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Black Beauty: The Autobiography of a Horse by Anna Sewell, Chapter 10. A Talk in the Orchard

Chapter 10. A Talk in the Orchard

Ginger and I were not of the regular tall carriage horse breed, we had more of the racing blood in us. We stood about fifteen and a half hands high; we were therefore just as good for riding as we were for driving, and our master used to say that he disliked either horse or man that could do but one thing; and as he did not want to show off in London parks, he preferred a more active and useful kind of horse. As for us, our greatest pleasure was when we were saddled for a riding party; the master on Ginger, the mistress on me, and the young ladies on Sir Oliver and Merrylegs. It was so cheerful to be trotting and cantering all together that it always put us in high spirits. I had the best of it, for I always carried the mistress; her weight was little, her voice was sweet, and her hand was so light on the rein that I was guided almost without feeling it.

Oh! if people knew what a comfort to horses a light hand is, and how it keeps a good mouth and a good temper, they surely would not chuck, and drag, and pull at the rein as they often do. Our mouths are so tender that where they have not been spoiled or hardened with bad or ignorant treatment, they feel the slightest movement of the driver's hand, and we know in an instant what is required of us. My mouth has never been spoiled, and I believe that was why the mistress preferred me to Ginger, although her paces were certainly quite as good. She used often to envy me, and said it was all the fault of breaking in, and the gag bit in London, that her mouth was not so perfect as mine; and then old Sir Oliver would say, "There, there! don't vex yourself; you have the greatest honor; a mare that can carry a tall man of our master's weight, with all your spring and sprightly action, does not need to hold her head down because she does not carry the lady; we horses must take things as they come, and always be contented and willing so long as we are kindly used." I had often wondered how it was that Sir Oliver had such a very short tail; it really was only six or seven inches long, with a tassel of hair hanging from it; and on one of our holidays in the orchard I ventured to ask him by what accident it was that he had lost his tail. "Accident!" he snorted with a fierce look, "it was no accident! it was a cruel, shameful, cold-blooded act! When I was young I was taken to a place where these cruel things were done; I was tied up, and made fast so that I could not stir, and then they came and cut off my long and beautiful tail, through the flesh and through the bone, and took it away.

"How dreadful!" I exclaimed.

"Dreadful, ah! it was dreadful; but it was not only the pain, though that was terrible and lasted a long time; it was not only the indignity of having my best ornament taken from me, though that was bad; but it was this, how could I ever brush the flies off my sides and my hind legs any more? You who have tails just whisk the flies off without thinking about it, and you can't tell what a torment it is to have them settle upon you and sting and sting, and have nothing in the world to lash them off with. I tell you it is a lifelong wrong, and a lifelong loss; but thank heaven, they don't do it now." "What did they do it for then?" said Ginger.

"For fashion!" said the old horse with a stamp of his foot; "for fashion! if you know what that means; there was not a well-bred young horse in my time that had not his tail docked in that shameful way, just as if the good God that made us did not know what we wanted and what looked best." "I suppose it is fashion that makes them strap our heads up with those horrid bits that I was tortured with in London," said Ginger. "Of course it is," said he; "to my mind, fashion is one of the wickedest things in the world. Now look, for instance, at the way they serve dogs, cutting off their tails to make them look plucky, and shearing up their pretty little ears to a point to make them both look sharp, forsooth. I had a dear friend once, a brown terrier; 'Skye' they called her. She was so fond of me that she never would sleep out of my stall; she made her bed under the manger, and there she had a litter of five as pretty little puppies as need be; none were drowned, for they were a valuable kind, and how pleased she was with them! and when they got their eyes open and crawled about, it was a real pretty sight; but one day the man came and took them all away; I thought he might be afraid I should tread upon them. But it was not so; in the evening poor Skye brought them back again, one by one in her mouth; not the happy little things that they were, but bleeding and crying pitifully; they had all had a piece of their tails cut off, and the soft flap of their pretty little ears was cut quite off. How their mother licked them, and how troubled she was, poor thing! I never forgot it. They healed in time, and they forgot the pain, but the nice soft flap, that of course was intended to protect the delicate part of their ears from dust and injury, was gone forever. Why don't they cut their own children's ears into points to make them look sharp? Why don't they cut the end off their noses to make them look plucky? One would be just as sensible as the other. What right have they to torment and disfigure God's creatures?" Sir Oliver, though he was so gentle, was a fiery old fellow, and what he said was all so new to me, and so dreadful, that I found a bitter feeling toward men rise up in my mind that I never had before. Of course Ginger was very much excited; she flung up her head with flashing eyes and distended nostrils, declaring that men were both brutes and blockheads.

"Who talks about blockheads?" said Merrylegs, who just came up from the old apple-tree, where he had been rubbing himself against the low branch. "Who talks about blockheads? I believe that is a bad word." "Bad words were made for bad things," said Ginger, and she told him what Sir Oliver had said. "It is all true," said Merrylegs sadly, "and I've seen that about the dogs over and over again where I lived first; but we won't talk about it here. You know that master, and John and James are always good to us, and talking against men in such a place as this doesn't seem fair or grateful, and you know there are good masters and good grooms beside ours, though of course ours are the best." This wise speech of good little Merrylegs, which we knew was quite true, cooled us all down, especially Sir Oliver, who was dearly fond of his master; and to turn the subject I said, "Can any one tell me the use of blinkers?" "No!" said Sir Oliver shortly, "because they are no use." "They are supposed," said Justice, the roan cob, in his calm way, "to prevent horses from shying and starting, and getting so frightened as to cause accidents." "Then what is the reason they do not put them on riding horses; especially on ladies' horses?" said I.

"There is no reason at all," said he quietly, "except the fashion; they say that a horse would be so frightened to see the wheels of his own cart or carriage coming behind him that he would be sure to run away, although of course when he is ridden he sees them all about him if the streets are crowded. I admit they do sometimes come too close to be pleasant, but we don't run away; we are used to it, and understand it, and if we never had blinkers put on we should never want them; we should see what was there, and know what was what, and be much less frightened than by only seeing bits of things that we can't understand. Of course there may be some nervous horses who have been hurt or frightened when they were young, who may be the better for them; but as I never was nervous, I can't judge." "I consider," said Sir Oliver, "that blinkers are dangerous things in the night; we horses can see much better in the dark than men can, and many an accident would never have happened if horses might have had the full use of their eyes. Some years ago, I remember, there was a hearse with two horses returning one dark night, and just by Farmer Sparrow's house, where the pond is close to the road, the wheels went too near the edge, and the hearse was overturned into the water; both the horses were drowned, and the driver hardly escaped. Of course after this accident a stout white rail was put up that might be easily seen, but if those horses had not been partly blinded, they would of themselves have kept further from the edge, and no accident would have happened. When our master's carriage was overturned, before you came here, it was said that if the lamp on the left side had not gone out, John would have seen the great hole that the road-makers had left; and so he might, but if old Colin had not had blinkers on he would have seen it, lamp or no lamp, for he was far too knowing an old horse to run into danger. As it was, he was very much hurt, the carriage was broken, and how John escaped nobody knew." "I should say," said Ginger, curling her nostril, "that these men, who are so wise, had better give orders that in the future all foals should be born with their eyes set just in the middle of their foreheads, instead of on the side; they always think they can improve upon nature and mend what God has made." Things were getting rather sore again, when Merrylegs held up his knowing little face and said, "I'll tell you a secret: I believe John does not approve of blinkers; I heard him talking with master about it one day. The master said that 'if horses had been used to them, it might be dangerous in some cases to leave them off'; and John said he thought it would be a good thing if all colts were broken in without blinkers, as was the case in some foreign countries. So let us cheer up, and have a run to the other end of the orchard; I believe the wind has blown down some apples, and we might just as well eat them as the slugs." Merrylegs could not be resisted, so we broke off our long conversation, and got up our spirits by munching some very sweet apples which lay scattered on the grass.

Chapter 10. A Talk in the Orchard

Ginger and I were not of the regular tall carriage horse breed, we had more of the racing blood in us. Мы с Джинджер не принадлежали к обычной породе высоких каретных лошадей, в нас было больше скаковой крови. 姜和我不是普通的马车马品种,我们身上有更多的赛马血统。 We stood about fifteen and a half hands high; we were therefore just as good for riding as we were for driving, and our master used to say that he disliked either horse or man that could do but one thing; and as he did not want to show off in London parks, he preferred a more active and useful kind of horse. Byli jsme asi patnáct a půl ruky vysocí, takže jsme byli stejně dobří na ježdění jako na jízdu, a náš pán říkával, že nemá rád koně ani člověka, kteří umějí jen jednu věc, a protože se nechtěl předvádět v londýnských parcích, dával přednost aktivnějšímu a užitečnějšímu druhu koní. Teníamos unos quince palmos y medio de altura; por lo tanto, éramos tan buenos para montar como para conducir, y nuestro amo solía decir que no le gustaba ni el caballo ni el hombre que podía hacer una sola cosa; y como no quería lucirse en los parques de Londres, prefería un tipo de caballo más activo y útil. 我们站起来大约有十五个半手高;因此,我们骑马和开车一样好,我们的主人过去常说,他不喜欢只能做一件事的马或人。由于他不想在伦敦的公园里炫耀,他更喜欢一种更活跃、更有用的马。 As for us, our greatest pleasure was when we were saddled for a riding party; the master on Ginger, the mistress on me, and the young ladies on Sir Oliver and Merrylegs. Co se nás týče, největší radost jsme měli, když jsme byli osedláni na vyjížďku: pán na Gingerovi, paní na mně a mladé dámy na siru Oliverovi a Merrylegsovi. It was so cheerful to be trotting and cantering all together that it always put us in high spirits. Bylo tak veselé klusat a klusat společně, že nám to vždycky zvedlo náladu. 一起小跑和慢跑真是太愉快了,总是让我们精神振奋。 I had the best of it, for I always carried the mistress; her weight was little, her voice was sweet, and her hand was so light on the rein that I was guided almost without feeling it. Měl jsem z toho to nejlepší, protože jsem vždycky nesl paní; její váha byla malá, její hlas líbezný a její ruka byla na uzdě tak lehká, že jsem ji vedl téměř bez pocitu. 我玩得很开心,因为我总是抱着情妇;她体重轻,声音甜美,她握着缰绳的手很轻,我几乎感觉不到就被引导了。

Oh! if people knew what a comfort to horses a light hand is, and how it keeps a good mouth and a good temper, they surely would not chuck, and drag, and pull at the rein as they often do. kdyby lidé věděli, jakou útěchou je pro koně lehká ruka a jak udržuje dobrou tlamu a dobrou náladu, určitě by necukali, netahali a netahali za uzdu, jak to často dělají. Si la gente supiera qué consuelo para los caballos es una mano ligera, y cómo mantiene una buena boca y un buen temperamento, seguramente no tirarían, arrastrarían y tirarían de las riendas como lo hacen a menudo. 如果人们知道轻盈的手对马来说是多么的安慰,以及它如何保持良好的嘴巴和良好的脾气,他们肯定不会像往常一样甩掉,拖拉和拉缰绳。 Our mouths are so tender that where they have not been spoiled or hardened with bad or ignorant treatment, they feel the slightest movement of the driver's hand, and we know in an instant what is required of us. Naše ústa jsou tak citlivá, že tam, kde nejsou zkažená nebo ztvrdlá špatným nebo nevědomým zacházením, ucítíme sebemenší pohyb řidičovy ruky a okamžitě víme, co se od nás požaduje. Nuestras bocas son tan tiernas que donde no han sido mimadas o endurecidas por malos tratos o por ignorancia, sienten el menor movimiento de la mano del conductor, y sabemos en un instante lo que se requiere de nosotros. 我们的嘴巴是如此柔软,以至于在它们没有因不良或无知的治疗而变质或变硬的地方,它们会感觉到司机手的最轻微动作,我们会立即知道我们需要什么。 My mouth has never been spoiled, and I believe that was why the mistress preferred me to Ginger, although her paces were certainly quite as good. Moje ústa nebyla nikdy zkažená, a proto mi paní dala přednost před Ginger, i když její kroky byly určitě stejně dobré. Mi boca nunca ha sido malcriada, y creo que por eso la señora me prefería a Ginger, aunque sus pasos eran bastante buenos. She used often to envy me, and said it was all the fault of breaking in, and the gag bit in London, that her mouth was not so perfect as mine; and then old Sir Oliver would say, "There, there! Často mi záviděla a říkala, že za to může to, že se vloupala a v Londýně jí ukousli roubík, že nemá tak dokonalá ústa jako já; a starý sir Oliver pak říkal: "Tak, tak! A menudo me envidiaba y decía que todo era culpa de la irrupción, y de la mordaza de Londres, que su boca no era tan perfecta como la mía; y entonces el viejo sir Oliver decía: "¡Ahí, ahí! 彼女はよく私を羨ましく思っていました、そしてそれは彼女の口が私のものほど完璧ではなかったのは侵入のすべての責任であり、ロンドンでのギャグであると言いました。そして、古いオリバー卿は、「そこ、そこに! Она часто завидовала мне и говорила, что всему виной взлом и кляп в Лондоне, что ее рот не так совершенен, как мой; и тогда старый сэр Оливер говорил: "Вот, вот! don't vex yourself; you have the greatest honor; a mare that can carry a tall man of our master's weight, with all your spring and sprightly action, does not need to hold her head down because she does not carry the lady; we horses must take things as they come, and always be contented and willing so long as we are kindly used." netrap se, máš tu největší čest; klisna, která unese vysokého muže váhy našeho pána, se vší svou pružností a čilostí nepotřebuje držet hlavu dole, protože neunese dámu; my koně musíme brát věci tak, jak přicházejí, a být vždy spokojení a ochotní, dokud se s námi laskavě zachází." no te enfades; tienes el mayor honor; una yegua que puede llevar a un hombre alto del peso de nuestro amo, con todo su resorte y acción vivaracha, no necesita bajar la cabeza porque no lleva a la dama; nosotros, los caballos, debemos tomar las cosas como vienen, y estar siempre contentos y dispuestos mientras seamos amablemente tratados". Не расстраивайтесь, вам оказана величайшая честь; кобыла, которая может нести высокого человека весом с нашего хозяина, со всей вашей пружиной и пружинистой поступью, не должна опускать голову, потому что она не несет даму; мы, лошади, должны принимать все, как есть, и всегда быть довольными и готовыми, пока нас любезно используют". 不要让自己烦恼;你有无上的荣幸;一匹母马可以背起我们主人这么重的高个男人,用你所有的弹跳和活泼的动作,不需要低着头,因为她没有背着那位女士;我们马必须顺其自然,只要我们被善待,就永远知足常乐。” I had often wondered how it was that Sir Oliver had such a very short tail; it really was only six or seven inches long, with a tassel of hair hanging from it; and on one of our holidays in the orchard I ventured to ask him by what accident it was that he had lost his tail. Často jsem se divil, jak je možné, že má sir Oliver tak krátký ocas; byl opravdu dlouhý jen šest nebo sedm palců a visel z něj střapec vlasů.Při jedné z našich dovolených v sadu jsem se ho odvážil zeptat, jakou náhodou přišel o ocas. A menudo me había preguntado cómo era posible que sir Oliver tuviera una cola tan corta; en realidad medía sólo seis o siete pulgadas de largo, con una borla de cabello colgando de él; y en una de nuestras vacaciones en la huerta me aventuré a preguntarle por qué casualidad había perdido la cola. 我常常想知道奥利弗爵士怎么会有这么短的尾巴?果然只有六七寸长,还垂着一缕头发。有一次我们在果园里度假,我冒昧地问他,是什么意外让他失去了尾巴。 "Accident!" "Nehoda!" he snorted with a fierce look, "it was no accident! vyhrkl a zatvářil se zuřivě, "nebyla to náhoda! it was a cruel, shameful, cold-blooded act! byl to krutý, hanebný, chladnokrevný čin! ¡fue un acto cruel, vergonzoso, a sangre fría! When I was young I was taken to a place where these cruel things were done; I was tied up, and made fast so that I could not stir, and then they came and cut off my long and beautiful tail, through the flesh and through the bone, and took it away. Když jsem byl mladý, odvedli mě na místo, kde se děly tyto kruté věci; svázali mě a připoutali, abych se nemohl hýbat, a pak přišli a uřízli mi dlouhý a krásný ocas, skrz maso a kosti, a vzali mi ho. Cuando era joven me llevaron a un lugar donde se hacían estas cosas crueles; Me ataron y me ataron de modo que no podía moverme, y luego vinieron y me cortaron la cola larga y hermosa, a través de la carne y el hueso, y me la quitaron.

"How dreadful!" "To je strašné!" I exclaimed. vykřikl jsem.

"Dreadful, ah! it was dreadful; but it was not only the pain, though that was terrible and lasted a long time; it was not only the indignity of having my best ornament taken from me, though that was bad; but it was this, how could I ever brush the flies off my sides and my hind legs any more? fue espantoso; pero no era sólo el dolor, aunque era terrible y duraba mucho tiempo; no era sólo la indignidad de que me quitaran mi mejor adorno, aunque eso fuera malo; pero era esto, ¿cómo podría quitarme las moscas de los costados y de las patas traseras? 太可怕了;但这不仅是痛苦,尽管那是可怕的并且持续了很长时间。这不仅是我最好的装饰品被拿走的侮辱,尽管那很糟糕;但就是这样,我怎么能再把苍蝇从我的两侧和我的后腿上赶走呢? You who have tails just whisk the flies off without thinking about it, and you can't tell what a torment it is to have them settle upon you and sting and sting, and have nothing in the world to lash them off with. I tell you it is a lifelong wrong, and a lifelong loss; but thank heaven, they don't do it now." Les digo que es un mal de por vida y una pérdida de por vida; pero gracias a Dios, ahora no lo hacen". 我告诉你,这是一生的错误,也是一生的损失;但谢天谢地,他们现在不这样做了。” "What did they do it for then?" "¿Para qué lo hicieron entonces?" 「彼らはそれのためにそれを何をしましたか?」 “那他们这么做是为了什么?” said Ginger.

"For fashion!" said the old horse with a stamp of his foot; "for fashion! if you know what that means; there was not a well-bred young horse in my time that had not his tail docked in that shameful way, just as if the good God that made us did not know what we wanted and what looked best." si sabes lo que eso significa; no hubo caballo joven de buena crianza en mi tiempo que no tuviera la cola cortada de esa manera vergonzosa, como si el buen Dios que nos hizo no supiera lo que queríamos y lo que nos parecía mejor”. если вы понимаете, что это значит; в мое время не было ни одной хорошо выращенной молодой лошади, у которой хвост не был бы обрезан таким позорным образом, как будто добрый Бог, создавший нас, не знал, чего мы хотим и что лучше всего выглядит". 如果你知道那是什么意思;在我那个时代,没有一匹良种马的尾巴不是以这种可耻的方式翘起来的,就好像创造我们的善良的上帝不知道我们想要什么,什么看起来最好看一样。” "I suppose it is fashion that makes them strap our heads up with those horrid bits that I was tortured with in London," said Ginger. "Supongo que es la moda lo que hace que nos vendan la cabeza con esas cosas horribles con las que me torturaron en Londres", dijo Ginger. "Я полагаю, это мода заставляет их пристегивать к нашим головам эти ужасные штуки, которыми меня мучили в Лондоне", - сказала Джинджер. "Of course it is," said he; "to my mind, fashion is one of the wickedest things in the world. "Por supuesto que lo es", dijo él; "En mi opinión, la moda es una de las cosas más perversas del mundo. "Конечно, это так, - сказал он, - на мой взгляд, мода - одна из самых порочных вещей в мире. Now look, for instance, at the way they serve dogs, cutting off their tails to make them look plucky, and shearing up their pretty little ears to a point to make them both look sharp, forsooth. Посмотрите, например, на то, как они обслуживают собак: отрезают им хвосты, чтобы они выглядели мужественными, и обрезают их милые маленькие ушки, чтобы они оба выглядели острыми. 例如,现在看看他们为狗服务的方式,剪掉它们的尾巴,让它们看起来很勇敢,把它们漂亮的小耳朵剪成一个尖头,让它们看起来都很犀利、果断。 I had a dear friend once, a brown terrier; 'Skye' they called her. Una vez tuve un querido amigo, un terrier marrón; 'Skye' la llamaban. She was so fond of me that she never would sleep out of my stall; she made her bed under the manger, and there she had a litter of five as pretty little puppies as need be; none were drowned, for they were a valuable kind, and how pleased she was with them! Me quería tanto que nunca dormía fuera de mi pesebre; hizo su cama debajo del pesebre, y allí tuvo una camada de cinco cachorritos tan bonitos como hacía falta; ninguno se ahogó, porque eran muy valiosos, y ¡qué contenta estaba con ellos! 她非常喜欢我,永远不会睡在我的隔间外。她在马槽底下铺床,在那里养了一窝五只漂亮的小狗。没有人被淹死,因为它们很有价值,她对它们感到多么高兴! and when they got their eyes open and crawled about, it was a real pretty sight; but one day the man came and took them all away; I thought he might be afraid I should tread upon them. y cuando abrieron los ojos y gatearon, fue una vista realmente hermosa; pero un día vino el hombre y se los llevó a todos; Pensé que podría tener miedo de que los pisoteara. But it was not so; in the evening poor Skye brought them back again, one by one in her mouth; not the happy little things that they were, but bleeding and crying pitifully; they had all had a piece of their tails cut off, and the soft flap of their pretty little ears was cut quite off. Pero no fue así; por la noche, la pobre Skye los trajo de vuelta, uno por uno en su boca; no las cositas felices que eran, sino sangrando y llorando lastimosamente; a todos les habían cortado un trozo de la cola, y les habían cortado por completo la suave aleta de sus bonitas orejitas. How their mother licked them, and how troubled she was, poor thing! ¡Cómo los lamía su madre, y qué turbada estaba, pobrecita! I never forgot it. They healed in time, and they forgot the pain, but the nice soft flap, that of course was intended to protect the delicate part of their ears from dust and injury, was gone forever. 他们及时痊愈,忘记了疼痛,但漂亮的软耳罩,当然是为了保护他们耳朵脆弱的部分免受灰尘和伤害,却永远消失了。 Why don't they cut their own children's ears into points to make them look sharp? Why don't they cut the end off their noses to make them look plucky? One would be just as sensible as the other. Uno sería tan sensato como el otro. 一个人会和另一个人一样明智。 What right have they to torment and disfigure God's creatures?" ¿Qué derecho tienen ellos de atormentar y desfigurar a las criaturas de Dios?" 他们有什么权利折磨和毁坏上帝的造物?” Sir Oliver, though he was so gentle, was a fiery old fellow, and what he said was all so new to me, and so dreadful, that I found a bitter feeling toward men rise up in my mind that I never had before. Sir Oliver, aunque era tan amable, era un anciano feroz, y todo lo que decía era tan nuevo para mí, y tan terrible, que descubrí que en mi mente surgía un sentimiento amargo hacia los hombres que nunca antes había tenido. Of course Ginger was very much excited; she flung up her head with flashing eyes and distended nostrils, declaring that men were both brutes and blockheads. 金杰当然非常兴奋;她抬起头,眼睛发亮,鼻孔张大,宣称男人既是畜生又是笨蛋。

"Who talks about blockheads?" "¿Quién habla de tontos?" said Merrylegs, who just came up from the old apple-tree, where he had been rubbing himself against the low branch. 快活腿说,他刚刚从那棵老苹果树上爬起来,他一直在低矮的树枝上蹭来蹭去。 "Who talks about blockheads? I believe that is a bad word." "Bad words were made for bad things," said Ginger, and she told him what Sir Oliver had said. “坏话是用来形容坏事的,”金杰说,她把奥利弗爵士说的话告诉了他。 "It is all true," said Merrylegs sadly, "and I've seen that about the dogs over and over again where I lived first; but we won't talk about it here. You know that master, and John and James are always good to us, and talking against men in such a place as this doesn't seem fair or grateful, and you know there are good masters and good grooms beside ours, though of course ours are the best." Sabes que el amo, y John y James siempre son buenos con nosotros, y hablar en contra de los hombres en un lugar como este no parece justo ni agradecido, y sabes que hay buenos amos y buenos mozos además de los nuestros, aunque por supuesto los nuestros. son los mejores." This wise speech of good little Merrylegs, which we knew was quite true, cooled us all down, especially Sir Oliver, who was dearly fond of his master; and to turn the subject I said, "Can any one tell me the use of blinkers?" Эта мудрая речь маленького Меррилегса, которая, как мы знали, была совершенно правдивой, успокоила всех нас, особенно сэра Оливера, который очень любил своего хозяина; и чтобы перевести разговор на другую тему, я сказал: "Кто-нибудь может рассказать мне о пользе мигалок?" 好心的小快腿的这句睿智的演讲,我们知道是千真万确,让我们大家都冷静下来,尤其是奥利弗爵士,他非常喜欢他的主人;为了转移话题,我说:“谁能告诉我闪光灯的用法?” "No!" said Sir Oliver shortly, "because they are no use." "They are supposed," said Justice, the roan cob, in his calm way, "to prevent horses from shying and starting, and getting so frightened as to cause accidents." "Предполагается, что они, - спокойно сказал Джастис, коб, - не позволяют лошадям пугаться и пускаться вскачь, что может привести к несчастным случаям". "Then what is the reason they do not put them on riding horses; especially on ladies' horses?" "Entonces, ¿cuál es la razón por la que no los ponen en los caballos de montar, especialmente en los caballos de las damas?" said I.

"There is no reason at all," said he quietly, "except the fashion; they say that a horse would be so frightened to see the wheels of his own cart or carriage coming behind him that he would be sure to run away, although of course when he is ridden he sees them all about him if the streets are crowded. -No hay ninguna razón en absoluto -dijo en voz baja-, excepto la moda; dicen que un caballo se asustaría tanto al ver las ruedas de su propio carro o carruaje viniendo detrás de él que estaría seguro de salir corriendo, aunque por supuesto, cuando lo montan, los ve a su alrededor si las calles están llenas de gente. “根本没有理由,”他平静地说,“除了时尚;他们说,一匹马看到自己的马车或马车的轮子跟在他身后会非常害怕,他肯定会逃跑,尽管当然,当他骑马时,如果街道很拥挤,他就会看到周围的一切。 I admit they do sometimes come too close to be pleasant, but we don't run away; we are used to it, and understand it, and if we never had blinkers put on we should never want them; we should see what was there, and know what was what, and be much less frightened than by only seeing bits of things that we can't understand. Admito que a veces se acercan demasiado para ser agradables, pero no nos escapamos; estamos acostumbrados, y lo entendemos, y si nunca nos pusiéramos anteojeras nunca las querríamos; deberíamos ver lo que había allí, y saber qué era qué, y estar mucho menos asustados que si solo viéramos fragmentos de cosas que no podemos entender. 我承认他们有时确实靠得太近而不愉快,但我们不会逃跑;我们已经习惯了,也理解了,如果我们从来没有戴过眼罩,我们就永远不会想要它们;我们应该看到那里有什么,知道什么是什么,并且比只看到一些我们无法理解的东西更不会害怕。 Of course there may be some nervous horses who have been hurt or frightened when they were young, who may be the better for them; but as I never was nervous, I can't judge." Por supuesto, puede haber algunos caballos nerviosos que hayan sido heridos o asustados cuando eran jóvenes, que pueden ser mejores para ellos; pero como nunca estuve nervioso, no puedo juzgar". 当然也可能有一些神经质的马,小时候受过伤或者受过惊吓,谁对他们来说可能更好;但因为我从不紧张,所以我无法做出判断。” "I consider," said Sir Oliver, "that blinkers are dangerous things in the night; we horses can see much better in the dark than men can, and many an accident would never have happened if horses might have had the full use of their eyes. —Creo —dijo sir Oliver— que las anteojeras son peligrosas de noche; nosotros, los caballos, podemos ver mucho mejor en la oscuridad que los hombres, y muchos accidentes no se habrían producido nunca si los caballos hubieran podido aprovechar al máximo sus facultades. ojos. Some years ago, I remember, there was a hearse with two horses returning one dark night, and just by Farmer Sparrow's house, where the pond is close to the road, the wheels went too near the edge, and the hearse was overturned into the water; both the horses were drowned, and the driver hardly escaped. Hace algunos años, recuerdo, había un coche fúnebre con dos caballos que regresaban una noche oscura, y justo al lado de la casa del granjero Sparrow, donde el estanque está cerca de la carretera, las ruedas se acercaron demasiado al borde y el coche fúnebre se volcó en el agua. agua; ambos caballos se ahogaron y el conductor apenas escapó. 记得几年前,一个漆黑的夜晚,有一辆灵车载着两匹马返回,就在斯帕罗农夫家旁边,池塘边上路边,轮子太靠边了,灵车被翻进了坑里。水;两匹马都淹死了,驾车的人也难逃一劫。 Of course after this accident a stout white rail was put up that might be easily seen, but if those horses had not been partly blinded, they would of themselves have kept further from the edge, and no accident would have happened. Por supuesto, después de este accidente se colocó una sólida barandilla blanca que podía verse fácilmente, pero si esos caballos no hubieran estado parcialmente cegados, se habrían mantenido más alejados del borde y no habría ocurrido ningún accidente. When our master's carriage was overturned, before you came here, it was said that if the lamp on the left side had not gone out, John would have seen the great hole that the road-makers had left; and so he might, but if old Colin had not had blinkers on he would have seen it, lamp or no lamp, for he was far too knowing an old horse to run into danger. Cuando volcó el carruaje de nuestro amo, antes de que tú vinieras aquí, se dijo que si la lámpara del lado izquierdo no se hubiera apagado, Juan habría visto el gran agujero que habían dejado los constructores de caminos; y así podría ser, pero si el viejo Colin no hubiera tenido las anteojeras puestas, lo habría visto, con lámpara o sin ella, porque conocía demasiado a un viejo caballo para correr peligro. 当我们主人的马车翻倒时,在你来这里之前,据说如果左边的灯没有熄灭,约翰就会看到修路者留下的大洞;他可能会这样,但如果老科林没有戴眼罩,他就会看到它,不管有没有灯,因为他对一匹老马太了解了,不会遇到危险。 As it was, he was very much hurt, the carriage was broken, and how John escaped nobody knew." Tal como estaban las cosas, estaba muy herido, el carruaje estaba roto y nadie sabía cómo escapó John". "I should say," said Ginger, curling her nostril, "that these men, who are so wise, had better give orders that in the future all foals should be born with their eyes set just in the middle of their foreheads, instead of on the side; they always think they can improve upon nature and mend what God has made." —Diría —dijo Ginger, frunciendo el hocico— que estos hombres, que son tan sabios, harían mejor en dar órdenes de que en el futuro todos los potros nazcan con los ojos justo en medio de la frente, en lugar de aparte; siempre piensan que pueden mejorar la naturaleza y reparar lo que Dios ha hecho". “我得说,”金杰缩着鼻孔说,“这些聪明的人最好下令,将来所有的小马驹出生时,眼睛都应该放在前额中间,而不是在一边;他们总是认为他们可以改善自然并修补上帝创造的东西。” Things were getting rather sore again, when Merrylegs held up his knowing little face and said, "I'll tell you a secret: I believe John does not approve of blinkers; I heard him talking with master about it one day. The master said that 'if horses had been used to them, it might be dangerous in some cases to leave them off'; and John said he thought it would be a good thing if all colts were broken in without blinkers, as was the case in some foreign countries. El maestro dijo que 'si los caballos estuvieran acostumbrados a ellos, en algunos casos podría ser peligroso dejarlos'; y John dijo que pensaba que sería bueno que todos los potros fueran domados sin anteojeras, como era el caso en algunos países extranjeros. 师父说“如果马已经习惯了它们,在某些情况下离开它们可能会很危险”;约翰说他认为如果所有的小马都能像在某些外国那样不带眼罩地闯入,那将是一件好事。 So let us cheer up, and have a run to the other end of the orchard; I believe the wind has blown down some apples, and we might just as well eat them as the slugs." Así que animémonos y corramos hasta el otro extremo del huerto; Creo que el viento ha derribado algunas manzanas, y podríamos comerlas tanto como las babosas". 所以,让我们打起精神,跑到果园的另一端;我相信风已经吹倒了一些苹果,我们可以像吃鼻涕虫一样吃它们。” Merrylegs could not be resisted, so we broke off our long conversation, and got up our spirits by munching some very sweet apples which lay scattered on the grass. Merrylegs 无法抗拒,所以我们结束了长时间的谈话,嚼着散落在草地上的一些非常甜的苹果,振作起来。