Once upon a time,it was four millions of years ago.There were no people then all the way from Florida to Alaska.There was,indeed,in all this distance,no land to walk upon,except islands in the west where the Rocky Mountains are now.That is the only place where the country that is now the United States of America stuck up out of the water.Everywhere else were the waves of the sea.There were no people,even on the Rocky Mountain Islands.None at all.
很久以前，也就是四百万年前，佛罗里达到阿拉斯加沿途荒无人烟，除了西边有一片岛屿之外，根本就没有陆地可走，那片岛屿所在的地方就是现在的落基山脉。今天美国所处的这片陆地，当时只有那一块地方是露出水面的，其余地方都是一片汪洋大海。即使是落基山岛上也渺无人烟，一点儿都没有！
No,the creatures that visited those island shores in those old days were not people,but birds.Nearly as large as men they were,and they had teeth on their long slender jaws,and they had no wings.They came to the islands,perhaps,only at nesting-time;for their legs and feet were fitted for swimming and not walking,and they lived upon fish in the sea.So they dwelt,with no man to see them,on the water that stretched from sea to sea;and what their voices were like,no man knows.
是的，很久、很久以前，光顾那些岛屿的不是人类，而是鸟类。它们的体型和人类一样大，又长又细的嘴巴里长着牙齿，它们没有翅膀。或许它们只在筑巢期间才会来到岛上，因为它们的腿和脚只适合游泳，不适合走路，它们以海里的鱼类为食。它们居住的水域，延伸出去就是一片又一片的大海，没有人类看到它们；至于它们的声音是什么样的，也没人知道。
A million years,perhaps,passed by,and then another million,and maybe another million still;and the birds without wings and with teeth were no more.In their places were other birds,much smaller—birds with wings and no teeth;but something like them,for all that:for their feet also were fitted for swimming and not walking,and they,too,visited the shore little,if at all,except at nesting-time,and they lived upon fish in the water.
也许是过了一百万年，接着又过了一百万年，也许又过了第三个一百万年，那些没有翅膀却有牙齿的鸟消失了。它们生活过的地方生活着另一种鸟类，体型要小得多，有翅膀，却没有牙齿；不过虽然如此，还是有很多相似的地方：它们的脚也只适合游泳，不适合走路；如果不是筑巢季节，它们极少光顾那些岛屿；另外，它们也以水里的鱼类为食。
And what their voices were like,all men may know who will go to the wilderness lakes and listen;for,wonderful as it may seem,these second birds have come down to us through perhaps a million years,and live to-day,giving a strange clear cry before a storm,and at other times calling weirdly in lone places,so that men who are within hearing always say,"The loons are laughing".
那么，它们的叫声是怎样的呢？只要到那没有人烟的湖泊去听听，就知道了，因为尽管这事有点神奇，但是，这第二类鸟的确是经过了大约一百万年才来到我们身边，一直生活到如今的。暴风雨来临时，它们会发出奇怪、清脆的尖叫；平时，在形单影只的时候，它们的叫声也非常古怪，听到的人总是说：“听，潜鸟笑了。”
Gavia was a loon who had spent the winter of 1919-1920 on the Atlantic Ocean.There had hardly been,perhaps,in a million years a handsomer loon afloat on any sea.Even in her winter coat she was beautiful;and when she put on her spring suit,she was lovelier still.
加菲娅是一只潜鸟，1919到1920年的那个冬天，她是在大西洋上度过的。或许，她是一百万年以来，在所有海域上漂浮过的最漂亮的潜鸟了。即使是穿着冬衣，她也很漂亮；等换上春装，那就更加美丽动人了。
She and her mate had enjoyed the sea-fishing and had joined a company of forty for swimming parties and other loon festivities;for life on the ocean waves has many interests,and there is never a lack of entertainment.The salt-water bathing,diving,and such other activities as the sea affords,were pleasant for them all.Then,too,the winter months made a chance for rest,a change from home-duties,and a freedom from looking out for the children,that gave the loons a care-free manner as they rode the waves far out at sea.
她和她的伴侣喜欢在海里捕鱼，他们还加入了一个有四十个同伴的团队，经常出席游泳晚会和其他欢庆活动。茫茫大海，波涛汹涌，生活的乐趣很多，从来不乏娱乐活动。大伙儿最喜欢咸水浴和潜水，还有其他这样的大海为他们举办的活动。然后，到了冬天，也很惬意。他们刚好能利用那几个月好好休息一下，不用再做家务，也不用再照看孩子，所以，当潜鸟们乘着海浪漂到大海深处去的时候，那神情别提多悠闲，多自在了！
Considering all this,it seems strange,does it not,that when the spring of 1920 had gone no further than to melt the ice in the northern lakes,Gavia and her mate left the sea and took strong flight inland.
Immer Lake
爱默湖
既然如此，事情是不是就有点奇怪了？1920年的春天才刚刚开始，北方湖里的冰还没解冻呢，加菲娅和她的伴侣就离开了大海，义无反顾地往内陆飞去了。
What made them go,I cannot explain.I do not understand it well enough.I do not really know what urges the salmon to leave the Atlantic Ocean in the spring and travel up the Penobscot or the St.John River.I never felt quite sure why Peter Piper left Brazil for the shore where the blue-bells nod.All I can tell you about it is that a feeling came over the loons that is called a migration instinct;and,almost before Gavia and her mate knew what was happening to them,they had flown far and far from the Ocean,and were laughing weirdly over the cold waters of Immer Lake.
他们为什么要离开大海而飞往内陆？这个我无法解释。我也不是很明白。我真的不是很清楚为什么大马哈鱼一到春季就离开大西洋，游往佩诺布斯科特河或圣约翰河。我从来都不十分肯定，为什么矶鹞彼得要离开巴西，飞往那个开满蓝铃花的海滨。我只知道，潜鸟突然就有了一种感觉，这种感觉叫作“迁徙直觉”。所以，加菲娅和她的伴侣几乎还没明白是怎么回事的时候，就已经远远地离开了海洋，来到了爱默湖，冲着冰冷的湖水奇怪地大笑起来了。
The shore was dark with the deep green of fir trees,whose straight trunks had blisters on them where drops of fragrant balsam lay hidden in the bark.And here and there trees with white slender trunks leaned out over the water,and the bark on these peeled up like pieces of thin and pretty paper.Three wonderful vines trailed through the woodland,and each in its season blossomed into pink and fragrant bells.But what these were,and how they looked,is not a part of this story,for Gavia never wandered among them.Her summer paths lay upon and under the water of the lake,as her winter trails had been upon and under the water of the sea.
湖滨的杉树郁郁葱葱，遮天蔽日。笔直的树干上有很多水泡，水泡那里的树皮里面藏着一滴滴的香脂。有一种树，树干白白的、细细的，探出身子映在湖面上，上面皲裂的树皮，就像是一块块漂亮的薄纸片。三株藤萝在林地里蔓延生长，季节一到，每一株都挂满香气四溢的粉红色小铃铛。不过，这是什么花，长得什么样和本故事无关，因为加菲娅从未拜访过它们。夏天，她只在湖水的水面和水下活动，就好像冬天她只在海水的水面和水下活动一样。
Ah,if she loved the water so,why did she suddenly begin to stay out of it?If she delighted so in swimming and diving and chasing wild wing-races over the surface,why did she spend the day quietly in one place?
啊，既然她那么喜欢水，为什么却突然要离开呢？既然她那么喜欢游泳和潜水，那么喜欢在水面上撒欢、进行飞行比赛，为什么却整天静静地待在一个地方呢？
Of course you have guessed it!Gavia was on her nest.She had hidden her two babies among the bulrushes for safety,and must stay there herself to keep them warm.They were not yet out of their eggshells,so the only care they needed for many a long day and night was constant warmth enough for growth.They lay near each other,the two big eggs,of a color that some might call brown and some might call green,with dark-brown spots splashed over them.
哈，你猜对了！加菲娅正在巢里孵蛋呢。为了安全，她把两个小宝宝藏在了灯芯草里，为了给他们保暖，她留了下来。宝宝还没出壳，为了发育成长，在接下来的很多个日日夜夜里，他们需要的唯一照顾就是保持一定的温度。这两枚蛋大大的，紧紧地挨在一起，颜色有人说是棕的，也有人说是绿的，上面洒满了深褐色的斑点。
Two babies，not yet out of their eggshells，hidden among the rushes.
两个还未出壳的宝宝藏在灯芯草里。
The nest Gavia and her mate had prepared for them was a heap of old wet reeds and other dead water-plants,which they had piled up among the stems of the rushes until it reached six inches or more out of the water.They were really in the centre of a nest island,with water all about them.So,you see,Gavia was within splashing distance of her fishing-pool after all.
加菲娅夫妇为两个宝宝筑的巢是用湿湿的枯芦苇和别的一些枯水草堆成的，架在灯芯草的茎秆之间，高出水面六英寸多（大约15厘米）。所以，这个巢就像是一个四面环水的小岛，两个小宝宝就躺在小岛的中心。所以你瞧，加菲娅离她的鱼池也只不过是一步之遥嘛。
She and her mate,indeed,were in the habit of making their nests here in the cove;though the two pairs of Neighbor Loons,who built year after year farther up the lake,chose places on the island near the water-line in the spring;and when the water sank lower later on,they were left high and dry where they had to flounder back and forth to and from the nest,as awkward on land as they were graceful in the water.
其实，他们夫妇就习惯在这样的水湾处筑巢；而他们的邻居，常年住在湖上游那边的那两对潜鸟夫妇，春天的时候，他们总是把巢筑在岛上离水面很近的地方，后来水面下降，他们就陷入了困境，为了觅食，不得不在他们的巢和湖水之间一趟一趟地辗转往返，他们在水面上有多优雅，在陆地上就有多不自在。
Faithful to her unhatched young as Gavia was,it is not likely that she alone kept them warm for nearly thirty days and nights;for Father Loon remained close at hand,and would he not help her with this task?
尽管加菲娅对她那两个还未孵化的宝宝尽职尽责，但要在近三十个日日夜夜的时间里仅靠她自己为他们保温是不可能的；潜鸟爸爸就在跟前，难道他不帮忙吗？
Gavia,sitting on her nest,did not look like herself of the early winter months when she had played among the ocean waves.For her head and neck were now a beautiful green,and she wore two white striped collars,while the back of her feather coat was neatly checked off with little white squarish spots.Father Loon wore the same style that she did.Summer and winter,they dressed alike.
正在巢里孵小宝宝的加菲娅，看起来一点儿都不像初冬时节乘着海浪踏着波涛嬉戏玩耍时的加菲娅。现在，她的头和脖颈都变成了漂亮的绿色，还戴着两个白条纹项圈，羽衣的后背上是整整齐齐的方形小斑点。潜鸟爸爸的穿戴和她一样。无论夏天还是冬天，他们的穿戴都一样。
Yes,a handsome couple,indeed,waited that long month for the birth of their twins,growing all this time inside those two strong eggshells.At last,however,the nest held the two babies,all feathered with down from the very first,black on their backs and gray shading into white beneath.
是的，的确是一对漂亮的小夫妻，在那一个月漫长的等待中，他们期待着双胞胎宝宝的诞生；与此同时，两个小宝宝也正在硬硬的蛋壳里面不停地长呢。不管怎样，最终鸟巢盛上了两个小宝宝，他们一出壳浑身就长满了小羽绒，后背黑黑的，往下慢慢变浅，最后到肚子底下就成白的了。
Did I say the nest held them?Well,so it did for a few hours.After that,they swam the waters of Immer Lake,and their nest was home no longer.Peter Piper's children themselves were not quicker to run than Gavia's twins were to swim and dive.
我说的是不是鸟巢“盛”上了两个小宝宝？嗨，只盛了几个小时而已。这几个小时一过，他们就已经在拨弄爱默湖的湖水了，再也不把鸟巢当成自己的家了。矶鹞彼得的孩子们出生后很快就能出去跑了，可是，还是比不上潜鸟加菲娅的双胞胎学游泳和学潜水的速度快。
I think,perhaps,they were named Olair;for Gavia often spoke in a very soft mellow tone,saying,"Olair";and her voice,though a bit sad,had a pleasing sound.So we will call them the two Olairs.
我觉得，也许两个宝宝的名字叫奥莱尔，因为加菲娅常常说“奥莱尔”，语调又温柔，又圆润，尽管略带忧伤，不过很好听。所以我们就把两个宝宝叫“双胞胎奥莱尔”吧。
They were darlings,those baby loons,swimming about(though not very fast at first),and diving out of sight in the water every now and then(but not staying under very long at the beginning).Then,when they were tired or in a hurry,they would ride on the backs of Gavia and Father Loon:and they liked it fine,sailing over the water with no trouble at all,just as if they were in a boat,with someone else to do the rowing.
这些潜鸟宝宝好可爱呀！他们在水中游来游去（尽管刚开始不是很快），还时不时地潜入水中藏起来（可是，刚开始不会在水下待很久）。然后，累了或急了，就趴在加菲娅妈妈和潜鸟爸爸的背上让他们背着走。他们俩很喜欢这样无忧无虑地在水面上航行，就好像是坐在一个小船里，自有别人替他们划船。
Oh,yes,they were darlings!Had you seen one of them,you could hardly have helped wanting to cuddle him.But do you think you could catch one,even the youngest?Not a bit of it.If you had given chase in a boat,the wee-est loon would have sailed off faster yet on the back of his father;and when you grew tired and stopped,you would have heard,as if mocking you,the old bird give,in a laughing voice,the Tremble Song:
"O,ha-ha-ha,ho!—O,ha-ha-ha,ho!—O,haha-ha,ho!—O,ha-ha-ha,ho!—"
哦，是的，他们太可爱了！他俩无论是谁，如果你看见，都会忍不住地想去抱他。可是，你以为你能逮住小潜鸟吗？哪怕是最小的那只？你想都别想了。假如你乘船去追，最小的那只会坐在爸爸的背上比你跑得还快；当你累得划不动时，就会听见大潜鸟唱的《颤歌》，声音笑嘻嘻的，就像是在嘲笑你：
“哦，哈——哈哈，嗬！——哦，哈——哈哈，嗬！——哦，哈——哈哈，嗬！——哦，哈——哈哈，嗬！——”
If you had tried again a few days later,the young loon would have been able to dive and swim by himself out of sight under water,the old ones giving him warning of danger and telling him what to do.
要是你过几天再试，那时候小潜鸟就已经能自己潜入水下，游到你看不见的地方去了。大潜鸟只管向他发送危险信号，告诉他该怎么做。
But no child chased the two Olairs and no lawbreaker fired a shot at Gavia or Father Loon.They had frights and narrow escapes in plenty without that;but those were of the sorts that loons get used to century after century,and not modern disasters,like guns,that people have recently brought into wild places.For the only man who dwelt on the shore of Immer Lake was a minister.
不过没有孩子追逐双胞胎奥莱尔，也没有罪犯向加菲娅或者潜鸟爸爸开枪。即便如此，他们也常常受到惊吓，多少次都是死里逃生。可那都是多少世纪以来潜鸟们已经习以为常的遭遇，不像枪支那样，是人类新近带给野生世界的现代灾难。这里的平静都是因为爱默湖畔的唯一居民是个牧师。
Because he loved his fellow men,this minister of Immer Lake spent part of his days among them,doing such service to the weak of spirit as only a minister can do,who has faith that there is some good in every person.At such times he was a sort of servant to all who needed him.
因为深爱着他的人类同胞，爱默湖畔的这个牧师有一部分时间和人们在一起，他像牧师那样，安慰虚弱的灵魂，因为只有牧师相信每个人都有善的一面。每当此时，他就像是一个神的使者，为所有需要他的人提供帮助。
Because he loved,also,his fellow creatures who had lived in the beautiful wild places of this land much longer than any man whatsoever,he spent part of his days among them.At such times he was a sort of hermit.
因为他也深爱着他的鸟类同胞，深爱着生活在这片美丽野生世界里最早的居民，所以，他有一部分时间和鸟儿在一起。每当此时，他就好像是个隐士。
Then no handy trolley rumbled by to take him on his near way.No train shrieked its departure to distant places where he might go.There was no interesting roar of mill or factory making things to use.There was no sociable tread of feet upon the pavement,to give him a feeling of human companionship.(www.xing528.com)
可是，没有隆隆的电车能让他方便搭乘；没有鸣着汽笛出发的火车载他奔向远方；没有忙着制造用品的工厂那热闹的轰鸣；人行道上也没有熟悉亲切的脚步声能让他感受到人类的温暖。
But,for all that,it was not a silent world the minister found at Immer Lake.On sunny days the waves,touching the rocks on the shore,sang gently,"Bippobappo,bippo-bappo."The trees clapped their leaves together as the breezes bade them.The woodpeckers tapped tunes to each other on their hollow wooden drums.The squirrels chattered among the branches.At dawn and at dusk the thrushes made melodies everywhere about.
但是，即便如此，牧师发现爱默湖并不是一个寂静无声的世界。阳光明媚的日子里，波涛“噼啪——噼啪，噼啪——噼啪”地拍打着湖边的岩石，就像是在轻轻地歌唱；微风吹过树林，树叶哗哗地拍起了巴掌；啄木鸟你应我和地敲着他们的空心木鼓；树枝上，松鼠吱吱吱地说个没完没了；黄昏和清晨，到处都是画眉鸟那美妙的歌声。
On stormy nights the waves slapped loudly upon the rocks.The branches whacked against one another at the mighty will of the wind.The thunder roared applause at the fireworks the lightning made.And best of all,like the very spirit of the wild event,there rang the strange,sweet moaning Storm Song of the Loon:—
"A-a-ah l-u-u-u-u-u-u'la.A-a-ah l-u-u-u-uu-u'la.A-a-ah l-u-u-u-u-u-u'la.A-a-ah l-u-u-uu-u-u'la."
暴风雨之夜，波涛汹涌，拍打着岩石，发出巨响；怒吼的狂风中，树枝摇曳，相互撞击；隆隆的雷鸣仿佛是在为耀眼的闪电欢呼叫好；最精彩的莫过于响彻夜空的《潜鸟之暴风雨之歌》了，歌声奇特，既悦耳又悲凉，那才是真正的荒野之歌呀！
“啊——啊——哈，噜——呜——呜——呜——呜——呜——呜，啦。啊——啊——哈，噜——呜——呜——呜——呜——呜——呜，啦。啊——啊——哈，噜——呜——呜——呜——呜——呜——呜，啦。”
The minister of Immer Lake liked that song,and he liked the other music that they made.So it was that he sat before his door through many a summer twilight,and played on his violin until the loons answered with the Tremble Song:—
"O,ha-ha-ha,ho!O,ha-ha-ha,ho!O,ha-haha,ho!O,ha-ha-ha,ho!"
爱默湖畔的牧师喜欢这支歌，他也喜欢潜鸟唱的其他歌。所以，夏日里，许许多多个黎明薄暮中，他就坐在门前，拉着小提琴，等着潜鸟唱起《颤歌》来应和他的琴声：
“哦，哈——哈哈，嗬！哦，哈——哈哈，嗬！——哦，哈——哈哈，嗬！——哦，哈——哈哈，嗬！”
Then they would swim up and up,until they floated close to his cottage,feeding unafraid near by,while he played softly.
接着，潜鸟们就会一直往上游呀游，一直游到牧师的小木屋附近，一边听牧师轻柔地拉琴，一边在那里觅食，一点儿都不害怕。
Often,when Gavia and her mate were resting there or farther up the lake,some other loon would fly over;and then Father Loon would throw his head way forward and give another sort of song."Oh-a-lee'!"he would begin,with his bill wide open;and then,nearly closing his mouth,he would sing,"Cleo'-pe''-a-rit'."The"Oh"starts low and then rises in a long,drawn way.Perhaps in all the music of Immer Lake there is nothing queerer than the Silly Song of Father Loon:—
"Oh-a-lee'!Cleo'-p''-a-rit',cleo'-pe''-a-rit',cleo'-per''-wer-wer!Oh-a-lee'!Cleo'-p''-a-rit',cleo'-pe''-a-rit',cleo'-pe''-wer-wer!"
加菲娅夫妇在湖畔或湖水深处休息时，常常会有一些潜鸟从头顶飞过，于是，潜鸟爸爸就会把脑袋伸得长长的，唱起另一种歌。刚开始他会张大嘴巴，唱声“啊噢——啊——哩’！”然后，合拢嘴巴，几乎是闭着嘴唱：“克莱欧——呸——啊——瑞特。”唱“啊噢”的时候，开始是低音，然后，就拖得长长的升成了高音。或许爱默湖的所有歌声中，再也找不出比《潜鸟爸爸的笨歌》更奇特的歌了：
“啊噢——啊——哩！克莱欧——呸——啊——瑞特，克莱欧——呸——啊——瑞特，克莱欧——呸——喔尔——喔尔！克莱欧——呸——啊——瑞特，克莱欧——呸——喔尔——喔尔！”
Such were the songs the two Olairs heard often and again,while they were growing up;and they must have added much to the interest of their first summer.
双胞胎奥莱尔小时候经常听、反复听的就是这样的歌，这些歌一定给他们那兴致盎然的第一个夏季增添了许多乐趣。
Altogether they had endless pleasures,and were as much at ease in the water as if there were no more land near them than there had been near those other young birds that had teeth and no wings,four million years or so ago.Their own wings were still small and flipper-like when,about the first of August,they were spending the day,as they often did,in a small cove.They were now about two-thirds grown,and their feathers were white beneath and soft bright brown above,with bars of white spots at their shoulders.They had funny stiff little tails,which they stuck up out of the water or poked out of sight,as they wished.They swam about in circles,and preened their feathers with their bills,which were still small and gray,and not black like those of the old birds.
总之，他们其乐无穷。和大约四百万年前那些有牙没翅的小鸟一样，他们在水里悠然自得、轻松自在，就好像他们身旁也没有什么陆地似的。八月一日前后，他们像往常一样在一个小水湾里打发日子，他们的翅膀依然很小，像鱼鳍一样。现在他俩已经发育了三分之二，腹部的羽毛白白的，背部是柔和、光亮的褐色，肩部是一条条的白点。他们的小尾巴硬硬的，可好玩了，可以随心所欲地戳出水面，或者插入水下藏起来。他们转着圈游来游去，还用嘴巴梳理身上的羽毛，他们的嘴巴还小，是灰色的，不像那些大潜鸟的嘴巴是黑色的。
After a time Gavia came swimming toward them,all under water except her head.Suddenly Father Loon joined her,and they both began diving and catching little fishes for the two Olairs.For the vegetable part of their dinner they had shreds of some water plant,which Gavia brought them,dangling from her bill.Surely never a fresher meal was served than fish just caught and greens just pulled!No wonder it was that the young loons grew fast,and were well and strong.After the twins were fed,Gavia and Father Loon sank from sight under the water,heads and all,and the Olairs saw no more of them for two hours or so,though they heard them now and then singing,sometimes the Tremble Song and sometimes the Silly Song.
过了一会儿，加菲娅往他们这边游来了，她全身都没在水下，只有脑袋露在外面。突然潜鸟爸爸也赶来了，于是，他们双双开始潜水，为两个奥莱尔捉小鱼吃，因为晚餐素菜他们只吃了一些妈妈用嘴巴衔来的碎条水草。当然了，再也没有比刚捉的鱼、刚拽的草更鲜美的饭菜了！怪不得两只小潜鸟长得这么快，这么健康，这么壮实呢。给双胞胎喂完食，加菲娅和潜鸟爸爸就连脑袋带身子整个儿沉到水下，不见了。接下来大约有两个小时，双胞胎奥莱尔连他们的影子都没见到，只能偶尔听见他们在唱歌，有时候唱的是《颤歌》，有时候是《笨歌》。
They were good children,and did not try to tag along or sulk because they were left behind.First they dabbled about and helped themselves,for dessert,to some plant growing under water,gulping down rather large mouthfuls of it.Then they grew drowsy;and what could have been pleasanter than going to sleep floating,with the whole cove for a cradle?
他俩都是乖孩子，不会因为爸爸妈妈不带他们就黏着追着，也不会噘嘴生气。他们先嬉了一会儿水，又找了一些长在水下的草，狼吞虎咽地当甜点吃了。后来，他们困了，漂在水上睡着了，整个小水湾就像是一个摇篮轻轻地摇着，世上难道还有比这更惬意的事情吗？
You could never guess how those youngsters got ready for their nap.Just like a grown-up!Each Olair rolled over on one side,till the white under-part of his body showed above water.Then he waved the exposed leg in the air,and tucked it away,with a quick flip,under the feathers of his flank.Thus one foot was left in the water,for the bird to paddle with gently while he slept,so that he would not be drifted away by the wind.But that day one of the tired water-babies went so sound asleep that he didn't paddle enough,and the wind played a joke on him by shoving him along to the snaggy edge of the cove and bumping him against a log.That was a surprise,and he woke with a start and swam quickly back to the middle of the cove,where the other Olair was resting in the open water.
你永远都猜不出来这些小潜鸟是如何入睡的。其实和成年潜鸟一样！每只小潜鸟都是侧身翻到一边，露出白白的肚皮，然后，晃晃露在外面的那只腿，突然一缩把它藏到身侧羽毛的下面，于是，另一只脚就留在了水下，鸟儿睡觉的时候，就用它来轻轻地划水，这样他们就不会随风四处乱漂了。不过这天，一只水鸟宝宝太累了，睡得太沉，没有好好地划水，结果风和他开了个玩笑，把他吹到了暗桩丛生的小水湾边，撞上了一根大圆木。这一惊非同小可，他一下子就吓醒了，赶紧游回到小水湾的中央，那里，水域开阔，另一只奥莱尔正闭目养神呢。
While their children were napping,Gavia and Father Loon went to a party.On the way,they stopped for a bit of fishing by themselves.Gavia began by suddenly flapping around in a big circle,slapping the water with wing-tips and feet,and making much noise as she spattered the spray all about.Then she quickly poked her head under water,as if looking for fish.Father Loon,who had waited a little way off,dived a number of times,as if to see what Gavia had scared in his direction.
孩子们打盹儿小憩的时候，加菲娅和潜鸟爸爸赶去参加了一个聚会。路上，他们还停了片刻，自己捉了会儿鱼。加菲娅突然扑棱着翅膀转起了大圈，一边转，一边还用翅尖和脚掌拍打着水面，弄得水花四溅，发出噼里啪啦的响声。然后，她一头扎进水里，似乎在搜寻鱼儿。等在不远处的潜鸟爸爸，好几次潜入水中，似乎是想看看加菲娅把什么东西赶到他这边来了。
Then they both dove deep,and swam under water until they came near the four Neighbor Loons,who had left their two families of young dozing,and had also come out for a good time.
随后，他俩就潜到深处，在水下游了起来，一直游到那四个潜鸟邻居跟前，原来他们也是趁着孩子们打盹的时候，出来享受快乐时光的。
When Father Loon caught sight of his four neighbors,he sang the Silly Song,after which the six birds ran races on the water.They all started about the same time and went pell-mell in one direction,their feet and wings going as if they hardly knew whether to swim or fly,and ending by doing both at once.Then they would all stop,as suddenly as if one of them had given a signal,and turning,would dash in the opposite direction,racing to and fro again and again and again.Oh!It was a grand race,and there is no knowing how long they would have kept it up,had not something startled them so that they all stopped and sang the Tremble Song,which sounds like strange laughter.They opened their mouths quite wide and,wagging the lower jaw up and down with every"ha".They sang"O,ha-ha-ha,ho!"so many times that it seemed as if they would never get through.And,indeed,how could they tell when the song was ended,for every verse was like the one before?
While their children were napping，Gavia and Father Loon went to a party.
当孩子们打盹儿小憩时，加菲娅和潜鸟爸爸赶去参加了一个聚会。
潜鸟爸爸看到他的四个邻居，就唱起了《笨歌》。一曲唱罢，六只鸟儿就开始在水面上比试赛跑。他们几乎是同时起跑的，然后匆匆忙忙地朝着同一个方向奔去，他们脚翅并用，好像都不知道是该游还是该飞了，结果只能是连游带飞了。突然，好像他们之中有谁发了信号似的，大家都停了下来，随即转身，又开始朝着来时的方向狂奔。就这样，他们来来回回，一次又一次地赛跑。哇！这真是一场盛大的比赛，要不是受到惊吓，让他们都停了下来，唱起了《颤歌》的话，根本无法知道他们会赛多久。他们的《颤歌》听起来像是古怪的笑声，每次唱“噢——”的时候，他们都把嘴张得大大地，下颚一上一下地晃动着；他们一遍又一遍地唱“噢，哈——哈哈，嗬！——”，唱了那么多遍，好像永远也唱不完似的。的确，他们怎么会知道这首歌何时结束呢？因为歌的每一节都是一样的！
Then all at once they stopped singing and began some flying stunts.A stiff breeze was blowing,and,facing this,they pattered along,working busily with wings and feet,until they could get up speed enough to leave the water and take to flight.Though it was rather a hard matter to get started,when they were once under way they flew wonderfully well,and the different pairs seemed to enjoy setting their wings and sailing close together around a large curve.They went so fast part of the time that,when they came down to the surface of the water again,they plunged along with a splash and ploughed a furrow in the water before they could come to a stop.
唱着唱着，他们突然一起停了下来，又开始表演飞行绝技。湖面的风吹得正急，他们迎着疾风，不停地挥动双翅、拍打双脚，啪嗒、啪嗒地往前冲，越冲越快，最后离开水面飞了起来。尽管起飞很难，但是，一旦离开水面，他们都飞得好极了！这几对潜鸟似乎都喜欢伸展双翅、亲密地依偎在一起滑翔，在天空中划出一道长长的曲线。有时候，他们飞得太快，结果回到水面的时候，由于用力过猛，会在水面上溅起一大片水花，冲出一道深深的浪沟，然后才能停下来。
Of course,by that time they were hungry enough for refreshments!So Gavia went off to one side and stirred the water up as if she were trying to scare fish toward the others,who waited quietly.Then they all dived,and what their black sharp-pointed bills found under water tasted good to those hungry birds.
当然，那个时候他们已经饥肠辘辘了，急需补充一些点心！于是加菲娅游到一边，开始搅动湖水，似乎是想把鱼都吓到其他几只潜鸟那边去，他们也正安静地等着呢。然后，所有的潜鸟一起潜入水里，他们已经饥饿难耐了，所以，无论他们那尖尖的黑色利嘴在水下找到了什么，对他们来说都是美味佳肴。
After that the loon party broke up,and each pair went to their own home cove,where they had left their young.It had been a pleasant way to spend the time sociably together;and loons like society very much,if they can select their own friends and have their parties in a wilderness lake.But gay and happy as they had been at their merrymaking,Gavia and her mate were not sorry to return to the two Olairs,who had long since wakened from their naps and were glad to see their handsome father and mother again.
吃完点心，潜鸟的聚会就结束了，双双回到各自位于小水湾的家中，那里还有他们的孩子呢。和大伙儿一起欢度时光真愉快呀！如果能选择自己的朋友，在湖泊的荒野世界里举办自己的聚会的话，潜鸟是非常喜欢与朋友们在一起的。但是，尽管刚才与朋友们狂欢时他们开心极了，但是，回到两个奥莱尔宝宝身边，加菲娅夫妇一点儿也不遗憾。两个宝宝已经睡醒好久了，又见到了漂亮的爸爸妈妈，别提多高兴了！
By the time the two Olairs were full grown,Gavia had molted many of her prettiest feathers and was looking rather odd,as she had on part of her summer suit and part of her winter one.Father Loon had much the same appearance;for,of course,birds that live in the water cannot shed their feathers as many at a time as Corbie could,but must change their featherwear gradually,so that they may always have enough on to keep their bodies dry.And summer and winter,you may be sure that a loon takes good care of his clothes,oiling them well to keep them waterproof.
等到两个奥莱尔宝宝完全长大时，加菲娅身上那漂亮的羽毛很多都已经换掉了，看上去有点奇怪，因为她身上穿的一半是夏装，一半是冬装。潜鸟爸爸的样子也差不了多少。当然了，住在水上的鸟儿无法像乌鸦考比那样一次能掉很多羽毛，他们必须慢慢地换掉身上的羽衣，这样身上才会有足够的羽毛让身体保持干燥。放心吧，无论冬夏，潜鸟都会悉心呵护身上的衣服，精心地为它上油，以保持它的防水功能。
Fall grew into winter,and the nest where Gavia had brooded the spring before now held a mound of snow in its lap.The stranded log against which the little Olair had been bumped while he was napping,months ago,was glazed over with a sparkling crust.The water where Gavia and Father Loon had fished for their children,and had played games and run races with Neighbor Loons,was sealed tight with a heavy cover of ice.
秋去冬来，春天加菲娅孵蛋的那个鸟巢现在盛着满满一堆雪；好几个月前小奥莱尔打盹时撞上的那根搁浅的木头，上面结着一层晶莹闪亮的雪壳；加菲娅和潜鸟爸爸曾经为孩子们捕鱼、与邻居们嬉戏比赛的那片水域被一层厚厚的冰封了个严严实实。
And it may be,if you should sail the seas this winter,that you will see the two Olairs far,far out upon the water.What made them leave the pleasures of Immer Lake just when they did,I cannot explain.I do not understand it well enough.I never felt quite sure why Peter Piper left the shore where the cardinal flowers glowed,for far Brazil.All I can tell you about it is that a feeling came over the loons that is called a migration instinct,and,almost before they knew what was happening to them,they were laughing weirdly through the ocean storms.
如果这个冬天你去海里航行，也许会在远远的海面上看到那两个奥莱尔呢。是什么让他们放弃了爱默湖的快乐生活，我无法解释，因为我了解的也不够。我从来也不是很清楚，为什么矶鹞彼得要离开盛开着红花半边莲的海岸飞往遥远的巴西。我只知道，潜鸟突然就有了一种感觉，这种感觉叫作“迁徙直觉”。他们几乎还没明白是怎么回事的时候，就已经迎着海上的狂风暴雨奇怪地大笑起来了。
If you see them,you will know that they are strange birds whose ancestors reach back and back through the ages,maybe a million years.You will think—as who would not?—that a loon is a wonderful gift that Nature has brought down through all the centuries;a living relic of a time of which we know very little except from fossils men find and guess about.
如果你看到他们，你就会知道他们就是那种奇怪的鸟，其祖先可以跨越无数个时代，追溯到很远、很远，也许是一百万年以前。你会想——谁不会这样想呢？——潜鸟是大自然历经千百万年送给我们的奇妙礼物；是远古时期留给我们的活纪念物，关于那个时期，除了人们从化石上发现的东西和猜测的情况之外，其他我们真的是所知甚少。
It is small wonder their songs sound strange to our ears,for their voices have echoed through a world too old for us to know.It makes us a bit timid to think about all this,as it does the minister of Immer Lake,who sits before his door through many a summer twilight,playing on his violin until the loons answer him with their Tremble Song:—
"O,ha-ha-ha,ho!O,ha-ha-ha,ho!"
所以，他们的歌声我们听起来怪怪的，也就不足为奇了，因为他们的声音是穿越了一个古老世界的回声，那是一个古老得我们无法了解的世界。想到这些，我们就会心生敬畏，就像住在爱默湖畔的那位牧师一样，夏日里，许许多多个黎明薄暮中，他坐在门前，拉着他的小提琴，等着潜鸟唱起《颤歌》来应和他的琴声：
“噢，哈——哈哈，嗬！哈——哈哈，嗬！”
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