Mrs. Packletide’s Tiger

文/赫克托·休·芒罗 译/王鑫昊 审订/宁一中

It was Mrs. Packletide’s pleasure and intention that she should shoot a tiger.Not that the lust to kill had suddenly descended on her, or that she felt that she would leave India safer and more wholesome than she had found it, with one fraction less of wild beast per million of inhabitants. The compelling motive for her sudden deviation22 deviation偏离；违背。towards the footsteps of Nimrod33宁录，英勇的猎户。出自《圣经·创世记》10∶8—10∶9。was the fact that Loona Bimberton had recently been carried eleven miles in an aeroplane by an Algerian aviator, and talked of nothing else; only a personally procured44 procure（设法）获得。tiger-skin and a heavy harvest of Press photographs could successfully counter that sort of thing. Mrs. Packletide had already arranged in her mind the lunch she would give at her house in Curzon Street, ostensibly in Loona Bimberton’s

帕克泰德夫人打死一只老虎，这可是能让她高兴的事。不是因为她突然就对老虎动了杀机，也不是因为她觉得在印度，让每百万居民中的野兽数量稍少一点，就会使印度比以前更安全一些。促使她突然转向、步宁录后尘的动机是：鲁娜·宾波顿最近乘了一架阿尔及利亚飞行员开的飞机，飞了11英里，而后除了对此事喋喋不休外，就不谈其他的事；只有亲自猎虎获取一张虎皮，有大量照片见诸报刊，才可能成功抵制此事。帕克泰德夫人心中早已策划好，她要在寇松街的住所办一场午宴，表面上是为了请鲁娜·宾波顿，却把那张虎皮毯摆在最显眼的honour, with a tiger-skin rug occupying most of the foreground and all of the conversation. She had also already designed in her mind the tiger-claw broach that she was going to give Loona Bimberton on her next birthday. In a world that is supposed to be chiefly swayed5sway支配；影响。by hunger and by love Mrs. Packletide was an exception; her movements and motives were largely governed by dislike of Loona Bimberton.位置，所有的交谈也不离虎皮毯这件事。要在鲁娜·宾波顿下次生日时送她的虎爪胸针，帕克泰德夫人也早在心中设计好了。在一个人们本应主要受饥饿与爱情支配的世界里，帕克泰德夫人却是个例外；控制她的行为与动机的，主要是对鲁娜·宾波顿的厌恶。

[2] Circumstances proved propitious6propitious吉利的。.Mrs. Packletide had offered a thousand rupees for the opportunity of shooting a tiger without over-much risk or exertion,and it so happened that a neighbouring village could boast of being the favoured rendezvous7rendezvous光顾的场所。of an animal of respectable antecedents, which had been driven by the increasing infirmities of age to abandon game-killing and con fi ne its appetite to the smaller domestic animals.The prospect of earning the thousand rupees had stimulated the sporting8sporting好赌的；投机的。and commercial instinct of the villagers; children were posted night and day on the outskirts of the local jungle to head the tiger back in the unlikely event of his attempting to roam away to fresh huntinggrounds, and the cheaper kinds of goats were left about with elaborate carelessness to keep him satisfied with his present quarters. The one great anxiety

[2]一切都顺风顺水。帕克泰德夫人已悬赏一千卢比，不用冒多大风险、费多大气力就有机会打到一只老虎。正巧，邻近村庄扬言称，有一只品种名贵的老虎喜欢在当地出没，已经老态龙钟，日益体衰，难以猎食，只靠捕一些小点儿的家畜填填肚皮。村民们一想到有一千卢比可赚，凑凑热闹挣点钱的心便激起来了。无论白天黑夜，都有孩子们在当地的丛林附近把守站岗，万一老虎要转向新猎场（这种可能性很小），他们会把它赶回去。精心挑选的几只便宜些的山羊，也故意随便散放着，让老虎对自己当前的栖息场所感到满足。唯一让人们特别担心的是，老虎在那位夫人定好的射猎日期前因年迈而一命呜呼。白天was lest he should die of old age before the date appointed for the memsahib’s shoot. Mothers carrying their babies home through the jungle after the day’s work in the fi elds hushed their singing lest they might curtail the restful sleep of the venerable herd-robber.干完田里的活儿，母亲们带着孩子穿过丛林回家时，也不高声唱歌，就怕惊扰那位“尊贵的畜猎者”宁静的休息。

[3] The great night duly arrived, moonlit and cloudless. A platform had been constructed in a comfortable and conveniently placed tree, and thereon crouched Mrs. Packletide and her paid companion,Miss Mebbin. A goat, gifted with a particularly persistent bleat9bleat羊的咩咩声。, such as even a partially deaf tiger might be reasonably expected to hear on a still night, was tethered at the correct distance. With an accurately sighted rifle and a thumb-nail pack of patience cards the sportswoman awaited the coming of the quarry.

[3]美好的夜晚如期而至，明月朗朗，万里无云。在一棵舒适而又位置便利的树上搭建了一座平台，帕克泰德夫人和她雇来的同伴梅宾小姐就趴在上面。距离不远不近的地方拴着一只山羊，不断发出咩咩的叫声，是那种在这寂静的夜晚、哪怕一只半聋的老虎也能听得见的声响。手持一杆校准的猎枪，带着一副微型单人纸牌，这位女猎手就守在此处等着老虎的到来。

[4] “I suppose we are in some danger?” said Miss Mebbin.

[5] She was not actually nervous about the wild beast, but she had a morbid dread of performing an atom100 atom一点儿。more service than she had been paid for.

[6] “Nonsense,” said Mrs. Packletide;“it’s a very old tiger. It couldn’t spring up here even if it wanted to.”

[7] “If it’s an old tiger I think you ought to get it cheaper. A thousand rupees is a lot of money.”

[8] Louisa Mebbin adopted a protective elder-sister attitude towards money

[4]“我想咱们现在有些危险啊？”梅宾小姐说。

[5]她倒不是因这只野兽感到紧张，而是服务范围哪怕超过一丁点儿报酬所值，她就会心神不安。

[6]“胡说，”帕克泰德夫人说道，“这是只年迈的虎。就是它想跳起来也跳不动啊。”

[7]“若这只虎上了年纪，我想，你就该少出点钱。一千卢比可不是小数目。”

[8]对于金钱，无论是哪一国家的货币，无论多大面值，in general, irrespective of11irrespective of不管；无论。nationality or denomination12denomination面额。. Her energetic intervention had saved many a trouble from dissipating13dissipate挥霍（金钱等）。itself in tips in some Moscow hotel, and francs and centimes14centime生丁（法国货币单位）。clung to her instinctively under circumstances which would have driven them headlong from less sympathetic hands. Her speculations as to the market depreciation of tiger remnants15remnant剩余部分；残余；幸存者；零料。were cut short by the appearance on the scene of the animal itself. As soon as it caught sight of the tethered goat it lay flat on the earth,seemingly less from a desire to take advantage of all available cover than for the purpose of snatching a short rest before commencing the grand attack.露易莎·梅宾都持有一种大姐大的保护态度。因为努力交涉，她在莫斯科某旅馆节省了不少钱，没当小费付出去；法郎和生丁也本能地贴着她，在某些场合,若是不会节省的人，早就把这些钱拱手给了他人。她正在想着老虎的零料贬值的事，突然老虎出现了，打断了她的思考。一看到那只拴着的山羊，老虎就平卧在地，似乎并非利用一切条件作掩护，而是在展开猛攻之前，先抢时间稍事休息。

[9] “I believe it’s ill,” said Louisa Mebbin, loudly in Hindustani16Hindustani印度斯坦语。, for the bene fi t of the village headman, who was in ambush in a neighbouring tree.

[10] “Hush!” said Mrs. Packletide,and at that moment the tiger commenced ambling17amble（马）缓行；从容地走；漫步。towards his victim.

[11] “Now, now!” urged Miss Mebbin with some excitement; “If he doesn’t touch the goat we needn’t pay for it.”(The bait was an extra.)

[12] The ri fl e fl ashed out with a loud report, and the great tawny18tawny黄褐色的。beast sprang to one side and then rolled over

[9]“我想它肯定病了。”露易莎·梅宾操着印度斯坦语喊道。声音不小，为了让埋伏在临旁树上的村长听到。

[10]“嘘！”帕克泰德夫人说，就在这时，那只老虎站了起来，开始慢慢地靠近猎物。

[11]“快，快！”梅宾小姐略显激动地催促着，“老虎要是没咬上那只羊，咱们就不用付钱了。”（羊作诱饵的钱另算。）

[12]猎枪“砰”的一声，发出了一阵巨响。那只硕大的黄褐色猛兽跳向一边，然后滚in the stillness of death. In a moment a crowd of excited natives had swarmed19swarm挤满。on to the scene, and their shouting speedily carried the glad news to the village,where a thumping20thumping重击。of tom-toms211 tom-tom桶子鼓；咚咚鼓。took up the chorus of triumph. And their triumph and rejoicing found a ready echo in the heart of Mrs. Packletide; already that luncheon-party in Curzon Street seemed immeasurably nearer.到地上，一动不动地，死了。霎时，一群兴奋不已的当地村民蜂拥而至，见到此象，他们欢呼雀跃，这个好消息迅速传进村子，村里锣鼓喧天，如胜利的合唱般响彻村落。村民胜利的喜悦自然也在帕克泰德夫人心中产生共鸣；寇松街的午宴似乎指日可待了。

[13] It was Louisa Mebbin who drew attention to the fact that the goat was in death-throes22deaththroes临终的剧痛；死前的挣扎。from a mortal bulletwound, while no trace of the rifle’s deadly work could be found on the tiger. Evidently the wrong animal had been hit, and the beast of prey had succumbed23succumb屈服；死亡。to heart-failure, caused by the sudden report of the ri fl e, accelerated by senile24senile衰老的；高龄所致的。decay. Mrs. Packletide was pardonably annoyed at the discovery; but,at any rate, she was the possessor of a dead tiger, and the villagers, anxious for their thousand rupees, gladly connived25connive默许；附合。at the fi ction that she had shot the beast.And Miss Mebbin was a paid companion. Therefore did Mrs. Packletide face the cameras with a light heart, and her pictured fame reached from the pages of theTexas Weekly Snapshotto the illustrated Monday supplement of theNovoe Vremya. As for Loona Bimber-

[13]还是露易莎·梅宾提醒大家注意，身中致命的枪伤、临死挣扎的是那只羊，而在老虎身上见不到任何枪伤的痕迹。显然，猎枪打错了对象，老虎的死是由于突然的一声枪响，加之高龄和衰弱的身体，心脏病发而亡。帕克泰德夫人对这一发现有些气恼，这也情有可原；但无论如何，一只老虎总算到手，而村民们因对一千卢比的热望，也欣然默许是她射杀了这只野兽。而梅宾小姐是花钱雇来的。就这样，帕克泰德夫人面对照相机，心情很轻松。从《得克萨斯每周快照》到俄国的《新时代》星期一插图增刊，打虎照使她声名鹊起。鲁娜·宾波顿呢，她一连好几周对有插图的报纸看都不看，收到虎爪胸针的赠礼ton, she refused to look at an illustrated paper for weeks, and her letter of thanks for the gift of a tiger-claw broach was a model of repressed emotions. The luncheon-party she declined; there are limits beyond which repressed emotions become dangerous.后写答谢信时，她对情绪的克制堪称典范。对那场午宴，她谢绝了；情绪的克制毕竟有个限度，超出限度就危险了。

[14] From Curzon Street the tigerskin rug travelled down to the Manor House26manor house（中世纪庄园主的）宅邸。, and was duly inspected and admired by the county, and it seemed a fi tting and appropriate thing when Mrs.Packletide went to the County Costume Ball27costume ball化装舞会。in the character of Diana28罗马神话中的处女守护神，狩猎女神和月亮女神。.

[15] “How amused every one would be if they knew what really happened,”said Louisa Mebbin a few days after the ball.

[16] “What do you mean?” asked Mrs. Packletide quickly.

[17] “How you shot the goat and frightened the tiger to death,” said Miss Mebbin, with her disagreeably pleasant laugh.

[18] “No one would believe it,” said Mrs. Packletide, her face changing colour as rapidly as though it were going through a book of patterns before posttime.

[19] “Loona Bimberton would,” said Miss Mebbin. Mrs. Packletide’s face settled on an unbecoming29unbecoming不合身的；不相配的；难看的。shade of

[14]那张虎皮毯从寇松街一路运到了领主庄园，果然全郡的人都去瞻仰。继而当地举行化装舞会时，帕克泰德夫人装扮成猎神戴安娜，真是恰当不过。

[15]“大家若知道了真相，该会觉得多么可笑。”舞会几天后，露易莎·梅宾说道。

[16]“什么意思？”帕克泰德夫人急急地问。

[17]“就是你怎么打死了羊，吓死了老虎的事啊。”梅宾小姐回答，脸上的笑容令人很是不快。

[18]“没人会相信的。”帕克泰德夫人说。她的脸色急剧变化着，像是在寄送之前，急速地翻阅一本画册一样。

[19]“鲁娜·宾波顿就会吧。”梅宾小姐说。帕克泰德夫人顿时脸色发青，煞是难看。

[20]“你不会泄密吧？”她问道。

[21]“我看准了达尔菁附greenish white.

[20] “You surely wouldn’t give me away?” she asked.

[21] “I’ve seen a weekend cottage near Darking that I should rather like to buy,” said Miss Mebbin with seeming irrelevance. “Six hundred and eighty,freehold. Quite a bargain, only I don’t happen to have the money.”

[22] Louisa Mebbin’s pretty weekend cottage, christened30christen给……施洗礼；(施洗时)为……命名，给……取名为。by her “Les Fauves,” and gay in summer-time with its garden borders31border（草坪边等的）狭长花坛。of tiger-lilies322 tiger-lily卷丹，又称虎皮百合，百合科百合属植物。,is the wonder and admiration of her friends.

[23] “It is a marvel how Louisa manages to do it,” is the general verdict.

[24] Mrs. Packletide indulges in no more big-game shooting.

[25] “The incidental expenses are so heavy,” she confides to inquiring friends. ■近的一幢度假别墅，想买下来。”梅宾小姐好似漫不经心地说道，“680镑，产权终身，真划算，只是不巧，我就缺这笔钱。”

[22]露易莎·梅宾给她美丽的度假别墅取名为“野兽”。夏天，花园里开满卷丹花，一派生机盎然。在朋友们眼里，这套别墅堪称奇观，大家赞不绝口。

[23]“露易莎·梅宾居然买上了这么好的别墅，真是不可思议。”人们都这么说。

[24]帕克泰德夫人从此不再沉迷于打猛兽了。

[25]“额外的花销太大。”她对探问究竟的朋友们坦露道。 □