Grandfather’s Tiger爷爷的虎仔

Timothy， our tiger cub， was found by my grandfather on a hunting expedition in the Terai jungles near Dehra， in northern India. Because Grandfather lived in Dehra and knew the jungles well， he had been persuaded to accompany the hunting party.

我们的虎仔提莫西是爷爷在印度北部德拉附近特莱丛林狩猎时发现的。因为爷爷生活在德拉，熟悉丛林，所以他就被说服陪同狩猎队前往。

Strolling down a forest path some distance from the main party， Grandfather discovered a little abandoned tiger， about eighteen inches long， hidden among the roots of a banyan tree. After the expedition ended， Grandfather took the tiger home to Dehra， where Grandmother gave him the name Timothy.

爷爷顺着一条与大队人马有段距离的森林小路溜达，发fa7YKWbF6+wdcbJ9piYPR9nxhMxiM1jLUHlS9UbCJmw=现了一只被遗弃的虎仔。这只虎仔身长18英寸左右，躲在一棵榕树的树根间。狩猎结束后，爷爷将虎仔带回了德拉，奶奶给它取名提莫西。

Timothy’s favorite place in the house was the living room. He would snuggle down comfortably on the sofa， reclining there with serene dignity and snarling only when anyone tried to take his place. One of his chief amusements was to stalk whomever was playing with him， and so， when I went to live with my grandparents， I became one of the tiger’s pets. With a crafty look in his eyes， and his body in a deep crouch， he would creep closer and closer to me， suddenly making a dash for my feet. Then， rolling on his back and kicking with delight， he would pretend to bite my ankles.

提莫西在家里最喜欢待的地方就是客厅。它常常会舒适地偎依在沙发上，安详而又威风地卧在那里，只有当有人试图占它的位置时它才会咆哮。它的一项主要娱乐就是，无论是谁跟它玩耍，它都会悄悄潜近，因此，当我和爷爷奶奶住在一起时，我就成了虎仔的玩伴之一。它会悄悄地靠近我，眼神狡黠，身体深蹲，突然扑向我的脚。之后，它会仰面翻滚，欢快地踢蹬，假装咬我的脚踝。

By this time he was the size of a full-grown golden retriever， and when I took him for walks in Dehra， people on the road would give us a wide berth. At night he slept in the quarters of our cook， Mahmoud. “One of these days，” Grandmother declared， “we are going to find Timothy sitting on Mahmoud’s bed and no sign of Mahmoud！”

它已长到一只成年金毛猎犬那么大了，而当我带它在德拉溜达时，路人常常会远远避开。夜里它睡在我们的厨师马哈茂德的房间。“总有一天，”奶奶断言，“我们会发现提莫西坐在马哈茂德的床上，却见不到马哈茂德的踪影！”

When Timothy was about six months old， his stalking became more serious and he had to be chained up more frequently. Even the household started to mistrust him and， when he began to trail Mahmoud around the house with what looked like villainous intent， Grandfather decided it was time to transfer Timothy to a zoo.

当提莫西六个来月大时，它越发喜欢跟踪人，于是我们不得不更加频繁地拴住它。就连家人也开始不信任它了，而当它似乎开始带着恶意在房子周围追踪马哈茂德时，爷爷决定该把提莫西移交给动物园了。

The nearest zoo was at Lucknow， some two hundred miles away. Grandfather reserved a first-class compartment on the train for himself and Timothy and set forth. The Lucknow zoo authorities were only too pleased to receive a well-fed and fairly civilized tiger.

距离最近的动物园位于勒克瑙，大约在200英里开外。爷爷为自己和提莫西在火车上预定了头等座，就出发了。勒克瑙动物园方面很高兴接收一只饲养良好、颇有教养的虎仔。

Grandfather had no opportunity to see how Timothy was getting on in his new home until about six months later， when he and Grandmother visited relatives in Lucknow. Grandfather went to the zoo and directly to Timothy’s cage. The tiger was there， crouched in a corner， full-grown， his magnificent striped coat gleaming with health.

直到大约六个月后爷爷和奶奶探望勒克瑙的亲戚时，爷爷才有机会看到提莫西在新家过得怎样。爷爷去了动物园，直接走到了提莫西的笼边。虎儿就在那儿，蹲伏在一个角落，已经完全长大了，带虎纹的漂亮皮毛闪着健康的光泽。

“Hello， Timothy，” Grandfather said.

“你好，提莫西。”爷爷说。

Climbing the railing， he put his arms through the bars of the cage. Timothy approached and allowed Grandfather to put both arms about his head. Grandfather stroked the tiger’s forehead and tickled his ears. EacItMrQZSaAass7NhFnarvLA==h time Timothy growled， Grandfather gave him a smack across the mouth， which had been his way of keeping the tiger quiet when he lived with us.

他爬上栏杆，胳膊伸过笼子的栅栏。提莫西走上前，让爷爷双臂抱住它的脑袋。爷爷抚摸着虎儿的额头，给它的耳朵挠痒痒。每当提莫西咆哮时，爷爷总会拍一下它的嘴巴。提莫西跟我们住在一起时，爷爷就是这样让虎仔保持安静的。

Timothy licked Grandfather’s hands. Then he showed nervousness， springing away when a leopard in the next cage snarled at him. Grandfather shooed the leopard off and Timothy returned to licking his hands. Every now and then the leopard would rush at the bars， and Timothy would again slink back to a neutral corner.

提莫西舔着爷爷的手。随后，当邻近笼子里的一头豹子向它咆哮时，它露出紧张不安的神情，纵身跳开。爷爷赶开了豹子，提莫西又返回舔起了他的手。豹子不时地冲向栅栏，提莫西又再次溜回一个不远不近的角落。

A number of people had gathered to watch the reunion， when a keeper pushed his way through the crowd and asked grandfather what he was doing. “I’m talking to Timothy，” said Grandfather. “Weren’t you here when I gave him to the zoo six months ago？”

许多人聚在那里观看这场重逢，这时一个饲养员挤过人群，问爷爷在做什么。“我在跟提莫西唠嗑呢。”爷爷说，“六个月前我把它送到动物园时你不在这里吗？”

“I haven’t been here very long，” said the surprised keeper. “Please continue your conversation. I have never been able to touch that tiger myself. I find him very bad-tempered.”

“我到这里时间不是很久。”这位面露惊讶的饲养员说，“请继续唠嗑吧。我压根儿没能亲手碰过这只老虎哩。我发现它脾气很坏。”

Grandfather had been stroking and slapping Timothy for about five minutes when he noticed another keeper observing him with some alarm. Grandfather recognized him as the keeper who had been there when he had delivered Timothy to the zoo. “You remember me，” said Grandfather. “Why don’t you transfer Timothy to a different cage， away from this stupid leopard？”

爷爷一直在抚摸、轻轻拍打着提莫西，大约过了五分钟，这时他注意到另一位饲养员正在有些惊慌地观察着他。爷爷认出他是饲养员，当初把提莫西送到动物园时这人就在。“你还记得我吧。”爷爷说，“为什么不把提莫西转移到另一个笼子里，远离这只愚蠢的豹子呢？”

“But sir，” stammered the keeper. “It is not your tiger.”

“可是，先生，”饲养员结结巴巴地说，“这不是你的虎仔。”

“I realize that he is no longer mine，” said Grandfather testily. “But at least take my suggestion.”

“我明白他不再属于我了，”爷爷恼火地说，“但至少接受我的建议啊。”

“I remember your tiger very well，” said the keeper. “He died two months ago.”

“我清楚记得你的虎仔。”饲养员说，“它两个月前死了。”

“Died？” exclaimed Grandfather.

“死了？”爷爷大声嚷道。

“Yes， sir， of pneumonia. This tiger was trapped in the hills only last month， and he is very dangerous！”

“是的，先生，死于肺炎。这只虎是上个月才在山里捕到的，非常危险！”

The tiger was still licking Grandfather’s arms and apparently enjoying it more all the time. Grandfather withdrew his hands from the cage in a motion that seemed to take an age. With his face near the tiger’s he mumbled， “Goodnight， Timothy.” Then， giving the keeper a scornful look， Grandfather walked briskly out of the zoo.

虎儿还在舔着爷爷的胳膊，显然它始终喜欢这样做。爷爷从笼子里抽出手，这个动作似乎花了很长时间。他把脸贴近虎儿的脸，喃喃地说：“晚安，提莫西。”说完，爷爷轻蔑地看了饲养员一眼，快步走出了动物园。

* 本名宋金柱，焦作大学学术委员会委员，河南省作家协会会员。迄今已在外文出版社、译林出版社、人民文学出版社等出版译著多部。另在《英语世界》《当代外国文学》《译林》等刊物上发表译文多篇。