The Mischievous Wind
淘气的风
Out upon the angry wind, now from sighing, it began to bluster round the merry forge, banging at the wicket, and grumbling in the chimney, as if it bullied the jolly bellows for doing anything, to order. And what an impotent swaggerer it was too, for all its noise; for if it had any influence on that hoarse companion, it was but to make him roar his cheerful song the louder, and by consequence to make the fire burn the brighter, and the sparks to dance more gaily yet; at length, they whizzed so madly round and round, that it was too much for such a surly wind to bear; so off it flew with a howl, giving the old sign before the ale-house door such a cuff as it went that the blue dragon was more rampant than usual ever afterward, and, indeed, before Christmas reared clean out of its crazy frame.
咄！这阵狂风！它先是悲呜，现在又开始在那家欢乐的铁匠铺四周呼啸。匠铺四周呼味，把铺子的簇门刮得砰砰直响，又钻进烟囱里呜呜叫，好象在欺侮那快乐的风箱，不让它好生干活。不过，风尽管吵得凶，也不过是个没能耐的吹牛大王。要说它对那个声音嘶哑的伙伴有什么影响，那不过是使它吼叫得更加起劲，发出的欢乐的歌声更加响亮，结果炉火越烧越旺，火星儿也越舞越欢。最后风箱一阵一阵狂叫，粗暴无礼的风再也受不了啦，一声号叫飞了出去，路过那家啤洒店时，给挂在店门前的那块旧招牌劈面一掌，使招牌上的青龙标志从此以后张牙舞爪，更为猖撅。而到了圣诞节前，那条青龙果真从歪歪斜斜的招牌上蹿了下来。
- 拓展学习：小词详解 | forge
It was small tyranny for a respectable wind to go wreaking its vengeance on such poor creatures as the fallen leaves; but this wind, happening to come up with a great heap of them just after venting its humor on the insulted dragon, do so disperse and scatter them that they fled away, pell-mell, some here, some there, rolling over each other, whirling round and round upon their thin edges, taking frantic flights into the air, and playing all manner of extraordinary gambols in the extremity of their distress. Nor was this enough for its malicious fury, for not content with driving them abroad, it charged small parties of them and hunted them into the wheelwright’s saw-pit, and below the planks and timbers in the yard, and scattering the sawdust in the air, it looked for them underneath, and when it did meet with any, whew! How it drove them on and followed at their heels!
风如果要在象落叶这样可怜的东西上泄愤，这种暴行实在投出息，很不光彩。可是刚才那阵风，在耍弄了这条无端受辱的青龙之后，恰巧赶上一大堆落叶，竟狂吹一气，把落叶赶得四散奔逃、乱作一团；有的逃向这边，有的逃向那边多连滚带爬，争先恐后，时而竖在薄薄的叶边上团团转，时而发狂似的飞向空中，在极度痛苦中狼狈地作着种种奇形怪状的翻腾跳跃。可是恶毒的风余怒未息，把落叶赶走它还不满意，就向小股小 股的落叶冲锋，把它食方吐进车轮匠的锯坑，以及堆放在场地上 的木料、板材底下，又把锯屑吹得到处飞扬。它还钻到下面搜索落叶，果真找到几片时，就把它们往前赶，在后面紧追不！
The scattered leaves only flew the faster for all this, and a giddy chase it was; for they got into unfrequented places, where there was no outlet, and where their pursuer kept them eddying round and round at his pleasure; and they crept under the eaves of houses, and clung tightly to the sides of hayricks, like bats; and tore in at open chamber windows, and cowered close to hedges, and in short went anywhere for safety. But the oddest feat they achieved was to take advantage of the sudden opening of Mr. Pecksniff’s front door to dash wildly into his passage; whither the wind following close upon them, and finding the back door open, incontinently blew out the lighted candle held by Miss Pecksniff, and slammed the front door against Mr. Pecksniff, who was at that moment entering, with such violence, that in the twinkling of an eye he lay on his back at the bottom of the steps. By this time weary of such trifling performances, the boisterous rover hurried away rejoicing, roaring over moor and meadow, hill and flat, until it got out to sea, where it met other winds similarly disposed, and made a night of it.
尽管这样，那些吓坏了的叶子却只有飞得更快了。它们被追赶得晕头转向，竟逃进人迹罕至的地友，没有任何出路。而那穷追不舍的家伙凭自己高兴，把它们吹得团团乱转。它们就象蝙蝠一样、爬到屋檐底下，或者紧紧贴在干草堆边上，有的一头撞进打开的窗户，有的蜷缩在树篱旁，总之，哪里安全就往哪里去。它们最奇特的一着就是趁佩克斯尼夫先生打开前门的时候冲进门廊，谁知风也跟踪而入。它发现后门也开着，便不能自主，顺势吹灭了佩克斯尼夫小姐手上的蜡烛。这时佩克斯尼夫先生正好要进屋，风把前门砰的一声对着他迎面吹拢，来势之猛，转瞬之间磕得他仰面跌倒在台阶底下。此时这狂暴的漫游者对这些徽不足道的功绩已感到厌倦，便欢欢喜喜地匆匆而去，呼啸着越过沼泽和草原，山岗和平地，一直来到海上，遇到一些情投意合的伴侣，又痛痛快快地玩了一夜。
