177 Scatha the Worm “大虫斯卡萨” [C] He was blind and cold but he could smell gold He was long and rich and eased his belly's itch with sharp bright stones but his toys were bones hands of dwarves and skulls of men that were piled in his den licked smooth and white Not for him was flight: a wingless drake Not for him was fire: a slimy snake fouler than mire Crawling and creeping on like a slow death Freezing with fear and his cold breath Crushing and grinding under his white womb dark was his dwelling as a dark tomb 瞎眼又冰凉, 善嗅黄金香。 身长又富有, 抓挠用石头; 肚皮止瘙痒, 玩耍有骨头: 侏儒手掌,凡人头颅 巢穴里成堆, 舔得光又亮。 飞不起来,没翅的蛟 吐不出火,滑溜的蛇 污秽如泥沼 爬行、蠕动,像徐来的死神 恐惧、冰息,冻人彻骨 白肚腩下,碾平磨碎; 住所黢黑,宛若坟墓 ------------------------------------------------------------------ 所以冷龙不光不吐火,貌似是真的能制冷。参考 177[A] 10- ... froze Men with fear and his icy breath, and then crushed them, ground them, under his long white belly
185 The Complaint of Mîm the Dwarf (1961 or 1962) ------------------------------------------- Under a mountain in a wild land a cave opened paved with sand. One evening Mîm stood by its door: his back was bent and his beard was hoar; long ways he had wandered homeless and cold, the little dwarf Mîm, two hundred years old 荒野之中,山脚之下 开了个洞,铺满了沙。 傍晚洞口,米姆伫立, 胡须灰白,脊背弯曲; 长路漂泊,无壁遮寒, 矮人米姆,二百岁满。 All that he had built, all he had made with axe and chisel, with hammer and spade unfriends had stolen; only his life and small tools he had saved, and a long knife venom-edged in a sheath under his cloak ragged and torn, Still red from the smoke 斧劈錾凿,锤敲铲掀 毕生劳作,心血筑建, 尽被歹人夺去,只有性命得免 还有几样工具,与破烂长衫下面 藏于鞘中的,淬了毒的长刀。 他眨眨昏花的双眼,烟熏的血色还没褪; his bleared eyes blinked; for in heather and briar stuffed in his tunnels they had set cruel fire driving him out, to retch and choke Mîm spat in the sand, and then he spoke: Tink-tink-tink tink-donk donk-donk tink! No time to eat, no time to drink! 只因歹人将灌木和荆棘, 把廊道塞满,点起了烈火, 熏到他出来,不住地咳喘 米姆朝沙地啐了一口,念道: 叮叮叮,叮咚,咚咚,叮! 没空吃,没空喝 Tink-donk no time donk-tink no time to play No time to sleep! No night nor day! Only graven silver and twisted gold and small hard stones gleaming and cold. Tink-tink green yellow, tink-tink white blue: under my fingers opened and grew long leaves and flowers, and red eyes glowed in beasts and birds among the brambles and tree-roots 叮咚,没空,咚叮,没空玩! 没空睡!没日没夜干! 尽是刻花的白银,扭成麻花的金, 还有粒粒的宝石,冰凉又闪亮。 叮叮,黄的绿的,叮叮,蓝的白的: 自我手中,发芽生长 生出长叶花朵,枝杈和根系间 鸟兽的眼睛,亮着红光