had got his (or her) cup of tea, each person shoved back his (or her) stool so as to be able to lean against the wall and gave a long sigh of contentment.
正当油锅嘶嘶响的时候，彼得和海狸先生拎着鱼回来了，这些鱼海狸先生已经在外面用刀剖开洗净。你们一定能想象到现捕的鱼放在锅中煎的时候味道有多美，肚子饿得咕噜咕噜叫的孩子们又是多么希望它们早点煎好，而在海狸太太说“我们马上就开饭”以前，他们已是饿得十分厉害了。苏珊把土豆滤干后又把它们放回炉口的空锅里去烤，露茜帮海狸太太把鳟鱼盛进盘中。这样，不到几分钟，大家就把凳子摆好，准备吃饭了（海狸家里除了放在灶边供海狸太太坐的特制的摇椅以外，都是三条腿的凳子）。有一罐子牛奶专门给孩子们喝（海狸先生只喝啤酒），桌子中间放着一大块深黄色的奶油，吃土豆的时候，奶油由各人随意自取。孩子们都认为——我也同意他们的看法——当你吃着半小时以前还活着，半分钟以前从锅里盛出来的鱼时，是没有任何食品能够和它媲美的。鱼吃完以后，海狸太太出乎大家意外地从炉子里拿出热气腾腾的黏糊糊的果酱卷儿。同时，把水壶移到炉子上。所以孩子们吃好果酱卷以后，茶就已经准备好了。孩子们喝了茶，又把凳子往后移动了一下，靠墙倚着，心满意足地舒了一口气。
"And now," said Mr Beaver, pushing away his empty beer mug and pulling his cup of tea towards him, "if you'll just wait till I've got my pipe lit up and going nicely - why, now we can get to business. It's snowing again," he added, cocking his eye at the window. "That's all the better, because it means we shan't have any visitors; and if anyone should have been trying to follow you, why he won't find any tracks."
“现在，”海狸先生把空啤酒杯往旁边一推，把茶杯拿到面前说，“请你们等我抽袋烟，好吗？不用说，我们现在可以着手干我们的事了。天又下起雪来啦，”他抬头望了望窗外继续说道，”这就更好了，雪一下，就不会有人来找我们了；另外，如果有人想跟踪你们的话，他也发现不了你们的任何足迹。”
Chapter 8
第八章
WHAT HAPPENED AFTER DINNER
饭后发生的情况
"AND now," said Lucy, "do please tell us what's happened to Mr Tumnus."
“那么，”露茜说，“请你告诉我们，图姆纳斯先生到底出了什么事？”
"Ah, that's bad," said Mr Beaver, shaking his head. "That's a very, very bad business. There's no doubt he was taken off by the police. I got that from a bird who saw it done."
“啊，真糟糕。”海狸先生摇着头说，“那可是非常非常糟糕的事。毫无疑问，他是被保安局的带走的。这个情况我是从一只鸟儿那里探听到的，它亲眼看见他被他们带走的。”
"But where's he been taken to?" asked Lucy.
“那么他被带到什么地方去了呢？”露茜问道。
"Well, they were heading northwards when they were last seen and we all know what that means."
“嗯，最后看到他们的时候，他们是朝北去的。大家都知道那意味着什么。”
"No, we don't," said Susan.
“不，我们不知道。”苏珊说。
Mr Beaver shook his head in a very gloomy fashion."I'm afraid it means they were taking him to her House," he said.
海狸先生非常忧郁地摇了摇头说：“恐怕他们把他带到她的宫殿去了。”
"But what'll they do to him, Mr Beaver?" gasped Lucy.
“他们要拿他怎么样，海狸先生？”露茜喘着气问。
"Well," said Mr Beaver, "you can't exactly say for sure. But there's not many taken in there that ever comes out again. Statues. All full of statues they say it is - in the courtyard and up the stairs and in the hall. People she's turned" - (he paused and shuddered) - "turned into stone."
“唉，”海狸先生说，“你很难说那里到底发生了什么，没有多少人被抓进去以后还能再出来。雕像，那些出来的人说，庭院里，楼上，大厅里全都是雕像。她把人们都变成……”他顿了一下，继续颤栗着说，“都变成石头了。”
"But, Mr Beaver," said Lucy, "can't we - I mean we must do something to save him. It's too dreadful and it's all on my account."
“但是，海狸先生，”露茜说，“我们就没……我是说我们必须做一些事去救他。这太可怕了，而且这都是因为我的缘故。”
"I don't doubt you'd save him if you could, dearie," said Mrs Beaver, "but you've no chance of getting into that House against her will and ever coming out alive."
“我不怀疑如果你们能有办法的话，你们可以救他的命，宝贝儿们，”海狸太太说，“但是，你们没办法不经她的允许就进入那座宫殿，甚至还能活着出来。”
"Couldn't we have some stratagem?" said Peter. "I mean couldn't we dress up as something, or pretend to be - oh, pedlars or anything - or watch till she was gone out - or- oh, hang it all, there must be some way. This Faun saved my sister at his own risk, Mr Beaver. We can't just leave him to be - to be - to have that done to him."
“我们是不是可以用些计谋呢？”彼得说，“例如，我们打扮成小贩或别的什么人，或者注意好了，等她不在家时，偷偷地潜入她的宫中，或者……哦，她真是该死。总之，我们得想一切办法救他出来。海狸先生，这位羊怪不顾他自己的生命危险救了我的妹妹，我们不可以只让他去……去……让他去承受这一切。”
"It's no good, Son of Adam," said Mr Beaver, "no good your trying, of all people. But now that Aslan is on the move-"
“不行啊，亚当的儿子，”海狸先生说，“你们再想办法也没用。不过现在听说阿斯兰回来了……”
"Oh, yes! Tell us about Aslan!" said several voices at once; for once again that strange feeling - like the first signs of spring, like good news, had come over them.
“哦，对啦！给我们讲讲阿斯兰的情况吧！”几个人异口同声地说，说到阿斯兰，那种神奇的感觉，就像春天来临的第一个信号，就像喜讯拨动着他们的心弦。
"Who is Aslan?" asked Susan.
“谁是阿斯兰？”苏珊问。
"Aslan?" said Mr Beaver. "Why, don't you know? He's the King. He's the Lord of the whole wood, but not often here, you understand. Never in my time or my father's time. But the word has reached us that he has come back. He is in Narnia at this moment. He'll settle the White Queen all right. It is he, not you, that will save Mr Tumnus."
“阿斯兰？”海狸先生说，“这你还不知道吗？他是国王，他是森林之王，但他不经常在这儿。不论在我父亲的一生中，还是在我的一生中，他都没来过。但现在有确实的消息说，他已经回来了。目前他就在纳尼亚。他一定要将白女巫彻底消灭。能够救图姆纳斯先生的就是他，而不是你们。”
"She won't turn him into stone too?" said Edmund.
“她不会也把他变成石头吗？”爱德蒙说。
"Lord love you, Son of Adam, what a simple thing to say!" answered Mr Beaver with a great laugh. "Turn him into stone? If she can stand on her two feet and look him in the face it'll be the most she can do and more than I expect of her. No, no. He'll put all to rights as it says in an old rhyme in these parts:
“我的小祖宗啊，亚当的儿子，你问的问题是多么简单幼稚啊！”海狸先生哈哈大笑地回答说，“把他变成石头？如果她敢在他面前站起来，正视他一眼，她就算是有种的了。我能肯定她不敢这样做。阿斯兰要重整河山，如同一首古老的诗歌中所写的那样：
Wrong will be right, when Aslan comes in sight,
阿斯兰出现在我们面前，是非颠倒的现象就会改变；
At the sound of his roar, sorrows will be no more,
人们一听到他的吼声， 悲哀立刻就会化为云烟；
When he bares his teeth, winter meets its death,
阿斯兰一露他的牙齿，漫漫严冬就会消逝不见；
And when he shakes his mane, we shall have spring again.
他的鬃毛轻轻一抖，我们就会重睹春天。
You'll understand when you see him."
你们见到以后就会知道了。”
"But shall we see him?" asked Susan.
“但是我们会见到他吗？”苏珊问道。
"Why, Daughter of Eve, that's what I brought you here for. I'm to lead you where you shall meet him," said Mr Beaver.
“咳，夏娃的女儿，我就是为了这个才把你们带到这儿来的。我会把你们带到跟他相会的地方去。”海狸先生说。
"Is-is he a man?" asked Lucy.
“他……他是个人吗？”露茜问。
"Aslan a man!" said Mr Beaver sternly. "Certainly not. I tell you he is the King of the wood and the son of the great Emperor-beyond-the-Sea. Don't you know who is the King of Beasts? Aslan is a lion - the Lion, the great Lion."
“阿斯兰是个人？！”海狸先生严肃地说，“当然不是。我告诉你们，他是森林之王，是海外皇帝之子。你们不知道谁是百兽之王吗？阿斯兰是一头狮子——是狮王，伟大的狮王。”
"Ooh!" said Susan, "I'd thought he was a man. Is he - quite safe? I shall feel rather nervous about meeting a lion."
“哦！”苏珊说，“我原来还以为他是个人呢。他……够安全吗？和一头狮子相会，我会感到非常害怕。”
"That you will, dearie, and no mistake," said Mrs Beaver, "if there's anyone who can appear before Aslan without their knees knocking, they're either braver than most or else just silly."
“你们会感到害怕，亲爱的，这一点也不奇怪，”海狸太太说，“如果有谁在阿斯兰面前双膝不发抖，要么是非凡的勇士，要么不过是傻瓜。”
"Then he isn't safe?" said Lucy.
“那他是不安全吗？”露茜说。

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