介绍:
Snowbell, the cat, enjoyed nighttime more than daytime. Perhaps it was because his eyes liked the dark.
But I think it was because there are always so many worthwhile things going on in New York at night.
那只叫雪球的猫，更喜欢过晚上，而不是白天。可能因为他的眼睛对黑暗比较适应吧。不过我想那是因为纽约的夜里总有许多值得注意的东西。
Snowbell had several friends in the neighborhood. Some of them were house cats, others were store cats. He knew a Maltese cat in the AandPeople, a white Persian in the apartment house next door, a tortoise-shell in the delicatessen, a tiger cat in the basement of the branch library, and a beautiful young Angora who had escaped from a cage in a pet shop on Third Avenue and had gone to live a free life of her own in the tool house of the small park near Stuart's home.
雪球在家附近有许多邻居，其中的一些是家猫，还有一些是店里的猫。他认识一只在 A&P 超市的马耳他猫，一只住在公寓楼的另一个门里的白波斯猫，一只住在一家熟菜店里的玳瑁猫，一只住在图书馆分馆地下室的虎斑猫，一只从第三街的宠物店的笼子里逃出来的漂亮的小安哥拉猫，她在斯图亚特家附近的公园旁的一个小工具室里过着她自由自在的生活。
One fine spring evening Snowbell had been calling on the Angora in the park. He started home, late, and it was such a lovely night she said she would walk along with him to keep him company. When they got to Mr. Little's house, the two cats sat down at the foot of a tall vine which ran up the side of the house past George's bedroom. This vine was useful to Snowbell, because he could climb it at night and crawl into the house through George's open window.
Snowbell began telling his friend about Margalo and Stuart.
一个很好的春夜，雪球去拜访在公园住的安哥拉猫。等他在晚些时候想要回家时，她说因为这个夜晚太可爱了，所以想陪他一起散步。他们一直走到利特尔家，来到乔治卧室窗外的常春藤下，才坐下来休息。这常春藤对雪球来说特别有用，因为在夜里他可以从乔治卧室敞开的窗子里爬到这常春藤上，悄悄地溜出去。雪球开始告诉他的朋友有关玛戈和斯图亚特的事。
"Goodness," said the Angora cat, "you mean to say you live in the same house with a bird and a mouse and don't do anything about it?"
"That's the situation," replied Snowbell.
"But what can I do about it? Please remember that Stuart is a member of the family, and the bird is a permanent guest, like myself."
"Well," said Snowbell's friend, "all I can say is, you've got more self-control than I have."
“老天，”那只安哥拉猫说，“你是说你和一只鸟儿还有一只耗子住在一起，而且从没有打扰过他们？”
“就是这样，”雪球回答。“不过我还能怎样？请记住，斯图亚特也是这个家庭的一员，而那只鸟是永远受欢迎的客人，就像我一样。”
“哦，”雪球的朋友说，“我能说的是，你比我更能自我克制。”
"Doubtless," said Snowbell. "However, I sometimes think I've got too much self-control for my own good. I've been terribly nervous and upset lately, and I think it's because I'm always holding myself in."
The cats' voices grew louder, and they talked so loudly that they never heard a slight rustling in the vine a few feet above their heads.
It was a gray pigeon, who had been asleep there and who had awakened at the sound of cats and begun to listen. "This sounds like an interesting conversation," said the pigeon to himself. "Maybe I'd better stay around and see if I can learn something."
“毫无疑问，”雪球说。“不管怎样，我有时想我克制得太过分了。近来我的神经一直承受着巨大的刺激，我想那是因为我总在受压抑的原因。”
两只猫的声音越来越高，由于他们谈得这么大声，根本没听到从常春藤上几步高的地方里传出的轻微响动。那里有一只在睡觉的灰鸽子，如今已被他们吵醒，正在那里听呢。“听起来像是一场有趣的谈话。”鸽子对自己说。“我最好呆在这里，也许还能学到些什么。”
"Look here," he heard the Angora cat say to Snowbell, "I admit that a cat has a duty toward her own people, and that under the circumstances it would be wrong for you to eat Margalo. But I'm not a member of your family and there is nothing to stop me from eating her, is there?"
"Nothing that I can think of offhand," said Snowbell.
"Then here I go," said the Angora, starting up the vine. The pigeon was wide awake by this time, ready to fly away; but the voices down below continued.
“的确，”他听到安哥拉猫对雪球说，“我承认一只猫有责任为他的主人着想，而在那种情况下，你要吃玛戈就不对了。但我不是你们家的成员，所以没什么能阻止我吃掉她，是不是？”
“现在我还想不出什么可以阻止你的理由，”雪球说。
“现在我上去了，”安哥拉猫说完，向常春藤上爬去。那只鸽子这时完全醒了，想要逃走；可是下面又传来了声音。
"Wait a minute," said Snowbell, "don't be in such a hurry. I don't think you'd better go in there tonight."
"Why not?" asked the other cat.
"Well, for one thing, you're not supposed to enter our house. It's unlawful entry, and you might get into trouble."
"I won't get into any trouble," said the Angora.
"Please wait till tomorrow night," said Snowbell, firmly. "Mr. and Mrs. Little will be going out tomorrow night, and you won't be taking such a risk. It's for your own good I'm suggesting this."
“等等，”雪球说，“不要这么急。我不认为你该今晚去那里。”
“为什么不？”那只猫问。“嗯，因为一件事。你不能进我们的房子，这属于非法入侵，你可能会惹麻烦的。”
“我不会陷入麻烦的，”安哥拉猫说。
“请等到明晚吧，”雪球坚持说。“那时利特尔先生和太太会出去，你也不必这么冒险了。我猜那时才是你的好时候。”
"Oh, all right," agreed the Angora. "I guess I can wait. But tell me where I'll find the bird, after I do get in."
"That's simple," said Snowbell. "Climb this vine, enter George's room through the open window, then go downstairs and you'll find the bird asleep in the Boston fern on the bookcase."
"Easy enough," said the Angora, licking her chops. "I'm obliged to you, sir."
“哦，好吧，”安哥拉猫同意。“我想我可以等。告诉我在哪儿能找到那只鸟，在我进去以后。”
“很容易，”雪球说。“爬上这常春藤，从敞开的窗子进到乔治的卧室，再来到起居室，爬到书架上的波士顿羊齿植物那里就可以找到那只睡觉的小鸟。”
“太容易了，”安哥拉猫说着，舔了舔脸。“我不胜感谢，先生。”
"Well, the old thing!" whispered the pigeon to himself, and he flew away quickly to find a piece of writing paper and a pencil. Snowbell said goodnight to his friend and climbed up the vine and went into bed.
Next morning Margalo found a note on the branch of her fern when she woke. It said: BEWARE OF A STRANGE CAT WHO WILL COME BY NIGHT. It was signed A WELL WISHER. She kept the note under her wing all day long, wondering what she had better do, but she didn't dare show it to anyone--not even to Stuart.
“噢，用老办法！”那只鸽子自语着，很快地飞出去找纸和铅笔去了。雪球和他的朋友说了晚安，便爬上常春藤，回去睡觉了。
第二天早晨，玛戈醒来时，在她的羊齿植物的枝桠间发现了一个便条。那上面说：当心半夜来的那只陌生的猫。底下的签名是：一个好心人。整整一天里，她都把这便条夹在她的翅膀下面，想知道她该怎么办，不过她不敢把它给任何人看——甚至不敢给斯图亚特看。
She couldn't eat, she was so frightened.
"What had I better do?" she kept saying to herself.
Finally, just before dark, she hopped up to an open window and without saying anything to anybody she flew away. It was springtime, and she flew north, just as fast as she could fly, because something inside her told her that north was the way for a bird to go when spring comes to the land.
她吃不下饭，因为她太害怕了。
“我该怎么办呢？”她不停地自问着。最后，就在天黑之前，她没有对任何人说什么就蹦上开着的窗户飞走了。那时是春天，她就尽可能地往北飞，因为她心里想，当春天来临时，鸟儿就该往北飞。
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