Charlotte and Wilbur were alone. Wilbur lay resting after the excitement and strain of the ceremony. His medal still hung from his neck; by looking out of the corner of his eye he could see it.
夏洛和威尔伯单独待着。经过颁奖典礼上一番兴奋和紧张后，威尔伯躺下来休息。他的奖章仍然挂在脖子上，通过眼角的余光就能看到它。
8220;Charlotte, 8221; said Wilbur after a while, 8220;why are you so quiet? 8221;
“夏洛，”过了一会儿威尔伯说，“你为什么这么安静?”
8220;I like to sit still, 8221; she said. 8221;I 8217;ve always been rather quiet. 8221;
“我喜欢静静地坐着，”她说。“我一直都十分安静?”
8220;Yes, but you seem specially so today. Do you feel all right? 8221;
“是的，但今天你似乎出奇地安静。你感觉还好吗?”
8220;A little tired, perhaps. But I feel peaceful. Your success in the ring this morning was to a small degree, my success.Your future is assured. You will live, secure and safe, Wilbur. Nothing can harm you now. These autumn days will shorten and grow cold. The leaves will shake loose from the trees and fall. Christmas will come, then the snows of winter. You will live to enjoy the beauty of the frozen world, for you mean a great deal to Zuckerman and he will not harm you, ever. Winter will pass, the days will lengthen, the ice will melt in the pasture pond. The song sparrow will return and sing, the frogs will awake, the warm wind will blow again. All these sights and sounds and smells will be yours to enjoy, Wilbur 8211;this lovely world, these precious days 8230;”
也许有点儿累吧。但我觉得很平静。今天早上你在围栏里的成功，在小小的程度上也是我的成功。你的未来有保证了。你将生活得十分安全，威尔伯。现在没有什么能伤害你。秋天的白昼会缩短，天气会变冷。叶子将从树上松动落下。圣诞节即将来临，之后是冬天的飘雪。你将活着享受冰天雪地的美景，因为对于朱克曼先生来说，你意义重大，他不会伤害你的，永远不会。冬天会过去，白昼会延长，牧场池塘上的冰将融化。篱雀将飞回来歌唱，青蛙要苏醒，温暖的风会再次吹起。所有这些景象、声音和香气都将供你享受，威尔伯—这个美好的世界，这些珍贵的日子……”
Charlotte stopped. A moment later a tear came to Wilbur 8217;s eye. 8220;Oh, Charlotte, 8221; he said. 8220;To think that when I first met you I thought you were cruel and bloodthirsty! 8221;
夏洛停了下来。不一会儿，眼泪涌入了威尔伯的眼眶。“哦，夏洛，”他说，“想当初第一次见到你，我还以为你很残忍，嗜血成性呢!”
When he recovered from his emotion, he spoke again.
等他从情绪中恢复过来，他又说话了。