01

THE EARLY BRITONS

早期不列颠人

chariots, cars used in war.　　　　　　　　　pagans, idolaters; heathens
cleared, cut down.　　　　　　　　　　　　savage, wild.
dense, thick; close.　　　　　　　　　　　　terrible, fierce; frightful.
mistletoe, an evergreen plant which grows　　till, delve or plough.
on certain trees.　　　　　　　　　　　　　worshipped, took as their gods.

1. Two thousand years ago, the country in which we live was almost covered with dense forests, where roamed wolves, bears, wild boars, and white-maned bulls. The Britons who lived in it then were the forefathers of the Welsh. But they were a wild and almost savage race. The country was very little known to other nations.

2. In those days there were no large towns, nor pretty villages, nor well-built houses; no churches, nor school-houses. Here and there, where the forest had been cleared, there were a few poor huts, made of rods tied into the shape of a bee-hive or a sugarloaf, and covered with mud and turf. Perhaps a trench or ditch was cut around the huts, to keep off the wild beasts

3. The Early Britons did not till the soil. They sowed no corn or other seeds.They lived on roots and fruits, and on the flesh of animals kill in hunting. In winter, they wore skins to keep themselves warm; but in summer they went almost naked; and they painted strange figures on their bodies, to make them look terrible to their enemies.

4. Those who lived near the south coast were not so savage. They traded in tin and in pearls with people who came across the English Channel. From their visitors they learned to till the soil, to grow corn, and to rear cattle. They had also learned to wear gay clothing, and chains of silver and of gold.

5. The Britons were fond of war. They fought with bows and arrows, with spears and clubs. They fought on foot and on horseback, and in chariots armed with scythes, which they drove wildly among their foes.

6. In religion they were pagans. They worshipped the sun and the moon and the serpent; and they looked on the oak, with the mistletoe growing on it, as a sacred tree. Their priests were called Druids . They had long beards, and they wore white robes. They made laws, they taught the young, they healed the sick, and they of ered sacrifi ces to their gods. Sometimes these sacrifi ces consist of men, —criminals and prisoners taken in war, —who were burned in large cages of wicker-work.

中文阅读

1. 两千年前，我们如今生活的这片国土几乎到处都覆盖着茂密的森林，狼群、黑熊、白鬃牛也时常在各处悠闲踱步。这个时期生活于此的不列颠人，便是今天威尔士人的祖先，不过那时的他们还是一个野蛮的、尚未开化的民族。那时的这片国土还是一块处女地，几乎不被外界其他邦国所知。

2. 在那个时候，没有大型的城镇，没有秀美的乡村，没有富丽堂皇的房屋；也没有教堂，没有学校。只是在一些森林被砍伐掉的地方，会有一些简陋的小屋，它们由木棒捆扎成蜂房或圆锥的形状，被泥土和草皮覆盖着。在这些小屋周围可能还挖有沟渠或者坑道，以防止野兽的侵袭。

3. 早期的不列颠先民们不耕种土地，也不播种玉米和其他庄稼。他们以某些植物的根茎、果实以及猎取的动物为食。冬天，他们会穿上动物的皮毛来保暖御寒；夏天，他们则几乎处于裸奔状态，并且在身体上画上许多稀奇古怪的图案线条，让自己看起来很可怕，以此恐吓敌人。

4. 那些生活在南部沿海的先民们却并非如此野蛮，他们会用锡和珍珠与跨越英吉利海峡而来的人做交易，并从这些来访者那里慢慢学会了耕种土地、栽种庄稼以及饲养牲口，还学会了穿华丽的衣服，戴金银项链。

5. 不列颠人非常好战，弓箭、长矛、棍棒都是他们战斗的武器。他们可以徒步战斗，也能在马背上征战，还可动用装备有长柄大镰刀的战车，驾驶着它们野蛮而粗暴地冲向敌人。

6. 在宗教信仰方面，那时他们算是异教徒。他们崇拜太阳、月亮，还有蛇。当他们看见那些长有槲寄生的橡树时，也不由得觉得这是神圣的树木，于是他们的神职祭司就叫做德鲁伊长老。这些长老们留着长胡子，穿着一袭白色长袍。他们为自己的族群制定法律、教育年轻人、给病人治病，不时还要向他们的神祇献上祭品。这些祭品有时就是大活人，比如罪犯或者战争中的俘虏，这些人会被装进树枝编制的笼子里，在献祭时活活烧死。