古屋雜憶 /古戰場

終於有日會一句句啃完這篇文章.

霍桑《古屋雜憶》(夏濟安譯):

#8

Come, we have pursued a somewhat devious track in our walk to the battle-ground. Here we are, at the point where the river was crossed by the old bridge, the possession of which was the immediate object of the contest.

我們不是要去看美國獨立戰爭的古戰場嗎？這一繞，可多走了不少路。現在到了，這個地方本來有一座橋，當年兩軍相爭者就是這個東西。

On the hither side grow two or three elms, throwing a wide circumference of shade, but which must have been planted at some period within the three-score years and ten that have passed since the battle day.

橋這一頭，有兩三棵榆樹，蔭影所蓋之處，地方倒也不少，可是樹還是戰後所栽，年壽頂多不過七十歲而已。

On the farther shore, overhung by a clump of elder bushes, we discern the stone abutment of the bridge. Looking down into the river, I once discovered some heavy fragments of the timbers, all green with half a century's growth of water moss; for during that length of time the tramp of horses and human footsteps have ceased along this ancient highway.

在河的彼岸，我們可以看得見在接骨木排垂下的石質橋墩。我有一次朝河裏一看，看見水裏浸了好幾塊粗重木頭，綠綠的長滿了青苔，因為這半個世紀以來，橋既不復存在，這條公路上已經很少有人馬走過了。

The stream has here about the breadth of twenty strokes of a swimmer's arm, a space not too wide when the bullets were whistling across. Old people who dwell hereabouts will point out the very spots on the western bank where our countrymen fell down and died; and on this side of the river an obelisk of granite has grown up from the soil that was fertilized with British blood.

河在這一段，大約有游泳家臂划二十次那麼的寬，但是在雙方槍彈交飛的時候，這點距離不好算寬的了。住在附近的父老會指給你看：西岸那幾處地方曾經有我們的同胞中彈倒下陣亡的。河的這一邊，豎有一塊花崗石的石碑，那裏的土地正浸透了英國人的血。

The monument, not more than twenty feet in height is such as it befitted the inhabitants of a village to erect in illustration of a matter of local interest rather than what was suitable to commemorate an epoch of national history. Still, by the fathers of the village this famous deed was done; and their descendants might rightfully claim the privilege of building a memorial.

碑高不過二十呎，用以紀念一次全國性的戰事，似嫌不夠宏偉，可是在村民眼光中，這樣一塊碑，紀念本地一件要事，也就是夠大的了。而且當時我方的戰士，就是本地村民的祖先，勒石建碑的事情，照理也應該由子孫們來擔任的。