動物莊園：Chapter 7

It was a bitter winter. The stormy weather was followed by sleet and snow, and then by a hard frost which did not break till well into February. The animals carried on as best they could with the rebuilding of the windmill, well knowing that the outside world was watching them and that the envious human beings would rejoice and triumph if the mill were not finished on time.

那是一個寒冷的冬天?？耧L暴雨的天氣剛剛過去，這又下起了雨夾雪，接著又是大雪紛飛。然后，嚴寒來了，冰天凍地一般，直到二月才見和緩。動物們都在全力以赴地趕建風車，因為他們都十分清楚：外界正在注視著他們，如果風車不能重新及時建成，那些妒火中燒的人類便會為此幸災樂禍的。

Out of spite, the human beings pretended not to believe that it was Snowball who had destroyer the windmill: they said that it had fallen down because the walls were too thin. The animals knew that this was not the case. Still, it had been decided to build the walls three feet thick this time instead of eighteen inches as before, which meant collecting much larger quantities of stone. For a long time the quarry was full of snowdrifts and nothing could be done. Some progress was made in the dry frosty weather that followed, but it was cruel work, and the animals could not feel so hopeful about it as they had felt before. They were always cold, and usually hungry as well. Only Boxer and Clover never lost heart. Squealer made excellent speeches on the joy of service and the dignity of labour, but the other animals found more inspiration in Boxer's strength and his never-failing cry of "I will work harder!"

那些人不懷好意，佯稱他們不相信風車會是斯諾鮑毀壞的。他們說，風車之所以倒塌純粹是因為墻座太薄。而動物們認為事實并非如此。不過，他們還是決定這一次要把墻筑到三呎厚，而不是上一次的一呎半。這就意味著得采集更多的石頭。但采石場上好長時間積雪成堆，什么事也干不成。后來，嚴冬的天氣變得干燥了，倒是干了一些活，但那卻是一項苦不堪言的勞作，動物們再也不象先前那樣滿懷希望、信心十足。它們總感到冷，又常常覺得餓。只有鮑克瑟和克拉弗從不氣餒。斯奎拉則時不時來一段關于什么勞動的樂趣以及勞工神圣之類的精彩演講，但使其他動物受到鼓舞更大的，卻來自鮑克瑟的踏實肯干和他總是掛在嘴邊的口頭禪：“我要更加努力工作。”

In January food fell short. The corn ration was drastically reduced, and it was announced that an extra potato ration would be issued to make up for it. Then it was discovered that the greater part of the potato crop had been frosted in the clamps, which had not been covered thickly enough. The potatoes had become soft and discoloured, and only a few were edible. For days at a time the animals had nothing to eat but chaff and mangels. Starvation seemed to stare them in the face.

一月份，食物就開始短缺了。谷類飼料急驟減少，有通知說要發(fā)給額外的土豆來彌補。可隨后卻發(fā)現(xiàn)由于地窖上面蓋得不夠厚，絕大部分土豆都已受凍而發(fā)軟變壞了，只有很少一些還可以吃。這段時間里，動物們已有好些天除了吃谷糠和蘿卜外，再也沒有別的可吃的了，他們差不多面臨著饑荒。

It was vitally necessary to conceal this fact from the outside world. Emboldened by the collapse of the windmill, the human beings were inventing fresh lies about Animal Farm. Once again it was being put about that all the animals were dying of famine and disease, and that they were continually fighting among themselves and had resorted to cannibalism and infanticide. Napoleon was well aware of the bad results that might follow if the real facts of the food situation were known, and he decided to make use of Mr. Whymper to spread a contrary impression. Hitherto the animals had had little or no contact with Whymper on his weekly visits: now, however, a few selected animals, mostly sheep, were instructed to remark casually in his hearing that rations had been increased. In addition, Napoleon ordered the almost empty bins in the store-shed to be filled nearly to the brim with sand, which was then covered up with what remained of the grain and meal. On some suitable pretext Whymper was led through the store-shed and allowed to catch a glimpse of the bins. He was deceived, and continued to report to the outside world that there was no food shortage on Animal Farm.

對外遮掩這一實情是非常必要的。風車的倒塌已經(jīng)給人壯了膽，他們因而就捏造出有關動物莊園的新奇的謊言。這一次，外面又謠傳說他們這里所有的動物都在饑荒和瘟疫中垂死掙扎，而且說他們內(nèi)部不斷自相殘殺，已經(jīng)到了以同類相食和吞食幼崽度日的地步。拿破侖清醒地意識倒飼料短缺的真相被外界知道后的嚴重后果，因而決意利用溫普爾先生散布一些相反的言論。本來，到目前為止，對溫普爾的每周一次來訪，動物們還幾乎與他沒有什么接觸?？墒沁@一次，他們卻挑選了一些動物，大都是羊，要他們在溫普爾能聽得到的地方，裝作是在無意的聊天中談有關飼料糧增加的事。這還不夠，拿破侖又讓儲藏棚里那些幾乎已是完全空空如也的大箱子滿沙子，然后把剩下的飼料糧蓋在上面。最后找個適當?shù)慕杩?，把溫普爾領到儲藏棚，讓他瞥上一眼。溫普爾被蒙騙過去了，就不斷在外界報告說，動物莊園根本不缺飼料云云。

Nevertheless, towards the end of January it became obvious that it would be necessary to procure some more grain from somewhere. In these days Napoleon rarely appeared in public, but spent all his time in the farmhouse, which was guarded at each door by fierce-looking dogs. When he did emerge, it was in a ceremonial manner, with an escort of six dogs who closely surrounded him and growled if anyone came too near. Frequently he did not even appear on Sunday mornings, but issued his orders through one of the other pigs, usually Squealer.

然而快到一月底的時候，問題就變得突出了，其關鍵就是，必須得從某個地方弄到些額外的糧食。而這些天來，拿破侖輕易不露面，整天就呆在莊主院里，那兒的每道門都由氣勢洶洶的狗把守著。一旦他要出來，也必是一本正經(jīng)，而且，還有六條狗前呼后擁著，不管誰要走近，那些狗都會吼叫起來。甚至在星期天早晨，他也常常不露面，而由其他一頭豬，一般是斯奎拉來發(fā)布他的指示。

One Sunday morning Squealer announced that the hens, who had just come in to lay again, must surrender their eggs. Napoleon had accepted, through Whymper, a contract for four hundred eggs a week. The price of these would pay for enough grain and meal to keep the farm going till summer came on and conditions were easier.

一個星期天早晨，斯奎拉宣布說，所有重新開始下蛋的雞，必須把雞蛋上交。因為通過溫普爾牽線，拿破侖已經(jīng)承諾了一項每周支付四百只雞蛋的合同。這些雞蛋所賺的錢可買回很多飼糧，莊園也就可以堅持到夏季，那時，情況就好轉(zhuǎn)了。

When the hens heard this, they raised a terrible outcry. They had been warned earlier that this sacrifice might be necessary, but had not believed that it would really happen. They were just getting their clutches ready for the spring sitting, and they protested that to take the eggs away now was murder. For the first time since the expulsion of Jones, there was something resembling a rebellion. Led by three young Black Minorca pullets, the hens made a determined effort to thwart Napoleon's wishes. Their method was to fly up to the rafters and there lay their eggs, which smashed to pieces on the floor. Napoleon acted swiftly and ruthlessly. He ordered the hens' rations to be stopped, and decreed that any animal giving so much as a grain of corn to a hen should be punished by death. The dogs saw to it that these orders were carried out. For five days the hens held out, then they capitulated and went back to their nesting boxes. Nine hens had died in the meantime. Their bodies were buried in the orchard, and it was given out that they had died of coccidiosis. Whymper heard nothing of this affair, and the eggs were duly delivered, a grocer's van driving up to the farm once a week to take them away.

雞一聽到這些，便提出了強烈的抗議。雖然在此之前就已經(jīng)有過預先通知，說這種犧牲恐怕是必不可少的，但他們并不相信真會發(fā)生這種事。此時，他們剛把春季孵小雞用的蛋準備好，因而便抗議說，現(xiàn)在拿走雞蛋就是謀財害命。于是，為了攪亂拿破侖的計劃，他們在三只年輕的黑米諾卡雞的帶動下，索性豁出去了。他們的做法是飛到椽子上下蛋，雞蛋落到地上便打得粉碎。這是自瓊斯被逐以后第一次帶有反叛味的行為。對此，拿破侖立即采取嚴厲措施。他指示停止給雞供應飼料，同時下令，任何動物，不論是誰，哪怕給雞一粒糧食都要被處以死刑。這些命令由狗來負責執(zhí)行。堅持了五天的雞最后投降了，又回到了雞窩里。在這期間共有九只雞死去，遺體都埋到了果園里，對外則說他們是死于雞瘟。對于此事，溫普爾一點也不知道，雞蛋按時交付，每周都由一輛食品車來莊園拉一次。

All this while no more had been seen of Snowball. He was rumoured to be hiding on one of the neighbouring farms, either Foxwood or Pinchfield. Napoleon was by this time on slightly better terms with the other farmers than before. It happened that there was in the yard a pile of timber which had been stacked there ten years earlier when a beech spinney was cleared. It was well seasoned, and Whymper had advised Napoleon to sell it; both Mr. Pilkington and Mr. Frederick were anxious to buy it. Napoleon was hesitating between the two, unable to make up his mind. It was noticed that whenever he seemed on the point of coming to an agreement with Frederick, Snowball was declared to be in hiding at Foxwood, while, when he inclined toward Pilkington, Snowball was said to be at Pinchfield.

這段時間里，一直都沒有再見到斯諾鮑。有謠傳說他躲在附近的莊園里，不是在福克斯伍德莊園就是在平徹菲爾德莊園。此時，拿破侖和其他莊園的關系也比以前稍微改善了些。碰巧，在莊園的場院里，有一堆十年前在清理一片櫸樹林時堆在那兒的木材，至今已經(jīng)很合用了。于是溫普爾就建議拿破侖把它賣掉。皮爾金頓先生和弗雷德里克先生都十分想買?？赡闷苼鲞€在猶豫，拿不準賣給誰好。大家注意到，每當他似乎要和弗雷德里克先生達成協(xié)議的時候，就有謠傳說斯諾鮑正躲在?？怂刮榈虑f園;而當他打算傾向于皮爾金頓時，就又有謠傳說斯諾鮑是在平徹菲爾德莊園。

Suddenly, early in the spring, an alarming thing was discovered. Snowball was secretly frequenting the farm by night! The animals were so disturbed that they could hardly sleep in their stalls. Every night, it was said, he came creeping in under cover of darkness and performed all kinds of mischief. He stole the corn, he upset the milk-pails, he broke the eggs, he trampled the seedbeds, he gnawed the bark off the fruit trees. Whenever anything went wrong it became usual to attribute it to Snowball. If a window was broken or a drain was blocked up, someone was certain to say that Snowball had come in the night and done it, and when the key of the store-shed was lost, the whole farm was convinced that Snowball had thrown it down the well. Curiously enough, they went on believing this even after the mislaid key was found under a sack of meal. The cows declared unanimously that Snowball crept into their stalls and milked them in their sleep. The rats, which had been troublesome that winter, were also said to be in league with Snowball.

初春時節(jié)，突然間有一件事震驚了莊園。說是斯諾鮑常在夜間秘密地潛入莊園!動物們嚇壞了，躲在窩棚里夜不能寐。據(jù)說，每天晚上他都在夜幕的掩護下潛入莊園，無惡不作。他偷走谷子，弄翻牛奶桶，打碎雞蛋，踐踏苗圃，咬掉果樹皮。不論什么時候什么事情搞糟了，通常都要推到斯諾鮑身上，要是一扇窗子壞了或者水道堵塞了，準有某個動物斷定這是斯諾鮑在夜間干的。儲藏棚的鑰匙丟了，所有動物都堅信是斯諾鮑給扔到井里去了。奇怪的是，甚至在發(fā)現(xiàn)鑰匙原來是被誤放在一袋面粉底下之后，他們還是這樣堅信不移。牛異口同聲地聲稱斯諾鮑在她們睡覺時溜進牛棚，吸了她們的奶。那些在冬天曾給她們帶來煩惱的老鼠，也被指責為斯諾鮑的同伙。

Napoleon decreed that there should be a full investigation into Snowball's activities. With his dogs in attendance he set out and made a careful tour of inspection of the farm buildings, the other animals following at a respectful distance. At every few steps Napoleon stopped and snuffed the ground for traces of Snowball's footsteps, which, he said, he could detect by the smell. He snuffed in every corner, in the barn, in the cow-shed, in the henhouses, in the vegetable garden, and found traces of Snowball almost everywhere. He would put his snout to the ground, give several deep sniffs, ad exclaim in a terrible voice, "Snowball! He has been here! I can smell him distinctly!" and at the word "Snowball" all the dogs let out blood-curdling growls and showed their side teeth.

拿破侖下令對斯諾鮑的活動進行一次全面調(diào)查。他在狗的護衛(wèi)下，開始對莊園的窩棚進行一次仔細的巡回檢查，其他動物謙恭地在幾步之外尾隨著。每走幾步，拿破侖就停下來，嗅一嗅地面上是否有斯諾鮑的氣味。他說他能借此分辨出斯諾鮑的蹄印。他嗅遍了每一個角落，從大谷倉、牛棚到雞窩和蘋果園，幾乎到處都發(fā)現(xiàn)了斯諾鮑的蹤跡。每到一處他就把嘴伸到地上，深深地吸上幾下，便以驚異的語氣大叫到：“斯諾鮑!他到過這兒!我能清楚地嗅出來!”一聽到“斯諾鮑”，所有的狗都呲牙咧嘴，發(fā)出一陣令動物們膽顫心驚的咆哮。

The animals were thoroughly frightened. It seemed to them as though Snowball were some kind of invisible influence, pervading the air about them and menacing them with all kinds of dangers. In the evening Squealer called them together, and with an alarmed expression on his face told them that he had some serious news to report.

動物們被徹底嚇壞了。對他們來說，斯諾鮑就象某種看不見的惡魔，浸透在他們周圍的空間，以各種危險威脅著他們。到了晚上，斯奎拉把他們召集起來，帶著一幅惶恐不安的神情說，他有要事相告。

"Comrades!" cried Squealer, making little nervous skips, "a most terrible thing has been discovered. Snowball has sold himself to Frederick of Pinchfield Farm, who is even now plotting to attack us and take our farm away from us! Snowball is to act as his guide when the attack begins. But there is worse than that. We had thought that Snowball's rebellion was caused simply by his vanity and ambition. But we were wrong, comrades. Do you know what the real reason was? Snowball was in league with Jones from the very start! He was Jones's secret agent all the time. It has all been proved by documents which he left behind him and which we have only just discovered. To my mind this explains a great deal, comrades. Did we not see for ourselves how he attempted--fortunately without success--to get us defeated and destroyed at the Battle of the Cowshed?"

“同志們!”斯奎拉邊神經(jīng)質(zhì)地蹦跳著邊大叫道，“發(fā)現(xiàn)了一件最為可怕的事，斯諾鮑已經(jīng)投靠了平徹菲爾德莊園的弗雷德里克了。而那家伙正在策劃著襲擊我們，企圖獨占我們的莊園!斯諾鮑將在襲擊中給他帶路。更糟糕的是，我們曾以為，斯諾鮑的造反是出自于自命不凡和野心勃勃?？晌覀兏沐e了，同志們，你們知道真正的動機是什么嗎?斯諾鮑從一開始就和瓊斯是一伙的!他自始至終都是瓊斯的密探。我們剛剛發(fā)現(xiàn)了一些他丟下的文件，這一點在那些文件中完全得到了證實。同志們，依我看，這就能說明不少問題了。在牛棚大戰(zhàn)中，雖然幸虧他的陰謀沒有得逞，但他想使我們遭到毀滅的企圖，難道不是我們有目共睹的嗎?”

The animals were stupefied. This was a wickedness far outdoing Snowball's destruction of the windmill. But it was some minutes before they could fully take it in. They all remembered, or thought they remembered, how they had seen Snowball charging ahead of them at the Battle of the Cowshed, how he had rallied and encouraged them at every turn, and how he had not paused for an instant even when the pellets from Jones's gun had wounded his back. At first it was a little difficult to see how this fitted in with his being on Jones's side. Even Boxer, who seldom asked questions, was puzzled. He lay down, tucked his fore hoofs beneath him, shut his eyes, and with a hard effort managed to formulate his thoughts.

大家都怔住了。比起斯諾鮑毀壞風車一事，這一罪孽要嚴重得多了。但是，他們在完全接受這一點之前，卻猶豫了好幾分鐘，他們都記得，或者自以為還記得，在牛棚大戰(zhàn)中，他們曾看到的是斯諾鮑在帶頭沖鋒陷陣，并不時的重整旗鼓，而且，即使在瓊斯的子彈已射進它的脊背時也毫不退縮。對此，他們首先就感到困惑不解，這怎么能說明他是站在瓊斯一邊的呢?就連很少質(zhì)疑的鮑克瑟也或然不解。他臥在地上，前腿彎在身子底下，眼睛緊閉著，絞盡腦汁想理順他的思路。

"I do not believe that," he said. "Snowball fought bravely at the Battle of the Cowshed. I saw him myself. Did we not give him 'Animal Hero, first Class,' immediately afterwards?"

“我不信，”他說道，“斯諾鮑在牛棚大戰(zhàn)中作戰(zhàn)勇敢，這是我親眼看到的。戰(zhàn)斗一結束，我們不是就立刻授予他‘一級動物英雄’勛章了嗎?”

"That was our mistake, comrade. For we know now--it is all written down in the secret documents that we have found--that in reality he was trying to lure us to our doom."

“那是我們的失誤，同志們，因為我們現(xiàn)在才知道，他實際上是想誘使我們走向滅亡。在我們已經(jīng)發(fā)現(xiàn)的秘密文件中，這一點寫得清清楚楚。”

"But he was wounded," said Boxer. "We all saw him running with blood."

“但是他負傷了，”鮑克瑟說，“我們都看見他在流著血沖鋒。”

"That was part of the arrangement!" cried Squealer. "Jones's shot only grazed him. I could show you this in his own writing, if you were able to read it. The plot was for Snowball, at the critical moment, to give the signal for flight and leave the field to the enemy. And he very nearly succeeded -- I will even say, comrades, he WOULD have succeeded if it had not been for our heroic Leader, Comrade Napoleon. Do you not remember how, just at the moment when Jones and his men had got inside the yard, Snowball suddenly turned and fled, and many animals followed him? And do you not remember, too, that it was just at that moment, when panic was spreading and all seemed lost, that Comrade Napoleon sprang forward with a cry of 'Death to Humanity!' and sank his teeth in Jones's leg? Surely you remember THAT, comrades?" exclaimed Squealer, frisking from side to side.

“那也是預謀中的一部分!”斯奎拉叫道，“瓊斯的子彈只不過擦了一下他的皮而已。要是你能識字的話，我會把他自己寫的文件拿給你看的。他們的陰謀，就是在關鍵時刻發(fā)出一個信號，讓斯諾鮑逃跑并把莊園留給敵人。他差不多就要成功了，我甚至敢說，要是沒有我們英勇的領袖拿破侖同志，他早就得逞了。難道你們不記得了，就在瓊斯一伙沖進院子的時候，斯諾鮑突然轉(zhuǎn)身就逃，于是很多動物都跟著他跑了嗎?還有，就在那一會兒，都亂套了，幾乎都要完了，拿破侖同志突然沖上前去，大喊：‘消滅人類!’同時咬住了瓊斯的腿，這一點難道你們不記得了嗎?你們肯定記得這些吧?”斯奎拉一邊左右蹦跳，一邊大聲叫著。

Now when Squealer described the scene so graphically, it seemed to the animals that they did remember it. At any rate, they remembered that at the critical moment of the battle Snowball had turned to flee. But Boxer was still a little uneasy.

既然斯奎拉把那一場景描述得如此形象生動，動物們便似乎覺得，他們果真記得有這么回事。不管怎么說，他們記得在激戰(zhàn)的關鍵時刻，斯諾鮑曾經(jīng)掉頭逃過。但是鮑克瑟還有一些感到不自在。

"I do not believe that Snowball was a traitor at the beginning," he said finally. "What he has done since is different. But I believe that at the Battle of the Cowshed he was a good comrade."

他終于說道：“我不相信斯諾鮑一開始就是一個叛徒。他后來的所作所為是另一回事，但我認為在牛棚大戰(zhàn)中，他是一個好同志。”

"Our Leader, Comrade Napoleon," announced Squealer, speaking very slowly and firmly, "has stated categorically--categorically, comrade--that Snowball was Jones's agent from the very beginning--yes, and from long before the Rebellion was ever thought of."

“我們的領袖，拿破侖同志，”斯奎拉以緩慢而堅定的語氣宣告，“已經(jīng)明確地——明確了，同志們——聲明斯諾鮑一開始就是瓊斯的奸細，是的，遠在想著起義前就是的。”

"Ah, that is different!" said Boxer. "If Comrade Napoleon says it, it must be right."

“噢，這就不一樣了!如果這是拿破侖同志說的，那就肯定不會錯。”鮑克瑟說。

"That is the true spirit, comrade!" cried Squealer, but it was noticed he cast a very ugly look at Boxer with his little twinkling eyes. He turned to go, then paused and added impressively: "I warn every animal on this farm to keep his eyes very wide open. For we have reason to think that some of Snowball's secret agents are lurking among us at this moment!"

“這是事實的真相，同志們!”斯奎拉大叫著。但動物們注意到他那閃亮的小眼睛向鮑克瑟怪模怪樣地瞥了一眼。在他轉(zhuǎn)身要走時，停下來又強調(diào)了一句：“我提醒莊園的每個動物要睜大眼睛。我們有理由相信，眼下，斯諾鮑的密探正在我們中間潛伏著!”

Four days later, in the late afternoon, Napoleon ordered all the animals to assemble in the yard. When they were all gathered together, Napoleon emerged from the farmhouse, wearing both his medals (for he had recently awarded himself "Animal Hero, First Class", and "Animal Hero, Second Class"), with his nine huge dogs frisking round him and uttering growls that sent shivers down all the animals' spines. They all cowered silently in their places, seeming to know in advance that some terrible thing was about to happen.

四天以后，在下午的晚些時候，拿破侖召集所有的動物在院子里開會。他們集合好后，拿破侖從屋里出來了，佩戴著他的兩枚勛章(他最近已授予他自己“一級動物英雄”和“二級動物英雄”勛章)，還帶著他那九條大狗，那些狗圍著他蹦來蹦去，發(fā)出讓所有動物都毛骨悚然的吼叫。動物們默默地蜷縮在那里，似乎預感到要發(fā)生什么可怕的事。

Napoleon stood sternly surveying his audience; then he uttered a high-pitched whimper. Immediately the dogs bounded forward, seized four of the pigs by the ear and dragged them, squealing with pain and terror, to Napoleon's feet. The pigs' ears were bleeding, the dogs had tasted blood, and for a few moments they appeared to go quite mad. To the amazement of everybody, three of them flung themselves upon Boxer. Boxer saw them coming and put out his great hoof, caught a dog in mid-air, and pinned him to the ground. The dog shrieked for mercy and the other two fled with their tails between their legs. Boxer looked at Napoleon to know whether he should crush the dog to death or let it go. Napoleon appeared to change countenance, and sharply ordered Boxer to let the dog go, whereat Boxer lifted his hoof, and the dog slunk away, bruised and howling.

拿破侖嚴厲地站在那兒向下面掃了一眼，接著便發(fā)出一聲尖細的驚叫。于是，那些狗就立刻沖上前咬住了四頭豬的耳朵，把他們往外拖。那四頭豬在疼痛和恐懼中嗥叫著，被拖到拿破侖腳下。豬的耳朵流出血來。狗嘗到了血腥味，發(fā)狂了好一會兒。使所有動物感到驚愕的是，有三條狗向鮑克瑟撲去。鮑克瑟看到他們來了，就伸出巨掌，在半空中逮住一條狗，把他踩在地上。那條狗尖叫著求饒，另外兩條狗夾著尾巴飛跑回來了。鮑克瑟看著拿破侖，想知道是該把那狗壓死呢還是放掉。拿破侖變了臉色，他厲聲喝令鮑克瑟把狗放掉。鮑克瑟抬起掌，狗帶著傷哀號著溜走了。

Presently the tumult died down. The four pigs waited, trembling, with guilt written on every line of their countenances. Napoleon now called upon them to confess their crimes. They were the same four pigs as had protested when Napoleon abolished the Sunday Meetings. Without any further prompting they confessed that they had been secretly in touch with Snowball ever since his expulsion, that they had collaborated with him in destroying the windmill, and that they had entered into an agreement with him to hand over Animal Farm to Mr. Frederick. They added that Snowball had privately admitted to them that he had been Jones's secret agent for years past. When they had finished their confession, the dogs promptly tore their throats out, and in a terrible voice Napoleon demanded whether any other animal had anything to confess.

喧囂立即平靜下來了。那四頭豬渾身發(fā)抖地等待發(fā)落，面孔上的每道皺紋似乎都刻寫著他們的罪狀。他們正是抗議拿破侖廢除星期天大會議的那四頭豬。拿破侖喝令他們坦白罪行。他們沒等進一步督促就交代說，他們從斯諾鮑被驅(qū)逐以后一直和他保持秘密接觸，還配合他搗毀風車，并和他達成一項協(xié)議，打算把動物莊園拱手讓給弗雷德里克先生。他們還補充說斯諾鮑曾在私下里對他們承認，他過去幾年來一直是瓊斯的特務，他們剛一坦白完，狗就立刻咬穿了他們的喉嚨。這時，拿破侖聲色俱厲地質(zhì)問別的動物還有什么要坦白的。

The three hens who had been the ringleaders in the attempted rebellion over the eggs now came forward and stated that Snowball had appeared to them in a dream and incited them to disobey Napoleon's orders. They, too, were slaughtered. Then a goose came forward and confessed to having secreted six ears of corn during the last year's harvest and eaten them in the night. Then a sheep confessed to having urinated in the drinking pool--urged to do this, so she said, by Snowball--and two other sheep confessed to having murdered an old ram, an especially devoted follower of Napoleon, by chasing him round and round a bonfire when he was suffering from a cough. They were all slain on the spot. And so the tale of confessions and executions went on, until there was a pile of corpses lying before Napoleon's feet and the air was heavy with the smell of blood, which had been unknown there since the expulsion of Jones.

那三這曾經(jīng)試圖通過雞蛋事件領頭鬧事的雞走上前去，說斯諾鮑曾在她們的夢中顯現(xiàn)，并煽動她們違抗拿破侖的命令。她們也被殺掉了。接著一只鵝上前坦白，說他曾在去年收割季節(jié)藏了六穗谷子，并在當天晚上吃掉了。隨后一只羊坦白說她曾向飲水池里撒過尿，她說是斯諾鮑驅(qū)使她這么干的。另外兩只羊交待道，他們曾經(jīng)謀殺了一只老公羊，一只十分忠實的拿破侖的信徒，他們在他正患咳嗽時，追著他圍著火堆轉(zhuǎn)來轉(zhuǎn)去。這些動物都被當場殺掉了?？诠┖退佬叹瓦@樣進行著，直到拿破侖腳前堆起一堆尸體?？諝庵袕浡鴿庵氐难任叮@樣的事情自從趕走瓊斯以來還一直是聞所未聞的。

When it was all over, the remaining animals, except for the pigs and dogs, crept away in a body. They were shaken and miserable. They did not know which was more shocking--the treachery of the animals who had leagued themselves with Snowball, or the cruel retribution they had just witnessed. In the old days there had often been scenes of bloodshed equally terrible, but it seemed to all of them that it was far worse now that it was happening among themselves. Since Jones had left the farm, until today, no animal had killed another animal. Not even a rat had been killed. They had made their way on to the little knoll where the half-finished windmill stood, and with one accord they all lay down as though huddling together for warmth--Clover, Muriel, Benjamin, the cows, the sheep, and a whole flock of geese and hens--everyone, indeed, except the cat, who had suddenly disappeared just before Napoleon ordered the animals to assemble. For some time nobody spoke. Only Boxer remained on his feet. He fidgeted to and fro, swishing his long black tail against his sides and occasionally uttering a little whinny of surprise. Finally he said:

等這一切都過去了，剩下的動物，除了豬和狗以來，便都擠成一堆溜走了。他們感到震驚，感到害怕，但卻說不清到底什么更使他們害怕——是那些和斯諾鮑結成同盟的叛逆更可怕呢，還是剛剛目睹的對這些叛逆的殘忍的懲罰更可怕。過去，和這種血流遍地的情景同樣可怕的事也時?？梢姡珜λ麄儊碚f是一次要陰森得多，因為這就發(fā)生在他們自己同志中間。從瓊斯逃離莊園至今，沒有一個動物殺害過其他動物，就連老鼠也未曾受害。這時，他們已經(jīng)走到小山包上，干了一半的風車就矗立在那里，大伙不約而同地躺下來，并擠在一起取暖?？死?、穆麗爾、本杰明、牛、羊及一群鵝和雞，實際上，除了那只貓外全都在這兒，貓在拿破侖命令所有動物集合的時候突然失蹤了。一時間，大家都默默不語，只有鮑克瑟還繼續(xù)站著，一邊煩躁不安地走來走去，一邊用他那又長又黑的尾巴不斷地在自己身上抽打著。偶爾還發(fā)出一絲驚叫聲，最后他說話了。

"I do not understand it. I would not have believed that such things could happen on our farm. It must be due to some fault in ourselves. The solution, as I see it, is to work harder. From now onwards I shall get up a full hour earlier in the mornings."

“我不明白，我真不愿相信這種事會發(fā)生在我們莊園里，這一定得歸咎于我們自己的某些失誤。要解決這個，我想關鍵就是要更加努力地工作，從今天起，早上我要提前一個小時起床。”

And he moved off at his lumbering trot and made for the quarry. Having got there, he collected two successive loads of stone and dragged them down to the windmill before retiring for the night.

他步履沉重地走開了，走向采石場。到了那兒，他便連續(xù)收集了兩車石頭，并且都拉到風車那里，一直忙到晚上才收工。

The animals huddled about Clover, not speaking. The knoll where they were lying gave them a wide prospect across the countryside. Most of Animal Farm was within their view--the long pasture stretching down to the main road, the hayfield, the spinney, the drinking pool, the ploughed fields where the young wheat was thick and green, and the red roofs of the farm buildings with the smoke curling from the chimneys. It was a clear spring evening. The grass and the bursting hedges were gilded by the level rays of the sun. Never had the farm--and with a kind of surprise they remembered that it was their own farm, every inch of it their own property--appeared to the animals so desirable a place. As Clover looked down the hillside her eyes filled with tears. If she could have spoken her thoughts, it would have been to say that this was not what they had aimed at when they had set themselves years ago to work for the overthrow of the human race. These scenes of terror and slaughter were not what they had looked forward to on that night when old Major first stirred them to rebellion. If she herself had had any picture of the future, it had been of a society of animals set free from hunger and the whip, all equal, each working according to his capacity, the strong protecting the weak, as she had protected the lost brood of ducklings with her foreleg on the night of Major's speech. Instead--she did not know why--they had come to a time when no one dared speak his mind, when fierce, growling dogs roamed everywhere, and when you had to watch your comrades torn to pieces after confessing to shocking crimes. There was no thought of rebellion or disobedience in her mind. She knew that, even as things were, they were far better off than they had been in the days of Jones, and that before all else it was needful to prevent the return of the human beings. Whatever happened she would remain faithful, work hard, carry out the orders that were given to her, and accept the leadership of Napoleon. But still, it was not for this that she and all the other animals had hoped and toiled. It was not for this that they had built the windmill and faced the bullets of Jones's gun. Such were her thoughts, though she lacked the words to express them.

動物們擠在克拉弗周圍默默不語。從他們躺著的地方，可以俯視整個村莊，在那里，動物莊園的絕大部分都盡收眼底。他們看到：狹長的牧場伸向那條大路，耕種過的地里長著茁壯而碧綠的麥苗，還有草灘、樹林、飲水池塘，以及莊園里的紅色屋頂和那煙囪里冒出的裊裊青煙。這是一個晴朗的春天的傍晚，夕陽的光輝灑在草地和茂盛的叢林上，蕩漾著片片金輝。他們此刻忽然想到，這是他們自己的莊園，每一吋土地都歸他們自己所有，這是他們感到十分驚訝，因為在此之前，他們從未發(fā)現(xiàn)這里竟是如此令他們心馳神往?？死タ粗旅娴纳狡?，熱淚不禁涌上眼眶。如果她有辦法說出此時的想法的話，她肯定就會這樣說，現(xiàn)在的情形可不是幾年前他們?yōu)橥品祟惗^斗的目標，這些可怕的情形以及這種殺戮并不是他們在老麥哲第一次鼓動起義的那天晚上所向往的。對于未來，如果說她還曾有過什么構想，那就一定是構想了這樣一個社會：在那里，沒有饑餓和鞭子的折磨，一律平等，各盡其能，強者保護弱者，就象是在麥哲講演的那天晚上，她曾經(jīng)用前腿保護著那是最后才到的一群小鴨子一樣。但現(xiàn)在她不明白，為什么他們現(xiàn)在竟處在一個不敢講真話的世界里。當那些氣勢洶洶的狗到處咆哮的時候，當眼看著自己的同志在坦白了可怕的罪行后被撕成碎片而無可奈何的時候，她的心里沒有反叛或者違命的念頭。她知道，盡管如此，他們現(xiàn)在也比瓊斯在的時候強多了，再說，他們的當務之急還是要防備人類卷土重來。不管出了什么事，她都要依然忠心耿耿，辛勤勞動，服從拿破侖的領導，完成交給自己的任務。然而，她仍相信，她和其他的動物曾期望并為之操勞的，并不是今天這般情景;他們建造風車，勇敢地冒著瓊斯的槍林彈雨沖鋒陷陣也不是為著這些。這就是她所想的，盡管她還一下說不清。

At last, feeling this to be in some way a substitute for the words she was unable to find, she began to sing 'Beasts of England'. The other animals sitting round her took it up, and they sang it three times over--very tunefully, but slowly and mournfully, in a way they had never sung it before.

最后，她覺得實在找不到什么合適的措詞，而只能換個方式來表達，于是便開始唱“英格蘭獸”。圍在她周圍的動物跟著唱起來。他們唱了三遍，唱得十分和諧，但卻緩慢而凄然。他們以前還從沒有用這種唱法唱過這支歌。

They had just finished singing it for the third time when Squealer, attended by two dogs, approached them with the air of having something important to say. He announced that, by a special decree of Comrade Napoleon, 'Beasts of England' had been abolished. From now onwards it was forbidden to sing it.

他們剛唱完第三遍，斯奎拉就在兩條狗的陪同下，面帶著要說什么大事的神情向他們走過來。他宣布，遵照拿破侖同志的一項特別命令，“英格蘭獸”已被廢止了。從今以后禁止再唱這首歌。

The animals were taken aback.

動物們怔住了。

"Why?" cried Muriel.

“為什么?穆麗爾囔道。

"It's no longer needed, comrade," said Squealer stiffly. "'Beasts of England' was the song of the Rebellion. But the Rebellion is now completed. The execution of the traitors this afternoon was the final act. The enemy both external and internal has been defeated. In 'Beasts of England' we expressed our longing for a better society in days to come. But that society has now been established. Clearly this song has no longer any purpose."

“不需要了，同志們，”斯奎拉冷冷地說到，‘英格蘭獸’是起義用的歌。但起義已經(jīng)成功，今天下午對叛徒的處決就是最后的行動。另外仇敵已經(jīng)全部打垮了。我們在‘英格蘭獸’中表達的是在當時對未來美好社會的渴望，但這個社會現(xiàn)在已經(jīng)建立。這首歌明顯不再有任何意義了。”

Frightened though they were, some of the animals might possibly have protested, but at this moment the sheep set up their usual bleating of "Four legs good, two legs bad," which went on for several minutes and put an end to the discussion.

他們感到害怕，可是，恐怕還是有些動物要提出抗議。但就在這時，羊大聲地咩咩叫起那套老調(diào)子來：“四條腿好，兩條腿壞。”持續(xù)了好幾分鐘，也就結束了這場爭議。

So 'Beasts of England' was heard no more. In its place Minimus, the poet, had composed another song which began:

于是再也聽不到“英格蘭獸”這首歌了，取而代之的，是善寫詩的梅尼繆斯寫的另外一首歌，它是這樣開頭的：

Animal Farm, Animal Farm,

動物莊園，動物莊園，

Never through me shalt thou come to harm!

我永遠不會損害您!

And this was sung every Sunday morning after the hoisting of the flag. But somehow neither the words nor the tune ever seemed to the animals to come up to 'Beasts of England'.

從此，每個星期天早晨升旗之后就唱這首歌，但不知怎么搞的，對動物們來說，無論是詞還是曲，這首歌似乎都不再能和“英格蘭獸”相提并論了。