鲁宾逊漂流记 节选

我来到岛上已经是第十一个年头了。
正如我所说的那样，我的弹药越来越少了，于
是我开始琢磨如何用陷阱来捕羊，看看能不能
活捉上一两只。
    于是，我在我观察到的山羊常吃草的地
方，在地上挖了几个大陷阱，然后在陷井上盖
了几块自己做的木格子，再压上一些重物。
    一天早上，我前去看陷阱，只见一个陷阱
里有一只老公羊，另一个陷阱里有三只小山羊，
其中一只是公的，两只是母的。
    我不知道怎么对付那只老公羊，因为它很
凶，我几乎不敢下到陷阱里接近它。也就是说，
我不敢按照自己的想法把它活捉出来。
    当时，我想不出更好的办法，只好把它放
走了。然后我就走到那些小山羊旁边，把它们
一只一只提出来，用细绳把它们拴在一起，费
了很大周折才把它们带回家。
    三只山羊起初不肯吃东西，我丢给它们一
些新鲜的玉米，吊吊它们的胃口，*后它们被
驯服了。
    这时候，我忽然想到，我必须把驯养的羊
和野羊隔离开，不然它们一长大，肯定会跑掉
的。唯一有效的办法，就是找一个四周封闭的
地方，扎上牢固的篱笆和木栅，把这些羊圈在
里面，使里边的不至于冲出去，外边的不至于
冲进来。
    对于一个没有什么工具的人来说，这其实
      But being now in the eleventh year of my residence, and, as I
have said, my ammunition growing low, I set myself to study some
art to trap and snare the goats, to see whether I could not catch
some of them alive.
      So I dug several large pits in the earth, in places where I had
observed the goats used to feed, and over those pits I placed
hurdles of my own making too, with a great weight upon them.
      Going one morning to see my traps, I found in one of them a
large old he-goat; and in one of the others three kids, a male and
two females.
      As to the old one, ! knew not what to do with him; he was so
fierce I durst~ not go into the pit to him; that is to say, to bring
him away alive, which was what I wanted.
      For the present I let him go, knowing no better at that time;
then I went to the three kids, and taking them one by one, I tied
them with strings together, and with some difficulty brought them
all home.
      It was a good while before they would feed; but throwing
them some sweet corn, it tempted them, and they began to be
tame.
      But then it occurred to me that I must keep the tame from the
wild, or else they would always run wild when they grew up; and
the only way for this was to have some enclosed piece of ground,
well fenced either with hedge ~ or pale ~, to keep them in so
effectually, that those within might not break out, or those without
break in.
      This was a great undertaking for one pair of hands yet, as I
是一项大工程，也是一件绝对必要的事情，因
此我**件要做的事是要物色一块好地，在那
儿这些山羊有草吃、有水喝并且可以遮荫的地
方。
    我用了几乎三个月，圈好了**块地。
    我的目标总算实现了。在近一年半的时间
里，我已拥有了大小山羊一共十二只。又过了
两年，不算我已经宰杀吃掉的几只，我已有四
十三只羊了。在那之后，我又圈了五六块地方
来喂养山羊，把羊赶到许多小羊圈中，在各个
圈地之间有门相通，我随时可以去捕捉它们。
    但是这并不是全部，我现在不仅随时有新
鲜的羊肉吃，还有羊奶喝。这是我过去做梦都
想不到的事情。
    我已经建立起了自己的奶房，有时候一天
可以挤出一两加仑羊奶。大自然不仅为每个生物
提供食物，同时也指导它们如何自然而然地去加
以利用。我本人从来没有挤过牛奶，更没有挤过
羊奶，只在小时候看过别人制作奶油和奶酪，但
经过多次的试验，终于做成了奶油和奶酪。
    你看我用餐的时候，俨然像位国王，并不
感到孤单。一个人高高坐在上面，臣仆们在旁侍
候着我。波儿就是我的宠臣，只有它才有权利与
我交谈。我那条没法找到同类配对繁衍的狗，现
在又老又昏聩，总是坐在我的右侧。那两只猫
呢?一只坐在桌子一边，一只坐在桌子另一边，
常常希望能从我的手中得到些特殊的赏赐。

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