鸟的故事：白鹭阿尔蒂巢营里的士兵

In years long gone by,soldiers called"knights"used to protect the rights of other people;and,when the weak were in danger,these soldiers went forth to fight for them.They were so brave,these knights of old,that there was nothing that could make them afraid.Dragons even,which looked like crocodiles,with leather wings and terrible snatching claws and fiery eyes and breath that smoked-dragons,even,so the stories go,could not turn a knight away from his path of duty.Mind,I am not telling you that there ever were creatures that looked like that;but certain it is that there were dangers dreadful to meet,and"dragon"is a very good name to call them by.

很多年以前，我们把士兵称作“骑士”，是他们捍卫着他人的权利。当弱者遇到危险的时候，那些士兵就挺身而出为他们而战。这些古时候的骑士，他们非常勇敢，任何事情都不会吓倒他们。即使那种酷似鳄鱼的恶龙，那种长着皮翅膀、脚爪锋利可怕、眼露凶光、口中吐火的恶龙，故事里是这样描述的，即便是那样的恶龙都无法让骑士们望而生畏，逃离自己的职责。注意，我可不是说曾经真有过这种可怕的龙，可是有一件事情是肯定的，那就是过去的确曾经有过种种可怕的危险，而“龙”就是这些危险的代名词。

You know,do you not,that there are soldiers,still,who protect the rights of others;and although we do not commonly call them"knights,"they still fight for the weak,and are so brave that dangers as fearsome as dragons,even,cannot scare them.

你知道的，难道你不知道？现在仍然有士兵捍卫着他人的权利。虽然我们一般不把他们称作“骑士”，但他们仍在为弱者而战，而且英勇无畏，就算像“龙”一样可怕的危险也吓不倒他们。

There was such a soldier in Ardea's camp;and if he had lived in olden days,he would probably have been called"Knight of the Snowy Heron."

阿尔蒂的巢营里就有这样一位士兵。如果他生活在很久以前，很有可能被称为“白鹭骑士”。

Ardea was a bride that spring,and perhaps never was there one much lovelier.Her wedding garment was the purest white;and instead of a veil she wore,draped from her shoulders,snowy plumes of rare beauty,which reached to the bottom of her gown,where the dainty tips curled up a bit,then hung like the finest fringe.

那年春天，阿尔蒂做了新娘，世上也许没有比她可爱的新娘了。她穿着世界上最纯净最洁白的婚纱，虽然没有细纱遮面，但是却披了一身美丽的羽衣，雪白雪白的，举世罕见，从肩膀一直拖到婚纱的底摆，底摆处那小巧精致的羽毛尖微微翘起，然后像穗一样垂在那里，世上再也找不出这样漂亮精美的穗边了。

The Soldier watched her as she stood alone at the edge of the water,so small and white and slender against the great cypress trees bearded with Spanish moss,and thought she made a picture he could never forget.And when her mate came out to her,in a white wedding-robe like her own,with its filmy cape of mist-fine plumes,Ardea's Soldier smiled gently,for he loved Heron Camp and shared,in his heart,the joys of their home-coming.

阿尔蒂独自伫立在水边，“士兵”远远地注视着她：高高的柏树，柏树上长满了西班牙苔藓，像是密密麻麻的胡子，她站在树下，看上去如此娇小、纤细、洁白无瑕，她觉得那就是一幅画，一幅她永远也不会被忘记的画。她的丈夫向她走来，披着一件薄如蝉翼的婚礼斗篷，和她的婚纱一样洁白，上面的羽毛像薄雾一般漂亮。阿尔蒂巢营里的“士兵”轻轻地笑了，他非常喜欢“鹭营”，他在心里默默地分享着他们回家的喜悦。

She wore，draped from her shoulders，snowy plumes of rare beauty.
她身披美丽的羽衣，雪白雪白的，举世罕见。

Ardea and her mate took a pleasant trip,looking for a building place at the edge of a swamp.They did not object to neighbors;which was fortunate,as there were so many other herons in the camp that it would have been hard to find a very secret spot for their nest.After looking it over and talking about it a bit,they chose a mangrove bush for their very own.They had never built a house before,but they wasted no time in hunting for a carpenter or teacher,but went to work with a will,just as if they knew how.It was like playing a game of"five-six,pick up sticks";only they did not lay them straight but in a scraggly criss-cross sort of platform,with big twigs twelve inches long at the bottom and smaller ones on top.Then,when it looked all ready for a nice soft lining,Ardea laid an egg right on the rough sticks.Rather lazy and shiftless,don't you think?or maybe they didn't know any better,poor young things who had never had a home before!Ah,but there was another pair of snowy herons building in the bush next door,and they didn't put in anything soft for their eggs,either;and six or eight bushes farther on,a little blue heron was already sitting on her blue eggs in almost exactly the same sort of nest.

阿尔蒂和她的丈夫去沼泽边寻找筑巢的地方，这是一次愉快的旅行。他们并不排斥邻居，这真是万幸，因为鹭营里各种各样的鹭鸟很多，很难找到一个非常隐秘的地方筑巢。经过一番仔细观察和认真商量，他们决定在一片红树林里安家。以前他们从未建过房子，但他们没有浪费时间四处去找木匠或去请老师，而是立刻投入了工作，非常执着，似乎他们知道怎么建房子一样。他们修房子就像是在玩“四、五、六，拿起棍”的游戏，只不过他们不是把树枝整整齐齐地搭在一起，而是稀稀拉拉、横七竖八地堆成一个小平台，十二英寸长的大树枝铺在下面，小的则铺在上面。然后，就在一切准备就绪、可以开始铺设柔软舒适软垫的时候，阿尔蒂在粗糙不平的小棍上产了一枚蛋。她也太懒了点吧，也太能凑合了点吧？要不就是他们考虑得不够周到，可怜他们以前从来没有过家呀！是呀，不过，隔壁的灌木丛里，还有一对白鹭也在筑巢，他们也没有为自己的蛋铺什么软垫子；再往那边隔了六七个灌木丛的地方，一只小蓝鹭已经坐在她那蓝颜色的鹭蛋上开始孵蛋了，她的窝和白鹭的几乎一模一样。

So that is the kind of carpenters herons are!Sticks laid tangled up in a mass is the way they build!Yes,that is all—just some old dead twigs.I mean that is all you could see;but never think for a minute that there wasn't something else about that nest;for Ardea and her mate had lined it well with love,and so it was,indeed,a home worth building.

瞧，这就是鹭木匠！他们建房子，把小棍子乱七八糟地堆在一起就完事！是的，就这么简单，只不过是些枯老的小树枝罢了。我的意思是说你能“看”见的就这些，可千万不要以为那个巢就没别的什么了，千万可别这么想，哪怕一分钟都别这么想，因为那里面铺的是阿尔蒂和她丈夫的爱，所以说嘛，这个家可是的的确确值得一建啊。

In less than a week there were four eggs beneath the white down comforter that Ardea tucked over them;and the little mother was as well pleased as if she had had five,like her neighbors,the other snowy heron and the little blue heron.

不到一周，阿尔蒂就把四枚蛋掖在了白色的羽绒被里，她的邻居——另外那只白鹭和那只小蓝鹭，她们都有五枚蛋，不过这位小妈妈和她们一样，可高兴了。

If the eggs of the little blue heron were blue,would not those of the snowy herons be pure white?No,the color of eggs does not need to match the color of feathers;and Ardea's eggs and those of her nextbush neighbor were so much like the beautiful blue ones of the little blue heron,that it would be very hard for you to tell one from the other.Perhaps Ardea could not have told her own eggs if she had not remembered where she had built her nest.As it was,she made no mistake,but snuggled cosily over her pretty eggs,doubling up her long slender black legs and her yellow feet as best she could.

Near Ardea's Home.
阿尔蒂家附近。

既然小蓝鹭的蛋是蓝的，那么，白鹭的蛋会不会就是纯白的呢？不一定，因为鸟蛋的颜色不一定非要和羽毛的颜色一致。阿尔蒂产的蛋和隔壁灌木丛里的那个邻居产的蛋一样，都是蓝的，特别像小蓝鹭的那几个蓝蛋，所以，很难区分谁是谁的。如果阿尔蒂当初没有记住自己把巢建在哪儿了，也许她就认不出自己产的蛋了。可实际上，她没有弄错。她使劲蜷起她那又细又长的黑腿，收起黄黄的脚，舒舒服服地把那漂亮的蛋拥在了身下。

If she found it hard to sit there day after day,she made no fuss about it;and probably she really wanted to do that more than anything else just then,since the quiet patience of the most active birds is natural to them when they are brooding their unhatched babies.Then,too,there was her beautiful mate for company and help;for when Ardea needed to leave the nest for food and a change,the father-bird kept house as carefully as need be.

日复一日地坐在巢里很辛苦，可是就算她觉着了，她也没大惊小怪。也可能那个时候她最想做的事情就是安安静静地坐在巢里呢。为了孵化未出世的小宝宝，再活泼、再好动的鸟儿都会变得耐心十足，那是她们的天性。再说了，她那漂亮的丈夫还在一旁陪伴着她，帮着她呢。如果阿尔蒂得出去觅食或透透空气，做爸爸的就会尽心尽力地照料一切。

To her next-bush neighbors and the little blue herons Ardea paid no attention,unless,indeed,one of them chanced to come near her own mangrove bush.Then she and her mate would raise the feathers on the top of their heads until they looked rather fierce and bristly,and spread out their filmy capes of dainty plumes in a threatening way.That criss-cross pile of old dead twigs was a dear home after all,being lined,you will remember,with the love of Ardea and her mate;and they both guarded it as well as they were able.

阿尔蒂一点儿也不在意隔壁灌木丛里的那些邻居，还有那个小蓝鹭，当然了，如果他们有谁不小心跑到了她的红树丛附近，那就另当别论了。那个时候，她和丈夫会竖起头顶的羽毛，张开身上那像薄雾一样精巧秀美的大羽毛斗篷，装出一副恶狠狠、凶巴巴的样子把他吓走。毕竟，那堆横七竖八的枯树枝是他们心爱的家，里面铺的、垫的都是阿尔蒂和丈夫的爱呀！他们俩都竭尽所能、拼尽全力守护着这个家。

At last the quiet brooding days came to an end,and four funny little herons wobbled about in Ardea's nest.Their long legs and toes stuck out in all directions,and they couldn't seem to help sprawling around.If there had been string or strands of moss or grass in the nest,they would probably have got all tangled up.As it was,they sometimes nearly spilled out,and saved themselves only by clinging to the firm sticks and twigs.So it would seem that their home was a good sort for the needs of their early life,just as it was;and no doubt a heron's nest for a heron is as suitable a building as an oriole's is for an oriole.

平静的孵卵期终于结束了，阿尔蒂的巢里出现了四只摇摇晃晃、有趣可爱的小白鹭。他们的长腿和脚趾伸得到处都是，好像他们不由自主就要到处乱爬似的。幸亏巢里没有绳呀、藓呀或草呀等乱七八糟的东西，否则这些小白鹭早就被缠得满身都是了。有时候，要不是紧紧地抓住细棍子和小树枝，他们几乎就从巢里跌下去了。如此看来，他们的家的确不错，正适合他们的早年生活，的确如此。所以，金莺肯定有适合金莺的巢，鹭鸟肯定也有适合鹭鸟的巢。

It would take some time before the babies of Ardea would be able to straighten up on their long,slim legs and go wading.Until that day came,their father and mother would have to feed them well and often.Now the marsh where the snowy herons went fishing,where the shallow water was a favorite swimming-place for little fishes,was ten miles or more from their nest.Some kinds of herons,perhaps most kinds,are quiet and stately when they hunt,standing still and waiting for their game to come to them,or moving very slowly and carefully.But Ardea and the other snowy herons ran about in a lively way,spying out the little fishes with their bright yellow eyes,and catching them up quickly in their black beaks.(www.xing528.com)

That criss-cross pile of old dead twigs was a dear home，and they both guarded it.
那堆横七竖八的老枯树枝是他们心爱的家，他们守护着它。

阿尔蒂的宝宝们要等到能把又长又细的腿伸直、稳稳地站起来的时候，才可以去泥里、水里蹚着玩，可那是需要一段时间的。在此之前，他们的爸爸妈妈得经常给他们喂食，把他们喂得饱饱的。白鹭喜欢去沼泽地里捕鱼，那里的浅水滩是小鱼儿们最喜欢的游泳池，可是，那块沼泽地离他们的巢至少还有十英里呢。有些鹭，也许是大多数鹭，捕食的时候很安静、很端庄，它们一动不动地站在那里，等待着猎物的到来；即使动，也是慢条斯理、轻手轻脚地。可是阿尔蒂和别的白鹭捕食时，却总是瞪着明亮的黄眼睛，快活地跑来跑去，一发现小鱼就飞快地伸出黑黑的嘴巴叼住。

After swallowing a supply of food,Ardea took wing and returned across the miles to her young.Standing on the edge of her nest and reaching down with her long neck,she took the bill of one of her babies in her own mouth,and dropped part of what she had swallowed out of her big throat down into his small one.When she had fed her babies and preened her pretty feathers a bit,she was off again on the tenmile flight;for many a long journey she and her mate must take ere their little ones could feed themselves.But ten miles over and over and over again were as nothing to the love she had for her children;and faithfully as she had brooded her eggs,she now began the task of providing their meals.She seemed so happy each time she returned,that perhaps she was a little bit worried while she was away;but there is no reason to think she really was afraid that any great harm could come to them.

吞下足够的食物后，阿尔蒂就展翅起飞了，越过数十英里回到孩子们身边。她站在巢边，低头伸出长长的脖子，张开嘴，含住宝宝的嘴，把刚才吞下去的鱼从她那大大的喉咙里吐出一部分来，送到宝宝的小喉咙里。喂完所有的宝宝后，她稍稍梳理一下漂亮的羽毛，就又出发了，踏上了新一轮的十英里之旅。在孩子们还不能自食其力之前，阿尔蒂和她的丈夫必须这样一次又一次地在这段长长的路上往返。可是，和阿尔蒂对孩子们的爱比起来，一次又一次不断往返的十英里根本算不了什么。像当初孵蛋时那样，她尽职尽责地履行着为孩子们提供食物的任务。每次回来，她看上去都是那么快乐，也许是离开孩子们的时候，她有过一点点担心吧？说不上是害怕，因为她怎么会想到孩子们会遭殃呢？

Certainly she was unprepared for what she found when she flew back from her fourth fishing trip.Even when she reached Heron Camp,she did not understand.There are some things it is not given the mind of a bird to know.She could not know,poor dear,that there were people in the world who coveted her beautiful wedding plumes.Women there were,who wished to make themselves look better by wearing the feathers that Nature had given snowy herons for their very own.And men there were,who thought to make themselves grander in the dress of their organization by walking about with heron plumes waving on their heads.The two kinds of white herons with wonderful plumes that have been put to such uses are called Egrets and Snowy Egrets,and the feathers,when they are stripped from the birds,are called by the French name of aigrette.

的确，当她完成第四次捕鱼旅行飞回家时，她所看到的事情是她始料未及的。她到了巢营也没明白这是怎么一回事。有些事情可不是鸟儿能理解的。可怜的宝贝，她怎么会知道这个世界上竟会有人垂涎她那美丽的婚羽呢？还有那些女人，为了把自己打扮得更漂亮，竟然把大自然送给白鹭的婚羽配在了自己的婚纱上；还有那些身穿制服的男人，为了显得更加显赫、派头十足，竟然头戴鹭羽招摇过市。有两种白鹭的羽毛非常美丽，经常被用作装饰羽，这两种鹭分别叫“Egret”和“Snowy Egret”（注：都是白鹭的意思），从这些鸟儿身上拔下来的羽毛还有一个法语名字，叫“鹭羽”。

Now,of course,Ardea could not know about this,or that the Plume-Hunters had come to steal her wedding feathers.But she knew well enough that danger was at hand,and that in times of trouble a mother's place is beside her babies.Her heart beat quickly with a new terror,but she stayed,the brave bird stayed!And all about her the other herons stayed also.They had no way to fight for their lives,and they might have flown far and safely on their strong wings;but none of them would desert the home built with love while the frightened babies were calling to their fathers and mothers.

当然了，这些阿尔蒂是无法知道的，她也无法知道那些“猎羽者”来这里是为了偷她的婚羽。可是，她很清楚危险就在眼前，她也很清楚，危险来临时，母亲应该待在孩子身边。恐惧让她的心怦怦乱跳，但她留了下来，这只勇敢的鸟儿她留了下来！而且，周围其他的白鹭也都留了下来。他们手无寸铁，无法为生命而战，他们完全可以乘着强劲有力的翅膀飞到很远、很安全的地方去。可他们谁也没有弃家而去，那可是他们用爱营造的家呀！那里还有受到惊吓，正使劲呼唤着爸爸妈妈的宝宝们呢。

No,they could not fight for their lives,but there was one who could.For danger did not come to Heron Camp without finding Ardea's Soldier at his post.

是的，“他们”无法为生命而战，可是，有人却能。因为，每次鹭营遇到危险，他都会坚守在自己的岗位上，他就是那个守护阿尔蒂营巢的士兵。

Now the Plume-Hunters did not have bodies like crocodiles and leather wings,you know;but they were dragons of a sort,for all that,for they carried brutal things in their hands that belched forth smoke and pain and death,and they were cruel of heart,and they had sold themselves to do evil for the sake of the dollars that covetous men and women would pay them for feathers.

哦，你知道的，那些“猎羽者”没有恶龙那样的身体，也没有恶龙那样的皮翅膀。可是，尽管如此，他们都是恶龙，因为他们手里拿着的东西凶残无比，能喷出烟雾，带来痛苦、带来死亡；他们内心残酷，为了得到贪图羽毛的那些男男女女的几个臭钱，他们早已把灵魂出卖给了魔鬼。

Dragons though they were,Ardea's Soldier met them bravely.I like to think how brave he was;for was not the fight he fought a fight for our good old Mother Earth,that she might not lose those beautiful children of hers?If the world should be robbed of Snowy Herons,it would be just so much less lovely,just so much less wonderful.And have they no right to life,since the same Power that gave life to men gave life to them?And when we think about it this way,who seems to have the better right to those plumes—herons,or men and women?

可是，哪怕是凶残的恶龙，守护阿尔蒂营地的士兵也毫无畏惧。我愿意展开想象的翅膀，去想象他是多么的英勇无畏，因为，他是在为我们亲爱的大地母亲而战，为的是不让她失去那些美丽的孩子；假如没有了白鹭，这个世界就不那么可爱，不那么美丽了；既然赋予人类生命的那种“力量”也同样把生命赋予了他们，他们就有生存的权利。如果这样想的话，我们就不禁会问：谁更有权利拥有这些羽毛呢？是白鹭？还是那些男男女女？

The Soldier believed in Ardea's right to life,believed in it so deeply that he stood alone before the Plume-Hunters and told them that,while he lived,the birds of his camp should also live.

那个“士兵”坚信阿尔蒂有生存的权利，正是因为他对此坚信不疑，所以，他才敢于独自站在那些“猎羽者”面前，警告他们说：只要我活着，我营地里的鸟儿就不会死。

And that is why they killed him—the dragons who were cruel of heart and had sold themselves to do evil for the sake of dollars that covetous men and women would pay for feathers.

于是，他们杀死了他，这些内心残酷、为了那些贪图羽毛的男男女女的几个臭钱就把灵魂出卖给了魔鬼的恶龙！

Because of his courage and because of the cause for which he died,I think,don't you,that Ardea's Soldier might well be called"Knight of the Snowy Heron."

守护阿尔蒂的士兵如此英勇无畏，他为了美好的事业而献出了生命，所以，我们应该授予他“白鹭骑士”的称号，你认为如何呢？

I said that he was alone,and it is true that no one was there at the camp to help him.But many there were in other places doing their bit in the same good fight.Another soldier,named Theodore Roosevelt,did much for these birds when he was President,by granting them land where no man had a right to touch them;for it makes a true soldier angry when the weak are oppressed,and he said,"It is a disgrace to America that we should permit the sale of aigrettes."Another man,named Woodrow Wilson,whose courage also was so great that he always did what he believed to be right,would not permit,when he was Governor of New Jersey,a company to sell aigrettes in that State;he said,"I think New Jersey can get along without bloodmoney."

我说过，他在孤军奋战。的确，巢营里谁也没有来帮他。不过，其他地方有许多人正在为一场同样正义的战斗而贡献着自己的一份力量。一名叫西奥多·罗斯福的士兵任总统时，为这些鸟儿做了件了不起的事情，他把大量的土地赠给了他们，在那里，任何人都没有权利碰他们。看到弱者受到欺压，一个真正的士兵会愤怒的，所以，他说：“允许买卖鹭羽是美国的耻辱！”还有一个人，叫伍德罗·威尔逊，他也英勇无比，只要他认为正确的事情，他做起来都义无反顾。任新泽西州州长时，他禁止任何公司在该州买卖鹭羽。他说：“我认为没有这些滴血的钱，新泽西州照样能运转。”

Many another great man,besides,served the cause of Ardea.So many,in fact,that there is not room here to tell about them all.But there is room to say that the children helped.For,you know,every Junior Audubon Society sends money to the National Association of Audubon Societies—not much,but a little;and when the Knight of the Snowy Heron was killed,that little helped the National Association to hire another soldier to take his place.Now,think of that!There was another soldier who so believed in the Herons'right to life and plumage,that he was ready to protect them though it meant certain danger to himself!

另外还有许许多多了不起的人也投身到了保护鹭鸟阿尔蒂的伟大事业中，这样的人太多了，无法在这里一一列举。不过，说说孩子们的贡献还是可以的。你知道，所有“青少年奥杜邦协会”的会员都在给“全国奥杜邦协会”捐款，数目不大，但有一点点。所以，“白鹭骑士”惨遭不测之后，那一点点捐款使得“全国奥杜邦协会”能够重新雇用一个士兵来接替他的岗位。哦，想想吧！又有一位士兵坚信白鹭有活着的权利、有拥有羽毛的权利，而且，他已经做好为这些权利而战的准备，尽管这意味着一定的危险！

Yes,there is to this very day a soldier at Heron Camp.Do you know a way to keep him safe?Why,you children of America can do it if you will,and it need not cost one of you a penny.You can do it with your minds.For if every girl makes up her mind for good and all that she will never wear a feather that costs a bird its life;and if every boy makes up his mind for good and all that he will never be a feather-hunting dragon—why there will not be anybody growing up in America to harm Ardea,will there?You can keep the Soldier of Heron Camp safe by just wishing it!That sounds wonderful as a fairy story come true,does it not?And like the knight in some old fairy tale,could not Ardea's new Soldier"live happily forever after"?

是的，直到今天，鹭营里总有一名士兵。那你知道怎样保护它吗？对呀，美国的小公民们，只要你们愿意，你们就可以保护它，而且你们谁也不需要花一分钱，只需拿出一颗真诚的心就行了。因为，假如你们所有的女孩都下决心永远不再佩戴用鸟儿生命换来的羽毛，假如你们所有的男孩都下决心永远不再做猎取羽毛的恶魔，那么，等你们长大了，美国就不会再有任何人伤害鹭鸟阿尔蒂了，你们说是不是呢？你们的美好愿望就能保护“鹭营”里的士兵！听起来是不是很奇妙？是不是有点像童话故事变成了现实呢？所以，就像古老的童话故事里的骑士那样，鹭鸟阿尔蒂巢营里新来的士兵“从此过上了幸福的生活”，你们说会不会呢？