With hogs loose in the woods like that，it washard to know for sure when you’d found them all.
But I kept a piece of ear from every pig I marked. Icarried the pieces home in my pockets and stuckthem on a sharp pointed stick. When they reachedforty - six，and I didn”t seem to be finding anymore hogs，Mama and I thought that must be all thepigs that had been born to our hogs that year. So Istopped hog hunting and started getting ready togather corn. Then Bud Searcy paid us another visit.
He told me about one bunch of hogs I hadn”tfound.
猪 群这样地四处散居在林子里，你很难断定什么时候算是把它们都给找齐了。但是我每在一头猪上打上一个印记就留下一小片耳朵。我把这些耳朵片装在口袋里带回家，然后把它们穿在一根尖头的棒上。当累积到四十六片时，似乎再也找不到猪了，我和妈妈都以为这些一定是我们家的猪当年生下的全部猪崽了。因此，我便不再去找猪而准备去收割玉米了。这时，巴德·塞西又到我家访问了一次。他告诉我还有一群群我没有发现。
“The y”re right off in tha t ba t ca ve c ountry，theothe r s ide of S a lt Bra nch ，”he said.“Ros a l Simpsonra n into them two da ys a go，fe e ding on pe a r a pple s inthos e pric kly - pe a r fla ts.He s a id the re we re five pigsfollowing five hogs with your ma rk.”
“它们就在蝙蝠洞那边的地里，在盐河的那一边，”他说，“两天前，罗萨尔·辛普森撞见它们在那片霸王树的低洼地里寻果子吃呢。他说有五头仔猪跟在打着你家印记的老猪后面。”
I’d never been that far the other side of Salt
我从来也没有到过盐河对岸那
Branch before，but Papa had told me about the batcave. I thought I could find it. So early next morning，I set out with Old Yeller，glad of the chance tohunt hogs a bit longer before starting on the corngathering. Also，if I{ was lucky and found the hogsquite quickly，I’d have time left to visit the caveand watch the bats come out.Papa had told me itwas a great sight，the bats coming out in the late afternoon.
么远的地方，但是爸爸倒是跟我谈起过那个蝙蝠洞。我想我能够找到那个地方。所以第二天一早我就带着阿黄出发了，我很高兴能够在收玉米之前还有机会再延长一点找猪的时间。而且，如果运气好能很快找到猪的话，我还可以有时间去参观一下那个洞并且观赏蝙蝠出洞呢。爸爸对我说过，傍晚时分蝙蝠出洞的景色可真够美的。
We found the hogs in plenty of time，but beforewe’d finished that job I wasn’t feeling like goingto see a bat cave or anything else，我们花了不少时间才找到那群猪，可是在完成任务之前我不想去看蝙蝠洞或做别的什么事。
Old Yeller picked up the hogs’trail at a water- hole. He followed it out to a sort of forest ofprickly pear. The edges of the pear bushes werebright with red apples. In places where the hogshad fed，bits of peel and black seeds and red juicelay on the ground. It must be like eating thousandsof little pins，I thought.
阿黄在水帘洞那儿发现了这群猪的踪迹。它跟踪追迹来到一片霸王树林子似的地方。树丛的边缘长满了鲜红的果子，显得十分明亮。
在那些猪群觅过食的地方，地上留下了一块块的果皮、黑色的果核和红色的汁水。我想，这简直象吃了几千枚小针似的。
Old Yeller’s yelling bark told me that he’dcaught up with the hogs. I heard their wild gruntsand ran through the pear bushes to the sound. Theywere the hogs that Rosal Simpson had sent word aboutright enough. There were five pigs and fivehogs，all but the pigs having our mark in their ears.
They stood backed up against a big clump of
阿黄的高声吠叫告诉我它已经追上那群猪了。我听到它们狂野的叫声后，寻声穿过树丛跑去。它们确确实实是罗萨尔·辛普森所说的那群猪。有五头小猪和五头大猪，除了那些小猪外所有大猪的耳朵上都打上了我家的印记。它们背靠一
prickly pear. Their anger was making their hairstand high and stiff along their backbones.
大丛霸王树站着，愤怒使它们脊梁骨上的鬃毛耸立。
I looked round for the nearest tree. It stoodmore than a quarter of a mile off. It was going to berough on Old Yeller trying to lead them all the wayto it through those prickly peat，but I couldn’t seeanywhere else to take them. I started off towards thetree，shouting at Old Yeller to bring them along.
我环顾四周，想找一棵离得最近的树。在四分之一英里之外倒有一棵。而要设法引诱它们穿过霸王树，来到那棵树下却要难为阿黄了，可是，我不知道还能把它们带到别的什么地方去。我朝那棵树走去，一面喊着阿黄，要它把这群猪带过来。
A deep river - bed ran through the pear flatsbetween me and the big tree I was heading for，andit was down at the bottom of this that the hogsstopped.They’d found a place where the heavy watershad cut under one of the banks and made a lowcave.
一条很深的河床横贯在我和我要去的那棵大树之间的一片片霸王树地里。就在这条河床的底部这群猪站住了。它们已经在岸边那个被大水冲蚀而形成的一个低低的洞穴内安营扎寨了。
They’d backed up under the bank，with thepigs behind them. No matter how much Old Yellerbarked and rushed，he couldn’t get them out. Nowand then one of the old hogs would break away totry a quick cut at the dog. But When Yeller dartedaway，the hog wouldn’t follow up. He’d go rightback to the half circle the others were making atthe front of the cave. The hogs knew what a goodplace they’d found for making a fighting stand，andthey weren’t going to leave it.
它们在岸的下面往后退，让小猪躲在它们的后面。不论阿黄怎样吠叫，怎样向它们发动进攻，都没把它们引出来。不时有一只老猪冲出来，想快速地戳阿黄一下。但是当阿黄闪开时，它却不去追赶。它马上回到洞前那个由其他一些猪所组成的半圆形中去。它们知道自己找到了一个很好的作战据点，不会放弃它的。
I went back and stood on the bank abovethem，looking down，wondering what to do. Then I我走了回来，站在它们上面的堤岸上朝下望，思忖着该怎么办。
thought of the answer. I could go to work there. Thissandbank would do as well as a tree. The hogs wereright under me. They couldn’t get at me from downthere. Not without going some fifty yards down theriver - bed to find a place to get out.It wouldn’tbe easy to rope a pig so far under that bank，but Ithought it could be done.
然后，我想出了一个解决的办法。
我可以就地干起来。这沙坝也可以起那棵树同样的作用。猪群就在我的脚下。它们没法从下面向我发动进攻。只有沿河床走五十码左右后才能找到一个爬上来的地方。用绳子去套一只在河岸下离我那么远的猪可不是一件容易的事，但是我想还是能够办到的。
I took my rope and shook out a loop. I movedto the edge of the bank. The pigs where too far backfor a good throw. Perhaps if I lay down on my stomachI could reach them.
我拿出绳子打了一个活套，走到岸边。岸下边的这些猪太靠后，很难扔得准。如果我卧倒在地的话，说不定能够套到它们。
I did. I reached right back under the bank andpicked up the first pig，as clean as a whistle. Ipulled him up and marked his ear. When I droppedhim back the old hogs were made madder still bythe smell of his blood.
我伏卧在地上，把身子直探到河岸下面的远处，干净利落地套起了第一头猪。我把它拖上来，在它的耳朵上打上印记。当我把它投放回原处的时候，那些老猪因闻到了它的血腥味而更加暴怒了。
I lay there and waited. A second pig moved outfrom the back of the cave. He still wasn”t quite farenough out. I edged forward to where I could seebetter. I could reach him with my loop now.
我躺在那儿等待时机。第二头猪从洞的后部走了出来，可是还没有完全走出来。我侧身慢慢向前移动，移到我能看得更清楚一点的地方。
现在我的绳套可以够得到它了。
I made my throw，and that”s when it happened.
The bank broke under me. A whole carloadof sand came away and spilled down over the angryhogs. I went with the sand.
我把绳子甩了过去，就在这一瞬间出事了。我身下的那块堤岸塌陷了下去。一大堆的沙土散开了，倾泻在下边那些愤怒的猪身上。我随着沙土一起掉了下去。
I must have screamed. I don”t know. It happenedtoo fast. All I can really remember is thewild，heart - stopping scare I had as I fell，head overheels，down among those killer hogs.
我一定尖声叫了起来。我不知道。事情发生得太快了。我只记得我头朝下，一下子跌落在那群杀气腾腾的猪群里时是如此地惊恐万状，吓得心也停止了跳动。