022 出租马匹

旁白 neutral

The earl sold me to a man who owned something called a livery stable

伯爵把我卖给了一个经营着一种叫“租赁马房”的人。

旁白 neutral

My new home was far away, which meant I had to travel there by train

我的新家很远，这意味着我必须坐火车去那里。

旁白 neutral

That was a frightening day

那真是可怕的一天。

旁白 neutral

I was used to seeing trains, of course, and never got scared when one rushed past

当然，我早已习惯了看火车，有火车疾驰而过时，我从不害怕。

旁白 neutral

But climbing onto one and feeling it roar and tremble all around me was a different matter

但爬上一列火车，感受着它在我四周轰鸣和颤抖，就完全是另一回事了。

旁白 neutral

For the first few minutes, I trembled as much as the train did

一开始的几分钟，我和火车颤抖得一样厉害。

旁白 neutral

After a while, though, I realized there was nothing to fear

不过，过了一会儿，我意识到没什么好怕的。

旁白 neutral

I rode the rest of the way quietly. But I was very glad to get off!

剩下的路程我安静地坐着。但下车的时候，我非常高兴！

旁白 neutral

At the end of my journey, I was taken to the livery stable

旅途结束时，我被带到了租赁马房。

旁白 neutral

It wasn't as airy and pleasant as my previous homes, but it wasn't too bad

这里不像我之前的家那样通风舒适，但也不算太糟。

旁白 neutral

The owner and his grooms were kind and experienced

主人和他的马夫们都很和善，也很有经验。

旁白 neutral

My new master took a close look at my scarred knees but didn't seem to mind what he saw

新主人仔细看了看我膝盖上的伤疤，但似乎并不在意。

旁白 neutral

I soon found out what being a livery horse meant

我很快就明白了当一匹出租马是什么意思。

旁白 neutral

The master owned lots of horses and many carriages and carts of all different types

主人拥有很多马，还有各种各样的马车和运货板车。

旁白 neutral

He hired them out to people who didn't have their own

他把这些租给那些自己没有马和车的人。

旁白 neutral

The first few times I was hired, my master or one of his men drove me

头几次被租出去的时候，是主人或他的一个伙计来驾驭我。

旁白 neutral

That wasn't too bad. In fact, it wasn't much different from what I was used to

那还不算太糟。实际上，这和我以前习惯的没多大差别。

旁白 neutral

Once the master saw how steady and reliable I was, he started hiring me out to people who preferred to drive themselves

当主人看出我多么稳健可靠后，就开始把我租给那些喜欢自己驾车的人。

旁白 neutral

Now that was something different!

这下可就大不一样了！

旁白 neutral

Until then I'd only been driven by good drivers

在那之前，我只被好骑手驾驭过。

旁白 neutral

Even when James was learning, he'd always had John there to help him

即使詹姆斯在学习时，也总有约翰在旁协助。

旁白 neutral

Many of the people who hired me now were not good drivers

现在许多租用我的人都不擅长驾车。

旁白 neutral

Some liked to keep a very tight hold on the reins at all times

有些人喜欢时刻把缰绳拉得紧紧的。

旁白 neutral

They never relaxed their pull or allowed me a chance to relax

他们从不放松拉扯，也不给我片刻喘息的机会。

旁白 neutral

Other drivers were just the opposite

另一些驾车者则恰恰相反。

旁白 neutral

They let the reins lie loose on my back, hardly touching them at all

他们任由缰绳松垮地搭在我背上，几乎完全不去碰。

旁白 neutral

That meant they had no control if I should suddenly rear or stumble

这意味着，如果我突然受惊立起或绊倒，他们根本控制不住。

旁白 neutral

I wasn't the type of horse to do that, so I had little objection to this type of driver

我不是那种会乱来的马，所以对这种驾车者倒没什么意见。

旁白 neutral

Still I sometimes missed the steadying hand of my driver, especially while going downhill

但我有时还是会想念驾车者稳健的手，尤其是在下坡的时候。

旁白 neutral

Besides, the loose-rein drivers were often careless about everything

此外，松缰绳的驾车者往往对什么事都漫不经心。

旁白 neutral

I once went a good distance with a stone in my foot before a passing farmer noticed and stopped to help me

有一次，我蹄子里卡了块石头，走了好远一段路，才被一个路过的农夫发现，停下来帮了我。

旁白 neutral

My own driver never even realized anything was wrong!

而赶我的人却压根儿没察觉到有什么不对劲！

旁白 neutral

Then there were the customers who cared about nothing but speed

还有些客人，只在乎速度，别的什么都不管。

旁白 neutral

They seemed to think we horses were just like trains that could go as far and as fast as they pleased

他们似乎以为我们马就像火车一样，想跑多远、跑多快都行。

旁白 neutral

This type of driving wore me out quicker than any other

这种赶法比其他任何方式都更快地让我疲惫不堪。

旁白 neutral

So my work at the livery stable differed from day to day

所以说，我在出租马厩的工作每天都不同。

旁白 neutral

Sometimes it was pleasant, and other times it was not

有时很愉快，有时则不然。

旁白 neutral

I got to know the other horses there, especially a mare named Peggy

我渐渐认识了那里的其他马，尤其是一匹名叫佩吉的母马。

旁白 neutral

Peggy was often paired with me when someone wanted to hire a team

当有人想租双驾马车时，佩吉常被安排和我配对。

旁白 neutral

She was a pretty horse with a sweet temper

她是一匹漂亮的马，性情也很温顺。

旁白 neutral

The first time we went out together, I noticed she had an odd walk

我们第一次一起外出时，我就注意到她走路姿势有点怪。

旁白 neutral

It was neither trot nor canter, but a combination of the two

那既不是小跑也不是慢跑，而是两者混合的一种步态。

旁白 neutral

Every few strides she would add a little jump forward

每走几步，她就会往前跳一小跳。

旁白 neutral

It was very confusing since I had to match my stride to hers

这让我很困惑，因为我得让自己的步伐去配合她的。

旁白 neutral

I finally asked her what made her go in such an odd way

我终于忍不住问她，是什么让她用这么奇怪的方式走路。

旁白 neutral

" I know my gaits are bad," she said, seeming troubled

“我知道我的步态很差，”她说道，看起来很苦恼。

旁白 neutral

" But it's not really my fault. It's because my legs are short

“但这真的不是我的错。是因为我的腿短。

旁白 neutral

That means my stride is short, and I have trouble keeping up with longer-legged horses like you!"

这意味着我的步子小，很难跟上像你这样腿长的马！”

旁白 neutral

Luckily for Peggy, two women liked her so much that they decided to buy her

佩吉算是走运，有两位女士非常喜欢她，决定把她买下来。

旁白 neutral

After that I saw Peggy several times out in the street

那之后，我在街上又见过佩吉好几次。

旁白 neutral

She was always pulling her mistresses at a good, steady pace and looking very happy

她总是用平稳又恰当的步伐拉着她的女主人，看起来非常开心。

旁白 neutral

I shouldn't make it sound as if I had nothing but poor drivers at the livery stable

我不该说得好像在出租马厩时，我净遇上糟糕的车夫。

旁白 neutral

Sometimes I was hired by good horsemen

有时候，也会有好的骑手或车夫来租用我。

旁白 neutral

One such gentleman liked me so much that he wanted to see what I would be like to ride as well

有这样一位绅士，他非常喜欢我，以至于也想看看骑在我背上是什么感觉。

旁白 neutral

After riding me several times, he asked my master if he would be willing to sell me

骑了我几次之后，他问我的主人是否愿意把我卖掉。

旁白 neutral

" My friend is looking for a good, safe horse," the man said

“我朋友正在找一匹可靠又温顺的好马，”这人说道。

旁白 neutral

" I think this fellow would be perfect."

“我觉得这家伙就再合适不过了。”

旁白 neutral

" This horse is one of the most reliable in my stable."

“这匹马是我马厩里最可信赖的之一。”

旁白 neutral

My master stroked his chin

我的主人抚摸着下巴。

旁白 neutral

" But I suppose I'd be willing to part with him for the right price."

“不过我想，只要价钱合适，我还是愿意让他走的。”

旁白 neutral

A deal was struck, and it was settled. I'd been sold again

买卖就这么谈妥敲定了。我又一次被卖掉了。