英文小說連載《小王子》No.5 可怕的猴面包樹
2019-01-09 21:03:29三好網
As each day passed I would learn， in our talk， something about the little prince's planet， his departure from it， his journey. The information would come very slowly， as it might chance to fall from his thoughts. It was in this way that I heard， on the third day， about the catastrophe of the baobabs.
This time， once more， I had the sheep to thank for it. For the little prince asked me abruptly-- as if seized by a grave doubt-- "It is true， isn't it， that sheep eat little bushes？"
"Yes， that is true."
"Ah！ I am glad！"
I did not understand why it was so important that sheep should eat little bushes. But the little prince added：
"Then it follows that they also eat baobabs？"
I pointed out to the little prince that baobabs were not little bushes， but， on the contrary， trees as big as castles； and that even if he took a whole herd of elephants away with him， the herd would not eat up one single baobab.
The idea of the herd of elephants made the little prince laugh.
"We would have to put them one on top of the other，" he said.
But he made a wise comment：
"Before they grow so big， the baobabs start out by being little."
"That is strictly correct，" I said. "But why do you want the sheep to eat the little baobabs？"
He answered me at once， "Oh， come， come！"， as if he were speaking of something that was self-evident. And I was obliged to make a great mental effort to solve this problem， without any assistance.
Indeed， as I learned， there were on the planet where the little prince lived-- as on all planets-- good plants and bad plants. In consequence， there were good seeds from good plants， and bad seeds from bad plants. But seeds are invisible. They sleep deep in the heart of the earth's darkness， until some one among them is seized with the desire to awaken. Then this little seed will stretch itself and begin-- timidly at first-- to push a charming little sprig inoffensively upward toward the sun. If it is only a sprout of radish or the sprig of a rose-bush， one would let it grow wherever it might wish. But when it is a bad plant， one must destroy it as soon as possible， the very first instant that one recognizes it.
Now there were some terrible seeds on the planet that was the home of the little prince； and these were the seeds of the baobab. The soil of that planet was infested with them. A baobab is something you will never， never be able to get rid of if you attend to it too late. It spreads over the entire planet. It bores clear through it with its roots. And if the planet is too small， and the baobabs are too many， they split it in pieces...
"It is a question of discipline，" the little prince said to me later on. "When you've finished your own toilet in the morning， then it is time to attend to the toilet of your planet， just so， with the greatest care. You must see to it that you pull up regularly all the baobabs， at the very first moment when they can be distinguished from the rosebushes which they resemble so closely in their earliest youth. It is very tedious work，" the little prince added， "but very easy."
And one day he said to me： "You ought to make a beautiful drawing， so that the children where you live can see exactly how all this is. That would be very useful to them if they were to travel some day. Sometimes，" he added， "there is no harm in putting off a piece of work until another day. But when it is a matter of baobabs， that always means a catastrophe. I knew a planet that was inhabited by a lazy man. He neglected three little bushes..."
So， as the little prince described it to me， I have made a drawing of that planet. I do not much like to take the tone of a moralist. But the danger of the baobabs is so little understood， and such considerable risks would be run by anyone who might get lost on an asteroid， that for once I am breaking through my reserve. "Children，" I say plainly， "watch out for the baobabs！"
My friends， like myself， have been skirting this danger for a long time， without ever knowing it； and so it is for them that I have worked so hard over this drawing. The lesson which I pass on by this means is worth all the trouble it has cost me.
Perhaps you will ask me， "Why are there no other drawing in this book as magnificent and impressive as this drawing of the baobabs？"
The reply is simple. I have tried. But with the others I have not been successful. When I made the drawing of the baobabs I was carried beyond myself by the inspiring force of urgent necessity.
每天我都了解到一些關于小王子的星球，他的出走和旅行等事情。這些都是偶然從各種反應中慢慢得到的。就這樣，第三天我就了解到關于猴面包樹的悲劇。
這一次又是因為羊的事情，突然小王子好象是非常擔心地問我道：
“羊吃小灌木，這是真的嗎？”
“是的，是真的。”
“啊，我真高興。”
我不明白羊吃小灌木這件事為什么如此重要。可小王子又說道：
“因此，它們也吃猴面包樹羅？”
我對小王子說，猴面包樹可不是小灌木，而是象教堂那么大的大樹；即便是帶回一群大象，也啃不了一棵猴面包樹。
一群大象這種想法使小王子發笑：
“那可得把這些大象一只疊一只地壘起來。”
他很有見識地說：
“猴面包樹在長大之前，開始也是小小的。”
“不錯。可是為什么你想叫你的羊去吃小猴面包樹呢？”
他回答我道：“唉！這還用說！”似乎這是不言而喻的。可是我自己要費很大的心勁才能弄懂這個問題。
原來，在小王子的星球上就象其他所有星球上一樣，有好草和壞草；因此，也就有益草的草籽和毒草的草籽，可是草籽是看不見的。它們沉睡在泥土里，直到其中的一粒忽然想要蘇醒過來…于是它就伸展開身子，開始靦腆地朝著太陽長出一棵秀麗可愛的小嫩苗。如果是小蘿卜或是玫瑰的嫩苗，就讓它去自由地生長。如果是一棵壞苗，一旦被辨認出來，就應該馬上把它拔掉。因為在小王子的星球上，有些非常可怕的種子…這就是猴面包樹的種子。在那里的泥土里，這種種子多得成災。而一棵猴面包樹苗，假如你拔得太遲，就再也無法把它清除掉。它就會盤踞整個星球。它的樹根能把星球鉆透，如果星球很小，而猴面包樹很多，它就把整個星球搞得支離破碎。
“這是個紀律問題。”小王子后來向我解釋道。“當你早上梳洗完畢以后，必須仔細地給星球梳洗，必須規定自己按時去拔掉猴面包樹苗。這種樹苗小的時候與玫瑰苗差不多，一旦可以把它們區別開的時候，就要把它拔掉。這是一件非常乏味的工作，但很容易。”
有一天，他勸我用心地畫一副漂亮的圖畫，好叫我家鄉的孩子們對這件事有一個深刻的印象。他還對我說：“如果將來有一天他們出外旅行，這對他們是很有用的。有時候，人們把自己的工作推到以后去做，并沒有什么妨害，但要遇到拔猴面包樹苗這種事，那就非造成大災難不可。我遇到過一個星球，上面住著一個懶家伙，他放過了三棵小樹苗…”
于是，根據小王子的說明，我把這個星球畫了下來。我從來不大愿意以道學家的口吻來說話，可是猴面包樹的危險，大家都不大了解，對迷失在小行星上的人來說，危險性非常之大，因此這一回，我貿然打破了我的這種不喜歡教訓人的慣例。我說：“孩子們，要當心那些猴面包樹呀！”為了叫我的朋友們警惕這種危險——他們同我一樣長期以來和這種危險接觸，卻沒有意識到它的危險性——我花了很大的功夫畫了這副畫。我提出的這個教訓意義是很重大的，花點功夫是很值得的。你們也許要問，為什么這本書中別的畫都沒有這副畫那么壯觀呢？回答很簡單：別的畫我也曾經試圖畫得好些，卻沒成功。而當我畫猴面包樹時，有一種急切的心情在激勵著我。
