In the dark they came up the hill through the timber to the narrow pass at the top. They were all loaded heavily and they climbed slowly. The horses had loads too, packed over the saddles.
"We can cut them loose if it is necessary," Pilar had said. "But with that, if we can keep it, we can make another camp."
"And the rest of the ammunition1?" Robert Jordan had asked as they lashed2 the packs.
"In those saddlebags."
Robert Jordan felt the weight of his heavy pack, the dragging on his neck from the pull of his jacket with its pockets full of grenades, the weight of his pistol against his thigh3, and the bulging4 of his trouser pockets where the clips for the submachine gun were. In his mouth was the taste of the coffee, in his right hand he carried the submachine gun and with his left hand he reached and pulled up the collar of his jacket to ease the pull of the pack straps5.
"_Ingl廥_," Pablo said to him, walking close beside him in the dark.
"What, man?"
"These I have brought think this is to be successful because I have brought them," Pablo said. "Do not say anything to disillusion6 them."
"Good," Robert Jordan said. "But let us make it successful."
"They have five horses, _sabes?_" Pablo said cautiously.
"Good," said Robert Jordan. "We will keep all the horses together."
"Good," said Pablo, and nothing more.
I didn't think you had experienced any complete conversion7 on the road to Tarsus, old Pablo, Robert Jordan thought. No. Your coming back was miracle enough. I don't think there will ever be any problem about canonizing you.
"With those five I will deal with the lower post as well as Sordo would have," Pablo said. "I will cut the wire and fall back upon the bridge as we convened8."
We went over this all ten minutes ago, Robert Jordan thought. I wonder why this now--
"There is a possibility of making it to Gredos," Pablo said. "Truly, I have thought much of it."
I believe you've had another flash in the last few minutes, Robert Jordan said to himself. You have had another revelation. But you're not going to convince me that I am invited. No, Pablo. Do not ask me to believe too much.
Ever since Pablo had come into the cave and said he had five men Robert Jordan felt increasingly better. Seeing Pablo again had broken the pattern of tragedy into which the whole operation had seemed grooved9 ever since the snow, and since Pablo had been back he felt not that his luck had turned, since he did not believe in luck, but that the whole thing had turned for the better and that now it was possible. Instead of the surety of failure he felt confidence rising in him as a tire begins to fill with air from a slow pump. There was little difference at first, although there was a definite beginning, as when the pump starts and the rubber of the tube crawls a little, but it came now as steadily10 as a tide rising or the sap rising in a tree until he began to feel the first edge of that negation11 of apprehension12 that often turned into actual happiness before action.
This was the greatest gift that he had, the talent that fitted him for war; that ability not to ignore but to despise whatever bad ending there could be. This quality was destroyed by too much responsibility for others or the necessity of undertaking13 something ill planned or badly conceived. For in such things the bad ending, failure, could not be ignored. It was not simply a possibility of harm to one's self, which _could_ be ignored. He knew he himself was nothing, and he knew death was nothing. He knew that truly, as truly as he knew anything. In the last few days he had learned that he himself, with another person, could be everything. But inside himself he knew that this was the exception. That we have had, he thought. In that I have been most fortunate. That was given to me, perhaps, because I never asked for it. That cannot be taken away nor lost. But that is over and done with now on this morning and what there is to do now is our work.
And you, he said to himself, I am glad to see you getting a little something back that was badly missing for a time. But you were pretty bad back there. I was ashamed enough of you, there for a while. Only I was you. There wasn't any me to judge you. We were all in bad shape. You and me and both of us. Come on now. Quit thinking like a schizophrenic. One at a time, now. You're all right again now. But listen, you must not think of the girl all day ever. You can do nothing now to protect her except to keep her out of it, and that you are doing. There are evidently going to be plenty of horses if you can believe the signs. The best thing you can do for her is to do the job well and fast and get out, and thinking of her will only handicap you in this. So do not think of her ever.
Having thought this out he waited until Maria came up walking with Pilar and Rafael and the horses.
"Hi, _guapa_," he said to her in the dark, "how are you?"
"I am well, Roberto," she said.
"Don't worry about anything," he said to her and shifting the gun to his left hand he put a hand on her shoulder.
"I do not," she said.
"It is all very well organized," he told her. "Rafael will be with thee with the horses."
"I would rather be with thee."
"Nay. The horses is where thou art most useful."
"Good," she said. "There I will be."
Just then one of the horses whinnied and from the open place below the opening through the rocks a horse answered, the neigh rising into a shrill14 sharply broken quaver.
Robert Jordan saw the bulk of the new horses ahead in the dark. He pressed forward and came up to them with Pablo. The men were standing15 by their mounts.
"_Salud_," Robert Jordan said.
"_Salud_," they answered in the dark. He could not see their faces.
"This is the _Ingl廥_ who comes with us," Pablo said. "The dynamiter16."
No one said anything to that. Perhaps they nodded in the dark.
"Let us get going, Pablo," one man said. "Soon we will have the daylight on us."
"Did you bring any more grenades?" another asked.
"Plenty," said Pablo. "Supply yourselves when we leave the animals."
"Then let us go," another said. "We've been waiting here half the night."
"_Hola_, Pilar," another said as the woman came up.
"_Que me maten_, if it is not Pepe," Pilar said huskily. "How are you, shepherd?"
"Good," said the man. "_Dentro de la gravedad_."
"What are you riding?" Pilar asked him.
"The gray of Pablo," the man said. "It is much horse."
"Come on," another man said. "Let us go. There is no good in gossiping here."
"How art thou, Elicio?" Pilar said to him as he mounted.
"How would I be?" he said rudely. "Come on, woman, we have work to do."
Pablo mounted the big bay horse.
"Keep thy mouths shut and follow me," he said. "I will lead you to the place where we will leave the horses."
他们在黑暗中穿迓树林爬上山坡，来到山顶一条羊肠小道。他们全都背着沉重的装备,缓慢地爬山。马鞍上也驮着东西。
“必要的时候我们可以抛弃辎重，”比拉尔说。“不过，如果能够保存下来，我们可以用来再立一个营地，“
“其他弹药呢？”他们用绳子捆紧包裹的时候,罗均特‘乔丹问。
“在马褡子里，“
罗伯特‘乔丹感到沉甸甸的背包的重贽，感到口袋里装葙了手榴弹的上衣牵勒着他的脖子，惑到手枪貼着他大腿的重量，感到装着手提机枪子弹夹的裤袋饱鼓鼓的。他嘴里有着咖啡味，他右手提着手提机枪，伸出左手，把上衣领子拉起，来减轻一点背包带子的牵勒。
“英国人，”巴勃罗对他说，在黑暗中紧靠他身边走着。“什么事，伙计我带来的这些人以为这“回事情干得成，因为我把他们带来了，”巴勃罗说。“别说什么叫他们泄气的话。”
“好，”罗伯特，乔丹说。“我们来把事情干成吧。”“他们有五匹马，知道吗?”巴勃罗谨慎地说。“好。”罗伯特 乔丹说。“我们把所有的马都集中在一起。”“好，”巴勃罗说，就不再说什么了。穸祸特〃乔丹想 老巴勃穸哬,我看你不象在去塔尔苏斯路上的圣保罗那样真正回心转意吧①。不。你回来就是一个奇迹。看来把你奉为圣徒是没有什么问题的。
“我带这五个人去对付下面的哨所，能干得跟‘聋子’一般好，”巴勃罗说。“我先切断电线，再回头向桥头靠拢，照我们协议的办法干。”
罗伯特 乔丹想！十分钟之前我们已经全郝讨论过了 我不知道为什么现在一
“我们有可能转移到格雷多斯山区去，”巴勃罗说。“说真的，这问题我动了不少脑筋。”
罗伯特‘乔丹对自己说。”我看你脑子里在这最后几分钟内叉闪现出什么念头了。你又看到启示了。①但是你别打算使我相信你欢迎我一起去，不，巴勃罗。别指望我对你具有太多的信任。
①塔尔苏斯在今土耳其南部，滨东地中海，为保罗的诞生地。页注中曾提到他是在去大马士革的略上桩耶穌显灵所感化的，此处显系作者笔
巴勃罗进山洞来说他带来了五个人之后，罗伯特’乔丹的心情变得越来越好。巴勃罗的再次出现打硖了下雪以来整个行动计划显然要搁浅的悲剧格局；巴勃罗回来后，他并不以为自己的运气好转了，因为他不信运气，但是现在整个情况显得好转了，桥是炸得成了。他感到的不再是肯定会失败，而是鼓起了信心，就象气泵使车胎慢慢地充气一样。就象气泵开始打气的时候，橡皮轮胎的表面辋动起来那样，起先没有显著的差别，虽然有了明显的苗头，可是这信心象上涨的潮水或树身内升起的汁液般不断浦起，直到他开始感到接近不再疑惧的边缘，这种心情常会转化成行动前的真正喜悦。
这是他所具备的最大天赋，这种才能使他适宜参加战争，这就是蔑视而不是忽视可能出现的坏结局的能力。如果对别人怀着过多的责任感，或者不得不执行计划不周或设想不当的任务，这种能力就会被抵销，因为在这些事情上坏结局和失败是不应忽视的。这还不单是可能损害自己的问题，这是可。忽视的。他知道他个人无足轻重，死亡无足轻重。他确实认识到这一点，就象他确实知道别的事情一样。在最后的几天里，他明白他自己和另外一个人一起就等于一切了。但是他心里知道这是个例外。他想。我们经历过了。就这方面来说，我是最最幸运的，我所以被给与这一切，也许就是因为我从没争取过吧。这是无法夺走，也不会丢失的。但是在今天早晨，这一切都过去了，结束了，现在马上要干的就是我们的任务。
①乔丹这时又在把巴勃罗比怍圣保罗
你啊,他对自己说,我髙兴见到你重新得到了一度缺少的东西。可是你在那边表现得真糟。①我真为你羞愧。不过我就是你啊,我没有资格来评判你。我们俩的处境都很糟。你和我，我们俩都这样。得啦。别象双重性格的人般胡思乱想了。一个一个来吧。现在你又正常了。可是听着，你决不能再整天惦念着那姑娘了。你现在要保护她,除了别让她卷进战斗以外,别无他法，而你现在正在这样做。如果你相信种种迹象，显然会有很多马儿需要看管。你为她所能做的最好的事情，就是快些把桥炸掉,撤离此地,惦念着她只会妨碍你炸桥，所以别再想她了。得出了这个结论，他等玛丽亚跟比拉尔和拉斐尔牵着马走
“哏，漂亮的姑娘，”他在黑暗中对她说，“你好吗?”“我很好，罗伯托，”她说。
“什么也别愁。”他对她说-他把机枪移到左手里，伸出右手放在她肩上。
“我不愁，”她说。
“一切都安徘得很好，”他对她说。“拉斐尔和你一起看马。”
“我宁愿跟你在一起。”
“不。最需要你干的事是看马，“
“好吧“她说。“我去。”
正在这时,有匹马嘶叫起来，下面空地上有匹马哨应着，声音穿过岩石的缺口传来,响得象一阵尖苈的断续的震颤声。罗伯特 乔丹看到前面黑魆魆的一群马。他赶紧走上前去跟巴勃罗一起来到馬群跟前。那些人正站在他们的坐骑旁边。“你们好，”罗伯特，乔丹说。“你好，”那些人在黑暗中回答。他看不清他们的脸。“这就是跟我们一伙的英国人，”巴勃罗说。〃爆硖手。“谁也不笞话。也许他们在黑暗中点头吧。“我们动身走吧，巴劫罗，”有一个人说。“天快亮了。”“你们带来了手榷弹吗?”另“个问。“有很多，”巴勃罗说。“等我们撇下了马儿，你们自己取用吧。”
①指潸霣和玛丽亚一起在睡袋中时思前想后，独自发愁，现在恢复了倌心，应该摆脱一切杂念，执行任务。
“那我们走吧，”另一个说。“我们在这儿等了半夜啦。”
"喂，比拉尔，”妇人走上前来的时候，另一个说。
“哎呀，那不是佩贝吗？”比拉尔声音嘶哑地说。“你好吗，羊倌?”
“好，”那人说。"还能凑合。”
“你骑的什么马？”比拉尔间他。
“巴勃罗的灰马。”那人说。“这匹马真带劲。”
“得啦，”另一个说。“我们走吧。在这里扯淡可不行。”
“你好啊，埃利西奥，”那人上马的时候，比拉尔对他说。
“我会好到哪里去？〃他粗魯地说。“走吧，大娘。我们忙着
呢。”
巴勃罗跨上了那匹大栗色马乡
“你们把嘴闭上，跟着我走。“他说。“我带你们到该下马步行的地方去。”
收听单词发音 |
1
ammunition
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| n.军火，弹药 | |
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lashed
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| adj.具睫毛的v.鞭打( lash的过去式和过去分词 )；煽动；紧系；怒斥 | |
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3
thigh
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| n.大腿；股骨 | |
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4
bulging
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| 膨胀； 凸出（部）； 打气； 折皱 | |
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5
straps
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| n.带子( strap的名词复数 )；挎带；肩带；背带v.用皮带捆扎( strap的第三人称单数 )；用皮带抽打；包扎；给…打绷带 | |
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6
disillusion
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| vt.使不再抱幻想，使理想破灭 | |
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7
conversion
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| n.转化，转换，转变 | |
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8
convened
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| 召开( convene的过去式 )； 召集； （为正式会议而）聚集； 集合 | |
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9
grooved
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| v.沟( groove的过去式和过去分词 )；槽；老一套；（某种）音乐节奏 | |
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steadily
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| adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地 | |
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negation
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| n.否定；否认 | |
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12
apprehension
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| n.理解，领悟；逮捕，拘捕；忧虑 | |
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undertaking
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| n.保证，许诺，事业 | |
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shrill
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| adj.尖声的；刺耳的；v尖叫 | |
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15
standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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dynamiter
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| n.炸药使用者（尤指革命者） | |
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