5 Chapter 5 Down the River

Chapter 5 Down the River The Lambchops followed the sun westward across the savannah, as Captain Tony had instructed. Soon, more and more trees sprung up around them, and they came to a river. They walked along the muddy bank. The sun was high in the sky. Drops of sweat ran from Stanley's forehead down his body. "Are we there yet?" Arthur asked for what seemed like the millionth time.

第五章顺流而下小羊羔遵照托尼船长的指示，跟着太阳向西穿过大草原。 很快，他们周围长出了越来越多的树，他们来到了一条河边。 他们沿着泥泞的河岸走。 太阳高高地挂在天上。 汗珠从斯坦利的额头顺着他的身体流下来。 “我们到了吗?”阿瑟问了一百多万遍。

"No, Arthur," Mr. Lambchop said in a weary voice. They kept walking. Their shoes made sucking sounds as they stepped in and out of the mud. Suddenly, there was a low growling, and Stanley froze in fear. Arthur looked at his stomach. "I'm hungry," he whined. "Look at that," said Mr. Lambchop, pointing down the bank. It was a canoe pulled up on the shore. The Lambchops found a paddle inside. Mr. Lambchop scanned the area. "Stanley, exactly how far downriver did Captain Tony say to go?" Mr. Lambchop asked. "A few hours," replied Stanley. "On foot? Or by boat?" Stanley realized he didn't know. "My feet hurt," grumbled Arthur. "And I have mud in my socks." "Whose canoe do you think this is?" Stanley asked his father. Mr. Lambchop shrugged. "I don't know. Perhaps the owners went hunting."

“不，亚瑟。”兰彻先生疲倦地说。 他们继续往前走。他们在泥里进进出出，鞋子发出吮吸的声音。 突然，传来一声低沉的咆哮，斯坦利吓得呆住了。 阿瑟看了看自己的肚子。 “我饿了，”他抱怨道。“看那儿，”兰博契先生指着河岸说。 那是一只停在岸边的独木舟。 小羊羔们在里面找到了一个桨。 兰姆切普扫描了这片区域。 “斯坦利，托尼船长到底说要往下游走多远?”兰切普先生问。 “几个小时，”斯坦利回答。 “步行?还是坐船?”斯坦利意识到他不知道。 “我的脚疼。”阿瑟嘟囔着。 “我的袜子里有泥。” “你认为这是谁的独木舟?”斯坦利问他的父亲。 兰切普耸了耸肩。“我不知道。 也许主人去打猎了。”

Meanwhile, Arthur climbed into the canoe. "Ahhhh," he said, putting his feet up on a seat. "Arthur Lambchop," Mr. Lambchop said sternly, "are you stealing someone else's canoe?" "No." Arthur rolled his eyes. "I'm sitting in someone else's canoe." "Would it be stealing if we borrowed it and brought it right back?" Stanley suggested. Mr. Lambchop looked at Stanley. "Yes, it would," he said. There was a rustling in the brush nearby. Onto the bank stepped a very tall man with enormous holes in his earlobes. His body was draped in red cloth, and in his hand was a staff taller than Stanley. He stopped short when he saw the Lambchops. "Arthur!" Mr. Lambchop whispered out of the side of his mouth. Arthur nearly jumped out of his skin when he saw the tribesman. Behind the man, a woman also swathed in red appeared. She held a baby wrapped in patterned cloth close to her body.

与此同时，阿瑟爬上了独木舟。 “啊，”他说着，把脚放在座位上。 “阿瑟·蓝切普，”蓝切普先生严厉地说，“你在偷别人的独木舟吗?”“没有。” 阿瑟翻了个白眼。“我坐在别人的独木舟上。” “如果我们借走后马上还回来，这算不算偷窃?”斯坦利。 兰切普先生看着斯坦利。 “是的，会的，”他说。附近的灌木丛沙沙作响。 一个非常高的男人走上河岸，耳垂上有许多大洞。 他身上披着红布，手里拿着一根比斯坦利还高的手杖。 当他看到小羊排时，他停了下来。 “亚瑟!”兰切普先生从他的嘴角低语道。 当阿瑟看到那个部落成员时，他几乎吓了一跳。 在这名男子的身后，出现了一名身穿红色衣服的女子。 她把一个裹着花纹布的婴儿抱在身边。

The man squinted at the Lambchops. Then he turned and fixed his gaze on Stanley. He came closer. Stanley flinched as the man leaned close and peered behind Stanley's head. He looked Stanley right in the eye. "What happened to you?" the man asked. "I was flattened by my own bulletin board," Stanley answered. "You speak English!" sputtered Mr. Lambchop. "And French, too," the man said. "I am of the Masai tribe, but I am also a graduate of the Sorbonne in Paris. This land is our home. And you, young man," he continued, turning to Arthur, "what do you think you are doing in our canoe?"

那人眯着眼睛看着小羊排。 然后他转过身来，盯着斯坦利。 他走近了。当那个人靠过来，从斯坦利的脑后窥视时，斯坦利畏缩了。 他直视着斯坦利的眼睛。 “你怎么了?”男人问。 “我被自己的布告栏压扁了，”斯坦利回答。 “你会说英语!”兰彻先生气急败坏地说。 “还有法语，”那人说。 “我是马赛部落的人，但我也是巴黎索邦大学的毕业生。 这片土地是我们的家。还有你，年轻人，”他转向阿瑟，继续说道，“你在我们的独木舟上干什么?”

"Don't be so hard on him," the woman said. "He is just a boy. They are clearly lost." The baby squealed with delight at the sight of Stanley. Mr. Lambchop rummaged through his pocket and came up with the newspaper clipping. "We're trying to get to the spot marked by the X." The man and woman studied the article. "Many believe that the first people lived in Africa," said the man, "and then walked onto the other continents long, long ago when all the parts of the world were close together and had not yet drifted apart. Today, many people come seeking the place they began." He turned to Stanley. "Is this why you have come?" "I guess so," said Stanley. The man turned to Mr. Lambchop. "This is only a few hours downriver. Would you like to borrow our canoe?" "That would be very generous!" said Mr. Lambchop. "Thank you!" Stanley, Arthur, and Mr. Lambchop waved good-bye to the family as they pulled away from the shore. Soon, they were in the center of the river. A hippopotamus eyed them suspiciously,

“别对他太苛刻了，”女人说。 “他只是个孩子。他们显然是迷路了。” 婴儿一见到斯坦利就高兴得尖叫起来。 兰博切先生翻了翻口袋，拿出了那份剪报。 “我们正试图到达x标记的地方。” 男人和女人研究了这篇文章。 “许多人相信，第一批人类生活在非洲，”那人说，“然后在很久很久以前，当世界上所有的地方都靠近在一起，还没有分开的时候，就走到了其他大陆上。 今天，许多人来到他们开始的地方。” 他转向斯坦利。“这就是你来的原因吗?”“我想是的，”斯坦利说。 那人转向兰彻普先生。 “往下游走几小时就到了。 你想借用我们的独木舟吗?”“那就太慷慨了!”兰彻先生说。 “谢谢你!”斯坦利、阿瑟和兰彻先生在离开海岸时向这家人挥手告别。 很快，他们就到了河的中心。 一头河马怀疑地看着他们，

with only the top of its head and its enormous nostrils visible above the surface. Stanley and Arthur had both wanted to paddle, and finally Mr. Lambchop agreed to let Stanley have the first turn. Canoeing was much harder than Stanley expected. The canoe kept drifting toward the shore —"Straighten out, Stanley!" Arthur complained— and then Stanley had to work extra hard just to keep the boat facing forward. "Let me try," Arthur snapped. "I just started," said Stanley. "Well," said Arthur, "now it's time to finish!" "No," said Stanley. "Boys," groaned Mr. Lambchop. "He's taking forever!" complained Arthur, grabbing the top of the paddle. "Stop it, Arthur!" said Stanley, pulling back. "Let me have it!" "No!"

露出水面的只有它的头顶和巨大的鼻孔。 斯坦利和亚瑟都想划桨，最后兰切普先生同意让斯坦利先来划桨。 划独木舟比斯坦利想象的要困难得多。 独木舟继续向岸边漂去——“斯坦利，摆正身子!”阿瑟抱怨道——然后斯坦利不得不加倍努力，只是为了保持船朝前。 “让我试试。”阿瑟厉声说。 “我才刚开始，”斯坦利说。 “好了，”阿瑟说，“现在是结束的时候了!”“不，”斯坦利说。 “孩子们，”兰彻先生呻吟道。 “他拖得太久了!”阿瑟抱怨道，抓住桨的顶端。 “别说了，亚瑟!”斯坦利说着往后退。 “给我!”“不!”