The sun is half way down in the west. Men are leaning over the outer edge of the bridge with ropes in their hands. But fifty more niches must be cut before the longest rope can reach the boy! Two minutes more, and all will be over. That blade is worn to the last half inch. The boy's head reels. His last hope is dying in his heart, his life must hang upon the next niche he cuts. That niche will be his last.
太陽快要下山了。男人們正手握繩子趴在橋的邊緣。但仍然需要超過50壁龕的長度才能夠到男孩兒。再拖延兩分鐘左右，所有的努力將以失敗告終。刀片已經(jīng)磨損到只剩半英寸了。男孩的頭開始眩暈。他最后的希望在心中忽明忽暗，所有希望都懸在他所立足的下一個縫隙中。那個縫隙很可能是最后一個。
At the last cut he makes, his knife—his faithful knife—drops from his little nerveless hand, and ringing down the precipice, falls at his mother's feet! An involuntary groan of despair runs through the crowd below, and all is still as the grave. At the height of nearly three hundred feet, the devoted boy lifts his hopeless heart and closing eyes to commend his soul to God.
在他刻下最后一刀時，他的小刀——那把忠實的小刀——從無力的小手中滑落，發(fā)出“叮叮當(dāng)當(dāng)”的響聲，沿著峭壁滾落在他媽媽的腳邊。底下的人群不自主地發(fā)出一陣絕望的嘆息，所有人的心情都很沉重。在接近300英尺的高度，這位虔誠的男孩兒心灰意冷，閉上雙眼將自己的靈魂托付給上帝。
Hark!—a shout falls on his ears from above! A man who is lying with half his length over the bridge, has caught a glimpse of the boy's head and shoulders. Quick as thought the noosed rope is within reach of the sinking youth. No one breathes. With a faint, convulsive effort, the swooning boy drops his arm into the noose.
“聽！”——一聲大喊從上面?zhèn)鱽怼Ｒ粋€男人半倚著橋，瞥見了男孩的頭和雙肩。很快，帶有鎖套的繩子已經(jīng)觸碰到下沉的青年了。所有人都屏住了呼吸。伴著眩暈和抽搐，這個近乎暈倒的男孩將手臂伸進了鎖套里。
Not a lip moves while he is dangling over that fearful abyss; but when a sturdy arm reaches down and draws up the lad, and holds him up before the tearful, breathless multitude—such shouting and such leaping and weeping for joy never greeted a human being so recovered from the jaws of death.
當(dāng)小男孩在可怕的深淵里懸著時，所有人都屏息凝視，但當(dāng)一支強壯的手臂碰到并抓住男孩，將他帶到滿含淚水，目瞪口呆的人群中時，大家用前所未有的歡呼雀躍和喜極而泣來迎接這位從鬼門關(guān)走了一圈的孩子。
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