Chapter 17 | 沙漠银蛇

When one wishes to play the wit, he sometimes wanders a little from the truth. I have not been altogether honest in what I have told you about the lamplighters. And I realize that I run the risk of giving a false idea of our planet to those who do not know it. Men occupy a very small place upon the Earth. If the two billion inhabitants who people its surface were all to stand upright and somewhat crowded together, as they do for some big public assembly, they could easily be put into one public square twenty miles long and twenty miles wide. All humanity could be piled up on a small Pacific islet.

当一个人想抖机灵时，他有时是与事实有出入的。在聊到灯夫的时候，我就有点不顾事实。并且， 我意识到，对于一个对地球一无所知的人来说，很可能是个误导。其实，人类在地球上所占无几。如果让居住在地球上的二十亿人站直挤在一起，就像参加大型集会，一个二十英里长二十英里宽的广场就能容得下他们。所有人类能够被集中在一个太平洋的小岛上。

The grown-ups, to be sure, will not believe you when you ell them that. They imagine that they fill a great deal of space. They fancy themselves as important as the baobabs. You should advise them, then, to make their own calculations. They adore figures, and that will please them. But do not waste your time on this extra task. It is unnecessary. You have, I know, confidence in me.

当然，大人们是不会相信你这个说法的。他们自以为占据了大量地盘，幻想自己和猴面包树一样要紧。这时你应当告诉他们，去好好计算一下。他们崇拜数字，这样就能取悦他们。但是，别为这些差事费神了，没有这个必要。我知道，你是相信我的。

When the little prince arrived on the Earth, he was very surprised not to see any people. He was beginning to be afraid he had come to the wrong planet, when a coil of gold, the color of the moonlight, flashed across the sand.

当小王子到达地球时，他对杳无人烟感到奇怪。他开始担心自己是不是走错了星球，这时，一条月光般金色圆环闪现在沙地上。

"Good evening," said the little prince courteously.

“晚上好，”小王子礼貌地打招呼。

"Good evening," said the snake.

“晚上好，”银蛇答道。

"What planet is this on which I have come down?" asked the little prince.

“我这是落到什么星球上了？” 小王子问。

"This is the Earth; this is Africa," the snake answered.

“这是地球，这里是非洲，” 银蛇回答。

"Ah!Then there are no people on the Earth?"

“啊！那么地球上没有人？”

"This is the desert.There are no people in the desert. The Earth is large," said the snake.

“这里是沙漠。沙漠上是没有人的。地球很大。”银蛇说到。

The little prince sat down on a stone, and raised his eyes toward the sky.

小王子坐在一块石头上，仰望天空。

"I wonder," he said," whether the stars are set alight in the heaven so that one day each one of us may find his own again ... Look at my planet. It is there above us. But how far away it is!"

“真奇怪，”他说，“是不是星星在天空中被颗颗点亮，就是为了某一天我们每个人能找回属于自己的那一颗 ... 瞧瞧我的星球，就在我们头顶，但离我们好远啊！”

"It is beautiful," the snake said,"What has brought you here?"

“很美！” 银蛇说，“ 你为何而来啊？”

"I have been having some trouble with a flower," said the little prince.

“我和一棵花闹别扭了，”小王子说。

"Ah!" said the snake.

”啊！” 银蛇应道。

And they were both silent.

接着，他们俩都陷入沉默。

"Where are the men?" the little prince at last took up the conversation again. "It is a little lonely in the desert ... "

“人都在哪儿？” 小王子终于又开口了，“在沙漠里有点孤独 ... ”

"It is also lonely among men," the snake said.

“在人群中热同样孤独，”银蛇说道。

The little prince gazed at him for a long time.

小王子盯着他看了很长时间。

"You are a funny animal," he said at last," You are no thicker than a finger ... "

“你是个有趣的动物，” 他后来说，“你不比一根手指粗 ...”

"But I am more powerful than the finger of a king," said the snake.

“可是我比一个国王的手指还要强大，”银蛇说。

"You are not very powerful. You haven't even any feet. You cannot even travel ... "

“你不怎么强大。你连脚也没有。你甚至不能旅行 ...”

"I can carry you farther than any ship could take you," said the snake.

“我能把你带到远比一艘船能带到的地方，”银蛇说。

He twined himself around thee little prince's ankle, like a golden bracelet.

他缠绕着小王子的脚踝，就像一只金镯子。

"Whomever I touch, I send back to the earth from where he came," the snake spoke again. " But you are innocent and true, and you come from a star ... "

“无论我触碰到谁，我都可以把他送回老家，”银蛇又说，“但你天真无邪，又是天外来客 ... "

The little prince made no reply.

小王子没有回答。

"You move me to pity ... you are so weak on this Earth made of granite," the snake said," I can help you, someday, if you grow too homesick for your own planet. I can ..."

“ 你让我感到同情 ... 在这冷酷无情的地球上，你是如此弱小，” 银蛇说，“我可以帮你，哪天 ... 如果你思乡心切。 我能 ... ”

"Oh！I understand you very well," said the little prince. "But why do you always speak in riddles?"

“哦！我很明白你的意思，”小王子说，“但为何你说话总像是猜谜语一样？”

"I solve them all," said the snake.

“我能解开所有谜语，”银蛇说。

And they were both silent. 

说完，他们又陷入沉默中。