美国语文第六册 第76期:欠债讽诵(4)

 　　It is not in the imagination of man to conceive that his creditor¹ has demands upon him which must be satisfied, 无法想象人们竟然认为他的债主已经要求他务必让他获得满足，

　　and that he must do to others as others must do to him. 他对别人的做法必须像其他人对待他那样。

　　A creditor is a personification of exaction². 债主是敲诈勒索的化身，

　　He is supposed to be always taking in, and never giving out. 他始终在索取，而不是给予。

　　People idly fancy that the possession of riches is desirable. What blindness! 人们愚蠢地猜想拥有财富是可取的。多么盲目啊！

　　Spend and regale³. Save a shilling and you lay it by for a thief. 这不过是花钱和逗人取乐的游戏罢了。节约每一个先令，结果是为窃贼准备的礼物。

　　The prudent⁴ men are the men that live beyond their means. 审慎的人都是生活依据自己的需要。

　　Happen what may, they are safe. They have taken time by the forelock. They have anticipated fortune. 不管发生什么事情，他们都能渡过难关。他们会提前做好准备。他们已经预感到财富会降临到他们头上。

　　"The wealthy fool, with gold in store," has only denied himself so much enjoyment⁵, which another will seize at his expense. “富裕的傻瓜，库里藏金。”这句老话只不过是用来告诫自己不要高兴过头而已，以备别人夺走了自己的钱财。

　　Look at these people in a panic. See who are the fools then. 瞧啊，这些人生活在恐惧之中，不难发现谁才是真正的傻瓜。

　　You know them by their long faces. You may say, as one of them goes by in an agony of apprehension⁶, 你或许会说，你是根据他们拉长的脸而加以揣测的，当一个人脸上挂着因忧虑过度而陷于极度痛苦中的神情时，

　　"There is a stupid fellow who fancied himself rich, because he had fifty thousand dollars in bank." “有一个愚蠢的家伙幻想自己变得富有了，因为他在银行里存了50000美元。”

　　The history of the last ten years has taught the moral, "spend and regale." 最近十年来这种故事已经让我们明白了“花钱和逗人取乐”的寓意。

　　Whatever is laid up beyond the present hour, is put in jeopardy⁷. 一个人在活着时不论怎么储蓄，都是危险的。

　　There is no certainty but in instant enjoyment. 除了能给自己带来愉悦以外，没有多少确定性。

　　Look at schoolboys sharing a plum cake. 观察一下眼睛盯着葡萄干糕饼的学童，就会明白其中的道理。

1 creditor   

n.债仅人，债主，贷方

参考例句：

• The boss assigned his car to his creditor.那工头把自己的小汽车让与了债权人。
• I had to run away from my creditor whom I made a usurious loan.我借了高利贷不得不四处躲债。

2 exaction   

n.强求，强征；杂税

参考例句：

• The aged leader was exhausted by the exaction of a pitiless system.作为年迈的领导人，冷酷无情制度的苛求使他心力交瘁。
• The exaction was revived by Richard I.这种苛捐杂税被查理一世加以恢复。

3 regale   

v.取悦，款待

参考例句：

• He was constantly regaled with tales of woe.别人老是给他讲些倒霉事儿来逗他开心。
• He loved to regale his friends with tales about the many memorable characters he had known as a newspaperman.他喜欢讲些他当记者时认识的许多名人的故事给朋友们消遣。

4 prudent   

adj.谨慎的，有远见的，精打细算的

参考例句：

• A prudent traveller never disparages his own country.聪明的旅行者从不贬低自己的国家。
• You must school yourself to be modest and prudent.你要学会谦虚谨慎。

5 enjoyment   

n.乐趣；享有；享用

参考例句：

• Your company adds to the enjoyment of our visit. 有您的陪同，我们这次访问更加愉快了。
• After each joke the old man cackled his enjoyment.每逢讲完一个笑话，这老人就呵呵笑着表示他的高兴。

6 apprehension   

n.理解，领悟；逮捕，拘捕；忧虑

参考例句：

• There were still areas of doubt and her apprehension grew.有些地方仍然存疑，于是她越来越担心。
• She is a girl of weak apprehension.她是一个理解力很差的女孩。

7 jeopardy   

n.危险；危难

参考例句：

• His foolish behaviour may put his whole future in jeopardy.他愚蠢的行为可能毁了他一生的前程。
• It is precisely at this juncture that the boss finds himself in double jeopardy.恰恰在这个关键时刻，上司发现自己处于进退两难的境地。