童謠

Lizzie Borden

Lizzie Borden took an axe,
Hit her father forty whacks.
When she saw what she had done,
She hit her mother forty-one.

裏茲·波頓拿起斧頭
打了她爸爸四十下
當她看見自己所做的一切
她又打了她媽媽四十一下

When a good King Arthur rule this land

When good King Arthur ruled this land,
He was a goodly king;
He stole three pecks of barley-meal
To make a bag-pudding.
當亞瑟王統治這片土地的時候
他是一位優秀的國王
他偷了三配克大麥粗粉
為了做一個大布丁

A bag-pudding the king did make,
And stuffed it well with plum;
And in it put great lumps of fat,
As big as my two thumbs.

國王做的大布丁
塞滿了李子乾
還放進了一塊大奶油
像我的兩個拇指那麼大

The king and queen did eat thereof,
And noblemen beside;
And what they could not eat that night,
The queen next morning fried.

國王和皇后吃了該吃的那份
吃了身邊貴族們的那份，
還吃了那天晚上不該吃的那份，
第二天早上皇后被油煎了

There was a lady all skin and bone

There was a lady all skin and bone,
Sure such a lady was never known:
It happened upon a certain day,
This lady went to church to pray.

從前有個皮包骨頭的女人，
當然你從沒聽說過這樣的女人：
一切發生在某一天，
這位女士去教堂作禱告。

When she came to the church stile,
There she did rest a little while;
When she came to the church yard,
There the hells so loud she heard.

當她來到教堂階梯，
她停了一小會；
當她來到教堂墓園，
她聽見地獄的呻吟聲是如此響亮。

When she came to the church door,
She stopped to rest a little more;
When she came the church within,
The parson prayed ’gainst pride and sin.

當她來到教堂的門口，
她又停了一會；
當她進入教堂，
牧師正抗拒著虛榮與罪惡作著禱告。

On looking up, on looking down,
She saw a dead man on the ground;
And from his nose unto his chin,
The worms crawled out,
the worms crawled in.

上看，下看，
她看見一個死人躺在地上；
從他的鼻子到下巴，
蛆們爬出，
蛆們蠕進。

Then she unto the parson said,
Shall I be so when I am dead?
O yes!
O yes, the parson said,
You will be so when you are dead.

然後她對牧師?，
我死後會變成這樣嗎？
噢，是的！
噢，是的，牧師說道，
你死後就會變成這樣。

There was a man, a very untidy man

There was a man,
a very untidy man,
Whose fingers could nowhere to be fonud
to put in his tomb.
He had rolled his head far underneath the bed;
He had left his legs
and arms lying all over the room.

從前有個男子
一個非常不整潔的男子
他的手指無法被尋到
以放進他的墓中。
他把頭滾落到床下
四肢散落在房間裏。

(end)