泰西50轶事(六之一)：约翰王和修道院院长 江铭辉五梦网
泰西50轶事(Fifty Famous Stories Retold)，是永恒的短篇故事，它收集的故事：包括浩瀚历史的著名英雄和他们的罗曼史，故事内容有勇气、毅力和情感。故事人物包括拿破仑、罗宾汉，乔治华盛顿、成吉思汗等人。这些故事都是老少咸宜的故事，我将它逐篇翻译，并配合图画，供大家欣赏。
泰西50轶事(六)：约翰王翰和修道院院长
原文及翻译如下：
King John and the Abbot
约翰王翰和修道院院长
1. THE THREE QUESTIONS
1. 三个问题
There was once a king of England whose name was John. He was a bad king; for he was harsh and cruel to his people, and so long as he could have his own way, he did not care what became of other folks. He was the worst king that England ever had.
从前，英国有一个国王叫做约翰(图1)。他是一个暴君。因为他对他的人民粗暴而残忍，他随自己的高兴一意孤行，从不关心老百姓的死活，这是英国有史以来最残暴的国王。
图1：约翰王(本图摘自维基百科)
Now, there was in the town of Canterburya rich old abbot who lived in grand style in a great house called the Abbey. Every day a hundred noble men sat down with him to dine; and fifty brave knights,in fine velvet coats and gold chains, waited upon him at his table.
那时，在坎特伯里城有一个富有的老修道院长，他住在一座宏伟的大修道院里，过着豪华的生活，每天有一百个高贵的人坐着陪他用餐，还有五十个穿着美好天鹅绒外衣、扣着金链条的勇士在他的桌旁侍候他。
When King John heard of the way in which the abbot lived, hemade up his mind to put a stop to it. So he sent for the old man to come and see him.
当约翰国王听说了修道院院长如此的生活之后，他决定制止它，过这种豪华生活，于是他派人叫那老人来晋见他。
“How now, my good abbot?”he said. “I hear that you keep a far better house than I. How dare you do such a thing? Don t you know that no man in the land ought to live better than the king? And I tell you that no man shall.”
“最近可好，我的好修道院长？”他说，“我听说你拥有比我的豪华许多的房子。你为什么敢作如此的事？你难道不知道在这个国家里，没有人可以比国王过得更好吗？现在我告诉你，什么人都不允许！”
“O king! ”said the abbot, “I beg to say that I am spending
nothing but what is my own. I hope that you will not think ill of me for making things pleasant for my friends and the brave knights who are
with me.”
“啊，国王！”修到院长说，“请容许我说，我所用的都是自己的钱。我希望你不要误会，我只是想使我的朋友和身边的勇士快乐罢了。”
“Think ill of you?”said the king.“How can I help but think ill of you? All that there is in this broad land is mine by right; and how do you dare to put me to shame by living in grander style than I? One would think that you were trying to be king in my place.”
“误会你？”国王说，“除了误会你我还能怎样？按理说，在这片广大的领土之上一切都是属于我的，你竟敢过得比我更豪华的生活，使我蒙羞？任何人都会认为你想取代我的王位。”
“Oh, do not say so! ”said the abbot.“for I—”
“Not another word! ”cried the king. “Your fault is plain, and
unless you can answer me three questions, your head shall be cut off,
and all your riches shall be mine.”
“啊，别这么说！”修道院长说，“因为我……”。
“不用再多说了！”国王大声说道，“你的罪过是再清楚不过了，除非你能回答出我的三个问题，否则你将会被砍头，你的所有财产也将归我所有。”
“I will try to answer them, O king! ”said the abbot.
“国王啊，我将尽力回答！”院长说。
“Well then,”said King John, “as I sit here with my crown of gold on my head, you must tell me to within a day just how long I shall live. Secondly, you must tell me how soon I shall ride round the whole world;and lastly, you shall tell me what I think.” 。
“那好，”约翰国王说，“当我头戴金冠坐在这里，你必须告诉我还能活多久，并且一天也不差；第二，你还必须告诉我，我骑马环游世界最快需要多久的时间；最后，你必须告诉我，我在想什么。”
“O king! ”said the abbot, “these are deep, hard questions, and I
cannot answer them just now. But if you will give me two weeks to think
about them, I will do the best that I can.”
“啊，国王！”院长说，“这些都是深奥的难题，我不能现在就回答，但是如果你能给两周的时间去思考，我将竭尽全力来回答。”
“Two weeks you shall have,”said the king; “but if then you fail to
answer me, you shall lose your head, and all your lands shall be mine.”
“就给你两周的时间，”国王说，“但是两周之后你若还不能回答，你将失去你的头，你的土地也将归于我。”
The abbot went away very sad and in great fear. He first rode to Oxford. Here was a great school called a university, and he wanted to see if any of the wise professors could help him. But they shook their heads, and said that there was nothing about King John in any of their books.
院长怀着恐惧，非常伤心地离开了。他先骑着马去了牛津，那里有个大学校，被称为大学。他看看那些聪明的教授们，是否有人能够帮助他，可是他们都摇着头，并且说他们的书本上没有任何关于约翰国王的问题。
Then the abbot rode down to Cambridge, where there was another
university. But not one of the teachers in that great school could help
him.
接着院长又骑马到剑桥，那儿有另一所大学。但是那所优秀的学校中，也没有任何一个教师能够帮助他。
At last, sad and sorrowful, he rode towards home to bid his friends and his brave knights good-by. For now he had not a week to live.
最后，他悲伤而沮丧地回家去，准备向朋友和勇士们告别。因为现在他只剩下不到一星期能活了。
2. THE THREE ANSWERS
2. 三个答案
As the abbot was riding up the lane which led to his grand house,
he met his shepherd going to the fields.
当修道院长骑着马要从小巷往他那华丽的住宅时，他遇到了他雇用的牧羊人正要到田野里去。(图2)
图2：修道院长骑着马遇到了他雇用的牧羊人。
Welcome home, good master! ”cried the shepherd.
“What news do you bring us
from great King John?”
“Sad news, sad news,”
said the abbot; and then he told him all that had happened.
“欢迎你回家，善良的主人！”牧羊人大声说道，“你从约翰国王那儿回来，带来了什么消息啊？”
“悲哀消息，悲哀消息，”院长说。接着他把所发生的事都告诉了牧羊人。
“Cheer up, cheer up,good master,”said the shepherd.
“Have you never yet heard that a fool may teach a wise man wit? I think I canhelp you out of your trouble.”
“振作起来，振作起来吧，善良的主人，”牧羊人说，“难道你没听说过一个傻瓜也能教导一个聪明人智慧吗？我想我能帮助你脱离困境呢。”
“You help me! ”cried the abbot. “How? how?”
“你能帮助我！”修道院长大叫，“怎么做？怎么做？”
“Well,”answered the shepherd, “you know that everybody says
that I look just like you, and that I have sometimes been mistaken for
you. So, lend me your servants and your horse and your gown, and I will
go up to London and see the king. If nothing else can be done, I can at
least die in your place.”
“好的，”牧羊人回答，“你可知道，每个人都说我跟你长得很像，有时候还会把我错认作你呢。把你的仆人、马还有长袍都借给我，我将上伦敦去拜见国王。即使干不了别的事，至少也可以替你去死啊。”
“My good shepherd,”said the abbot,“you are very, very kind; and I have a mind to let you try your plan. But if the worst comes to the worst, you shall not die for me. I will die for myself.”
“我的好牧羊人，”院长说，“你真是非常、非常有仁慈心，我决定让你试试你的计划。但是如果厄运糟到极点，你也不必替我去死，我愿意自己去死。”
So the shepherd got ready to go at once. He dressed himself with great care. Over his shepherd’s coat he threw the abbot’s long gown, and he borrowed the abbot’s cap and golden staff. When all was ready, no one in the world would have thought that he was not the great man himself. Then he mounted his horse, and with a great train of servants set out for London.
于是牧羊人立刻做好了出发的准备，他精心地把自己打扮了一番，脱下了牧羊人的外套，穿上修道院长的长袍，还借来了院长的帽子和金手杖。当一切准备就绪之后，世界上所有人没有不认为他就是大人物“修道院长”本人呢。然后，他骑上马，带着一大队仆人向伦敦出发。
Of course the king did not know him.
“Welcome, Sir Abbot! ”he said.“It is a good thing that you have come back. But, prompt as you are, if you fail to answer my three questions, you shall lose your head.”
国王当然不会认出是他。
“欢迎你，院长先生！”他说，“你回来真是一件好事情。只是太快了，如果你回答不出我的三个问题，你就失去你的头了。”(图3)
图3：牧羊人打扮成修道院长晋见国王
“I am ready to answer them, O king! ”said the shepherd.
“Indeed, indeed! ”said the king, and he laughed to himself.
“Well, then, answer my first question: How long shall I live? Come, you
must tell me to the very day.”
“啊，国王。我已经准备好回答你的问题了！”牧羊人说。
“真的吗？真的吗？”国王问道，并暗自窃笑。
“那好，先回答我的第一个问题：我能活多久？听着，你必须告诉我一个确切的日子。”
“You shall live,”said the shepherd, “until the day that you die,
and not one day longer. And you shall die when you take your last
breath, and not one moment before.”
The king laughed.
“You are witty, I see,”he said.“But we will let that pass, and say that your answer is right. And now tell me how soon I may ride round the world.”
“你将活到，”牧羊人说，
“活到你去世的那天，一天也不会多，你将在呼吸停止时死去，一刻也不会提前。”
国王笑了起来。
“我明白，你很精灵，”他说，“你的答案是对的，这一题就算通过了。现在告诉我，我骑马环游世界最快需要多久时间。”
“You must rise with the sun,”said the shepherd, “and you must ride with the sun until it rise again the next morning. As soon as you do that you will find that you have ridden round the world in twenty four hours.”
“你必须在太阳升起时动身，”牧羊人说，“然后骑马跟随着太阳，直到第二天早晨它再次升起。只要你那样做了，就会发现你已经在二十四小时之内骑马环游了世界。”(图4)
图4：牧羊人说，“国王骑马跟随着太阳，在二十四小时之内就能环游了世界。
The king laughed again.“Indeed,”he said,“I did not think that it
could be done so soon. You are not only witty, but you are wise and
we will let this answer pass. And now comes my third and last question:
What do I think?”
国王又笑了起来。“的确”他说，“没想到这件事这么快就能完成。你不仅精灵，还很聪明，这道题也算你答对了。现在回答第三，也是最后的一个问题：我在想什么？”
“That is an easy question,”said the shepherd. “You think that I
am the Abbot of Canterbury. But, to tell you the truth, I am only his
poor shepherd, and I have come to beg your pardon for him and for me.”And with that, he threw off his long gown.
“这个问题太容易了，”牧羊人说，“你在想我是坎特布里的修道院长，可是，实话告诉你吧，我只是他的一个穷牧羊人罢了，我来这里是为了我的主人和我恳求你的宽恕的。”说着，他就脱下了长袍。
The king laughed loud and long.
“A merry fellow you are,”said he, “and you shall be the Abbot of Canterbury in your master’s place.”
国王大声笑了很久。
“你真是个有趣的家伙，”他说，“你应该代替你的主人来做坎
特布里的修道院长。”
“O king! that cannot be,”said the shepherd; “for I can neither
read nor write.”
“啊！国王，那可不成，”牧羊人说，“因为我既不会读也不会写。”
“Very well, then,”said the king,“I will give you something else to pay you for this merry joke. I will give you four pieces of silver every
week as long as you live. And when you get home, you may tell the old
abbot that you have brought him a free pardon from King John.”
“很好，那么，”国王说，“我将给一些赏赐来奖励你的幽默。你在世时，每周我给你四块银币。在你回到家之后，告诉老修道院长，说你已经从约翰国王这里，为他取得了一道自由的赦令。”