Three feet from the pit a man was standing, with an electric torch in his hand.
在離坑三英尺遠的地方站了一個人,手中拿著手電筒。
You've done well, Rainsford, the voice of the general called. "Your Burmese tiger pit has claimed one of my best dogs. Again you score. I'm going home for a rest now. Thank you for a most amusing evening."
“干得好,雷恩斯福德,”將軍喊道。“你的緬甸式獵虎坑弄死了我最好的一條狗。你又得手了。我現在要回家休息了。多謝你,這一夜玩得很有趣。”
At daybreak Rainsford was awakened by a sound that made him know that he had new things to learn about fear. It was a distant sound, but he knew it. It was the baying of a pack of hounds.
拂曉時分,雷恩斯福德被一陣聲響吵醒,這聲響讓他領教了什么才叫恐懼。那聲音很遠,但他知道是什么,是一群獵狗的叫聲。
Rainsford knew he could do one of two things. He could stay where he was and wait. That was suicide. He could flee. That was postponing the inevitable. For a moment he stood there, thinking. An idea that held a wild chance came to him and, tightening his belt, he headed away from the swamp.
雷恩斯福德知道自己只有兩種選擇,其一是待在原地繼續等待,那無疑等于自殺;其二,他可以逃跑。那也不過是推遲不可避免的死亡罷了。他站在那里思考了一會兒。突然,他想到了一個主意。盡管希望不大,他還是勒緊腰帶,轉身離開沼澤。
The baying of the hounds drew nearer and nearer. On a ridge Rainsford climbed a tree. About a quarter of a mile away, he could see the bush moving. Straining his eyes, he saw the lean figure of the general; just ahead of him he made out another figure; it was the giant Ivan; Rainsford knew that he must be holding the pack in leash.
獵狗的叫聲越來越近。雷恩斯福德爬到山脊的一棵樹上。他可以看到大約四分之一英里開外的樹叢在擺動。他極目遠眺,看到了將軍那精瘦的身影,而在將軍前面有另一個身影也映入眼簾,他可以認出那是巨人伊萬。雷恩斯福德知道,他肯定正用皮帶牽著獵狗。
They would be on him any minute now. His mind worked frantically. He thought of a native trick he had learned in Uganda. He slid down the tree. He caught hold of a springy young sapling and to it he fastened his hunting knife, with the blade pointed down the trail; with a bit of wild grapevine he tied back the sapling.
獵狗現在隨時都會撲到自己身上,他的大腦瘋狂地運轉著。他想起了在烏干達學會的一種土著把戲,于是他滑到樹下。他抓住一棵有彈性的小樹,把獵刀綁在樹上,刀刃沖著小道,用一些野葡萄藤將小樹反捆起來。