霍比特人：Over Hill and Under Hill 越過山嶺鉆進山內(nèi)

OVER HILL AND UNDER HILL

越過山嶺鉆進山內(nèi)

There were many paths that led up into those mountains, and many passes over them. But most of the paths were cheats and deceptions and led nowhere or to bad ends; and most of the passes were infested by evil things and dreadful dangers. The dwarves and the hobbit, helped by the wise advice of Elrond and the knowledge and memory of Gandalf, took the right road to the right pass.

通往山里的路有許多條，越過山嶺的隘口也有許多個，但大多數(shù)的道路都只是騙人的假象，帶著人在山里轉(zhuǎn)圈子，或者通向死路。而大多數(shù)的隘口則有邪惡的東西出沒，或是埋伏著可怕的危險。矮人和霍比特人一來有埃爾隆德睿智的建議，二來有甘道夫的知識與記憶，因此他們踏上的是正確的道路，這些道路把他們帶到了正確的隘口。

Long days after they had climbed out of the valley and left the Last Homely House miles behind, they were still going up and up and up. It was a hard path and a dangerous path, a crooked way and a lonely and a long. Now they could look back over the lands they had left, laid out behind them far below. Far, far away in the West, where things were blue and faint, Bilbo knew there lay his own country of safe and comfortable things, and his little hobbit-hole. He shivered. It was getting bitter cold up here, and the wind came shrill among the rocks. Boulders, too, at times came galloping down the mountain-sides, let loose by mid-day sun upon the snow, and passed among them (which was lucky), or over their heads (which was alarming). The nights were comfortless and chill, and they did not dare to sing or talk too loud, for the echoes were uncanny, and the silence seemed to dislike being broken—except by the noise of water and the wail of wind and the crack of stone.

在他們爬出了山谷好多天，把最后家園甩在身后好多哩路之后，他們依然在不停地往上走。這是一條艱難而又危險的路，也是一條蜿蜒的路、孤獨的路和漫長的路。此時，他們回頭就能看見已經(jīng)離開的那片土地，它們靜靜地躺在身后很下面的地方。在西面很遠很遠的地方，所有東西呈現(xiàn)出一片淡淡的藍色，比爾博知道那里是他一切都那么安全、舒適的故鄉(xiāng)，那里有他小小的霍比特人洞府。這里的寒氣已經(jīng)越來越凜冽了，勁風在巖石間呼嘯而過。有時候，正午的烈陽會曬融山頂?shù)姆e雪，讓山上的大石松動，然后順著山坡急滾而下。這些石頭有時會從他們之間穿過(這算是很幸運的)，有時則會從他們頭上飛過(這就叫人心驚膽寒)。夜晚則寒風刺骨，叫人苦不堪言，而他們也不敢唱歌或是大聲說話，因為回聲是危險的，山中的寧靜似乎不喜歡被打破——能夠例外的只有水流聲、凄厲的風嘯和巖石斷裂的聲音。

“The summer is getting on down below,” thought Bilbo, “and haymaking is going on and picnics. They will be harvesting and blackberrying, before we even begin to go down the other side at this rate.” And the others were thinking equally gloomy thoughts, although when they had said good-bye to Elrond in the high hope of a midsummer morning, they had spoken gaily of the passage of the mountains, and of riding swift across the lands beyond. They had thought of coming to the secret door in the Lonely Mountain, perhaps that very next last moon of Autumn—“and perhaps it will be Durin’s Day” they had said. Only Gandalf had shaken his head and said nothing. Dwarves had not passed that way for many years, but Gandalf had, and he knew how evil and danger had grown and thriven in the Wild, since the dragons had driven men from the lands, and the goblins had spread in secret after the battle of the Mines of Moria. Even the good plans of wise wizards like Gandalf and of good friends like Elrond go astray sometimes when you are off on dangerous adventures over the Edge of the Wild; and Gandalf was a wise enough wizard to know it.

“山下面一定還是夏天呢。”比爾博想，“大家一定在忙著曬稻草，出去野餐什么的。照這個速度看來，還沒等我們開始從山那邊下去，他們都已經(jīng)在收莊稼、摘黑莓了。”其他人的想法也和比爾博同樣陰郁，盡管他們在夏至當天，曾滿懷期望地和埃爾隆德道別，當時他們以愉快的心情談論著怎樣穿過山脈，然后在山那邊的大地上放馬馳騁。他們已經(jīng)想到了怎樣來到孤山密門之前，或許那時剛好就是下一次同樣的秋月之夜。“或許還剛好是都林之日呢。”他們說。只有甘道夫搖了搖腦袋，什么也沒說。矮人們已經(jīng)有很多年沒有走過這條道路了，但甘道夫走過，他知道在這片荒野之中，自從惡龍將人類從這片土地上趕走，半獸人又在墨瑞亞礦坑之戰(zhàn)后秘密擴張，自那時起，這里有多少邪惡與危險在滋生著。只要你是前往荒野邊緣去進行危險的冒險，那么即便是甘道夫這樣睿智的巫師和埃爾隆德這樣的好朋友制訂的周全計劃，照樣會有可能出問題。甘道夫作為一個睿智的巫師，自然很清楚這一點。

He knew that something unexpected might happen, and he hardly dared to hope that they would pass without fearful adventure over those great tall mountains with lonely peaks and valleys where no king ruled. They did not. All was well, until one day they met a thunderstorm—more than a thunderstorm, a thunder-battle. You know how terrific a really big thunderstorm can be down in the land and in a river-valley; especially at times when two great thunderstorms meet and clash. More terrible still are thunder and lightning in the mountains at night, when storms come up from East and West and make war. The lightning splinters on the peaks, and rocks shiver, and great crashes split the air and go rolling and tumbling into every cave and hollow; and the darkness is filled with overwhelming noise and sudden light.

他知道總會有意料之外的事情發(fā)生，那些頂峰與谷地都顯得那么孤單的巍巍高山，是沒有國王來統(tǒng)治的地方，要越過那樣的高山，他幾乎不敢奢望一路上會連一點可怕的冒險都不碰上。他們的確碰上了。剛開始一切都還順利，直到有一天，他們遇到了一場大雷雨——事實上，不僅僅是一場大雷雨，簡直就是一場雷暴。你也知道在平原上或是河谷中，一場真正的大雷雨會有多么可怕，尤其是兩場大雷雨沖撞到了一塊兒的時候。比這還要可怕的雷與電在山區(qū)的夜里共同肆虐，再加上從東方和西方趕來，構(gòu)成一場混戰(zhàn)。閃電劈在山巔，巖石也為之戰(zhàn)栗，聲聲巨響劃破空氣，隆隆地滾進所有的巖穴與山洞，黑暗中充斥著壓倒一切的噪音和突如其來的刺眼光芒。

Bilbo had never seen or imagined anything of the kind. They were high up in a narrow place, with a dreadful fall into a dim valley at one side of them. There they were sheltering under a hanging rock for the night, and he lay beneath a blanket and shook from head to toe. When he peeped out in the lightning-flashes, he saw that across the valley the stone-giants were out, and were hurling rocks at one another for a game, and catching them, and tossing them down into the darkness where they smashed among the trees far below, or splintered into little bits with a bang. Then came a wind and a rain, and the wind whipped the rain and the hail about in every direction, so that an overhanging rock was no protection at all. Soon they were getting drenched and their ponies were standing with their heads down and their tails between their legs, and some of them were whinnying with fright. They could hear the giants guffawing and shouting all over the mountainsides.

比爾博這輩子從來沒有看到過或者想到過還會有這樣的景象。他們被困在一片狹窄的高處，一邊是陡直的峭壁，下面是黑暗的山谷。他們躲在—塊凸伸出來的巖石下面過夜，比爾博蓋了條毯子，從頭到腳一直都在抖個不停。當他借著閃電朝外看去時，發(fā)現(xiàn)山谷對面的巖石巨人跑了出來，相互用大石頭扔來扔去當游戲在玩，還抓起石頭往山下的黑暗里扔，那些石頭要么把下面的樹木砸得東倒西歪，要么嘭的一聲碎成許多小塊。這時來了一團風雨，風把雨水和冰雹朝四面八方抽打著，如此一來，凸出的巖石就連一點防護作用都起不到了。只一會兒工夫他們就被淋成了落湯雞，小馬們也垂頭聾腦地站在那里，尾巴緊緊夾在后腿之間，有幾匹還害怕得哀嚎了起來。他們聽見山坡上到處是巨人們的狂笑聲和尖叫聲。

“This won’t do at all!” said Thorin. “If we don’t get blown off, or drowned, or struck by lightning, we shall be picked up by some giant and kicked sky-high for a football.”

“這樣下去可不是個辦法!”索林說，“就算我們不被吹走、淹死或是遭雷劈，我們也會被哪個巨人抓到，當成足球給踢上天。”

“Well, if you know of anywhere better, take us there!” said Gandalf, who was feeling very grumpy, and was far from happy about the giants himself.

“行啊，你要是知道有什么更好的地方，就趕緊帶我們?nèi)グ?”甘道夫憋了一肚子的火，他其實也對那些巨人的行為很看不入眼。

The end of their argument was that they sent Fili and Kili to look for a better shelter. They had very sharp eyes, and being the youngest of the dwarves by some fifty years they usually got these sort of jobs (when everybody could see that it was absolutely no use sending Bilbo). There is nothing like looking, if you want to find something (or so Thorin said to the young dwarves). You certainly usually find something, if you look, but it is not always quite the something you were after. So it proved on this occasion.

吵到最后的結(jié)果是派菲力和奇力出去尋找更好的躲避處。他們倆都擁有非常銳利的眼睛，加之他們比其他矮人小了五十歲左右，是矮人中最年輕的兩個，所以像這樣的活兒通常都派給他們(大家都看得出來，要是派比爾博去絕對是白搭)。如果你是想要找某樣東西(索林就是這么跟這兩個年輕的矮人說的)，學會怎么用眼睛看是最重要的。像平常那樣隨便看看當然也能找到東西，但其實找到的并不總是你真正要找的東西。這次的情形便證明了果然如此。

Soon Fili and Kili came crawling back, holding on to the rocks in the wind. “We have found a dry cave,” they said, “not far round the next corner; and ponies and all could get inside.”

很快，菲力和奇力就在風中緊緊抓著巖石，幾乎是爬著回來了。“我們找到了一個干的洞穴，”他們匯報道，“就在轉(zhuǎn)個彎過去不遠的地方，小馬和所有的東西也都能擠得進去。”

“Have you thoroughly explored it?” said the wizard, who knew that caves up in the mountains were seldom unoccupied.

“你們有沒有徹底地檢查過那個洞?”巫師很清楚在大山里很少會有沒被占據(jù)的山洞，所以會有這樣一問。

“Yes, yes!” they said, though everybody knew they could not have been long about it; they had come back too quick. “It isn’t all that big, and it does not go far back.”

“檢查過了，檢查過了!”話雖是這樣說的，可其實大家都知道，就算檢查也沒花多少時間，因為他們沒去多久就回來了，“其實那個洞也沒那么大，沒走多久就到頭了。”

That, of course, is the dangerous part about caves: you don’t know how far they go back, sometimes, or where a passage behind may lead to, or what is waiting for you inside. But now Fili and Kili’s news seemed good enough. So they all got up and prepared to move. The wind was howling and the thunder still growling, and they had a business getting themselves and their ponies along. Still it was not very far to go, and before long they came to a big rock standing out into the path. If you stepped behind, you found a low arch in the side of the mountain. There was just room to get the ponies through with a squeeze, when they had been unpacked and unsaddled. As they passed under the arch, it was good to hear the wind and the rain outside instead of all about them, and to feel safe from the giants and their rocks. But the wizard was taking no risks. He lit up his wand—as he did that day in Bilbo’s dining-room that seemed so long ago, if you remember—, and by its light they explored the cave from end to end.

這說的當然就是洞穴的最危險之處：有時候你不知道它們有多深，或是背后的某條通路又會連向何處，里面又有什么樣的東西在等著你。但現(xiàn)在菲力和奇力帶回來的消息似乎已經(jīng)不錯了。于是大家全都站起身來，準備動身?？耧L依舊在凄號，閃電依然在咆哮，牽著小馬趕路不是件容易事?？杉幢闳绱耍愤€是感覺近了點，沒走多久，就來到了有一大塊巖石突出在山道上的地方。如果繞到大石后面，就可以看到山壁上有個不高的拱門，大小剛夠小馬卸下行李和馬鞍后擠進去的。走進拱門之后，風雨聲被隔在了外面，這要比四面八方都能聽到要感覺好多了，而且感覺巨人和他們?nèi)拥氖^也威脅不到他們了。不過，巫師不想冒任何風險。他點亮了魔杖(如果你們還記得，不久前，他在比爾博家的飯廳里也這樣做過，雖然那給人的感覺已經(jīng)是很久以前了)，借著魔杖的光芒把洞穴從頭到尾檢查了一遍。

It seemed quite a fair size, but not too large and mysterious. It had a dry floor and some comfortable nooks. At one end there was room for the ponies; and there they stood (mighty glad of the change) steaming, and champing in their nosebags. Oin and Gloin wanted to light a fire at the door to dry their clothes, but Gandalf would not hear of it. So they spread out their wet things on the floor, and got dry ones out of their bundles; then they made their blankets comfortable, got out their pipes and blew smoke rings, which Gandalf turned into different colours and set dancing up by the roof to amuse them. They talked and talked, and forgot about the storm, and discussed what each would do with his share of the treasure (when they got it, which at the moment did not seem so impossible); and so they dropped off to sleep one by one. And that was the last time that they used the ponies, packages, baggages, tools and paraphernalia that they had brought with them.

山洞的空間不算小，但也沒有大到讓人覺得神秘莫測，地面干燥，幾個角落看上去挺舒服的。在洞穴的一端有可以容納小馬的空間，它們就乖朮地站在那里散著身上的水汽(心里很高興有這樣的變化)，一邊嚼著嘴巴前掛著的牧草袋。歐因和格羅因想在洞口生一堆火來烤干衣服，但甘道夫根本不同意，因此他們只好把濕了的衣物在地上攤開，從行李里面拿出干衣服來換上。然后，他們舒舒服服地蓋上毯子，拿出煙斗，開始噴起煙圈來。甘道夫把他們噴出來的煙圈變成各種顏色，驅(qū)策著它們朝洞頂一路舞去，算是給大家逗個樂子。他們聊啊聊的，忘記了外面的風雨，只顧興奮地討論要用自己那份寶藏來干些什么(當然得先拿到手，不過在此時看來，可能性似乎相當?shù)拇?。說著說著，大家就一個接一個地睡著了。而這就是他們最后一次用到他們帶來的小馬、行李、背包、工具和各種裝備。

It turned out a good thing that night that they had brought little Bilbo with them, after all. For, somehow, he could not go to sleep for a long while; and when he did sleep, he had very nasty dreams. He dreamed that a crack in the wall at the back of the cave got bigger and bigger, and opened wider and wider, and he was very afraid but could not call out or do anything but lie and look. Then he dreamed that the floor of the cave was giving way, and he was slipping—beginning to fall down, down, goodness knows where to.

從那天晚上發(fā)生的事情看來，他們把小比爾博帶來實在是一件好事。因為他不知怎的一直睡不著，而等睡著時他又做起了很可怕的噩夢。他夢見山洞后方的一個裂縫變得越來越大、越來越寬，他心中恐懼萬分，卻什么也喊不出來，也無法動彈，只能躺在那里看。然后他又夢見地板慢慢不見了，他滑了起來，然后開始跌落、跌落，跌向不知何處。

At that he woke up with a horrible start, and found that part of his dream was true. A crack had opened at the back of the cave, and was already a wide passage. He was just in time to see the last of the ponies’ tails disappearing into it. Of course he gave a very loud yell, as loud a yell as a hobbit can give, which is surprising for their size.

夢到這里，他害怕得驚醒了過來，發(fā)現(xiàn)剛才的夢境居然部分成真了。山洞后方已經(jīng)裂開了一條口子，寬得已經(jīng)成了一條通道。他正好及時看見最后一匹小馬的尾巴消失在其間。他當然發(fā)出了一聲響亮的叫喊，是一個霍比特人所能喊出最響的聲音，以他們的身材來說，這已經(jīng)很讓人吃驚了。

Out jumped the goblins, big goblins, great ugly-looking goblins, lots of goblins, before you could say rocks and blocks. There were six to each dwarf, at least, and two even for Bilbo; and they were all grabbed and carried through the crack, before you could say tinder and flint. But not Gandalf. Bilbo’s yell had done that much good. It had wakened him up wide in a splintered second, and when goblins came to grab him, there was a terrific flash like lightning in the cave, a smell like gunpowder, and several of them fell dead.

還來不及喊出“拿石頭堵上”的話，就從裂縫口子中跳出許多半獸人來，高大的半獸人，丑陋無比的半獸人，許許多多的半獸人。每個矮人至少攤上要應付六個半獸人，甚至連比爾博都不得不要對付兩個。還來不及喊出“快點燧石”的話，矮人們就被抓住，從裂縫里扛了過去。不過甘道夫是個例外，這就是比爾博那聲大喊的好處。甘道夫一眨眼就完全醒了過來，當半獸人沖過去抓他的時候，山洞中出現(xiàn)了一道可怕的閃光，就像是劃過了一道閃電，隨著一股火藥的味道，幾個半獸人立刻倒地喪了命。

The crack closed with a snap, and Bilbo and the dwarves were on the wrong side of it! Where was Gandalf? Of that neither they nor the goblins had any idea, and the goblins did not wait to find out. They seized Bilbo and the dwarves and hurried them along. It was deep, deep, dark, such as only goblins that have taken to living in the heart of the mountains can see through. The passages there were crossed and tangled in all directions, but the goblins knew their way, as well as you do to the nearest post-office; and the way went down and down, and it was most horribly stuffy. The goblins were very rough, and pinched unmercifully, and chuckled and laughed in their horrible stony voices; and Bilbo was more unhappy even than when the troll had picked him up by his toes. He wished again and again for his nice bright hobbit-hole. Not for the last time.

裂縫啪嗒一聲關(guān)上了，可是比爾博和矮人卻被關(guān)在了另一邊!甘道夫在哪兒?無論是他們還是半獸人都對此一無所知，而半獸人也不想留在那邊尋找答案。他們抓著比爾博和矮人們，趕著他們快步前行。山洞十分的幽深黑暗，只有在大山肚子里住慣了的半獸人才能看得清。山洞里的路徑曲里拐彎，錯綜復雜，但半獸人知道該怎么走，就像你們知道怎么到離家最近的郵局去一樣。隧道不停地往下延伸，空氣已經(jīng)悶熱得讓人受不了了。半獸人們非常粗魯，毫不留情地掐他們，還用他們?nèi)缡^摩擦一般刺耳的聲音發(fā)出咯咯嘎嘎的怪笑。比爾博這次比上回被食人妖抓住腳趾頭倒拎著的時候還要難過，他一遍又一遍地在心里祈禱能回到自己可愛而又明亮的霍比特洞府里。當然，這也依然不會是最后一次。

Now there came a glimmer of a red light before them. The goblins began to sing, or croak, keeping time with the flap of their flat feet on the stone, and shaking their prisoners as well.

現(xiàn)在他們眼前出現(xiàn)了一點紅色的微光。半獸人開始歌唱，或者更應該說是難聽的嘶吼，其節(jié)拍正與他們扁平的雙腳踏在石頭上的腳步吻合，把他們的俘虜震得一抖一抖的。

Clap! Snap! the black crack!

喀啦!啪啦!黑色的裂縫!

Grip, grab! Pinch, nab!

抓呀，拉呀!掐呀，逮呀!

And down down to Goblin-town

往下往下直達半獸人的城鎮(zhèn)，

You go, my lad!

快走，小子!

Clash, crash! Crush, smash!

叮鈴，咚嚨!敲呀，砸呀!

Hammer and tongs! Knocker and gongs!

榔頭和鉗子!大錘和銅鑼!

Pound, pound, far underground!

轟隆隆，轟隆隆，在那深深的地下!

Ho, ho! my lad!

呵，呵!小子!

Swish, smack! Whip crack!

呼咻，啪嗒!鞭子抽打!

Batter and beat! Yammer and bleat!

使勁捶，拼命打!哭啼啼，嗷嗷叫!

Work, work! Nor dare to shirk,

干活，干活!看誰敢偷懶，

While Goblins quaff, and Goblins laugh,

只有半獸人可以痛飲，只有半獸人可以大笑，

Round and round far underground

長路繞啊繞，直往地下跑

Below, my lad!

快下去，小子!

It sounded truly terrifying. The walls echoed to the clap, snap! and the crush, smash! and to the ugly laughter of their ho, ho! my lad! The general meaning of the song was only too plain; for now the goblins took out whips and whipped them with a swish, smack!, and set them running as fast as they could in front of them; and more than one of the dwarves were already yammering and bleating like anything, when they stumbled into a big cavern.

這樣的歌聽起來真的讓人很害怕。在他們唱到喀啦，啪啦!和叮鈴，咚嚨!還有在呵，呵!小子那句中出現(xiàn)難聽的笑聲時，山洞的墻壁都隨之發(fā)出嗡嗡的回聲。整首歌的意思實在是太明白不過了，因為半獸人配合著唱歌還掏出了鞭子，在唱到呼咻，啪塔!時就抽到他們身上，讓矮人們在他們身前玩兒命地狂奔。當他們連滾帶爬地跑進一個大洞窟的時候，已經(jīng)有好幾個矮人在哭啼啼，嗷嗷叫了。

It was lit by a great red fire in the middle, and by torches along the walls, and it was full of goblins. They all laughed and stamped and clapped their hands, when the dwarves (with poor little Bilbo at the back and nearest to the whips) came running in, while the goblin-drivers whooped and cracked their whips behind. The ponies were already there huddled in a corner; and there were all the baggages and packages lying broken open, and being rummaged by goblins, and smelt by goblins, and fingered by goblins, and quarrelled over by goblins.

洞窟中央點著一大堆火，四周的墻上插著火把，把洞窟照得亮堂堂的，可以看見里面站滿了半獸人。當他們看到矮人們跑著進來(可憐的比爾博跑在最后，離鞭子最近)，后面是拿著鞭子抽打、驅(qū)趕的半獸人時，全都放聲大笑，跺腳拍手，不亦樂乎。小馬們先他們一步擠在了一個角落里，所有的行李包袱全都敞開著撂在地上，半獸人們翻來搜去，拿到鼻子前聞聞，用手指撥來撥去，然后你爭我奪，吵成一團。

I am afraid that was the last they ever saw of those excellent little ponies, including a jolly sturdy little white fellow that Elrond had lent to Gandalf, since his horse was not suitable for the mountain-paths. For goblins eat horses and ponies and donkeys (and other much more dreadful things), and they are always hungry. Just now however the prisoners were thinking only of themselves. The goblins chained their hands behind their backs and linked them all together in a line, and dragged them to the far end of the cavern with little Bilbo tugging at the end of the row.

這恐怕是矮人們最后一次看到這些非常出色的小馬了，這其中包括一匹快活而又結(jié)實的小白馬，那是埃爾隆德借給甘道夫的，因為他原來那匹不適合走山路。半獸人愛吃馬和驢子(還有其他更恐怖的東西)，而且他們總是覺得肚子餓。不過此時此刻這些俘虜們還沒空替小馬們傷心，他們心里想到的只有自己。半獸人將他們的手綁在背后，把他們連成一串，拖到洞穴的遠端，可憐的比爾博掙扎著走在隊伍的最后面。

There in the shadows on a large flat stone sat a tremendous goblin with a huge head, and armed goblins were standing round him carrying the axes and the bent swords that they use. Now goblins are cruel, wicked, and bad-hearted. They make no beautiful things, but they make many clever ones. They can tunnel and mine as well as any but the most skilled dwarves, when they take the trouble, though they are usually untidy and dirty. Hammers, axes, swords, daggers, pickaxes, tongs, and also instruments of torture, they make very well, or get other people to make to their design, prisoners and slaves that have to work till they die for want of air and light. It is not unlikely that they invented some of the machines that have since troubled the world, especially the ingenious devices for killing large numbers of people at once, for wheels and engines and explosions always delighted them, and also not working with their own hands more than they could help; but in those days and those wild parts they had not advanced (as it is called) so far. They did not hate dwarves especially, no more than they hated everybody and everything, and particularly the orderly and prosperous; in some parts wicked dwarves had even made alliances with them. But they had a special grudge against Thorin’s people, because of the war which you have heard mentioned, but which does not come into this tale; and anyway goblins don’t care who they catch, as long as it is done smart and secret, and the prisoners are not able to defend themselves.

在一塊扁平巨石上的陰影之中，坐著一個身形巨大的半獸人，他長著一顆碩大的腦袋，身邊簇擁著全副武裝的半獸人，手中拿著他們擅長使用的斧子和彎刀。半獸人殘忍、邪惡而又歹毒，他們雖然創(chuàng)造不出什么美麗的東西，卻也能制作出一些精巧的東西來。盡管他們通常邋遢而又骯臟，但如果他們不怕麻煩的話，他們在挖隧道和開礦方面可以跟矮人做得一樣棒，最多只輸給矮人中最心靈手巧的那幾個。錘子、斧子、刀劍、匕首、鎬頭、鉗子還有各種刑具，他們都能夠制作得非常出色，或者讓別人照著他們的設計制作出來。這里所說的別人指的就是他們的俘虜和奴隸，這些人必須不停地工作，直到最后因為呼吸不到新鮮空氣和見不到光明而死在地底。他們完全有可能發(fā)明過一些后來禍害過世界的機械，尤其是那些可以一下子殺死許多人的精巧裝置，因為他們最喜歡輪子、動力裝置和爆炸，而且用這樣的裝置殺人可以最大程度免去他們親自動手之苦。但在當時那個時代，在那樣的荒僻之地，他們還沒有進步(姑且稱其為進步吧)到如此的程度。他們并不特別痛恨矮人，對矮人的仇視并不比對所有人和所有事物的仇視更多，他們尤其不討厭那些聽話的和有錢的矮人，在某些地區(qū)，他們甚至會和矮人中的敗類結(jié)盟。但他們對索林那一族卻懷著特別的惡意，這是因為之前提到過的那場戰(zhàn)爭之故，但在我們這個故事里，我們無暇細述這段往事。不過再怎么說，半獸人對他們要抓的對象是不太在意的，他們在乎的是要把活兒干得漂亮，神不知鬼不覺的，要讓那些被抓的人還來不及抵抗就乖乖就擒。

“Who are these miserable persons?” said the Great Goblin.

“這些可憐的家伙是什么人?”半獸人頭領(lǐng)問道。

“Dwarves, and this!” said one of the drivers, pulling at Bilbo’s chain so that he fell forward onto his knees. “We found them sheltering in our Front Porch.”

“是矮人，還有這個!”驅(qū)趕著他們的一個半獸人一拽拴著比爾博的鏈子，比爾博撲通一聲就跪在了地上。“我們發(fā)現(xiàn)他們在我們的前門廳里躲雨。”

“What do you mean by it?” said the Great Goblin turning to Thorin. “Up to no good, I’ll warrant! Spying on the private business of my people, I guess! Thieves, I shouldn’t be surprised to learn! Murderers and friends of Elves, not unlikely! Come! What have you got to say?”

“你們是什么意思?”半獸人頭領(lǐng)轉(zhuǎn)向索林說，“我敢打包票你們一定沒安什么好心思!該不會是來打探我們的秘密的吧!你們這群小偷，看你們就是一副賊樣!說不定還是殺人兇手和精靈之友!嗯?你有什么要說的嗎?”

“Thorin the dwarf at your service!” he replied—it was merely a polite nothing. “Of the things which you suspect and imagine we had no idea at all. We sheltered from a storm in what seemed a convenient cave and unused; nothing was further from our thoughts than inconveniencing goblins in any way whatever.” That was true enough!

“矮人索林愿為您效勞!”索林回答道——這只是客套話，并不當真。“你所懷疑和推測的事情我們一點都不知道，我們只是就近找了個看起來沒人用的山洞躲避一下暴風雨，一點也沒有想要打攪半獸人的意思。”這倒是千真萬確的。

“Um!” said the Great Goblin. “So you say! Might I ask what you were doing up in the mountains at all, and where you were coming from, and where you were going to? In fact I should like to know all about you. Not that it will do you much good, Thorin Oakenshield, I know too much about your folk already; but let’s have the truth, or I will prepare something particularly uncomfortable for you!”

“嗯!你自然會這樣說啦!”那半獸人頭領(lǐng)說，“那我能否請教一下你們在這大山里干什么，是從哪兒來的，又要往哪兒去?事實上，我想要了解關(guān)于你們的一切。并不是我有什么不知道的，索林·橡木盾，我對你們這幫家伙已經(jīng)了解得夠多了，不過你們最好還是說實話，否則我可要準備一點特別不舒服的東西讓你們嘗嘗了!”

“We were on a journey to visit our relatives, our nephews and nieces, and first, second, and third cousins, and the other descendants of our grandfathers, who live on the East side of these truly hospitable mountains,” said Thorin, not quite knowing what to say all at once in a moment, when obviously the exact truth would not do at all.

“我們這是要去走親戚，看看侄子外甥，還有七大姑八大姨什么的，只要是一個老祖宗的都想去看看，他們住在這座環(huán)境宜人的大山的東邊。”索林一時間不知道該說些什么，反正實話是肯定不能說出口的。

“He is a liar, O truly tremendous one!” said one of the drivers. “Several of our people were struck by lightning in the cave, when we invited these creatures to come below; and they are as dead as stones. Also he has not explained this!” He held out the sword which Thorin had worn, the sword which came from the Trolls’ lair.

“他撒謊，他是個超級大騙子!”一名半獸人士兵在旁邊插嘴道，“我們?nèi)グ堰@些家伙請下來的時候，有好幾個同伴被山洞里面的閃電給打中，全都死翹翹了!得叫他把這個解釋一下!”他一邊說著一邊捧出了索林戴在身上的寶劍，也就是從食人妖的洞穴里得來的那把。

The Great Goblin gave a truly awful howl of rage when he looked at it, and all his soldiers gnashed their teeth, clashed their shields, and stamped. They knew the sword at once. It had killed hundreds of goblins in its time, when the fair elves of Gondolin hunted them in the hills or did battle before their walls. They had called it Orcrist, Goblin-cleaver, but the goblins called it simply Biter. They hated it and hated worse any one that carried it.

半獸人頭領(lǐng)一看見那把寶劍，發(fā)出一聲可怕的怒吼，他手下所有的士兵都咬牙切齒，開始敲打盾牌并跺起腳來，因為他們一眼就認出了那把劍，當年剛多林的美麗精靈在山中獵殺他們，或是在他們的城墻外與他們廝殺時，那把劍曾殺死過成千上百的半獸人。他們稱呼它為奧克銳斯特，“斬殺半獸人之劍”，但半獸人們則簡稱其為“咬劍”。他們痛恨這把劍，更痛恨攜帶這把劍的人。

“Murderers and elf-friends!” the Great Goblin shouted. “Slash them! Beat them! Bite them! Gnash them! Take them away to dark holes full of snakes, and never let them see the light again!” He was in such a rage that he jumped off his seat and himself rushed at Thorin with his mouth open.

“殺人兇手，精靈之友!”半獸人頭領(lǐng)喊了起來，“給我抽他們!打他們!咬他們!嚼碎他們!把他們?nèi)拥饺嵌旧叩暮诙粗?，讓他們永世見不到光?”他氣憤得從寶座上跳了下來，張開大嘴，朝著索林沖了過來。

Just at that moment all the lights in the cavern went out, and the great fire went off poof! into a tower of blue glowing smoke, right up to the roof, that scattered piercing white sparks all among the goblins.

正在此時，山洞中所有的燈火都滅了，正中央那堆大火也撲的一聲熄滅，一縷青煙裊裊升起，直直地向洞頂飛去，白色的火星則四處飛濺，直射入半獸人的人群中。

The yells and yammering, croaking, jibbering and jabbering; howls, growls and curses; shrieking and skriking, that followed were beyond description. Several hundred wild cats and wolves being roasted slowly alive together would not have compared with it. The sparks were burning holes in the goblins, and the smoke that now fell from the roof made the air too thick for even their eyes to see through. Soon they were falling over one another and rolling in heaps on the floor, biting and kicking and fighting as if they had all gone mad.

半獸人頓時亂成一團，尖叫、哭嚎、嘶吼、推拽、奔逃、打斗、咒罵，那種情形真是難以用言語形容。就算你把幾百只野貓和野狼放在火上慢慢烤，那個亂勁兒也不能與此相提并論?；鹦窃诎氆F人身上燒出洞來，原先飛向洞頂?shù)陌谉熡致淞讼聛恚蕉蠢镒兊脽熿F騰騰，讓半獸人伸手也見不到五指。沒過多久，他們就被彼此絆倒，在地上滾成了一團，相互間拼命撕咬著、踢打著，就像全都發(fā)了瘋一樣。

Suddenly a sword flashed in its own light. Bilbo saw it go right through the Great Goblin as he stood dumbfounded in the middle of his rage. He fell dead, and the goblin soldiers fled before the sword shrieking into the darkness.

突然間，一把寶劍自己發(fā)出了光芒來。比爾博看見，就在那個高大的半獸人依舊坐在那里，氣得暈暈乎乎的時候，寶劍已經(jīng)自己飛過去把他給刺穿了。他倒在地上就死了，半獸人士兵們沒等寶劍呼嘯著飛回到黑暗中去就四下逃散了。

The sword went back into its sheath. “Follow me quick!” said a voice fierce and quiet; and before Bilbo understood what had happened he was trotting along again, as fast as he could trot, at the end of the line, down more dark passages with the yells of the goblin-hall growing fainter behind him. A pale light was leading them on.

寶劍飛回到了鞘中。“快跟我來!”一個平靜而又威嚴的聲音說道。不等比爾博搞清楚發(fā)生了什么事情，他就已經(jīng)又像進來時那樣快步走了起來，依舊排在隊伍的末尾，依舊是在盡力快走，一直往下走過了更多黑暗的通道，身后半獸人大廳里的叫聲在他身后變得越來越微弱。前方，有一點微弱的火光在指引著他們。

“Quicker, quicker!” said the voice. “The torches will soon be relit.”

“再快點，再快點!”那聲音催促道，“火把很快就會重新點燃的!”

“Half a minute!” said Dori, who was at the back next to Bilbo, and a decent fellow. He made the hobbit scramble on his shoulders as best he could with his tied hands, and then off they all went at a run, with a clink-clink of chains, and many a stumble, since they had no hands to steady themselves with. Not for a long while did they stop, and by that time they must have been right down in the very mountain’s heart.

“等等!”說話的是多瑞，他那時也在隊伍的后面，正好在比爾博身邊。他是個好心的矮人，雖然自己的雙手被綁著，還是盡力把比爾博扛在了自己的肩膀上，然后大家全都狂奔了起來，耳畔是一片鐵鏈的叮當之聲。許多人跌倒了，因為他們雙手被綁住了，無法保持平衡。沒過多久他們停了下來，這時他們一定已經(jīng)身在山脈的中心了。

Then Gandalf lit up his wand. Of course it was Gandalf; but just then they were too busy to ask how he got there. He took out his sword again, and again it flashed in the dark by itself. It burned with a rage that made it gleam if goblins were about; now it was bright as blue flame for delight in the killing of the great lord of the cave. It made no trouble whatever of cutting through the goblin-chains and setting all the prisoners free as quickly as possible. This sword’s name was Glamdring the Foe-hammer, if you remember. The goblins just called it Beater, and hated it worse than Biter if possible. Orcrist, too, had been saved; for Gandalf had brought it along as well, snatching it from one of the terrified guards. Gandalf thought of most things; and though he could not do everything, he could do a great deal for friends in a tight corner.

此刻，甘道夫點亮了魔杖。救他們的當然是甘道夫，不過剛才他們忙著逃命，根本沒空問問他是怎么進到半獸人大廳來的。他再次拔出了寶劍，它在黑喑中又自己發(fā)散出光芒來。這把劍只要附近有半獸人，便會因劍上所帶的殺氣而閃出光芒?，F(xiàn)在，它因為欣喜于剛才殺死了山洞中半獸人的首領(lǐng)，而發(fā)出了藍色火焰般的亮光。它輕易地斬斷了半獸人的鐵鏈，馬上就讓所有的俘虜都重獲了自由。如果你還記得的話，這把劍的名字叫作擊敵錘格拉姆德凜。半獸人管它叫“打劍”，對它的仇恨比對咬劍還要深。奧克銳斯特也被甘道夫帶回來了，在剛才的那場慌亂中，他劈手就從一個嚇得簌簌發(fā)抖的衛(wèi)兵那里把劍奪了過來。甘道夫總是能把大多數(shù)事情都考慮到，雖說他不可能做到所有的事情，但他在危難之時能為朋友做的總是很多很多。

“Are we all here?” said he, handing his sword back to Thorin with a bow. “Let me see: one—that’s Thorin; two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven; where are Fili and Kili? Here they are! twelve, thirteen—and here’s Mr. Baggins: fourteen! Well, well! it might be worse, and then again it might be a good deal better. No ponies, and no food, and no knowing quite where we are, and hordes of angry goblins just behind! On we go!”

“我們都到齊了嗎?”他一邊說著，一邊鞠躬為禮，將寶劍遞還給索林，“讓我來點點：一，這是索林;二、三、四、五、六、七、八、九、十、十一;奇力和菲力在哪兒呢?哦，在這兒哪!十二、十三——還有巴金斯先生：十四!太好了，太好了!有時候情況會變糟，但接下來又可能會變得更好?，F(xiàn)在我們沒有了小馬，沒有了食物，也不知道自己身在何方，背后還有一大群憤怒的半獸人!所以我們還是繼續(xù)向前走吧!”

On they went. Gandalf was quite right: they began to hear goblin noises and horrible cries far behind in the passages they had come through. That sent them on faster than ever, and as poor Bilbo could not possibly go half as fast—for dwarves can roll along at a tremendous pace, I can tell you, when they have to—they took it in turn to carry him on their backs.

于是他們就繼續(xù)前進了。甘道夫說得很對：在他們身后已經(jīng)經(jīng)過的通道里，開始聽見從遠處傳來半獸人的響動和恐怖的叫聲。這讓他們以比之前更快的速度跑了起來，因為可憐的比爾博根本連他們一半的速度都達不到——我告訴你們，矮人們在迫不得已的時候，可以用驚人的速度在地上滾著走——所以，他們只能輪流來背著比爾博跑。

Still goblins go faster than dwarves, and these goblins knew the way better (they had made the paths themselves), and were madly angry; so that do what they could the dwarves heard the cries and howls getting closer and closer. Soon they could hear even the flap of the goblin feet, many many feet which seemed only just round the last corner. The blink of red torches could be seen behind them in the tunnel they were following; and they were getting deadly tired.

可再怎么樣半獸人走得還是要比矮人快，而且他們也更了解這里的道路(這里的隧道是他們自己挖的)，更別提他們還憋著滿腔怒火了。因此，盡管矮人已經(jīng)盡了全力，身后的號叫與怒吼還是越來越近了。沒多久，他們就甚至能聽見對方雜沓的腳步聲了，有好多雙、好多雙腳，似乎就在他們剛剛經(jīng)過的拐角那邊。朝身后的隧道望去，星星點點的火把亮光已經(jīng)赫然在目，可矮人們此時卻已經(jīng)筋疲力盡了。

“Why, O why did I ever leave my hobbit-hole!” said poor Mr. Baggins bumping up and down on Bombur’s back.

“為什么，哦，為什么我要離開我的霍比特洞府啊!”可憐的巴金斯先生在邦伯的肩膀上顛來顛去的時候開口抱怨道。

“Why, O why did I ever bring a wretched little hobbit on a treasure hunt!” said poor Bombur, who was fat, and staggered along with the sweat dripping down his nose in his heat and terror.

“為什么，哦，為什么我要把這個可憐的小霍比特人帶來尋寶啊!”可憐的胖子邦伯也回了他一句抱怨。他又熱又怕，走得搖搖晃晃，汗水不斷順著他的鼻子往下滴落。

At this point Gandalf fell behind, and Thorin with him. They turned a sharp corner. “About turn!” he shouted. “Draw your sword Thorin!”

這時，甘道夫來到了隊伍的后面，索林和他在一起。在轉(zhuǎn)過了一個很陡的彎之后，甘道夫喊了一聲：“是時候了!索林，拔劍!”

There was nothing else to be done; and the goblins did not like it. They came scurrying round the corner in full cry, and found Goblin-cleaver, and Foe-hammer shining cold and bright right in their astonished eyes. The ones in front dropped their torches and gave one yell before they were killed. The ones behind yelled still more, and leaped back knocking over those that were running after them. “Biter and Beater!” they shrieked; and soon they were all in confusion, and most of them were hustling back the way they had come.

他們已經(jīng)別無選擇了，而半獸人也不喜歡這樣的局面。他們急急匆匆地繞過轉(zhuǎn)角，嘴巴里嗷嗷亂叫著，卻發(fā)現(xiàn)斬殺半獸人之劍和擊敵錘這兩把寶劍閃著幽藍的寒光，陡然出現(xiàn)在了他們充滿驚奇的眼前!走在頭里的幾個剛夠丟下火把發(fā)出一聲驚叫，便被殺死了。后面的半獸人叫得更多，撒開腳丫就往回跑，結(jié)果正和后面追來的半獸人撞個滿懷，倒成一片。“咬劍和打劍來啦!”隨著他們的尖叫，追兵很快就亂成了一團，大多數(shù)人又全都朝著來路沖了回去。

It was quite a long while before any of them dared to turn that corner. By that time the dwarves had gone on again, a long, long, way on into the dark tunnels of the goblins’ realm. When the goblins discovered that, they put out their torches and they slipped on soft shoes, and they chose out their very quickest runners with the sharpest ears and eyes. These ran forward, as swift as weasels in the dark, and with hardly any more noise than bats.

又過了好一陣子，才有人敢從那個拐轉(zhuǎn)角轉(zhuǎn)過來。而那時，矮人們早就又已經(jīng)沿著半獸人地盤上的黑暗隧道跑出去了好大、好大一截。等半獸人發(fā)現(xiàn)之后，他們熄掉了手中的火把，換上了軟鞋，挑選出那些動作最敏捷、眼睛和耳朵最尖的士兵繼續(xù)朝前追去。這些半獸人飛奔向前，快得如同黑暗中的黃鼠狼，聲音輕得像蝙蝠。

That is why neither Bilbo, nor the dwarves, nor even Gandalf heard them coming. Nor did they see them. But they were seen by the goblins that ran silently up behind, for Gandalf was letting his wand give out a faint light to help the dwarves as they went along.

因此，無論是比爾博還是矮人們，甚至連甘道夫都沒有聽見他們追趕的腳步，也沒有看見他們的身影。但悄無聲息地跑在后面的半獸人卻把他們看在了眼里，因為甘道夫正用他的魔杖放出微微的光芒來給大家照路。

Quite suddenly Dori, now at the back again carrying Bilbo, was grabbed from behind in the dark. He shouted and fell; and the hobbit rolled off his shoulders into the blackness, bumped his head on hard rock, and remembered nothing more.

突然，背著比爾博跑在最后面的多瑞，被從后面黑暗中伸出來的手一把抓住了!他大喊一聲摔倒在地，霍比特人從他肩膀上滾落，跌進了黑暗中，一頭撞上堅硬的巖石，然后就什么也不記得了。