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They ordered him to be silent.
他們命令他閉嘴。
But he spoke.
但他偏要說話。
Upon the Old Men he turned his back and his eyes sought those who but a short time before had been his comrades.
他把脊背轉向老者，兩眼搜尋著不久以前還與他志同道合的人。
“Listen to me,” he implored.
“聽我說吧，”他懇求道，
“Listen to me and be rejoiced.
“聽我說，大家都高興起來吧！
I have come back from beyond the mountains.
我剛從山的那邊來，
My feet have trod a fresh soil.
我的腳踏上了新鮮的土地，
My hands have felt the touch of other races.
我的手感覺到了其他民族的撫摸，
My eyes have seen wondrous sights.
我的眼睛看到了奇妙的景象。
“When I was a child, my world was the garden of my father.
“小時候，我的世界只是父親的花園。
“To the west and to the east, to the south and to the north lay the ranges from the Beginning of Time.
“早在創世的時候，花園東面、南面、西面和北面的疆界就定下來了。
“When I asked what they were hiding, there was a hush and a hasty shaking of heads.
“只要我問疆界那邊藏著什么，大家就不住地搖頭，一片噓聲。
When I insisted, I was taken to the rocks and shown the bleached bones of those who had dared to defy the Gods.
可我偏要刨根問底，于是他們把我帶到這塊巖石上，讓我看那些敢于蔑視上帝的人的嶙嶙白骨。
“When I cried out and said,It is a lie! The Gods love those who are brave!
“騙人！上帝喜歡勇敢的人！我喊道。
The Men Who Knew came and read to me from their sacred books.
于是，守舊老人走過來，對我讀起他們的圣書。
The Law, they explained, had ordained all things of Heaven and Earth.
他們說，上帝的旨意已經決定了天上人間萬物的命運。
The Valley was ours to have and to hold.
山谷是我們的，由我們掌管，
The animals and the flowers, the fruit and the fishes were ours, to do our bidding.
野獸和花朵，果實和魚蝦，都是我們的，按我們的旨意行事。
But the mountains were of the Gods.
但山是上帝的，
What lay beyond was to remain unknown until the End of Time.
對山那邊的事物我們應該一無所知，直到世界的末日。
“So they spoke, and they lied.
“他們是在撒謊。
They lied to me, even as they have lied to you.
他們欺騙了我，就象欺騙了你們一樣。
“There are pastures in those hills.
“那邊的山上有牧場，
Meadows too, as rich as any.
牧草同樣肥沃，
And men and women of our own flesh and blood.
男男女女有同佯的血肉，
And cities resplendent with the glories of a thousand years of labor.
城市是經過一千年能工巧匠細心雕琢的，光采奪目。
