柳林風(fēng)聲： The Open Road 大路

‘Ratty,’ said the Mole suddenly, one bright summer morning, ‘if you please, I want to ask you a favour.’

一個(gè)陽光明媚的夏日早晨，鼴鼠忽對(duì)河鼠說：“鼠兄，我想求你幫個(gè)忙。”

The Rat was sitting on the river bank, singing a little song.?He had just composed it himself, so he was very taken up with it, and would not pay proper attention to Mole or anything else. Since early morning he had been swimming in the river, in company with his friends the ducks.?And when the ducks stood on their heads suddenly, as ducks will, he would dive down and tickle their necks, just under where their chins would be if ducks had chins, till they were forced to come to the surface again in a hurry, spluttering and angry and shaking their feathers at him, for it is impossible to say quite ALL you feel when your head is under water.?At last they implored him to go away and attend to his own affairs and leave them to mind theirs.?So the Rat went away, and sat on the river bank in the sun, and made up a song about them, which he called ‘DUCKS’ DITTY.’

河鼠正坐在岸邊，吟唱一支小曲兒。這曲子是他自己編的，所以唱得很帶勁，沒怎么留意鼴鼠或別的事兒。一大早，他就和鴨子朋友們?cè)诤永镉斡緛碇?。鴨子一慣總喜歡猛地頭朝下腳朝上拿大頂。這時(shí)，河鼠就潛到水下，在鴨子的下巴(要是鴨子有下巴的話)下面的脖子上撓癢癢，弄得鴨子只好趕緊鉆出水面，撲打著羽毛，氣急敗壞地沖他嚷嚷。因?yàn)?，要是你的頭倒插在水里，你自然不可能痛痛快快發(fā)泄你一腔怒火。后來，他們只得央求他走開，去管自己的事，別干涉他們。河鼠這才走開了，在河岸上坐著曬太陽，編一首有關(guān)鴨子的歌。歌名叫：《鴨謠》——

All along the backwater, Through the rushes tall, Ducks are a-dabbling, Up tails all!

沿著靜水灣，長長燈芯草，鴨群在戲水，尾巴高高翹。

Ducks’ tails, drakes’ tails, Yellow feet a-quiver, Yellow bills all out of sight Busy in the river!

公鴨母鴨尾.黃腳顫悠悠，黃嘴隱不見，河中忙不休。

Slushy green undergrowth Where the roach swim—Here we keep our larder, Cool and full and dim.

綠萍水草稠,魚兒盡興游，食品儲(chǔ)存庫，豐盛又清幽。

Everyone for what he likes! WE like to be Heads down, tails up, Dabbling free!

人各有所好!頭下尾上翹，鴨子的心愿，水上樂消遙。

High in the blue above Swifts whirl and call—WE are down a-dabbling Up tails all!

藍(lán)藍(lán)天空高，雨燕飛又叫，我們戲水中尾巴齊上翹!

‘I don’t know that I think so VERY much of that little song, Rat,’ observed the Mole cautiously.?He was no poet himself and didn’t care who knew it; and he had a candid nature.

“這首歌到底有多好，我說不上來，鼠兄，”鼴鼠謹(jǐn)慎地說。鼴鼠自己不是詩人，也不贊賞懂詩的人。而且，他天性坦誠，喜歡實(shí)話實(shí)說。

‘Nor don’t the ducks neither,’ replied the Rat cheerfully.?‘They say, “WHY can’t fellows be allowed to do what they like WHEN they like and AS they like, instead of other fellows sitting on banks and watching them all the time and making remarks and poetry and things about them??What NONSENSE it all is!”?That’s what the ducks say.’

“鴨子也不懂得，”河鼠開朗地說，“他們說：‘干嗎不讓人家在高興的時(shí)候做他們高興做的事?別人干嗎要坐在岸上對(duì)人家橫挑鼻子豎挑眼，還要編歌嘲笑人家?盡是胡說八道!’這就是鴨子們的論調(diào)。”

‘So it is, so it is,’ said the Mole, with great heartiness.

“說得對(duì)嘛.說得對(duì)嘛，”鼴鼠打心眼兒里贊同。

‘No, it isn’t!’ cried the Rat indignantly.

“不，說得不對(duì)!”河鼠氣憤地喊道。

‘Well then, it isn’t, it isn’t,’ replied the Mole soothingly. ‘But what I wanted to ask you was, won’t you take me to call on Mr. Toad??I’ve heard so much about him, and I do so want to make his acquaintance.’

“好啦，就算不對(duì)，就算不對(duì)，”鼴鼠息事寧人地說。“可是我想問問你，你能不能領(lǐng)我去拜訪蟾蜍先生?他的事，我聽說得多了，特想和他認(rèn)識(shí)認(rèn)識(shí)。”

‘Why, certainly,’ said the good-natured Rat, jumping to his feet and dismissing poetry from his mind for the day.?‘Get the boat out, and we’ll paddle up there at once.?It’s never the wrong time to call on Toad.?Early or late he’s always the same fellow. Always good-tempered, always glad to see you, always sorry when you go!’

“當(dāng)然啰!”好脾氣的河鼠說著，一躍而起，把詩呀什么的全都拋到腦后，一整天再也沒想起。“去把船劃出來，咱們馬上就去他家。你想拜訪蟾蜍，隨時(shí)都可以。不管是早是晚，蟾蜍都一個(gè)樣，總是樂呵呵的。你去看他，他老是高興，你要走，他老是戀戀不舍!”

‘He must be a very nice animal,’ observed the Mole, as he got into the boat and took the sculls, while the Rat settled himself comfortably in the stern.

“他準(zhǔn)是個(gè)非常和善的動(dòng)物，”鼴鼠說。他跨上了船，提起雙槳。河鼠呢，他安安逸逸地坐到了船尾。

‘He is indeed the best of animals,’ replied Rat.?‘So simple, so good-natured, and so affectionate.?Perhaps he’s not very clever—we can’t all be geniuses; and it may be that he is both boastful and conceited. But he has got some great qualities, has Toady.’

“他的確是個(gè)再好不過的動(dòng)物，”河鼠說。“特單純，特溫和，特重感情。或許不太聰明——不可能人人都是天才嘛。他或許愛吹牛，有些自高自大。可蟾兒，他的優(yōu)點(diǎn)確實(shí)不少。”

Rounding a bend in the river, they came in sight of a handsome, dignified old house of mellowed red brick, with well-kept lawns reaching down to the water’s edge.

繞過一道河灣，迎面就見一幢美麗、莊嚴(yán)、古色古香的老紅磚房;房前是修理得平平整整的草坪，一直延伸到河邊。

‘There’s Toad Hall,’ said the Rat; ‘and that creek on the left, where the notice-board says, “Private.?No landing allowed,” leads to his boat-house, where we’ll leave the boat.?The stables are over there to the right.?That’s the banqueting-hall you’re looking at now—very old, that is.?Toad is rather rich, you know, and this is really one of the nicest houses in these parts, though we never admit as much to Toad.’

“那就是蟾宮，”河鼠說。“左邊有一條小河汊，牌子上寫著：‘私人河道，不得在此登岸’。這河汊直逼他的船塢，咱們要在那兒停船上岸。右邊是馬廄。你現(xiàn)在看到的是宴會(huì)廳——年代很久了。你知道，蟾蜍相當(dāng)有錢，這幢房子確實(shí)是這一帶一所最講究的房屋，不過，我們從不向蟾蜍這樣表示。”

They glided up the creek, and the Mole slipped his sculls as they passed into the shadow of a large boat-house.?Here they saw many handsome boats, slung from the cross beams or hauled up on a slip, but none in the water; and the place had an unused and a deserted air.

小船徐徐駛進(jìn)河漢，來到一所大船塢的屋頂下。鼴鼠把槳收進(jìn)船艙。這里，他們看到許多漂亮的小船，有的掛在橫梁上，有的吊在船臺(tái)上，可是沒有一只船是在水里。這地方顯得有種冷落廢棄的氣氛。

The Rat looked around him.?‘I understand,’ said he.?‘Boating is played out.?He’s tired of it, and done with it.?I wonder what new fad he has taken up now??Come along and let’s look him up. We shall hear all about it quite soon enough.’

河鼠環(huán)顧四周。“我明白了，”他說。“看來他玩船已經(jīng)玩夠了，厭倦了，再也不玩了。不知道他現(xiàn)在又迷上了什么新玩意兒?走，咱們瞧他去。一切很快就會(huì)明白的。”

They disembarked, and strolled across the gay flower-decked lawns in search of Toad, whom they presently happened upon resting in a wicker garden-chair, with a pre-occupied expression of face, and a large map spread out on his knees.

他們離船上岸，穿過各色鮮花裝點(diǎn)的草坪，尋找蟾蜍。不多時(shí)，他們就遇到了他。蟾蜍坐在一張花園藤椅上，臉上一副全神貫注的神情，盯著膝上的一張大地圖。

‘Hooray!’ he cried, jumping up on seeing them, ‘this is splendid!’?He shook the paws of both of them warmly, never waiting for an introduction to the Mole.?‘How KIND of you!’ he went on, dancing round them.?‘I was just going to send a boat down the river for you, Ratty, with strict orders that you were to be fetched up here at once, whatever you were doing.?I want you badly—both of you.?Now what will you take??Come inside and have something!?You don’t know how lucky it is, your turning up just now!’

“啊哈!”看到他倆，蟾蜍跳了起來，“太好了!”不等河鼠介紹，就熱情洋溢地同他倆握握爪子。“你們真好!”他接著說，圍著他倆蹦蹦跳跳。“河鼠，我正要派船到下游去接你，吩咐他們不管你在干什么，馬上把你接來。我非常需要你——你們兩位。好吧，現(xiàn)在你們想吃點(diǎn)什么?快進(jìn)屋吃點(diǎn)東西吧!你們來得正是時(shí)候。你們想不到，有多巧啊!”

‘Let’s sit quiet a bit, Toady!’ said the Rat, throwing himself into an easy chair, while the Mole took another by the side of him and made some civil remark about Toad’s ‘delightful residence.’

“蟾兒，讓咱們先安靜地坐一會(huì)兒吧!”河鼠說，一屁股坐在一張扶手椅上。鼴鼠坐在他旁邊的另一張扶手椅上、說了幾句客氣話，贊美蟾蜍那“可愛的住宅”。

‘Finest house on the whole river,’ cried Toad boisterously.?‘Or anywhere else, for that matter,’ he could not help adding.

“這是沿河一帶最講究的房子，”蟾蜍哇啦哇啦大聲嚷道。“在別的地方，你也找不到這么好的房子。”他情不自禁又加上一句……

Here the Rat nudged the Mole.?Unfortunately the Toad saw him do it, and turned very red.?There was a moment’s painful silence. Then Toad burst out laughing.?‘All right, Ratty,’ he said. ‘It’s only my way, you know.?And it’s not such a very bad house, is it??You know you rather like it yourself.?Now, look here. Let’s be sensible.?You are the very animals I wanted.?You’ve got to help me.?It’s most important!’

這時(shí)，河鼠用胳臂捅了捅鼴鼠，不巧，正好被蟾蜍看見了。他臉漲得通紅。跟著是一陣難堪的沉寂。然后，蟾蜍大笑起來。“得啦，鼠兒，我說話就這么個(gè)德行，你知道的。再說，這房子確實(shí)不壞，是吧?你自己不也挺喜歡它嗎。咱們都清醒些好啦。你們兩位正是我需要的。你們得幫我這個(gè)忙。這事至關(guān)重要!”

‘It’s about your rowing, I suppose,’ said the Rat, with an innocent air.?‘You’re getting on fairly well, though you splash a good bit still.?With a great deal of patience, and any quantity of coaching, you may----‘

“我猜，是有關(guān)劃船的事吧，”河鼠裝糊涂說。“你進(jìn)步很快嘛，就是還濺好些水花。只要再耐心些，再加上適當(dāng)?shù)闹笇?dǎo)，你就可以……”

‘O, pooh! boating!’ interrupted the Toad, in great disgust. Silly boyish amusement.?I’ve given that up LONG ago.?Sheer waste of time, that’s what it is.?It makes me downright sorry to see you fellows, who ought to know better, spending all your energies in that aimless manner.?No, I’ve discovered the real thing, the only genuine occupation for a life time.?I propose to devote the remainder of mine to it, and can only regret the wasted years that lie behind me, squandered in trivialities. Come with me, dear Ratty, and your amiable friend also, if he will be so very good, just as far as the stable-yard, and you shall see what you shall see!’

“噢，呸!什么船!”蟾蜍打斷他的話，顯得十分厭惡的樣子。“那是小男孩們的愚蠢玩意兒。我老早就不玩了。不折不扣，純粹是浪費(fèi)時(shí)光?？吹侥銈冞@些人把全副精力花在那種毫無意義的事情上，真叫我感到痛心，你們本該明白的。不，不，我已經(jīng)找到了一樁真正的事業(yè)，這輩子應(yīng)該從事的一種正經(jīng)行當(dāng)。我打算把我的余生奉獻(xiàn)給它。一想到過去那么多年頭浪費(fèi)在無聊的瑣事上，我真是追悔莫及。跟我來，親愛的鼠兒，還有你的這位和藹的朋友也來.如果肯賞光的話。不遠(yuǎn)，就在馬廄場院那邊，到了那兒，你們就會(huì)看到要看到的東西!”

He led the way to the stable-yard accordingly, the Rat following with a most mistrustful expression; and there, drawn out of the coach house into the open, they saw a gipsy caravan, shining with newness, painted a canary-yellow picked out with green, and red wheels.

蟾蜍領(lǐng)著他們向馬廄場院走去，河鼠一臉狐疑，跟在后面。只見從馬車房里拉出一輛吉卜賽篷車，嶄新，锃亮，車身漆成金絲雀般的淡黃色，點(diǎn)綴著綠色紋飾，車輪則是大紅的。

‘There you are!’ cried the Toad, straddling and expanding himself.?‘There’s real life for you, embodied in that little cart.?The open road, the dusty highway, the heath, the common, the hedgerows, the rolling downs!?Camps, villages, towns, cities!?Here to-day, up and off to somewhere else to-morrow! Travel, change, interest, excitement!?The whole world before you, and a horizon that’s always changing!?And mind! this is the very finest cart of its sort that was ever built, without any exception.?Come inside and look at the arrangements.?Planned ‘em all myself, I did!’

“瞧吧!”蟾蜍叉開雙腿，腆著肚皮，喊道，“這輛小馬車代表的生活，才是你們要過的真正的生活。一眼望不到頭的大道，塵土飛揚(yáng)的公路，荒原，公地，樹籬，起伏的草原，帳篷，村莊，城鎮(zhèn)，都市，全都屬于你們!今天在這里，明天在那里!到處旅行，變換環(huán)境，到處有樂趣，刺激!整個(gè)世界在你眼前展開，地平線在不斷變換!請(qǐng)注意，這輛車是同類車子里最精美的一輛，絕無例外。進(jìn)車?yán)飦?，瞧瞧里面的設(shè)備吧。全是我自己設(shè)計(jì)的，是我干的!”

The Mole was tremendously interested and excited, and followed him eagerly up the steps and into the interior of the caravan. The Rat only snorted and thrust his hands deep into his pockets, remaining where he was.

鼴鼠興致勃勃，興奮異常，急不可耐地跟著蟾蜍踩上篷車的踏板，進(jìn)了車廂。河鼠只哼了哼鼻子，把手深深插進(jìn)褲兜，站在原地不動(dòng)。

It was indeed very compact and comfortable.?Little sleeping bunks—a little table that folded up against the wall—a cooking-stove, lockers, bookshelves, a bird-cage with a bird in it; and pots, pans, jugs and kettles of every size and variety.

車廂里確實(shí)布置得非常緊湊而舒適。幾張小小的臥鋪，一張小桌靠壁折起，爐具，小食品柜，書架，一只鳥籠，籠里關(guān)著一只鳥，還有各種型號(hào)和式樣的高鍋、平鍋、瓶瓶罐罐、燒水的壺。

‘All complete!’ said the Toad triumphantly, pulling open a locker.?‘You see—biscuits, potted lobster, sardines—everything you can possibly want.?Soda-water here—baccy there—letter-paper, bacon, jam, cards and dominoes—you’ll find,’ he continued, as they descended the steps again, ‘you’ll find that nothing what ever has been forgotten, when we make our start this afternoon.’

“一應(yīng)俱全!”蟾蜍得意地說。他打開一只小柜。“瞧，有餅干、罐頭龍蝦、沙丁魚——凡是你們用得著的東酉，應(yīng)有盡有。這兒是蘇打水，那兒是煙草，信紙、火腿、果醬、紙牌、骨牌，”他們重新踩著踏板下車時(shí)，他繼續(xù)說，“你會(huì)發(fā)現(xiàn)，咱們今天下午啟程時(shí)，什么也沒漏掉。”

‘I beg your pardon,’ said the Rat slowly, as he chewed a straw, ‘but did I overhear you say something about “WE,” and “START,” and “THIS AFTERNOON?”’

“對(duì)不起，”河鼠嘴里嚼著一根稻草，慢條斯理地說，“我好像聽見你剛才說什么‘咱們’，什么‘啟程’。什么‘今天下午’來著?”

‘Now, you dear good old Ratty,’ said Toad, imploringly, ‘don’t begin talking in that stiff and sniffy sort of way, because you know you’ve GOT to come.?I can’t possibly manage without you, so please consider it settled, and don’t argue—it’s the one thing I can’t stand.?You surely don’t mean to stick to your dull fusty old river all your life, and just live in a hole in a bank, and BOAT??I want to show you the world!?I’m going to make an ANIMAL of you, my boy!’

“得啦，你呀，親愛的好老鼠兒，”蟾蜍央求說，“別用那種尖酸刻薄的腔調(diào)說話好嗎?你明明知道，你們非來不可。沒有你們，叫我怎么對(duì)付這一攤?求求你啦，這事就這么定了，別和我爭辯，我受不了。你總不能一輩子守著你那條乏味的臭哄哄的老河，成天呆在河岸上一個(gè)洞里，呆在船上吧?我想讓你見見世面!我要把你造就成一只像樣的動(dòng)物，伙計(jì)!”

‘I don’t care,’ said the Rat, doggedly.?‘I’m not coming, and that’s flat.?And I AM going to stick to my old river, AND live in a hole, AND boat, as I’ve always done.?And what’s more, Mole’s going to stick me and do as I do, aren’t you, Mole?’

“我才不稀罕你的那套把戲哩!”河鼠固執(zhí)地說。“我就是不跟你去，說一不二。我就是要守著我的老河，要住在洞里，要駕船，像往常一樣。而且，鼴鼠也要跟我一道，干同樣的事，是不是，鼴鼠?”

‘Of course I am,’ said the Mole, loyally.?‘I’ll always stick to you, Rat, and what you say is to be—has got to be.?All the same, it sounds as if it might have been—well, rather fun, you know!’ he added, wistfully.?Poor Mole!?The Life Adventurous was so new a thing to him, and so thrilling; and this fresh aspect of it was so tempting; and he had fallen in love at first sight with the canary-coloured cart and all its little fitments.

“那是自然!”鼴鼠誠摯地說。“我永遠(yuǎn)陪伴你，鼠兒，你說什么就是什么，就得是什么。不過，這玩意看起來像是——呃，像是怪有意思的，是吧?”他眼巴巴地加上一句?？蓱z的鼴鼠!探險(xiǎn)生活，對(duì)他來說是樁新鮮事兒，驚險(xiǎn)又刺激，這個(gè)新的方面，對(duì)他有很強(qiáng)的誘惑力。他第一眼看見那輛篷車和它的全套小裝備，就愛上它了。

The Rat saw what was passing in his mind, and wavered.?He hated disappointing people, and he was fond of the Mole, and would do almost anything to oblige him. Toad was watching both of them closely.

河鼠看出了鼴鼠的心思，他的決心起了動(dòng)搖。他不愿使人失望，何況他喜歡鼴鼠，總是竭力讓他高興。蟾蜍在一旁仔細(xì)觀察他倆的動(dòng)靜。

‘Come along in, and have some lunch,’ he said, diplomatically, ‘and we’ll talk it over.?We needn’t decide anything in a hurry. Of course, I don’t really care.?I only want to give pleasure to you fellows.?“Live for others!”?That’s my motto in life.’

“先進(jìn)屋吃點(diǎn)午飯吧，”蟾蜍策略地說，“咱們慢慢商量。用不著匆忙做出決定嘛。其實(shí)我倒不在乎。我只不過想讓你倆高興高興罷了。‘活著為別人!’這是我的處世格言。”

During luncheon—which was excellent, of course, as everything at Toad Hall always was—the Toad simply let himself go. Disregarding the Rat, he proceeded to play upon the inexperienced Mole as on a harp.?Naturally a voluble animal, and always mastered by his imagination, he painted the prospects of the trip and the joys of the open life and the roadside in such glowing colours that the Mole could hardly sit in his chair for excitement.?Somehow, it soon seemed taken for granted by all three of them that the trip was a settled thing; and the Rat, though still unconvinced in his mind, allowed his good-nature to over-ride his personal objections.?He could not bear to disappoint his two friends, who were already deep in schemes and anticipations, planning out each day’s separate occupation for several weeks ahead.

午餐，自然是極其精美，就像蟾宮里的所有事物一樣。吃飯時(shí)，蟾蜍信口開河高談闊論。他把河鼠撇在一邊，專門逗弄缺乏經(jīng)驗(yàn)的鼴鼠。他天生就是一只夸夸其談的動(dòng)物，又喜歡突發(fā)奇想，他把這趟旅行的前景、戶外生活和途中的樂趣描繪得天花亂墜，把個(gè)鼴鼠激動(dòng)得坐都坐不住了。一來二去，三只動(dòng)物似乎很快就達(dá)成了協(xié)議，把旅行的事確定下來了。河鼠雖然還心存疑慮，但他的好脾氣終究壓倒了個(gè)人的反對(duì)意見。他不忍心使兩位朋友掃興。他們已經(jīng)在深入細(xì)致地制定計(jì)劃，作出種種設(shè)想，安排未來幾周里每天的活動(dòng)了。

When they were quite ready, the now triumphant Toad led his companions to the paddock and set them to capture the old grey horse, who, without having been consulted, and to his own extreme annoyance, had been told off by Toad for the dustiest job in this dusty expedition.?He frankly preferred the paddock, and took a deal of catching.?Meantime Toad packed the lockers still tighter with necessaries, and hung nosebags, nets of onions, bundles of hay, and baskets from the bottom of the cart.?At last the horse was caught and harnessed, and they set off, all talking at once, each animal either trudging by the side of the cart or sitting on the shaft, as the humour took him.?It was a golden afternoon.?The smell of the dust they kicked up was rich and satisfying; out of thick orchards on either side the road, birds called and whistled to them cheerily; good-natured wayfarers, passing them, gave them ‘Good-day,’ or stopped to say nice things about their beautiful cart; and rabbits, sitting at their front doors in the hedgerows, held up their fore-paws, and said, ‘O my! O my!?O my!’

行前的準(zhǔn)備大體就緒，大獲全勝的蟾蜍領(lǐng)著伙伴們來到養(yǎng)馬場，要他們?nèi)プ侥瞧ダ匣荫R。由于事先沒跟老馬商量，蟾蜍就分派他在這趟塵土彌漫的旅途中干這件塵土彌漫的臟活，老馬一肚子牢騷怨氣，所以逮住他可費(fèi)了大勁。蟾蜍乘他們逮馬時(shí)，又往食品柜塞進(jìn)更多的必需品，又把飼料袋、幾網(wǎng)兜洋蔥頭、幾大捆干草，還有幾只筐子，吊在車廂底下。老馬終于給逮住，套在車上，他們出發(fā)了。三只動(dòng)物各隨所好，有的跟著車走，有的坐在車杠上，大伙兒你一言我一語，同時(shí)說著話。那天下午，陽光燦爛。他們蹴起的塵土，香噴噴的，聞著叫人心曠神怡。大路兩側(cè)茂密的果園里，鳥兒們歡樂地向他們打招呼，吹口哨。和藹的過路人從他們身旁走過時(shí)，向他們道聲好，或者停下來，說幾句中聽的話，贊美他們那漂亮的馬車。兔兒們坐在樹籬下他們家的門口，舉著前爪，一疊連聲贊嘆：“哎呀呀!哎呀呀!哎呀呀!”

Late in the evening, tired and happy and miles from home, they drew up on a remote common far from habitations, turned the horse loose to graze, and ate their simple supper sitting on the grass by the side of the cart.?Toad talked big about all he was going to do in the days to come, while stars grew fuller and larger all around them, and a yellow moon, appearing suddenly and silently from nowhere in particular, came to keep them company and listen to their talk.?At last they turned in to their little bunks in the cart; and Toad, kicking out his legs, sleepily said, ‘Well, good night, you fellows!?This is the real life for a gentleman! Talk about your old river!’

天色很晚的時(shí)候，他們離家已有好些哩地了，身體疲乏，心情愉快，就在一處遠(yuǎn)離人煙的公地上歇下來。他們卸下馬具。由著馬去吃草，自己坐在車旁的草地上。蟾蜍大談他在未來幾天打算干的事。這時(shí)，星星圍著他們，越來越密，越來越大。一輪黃澄澄的月亮，不知打哪兒悄悄地突然冒出來，給他們作伴兒，聽他們說話。過后，他們鉆進(jìn)篷車，爬上各自的鋪位。蟾蜍伸開兩腳，瞌睡得迷糊糊地說：“伙計(jì)們，晚安!這才是紳士們應(yīng)該過的生活!別再談你的那條老河了!”

‘I DON’T talk about my river,’ replied the patient Rat. ‘You KNOW I don’t, Toad.?But I THINK about it,’ he added pathetically, in a lower tone:?‘I think about it—all the time!’

“我并不談我的河，”河鼠不緊不慢地說。“蟾蜍，這你知道，可我心里總叨念它，”他又凄凄切切地低聲說：“我想念它——一直在想念它!”

The Mole reached out from under his blanket, felt for the Rat’s paw in the darkness, and gave it a squeeze.?‘I’ll do whatever you like, Ratty,’ he whispered.?‘Shall we run away to-morrow morning, quite early—VERY early—and go back to our dear old hole on the river?’

鼴鼠從毯子下面伸出爪子，在黑暗里摸到河鼠的爪子，捏了一下。“鼠兒，只要你樂意，干什么我都愿意，”他悄悄對(duì)他說，“明兒一大早，咱們就開溜，回到咱們親愛的河上老洞去，好嗎?”

‘No, no, we’ll see it out,’ whispered back the Rat.?‘Thanks awfully, but I ought to stick by Toad till this trip is ended. It wouldn’t be safe for him to be left to himself.?It won’t take very long.?His fads never do.?Good night!’

“不，不，咱們還是堅(jiān)持到底，”河鼠悄聲回答。“多謝你的好意，不過我得守著蟾蜍，直到這趟旅行結(jié)束。撂下他一個(gè)，我不放心。不會(huì)拖很久的。他的怪念頭，從來也維持不長。晚安!”

The end was indeed nearer than even the Rat suspected.

這次旅行，果然結(jié)束得比河鼠預(yù)料的還要早。

After so much open air and excitement the Toad slept very soundly, and no amount of shaking could rouse him out of bed next morning.?So the Mole and Rat turned to, quietly and manfully, and while the Rat saw to the horse, and lit a fire, and cleaned last night’s cups and platters, and got things ready for breakfast, the Mole trudged off to the nearest village, a long way off, for milk and eggs and various necessaries the Toad had, of course, forgotten to provide.?The hard work had all been done, and the two animals were resting, thoroughly exhausted, by the time Toad appeared on the scene, fresh and gay, remarking what a pleasant easy life it was they were all leading now, after the cares and worries and fatigues of housekeeping at home.

由于長時(shí)間的戶外活動(dòng)，興奮歡快，蟾蜍睡得很死，第二天早晨，怎么推也推他不醒。于是鼴鼠和河鼠毅然決然，不聲不響地動(dòng)手干起活來。河鼠喂馬，生火，洗刷隔夜的杯盤碗盞，準(zhǔn)備早餐。鼴鼠呢，他走了一段很長的路，到最近的村落里去買牛奶、雞蛋，以及蟾蜍自然忘帶的一應(yīng)必需品。等這些繁重的勞務(wù)全都干完，兩只動(dòng)物累得夠嗆，坐下來歇憩時(shí)，蟾蜍這才露面，神采奕奕，興致勃勃，說現(xiàn)在他們大家都活得輕松愉快啦，不用像在家時(shí)那樣操勞家務(wù)啦。

They had a pleasant ramble that day over grassy downs and along narrow by-lanes, and camped as before, on a common, only this time the two guests took care that Toad should do his fair share of work.?In consequence, when the time came for starting next morning, Toad was by no means so rapturous about the simplicity of the primitive life, and indeed attempted to resume his place in his bunk, whence he was hauled by force.?Their way lay, as before, across country by narrow lanes, and it was not till the afternoon that they came out on the high-road, their first high-road; and there disaster, fleet and unforeseen, sprang out on them—disaster momentous indeed to their expedition, but simply overwhelming in its effect on the after-career of Toad.

這一天，他們悠閑自在地游逛，駛過綠茵茵的草原，穿行窄窄的小徑，當(dāng)晚又在一塊公地上過夜。不過，兩位客人這回硬要蟾蜍干他份內(nèi)的活兒。結(jié)果，第二天早上要?jiǎng)由頃r(shí)，蟾蜍不再津津樂道原始生活如何單純簡易，卻一味想賴回他的鋪上，但被他們硬拖了起來。和昨天一樣，他們的路程仍是穿經(jīng)窄窄的小徑，越過田野。到了下午，他們才上了公路。這是他們遇到的第一條公路。就在這兒，意想不到的禍?zhǔn)拢咐装懵涞搅怂麄冾^上。這樁禍?zhǔn)拢瑢?duì)于他們的旅行是個(gè)災(zāi)難，而對(duì)于蟾蜍今后的生涯，卻產(chǎn)生了翻天覆地的重大影響。

They were strolling along the high-road easily, the Mole by the horse’s head, talking to him, since the horse had complained that he was being frightfully left out of it, and nobody considered him in the least; the Toad and the Water Rat walking behind the cart talking together—at least Toad was talking, and Rat was saying at intervals, ‘Yes, precisely; and what did YOU say to HIM?’—and thinking all the time of something very different, when far behind them they heard a faint warning hum; like the drone of a distant bee.?Glancing back, they saw a small cloud of dust, with a dark centre of energy, advancing on them at incredible speed, while from out the dust a faint ‘Poop-poop!’ wailed like an uneasy animal in pain.?Hardly regarding it, they turned to resume their conversation, when in an instant (as it seemed) the peaceful scene was changed, and with a blast of wind and a whirl of sound that made them jump for the nearest ditch, It was on them!?The ‘Poop-poop’ rang with a brazen shout in their ears, they had a moment’s glimpse of an interior of glittering plate-glass and rich morocco, and the magnificent motor-car, immense, breath-snatching, passionate, with its pilot tense and hugging his wheel, possessed all earth and air for the fraction of a second, flung an enveloping cloud of dust that blinded and enwrapped them utterly, and then dwindled to a speck in the far distance, changed back into a droning bee once more.

他們正悠閑自在地在公路上緩緩行進(jìn)，鼴鼠和老馬并肩而行，跟馬說話，因?yàn)槟瞧ヱR抱怨說，他被冷落了，誰也不理睬他。蟾蜍和河鼠跟在車后，互相交談——至少是蟾蜍在說話，河鼠只是有一搭沒一搭地插上一句：“是呀，可不是嗎?你跟他說什么來著?”心里卻琢磨著毫不相干的別樣事。就在這當(dāng)兒，從后面老遠(yuǎn)的地方傳來一陣隱隱的警告的轟鳴聲，就像一只蜜蜂在遠(yuǎn)處嗡嗡嚶嚶。回頭一看，只見后面一團(tuán)滾滾煙塵，中心有個(gè)黑黑的東西在移動(dòng)，以難以置信的速度向他們沖來。從煙塵里，發(fā)出一種低微的“噗噗”聲，像一只驚恐不安的動(dòng)物在痛苦地呻吟。他們并沒在意，又接著談話。可是就在一瞬間(仿佛只一眨眼的工夫)，寧靜的局面突然打破了。一陣狂風(fēng)，一聲怒吼，那東西猛撲上來，把他們逼下了路旁的溝渠。那“噗噗”聲，像只大喇叭，在他們耳邊震天價(jià)響。那東西里面锃亮的厚玻璃板和華貴的摩洛哥山羊皮墊，在他們眼前一晃而過。原來那是一輛富麗堂皇的汽車，一個(gè)龐然大物，脾氣暴躁，令人膽寒。駕駛員聚精會(huì)神地緊握方向盤，頃刻間獨(dú)霸了整個(gè)天地，攪起一團(tuán)遮天蔽日的塵云，把他們團(tuán)團(tuán)裹住，什么也看不見了。接著，它嗖地遠(yuǎn)去，縮成一個(gè)小黑點(diǎn)，又變成了一只低聲嗡嗡的蜜蜂。

The old grey horse, dreaming, as he plodded along, of his quiet paddock, in a new raw situation such as this simply abandoned himself to his natural emotions.?Rearing, plunging, backing steadily, in spite of all the Mole’s efforts at his head, and all the Mole’s lively language directed at his better feelings, he drove the cart backwards towards the deep ditch at the side of the road.?It wavered an instant—then there was a heartrending crash—and the canary-coloured cart, their pride and their joy, lay on its side in the ditch, an irredeemable wreck.

那匹老灰馬，正慢悠悠地往前踱步，一面夢想著他那恬靜閑適的養(yǎng)馬場，突然遇上這么個(gè)難對(duì)付的局面，不由得狂躁起來。他向后退，又向前猛沖，又一個(gè)勁兒倒退，不管鼴鼠怎樣使勁拉他的馬頭.怎樣在一旁苦口婆心地勸他保持冷靜，全都無濟(jì)于事，硬是把車子往后推到了路旁的深溝邊。那車晃了晃，接著便是撕心裂膽的一陣破碎聲，結(jié)果，這輛淡黃色篷車，他們的驕傲和歡樂，就整個(gè)橫躺在溝底，成了一堆無法修復(fù)的殘骸。

The Rat danced up and down in the road, simply transported with passion.?‘You villains!’ he shouted, shaking both fists, ‘You scoundrels, you highwaymen, you—you—roadhogs!--I’ll have the law of you!?I’ll report you!?I’ll take you through all the Courts!’?His home-sickness had quite slipped away from him, and for the moment he was the skipper of the canary-coloured vessel driven on a shoal by the reckless jockeying of rival mariners, and he was trying to recollect all the fine and biting things he used to say to masters of steam-launches when their wash, as they drove too near the bank, used to flood his parlour-carpet at home.

河鼠站在路當(dāng)中，暴跳如雷，氣得直頓腳。“這幫惡棍!”他揮著雙拳大聲吼叫。“這幫壞蛋，這幫強(qiáng)盜，你們——你們——你們這幫路匪!——我要控告你們!我要把你們送上法庭!”他的念家情緒領(lǐng)時(shí)消失，此刻，他成了一艘淡黃色航船的船長，他的船被一群敵對(duì)的船員肆無忌憚的橫沖直撞逼上了淺灘。一怒之下，他過去痛罵那些小汽船老板的尖酸刻薄的話一股腦噴發(fā)出來，因?yàn)槟切┤税汛_得離岸大近，攪起的浪花常常淹了他家客廳的地毯。

Toad sat straight down in the middle of the dusty road, his legs stretched out before him, and stared fixedly in the direction of the disappearing motor-car.?He breathed short, his face wore a placid satisfied expression, and at intervals he faintly murmured ‘Poop-poop!’

蟾蜍一屁股坐在滿是塵土的大路當(dāng)中，兩腿直挺挺地伸在前面，眼睛定定地凝望著汽車開走的方向。他呼吸急促，臉上的神情卻十分寧靜而滿意，嘴里還不時(shí)發(fā)出輕輕的“噗噗”聲。

The Mole was busy trying to quiet the horse, which he succeeded in doing after a time.?Then he went to look at the cart, on its side in the ditch.?It was indeed a sorry sight.?Panels and windows smashed, axles hopelessly bent, one wheel off, sardine-tins scattered over the wide world, and the bird in the bird-cage sobbing pitifully and calling to be let out.

鼴鼠忙著安撫老灰馬，過了一會(huì)，終于使他鎮(zhèn)靜下來。接著他就去查看那輛橫躺在溝底的車。那模樣真是慘不忍睹。門窗全都摔得粉碎，車軸彎得不可收拾，一只輪子脫落了，沙丁魚罐頭掉了一地，籠里的鳥慘兮兮地抽泣著，哭喊著求他們放他出來。

The Rat came to help him, but their united efforts were not sufficient to right the cart.?‘Hi! Toad!’ they cried.?‘Come and bear a hand, can’t you!’

河鼠過去幫助鼴鼠，可他們兩個(gè)一齊努力也沒能把車扶起。“喂!蟾蜍!”他們喊道。“下來幫一把手，行不行?”

The Toad never answered a word, or budged from his seat in the road; so they went to see what was the matter with him.?They found him in a sort of a trance, a happy smile on his face, his eyes still fixed on the dusty wake of their destroyer.?At intervals he was still heard to murmur ‘Poop-poop!’

蟾蜍一聲不吭，坐在路上紋絲不動(dòng)。他倆只得過去，看看究竟出了什么事。只見，蟾蜍正迷迷瞪瞪地出神，臉上掛著幸福的笑容，兩眼仍直勾勾地盯著前面塵土飛揚(yáng)的地方，那個(gè)毀了他們的家伙的去向。時(shí)不時(shí)，還聽到他低聲念叨：“噗噗!”

The Rat shook him by the shoulder.?‘Are you coming to help us, Toad?’ he demanded sternly.

河鼠搖了搖他的肩膀，嚴(yán)肅的問道：“蟾蜍，你不來幫我們嗎? ”

‘Glorious, stirring sight!’ murmured Toad, never offering to move.?‘The poetry of motion!?The REAL way to travel!?The ONLY way to travel!?Here to-day—in next week to-morrow! Villages skipped, towns and cities jumped—always somebody else’s horizon!?O bliss!?O poop-poop!?O my!?O my!’

“多么燦爛輝煌又激動(dòng)人心的景象啊!”蟾蜍嘟噥著說，根本不打算挪窩兒。“詩一般的動(dòng)力!這才叫真正的旅行!這才是旅行的唯一方式!今天在這兒——明天就到了別處!一座座村莊，一座座城鎮(zhèn)，飛馳而過——新的眼界不斷出現(xiàn)!多幸福啊!噗噗!哎呀呀!哎呀呀!”

‘O STOP being an ass, Toad!’ cried the Mole despairingly.

“別這么呆頭呆腦的，蟾蜍!”鼴鼠喊道，拿他毫無辦法。

‘And to think I never KNEW!’ went on the Toad in a dreamy monotone.?‘All those wasted years that lie behind me, I never knew, never even DREAMT!?But NOW—but now that I know, now that I fully realise!?O what a flowery track lies spread before me, henceforth!?What dust-clouds shall spring up behind me as I speed on my reckless way!?What carts I shall fling carelessly into the ditch in the wake of my magnificent onset! Horrid little carts—common carts—canary-coloured carts!’

“想想看，我對(duì)這玩意一無所知!”蟾蜍繼續(xù)夢吃般地喃喃道。“我虛度了多少時(shí)光啊!不但從不知道，連做夢也沒夢到過!現(xiàn)在我可知道了，現(xiàn)在我可全明白了!從今以后;展現(xiàn)在我面前的，該是多么光輝燦爛的錦繡前程啊!我要在公路上橫沖直撞，飛速馳騁，在身后卷起漫天的塵土!我要威風(fēng)凜凜地疾馳而過，把大批馬車推下溝渠!哼!討厭的小馬車!平淡無奇的馬車!淡黃色的馬車!”

‘What are we to do with him?’ asked the Mole of the Water Rat.

“咱們拿他怎么辦?”鼴鼠問河鼠。

‘Nothing at all,’ replied the Rat firmly.?‘Because there is really nothing to be done.?You see, I know him from of old.?He is now possessed.?He has got a new craze, and it always takes him that way, in its first stage.?He’ll continue like that for days now, like an animal walking in a happy dream, quite useless for all practical purposes.?Never mind him.?Let’s go and see what there is to be done about the cart.’

“什么也不用干，”河鼠斬釘截鐵地說。“事實(shí)上，沒有什么可干的。我太了解他啦。他現(xiàn)在是走火入魔。他又迷上了一個(gè)新玩意兒。一開頭，總要給它纏磨成這個(gè)德行。他會(huì)一連許多天都這樣瘋瘋傻傻，就像一只在美夢里游蕩的動(dòng)物，毫無實(shí)際用處。沒關(guān)系，不必理他。咱們還是去看看怎樣收拾那輛車吧。”

A careful inspection showed them that, even if they succeeded in righting it by themselves, the cart would travel no longer.?The axles were in a hopeless state, and the missing wheel was shattered into pieces.

經(jīng)過仔細(xì)考察，他們看到，即使把車扶正過來，也沒法再乘上它旅行了。車軸破損得一塌糊涂，脫落的一只輪子，完全粉碎了。

The Rat knotted the horse’s reins over his back and took him by the head, carrying the bird cage and its hysterical occupant in the other hand.?‘Come on!’ he said grimly to the Mole.?‘It’s five or six miles to the nearest town, and we shall just have to walk it.?The sooner we make a start the better.’

河鼠把組繩拴在馬背上，一手牽著馬，一手提著鳥籠，帶上籠里那只驚慌萬狀的鳥。“走!”他神情嚴(yán)肅地對(duì)鼴鼠說。“到最近的小鎮(zhèn)，也有五六哩的路程，咱們只能靠腳走了。所以得趁早動(dòng)身。”

‘But what about Toad?’ asked the Mole anxiously, as they set off together.?‘We can’t leave him here, sitting in the middle of the road by himself, in the distracted state he’s in!?It’s not safe. Supposing another Thing were to come along?’

“可蟾蜍怎么辦?”他倆雙雙上路時(shí)，鼴鼠不安地問。“瞧他那副神不守舍的樣子，咱們總不能把他獨(dú)自個(gè)兒撂在路當(dāng)中吧!那太不安全了。萬一又開過來一輛汽車怎么辦?’”

‘O, BOTHER Toad,’ said the Rat savagely; ‘I’ve done with him!’

“哼，去他的!”河鼠怒沖沖地說，“我跟他一刀兩斷啦!”

They had not proceeded very far on their way, however, when there was a pattering of feet behind them, and Toad caught them up and thrust a paw inside the elbow of each of them; still breathing short and staring into vacancy.

可是，他們沒走出多遠(yuǎn)，就聽見后面吧嗒吧嗒的腳步聲，原來是蟾蜍攆上來了。他把兩只爪子一邊一個(gè)，插進(jìn)他倆的臂彎里，仍舊氣喘吁吁，兩眼發(fā)直，盯著空空的前方。

‘Now, look here, Toad!’ said the Rat sharply: ‘as soon as we get to the town, you’ll have to go straight to the police-station, and see if they know anything about that motor-car and who it belongs to, and lodge a complaint against it.?And then you’ll have to go to a blacksmith’s or a wheelwright’s and arrange for the cart to be fetched and mended and put to rights.?It’ll take time, but it’s not quite a hopeless smash.?Meanwhile, the Mole and I will go to an inn and find comfortable rooms where we can stay till the cart’s ready, and till your nerves have recovered their shock.’

“你聽著，蟾蜍!”河鼠厲聲說：“我們一到鎮(zhèn)上，你就徑直上警察局，問問他們知不知道那輛汽車，是誰的車，還要對(duì)他們提出起訴。然后，你得去找一家鐵匠鋪，或者修車鋪，要他們把馬車給修理好，這需要花一點(diǎn)時(shí)間，不過它還沒壞到?jīng)]法修理的程度。同時(shí)，鼴鼠和我就去旅館，找?guī)组g舒適的房間住下，等車修好，也等你精神恢復(fù)過來再走。”

‘Police-station!?Complaint!’murmured Toad dreamily.?‘Me COMPLAIN of that beautiful, that heavenly vision that has been vouchsafed me!?MEND THE CART!?I’ve done with carts for ever. I never want to see the cart, or to hear of it, again.?O, Ratty! You can’t think how obliged I am to you for consenting to come on this trip!?I wouldn’t have gone without you, and then I might never have seen that—that swan, that sunbeam, that thunderbolt! I might never have heard that entrancing sound, or smelt that bewitching smell!?I owe it all to you, my best of friends!’

“警察局!起訴!”蟾蜍夢吃般地喃喃道。“要我去控告那個(gè)美妙的恩典嗎?修馬車!我和馬車永遠(yuǎn)永遠(yuǎn)拜拜啦!我再也不想見到馬車，不想過問馬車的事啦。鼠兒啊，你同意和我一塊兒旅行，我真不知道怎樣感謝你才好!因?yàn)槟阋粊恚揖筒粫?huì)來，也就永遠(yuǎn)看不到——那只天鵝，那道陽光，那聲雷鳴!永遠(yuǎn)聽不到那種叫人醉心的聲響，聞不到那股叫人著迷的氣味了!這一切全虧了你呀，我最好的朋友!”

The Rat turned from him in despair.?‘You see what it is?’ he said to the Mole, addressing him across Toad’s head:?‘He’s quite hopeless.?I give it up—when we get to the town we’ll go to the railway station, and with luck we may pick up a train there that’ll get us back to riverbank to-night.?And if ever you catch me going a-pleasuring with this provoking animal again!’ He snorted, and during the rest of that weary trudge addressed his remarks exclusively to Mole.

河鼠無可奈何地掉轉(zhuǎn)臉去。“瞧見了嗎?”他隔著蟾蜍的頭對(duì)鼴鼠說：“他簡直不可救藥。算了，拉倒吧。等我們到了鎮(zhèn)上，就去火車站，運(yùn)氣好的話，也許能趕上一趟火車，今晚就可以回到河岸。你瞧著吧，今后我再跟這個(gè)可惡的動(dòng)物一塊兒玩樂才怪!”他憤憤地哼了一下鼻子，隨后，在這段沉悶乏味的跋涉途中，他只跟鼴鼠一個(gè)人搭話。

On reaching the town they went straight to the station and deposited Toad in the second-class waiting-room, giving a porter twopence to keep a strict eye on him.?They then left the horse at an inn stable, and gave what directions they could about the cart and its contents.?Eventually, a slow train having landed them at a station not very far from Toad Hall, they escorted the spell-bound, sleep-walking Toad to his door, put him inside it, and instructed his housekeeper to feed him, undress him, and put him to bed.?Then they got out their boat from the boat-house, sculled down the river home, and at a very late hour sat down to supper in their own cosy riverside parlour, to the Rat’s great joy and contentment.

一到鎮(zhèn)上，他們直奔火車站，把蟾蜍安置在二等候車室，花兩便士托一位搬運(yùn)工好好看住他。然后，他們把馬寄存在一家旅店的馬廄里，對(duì)那輛馬車和里面的東西盡可能詳盡地作了說明，并吩咐人看管。一列慢車，終于把他們載到離蟾宮不遠(yuǎn)的站上。他們把迷離恍惚如醉如癡的蟾蜍護(hù)送到家，吩咐管家弄點(diǎn)東西給他吃，幫他脫衣，照料他上床睡覺。然后，他們從船塢里劃出自己的小船，劃到河下游的家中，很晚很晚，才在自己那舒適的臨河的客廳里坐下來吃晚飯。這時(shí)，河鼠才深深感到舒心快慰。

The following evening the Mole, who had risen late and taken things very easy all day, was sitting on the bank fishing, when the Rat, who had been looking up his friends and gossiping, came strolling along to find him.?‘Heard the news?’ he said. ‘There’s nothing else being talked about, all along the river bank.?Toad went up to Town by an early train this morning.?And he has ordered a large and very expensive motor-car.’

第二天傍晚，遲遲起床并且閑散了一整天的鼴鼠，坐在河邊釣魚。河鼠拜訪過幾家朋友，和他們聊些閑話，這時(shí)，他溜達(dá)過來找上鼴鼠。“聽到新聞了嗎?”他說。“整條河上，都在談?wù)撘患隆＝裉煲辉?，蟾蜍就搭早車進(jìn)城去了。他定購了一輛又大又豪華的汽車。”

‘Ratty,’ said the Mole suddenly, one bright summer morning, ‘if you please, I want to ask you a favour.’

The Rat was sitting on the river bank, singing a little song.?He had just composed it himself, so he was very taken up with it, and would not pay proper attention to Mole or anything else. Since early morning he had been swimming in the river, in company with his friends the ducks.?And when the ducks stood on their heads suddenly, as ducks will, he would dive down and tickle their necks, just under where their chins would be if ducks had chins, till they were forced to come to the surface again in a hurry, spluttering and angry and shaking their feathers at him, for it is impossible to say quite ALL you feel when your head is under water.?At last they implored him to go away and attend to his own affairs and leave them to mind theirs.?So the Rat went away, and sat on the river bank in the sun, and made up a song about them, which he called ‘DUCKS’ DITTY.’

All along the backwater, Through the rushes tall, Ducks are a-dabbling, Up tails all!

Ducks’ tails, drakes’ tails, Yellow feet a-quiver, Yellow bills all out of sight Busy in the river!

Slushy green undergrowth Where the roach swim—Here we keep our larder, Cool and full and dim.

Everyone for what he likes! WE like to be Heads down, tails up, Dabbling free!

High in the blue above Swifts whirl and call—WE are down a-dabbling Up tails all!

‘I don’t know that I think so VERY much of that little song, Rat,’ observed the Mole cautiously.?He was no poet himself and didn’t care who knew it; and he had a candid nature.

‘Nor don’t the ducks neither,’ replied the Rat cheerfully.?‘They say, “WHY can’t fellows be allowed to do what they like WHEN they like and AS they like, instead of other fellows sitting on banks and watching them all the time and making remarks and poetry and things about them??What NONSENSE it all is!”?That’s what the ducks say.’

‘So it is, so it is,’ said the Mole, with great heartiness.

‘No, it isn’t!’ cried the Rat indignantly.

‘Well then, it isn’t, it isn’t,’ replied the Mole soothingly. ‘But what I wanted to ask you was, won’t you take me to call on Mr. Toad??I’ve heard so much about him, and I do so want to make his acquaintance.’

‘Why, certainly,’ said the good-natured Rat, jumping to his feet and dismissing poetry from his mind for the day.?‘Get the boat out, and we’ll paddle up there at once.?It’s never the wrong time to call on Toad.?Early or late he’s always the same fellow. Always good-tempered, always glad to see you, always sorry when you go!’

‘He must be a very nice animal,’ observed the Mole, as he got into the boat and took the sculls, while the Rat settled himself comfortably in the stern.

‘He is indeed the best of animals,’ replied Rat.?‘So simple, so good-natured, and so affectionate.?Perhaps he’s not very clever—we can’t all be geniuses; and it may be that he is both boastful and conceited. But he has got some great qualities, has Toady.’

Rounding a bend in the river, they came in sight of a handsome, dignified old house of mellowed red brick, with well-kept lawns reaching down to the water’s edge.

‘There’s Toad Hall,’ said the Rat; ‘and that creek on the left, where the notice-board says, “Private.?No landing allowed,” leads to his boat-house, where we’ll leave the boat.?The stables are over there to the right.?That’s the banqueting-hall you’re looking at now—very old, that is.?Toad is rather rich, you know, and this is really one of the nicest houses in these parts, though we never admit as much to Toad.’

They glided up the creek, and the Mole slipped his sculls as they passed into the shadow of a large boat-house.?Here they saw many handsome boats, slung from the cross beams or hauled up on a slip, but none in the water; and the place had an unused and a deserted air.

The Rat looked around him.?‘I understand,’ said he.?‘Boating is played out.?He’s tired of it, and done with it.?I wonder what new fad he has taken up now??Come along and let’s look him up. We shall hear all about it quite soon enough.’

They disembarked, and strolled across the gay flower-decked lawns in search of Toad, whom they presently happened upon resting in a wicker garden-chair, with a pre-occupied expression of face, and a large map spread out on his knees.

‘Hooray!’ he cried, jumping up on seeing them, ‘this is splendid!’?He shook the paws of both of them warmly, never waiting for an introduction to the Mole.?‘How KIND of you!’ he went on, dancing round them.?‘I was just going to send a boat down the river for you, Ratty, with strict orders that you were to be fetched up here at once, whatever you were doing.?I want you badly—both of you.?Now what will you take??Come inside and have something!?You don’t know how lucky it is, your turning up just now!’

‘Let’s sit quiet a bit, Toady!’ said the Rat, throwing himself into an easy chair, while the Mole took another by the side of him and made some civil remark about Toad’s ‘delightful residence.’

‘Finest house on the whole river,’ cried Toad boisterously.?‘Or anywhere else, for that matter,’ he could not help adding.

Here the Rat nudged the Mole.?Unfortunately the Toad saw him do it, and turned very red.?There was a moment’s painful silence. Then Toad burst out laughing.?‘All right, Ratty,’ he said. ‘It’s only my way, you know.?And it’s not such a very bad house, is it??You know you rather like it yourself.?Now, look here. Let’s be sensible.?You are the very animals I wanted.?You’ve got to help me.?It’s most important!’

‘It’s about your rowing, I suppose,’ said the Rat, with an innocent air.?‘You’re getting on fairly well, though you splash a good bit still.?With a great deal of patience, and any quantity of coaching, you may----‘

‘O, pooh! boating!’ interrupted the Toad, in great disgust. Silly boyish amusement.?I’ve given that up LONG ago.?Sheer waste of time, that’s what it is.?It makes me downright sorry to see you fellows, who ought to know better, spending all your energies in that aimless manner.?No, I’ve discovered the real thing, the only genuine occupation for a life time.?I propose to devote the remainder of mine to it, and can only regret the wasted years that lie behind me, squandered in trivialities. Come with me, dear Ratty, and your amiable friend also, if he will be so very good, just as far as the stable-yard, and you shall see what you shall see!’

He led the way to the stable-yard accordingly, the Rat following with a most mistrustful expression; and there, drawn out of the coach house into the open, they saw a gipsy caravan, shining with newness, painted a canary-yellow picked out with green, and red wheels.

‘There you are!’ cried the Toad, straddling and expanding himself.?‘There’s real life for you, embodied in that little cart.?The open road, the dusty highway, the heath, the common, the hedgerows, the rolling downs!?Camps, villages, towns, cities!?Here to-day, up and off to somewhere else to-morrow! Travel, change, interest, excitement!?The whole world before you, and a horizon that’s always changing!?And mind! this is the very finest cart of its sort that was ever built, without any exception.?Come inside and look at the arrangements.?Planned ‘em all myself, I did!’

The Mole was tremendously interested and excited, and followed him eagerly up the steps and into the interior of the caravan. The Rat only snorted and thrust his hands deep into his pockets, remaining where he was.

It was indeed very compact and comfortable.?Little sleeping bunks—a little table that folded up against the wall—a cooking-stove, lockers, bookshelves, a bird-cage with a bird in it; and pots, pans, jugs and kettles of every size and variety.

‘All complete!’ said the Toad triumphantly, pulling open a locker.?‘You see—biscuits, potted lobster, sardines—everything you can possibly want.?Soda-water here—baccy there—letter-paper, bacon, jam, cards and dominoes—you’ll find,’ he continued, as they descended the steps again, ‘you’ll find that nothing what ever has been forgotten, when we make our start this afternoon.’

‘I beg your pardon,’ said the Rat slowly, as he chewed a straw, ‘but did I overhear you say something about “WE,” and “START,” and “THIS AFTERNOON?”’

‘Now, you dear good old Ratty,’ said Toad, imploringly, ‘don’t begin talking in that stiff and sniffy sort of way, because you know you’ve GOT to come.?I can’t possibly manage without you, so please consider it settled, and don’t argue—it’s the one thing I can’t stand.?You surely don’t mean to stick to your dull fusty old river all your life, and just live in a hole in a bank, and BOAT??I want to show you the world!?I’m going to make an ANIMAL of you, my boy!’

‘I don’t care,’ said the Rat, doggedly.?‘I’m not coming, and that’s flat.?And I AM going to stick to my old river, AND live in a hole, AND boat, as I’ve always done.?And what’s more, Mole’s going to stick me and do as I do, aren’t you, Mole?’

‘Of course I am,’ said the Mole, loyally.?‘I’ll always stick to you, Rat, and what you say is to be—has got to be.?All the same, it sounds as if it might have been—well, rather fun, you know!’ he added, wistfully.?Poor Mole!?The Life Adventurous was so new a thing to him, and so thrilling; and this fresh aspect of it was so tempting; and he had fallen in love at first sight with the canary-coloured cart and all its little fitments.

The Rat saw what was passing in his mind, and wavered.?He hated disappointing people, and he was fond of the Mole, and would do almost anything to oblige him. Toad was watching both of them closely.

‘Come along in, and have some lunch,’ he said, diplomatically, ‘and we’ll talk it over.?We needn’t decide anything in a hurry. Of course, I don’t really care.?I only want to give pleasure to you fellows.?“Live for others!”?That’s my motto in life.’

During luncheon—which was excellent, of course, as everything at Toad Hall always was—the Toad simply let himself go. Disregarding the Rat, he proceeded to play upon the inexperienced Mole as on a harp.?Naturally a voluble animal, and always mastered by his imagination, he painted the prospects of the trip and the joys of the open life and the roadside in such glowing colours that the Mole could hardly sit in his chair for excitement.?Somehow, it soon seemed taken for granted by all three of them that the trip was a settled thing; and the Rat, though still unconvinced in his mind, allowed his good-nature to over-ride his personal objections.?He could not bear to disappoint his two friends, who were already deep in schemes and anticipations, planning out each day’s separate occupation for several weeks ahead.

When they were quite ready, the now triumphant Toad led his companions to the paddock and set them to capture the old grey horse, who, without having been consulted, and to his own extreme annoyance, had been told off by Toad for the dustiest job in this dusty expedition.?He frankly preferred the paddock, and took a deal of catching.?Meantime Toad packed the lockers still tighter with necessaries, and hung nosebags, nets of onions, bundles of hay, and baskets from the bottom of the cart.?At last the horse was caught and harnessed, and they set off, all talking at once, each animal either trudging by the side of the cart or sitting on the shaft, as the humour took him.?It was a golden afternoon.?The smell of the dust they kicked up was rich and satisfying; out of thick orchards on either side the road, birds called and whistled to them cheerily; good-natured wayfarers, passing them, gave them ‘Good-day,’ or stopped to say nice things about their beautiful cart; and rabbits, sitting at their front doors in the hedgerows, held up their fore-paws, and said, ‘O my! O my!?O my!’

Late in the evening, tired and happy and miles from home, they drew up on a remote common far from habitations, turned the horse loose to graze, and ate their simple supper sitting on the grass by the side of the cart.?Toad talked big about all he was going to do in the days to come, while stars grew fuller and larger all around them, and a yellow moon, appearing suddenly and silently from nowhere in particular, came to keep them company and listen to their talk.?At last they turned in to their little bunks in the cart; and Toad, kicking out his legs, sleepily said, ‘Well, good night, you fellows!?This is the real life for a gentleman! Talk about your old river!’

‘I DON’T talk about my river,’ replied the patient Rat. ‘You KNOW I don’t, Toad.?But I THINK about it,’ he added pathetically, in a lower tone:?‘I think about it—all the time!’

The Mole reached out from under his blanket, felt for the Rat’s paw in the darkness, and gave it a squeeze.?‘I’ll do whatever you like, Ratty,’ he whispered.?‘Shall we run away to-morrow morning, quite early—VERY early—and go back to our dear old hole on the river?’

‘No, no, we’ll see it out,’ whispered back the Rat.?‘Thanks awfully, but I ought to stick by Toad till this trip is ended. It wouldn’t be safe for him to be left to himself.?It won’t take very long.?His fads never do.?Good night!’

The end was indeed nearer than even the Rat suspected.

After so much open air and excitement the Toad slept very soundly, and no amount of shaking could rouse him out of bed next morning.?So the Mole and Rat turned to, quietly and manfully, and while the Rat saw to the horse, and lit a fire, and cleaned last night’s cups and platters, and got things ready for breakfast, the Mole trudged off to the nearest village, a long way off, for milk and eggs and various necessaries the Toad had, of course, forgotten to provide.?The hard work had all been done, and the two animals were resting, thoroughly exhausted, by the time Toad appeared on the scene, fresh and gay, remarking what a pleasant easy life it was they were all leading now, after the cares and worries and fatigues of housekeeping at home.

They had a pleasant ramble that day over grassy downs and along narrow by-lanes, and camped as before, on a common, only this time the two guests took care that Toad should do his fair share of work.?In consequence, when the time came for starting next morning, Toad was by no means so rapturous about the simplicity of the primitive life, and indeed attempted to resume his place in his bunk, whence he was hauled by force.?Their way lay, as before, across country by narrow lanes, and it was not till the afternoon that they came out on the high-road, their first high-road; and there disaster, fleet and unforeseen, sprang out on them—disaster momentous indeed to their expedition, but simply overwhelming in its effect on the after-career of Toad.

They were strolling along the high-road easily, the Mole by the horse’s head, talking to him, since the horse had complained that he was being frightfully left out of it, and nobody considered him in the least; the Toad and the Water Rat walking behind the cart talking together—at least Toad was talking, and Rat was saying at intervals, ‘Yes, precisely; and what did YOU say to HIM?’—and thinking all the time of something very different, when far behind them they heard a faint warning hum; like the drone of a distant bee.?Glancing back, they saw a small cloud of dust, with a dark centre of energy, advancing on them at incredible speed, while from out the dust a faint ‘Poop-poop!’ wailed like an uneasy animal in pain.?Hardly regarding it, they turned to resume their conversation, when in an instant (as it seemed) the peaceful scene was changed, and with a blast of wind and a whirl of sound that made them jump for the nearest ditch, It was on them!?The ‘Poop-poop’ rang with a brazen shout in their ears, they had a moment’s glimpse of an interior of glittering plate-glass and rich morocco, and the magnificent motor-car, immense, breath-snatching, passionate, with its pilot tense and hugging his wheel, possessed all earth and air for the fraction of a second, flung an enveloping cloud of dust that blinded and enwrapped them utterly, and then dwindled to a speck in the far distance, changed back into a droning bee once more.

The old grey horse, dreaming, as he plodded along, of his quiet paddock, in a new raw situation such as this simply abandoned himself to his natural emotions.?Rearing, plunging, backing steadily, in spite of all the Mole’s efforts at his head, and all the Mole’s lively language directed at his better feelings, he drove the cart backwards towards the deep ditch at the side of the road.?It wavered an instant—then there was a heartrending crash—and the canary-coloured cart, their pride and their joy, lay on its side in the ditch, an irredeemable wreck.

The Rat danced up and down in the road, simply transported with passion.?‘You villains!’ he shouted, shaking both fists, ‘You scoundrels, you highwaymen, you—you—roadhogs!--I’ll have the law of you!?I’ll report you!?I’ll take you through all the Courts!’?His home-sickness had quite slipped away from him, and for the moment he was the skipper of the canary-coloured vessel driven on a shoal by the reckless jockeying of rival mariners, and he was trying to recollect all the fine and biting things he used to say to masters of steam-launches when their wash, as they drove too near the bank, used to flood his parlour-carpet at home.

Toad sat straight down in the middle of the dusty road, his legs stretched out before him, and stared fixedly in the direction of the disappearing motor-car.?He breathed short, his face wore a placid satisfied expression, and at intervals he faintly murmured ‘Poop-poop!’

The Mole was busy trying to quiet the horse, which he succeeded in doing after a time.?Then he went to look at the cart, on its side in the ditch.?It was indeed a sorry sight.?Panels and windows smashed, axles hopelessly bent, one wheel off, sardine-tins scattered over the wide world, and the bird in the bird-cage sobbing pitifully and calling to be let out.

The Rat came to help him, but their united efforts were not sufficient to right the cart.?‘Hi! Toad!’ they cried.?‘Come and bear a hand, can’t you!’

The Toad never answered a word, or budged from his seat in the road; so they went to see what was the matter with him.?They found him in a sort of a trance, a happy smile on his face, his eyes still fixed on the dusty wake of their destroyer.?At intervals he was still heard to murmur ‘Poop-poop!’

The Rat shook him by the shoulder.?‘Are you coming to help us, Toad?’ he demanded sternly.

‘Glorious, stirring sight!’ murmured Toad, never offering to move.?‘The poetry of motion!?The REAL way to travel!?The ONLY way to travel!?Here to-day—in next week to-morrow! Villages skipped, towns and cities jumped—always somebody else’s horizon!?O bliss!?O poop-poop!?O my!?O my!’

‘O STOP being an ass, Toad!’ cried the Mole despairingly.

‘And to think I never KNEW!’ went on the Toad in a dreamy monotone.?‘All those wasted years that lie behind me, I never knew, never even DREAMT!?But NOW—but now that I know, now that I fully realise!?O what a flowery track lies spread before me, henceforth!?What dust-clouds shall spring up behind me as I speed on my reckless way!?What carts I shall fling carelessly into the ditch in the wake of my magnificent onset! Horrid little carts—common carts—canary-coloured carts!’

‘What are we to do with him?’ asked the Mole of the Water Rat.

‘Nothing at all,’ replied the Rat firmly.?‘Because there is really nothing to be done.?You see, I know him from of old.?He is now possessed.?He has got a new craze, and it always takes him that way, in its first stage.?He’ll continue like that for days now, like an animal walking in a happy dream, quite useless for all practical purposes.?Never mind him.?Let’s go and see what there is to be done about the cart.’

A careful inspection showed them that, even if they succeeded in righting it by themselves, the cart would travel no longer.?The axles were in a hopeless state, and the missing wheel was shattered into pieces.

The Rat knotted the horse’s reins over his back and took him by the head, carrying the bird cage and its hysterical occupant in the other hand.?‘Come on!’ he said grimly to the Mole.?‘It’s five or six miles to the nearest town, and we shall just have to walk it.?The sooner we make a start the better.’

‘But what about Toad?’ asked the Mole anxiously, as they set off together.?‘We can’t leave him here, sitting in the middle of the road by himself, in the distracted state he’s in!?It’s not safe. Supposing another Thing were to come along?’

‘O, BOTHER Toad,’ said the Rat savagely; ‘I’ve done with him!’

They had not proceeded very far on their way, however, when there was a pattering of feet behind them, and Toad caught them up and thrust a paw inside the elbow of each of them; still breathing short and staring into vacancy.

‘Now, look here, Toad!’ said the Rat sharply: ‘as soon as we get to the town, you’ll have to go straight to the police-station, and see if they know anything about that motor-car and who it belongs to, and lodge a complaint against it.?And then you’ll have to go to a blacksmith’s or a wheelwright’s and arrange for the cart to be fetched and mended and put to rights.?It’ll take time, but it’s not quite a hopeless smash.?Meanwhile, the Mole and I will go to an inn and find comfortable rooms where we can stay till the cart’s ready, and till your nerves have recovered their shock.’

‘Police-station!?Complaint!’murmured Toad dreamily.?‘Me COMPLAIN of that beautiful, that heavenly vision that has been vouchsafed me!?MEND THE CART!?I’ve done with carts for ever. I never want to see the cart, or to hear of it, again.?O, Ratty! You can’t think how obliged I am to you for consenting to come on this trip!?I wouldn’t have gone without you, and then I might never have seen that—that swan, that sunbeam, that thunderbolt! I might never have heard that entrancing sound, or smelt that bewitching smell!?I owe it all to you, my best of friends!’

The Rat turned from him in despair.?‘You see what it is?’ he said to the Mole, addressing him across Toad’s head:?‘He’s quite hopeless.?I give it up—when we get to the town we’ll go to the railway station, and with luck we may pick up a train there that’ll get us back to riverbank to-night.?And if ever you catch me going a-pleasuring with this provoking animal again!’ He snorted, and during the rest of that weary trudge addressed his remarks exclusively to Mole.

On reaching the town they went straight to the station and deposited Toad in the second-class waiting-room, giving a porter twopence to keep a strict eye on him.?They then left the horse at an inn stable, and gave what directions they could about the cart and its contents.?Eventually, a slow train having landed them at a station not very far from Toad Hall, they escorted the spell-bound, sleep-walking Toad to his door, put him inside it, and instructed his housekeeper to feed him, undress him, and put him to bed.?Then they got out their boat from the boat-house, sculled down the river home, and at a very late hour sat down to supper in their own cosy riverside parlour, to the Rat’s great joy and contentment.

The following evening the Mole, who had risen late and taken things very easy all day, was sitting on the bank fishing, when the Rat, who had been looking up his friends and gossiping, came strolling along to find him.?‘Heard the news?’ he said. ‘There’s nothing else being talked about, all along the river bank.?Toad went up to Town by an early train this morning.?And he has ordered a large and very expensive motor-car.’

?

一個(gè)陽光明媚的夏日早晨，鼴鼠忽對(duì)河鼠說：“鼠兄，我想求你幫個(gè)忙。”

河鼠正坐在岸邊，吟唱一支小曲兒。這曲子是他自己編的，所以唱得很帶勁，沒怎么留意鼴鼠或別的事兒。一大早，他就和鴨子朋友們?cè)诤永镉斡緛碇ｘ喿右粦T總喜歡猛地頭朝下腳朝上拿大頂。這時(shí)，河鼠就潛到水下，在鴨子的下巴(要是鴨子有下巴的話)下面的脖子上撓癢癢，弄得鴨子只好趕緊鉆出水面，撲打著羽毛，氣急敗壞地沖他嚷嚷。因?yàn)椋悄愕念^倒插在水里，你自然不可能痛痛快快發(fā)泄你一腔怒火。后來，他們只得央求他走開，去管自己的事，別干涉他們。河鼠這才走開了，在河岸上坐著曬太陽，編一首有關(guān)鴨子的歌。歌名叫：《鴨謠》——

沿著靜水灣，長長燈芯草，鴨群在戲水，尾巴高高翹。

公鴨母鴨尾.黃腳顫悠悠，黃嘴隱不見，河中忙不休。

綠萍水草稠,魚兒盡興游，食品儲(chǔ)存庫，豐盛又清幽。

人各有所好!頭下尾上翹，鴨子的心愿，水上樂消遙。

藍(lán)藍(lán)天空高，雨燕飛又叫，我們戲水中尾巴齊上翹!

“這首歌到底有多好，我說不上來，鼠兄，”鼴鼠謹(jǐn)慎地說。鼴鼠自己不是詩人，也不贊賞懂詩的人。而且，他天性坦誠，喜歡實(shí)話實(shí)說。

“鴨子也不懂得，”河鼠開朗地說，“他們說：‘干嗎不讓人家在高興的時(shí)候做他們高興做的事?別人干嗎要坐在岸上對(duì)人家橫挑鼻子豎挑眼，還要編歌嘲笑人家?盡是胡說八道!’這就是鴨子們的論調(diào)。”

“說得對(duì)嘛.說得對(duì)嘛，”鼴鼠打心眼兒里贊同。

“不，說得不對(duì)!”河鼠氣憤地喊道。

“好啦，就算不對(duì)，就算不對(duì)，”鼴鼠息事寧人地說。“可是我想問問你，你能不能領(lǐng)我去拜訪蟾蜍先生?他的事，我聽說得多了，特想和他認(rèn)識(shí)認(rèn)識(shí)。”

“當(dāng)然啰!”好脾氣的河鼠說著，一躍而起，把詩呀什么的全都拋到腦后，一整天再也沒想起。“去把船劃出來，咱們馬上就去他家。你想拜訪蟾蜍，隨時(shí)都可以。不管是早是晚，蟾蜍都一個(gè)樣，總是樂呵呵的。你去看他，他老是高興，你要走，他老是戀戀不舍!”

“他準(zhǔn)是個(gè)非常和善的動(dòng)物，”鼴鼠說。他跨上了船，提起雙槳。河鼠呢，他安安逸逸地坐到了船尾。

“他的確是個(gè)再好不過的動(dòng)物，”河鼠說。“特單純，特溫和，特重感情?；蛟S不太聰明——不可能人人都是天才嘛。他或許愛吹牛，有些自高自大?？审竷?，他的優(yōu)點(diǎn)確實(shí)不少。”

繞過一道河灣，迎面就見一幢美麗、莊嚴(yán)、古色古香的老紅磚房;房前是修理得平平整整的草坪，一直延伸到河邊。

“那就是蟾宮，”河鼠說。“左邊有一條小河汊，牌子上寫著：‘私人河道，不得在此登岸’。這河汊直逼他的船塢，咱們要在那兒停船上岸。右邊是馬廄。你現(xiàn)在看到的是宴會(huì)廳——年代很久了。你知道，蟾蜍相當(dāng)有錢，這幢房子確實(shí)是這一帶一所最講究的房屋，不過，我們從不向蟾蜍這樣表示。”

小船徐徐駛進(jìn)河漢，來到一所大船塢的屋頂下。鼴鼠把槳收進(jìn)船艙。這里，他們看到許多漂亮的小船，有的掛在橫梁上，有的吊在船臺(tái)上，可是沒有一只船是在水里。這地方顯得有種冷落廢棄的氣氛。

河鼠環(huán)顧四周。“我明白了，”他說。“看來他玩船已經(jīng)玩夠了，厭倦了，再也不玩了。不知道他現(xiàn)在又迷上了什么新玩意兒?走，咱們瞧他去。一切很快就會(huì)明白的。”

他們離船上岸，穿過各色鮮花裝點(diǎn)的草坪，尋找蟾蜍。不多時(shí)，他們就遇到了他。蟾蜍坐在一張花園藤椅上，臉上一副全神貫注的神情，盯著膝上的一張大地圖。

“啊哈!”看到他倆，蟾蜍跳了起來，“太好了!”不等河鼠介紹，就熱情洋溢地同他倆握握爪子。“你們真好!”他接著說，圍著他倆蹦蹦跳跳。“河鼠，我正要派船到下游去接你，吩咐他們不管你在干什么，馬上把你接來。我非常需要你——你們兩位。好吧，現(xiàn)在你們想吃點(diǎn)什么?快進(jìn)屋吃點(diǎn)東西吧!你們來得正是時(shí)候。你們想不到，有多巧啊!”

“蟾兒，讓咱們先安靜地坐一會(huì)兒吧!”河鼠說，一屁股坐在一張扶手椅上。鼴鼠坐在他旁邊的另一張扶手椅上、說了幾句客氣話，贊美蟾蜍那“可愛的住宅”。

“這是沿河一帶最講究的房子，”蟾蜍哇啦哇啦大聲嚷道。“在別的地方，你也找不到這么好的房子。”他情不自禁又加上一句……

這時(shí)，河鼠用胳臂捅了捅鼴鼠，不巧，正好被蟾蜍看見了。他臉漲得通紅。跟著是一陣難堪的沉寂。然后，蟾蜍大笑起來。“得啦，鼠兒，我說話就這么個(gè)德行，你知道的。再說，這房子確實(shí)不壞，是吧?你自己不也挺喜歡它嗎。咱們都清醒些好啦。你們兩位正是我需要的。你們得幫我這個(gè)忙。這事至關(guān)重要!”

“我猜，是有關(guān)劃船的事吧，”河鼠裝糊涂說。“你進(jìn)步很快嘛，就是還濺好些水花。只要再耐心些，再加上適當(dāng)?shù)闹笇?dǎo)，你就可以……”

“噢，呸!什么船!”蟾蜍打斷他的話，顯得十分厭惡的樣子。“那是小男孩們的愚蠢玩意兒。我老早就不玩了。不折不扣，純粹是浪費(fèi)時(shí)光?？吹侥銈冞@些人把全副精力花在那種毫無意義的事情上，真叫我感到痛心，你們本該明白的。不，不，我已經(jīng)找到了一樁真正的事業(yè)，這輩子應(yīng)該從事的一種正經(jīng)行當(dāng)。我打算把我的余生奉獻(xiàn)給它。一想到過去那么多年頭浪費(fèi)在無聊的瑣事上，我真是追悔莫及。跟我來，親愛的鼠兒，還有你的這位和藹的朋友也來.如果肯賞光的話。不遠(yuǎn)，就在馬廄場院那邊，到了那兒，你們就會(huì)看到要看到的東西!”

蟾蜍領(lǐng)著他們向馬廄場院走去，河鼠一臉狐疑，跟在后面。只見從馬車房里拉出一輛吉卜賽篷車，嶄新，锃亮，車身漆成金絲雀般的淡黃色，點(diǎn)綴著綠色紋飾，車輪則是大紅的。

“瞧吧!”蟾蜍叉開雙腿，腆著肚皮，喊道，“這輛小馬車代表的生活，才是你們要過的真正的生活。一眼望不到頭的大道，塵土飛揚(yáng)的公路，荒原，公地，樹籬，起伏的草原，帳篷，村莊，城鎮(zhèn)，都市，全都屬于你們!今天在這里，明天在那里!到處旅行，變換環(huán)境，到處有樂趣，刺激!整個(gè)世界在你眼前展開，地平線在不斷變換!請(qǐng)注意，這輛車是同類車子里最精美的一輛，絕無例外。進(jìn)車?yán)飦恚魄评锩娴脑O(shè)備吧。全是我自己設(shè)計(jì)的，是我干的!”

鼴鼠興致勃勃，興奮異常，急不可耐地跟著蟾蜍踩上篷車的踏板，進(jìn)了車廂。河鼠只哼了哼鼻子，把手深深插進(jìn)褲兜，站在原地不動(dòng)。

車廂里確實(shí)布置得非常緊湊而舒適。幾張小小的臥鋪，一張小桌靠壁折起，爐具，小食品柜，書架，一只鳥籠，籠里關(guān)著一只鳥，還有各種型號(hào)和式樣的高鍋、平鍋、瓶瓶罐罐、燒水的壺。

“一應(yīng)俱全!”蟾蜍得意地說。他打開一只小柜。“瞧，有餅干、罐頭龍蝦、沙丁魚——凡是你們用得著的東酉，應(yīng)有盡有。這兒是蘇打水，那兒是煙草，信紙、火腿、果醬、紙牌、骨牌，”他們重新踩著踏板下車時(shí)，他繼續(xù)說，“你會(huì)發(fā)現(xiàn)，咱們今天下午啟程時(shí)，什么也沒漏掉。”

“對(duì)不起，”河鼠嘴里嚼著一根稻草，慢條斯理地說，“我好像聽見你剛才說什么‘咱們’，什么‘啟程’。什么‘今天下午’來著?”

“得啦，你呀，親愛的好老鼠兒，”蟾蜍央求說，“別用那種尖酸刻薄的腔調(diào)說話好嗎?你明明知道，你們非來不可。沒有你們，叫我怎么對(duì)付這一攤?求求你啦，這事就這么定了，別和我爭辯，我受不了。你總不能一輩子守著你那條乏味的臭哄哄的老河，成天呆在河岸上一個(gè)洞里，呆在船上吧?我想讓你見見世面!我要把你造就成一只像樣的動(dòng)物，伙計(jì)!”

“我才不稀罕你的那套把戲哩!”河鼠固執(zhí)地說。“我就是不跟你去，說一不二。我就是要守著我的老河，要住在洞里，要駕船，像往常一樣。而且，鼴鼠也要跟我一道，干同樣的事，是不是，鼴鼠?”

“那是自然!”鼴鼠誠摯地說。“我永遠(yuǎn)陪伴你，鼠兒，你說什么就是什么，就得是什么。不過，這玩意看起來像是——呃，像是怪有意思的，是吧?”他眼巴巴地加上一句?？蓱z的鼴鼠!探險(xiǎn)生活，對(duì)他來說是樁新鮮事兒，驚險(xiǎn)又刺激，這個(gè)新的方面，對(duì)他有很強(qiáng)的誘惑力。他第一眼看見那輛篷車和它的全套小裝備，就愛上它了。

河鼠看出了鼴鼠的心思，他的決心起了動(dòng)搖。他不愿使人失望，何況他喜歡鼴鼠，總是竭力讓他高興。蟾蜍在一旁仔細(xì)觀察他倆的動(dòng)靜。

“先進(jìn)屋吃點(diǎn)午飯吧，”蟾蜍策略地說，“咱們慢慢商量。用不著匆忙做出決定嘛。其實(shí)我倒不在乎。我只不過想讓你倆高興高興罷了。‘活著為別人!’這是我的處世格言。”

午餐，自然是極其精美，就像蟾宮里的所有事物一樣。吃飯時(shí)，蟾蜍信口開河高談闊論。他把河鼠撇在一邊，專門逗弄缺乏經(jīng)驗(yàn)的鼴鼠。他天生就是一只夸夸其談的動(dòng)物，又喜歡突發(fā)奇想，他把這趟旅行的前景、戶外生活和途中的樂趣描繪得天花亂墜，把個(gè)鼴鼠激動(dòng)得坐都坐不住了。一來二去，三只動(dòng)物似乎很快就達(dá)成了協(xié)議，把旅行的事確定下來了。河鼠雖然還心存疑慮，但他的好脾氣終究壓倒了個(gè)人的反對(duì)意見。他不忍心使兩位朋友掃興。他們已經(jīng)在深入細(xì)致地制定計(jì)劃，作出種種設(shè)想，安排未來幾周里每天的活動(dòng)了。

行前的準(zhǔn)備大體就緒，大獲全勝的蟾蜍領(lǐng)著伙伴們來到養(yǎng)馬場，要他們?nèi)プ侥瞧ダ匣荫R。由于事先沒跟老馬商量，蟾蜍就分派他在這趟塵土彌漫的旅途中干這件塵土彌漫的臟活，老馬一肚子牢騷怨氣，所以逮住他可費(fèi)了大勁。蟾蜍乘他們逮馬時(shí)，又往食品柜塞進(jìn)更多的必需品，又把飼料袋、幾網(wǎng)兜洋蔥頭、幾大捆干草，還有幾只筐子，吊在車廂底下。老馬終于給逮住，套在車上，他們出發(fā)了。三只動(dòng)物各隨所好，有的跟著車走，有的坐在車杠上，大伙兒你一言我一語，同時(shí)說著話。那天下午，陽光燦爛。他們蹴起的塵土，香噴噴的，聞著叫人心曠神怡。大路兩側(cè)茂密的果園里，鳥兒們歡樂地向他們打招呼，吹口哨。和藹的過路人從他們身旁走過時(shí)，向他們道聲好，或者停下來，說幾句中聽的話，贊美他們那漂亮的馬車。兔兒們坐在樹籬下他們家的門口，舉著前爪，一疊連聲贊嘆：“哎呀呀!哎呀呀!哎呀呀!”

天色很晚的時(shí)候，他們離家已有好些哩地了，身體疲乏，心情愉快，就在一處遠(yuǎn)離人煙的公地上歇下來。他們卸下馬具。由著馬去吃草，自己坐在車旁的草地上。蟾蜍大談他在未來幾天打算干的事。這時(shí)，星星圍著他們，越來越密，越來越大。一輪黃澄澄的月亮，不知打哪兒悄悄地突然冒出來，給他們作伴兒，聽他們說話。過后，他們鉆進(jìn)篷車，爬上各自的鋪位。蟾蜍伸開兩腳，瞌睡得迷糊糊地說：“伙計(jì)們，晚安!這才是紳士們應(yīng)該過的生活!別再談你的那條老河了!”

“我并不談我的河，”河鼠不緊不慢地說。“蟾蜍，這你知道，可我心里總叨念它，”他又凄凄切切地低聲說：“我想念它——一直在想念它!”

鼴鼠從毯子下面伸出爪子，在黑暗里摸到河鼠的爪子，捏了一下。“鼠兒，只要你樂意，干什么我都愿意，”他悄悄對(duì)他說，“明兒一大早，咱們就開溜，回到咱們親愛的河上老洞去，好嗎?”

“不，不，咱們還是堅(jiān)持到底，”河鼠悄聲回答。“多謝你的好意，不過我得守著蟾蜍，直到這趟旅行結(jié)束。撂下他一個(gè)，我不放心。不會(huì)拖很久的。他的怪念頭，從來也維持不長。晚安!”

這次旅行，果然結(jié)束得比河鼠預(yù)料的還要早。

由于長時(shí)間的戶外活動(dòng)，興奮歡快，蟾蜍睡得很死，第二天早晨，怎么推也推他不醒。于是鼴鼠和河鼠毅然決然，不聲不響地動(dòng)手干起活來。河鼠喂馬，生火，洗刷隔夜的杯盤碗盞，準(zhǔn)備早餐。鼴鼠呢，他走了一段很長的路，到最近的村落里去買牛奶、雞蛋，以及蟾蜍自然忘帶的一應(yīng)必需品。等這些繁重的勞務(wù)全都干完，兩只動(dòng)物累得夠嗆，坐下來歇憩時(shí)，蟾蜍這才露面，神采奕奕，興致勃勃，說現(xiàn)在他們大家都活得輕松愉快啦，不用像在家時(shí)那樣操勞家務(wù)啦。

這一天，他們悠閑自在地游逛，駛過綠茵茵的草原，穿行窄窄的小徑，當(dāng)晚又在一塊公地上過夜。不過，兩位客人這回硬要蟾蜍干他份內(nèi)的活兒。結(jié)果，第二天早上要?jiǎng)由頃r(shí)，蟾蜍不再津津樂道原始生活如何單純簡易，卻一味想賴回他的鋪上，但被他們硬拖了起來。和昨天一樣，他們的路程仍是穿經(jīng)窄窄的小徑，越過田野。到了下午，他們才上了公路。這是他們遇到的第一條公路。就在這兒，意想不到的禍?zhǔn)?，迅雷般落到了他們頭上。這樁禍?zhǔn)?，?duì)于他們的旅行是個(gè)災(zāi)難，而對(duì)于蟾蜍今后的生涯，卻產(chǎn)生了翻天覆地的重大影響。

他們正悠閑自在地在公路上緩緩行進(jìn)，鼴鼠和老馬并肩而行，跟馬說話，因?yàn)槟瞧ヱR抱怨說，他被冷落了，誰也不理睬他。蟾蜍和河鼠跟在車后，互相交談——至少是蟾蜍在說話，河鼠只是有一搭沒一搭地插上一句：“是呀，可不是嗎?你跟他說什么來著?”心里卻琢磨著毫不相干的別樣事。就在這當(dāng)兒，從后面老遠(yuǎn)的地方傳來一陣隱隱的警告的轟鳴聲，就像一只蜜蜂在遠(yuǎn)處嗡嗡嚶嚶?；仡^一看，只見后面一團(tuán)滾滾煙塵，中心有個(gè)黑黑的東西在移動(dòng)，以難以置信的速度向他們沖來。從煙塵里，發(fā)出一種低微的“噗噗”聲，像一只驚恐不安的動(dòng)物在痛苦地呻吟。他們并沒在意，又接著談話?？墒蔷驮谝凰查g(仿佛只一眨眼的工夫)，寧靜的局面突然打破了。一陣狂風(fēng)，一聲怒吼，那東西猛撲上來，把他們逼下了路旁的溝渠。那“噗噗”聲，像只大喇叭，在他們耳邊震天價(jià)響。那東西里面锃亮的厚玻璃板和華貴的摩洛哥山羊皮墊，在他們眼前一晃而過。原來那是一輛富麗堂皇的汽車，一個(gè)龐然大物，脾氣暴躁，令人膽寒。駕駛員聚精會(huì)神地緊握方向盤，頃刻間獨(dú)霸了整個(gè)天地，攪起一團(tuán)遮天蔽日的塵云，把他們團(tuán)團(tuán)裹住，什么也看不見了。接著，它嗖地遠(yuǎn)去，縮成一個(gè)小黑點(diǎn)，又變成了一只低聲嗡嗡的蜜蜂。

那匹老灰馬，正慢悠悠地往前踱步，一面夢想著他那恬靜閑適的養(yǎng)馬場，突然遇上這么個(gè)難對(duì)付的局面，不由得狂躁起來。他向后退，又向前猛沖，又一個(gè)勁兒倒退，不管鼴鼠怎樣使勁拉他的馬頭.怎樣在一旁苦口婆心地勸他保持冷靜，全都無濟(jì)于事，硬是把車子往后推到了路旁的深溝邊。那車晃了晃，接著便是撕心裂膽的一陣破碎聲，結(jié)果，這輛淡黃色篷車，他們的驕傲和歡樂，就整個(gè)橫躺在溝底，成了一堆無法修復(fù)的殘骸。

河鼠站在路當(dāng)中，暴跳如雷，氣得直頓腳。“這幫惡棍!”他揮著雙拳大聲吼叫。“這幫壞蛋，這幫強(qiáng)盜，你們——你們——你們這幫路匪!——我要控告你們!我要把你們送上法庭!”他的念家情緒領(lǐng)時(shí)消失，此刻，他成了一艘淡黃色航船的船長，他的船被一群敵對(duì)的船員肆無忌憚的橫沖直撞逼上了淺灘。一怒之下，他過去痛罵那些小汽船老板的尖酸刻薄的話一股腦噴發(fā)出來，因?yàn)槟切┤税汛_得離岸大近，攪起的浪花常常淹了他家客廳的地毯。

蟾蜍一屁股坐在滿是塵土的大路當(dāng)中，兩腿直挺挺地伸在前面，眼睛定定地凝望著汽車開走的方向。他呼吸急促，臉上的神情卻十分寧靜而滿意，嘴里還不時(shí)發(fā)出輕輕的“噗噗”聲。

鼴鼠忙著安撫老灰馬，過了一會(huì)，終于使他鎮(zhèn)靜下來。接著他就去查看那輛橫躺在溝底的車。那模樣真是慘不忍睹。門窗全都摔得粉碎，車軸彎得不可收拾，一只輪子脫落了，沙丁魚罐頭掉了一地，籠里的鳥慘兮兮地抽泣著，哭喊著求他們放他出來。

河鼠過去幫助鼴鼠，可他們兩個(gè)一齊努力也沒能把車扶起。“喂!蟾蜍!”他們喊道。“下來幫一把手，行不行?”

蟾蜍一聲不吭，坐在路上紋絲不動(dòng)。他倆只得過去，看看究竟出了什么事。只見，蟾蜍正迷迷瞪瞪地出神，臉上掛著幸福的笑容，兩眼仍直勾勾地盯著前面塵土飛揚(yáng)的地方，那個(gè)毀了他們的家伙的去向。時(shí)不時(shí)，還聽到他低聲念叨：“噗噗!”

河鼠搖了搖他的肩膀，嚴(yán)肅的問道：“蟾蜍，你不來幫我們嗎? ”

“多么燦爛輝煌又激動(dòng)人心的景象啊!”蟾蜍嘟噥著說，根本不打算挪窩兒。“詩一般的動(dòng)力!這才叫真正的旅行!這才是旅行的唯一方式!今天在這兒——明天就到了別處!一座座村莊，一座座城鎮(zhèn)，飛馳而過——新的眼界不斷出現(xiàn)!多幸福啊!噗噗!哎呀呀!哎呀呀!”

“別這么呆頭呆腦的，蟾蜍!”鼴鼠喊道，拿他毫無辦法。

“想想看，我對(duì)這玩意一無所知!”蟾蜍繼續(xù)夢吃般地喃喃道。“我虛度了多少時(shí)光啊!不但從不知道，連做夢也沒夢到過!現(xiàn)在我可知道了，現(xiàn)在我可全明白了!從今以后;展現(xiàn)在我面前的，該是多么光輝燦爛的錦繡前程啊!我要在公路上橫沖直撞，飛速馳騁，在身后卷起漫天的塵土!我要威風(fēng)凜凜地疾馳而過，把大批馬車推下溝渠!哼!討厭的小馬車!平淡無奇的馬車!淡黃色的馬車!”

“咱們拿他怎么辦?”鼴鼠問河鼠。

“什么也不用干，”河鼠斬釘截鐵地說。“事實(shí)上，沒有什么可干的。我太了解他啦。他現(xiàn)在是走火入魔。他又迷上了一個(gè)新玩意兒。一開頭，總要給它纏磨成這個(gè)德行。他會(huì)一連許多天都這樣瘋瘋傻傻，就像一只在美夢里游蕩的動(dòng)物，毫無實(shí)際用處。沒關(guān)系，不必理他。咱們還是去看看怎樣收拾那輛車吧。”

經(jīng)過仔細(xì)考察，他們看到，即使把車扶正過來，也沒法再乘上它旅行了。車軸破損得一塌糊涂，脫落的一只輪子，完全粉碎了。

河鼠把組繩拴在馬背上，一手牽著馬，一手提著鳥籠，帶上籠里那只驚慌萬狀的鳥。“走!”他神情嚴(yán)肅地對(duì)鼴鼠說。“到最近的小鎮(zhèn)，也有五六哩的路程，咱們只能靠腳走了。所以得趁早動(dòng)身。”

“可蟾蜍怎么辦?”他倆雙雙上路時(shí)，鼴鼠不安地問。“瞧他那副神不守舍的樣子，咱們總不能把他獨(dú)自個(gè)兒撂在路當(dāng)中吧!那太不安全了。萬一又開過來一輛汽車怎么辦?’”

“哼，去他的!”河鼠怒沖沖地說，“我跟他一刀兩斷啦!”

可是，他們沒走出多遠(yuǎn)，就聽見后面吧嗒吧嗒的腳步聲，原來是蟾蜍攆上來了。他把兩只爪子一邊一個(gè)，插進(jìn)他倆的臂彎里，仍舊氣喘吁吁，兩眼發(fā)直，盯著空空的前方。

“你聽著，蟾蜍!”河鼠厲聲說：“我們一到鎮(zhèn)上，你就徑直上警察局，問問他們知不知道那輛汽車，是誰的車，還要對(duì)他們提出起訴。然后，你得去找一家鐵匠鋪，或者修車鋪，要他們把馬車給修理好，這需要花一點(diǎn)時(shí)間，不過它還沒壞到?jīng)]法修理的程度。同時(shí)，鼴鼠和我就去旅館，找?guī)组g舒適的房間住下，等車修好，也等你精神恢復(fù)過來再走。”

“警察局!起訴!”蟾蜍夢吃般地喃喃道。“要我去控告那個(gè)美妙的恩典嗎?修馬車!我和馬車永遠(yuǎn)永遠(yuǎn)拜拜啦!我再也不想見到馬車，不想過問馬車的事啦。鼠兒啊，你同意和我一塊兒旅行，我真不知道怎樣感謝你才好!因?yàn)槟阋粊?，我就不?huì)來，也就永遠(yuǎn)看不到——那只天鵝，那道陽光，那聲雷鳴!永遠(yuǎn)聽不到那種叫人醉心的聲響，聞不到那股叫人著迷的氣味了!這一切全虧了你呀，我最好的朋友!”

河鼠無可奈何地掉轉(zhuǎn)臉去。“瞧見了嗎?”他隔著蟾蜍的頭對(duì)鼴鼠說：“他簡直不可救藥。算了，拉倒吧。等我們到了鎮(zhèn)上，就去火車站，運(yùn)氣好的話，也許能趕上一趟火車，今晚就可以回到河岸。你瞧著吧，今后我再跟這個(gè)可惡的動(dòng)物一塊兒玩樂才怪!”他憤憤地哼了一下鼻子，隨后，在這段沉悶乏味的跋涉途中，他只跟鼴鼠一個(gè)人搭話。

一到鎮(zhèn)上，他們直奔火車站，把蟾蜍安置在二等候車室，花兩便士托一位搬運(yùn)工好好看住他。然后，他們把馬寄存在一家旅店的馬廄里，對(duì)那輛馬車和里面的東西盡可能詳盡地作了說明，并吩咐人看管。一列慢車，終于把他們載到離蟾宮不遠(yuǎn)的站上。他們把迷離恍惚如醉如癡的蟾蜍護(hù)送到家，吩咐管家弄點(diǎn)東西給他吃，幫他脫衣，照料他上床睡覺。然后，他們從船塢里劃出自己的小船，劃到河下游的家中，很晚很晚，才在自己那舒適的臨河的客廳里坐下來吃晚飯。這時(shí)，河鼠才深深感到舒心快慰。

第二天傍晚，遲遲起床并且閑散了一整天的鼴鼠，坐在河邊釣魚。河鼠拜訪過幾家朋友，和他們聊些閑話，這時(shí)，他溜達(dá)過來找上鼴鼠。“聽到新聞了嗎?”他說。“整條河上，都在談?wù)撘患隆＝裉煲辉?，蟾蜍就搭早車進(jìn)城去了。他定購了一輛又大又豪華的汽車。”