酷兔英语
    当前位置:
  1. 首页
  2. 文章
  3. 娱乐英语
  4. 原版小说
  5. 正文

The Zincali-Part34_George Borrow(1803-1881)_English Literature(文学名著)-第2页

0 收藏 0 分享 0 赞

章节正文
文章总共2页


over the lamp; all, however, would not do. At last I said, "Let us

try the PIMIENTOS"; so we took the green pepper husks, pulled open



his eyelids, and rubbed the pupils with the green pepper fruit.

That was the worst pinch of all. Would you believe it? the old man



bore it. Then our people said, "Let us kill him," but I said, no,

it were a pity: so we spared him, though we got nothing. I have



loved that old man ever since for his firm heart, and should have

wished him for a husband.'



THE SCORPION. - 'Ojala, that I had been in that cortijo, to see

such sport!'



MYSELF. - 'Do you fear God, O Tuerta?'

THE ONE-EYED. - 'Brother, I fear nothing.'



MYSELF. - 'Do you believe in God, O Tuerta?'

THE ONE-EYED. - 'Brother, I do not; I hate all connected with that



name; the whole is folly; me dinela conche. If I go to church, it

is but to spit at the images. I spat at the bulto of Maria this



morning; and I love the Corojai, and the Londone, (59) because they

are not baptized.'



MYSELF. - 'You, of course, never say a prayer.'

THE ONE-EYED. - 'No, no; there are three or four old words, taught



me by some old people, which I sometimes say to myself; I believe

they have both force and virtue.'



MYSELF. - 'I would fain hear; pray tell me them.'

THE ONE-EYED. - 'Brother, they are words not to be repeated.'



MYSELF. - 'Why not?'

THE ONE-EYED. - 'They are holy words, brother.'



MYSELF. - 'Holy! You say there is no God; if there be none, there

can be nothing holy; pray tell me the words, O Tuerta.'



THE ONE-EYED. - 'Brother, I dare not.'

MYSELF. - 'Then you do fear something.'



THE ONE-EYED.- 'Not I -

'SABOCA ENRECAR MARIA ERERIA, (60)



and now I wish I had not said them.'

MYSELF. - 'You are distracted, O Tuerta: the words say simply,



'Dwell within us, blessed Maria.' You have spitten on her bulto

this morning in the church, and now you are afraid to repeat four



words, amongst which is her name.'

THE ONE-EYED. - 'I did not understand them; but I wish I had not



said them.'

. . . . . . .



I repeat that there is no individual, however hardened, who is

utterly GODLESS.



The reader will have already gathered from the conversations

reported in this volume, and especially from the last, that there



is a wide difference between addressing Spanish Gitanos and Gitanas

and English peasantry: of a certainty what will do well for the



latter is calculated to make no impression on these thievish half-

wild people. Try them with the Gospel, I hear some one cry, which



speaks to all: I did try them with the Gospel, and in their own

language. I commenced with Pepa and Chicharona. Determined that



they should understand it, I proposed that they themselves should

translate it. They could neither read nor write, which, however,



did not disqualify them from being translators. I had myself

previously translated the whole Testament into the Spanish Rommany,



but I was desirous to circulateamongst the Gitanos a version

conceived in the exact language in which they express their ideas.



The women made no objection, they were fond of our tertulias, and

they likewise reckoned on one small glass of Malaga wine, with



which I invariably presented them. Upon the whole, they conducted

themselves much better than could have been expected. We commenced



with Saint Luke: they rendering into Rommany the sentences which I

delivered to them in Spanish. They proceeded as far as the eighth



chapter, in the middle of which they broke down. Was that to be

wondered at? The only thing which astonished me was, that I had



induced two such strange beings to advance so far in a task so

unwonted, and so entirely at variance with their habits, as



translation.

These chapters I frequently read over to them, explaining the



subject in the best manner I was able. They said it was lacho, and

jucal, and misto, all of which words express approval of the



quality of a thing. Were they improved, were their hearts softened

by these Scripture lectures? I know not. Pepa committed a rather



daring theft shortly afterwards, which compelled her to conceal

herself for a fortnight; it is quite possible, however, that she



may remember the contents of those chapters on her death-bed; if




文章总共2页
文章标签:名著  

章节正文
Copyright © 2023 Qeto All rights reserved.
商务合作 | 联系我们 | 关于我们 | 版权声明 | 隐私条款 | 如果智培

京ICP备05059198号-1 京公网安备 11011202003401号