19 Mr Jenkins and His Son

Mr Jenkins and His Son Mr Jenkins came striding up to our table with a very purposeful look on his face. 'Where is that grandson of yours?' he said to my grandmother. He spoke rudely and looked very angry. My grandmother put on her frostiest look, but didn't answer him. 'My guess is that he and my son Bruno are up to some devilment,' Mr Jenkins went on. 'Bruno hasn't turned up for his supper and it takes a lot to make that boy miss his food!' 'I must admit he has a very healthy appetite,' my grandmother said. 'My feeling is that you're in on this as well,' Mr Jenkins said. 'I don't know who the devil you are and I don't much care, but you played a nasty trick on me and my wife this afternoon. You put a dirty little mouse on the table. That makes me think all

詹金斯先生大步走向我们的桌子，脸上带着坚定的表情。 “你的孙子在哪儿?”他对我祖母说。 他说话很粗鲁，看上去很生气。 我的祖母露出她最冷淡的表情，但没有回答他。 “我猜他和我儿子布鲁诺在搞什么鬼，”詹金斯先生接着说。 “布鲁诺没来吃晚饭，要让那个男孩想念他的食物可真不容易!”“我得承认他的胃口很好，”我祖母说。 詹金斯说:“我感觉你也参与了这件事。” “我不知道你到底是谁，我也不在乎，不过今天下午你对我和我妻子开了个下流的玩笑。 你把一只脏兮兮的小老鼠放在桌子上。 这使我想到了一切

three of you are up to something. So if you know where Bruno's hiding, kindly tell me at once.' 'That was no trick I played on you,' my grandmother said. 'That mouse I tried to give you was your own little boy, Bruno. I was being kind to you. I was trying to restore him to the bosom of his family. You refused to take him in.' 'What the blazes do you mean, madam?' shouted Mr Jenkins. 'My son isn't a mouse!' His black moustache was jumping up and down like crazy as he spoke. 'Come on, woman! Where is he? Out with it!' The family at the table nearest to us had all stopped eating and were staring at Mr Jenkins. My grandmother sat there puffing away calmly at her black cigar. 'I can well understand your anger, Mr Jenkins,' she said. 'Any other English father would be just as cross as you are. But over in Norway where I come from, we are quite used to these sorts of happenings. We have learnt to accept them as part of everyday life.' 'You must be mad, woman!' cried Mr Jenkins. 'Where is Bruno? If you don't tell me at once I

你们三个肯定在密谋什么。 如果你知道布鲁诺藏在哪里，请马上告诉我。“我没有跟你开玩笑，”祖母说。 “我想给你的那只老鼠是你的亲生儿子，布鲁诺。 我只是对你好。我想让他重回家人的怀抱。 你拒绝收留他。“你到底是什么意思，夫人?”詹金斯先生喊道。 “我儿子不是老鼠!”他说话的时候，黑胡子疯狂地上下跳动着。 “来吧，女人!”他在哪里? 说出来吧!”离我们最近那桌的一家人都停止了吃饭，盯着詹金斯先生。 我祖母坐在那里，平静地抽着黑雪茄。 “我很理解你的愤怒，詹金斯先生，”她说。 “换做别的英国父亲，也会和你一样生气的。 但在我的家乡挪威，我们对这种事情已经习以为常了。 我们已经学会接受它们作为日常生活的一部分。“你一定是疯了，女人!”詹金斯先生叫道。 “布鲁诺在哪儿?”如果你不马上告诉我，我

shall summon the police!' 'Bruno is a mouse,' my grandmother said, calm as ever. 'He most certainly is not a mouse!' shouted Mr Jenkins. 'Oh yes I am!' Bruno said, poking his head up out of the handbag. Mr Jenkins leapt about three feet into the air. 'Hello, Dad,' Bruno said. He had a silly sort of mousy grin on his face. Mr Jenkins's mouth dropped open so wide I could see the gold fillings in his back teeth. 'Don't worry, Dad,' Bruno went on. 'It's not as bad as all that. Just so long as the cat doesn't get me.' 'B-B-Bruno!' stammered Mr Jenkins. 'No more school!' said Bruno, grinning a broad and asinine mouse-grin. 'No more homework! I shall live in the kitchen cupboard and feast on raisins and honey!'

我要叫警察来!“布鲁诺是一只老鼠，”我祖母说，一如既往地平静。 “他绝对不是一只老鼠!”詹金斯先生喊道。 “哦，是的，我是!”布鲁诺说着，从手提包里探出头来。 詹金斯先生跳到了大约三英尺高的空中。 “你好，爸爸。”布鲁诺说。他脸上带着一种傻笑。 詹金斯先生的嘴张得那么大，我都能看到他后牙里的黄金填充物。 “别担心，爸爸。”布鲁诺接着说。 “事情并没有那么糟。 只要那只猫不抓我就行。“B-B-Bruno !詹金斯先生结结巴巴地说。 “不用再上学了!”布鲁诺说，露出一个大大的、愚蠢的老鼠般的笑容。 “不用再做作业了!”我要住在厨房的橱柜里，吃葡萄干和蜂蜜!”

'B-b-but B-B-Bruno!' stammered Mr Jenkins again. 'H-how did this happen?' The poor man had no wind left in his sails at all. 'Witches,' my grandmother said. 'The witches did it.' 'I can't have a mouse for a son!' shrieked Mr Jenkins. 'You've got one,' my grandmother said. 'Be nice to him, Mr Jenkins.'

“B-b-but B-B-Bruno !詹金斯先生又结结巴巴地说。 “这是怎么发生的?”这个可怜的人已经风平浪静了。 “女巫，”我祖母说。 “是女巫干的。“我不能有一只老鼠当儿子!”詹金斯先生尖叫道。 “你有一个，”我祖母说。 “对他好一点，詹金斯先生。”

'Mrs Jenkins will go crazy!' yelled Mr Jenkins. 'She can't stand the things!' 'She'll just have to get used to him,' my grandmother said. 'I hope you don't keep a cat in the house.' 'We do! We do!' cried Mr Jenkins. 'Topsy is my wife's favourite creature!' 'Then you'll just have to get rid of Topsy,' my grandmother said. 'Your son is more important than your cat.' 'He certainly is!' Bruno shouted from inside the handbag. 'You tell Mum she's got to get rid of Topsy before I go home!' By now half the Dining-Room was watching our little group. Knives and forks and spoons had been put down and all over the place heads were turning round to stare at Mr Jenkins as he stood there spluttering and shouting. They couldn't see either Bruno or me and they were wondering what all the fuss was about. 'By the way,' my grandmother said, 'would you like to know who did this to him?' There was a

“詹金斯太太会发疯的!”詹金斯先生喊道。 “她受不了这些东西!”“她得习惯他，”我祖母说。 “我希望你不要在家里养猫。“是的!”我们所做的!詹金斯先生叫道。 “托普西是我妻子最喜欢的动物!”“那你就只好把托普西赶走了，”我祖母说。 “你的儿子比你的猫更重要。“他当然是!”布鲁诺从手提包里喊道。 “你告诉妈妈，她必须在我回家之前把托普西赶走!”这时，餐厅里一半的人都在注视着我们这一小群人。 刀叉和勺子都放下了，所有的人都回过头来盯着站在那里大喊大叫的詹金斯先生。 他们既看不见布鲁诺，也看不见我，他们想知道有什么大惊小怪的。 “顺便问一下，”祖母说，“你想知道是谁干的吗?”有一个

mischievous little smile on her face and I could see that she was about to get Mr Jenkins into trouble. 'Who?' he cried. 'Who did it?' 'That woman over there,' my grandmother said. 'The small one in a black dress at the head of the long table.' 'She's RSPCC!' cried Mr Jenkins. 'She's the Chairwoman!' 'No, she's not,' my grandmother said. 'She's The Grand High Witch Of All The World.' 'You mean she did it, that skinny little woman over there!' shouted Mr Jenkins, pointing at her with a long finger. 'By gad, I'll have my lawyers on to her for this! I'll make her pay through the nose!' 'I wouldn't do anything rash,' my grandmother said to him. 'That woman has magic powers. She might decide to turn you into something even sillier than a mouse. A cockroach perhaps.' 'Turn me into a cockroach!' shouted Mr Jenkins, puffing out his chest. 'I'd like to see her

她脸上露出淘气的微笑，我看得出她要给詹金斯先生找麻烦了。 “谁?他叫道。“是谁干的?”“那边那个女人，”我祖母说。 “长桌前面那个穿黑裙子的小个子。“她是皇家防止虐待儿童协会的!”詹金斯先生叫道。 “她是主席!”“不，她不是，”我祖母说。 “她是全世界的最高女巫。“你是说就是她干的，那个瘦小的女人!”詹金斯先生用长长的手指指着她喊道。 “哎呀，我要让我的律师找她算账!”我要让她付出代价!祖母对他说:“我不会鲁莽行事的。” “那个女人有魔力。 她可能会把你变成比老鼠更蠢的东西。 也许是蟑螂。“把我变成一只蟑螂!”詹金斯先生鼓起胸膛喊道。 “我想见见她