第10章 The Brave Old Oak 勇敢的老橡树

Henry Fothergill Chorley, 1808-1872. He is known chiefly as a musical critic and author; for thirty-eight years he was connected with the "London Athenaeum." His books are mostly novels.

A song to the oak, the brave old oak,

Who hath ruled in the greenwood long;

Here's health and renown to his broad green crown,

And his fifty arms so strong.

There's fear in his frown, when the sun goes down,

And the fire in the west fades out;

And he showeth his might on a wild midnight,

When the storms through his branches shout.

In the days of old, when the spring with cold

Had brightened his branches gray,

Through the grass at his feet, crept maidens sweet,

To gather the dews of May.

And on that day, to the rebec gay

They frolicked with lovesome swains;

They are gone, they are dead, in the churchyard laid,

But the tree—it still remains.

He saw rare times when the Christmas chimes

Were a merry sound to hear,

When the Squire's wide hall and the cottage small

Were filled with good English cheer.

Now gold hath the sway we all obey,

And a ruthless king is he;

But he never shall send our ancient friend

To be tossed on the stormy sea.

Then here's to the oak, the brave old oak,

Who stands in his pride alone;

And still flourish he, a hale green tree,

When a hundred years are gone.

亨利·福瑟吉尔·乔利（1808～1872年），著名音乐评论家和作家。38年来，他的名字一直和“伦敦的雅典娜”联系在一起。他的作品大多数都是小说。

赞歌送给勇敢的老橡树，

那掌管绿森林的老橡树；

他头戴象征健康和名望的翠绿皇冠，

他的五十条臂膀还是那么强壮。

当太阳从远方升起，他皱起的眉头露出恐惧，

火焰般的太阳渐渐西沉；

他的威严笼罩暴躁的午夜，

风暴在他的枝叶间嘶吼。

在过去的日子，略带寒意的春天

老橡树焕发出新的生机，

翠绿的小草在他脚下攀爬，就像可爱少女张开手

采集五月的露珠。

在五月节，三弦琴奏出美妙的音乐，

她们和可爱的情郎一起玩耍；

他们走了，离开人世，埋在教堂墓地。

只有老橡树——仍旧傲然挺立。

他很少听见圣诞节的钟声响起，

当乡绅宽敞的大厅和狭小的村舍

充满欢呼的时候，

希望聆听到的是愉快的声音。

现在我们都遵从光阴易逝的规律，

虽然时光是一个残忍的国王，

但他从不把我们这棵老橡树

放到充满风暴的大海接受颠簸。

你看！勇敢的老橡树，

傲然矗立，

尽管过去了一百年，

他仍然枝叶茂盛，精神抖擞。