第89章 笨汉杰克 Jack the Dullard (第1/9页)

《笨汉杰克》，1855 年

Jack the dullard, 1855

一个古老故事的新编

在这个国家的内地深处，有一座古老的男爵府邸，府里住着一位年迈的领主，他有两个儿子，这两个年轻人都自认为聪明绝顶。

AN oLd StoRY toLd ANEw

Far in the interior of the country lay an old baronial hall, and in it lived an old proprietor, who had two sons, which two young men thought themselves too clever by half.

他们想出去向国王的女儿求婚；因为这位公主已经公开宣布，她要选那个能把话说得最动听的年轻人做丈夫。

they wanted to go out and woo the King’s daughter; for the maiden in question had publicly announced that she would choose for her husband that youth who could arrange his words best.

于是这两位天才为求婚准备了整整一个星期 —— 这是能给他们的最长时间了；但也足够了，因为他们之前掌握了很多预备知识，而且大家都知道那有多有用。

So these two geniuses prepared themselves a full week for the wooing — this was the longest time that could be granted them; but it was enough, for they had had much preparatory information, and everybody knows how useful that is.

其中一个能把整本拉丁语词典都背下来，而且还能把小镇三年的日报内容倒背如流，事实上，他可以随心所欲地正背或倒背。

one of them knew the whole Latin dictionary by heart, and three whole years of the daily paper of the little town into the bargain, and so well, indeed, that he could repeat it all either backwards or forwards, just as he chose.

另一个则对社团法研读颇深，对每个社团应该知道的事情都了如指掌；因此他觉得自己能谈论国家大事，还能在议会里插上一手。

the other was deeply read in the corporation laws, and knew by heart what every corporation ought to know; and accordingly he thought he could talk of affairs of state, and put his spoke in the wheel in the council.

而且他