動物農(nóng)場Animal Farm 第3章(2)

For instance, later in the year, when they harvested the corn,

比如，這年年底，收完玉米后，因為莊園里沒有打谷機和脫粒機，

they had to tread it out in the ancient style and blow away the chaff with their breath, since the farm possessed no threshing machine.

他們就有那種古老的方式，踩來踩去地把玉米粒弄下來，再靠嘴巴把秣殼吹掉。

But the pigs with their cleverness and Boxer with his tremendous muscles always pulled them through.

但是豬的機靈和鮑克瑟的力大無比總能使他們順利度過難關(guān)。

Boxer was the admiration of everybody.

動物們對鮑克瑟贊嘆不已。

He had been a hard worker even in Jones's time, but now he seemed more like three horses than one.

即使在瓊斯時期，鮑克瑟就一直是個勤勞而持之以恒的好勞力，而今，他更是一個頂三個。

There were days when the entire work of the farm seemed to rest on his mightyshoulders.

那一雙強勁的肩膀，常常象是承擔了莊園里所有的活計。

From morning to night he was pushing and pulling, always at the spot where the work was hardest.

從早到晚，他不停地拉呀推呀，總是出現(xiàn)在工作最艱苦的地方。

He had made an arrangement with one of the cockerels to call him in the mornings half an hour earlier than anyone else,

他早就和一只小公雞約好，每天早晨，小公雞提前半小時叫醒他，

and would put in some volunteer labour at whatever seemed to be most needed, before the regular day's work began.

他就在正式上工之前先干一些志愿活，而這些活看起來也是最急需的。

His answer to every problem, every setback, was "I will work harder!"--which he had adopted as his personal motto.

無論遇到什么困難和挫折，鮑克瑟的回答總是：“我要更加努力工作”，這句話也是他一直引用的座右銘。

But everyone worked according to his capacity.

但是，每個動物都只能量力而行。

The hens and ducks, for instance, saved five bushels of corn at the harvest by gatheringup the stray grains.

比如雞和鴨子，收獲時單靠他們撿拾零落的谷粒，就節(jié)約了五蒲式耳的玉米。

Nobody stole, nobody grumbled over his rations.

沒有誰偷吃，也沒有誰為自己的口糧抱怨。

The quarrelling and biting and jealousy which had been normal features of life in the old days had almost disappeared.

那些過去習以為常的爭吵、咬斗和嫉妒也幾乎一掃而光。

Nobody shirked--or almost nobody.

沒有或者說幾乎沒有動物開小差逃工。

Mollie, it was true, was not good at getting up in the mornings, and had a way of leaving work early on the ground that there was a stone in her hoof.

不過，倒真有這樣的事：莫麗不太習慣早晨起來，她還有一個壞毛病，常常借故蹄子里夾了個石子，便丟下地里的活，早早溜走了。

And the behaviour of the cat was somewhat peculiar.

貓的表現(xiàn)也多少與眾不同。

It was soon noticed that when there was work to be done the cat could never be found.

每當有活干的時候，大家就發(fā)現(xiàn)怎么也找不到貓了。

She would vanish for hours on end, and then reappear at meal-times, or in the evening after work was over, as though nothing had happened.

她會連續(xù)幾小時不見蹤影，直到吃飯時，或者收工后，才若無其事一般重新露面。

But she always made such excellent excuses, and purred so affectionately, that it was impossible not to believe in her good intentions.

可是她總有絕妙的理由，咕咕嚕嚕地說著，簡直真誠得叫誰也沒法懷疑她動機良好。