Whenever a can was tossed away, there was a great rush for it. If you had never had anything for a water jug except a gourd or a pottery bowl that broke very easily, and then suddenly you saw things like cans, that didn't break at all, you would rush and scramble for them, too! They would be much more precious than any silly thing like money, that couldn't buy cans in the jungle at all!
无论何时扔掉一个罐头盒子,都会有人向它猛冲过去。如果你除了一个葫芦或易碎的陶瓷碗之外没有其他盛水的器具,当你突然看到一些完全不会摔碎的、像罐头盒子一样的东西,你也会冲上去争抢。它们会比任何无用的东西比如金钱更加珍贵,金钱在丛林中是不会买到罐头盒子的。
After breakfast Alice always trotted off to see if everything she wanted was in her basket: her doll and picture book, her bottle of drinking water, and the lunch that Priscilla always put up for her, cold chicken and crackers and cheese and bananas.
早饭后,爱丽丝总是小跑着去看她要得每件物品是否都在篮筐里了:她的娃娃和画册,她喝水的水瓶,以及普莉希拉总是为她准备好的午餐——冷鸡肉、饼干、奶酪和香蕉。
The busiest moment of the morning was just after breakfast, for every porter was trying to get his load on his head and hurry off with it.
早晨最忙的时候正好是早饭后,因为每个搬运工都要把他的重担顶在头上,然后带着它赶快离开。
Uncle Akeley and Father were trying to keep all the two hundred porters together, and not let anybody get away until every load was taken care of. Priscilla was busy getting Alice ready, and mother and Martha were trying to get the breakfast things back into the boxes.
埃克利叔叔和爸爸总是努力把这两百名搬运工集中在一起,不让任何人离开,直到所有货物都有人照看。普里西拉忙着帮爱丽丝准备好,妈妈和玛莎正忙着将早餐用品放回盒子里。
The boys who helped the cook never would hurry with washing the breakfast dishes; so the boxes that held the dishes were always the last to be ready.
帮助厨师的男孩们从不着急洗早餐的餐具,所以装餐具的盒子总是最后才准备好。
The porters who carried them hoped that sometime they would manage to get off with the empty boxes before the dishes were put into them. Every morning they came and sat beside the boxes, waiting for a chance.
负责搬运的工人希望有一天在餐具放进去之前就搬着空盒子离开。每天早上,他们都过来坐在盒子旁边等待机会。
So Alice had to sit on guard each morning like a little girl shooing off hens; and everytime a black arm would reach slyly out for an empty box she would shout, "Hapana!" (No). Then there would be a laugh from the blackboys. They were always very good-natured about it.
因此,爱丽丝每天早晨都不得不像一个赶走母鸡的小女孩一样坐在那里值班。每次一条黑黑的胳膊悄悄伸出来拿空盒子时,她就大喊:“Hapana!”(不行)这时黑人男孩们就会笑起来。对此,他们的脾气总是很好。