Introduction：First published in the June 28，1948 issue of The New Yorker，the story contrasts commonplace details of contemporary life with a barbaric ritual known as the“lottery”。The setting is a small American town where the locals display a strange and somber mood，from which unusual things can evidently be observed，like children gathering stones，as they gather on June 27 for their annuallottery。After the husband from each family draws a small piece of paper，one slip with a black spot indicates the Hutchinson family has been chosen。When eachmember of that family draws again to see which family member“wins”，Tessie Hutchinson is the final choice。She is then stoned to death by everyone present，including her own family，as well as both the young men and young girls as a sacrifice to ensure a good harvest，according to the belief of the community。
1 The morning of June 27th was clear and sunny，with the fresh warmthof a full-summer daythe flowers were blossoming profusely and the grass was richly green。The people of the village began to gather in the square，between the post office and the bank，around ten o’clockin some towns there were so many people that the lottery took two days and had to be started on June 26th。，but in this village，where there were only about three hundred people，the whole lottery took less than two hours，so it could begin at ten o’clock in the morning and still be through in time to allow the villagers to get home for noon dinner。
评注：这篇令人震撼的短篇小说是以最平常的场景开头的—抽奖活动就如同美国人的民主选举一样，是生活的常态，是高度仪式化的传统。
2 The children assembled first，of course。School wasrecently over for the summer，and the feeling of liberty sat uneasily on most of themthey tended to gather together quietly for a while before they broke into boisterous play，and their talk was still of the classroom and the teacher，of books and reprimands。Bobby Martin had already stuffed his pockets full of stones，and the other boys soon followed his example，selecting the smoothest and roundest stonesBobby and Harry Jones and Dickie Delacroix—the villagers pronounced this name“Dellacroy”—eventually made a great pile of stones in one corner of the square and guardedit against the raids of the other boys。The girls stood aside，talking among themselves，looking over their shoulders at rolled in the dust or clung to the hands of their older brothers or sisters。
评注：看似平常的生活仪式中却也有着不同寻常的细节，譬如孩子们在抽奖这天会收集各种石头。
3 Soon the men began to gather，surveying their own children，speaking of planting and rain，tractors and taxes。They stood together，away from the pile of stones in the corner，and their jokes were quiet and they smiled rather than laughed。The women，wearing faded house dresses and sweaters，came shortly after theirmenfolk。They greeted one another and exchanged bits of gossip as they went to join their husbands。Soon the women，standing by their husbands，began to call to their children，and the children came reluctantly，having to be called four orfive times。Bobby Martin ducked under his mother’s grasping hand and ran，laughing，back to the pile of stones。His father spoke up sharply，and Bobby came quickly and took his place between his father and his oldest brother。
4 The lottery was conducted—as were the square dances，the teen club，the Halloween program—by Mr。Summers，who had time and energy to devote to civic activities。He was a round-faced，jovial man and he ran the coal business，and peoplewere sorry for him，because he had no children and his wife was a scold。When hearrived in the square，carrying the black wooden box，there was a murmur of conversation among the villagers，and he waved and called。“Little late today，folks。”The postmaster，Mr。Graves，followed him，carrying a three-legged stool，andthe stool was put in the center of the square and Mr。Summers set the black boxdown on it。The villagers kept their distance，leaving a space between themselves and the stool，and when Mr。Summers said，“Some of you fellows want to give me a hand？”there was a hesitation before two men。Mr。Martin and his oldest son，Baxter，came forward to hold the box steady on the stool while Mr。Summers stirred up the papers inside it。
profusely：adv。繁茂地，丰富地
assemble：v。集合，聚集
boisterous：adj。狂暴的，喧闹的
reprimand：n。训斥
raid：n。袭击
cling：v。紧抓不放
gossip：n。闲言碎语
duck：v。躲闪
civic：adj。集镇的，城市的
jovial：adj。快活的
scold：n。高声骂人的泼妇
stir up：搅乱5The original paraphernalia for the lottery had beenlost long ago，and the black box now resting on the stool had been put into use even before Old Man Warner，the oldest man in town，was born。Mr。Summers spoke frequently to the villagers about making a new box，but no one liked to upset even as much tradition as was represented by the black box。There was a story that the present box had beenmade with some pieces of the box that had preceded it，the one that had been constructed when the first people settled down to make a village here。Every year，after the lottery，Mr。Summers began talking again about a new box，but every year the subject was allowed to fade off without anything’s being done。The blackbox grew shabbier each year：by now it was no longer completely black but splintered badly along one side to show the original wood color，andin some places faded or stained。
评注：这样一个抽奖仪式所用的箱子虽然破旧不堪，但却被作为传统遗产而继承了下来。虽然有人建议换一个箱子，但最后都没有办成。这说明这个仪式已经成为了当地某种根深蒂固的传统的承载物。
6 Mr。Martin and his oldest son，Baxter，held the black box securely on the stool until Mr。Summers had stirred the papers thoroughly with his hand。Because somuch of the ritual had been forgotten or discarded，Mr。Summers had been successful in having slips of paper substituted for the chips of wood that had been used for generations。Chips of wood，Mr。Summers had argued，had been all very well when the village was tiny，but now that the population was more than three hundred and likely to keep on growing，it was necessary to use something that would fit more easily into the black box。The night before the lottery，Mr。Summers and Mr。Graves made up the slips of paper and put them in the box，and it was then taken to the safe of Mr。Summers’coal company and locked up until Mr。Summers was ready to take it to the square next morning。The rest of the year，the boxwas put way，sometimes one place，sometimes anotherit had spent one year in Mr。Graves’s barn and another year underfoot in the post office，and sometimes it was set on a shelf in the Martin grocery and left there。
7 There was a great deal of fussing to be done beforeMr。Summers declared the lottery open。There were the lists to make up—of heads of families，heads of households in each family，members of each household in each family。There was theproper swearing-in of Mr。Summers by the postmaster，as the official of the lotteryat one time，some people remembered，there had been a recital of some sort，performed by the official of the lottery，a perfunctory，tuneless chant that had been rattled off duly each yearsome people believed that the official of the lottery used to stand just so when he said or sang it，others believed that hewas supposed to walk among the people，but years and years ago this part of theritual had been allowed to lapse。There had been，also，a ritual salute，which the official of the lottery had had to use in addressing each person who came upto draw from the box，but this also had changed with time，until now it was felt necessary only for the official to speak to each person approaching。Mr。Summers was very good at all thisin his clean white shirt and blue jeans，with one hand resting carelessly on the black box，he seemed very proper and important ashe talked interminably to Mr。Graves and the Martins。
paraphernalia：n。用具
precede：v。在……之前
fade off：消退
splinter：v。裂开
thoroughly：adv。彻底地
substitute for：替代
fussing：n。让人忙乱的事
swearing-in：n。宣誓就职
recital：n。背诵
perfunctory：adj。马马虎虎的
rattle off：仓促背诵
lapse：v。丧失
interminably：adv。冗长地8Just as Mr。Summers finally left off talking and turned to the assembled villagers，Mrs。Hutchinson came hurriedly along the path to the square，her sweater thrown over her shoulders，and slid into place in the back of the crowd。“Cleanforgot what day it was，”she said to Mrs。Delacroix，who stood next to her，andthey both laughed softly。“Thought my old man was out back stacking wood，”Mrs。Hutchinson went on。“and then I looked out the window and the kids was gone，andthen I remembered it was the twenty-seventh and came a-running。”She dried her hands on her apron，and Mrs。Delacroix said，“You’re in time，though。They’restill talking away up there。”
9 Mrs。Hutchinson craned her neck to see through the crowd and found her husband and children standing near the front。She tapped Mrs。Delacroix on the arm as a farewell and began to make her way through the crowd。The people separated good-humoredly to let her through：two or three people said in voices just loud enough to be heard across the crowd，“Here comes your Missus，Hutchinson，”and“Bill，she made it after all。”Mrs。Hutchinson reached her husband，and Mr。Summers，who had been waiting，said cheerfully。“Thought we were going to have to get on without you，Tessie。”Mrs。Hutchinson said。grinning，“Wouldn’t have me leavem’dishes in the sink，now，would you。Joe？”and soft laughter ran through the crowd as the people stirred back into position after Mrs。Hutchinson’s arrival。
10 “Well，now。”Mr。Summers said soberly，“guess we better get started，get this over with，so’s we can go back to work。Anybody ain’t here？”
11 “Dunbar。”several people said。“Dunbar。Dunbar。”
12 Mr。Summers consulted his list。“Clyde Dunbar。”he said。“That’s right。He’s broke his leg，hasn’t he？Who’s drawing for him？”
13 “Me。I guess，”a woman said。and Mr。Summers turned to look at her。“Wifedraws for her husband。”Mr。Summers said。“Don’t you have a grown boy to do it foryou，Janey？”Although Mr。Summers and everyone else in the village knew the answer perfectly well，it was the business of the official of the lottery to ask such questions formally。Mr。Summers waited with an expression of polite interest while Mrs。Dunbar answered。
14 “Horace’s not but sixteen yet。”Mrs。Dunbar said regretfully。“GuessIgotta fill in for the old man this year。”
15 “Right。”Mr。Summers said。He made a note on the list he was holding。Then he asked，“Watson boy drawing this year？”
16 A tall boy in the crowd raised his hand。“Here，”he said。“I m drawing for my mother and me。”He blinked his eyes nervously and ducked his head as several voices in the crowd said things like“Good fellow，Jack。”and“Glad to see your mother’s got a man to do it。”
评注：从抽签的优先权来看，这样一个社会显然是男性占据主导地位的。男孩年满十六岁代替父亲抽签，这似乎已经成为了一种成年礼。下面，读者自然要好奇地问：这样一个从上几代就传下来的重要抽奖仪式到底最后的赌注是什么？
17 “Well，”Mr。Summers said，“guess that’s everyone。Old Man Warner make it？”
18 “Here，”a voice said。and Mr。Summers nodded。
19 A sudden hush fell on the crowd as Mr。Summers cleared histhroat and lookedat the list。“All ready？”he called。“Now，I’ll read the names—heads of families first—and the men come up and take a paper out of the box。Keep the paper folded in your hand without looking at it until everyone has had a turn。Everything clear？”
20 The people had done it so many times that they only half listened to the directions：most of them were quiet，wetting their lips，not looking around。ThenMr。Summers raised one hand high and said，“Adams。”A man disengaged himself fromthe crowd and came forward。“Hi。Steve。”Mr。Summers said。And Mr。Adams said。“Hi。Joe。”They grinned at one another humorlessly and nervously。Then Mr。Adamsreached into the black box and took out a folded paper。He held it firmly by one corner as he turned and went hastily back to his place in the crowd，where he stood a little apart from his family，not looking down at his hand。
21 “Allen。”Mr。Summers said。“Anderson……Bentham。”
22 “Seems like there’s no time at all between lotteries any more。”Mrs。Delacroix said to Mrs。Graves in the back row。
23 “Seems like we got through with the last one only last week。”
24 “Time sure goes fast。”—Mrs。Graves said。
25 “Clark……Delacroix。”
26 “There goes my old man。”Mrs。Delacroix said。She held her breath while her husband went forward。
27 “Dunbar，”Mr。Summers said，and Mrs。Dunbar went steadily to the box while one of the women said。“Go on。Janey，”and another said，“There she goes。”
28 “We’re next。”Mrs。Graves said。She watched while Mr。Graves came around from the side of the box，greeted Mr。Summers gravely and selected a slip of paper from the box。By now，all through the crowd there were men holding the small folded papers in their large hand，turning them over and over nervously。Mrs。Dunbarand her two sons stood together，Mrs。Dunbar holding the slip of paper。
29 “Harburt……Hutchinson。”
30 “Get up there，Bill，”Mrs。Hutchinson said，and the people near her laughed。
31 “Jones。”
32 “They do say，”Mr。Adams said to Old Man Warner，who stood next to him，“that over in the north village they’re talking of giving up the lottery。”
33 Old Man Warner snorted。“Pack of crazy fools，”he said。“Listening to theyoung folks，nothing’s good enough for them。Next thing you know，they’ll be wanting to go back to living in caves，nobody work any more，live that way for a while。Used to be a saying about‘Lottery in June，corn be heavy soon。’First thing you know，we’d all be eating stewed chickweed and acorns。There’s always been a lottery，”he added petulantly。“Bad enough to see young Joe Summers up there joking with everybody。”
评注：村民谈论邻村关于取消摸彩仪式的提议，但从反响来看，显然赞成保留这一传统的占主导地位。他们不愿意变更传统，反对任何形式的改革，认为这种仪式能够给庄稼带来好的收成。
sweater：n。毛线衫
stack：v。堆叠
crane：v。伸长脖子
sink：n。水槽
hush：n。安静
disengage：v。脱离
chickweed：n。繁缕，一种鸟和鸡喜欢吃的植物
acorn：n。橡树果，橡子
petulantly：adv。脾气坏地，使性子地34“Some places have already quit lotteries。”Mrs。Adams said。
35 “Nothing but trouble in that，”Old Man Warner said stoutly。“Pack of young fools。”
36 “Martin。”And Bobby Martin watched his father go forward。“Overdyke……Percy。”
37 “I wish they’d hurry，”Mrs。Dunbar said to her older son。“I wish they’dhurry。”
38 “They’re almost through，”her son said。
39 “You get ready to run tell Dad，”Mrs。Dunbar said。
40 Mr。Summers called his own name and then stepped forward precisely and selected a slip from the box。Then he called，“Warner。”
41 “Seventy-seventh year I been in the lottery，”Old Man Warner said as hewent through the crowd。“Seventy-seventh time。”
42 “Watson。”The tall boy came awkwardly through the crowd。Someone said，“Don’t be nervous，Jack，”and Mr。Summers said，“Take your time，son。”
43 “Zanini。”
44 After that，there was a long pause，a breathless pause，until Mr。Summers，holding his slip of paper in the air，said，“All right，fellows。”For a minute，no one moved，and then all the slips of paper were opened。Suddenly，all the women began to speak at once，saving。“Who is it？”，“Who’s got it？”，“Is it the Dunbars？”，“Is it the Watsons？”Then the voices began to say，“It’s Hutchinson。It’s Bill，”“Bill Hutchinson’s got it。”
45 “Go tell your father，”Mrs。Dunbar said to her older son。
46 People began to look around to see the Hutchinsons。Bill Hutchinson was standing quiet，staring down at the paper in his hand。Suddenly，Tessie Hutchinson shouted to Mr。Summers。“You didn’t give him time enough to take any paper he wanted。I saw you。It wasn’t fair！”
47 “Be a good sport，Tessie。”Mrs。Delacroix called，and Mrs。Graves said，“All of us took the same chance。”
评注：被抽到的家庭开始抱怨游戏规则的不公，而这种一人一票又貌似是最公平的，大家机会均等。
48 “Shut up，Tessie，”Bill Hutchinson said。
49 “Well，everyone，”Mr。Summers said，“that was done pretty fast，and nowwe’ve got to be hurrying a little more to get done in time。”He consulted his next list。“Bill，”he said，“you draw for the Hutchinson family。You got any other households in the Hutchinsons？”
50 “There’s Don and Eva，”Mrs。Hutchinson yelled。“Make them take their chance！”
51 “Daughters draw with their husbands’families，Tessie，”Mr。Summers said gently。“You know that as well as anyone else。”
52 “It wasn’t fair，”Tessie said。
53 “I guess not，Joe。”Bill Hutchinson said regretfully。“My daughter draws with her husband’s familythat’s only fair。And I’ve got no other family exceptthe kids。”
54 “Then，as far as drawing for families is concerned，it’s you，”Mr。Summers said in explanation，“and as far as drawing for households is concerned，that’syou，too。Right？”
55 “Right，”Bill Hutchinson said。
56 “How many kids，Bill？”Mr。Summers asked formally。
57 “Three，”Bill Hutchinson said。
58 “There’s Bill，Jr。，and Nancy，and little Dave。And Tessie and me。”
59 “All right，then，”Mr。Summers said。“Harry，you got their tickets back？”
60 Mr。Graves nodded and held up the slips of paper。“Put them in the box，then，”Mr。Summers directed。“Take Bill’s and put it in。”
评注：当Hutchinson家在摸彩中被选中后，这家五口人进入第二轮摸彩，在五人中产生最后的入选者。
61 “I think we ought to start over，”Mrs。Hutchinson said，as quietly as shecould。“I tell you it wasn’t fair。You didn’t give him time enough to choose。Everybody saw that。”
62 Mr。Graves had selected the five slips and put them in the box，and he dropped all the papers but those onto the ground，where the breeze caught them and lifted them off。
63 “Listen，everybody，”Mrs。Hutchinson was saying to the people around her。
64 “Ready，Bill？”Mr。Summers asked，and Bill Hutchinson，with one quick glance around at his wife and children，nodded。
65 “Remember，”Mr。Summers said，“take the slips and keep them folded until each person has taken one。Harry，you help little Dave。”Mr。Graves took the hand of the little boy，who came willingly with him up to the box。“Take a paper out of the box，Davy。”Mr。Summers said。Davy put his hand into the box and laughed。“Take just one paper。”Mr。Summers said。“Harry，you hold it for him。”Mr。Graves took the child’s hand and removed the folded paper from the tight fist and held it while little Dave stood next to him and looked up at him wonderingly。
66 “Nancy next，”Mr。Summers said。Nancy was twelve，and her school friendsbreathed heavily as she went forward switching her skirt，and took a slip daintily from the box。“Bill，Jr。，”Mr。Summers said，and Billy，his face red and his feetoverlarge，near knocked the box over as he got a paper out。“Tessie，”Mr。Summers said。She hesitated for a minute，looking around defiantly，and then set her lips and went up to the box。She snatched a paper out and held it behind her。
67 “Bill，”Mr。Summers said，and Bill Hutchinson reached into the box and felt around，bringing his hand out at last with the slip of paper in it。
68 The crowd was quiet。A girl whispered，“I hope it’s not Nancy，”and thesound of the whisper reached the edges of the crowd。
69 “It’s not the way it used to be。”Old Man Warner said clearly。“Peopleain’t the way they used to be。”
70 “All right，”Mr。Summers said。“Open the papers。Harry，you open littleDave’s。”
71 Mr。Graves opened the slip of paper and there was a general sigh through thecrowd as he held it up and everyone could see that it was blank。Nancy and Bill，Jr。opened theirs at the same time，and both beamed and laughed，turning around to the crowd and holding their slips of paper above their heads。
评注：Hutchinson家的几个孩子都没抽到，他们显得很高兴。很快我们就能知道，这个仪式要产生的人选是要被村民用石头砸死。这种原始的活人祭祀仪式竟然能存在于现代社会，而村民们竟然如此有条不紊地抽签决定去杀死另一位同胞，甚至连子女在幸免后也非常高兴（这意味着死亡就留给了父母），这让读者不可思议，也觉得十分残忍变态。所以这个短篇发表之初，在美国引起了巨大的争议。
stoutly：adv。刚强地，坚决地
a good sport：口语，堂堂正正的好人（特指具有公正、勇敢性格的人）
daintily：adv。优美地，难以取悦地
defiantly：adv。挑战地，对抗地
beam：v。愉快地笑，眉开眼笑72“Tessie，”Mr。Summers said。There was a pause，and then Mr。Summers looked at Bill Hutchinson，and Bill unfolded his paper and showed it。It was blank。
73 “It’s Tessie，”Mr。Summers said，and his voice was hushed。“Show us her paper。Bill。”
74 Bill Hutchinson went over to his wife and forced the slip of paper out ofher hand。It had a black spot on it，the black spot Mr。Summers had made the nightbefore with the heavy pencil in the coal company office。Bill Hutchinson held it up，and there was a stir in the crowd。
评注：最后抽中的是Mrs。Hutchinson，而这张签竟然是她丈夫从她手中抢出来的。这种冷血完全颠覆了我们的基本人伦观。值得注意的是，Hutchinson在美国历史上是一个著名的人物，当年清教殖民地有一位著名的女性宗教领袖Anne Hutchinson就同样遭到了这种民主社区的迫害而被迫流亡。作者给最后的受难者起这个名字显然是有历史隐喻的。同样，一些像Martin和Graves这样的名字也有象征意义，前者词源中有“猴子”之意，后者则是“坟墓”。
75 “All right，folks。”Mr。Summers said。“Let’s finish quickly。”
76 Although the villagers had forgotten the ritual and lost the original black box，they still remembered to use stones。The pile of stones the boys had made earlier was readythere were stones on the ground with the blowing scraps of paper that had come out of the box。Delacroix selected a stone so large she had to pick it up with both hands and turned to Mrs。Dunbar。“Come on，”she said。“Hurryup。”
77 Mr。Dunbar had small stones in both hands，and she said，gasping for breath，“I can’t run at all。You’ll have to go ahead and I’ll catch up with you。”
78 The children had stones already。And someone gave little Davy Hutchinson few pebbles。
评注：一旦替罪羔羊被选出，所有人都心安理得加入到虐杀同胞的队伍中，甚至包括未成年人，包括受害者的子女。
79 Tessie Hutchinson was in the center of a cleared space by now，and she held her hands out desperately as the villagers moved in on her。“It isn’t fair，”shesaid。A stone hit her on the side of the head。Old Man Warner was saying，“Comeon，come on，everyone。”Steve Adams was in the front of the crowd of villagers，with Mrs。Graves beside him。
80 “It isn’t fair，it isn’t right，”Mrs。Hutchinson screamed，and then theywere upon her。
Comprehension Exercises
1.Why doesn’t the author reveal the nature of this ritual until veryend of this story？
2.What’s the metaphoric meaning of such a lottery in our modern society？
3.Some critics said this story was a criticism of the capitalist society。Do you agree or disagree with such an opinion？Why？
雪莱·约翰逊（1916—1965）：美国作家，以短篇小说《摸彩》而闻名于世。她生于旧金山，在一个富裕的家庭中长大，之后举家迁往纽约。她1940年毕业于锡拉丘兹大学，在大学读书期间即开始文学创作。约翰逊的丈夫是一位著名文学评论家。1965年，这位饱受各种精神疾病折磨的女作家在睡梦中突发心脏病去世。她独特的写作风格对美国后来的史蒂芬·金等恐怖小说作家产生了影响。
The Notorious Jumping
Frog of the Calaveras County
Mark Twain
Introduction：Jim Smiley was addicted to gambling。Hebet on anything from the death of Parson Walker’s wife to fights between his bulldog pup，Andrew Jackson，and other dogs。One day a stranger to the town agreed to bet on a frog jumping higher than Jim’s frog，Daniel Webster。When Jim wasn’t looking the stranger poured quail shot into Daniel Webster’s mouth making it impossible for him to jump at all。The stranger won the40 bet and escaped before Jim realized the con。
1 In compliance with the request of a friend of mine，who wrote me from the East，I called on good-natured，garrulous old Simon Wheeler，andinquired after my friend’s friend，Leonidas W。Smiley，as requested to do，and I hereunto appendthe result。I have a lurking suspicion that Leonidas W。Smiley is a myththat my friend never knew such a personageand that he only conjectured that if I asked old Wheeler about him，it would remind him of his infamous Jim Smiley，and he would go to work and bore me to death with some exasperating reminiscence of him as long and as tedious as it should be useless to me。If that was the design，it succeeded。
评注：这是一篇根据民间传说写成的短篇小说，生动地表现了当时正在开发中的西部地区的群众幽默，并用充满了美国俚语的口语体写成。
in compliance with：依照，遵照
garrulous：adj。多嘴多舌的
hereunto：adv。这里，以下
append：v。附加，添加
myth：n。虚构的人物
personage：n。名人
conjecture：v。推测，猜想
exasperating：adj。激怒人的
reminiscence：n。回想，怀旧2I found Simon Wheeler dozing comfortably by the barroom stove of the dilapidated tavern in the decayed mining camp of Angel’s，andI noticed that he was fat and bald headed and had an expression of winning gentleness and simplicity upon his tranquil countenance。He roused up，and gave me good day。I told him that a friend of mine had commissioned me to make some inquiries about a cherished companion of his boyhood named Leonidas W。Smiley—Rev。Leonidas W。Smiley，a young minister of the Gospel，who he had heard was at one time a resident of Angel’s Camp。I added that if Mr。Wheeler could tell me anything about this Rev。Leonidas W。Smiley，I would feel under many obligations to him。
3 Simon Wheeler backed me into a corner and blockaded me there with his chair，and then sat down and reeled off the monotonous narrative which follows this paragraph。He never smiled，he never frowned，he never changed his voice from thegentle-flowing key to which he tuned his initial sentence，he never betrayed the slightest suspicion of enthusiasmbut all through the interminable narrative there ran a vein of impressive earnestness and sincerity，which showed me plainly that，so far from his imagining that there was anything ridiculous or funny about his story，he regarded it as a really important matter，and admired its two heroes as men of transcendent genius in finesse。I let him go onin his own way，and never interrupted him once。
评注：这个故事的叙事视角是小说中的第三者，而“我”只是一个外乡旁听者。这种安排非常有利于西部幽默故事的那种口语风格。注意，文中有很多方言化的不合规范的拼写和语法。
dilapidated：adj。毁坏的，荒废的
countenance：n。面容，脸色
commission：v。委派，委任
Rev。：n。对僧侣、牧师的尊称
Gospel：n。《圣经》中的《福音书》
reel off：滔滔不绝地谈论
betray：vt。显露出
vein：n。特色，风格
transcendent：adj。出类拔萃的
4 Rev。Leonidas W。H’m，Reverend Le—well，there was a feller here once by the name of Jim Smiley，in the winter of’49—or maybe it was the spring of’50—I don’t recollect exactly，somehow，though what makes me think it was oneor the other is because I remember the big flume wasn’t finishedwhen he first come to campbut anyway，he was the curiousest man about always betting on anything that turned up you ever see，if he could get anybody to bet on the other sideand if he couldn’t he’d change sides。Any way that suited the other man would suit him—any way just so’s he got a bet，he was satisfied。But still he was lucky，uncommon luckyhe most always come out winner。He was always ready and laying for a chancethere couldn’t be no solit’ry thing mentioned but that feller’d offer to bet on it，and take ary side you please，as I was just telling you。If there was a horse-race，you’d find him flush or you’d find him busted atthe end of itif there was a dog-fight，he’d bet on itif there was a cat-fight，he’d bet on itif there was a chicken-fight，he’d bet on it，why，if there wastwo birds setting on a fence，he would bet you which one would fly firstof ifthere was a camp-meeting，he would be there reg’lar to bet on Parson Walker，which he judged to be the best exhorted about here，and so he was too，and a good man。If he even see a straddle-bug start to go anywheres，he would bet you how long it would take him to get to—to wherever he was going to，and if you took him up，he would foller that straddle-bug to Mexico but what he would find out where he was bound for and how long he was on the road。
Lots of the boys here hasseen that Smiley，and can tell you about him。Why，it never made no difference to him—he’d bet on any thing—the damned feller。Parson Walker’s wife laid very sick once，for a good while，and it seemed as if they weren’t going to saveher but one morning he come in，and Smiley up and asked him how she was，and he said she was considerable better—thank the Lord for his inf’nite mercy—and coming on so smart that with the blessing of Providence she’dget well yetand Smiley，before he thought，says，“Well，I’ll risk two-and-a-half she don’t anyway。”
5 Thish-yer Smiley had a mare—the boys called her the fifteen-minute nag，but that was only in fun，you know，because of course she was faster than that—and he used to win money on that horse，for all she was so slow and always had the asthma，or the distemper，or the consumption，or something of that kind。They used to give her two or three hundred yards’start，and then pass her under waybut always at the fag end of the race she’d get excited and desperate like，and come cavorting and straddling up，and scattering her legs around limber，sometimes in the air，and sometimes out to one side among the fences，and kicking up m-o-r-e dust and raising m-o-r-e racket with her coughing and sneezing and blowing her nose—and always fetch up at the stand just about a neck ahead，as near as you could cipher it down。
flume：n。水槽
busted：adj。穷得精光的，破产的
take sb。up：接受某人的挑战
damned：adj。荒唐透顶的
Providence：n。（基督教中的）天命
nag：n。驽马，劣等竞赛马
consumption：n。肺结核
fag end：口语，意为“某事的末尾”
cavort：v。腾跃
limber：adj。轻快的，敏捷的
fetch up：最终到达
cipher down：计算出6And he had a little small bull-pup，that to look at him you’d think he warn’t worth a cent but to set around and look ornery and lay for a chance to stealsomething。But as soon as money was up on him he was a different doghis under-jaw’d begin to stick out like the fo’castle of a steamboat，and his teeth woulduncover and shine like the furnaces。And a dog might tackle him and bully-rag him，and bite him，and throw him over his shoulder two or three times，and AndrewJackson—which was the name of the pup—Andrew Jackson would never let on but what he was satisfied，and hadn’t expected nothing else—and the bets being doubled and doubled on the other side all the time，till the money was all upand then all of a sudden he would grab that other dog jest by the joint of his hind leg and freeze to it—not chaw，you understand，but only just grip and hang on till they throwed up the sponge，if it was a year。
Smiley always come out winner on that pup，till he harnessed a dog once that didn’t have no hind legs，becausethey’d been sawed off in a circular saw，and when the thing had gone along far enough，and the money was all up，and he come to make a snatch for his pet holt，he see in a minute how he’d been imposed on，and how the other dog had him in the door，so to speak，and he’peared surprised，and then he looked sorter discouraged-like，and didn’t try no more to win the fight，and so he got shucked out bad。He give Smiley a look，as much as to say his heart was broke，and it was his fault，for putting up a dog that hadn’t no hind legs for him to take holt of，which was his main dependence in a fight，and then he limped off a piece and laiddown and died。It was a good pup，was that Andrew Jackson，and would have made a name for hisself if he’d lived，for the stuff was in him and he had genius—I know it，because he hadn’t no opportunities to speak of，and it don’t stand toreason that a dog could make such a fight as he could under them circumstances if he hadn’t no talent。It always makes me feel sorry when I think of that lastfight of his’n，and the way it turned out。
7 Well，thish-yer Smiley had rat-tarriers，and chicken cocks，and tomcats and all the kind of things，till you couldn’t rest，and you couldn’t fetch nothingfor him to bet on but he’d match you。He ketched a frog one day，and took him home，and said he cal’lated to educate himand so he never done nothing for three months but set in his back yard and learn that frog to jump。And you bet you he did learn him，too。
He’d give him a little punch behind，and the next minute you’d see that frog whirling in the air like a doughnut—see him turn one summerset，or maybe a couple，if he got a good start，and come down flat-footed and allright，like a cat。He got him up so in the matter of ketching flies，and kep’him in practice so constant，that he’d nail a fly every time as far as he could see him，Smiley said all a frog wanted was education，and he could do’most anything—and I believe him。Why，I’ve seen him set Dan’l Webster down here on this floor—Dan’l Webster was the name of the frog—and sing out，“Flies，Dan’l flies！”and quicker’n you could wink he’d spring straight up and snake a fly off onthe counter there，and flop down on the floor ag’in as solid as agob of mud，andfall to scratching the side of his head with his hind foot as indifferent as if he hadn’t no idea he’d been doin’any more’n any frog might do。You never see a frog so modest and straightfor’ard as he was，for all he was so gifted。And whenit come to fair and square jumping on a dead level，he could get over more ground at one straddle than any animal of his breed you ever see。Jumping on a dead level was his strong suit，you understandand when it comes to that，Smiley would ante up money on him as long as he had a red。Smiley was monstrous proud of his frog，and well he might be，for fellers that had traveled and been everywheres all said he laid over any frog that ever they see。
ornery：adj。卑下的
let on：露出真情
impose on：欺骗
shuck out：咬去一层皮
piece：n。一段距离
rat-tarrier：n。会抓耗子的狗
summerset：n。翻筋斗
flat-footed：adj。站稳脚跟的
snake off：把……拖走
flop：v。怦然落下
gob：n。一大块
fair and square：光明正大地
a red：一分钱
8 Well，Smiley kept the beast in a little lattice box，and he used to fetch him down-town sometimes and lay for a bet。One day a feller—a stranger in the camp，he was—come across him with his box，and says：
9 “What might it be that you’ve got in the box？”
10 And Smiley says，sorter indifferent-like，“It might be a parrot，or itmight be a canary，maybe，but it ain’t—it’s only just a frog。”
11 And the feller took it，and looked at it careful，and turned it around this way and that，and says，“H’m-so’tis。Well，what’s he good for？”
12 “Well，”Smiley says，easy and careless，“he’s good enough for one thing，I should judge—he can outjump any frog in Calaveras County。”
13 The feller took the box again，and took another long，particular look，and give it back to Smiley，and says，very deliberate，“Well，”he says，“I don’tsee no p’ints about that frog that’s any better’n any other frog。”
14 “Maybe you don’t，”Smiley says。“Maybe you understand frogs and maybe you don’t understand’emmaybe you’ve had experience，and maybe you ain’t only a amature，as it were。Anyways，I’ve got my opinion，and I’ll risk forty dollars that he can outjump any frog in Calaveras County。”
15 And the feller studied a minute，and then says，kinder sad-like，“Well，I’m only a stranger here，and I ain’t got no frogbut if I had a frog，I’d bet you。”
16 And then Smiley says，“That’s all right—that’s all right—if you’ll hold my box a minute，I’ll go and get you a frog。”And so the feller took the box，and put up his forty dollars along with Smiley’s，and set down to wait。
17 So he set there a good while thinking and thinking to himself，and then he got the frog out and prized his mouth open and took a teaspoon and filled himfull of quail-shot—filled him pretty near up to his chin—andset himon the floor。Smiley he went to the swamp and slopped around in the mud for a long time，and finally he sketched a frog，and fetched him in，and give him to this feller，and says：
18 “Now，if you’re ready，set him alongside of Dan’l，with his forepaws justeven with Dan’l’s，and I’ll give the word。”Then he says，“One—two—three-git！”and him and the feller touched up the frogs from behind，and the new frog hopped off lively，but Dan’l give a heave，and hoisted up his shoulders—so—like a Frenchman，but it warn’t no use—he couldn’t budgehe was planted as solid as a church，and he couldn’t no more stir than if he was anchored out。Smiley was a good deal surprised，and he was disgusted too，but he didn’t have no idea what the matter was，of course。
19 The feller took the money and started awayand when he was going out at the door，he sorter jerked his thumb over his shoulder—so—at Dan’l，and says again，very deliberate，“Well，”he says，“I don’t see no p’ints about that frog that’s any better’n any other frog。”
20 Smiley he stood scratching his head and looking down at Dan’l a long time，and at last he says，“I do wonder what in the nation that frog throw’d off for—I wonder if there ain’t something the matter with him—he’pears to look mighty baggy，somehow。”And he ketched Dan’l by the nap of the neck，and heftedhim，and says，“Why blame my cats if he don’t weigh five pounds！”and turned himupside down and he belched out a double handful of shot。And then he see how it was，and he was the maddest man—he set the frog down and took out after that feller，but he never fetched him。And—
评注：在轻松诙谐的背后，隐藏着许多耐人寻味、令人痛苦的东西，所以有人说马克·吐温使“美国文学第一次有了悲剧性的笑声”。
21 [Here Simon Wheeler heard his name called from the front yard，and got up to see what was wanted。]And turning to me as he moved away，he said：“Just setwhere you are，stranger，and rest easy—I ain’t going to be gone a second。”
22 But，by your leave，I did not think that a continuation ofthe history of the enterprising vagabond Jim Smiley would be likely to afford me much information concerning the Rev。Leonidas W。Smiley，and so I started away。
23 At the door I met the sociable Wheeler returning，and he buttonholed meand recommenced：
24 “Well，thish-yer Smiley had a yaller one-eyed cow that didn’t have no tail，only jest a short stump like a bannanner，and—”
25 However，lacking both time and inclination，I did not wait to hear about the afflicted cow，but took my leave。
评注：马克·吐温的幽默作品是用一种“悲剧性的严肃精神引起人们的大笑”。他以幽默为武器，无情地讽刺社会上的丑恶和不合理的现象，开启一颗颗处于闭塞状态的心灵。
outjump：v。比……跳得更远
kinder：adv。有一点，有几分，相当于kind of
quail-shot：n。通常用来打鹌鹑的猎枪用的铁砂子
hoist up：抬起，耸起
take out：开始奔跑
by your leave：请原谅
vagabond：n。流浪汉
buttonhole：v。硬留住
take one’s leave：告别，离去
Comprehension Exercises
1 。What are the differences in character and cultural background between the first narrator and Simon Wheeler？
2 。Discuss the relationship between the episode of the frog-jumping contest andSimon Wheeler’s prologue to it。Which is more important—prologue or episode？
马克·吐温（1835—1910）：美国作家，本名塞谬尔·朗赫恩·克莱门斯，马克·吐温是其笔名。出生于密西西比河畔小城汉尼拔的一个贫穷乡村律师家庭，从小外出拜师学徒，当过排字工人、密西西比河水手、南军士兵，还经营过木材业、矿业和出版业，但有效的工作是当记者和幽默文学写作。马克·吐温是美国批判现实主义文学的奠基人，世界著名的短篇小说大师。他经历了美国从“自由”资本主义到帝国主义的发展过程，其思想和创作也表现为从轻快调笑到辛辣讽刺再到悲观厌世的发展阶段。他的早期创作，如短篇小说《竞选州长》（1870）、《哥尔斯密的朋友再度出洋》（1870）等，以幽默、诙谐的笔法嘲笑美国“民主选举”的荒谬和“民主天堂”的本质。中期作品，如长篇小说《镀金时代》（1874，与华纳合写）、代表作长篇小说《哈克贝里·费恩历险记》（1886）及《傻瓜威尔逊》（1893）等，则以深沉、辛辣的笔调讽刺和揭露像瘟疫般盛行于美国的投机、拜金狂热，及暗无天日的社会现实与惨无人道的种族歧视。19世纪末，随着美国进入帝国主义发展阶段，马克·吐温的一些游记、杂文、政论，如《赤道环行记》（1897）、中篇小说《败坏了哈德莱堡的人》（1900）、《神秘来客》（1916）等的批判揭露意义也逐渐减弱，而绝望神秘情绪则有所延伸。马克·吐温被誉为“美国文学中的林肯”。