LESSON 4 THE GRANDFATHER 爷爷

Charles G.Eastman (b.1816, d.1861) was born in Maine, but removed at an early age to Vermont, where he was connected with the press at Burlington, Woodstock, and Montpelier.He published a volume of poems in 1848, written in a happy lyric and ballad style, and faithfully portraying rural life in New England.

1.The farmer sat in his easy-chair

Smoking his pipe of clay,

While his hale^[1] old wife with busy care,

Was clearing the dinner away;

A sweet little girl with fi ne blue eyes,

On her grandfather’s knee, was catching fl ies.

2.The old man laid his hand on her head,

With a tear on his wrinkled face,

He thought how often her mother, dead,

Had sat in the selfsame place;

As the tear stole down from his half-shut eye,

“Don’t smoke!” said the child, “how it makes you cry!”

3.The house dog lay stretched out on the fl oor,

Where the shade, afternoons, used to steal;

The busy old wife by the open door

Was turning the spinning wheel,

And the old brass clock on the manteltree^[2]

Had plodded^[3] along to almost three.

4.Still the farmer sat in his easy-chair,

While close to his heaving^[4] breast

The moistened brow and the cheek so fair

Of his sweet grandchild were pressed;

His head bent down, on her soft hair lay;

Fast asleep were they both on that summer day.

【中文阅读】

查尔斯·G·伊士曼（1816—1861）出生在美国缅因州，但早年就已迁往佛蒙特州。在那里，他与伯灵顿、伍兹托克以及蒙彼利埃等地的出版社联系密切。1848年，他出版了一本轻快抒情、民谣风格的诗集，真实描绘了新英格兰地区的田园生活。

1.老农躺在他的安乐椅上，

抽着他的陶制烟斗，

他硬朗的年迈妻子仍在不停忙碌，

清理着晚餐后的狼藉杯盘。

美丽蓝眼睛的可爱小女孩，

坐在爷爷的膝上捉蜻蜓。

2.老农摩挲着小孙女的脑袋，

皱纹遍布的脸上，挂着一滴眼泪，

他想起小女孩已过世的母亲，

她曾经常坐在同样的地方。

泪水从他半阖的眼里扑簌而下，

“不许抽烟！”小姑娘说，“它让你哭得多厉害呀！”

3.他们的狗趴在地板上，

在午后的阴凉处惬意打盹。

忙碌的老妇人敞开着门，

吱吱呀呀地转着纺车。

壁炉楣架上的老铜钟，

快到三点的时针一步步辛勤在爬。

4.老农安静地坐在他的安乐椅上，

他甜美的小孙女，

被打湿的眉毛和脸蛋是那么可爱，

正靠着他起伏的胸膛。

他的脑袋耷拉着，枕着她柔软的头发，

那个夏日午后，祖孙俩都进入温暖的梦乡。

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【注释】

[1] Hale, healthy.

[2] Manteltree, shelf over a f ireplace.

[3] Plodded, went slowly.

[4] Heaving, rising and falling.