介绍:
Walden [ˈwɔldən] (Issue 173)
14. Former Inhabitants; & Winter Visitors(4)
[7] Breed's hut was standing only a dozen years ago, though it had long been unoccupied. It was about the size of mine. It was set on fire by mischievous boys, one Election night, if I do not mistake. I lived on the edge of the village then, and had just lost myself over Davenant's "Gondibert," that winter that I labored with a lethargy[ˈleθədʒɪ] - which, by the way, I never knew whether to regard as a family complaint, having an uncle who goes to sleep shaving himself, and is obliged to sprout potatoes in a cellar Sundays, in order to keep awake and keep the Sabbath, or as the consequence of my attempt to read Chalmers' collection of English poetry without skipping. It fairly overcame my Nervii. I had just sunk my head on this when the bells rung fire, and in hot haste the engines rolled that way, led by a straggling troop of men and boys, and I among the foremost, for I had leaped the brook. We thought it was far south over the woods - we who had run to fires before - barn, shop, or dwelling-house, or all together. "It's Baker's barn," cried one. "It is the Codman place," affirmed another. And then fresh sparks went up above the wood, as if the roof fell in, and we all shouted "Concord to the rescue!" Wagons shot past with furious speed and crushing loads, bearing, perchance, among the rest, the agent of the Insurance Company, who was bound to go however far; and ever and anon the engine bell tinkled behind, more slow and sure; and rearmost of all, as it was afterward whispered, came they who set the fire and gave the alarm. Thus we kept on like true idealists, rejecting the evidence of our senses, until at a turn in the road we heard the crackling and actually felt the heat of the fire from over the wall, and realized, alas! that we were there. The very nearness of the fire but cooled our ardor[ˈaːdə]. At first we thought to throw a frog-pond on to it; but concluded to let it burn, it was so far gone and so worthless. So we stood round our engine, jostled one another, expressed our sentiments through speaking-trumpets, or in lower tone referred to the great conflagrations[ˌkɒnfləˈgreɪʃəns] which the world has witnessed, including Bascom's shop, and, between ourselves, we thought that, were we there in season with our "tub[tʌb]," and a full frog-pond by, we could turn that threatened last and universal one into another flood. We finally retreated without doing any mischief - returned to sleep and "Gondibert." But as for "Gondibert," I would except that passage in the preface about wit being the soul's powder - "but most of mankind are strangers to wit, as Indians are to powder."
布雷德小屋十几年前还在，虽然长期没人住了。大小就和我的屋子差不多。如果没记错的话，是一个选举夜被一伙淘气孩子放把火烧了。当时我住在村边，正着迷地读着达维南特的“刚迪波特”，那个冬天我正受到嗜睡症的困扰，顺便说一句，我不知道是不是把这看成对家族的抱怨，有那么个刮胡子睡着了的叔叔，被迫周日在一个地窖发土豆芽，为的是能醒着和守安息日，或者是作为我试图一字不落地读查尔默斯编的英语诗集的结果。这可真折磨我的神经。 我刚刚埋头于这事，火急火燎地火警铃儿在那边响了，于是便由一群稀稀拉拉大人孩子组成的大军统领着，由于我跳过了那条小溪，还居于前列。我们还想着过了林子的更南边——我们以前曾奔去的火灾的地方——谷仓、商店或住所，或都着了。“是贝克谷仓，”其中一人大喊。“是考得曼那里，”另一个肯定。可是一些新鲜火苗在林子上空升起来，好像是屋顶塌了，我们齐声大喊：“康科德告急！” 马车以愤怒的速度和粉碎加载货物的做派箭一般地射过去了，其中偶尔地[ǒu ěr]还有保险公司的代理人，多远都必须过来；火警铃儿在背后时时响着，更慢和更坚定；最后面的，据后来的传闻，来了那些放火的人并发出了警报。这样我们前行像真正的理想主义者，拒绝着我们感官的证据，直到在路面的一个转弯处我们听到了噼噼啪啪的声响和真正感受到越过那墙壁送上来的火的灼热，才意识到，哎呀！我们到了。离火太近却浇凉了我们的热情。起先我们想着往那火上扔整个一个青蛙池塘，可后来得出结论就让它那么烧吧，青蛙池塘离得太远了，无济于事。于是我们围着我们的引擎站着，互相挤撞，通过吹说话喇叭表达彼此情绪，或者窃窃私语这世界曾见证过的大火，包括贝斯康姆商店被烧，还有我们中间发生的，我们认为，如果我们带着我们的“盆子”及时赶到，而且附近有蛙池，我们能把那最后和最大的火的威胁化作一场洪水泛滥。最终我们撤，什么顽皮事也没做——回去睡和“刚迪波特”。但至于“刚迪波特”，我宁愿忽略前言除了里面关于智慧是灵魂的良药那一段——“可是大多数人都是智慧的陌生人，就如同印度人对于药粉。”
【注】I would except that passage in the preface about wit being the soul's powder
except vt.把…排除在外；不计
后面的引语是《冈地伯特》序言的原话，那原话是说人类大多数是不智的。梭罗对这句话不太同意，所以说排除在外，意思看上去真如梭罗要说：“人类大多还是聪明的。“ 可是梭罗在此的意思是讽刺，而不是赞同某一说法。那么既然是讽刺，梭罗更多倾向还是赞同这种说法——人类大多时候的聪明都是聪明过头了。梭罗的文字里大多这种似是而非的说法，他是在讽刺人类大多时候是盲目的，好吹牛的，不是真的说人类聪明透顶。
梭罗意思是：至于说到《冈地伯特》我倒宁愿空过智慧是灵魂良药那段，说什么“可是大多数人都是智慧的陌生人，就如同印度人对于药粉“，说什么人类不聪明，这不，看我上述经历人类挺聪明嘛。
人类真聪明吗？——否，都是为了各自的算计拧巴着来，结果欲速则不达——整个瓦尔登湖都是这一主题。
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