早晨，湯姆一覺醒來，迷迷糊糊不知身在何方。他坐起來，揉揉眼，向周圍看了看。很快他想了起來。此時正值涼爽的、灰濛蒙的黎明時分，林子裡一片靜謐，給一種甜蜜的安息與和平的氣氛圍擾着。樹葉兒一動也不動，沒有任何聲音打擾大自然的酣眠。露珠兒還逗留在樹葉和草葉上。一層白色的灰燼蓋在那堆火上，一縷淡淡的煙直飄向天空。而喬和哈克都還睡得正香。
WHEN Tom awoke in the morning, he wondered where he was. He sat up and rubbed his eyes and looked around. Then he comprehended. It was the cool gray dawn, and there was a delicious sense of repose and peace in the deep pervading calm and silence of the woods. Not a leaf stirred; not a sound obtruded upon great Nature's meditation. Beaded dewdrops stood upon the leaves and grasses. A white layer of ashes covered the fire, and a thin blue breath of smoke rose straight into the air. Joe and Huck still slept.
這時，林子深處有隻鳥兒叫了起來，另一隻發出應和。隨後又聽見一隻啄木鳥啄樹的聲音。清淡的晨光漸漸發白，各種聲音也隨之稠密起來，大地萬物，一派生機。大自然從沉睡中醒來，精神抖擻地把一片奇景展現在這驚奇的孩子的眼底。一條小青蟲從一片帶露的葉子上爬過來，不時地把大半截身子翹在空中，四處“嗅一嗅”，接着又向前爬——湯姆說它是在打探。這條小蟲自動爬近他身邊時，他像一塊石頭一樣凝然不動，滿心希望它能爬得再近些。那條小蟲一會兒繼續向他爬過來，一會兒又好像改變了主意，打算往別處去。他的希望也隨之一會兒高漲，一會兒低落。後來，小蟲在空中翹起身子，考慮良久，終於爬到湯姆腿上來，在他身上周游，於是他心裡充滿了歡樂——因為這就表示他將要得到一套新打扮——毫無疑問，是一套光彩奪目的海盜制服。這時，不知道從什麼地方來了一大群螞蟻，正忙着搬運東西；其中一隻正用兩條前肢抓住一只有自己身體五倍大的死蜘蛛，奮力往前拖，直拖着它爬上了樹幹。一隻背上有棕色斑點的花大姐趴在一片草葉的葉尖，湯姆俯下身子，對它說：“花大姐，花大姐，快回家，你的家裡着火啦，你的娃娃找媽媽。”於是它就拍着翅兒飛走了，回家去看到底怎麼了——湯姆對此一點也不感到奇怪，因為他早就知道這種小蟲子容易相信火災的事情，頭腦又簡單，被捉弄過不止一次了。不久，又有一隻金龜子飛過來，不屈不撓地在搬一個糞球；湯姆碰了一下這小東西，看它把腿縮進身體裝死。這時很多鳥兒嘰嘰喳喳閙得更歡了。有一隻貓鵲——一種北方的學舌鳥——在湯姆頭頂上的一棵大樹上落下來，模仿着它附近別的鳥兒的叫聲，叫得歡天喜地。隨後又有一隻樫鳥尖叫着疾飛而下，像一團一閃而過的藍色火焰，落到一根小樹枝上，湯姆几乎一伸手就能夠到它。它歪着腦袋，十分好奇地打量着這幾位不速之客；還有一隻灰色的松鼠和一隻狐狸類的大東西匆匆跑來，一會兒坐著觀察這幾個孩子，一會兒又衝他們叫幾聲。這些野生動物也許以前從未見過人類，所以它們根本不知道該不該害怕。此時自然界的萬物全都醒來，充滿了活力。這兒那兒，一道道陽光如長矛一般從茂密的樹葉中直刺下來，幾隻蝴蝶扇着翅膀，在翩翩起舞。
Now, far away in the woods a bird called; another answered; presently the hammering of a woodpecker was heard. Gradually the cool dim gray of the morning whitened, and as gradually sounds multiplied and life manifested itself. The marvel of Nature shaking off sleep and going to work unfolded itself to the musing boy. A little green worm came crawling over a dewy leaf, lifting two-thirds of his body into the air from time to time and "sniffing around," then proceeding again--for he was measuring, Tom said; and when the worm approached him, of its own accord, he sat as still as a stone, with his hopes rising and falling, by turns, as the creature still came toward him or seemed inclined to go elsewhere; and when at last it considered a painful moment with its curved body in the air and then came decisively down upon Tom's leg and began a journey over him, his whole heart was glad--for that meant that he was going to have a new suit of clothes--without the shadow of a doubt a gaudy piratical uniform. Now a procession of ants appeared, from nowhere in particular, and went about their labors; one struggled manfully by with a dead spider five times as big as itself in its arms, and lugged it straight up a tree-trunk. A brown spotted lady-bug climbed the dizzy height of a grass blade, and Tom bent down close to it and said, "Lady-bug, lady-bug, fly away home, your house is on fire, your children's alone," and she took wing and went off to see about it--which did not surprise the boy, for he knew of old that this insect was credulous about conflagrations, and he had practised upon its simplicity more than once. A tumblebug came next, heaving sturdily at its ball, and Tom touched the creature, to see it shut its legs against its body and pretend to be dead. The birds were fairly rioting by this time. A catbird, the Northern mocker, lit in a tree over Tom's head, and trilled out her imitations of her neighbors in a rapture of enjoyment; then a shrill jay swept down, a flash of blue flame, and stopped on a twig almost within the boy's reach, cocked his head to one side and eyed the strangers with a consuming curiosity; a gray squirrel and a big fellow of the "fox" kind came skurrying along, sitting up at intervals to inspect and chatter at the boys, for the wild things had probably never seen a human being before and scarcely knew whether to be afraid or not. All Nature was wide awake and stirring, now; long lances of sunlight pierced down through the dense foliage far and near, and a few butterflies came fluttering upon the scene.
湯姆弄醒了另外兩個強盜，他們大叫一聲，嘻嘻哈哈地跑開了；兩分鐘以後，他們就脫得赤條條的，跳進白沙灘上那片清澈透底的水裡互相追逐，滾抱嬉戲。寬闊的河流對面，遠遠的地方，就是那個村莊，而他們並不想念。可能是一陣湍流也可能是一股上漲的潮水，沖走了他們的小木筏。他們卻為此感到慶幸。因為沒有了木筏，就像是燒燬了他們與文明世界間的橋樑，斬斷了他們回返的念頭。
Tom stirred up the other pirates and they all clattered away with a shout, and in a minute or two were stripped and chasing after and tumbling over each other in the shallow limpid water of the white sandbar. They felt no longing for the little village sleeping in the distance beyond the majestic waste of water. A vagrant current or a slight rise in the river had carried off their raft, but this only gratified them, since its going was something like burning the bridge between them and civilization.
他們回到露營地時，神采奕奕，興緻勃勃，卻也饑腸轆轆；不久他們把那篝火又撥旺了。哈克在附近發現了一眼清泉，孩子們就用闊大的橡樹葉和胡桃樹葉做成杯子，他們覺得這泉水有股子森林的清香，完全可以取代咖啡。喬正在切鹹肉片做早餐，湯姆和哈克讓他稍候片刻；他們來到河邊，相中了一個僻靜之處，垂下魚鈎，不長時間就有了收穫。還沒到讓喬等得不耐煩的時候，他們就拿回來幾條漂亮的石首魚，一對鱸魚和一條小鯰魚——這些魚足夠一大家人飽餐一頓。他們把魚和鹹肉放到一塊煮，結果讓人驚訝的是：魚的味道竟然這麼鮮美。他們不知道淡水魚越趁活燒吃，味道越鮮美；另外，他們也沒有想到露天睡覺、戶外運動、洗澡以及饑餓會使食慾大增。他們並不明白饑者口中盡佳餚的道理。
They came back to camp wonderfully refreshed, glad-hearted, and ravenous; and they soon had the camp-fire blazing up again. Huck found a spring of clear cold water close by, and the boys made cups of broad oak or hickory leaves, and felt that water, sweetened with such a wildwood charm as that, would be a good enough substitute for coffee. While Joe was slicing bacon for breakfast, Tom and Huck asked him to hold on a minute; they stepped to a promising nook in the river-bank and threw in their lines; almost immediately they had reward. Joe had not had time to get impatient before they were back again with some handsome bass, a couple of sun-perch and a small catfish--provisions enough for quite a family. They fried the fish with the bacon, and were astonished; for no fish had ever seemed so delicious before. They did not know that the quicker a fresh-water fish is on the fire after he is caught the better he is; and they reflected little upon what a sauce open-air sleeping, open-air exercise, bathing, and a large ingredient of hunger make, too.
吃罷早飯，他們就往樹蔭底下隨便一倒，哈克抽了一袋煙；然後大家往樹林裡去，去探險。他們信步走去，一路跨朽木，涉雜林，穿過高大的樹木林，這些大樹披垂着一根根葡萄藤，好像王冠上垂下來的流蘇。他們時不時地遇到一些幽僻的地方，地面長滿青草，綻放著鮮花，宛如塊塊鑲着寶石的綠色地毯。
They lay around in the shade, after breakfast, while Huck had a smoke, and then went off through the woods on an exploring expedition. They tramped gayly along, over decaying logs, through tangled underbrush, among solemn monarchs of the forest, hung from their crowns to the ground with a drooping regalia of grape-vines. Now and then they came upon snug nooks carpeted with grass and jeweled with flowers.
他們看到了很多令人欣喜的東西，不過並沒有什麼稀奇古怪的玩意兒。他們發現這個島大約有三英里長，四分之一英里寬，離河岸最近的地方只有一條狹窄的水道相隔，不足二百碼寬。他們差不多每個鐘頭就游上一次泳，所以等他們回到宿營地時，已過去了半個下午。他們餓壞了，顧不得停下來捉魚來吃，對著冷火腿，就是一番狼吞虎嚥，吃罷就躺到蔭涼下說話。說著說著就斷斷續續了，終於他們止住了話頭。周遭的寂靜、森林中的肅穆以及孤獨感，慢慢地對這幾個孩子的情緒發生了作用。他們開始沉思默想。一種莫名的渴望漸漸爬上他們心頭——那是越來越強烈的思鄉情緒。連赤手大盜費恩都在緬懷他從前睡覺的台階和那些大空桶。但是他們對這種軟弱感到害臊，沒有一個人有勇氣把心事公諸于眾。
They found plenty of things to be delighted with, but nothing to be astonished at. They discovered that the island was about three miles long and a quarter of a mile wide, and that the shore it lay closest to was only separated from it by a narrow channel hardly two hundred yards wide. They took a swim about every hour, so it was close upon the middle of the afternoon when they got back to camp. They were too hungry to stop to fish, but they fared sumptuously upon cold ham, and then threw themselves down in the shade to talk. But the talk soon began to drag, and then died. The stillness, the solemnity that brooded in the woods, and the sense of loneliness, began to tell upon the spirits of the boys. They fell to thinking. A sort of undefined longing crept upon them. This took dim shape, presently--it was budding homesickness. Even Finn the Red-Handed was dreaming of his doorsteps and empty hogsheads. But they were all ashamed of their weakness, and none was brave enough to speak his thought.
有一段時間，幾個孩子隱隱約約地聽到遠處有一種奇怪的聲響，就像你不特別留神時聽到的鐘擺的滴嗒滴嗒聲。但後來這種神秘的聲響越來越大，他們不得不弄清楚。孩子們愣了一下，互相對望一眼，接着像在側耳細聽。過了好久沒有聲音，只有死一般的寂靜；後來，一陣沉悶的隆隆響聲從遠處滾蕩而來。
For some time, now, the boys had been dully conscious of a peculiar sound in the distance, just as one sometimes is of the ticking of a clock which he takes no distinct note of. But now this mysterious sound became more pronounced, and forced a recognition. The boys started, glanced at each other, and then each assumed a listening attitude. There was a long silence, profound and unbroken; then a deep, sullen boom came floating down out of the distance.
“什麼聲音！”喬小聲驚呼。
"What is it!" exclaimed Joe, under his breath.
“我也不清楚。”湯姆低聲說。
"I wonder," said Tom in a whisper.
“那不是雷聲，”哈克貝利說，聲音裡帶有驚恐，“因為雷聲——”
"'Tain't thunder," said Huckleberry, in an awed tone, "becuz thunder--"
“你們聽！”湯姆說，“聽著——別吭聲。”
"Hark!" said Tom. "Listen--don't talk."
他們等了彷彿好多年似的，這時劃破寂空才又傳來一陣沉悶的隆隆響聲。
They waited a time that seemed an age, and then the same muffled boom troubled the solemn hush.
“走，去看看。”
"Let's go and see."
他們一下子跳起來，趕忙朝鎮子方向的岸邊跑去。他們撥開河邊的灌木叢，偷眼往水面觀瞧。那只擺渡用的小蒸汽船在鎮子下游大約一英里的地方，順流而下。寬大的甲板上像是站滿了人。另外有好多小船在渡船附近划動，漂來漂去，可孩子們卻吃不準船上的人在幹什麼。後來，渡船邊突地冒出來一大股白煙，它似閒雲一般瀰散升騰開來。與此同時，那種沉悶的聲音又灌進他們的耳鼓。
They sprang to their feet and hurried to the shore toward the town. They parted the bushes on the bank and peered out over the water. The little steam ferry-boat was about a mile below the village, drifting with the current. Her broad deck seemed crowded with people. There were a great many skiffs rowing about or floating with the stream in the neighborhood of the ferryboat, but the boys could not determine what the men in them were doing. Presently a great jet of white smoke burst from the ferryboat's side, and as it expanded and rose in a lazy cloud, that same dull throb of sound was borne to the listeners again.
“我知道了！”湯姆喊着，“有人淹死了！”
"I know now!" exclaimed Tom; "somebody's drownded!"
“是這麼回事！”哈克說，“去年夏天，比爾·特納掉到水裡時，他們也就這樣子的；他們向水面上打炮，這能讓落水的人浮到水面上來。對，他們還用大塊麵包，灌上水銀，放在水面上浮着。無論什麼地方有人落人，麵包就會徑直漂過去，停在出事的地方。”
"That's it!" said Huck; "they done that last summer, when Bill Turner got drownded; they shoot a cannon over the water, and that makes him come up to the top. Yes, and they take loaves of bread and put quicksilver in 'em and set 'em afloat, and wherever there's anybody that's drownded, they'll float right there and stop."
“對，我也聽人講過這事，”喬說，“不知道是什麼使麵包那麼靈。”
"Yes, I've heard about that," said Joe. "I wonder what makes the bread do that."
“哦，大概不是麵包自身有那麼靈，”湯姆說，“我估計多半是人們事先對它念了咒語。”
"Oh, it ain't the bread, so much," said Tom; "I reckon it's mostly what they say over it before they start it out."
“他們可不念什麼咒語呀，”哈克說，“我親眼所見，他們不唸咒語。”
"But they don't say anything over it," said Huck. "I've seen 'em and they don't."
“唉，那就怪了，”湯姆說，“不過也許他們只是在心裡默念。他們肯定唸咒，這是明擺着的。”
"Well, that's funny," said Tom. "But maybe they say it to themselves. Of course they do. Anybody might know that."
另外，兩個孩子認為麵包無知無覺，如果沒有人給它唸咒語，它去幹這麼重大的事情，決不會幹得那麼出色。所以他們同意湯姆說的有道理。
The other boys agreed that there was reason in what Tom said, because an ignorant lump of bread, uninstructed by an incantation, could not be expected to act very intelligently when set upon an errand of such gravity.
“哎呀，現在要是我也在現場就好了。”喬說。
"By jings, I wish I was over there, now," said Joe.
“我也這麼想，”哈克說。“我情願拿很多東西來換，讓人家告訴我是誰被淹死了。”
"I do too" said Huck "I'd give heaps to know who it is."
幾個孩子仍在那兒聽著，看著。突然一個念頭在湯姆腦海裡一閃，他恍然大悟地喊道：
The boys still listened and watched. Presently a revealing thought flashed through Tom's mind, and he exclaimed:
“夥伴們，我曉得是誰淹死了——就是咱們呀！”
"Boys, I know who's drownded--it's us!"
他們立刻覺得自己宛然成了英雄。這可是個可喜可賀的勝利。由此可見還有人惦記他們，有人哀悼他們，有人為他們傷心斷腸，有人為他們痛哭流涕。那些人一想到自己曾經對這幾個失蹤的苦孩子怎麼怎麼不好，良心上就會受到譴責，就會愧疚不已，可是悔之晚矣。頂頂重要的是，全鎮子的男女老少一定都在談論這幾個淹死的人，而別的孩子見他們如此聲名顯赫，既羡慕又忌妒。這真不賴。一句話，海盜當得值！
They felt like heroes in an instant. Here was a gorgeous triumph; they were missed; they were mourned; hearts were breaking on their account; tears were being shed; accusing memories of unkindness to these poor lost lads were rising up, and unavailing regrets and remorse were being indulged; and best of all, the departed were the talk of the whole town, and the envy of all the boys, as far as this dazzling notoriety was concerned. This was fine. It was worth while to be a pirate, after all.
天色向晚，渡船又回到鎮口擺渡去了，其餘的小船也不見了。海盜們也回到了宿營地。他們想到自己新得的榮耀，想到給鎮裡人惹的響噹當的麻煩，感到心滿意足高興極了。他們捉了魚，做了晚飯吃罷後，就猜想起鎮裡人會怎麼想他們，會怎麼說；想象着人們為他們心急火燎的情形，心裡十分滿意——當然這是他們自己的感覺。可是，當茫茫夜色罩住大地，他們就漸漸停止了談話，坐在那裡，望着火堆，心不在焉。這會兒，興奮勁兒過去了，湯姆和喬不由自主地想起了家裡的某些人對這樣過火的玩笑決不會像他們那樣覺得開心。一陣恐懼襲上心頭。他們不安起來，心情沉重，情不自禁地嘆了一兩口氣。後來喬膽怯地抹着彎兒試探另外兩個海盜的意思，想知道他們對回到文明世界去抱什麼態度——不過不是馬上就回去，只是——
As twilight drew on, the ferryboat went back to her accustomed business and the skiffs disappeared. The pirates returned to camp. They were jubilant with vanity over their new grandeur and the illustrious trouble they were making. They caught fish, cooked supper and ate it, and then fell to guessing at what the village was thinking and saying about them; and the pictures they drew of the public distress on their account were gratifying to look upon--from their point of view. But when the shadows of night closed them in, they gradually ceased to talk, and sat gazing into the fire, with their minds evidently wandering elsewhere. The excitement was gone, now, and Tom and Joe could not keep back thoughts of certain persons at home who were not enjoying this fine frolic as much as they were. Misgivings came; they grew troubled and unhappy; a sigh or two escaped, unawares. By and by Joe timidly ventured upon a roundabout "feeler" as to how the others might look upon a return to civilization--not right now, but--
湯姆奚落了他一番，給他兜頭潑了瓢冷水。尚未加盟的哈克現在站在了湯姆一邊。於是那個動搖分子馬上為自己“辯護”，極力開脫自己，不想被膽小、想家的毛病損害了自家形象。叛亂總算暫時平定了下來。
Tom withered him with derision! Huck, being uncommitted as yet, joined in with Tom, and the waverer quickly "explained," and was glad to get out of the scrape with as little taint of chicken-hearted home-sickness clinging to his garments as he could. Mutiny was effectually laid to rest for the moment.
夜色漸深，哈克打起盹來，不久便鼾聲大作。喬也跟着進入了夢鄉。湯姆用胳膊肘支着頭，定睛看著他倆，很長時間，一動不動。最後，他雙膝撐地小翼翼地站起來，在草地裡和篝火的閃亮處搜尋。他撿起幾塊半圓形的梧桐樹的白色薄皮，仔細看了看，最後選中兩塊中意的。然後他就在火堆旁跪下，用他那塊紅硯石在樹皮上吃力地寫了幾個字；他把一塊捲起來，放到上衣口袋裏，另一塊放在喬的帽子裡，他把帽子挪遠了一點後又在裡面放了些被小學生視為無價之寶的東西——一截粉筆；一個橡皮球；三個釣魚鈎和一塊叫做“純水晶球”的石頭。然後他就踮着腳尖，非常謹慎地從樹林中溜出去，直到後來他認為別人已經聽不見他的腳步，就立刻飛腳向沙灘那邊直跑過去。
As the night deepened, Huck began to nod, and presently to snore. Joe followed next. Tom lay upon his elbow motionless, for some time, watching the two intently. At last he got up cautiously, on his knees, and went searching among the grass and the flickering reflections flung by the campfire. He picked up and inspected several large semi-cylinders of the thin white bark of a sycamore, and finally chose two which seemed to suit him. Then he knelt by the fire and painfully wrote something upon each of these with his "red keel"; one he rolled up and put in his jacket pocket, and the other he put in Joe's hat and removed it to a little distance from the owner. And he also put into the hat certain schoolboy treasures of almost inestimable value--among them a lump of chalk, an India-rubber ball, three fishhooks, and one of that kind of marbles known as a "sure 'nough crystal." Then he tiptoed his way cautiously among the trees till he felt that he was out of hearing, and straightway broke into a keen run in the direction of the sandbar.