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How the young Winston Churchill escaped from a prisoner-of-war camp

And what his unlikely tale reveals about imperialism

imperialism：帝国主义；

这位未来的首相坐在煤矿的底部，手里拿着一瓶威士忌。他从战俘营逃出来，被藏在火车上，在偏僻的地方跳了下来。敌人正在追捕他。如果被抓到，他将再次被关起来;那些帮助过他的人会被枪杀。

The future prime minister sat at the bottom of a coalmine, clutching a bottle of whisky. He had fled from a prisoner-of-war camp, stowed aboard a train and jumped off in the middle of nowhere. The enemy were hunting for him. If caught, he would be locked up again; those who had helped him would be shot.

stow：vt. 把…收好;妥善放置；stow aboard=stow away:偷偷藏匿或潜藏；‘’

想要成功逃跑并不容易，因为他显眼得有点可笑：一个在非洲的红头发英国人，不懂当地语言。“通缉令”海报嘲笑他“弯腰弓背的步态”和“几乎看不见的小胡子”。

Escape would be tricky. He was absurdly conspicuous: a red-headed Englishman in Africa, who knew none of the local languages. “Wanted” posters mocked his “stooping gait” and “almost invisible moustache”.

absurdly：荒谬地;可笑地;

tricky：棘手的;狡猾的;难办的;诡计多端的;难对付的;

conspicuous：明显的;引人注目的;易见的;惹人注意的;

stooping：弯腰;俯身;(站立或行走时)弓背;

gait：步态;步法;

invisible：adj. 看不见的;无形的(与服务而非商品有关);隐形的;

然而，温斯顿·丘吉尔确实逃脱了，并将他在 1899 年至 1902 年第二次英布尔战争期间的功绩变成了一个开启他政治生涯的故事。这个不可思议的故事揭示了很多关于战争、新闻和历史的信息。

Yet Winston Churchill did escape, and spun his exploits during the second Anglo-Boer war of 1899-1902 into a tale of derring-do that launched his political career. This improbable story reveals a great deal about war, journalism and history.

spun： 纺(线);(使)快速旋转;(使)急转身，猛转回头，急转弯;

exploits：n. 功绩，业绩；壮举（exploit 的复数）;

Anglo-Boer war：发生在南非的英布战争；

derring-do：n. 英勇行为;大胆冒险行为;

improbable： 不可能的;不大可能的;奇异的;荒谬的;不大可能真实的(或发生的);

journalism：新闻业;新闻工作;

英国人民对丘吉尔的钦佩胜过任何其他首相，因为他挺身而出，对抗侵略性的帝国主义强国纳粹德国。然而，他是英帝国主义的终生粉丝。作为一名年轻的黑客，他去报道现在南非的战争，他确信他的国家尽管有种种缺陷，但仍然是正确的。今天，当英国和法国为他们的帝国历史而苦恼时，前殖民地试图超越它，弗拉基米尔·普京（Vladimir Putin）试图重建俄罗斯帝国，这个故事值得重温。

British people admire Churchill more than any other prime minister, because he stood up to an aggressive imperial power, Nazi Germany. Of British imperialism, however, he was a lifelong fan. As a young hack he went to cover the war in what is now South Africa convinced that his country, for all its flaws, was in the right. Today, as Britain and France agonise over their imperial history, former colonies try to move beyond it and Vladimir Putin spills lakes of blood trying to recreate Russia’s empire, the tale bears revisiting.

agonise：使痛苦;苦闷;

spills：(使)洒出，泼出，溢出;涌出;蜂拥而出;

revisiting：重游;再次讨论;重提;再访;

bear：此处适合翻译为——值得，禁得起；

英布尔战争的开始是因为布尔人（17世纪开始抵达南部非洲的荷兰定居者的后裔）不想屈服于英国的统治，也因为英国人渴望夺取或至少镇压布尔国家，挑衅了他们。在德兰士瓦共和国（两个布尔国家之一）发现的黄金提高了赌注，吸引了英国矿工。由于害怕被征服，布尔人袭击了英国的前哨基地。帝国反击了。在随后的三年大屠杀中，双方都没有为他们所争夺的土地上的大多数人口——非洲黑人——考虑太多。

The Anglo-Boer war started because the Boers (descendants of Dutch settlers who began arriving in southern Africa in the 17th century) did not want to submit to British rule and because the British, eager to seize or at least suppress the Boer states, provoked them. The discovery of gold in the Transvaal Republic (one of two Boer states) raised the stakes, attracting British miners. Fearing conquest, the Boers attacked British outposts. The empire struck back. During three years of carnage that followed, neither side spared much thought for the majority of the population of the land they were fighting over: the black Africans.

Transvaal Republic：德兰士瓦共和国——荷兰后裔布尔人在南非建立的国家；

outpost：前哨(基地);偏远村镇;孤零住区;

strike back：反击；

carnage：大屠杀；

丘吉尔于 1899 年 10 月抵达开普敦，带着一名男仆、一批优质葡萄酒和来自《晨报》的一份每月 250 英镑（相当于今天的26,500英镑或33,500美元）的雇佣合同。这笔费用“我认为，比以前英国新闻业支付给战地记者的任何报酬都高，”他后来在《我的早年生活》中写道。

Churchill arrived in Cape Town in October 1899 with a valet, a supply of fine wines and a contract from the Morning Post for £250 a month (£26,500 or $33,500 today). This rate was “higher, I think, than any previously paid in British journalism to war correspondents,” he later wrote in “My Early Life”.

valet：贴身仆人；

Morning Post：伦敦的《晨报》；

rate：费用；

这样的一个狂妄小子是如何获得如此丰厚的报酬的呢？你可能会怀疑到裙带关系：他的父亲是财政大臣，他的堂兄是马尔堡公爵。但事实上，丘吉尔不仅是一位伟大的作家（他后来获得了诺贝尔文学奖），而且还愿意承担非凡的风险，让《晨报》引发轰动效应，为自己赢得名声。此前，他已经报道了印度和苏丹的两场战争，并获得了广泛的赞誉。他有时听起来好像不太认为子弹会杀死他。“我不相信众神会为了如此平淡无奇的结局创造出像我这样强大的存在，”他写信给母亲。

How did such a whippersnapper secure so fabulous a deal? You might suspect nepotism: his father had been Chancellor of the Exchequer, his cousin was the Duke of Marlborough. But in truth Churchill was not only a great writer (he later won the Nobel prize for literature), but also willing to take extraordinary risks to make a splash for the Post and a name for himself. He had already covered two wars, in India and Sudan, to widespread acclaim. He sometimes sounded as if he did not think a bullet could kill him. “I do not believe the Gods would create so potent a being as myself for so prosaic an ending,” he wrote to his mother.

whippersnapper：狂妄小子；

nepotism：裙带关系;任人唯亲;

Exchequer：国库;(英国)财政部;金库;公共财源;

Chancellor：(德国或奥地利的)总理;(某些美国大学的)校长;议长;(英国大学的)名誉校长;（用于英国某些高级政府官员的头衔）; Chancellor of the Exchequer：财政大臣;英国财政大臣;国库大臣;

splash：泼洒;把(水、泥等)泼在…上，溅在…上;哗啦哗啦地溅;朝…上泼(或溅);(在水中)溅着水花行走，拍打着水游;用（泼洒色斑）装饰;噼里啪啦地落;

make a splash：引人注目;引起轰动;

acclaim：n. (尤指对艺术成就的)称誉，高度评价;

widespread：adj. 广泛的;普遍的;分布广的;

potent： 强有力的，有影响力的;（议论等）有说服力的;浓烈的;（药品等）有强效的;（男子）有性能力的;

prosaic：adj. 平淡的;乏味的;无聊的;平庸的;没有诗意(或美感)的;

In wars past he had served both as a journalist and an officer, killing perhaps four men in India and half a dozen in Sudan. This dual role had presented a conflict of interest: that he might favour actions that generated headlines over those that were militarily wise. He also criticised superior officers in print. The War Office found him so insufferable that it banned all correspondents in subsequent wars from being soldiers.

在过去的战争中，他既当过记者，也当过军官，在印度杀死了大约四名男子，在苏丹杀死了六名男子。这种双重角色带来了利益冲突：他可能偏爱那些成为头条新闻的行动，而不是那些在军事上明智的行动。他还在印刷品上批评了上级军官。陆军部发现他非常难以忍受，以至于在随后的战争中禁止所有记者成为士兵。

presented：提出;(以某种方式)展现，显示，表现;提交;颁发;授予;把…交给;

favour：支持;赞同;帮助;偏袒;偏爱;恩惠;好事;特别照顾;

War Office：陆军部;

insufferable： 难以忍受的;难以容忍的;

subsequent： 随后的;之后的;后来的;接后的;

因此，丘吉尔以一个不那么谦虚的抄写员的身份开始了布尔战争。他直奔行动，经德班冲向前线附近的“一个只有几百名居民的价值不大的黑人小镇”埃斯特考特。

So Churchill began the Boer war as a not-so-humble scribe. He headed straight for the action, dashing to Estcourt, “a tiny tin township of a few hundred inhabitants” near the front line, via Durban.

scribe：抄写员;(印刷术发明之前的)抄书吏;

tin：锡，此处应翻译为“价值不大的”；

township：n. 镇区(美国和加拿大县以下一级的地方政府);(旧时南非的)黑人城镇，黑人居住区;

inhabitant： 居民;(某地的)栖息动物;

他开始让比他年长的军官“从他的意见中受益”，正如坎迪斯·米勒德在《帝国英雄》中所说的那样。埃斯特考特有被 10,000 名骑马的布尔人切断的危险。英国指挥官查尔斯·朗上校想撤退，丘吉尔告诉他说：“撤退，将是“一个愚蠢的错误”。”《卫报》记者约翰·阿特金斯（John Atkins）对丘吉尔“毫不掩饰的自信”感到惊讶。朗上校呆在原地。

He started giving officers older than himself “the benefit of his opinion”, as Candice Millard puts it in “Hero of Empire”. Estcourt was in danger of being cut off by 10,000 mounted Boers. The British commander, Colonel Charles Long, wanted to retreat. That would be “a blunder”, Churchill told him. John Atkins, the Guardian correspondent, marvelled at Churchill’s “unblushing self-assurance”. Colonel Long stayed put.

mounted：安装在…上的;安装好的;骑马的;装裱好的;

blunder：(愚蠢或粗心)的错误;

marvel：v. 感到惊奇;大为赞叹;

unblushing：不脸红的，不知羞耻的，不知掩饰的；

self-assurance：自信;胸有成竹;

stay put： 固定不动;呆在原地;

丘吉尔加入了侦察列车，尽管他认为这次任务是愚蠢的。“只需要炸毁一座桥梁或涵洞，列车就废了，”他写道。“我们的指挥官似乎并没有考虑到这些情况。”

Churchill joined a reconnaissance train, though he thought the mission foolish. “It was only necessary to blow up a bridge or culvert to leave the monster stranded,” he wrote. “This situation did not seem to have occurred to our commander.”

reconnaissance：n. 侦察;

blow up:（使）炸毁;（使）爆炸;放大（照片等）;引爆;给（气球）充气;给（轮胎）打气;大发雷霆;发怒;（使）夸大;（风、暴风雨）大作;（使）言过其实;

culvert: 涵洞;(道路下面的)排水管；

strand：vt. 搁浅;使滞留;

果不其然，火车遭到伏击，部分脱轨。在猛烈的炮火下，丘吉尔带头清理了铁轨，并将火车头和伤员送回了安全地带。然后他跑回战场，却发现他的战友们被杀或被俘。两个布尔人发现了他。丘吉尔跳进了一条浅沟。一个布尔人靠上来，摧毁了他的步枪。丘吉尔打算杀死他，伸手去拿他的毛瑟手枪，但他把它遗忘在了火车上。要么投降，要么死，所以他投降了，他安慰自己说，就算是拿破仑也可能会做同样的事情。

Sure enough, the train was ambushed and partially derailed. Under heavy fire, Churchill led efforts to clear the tracks and send the engine back to safety with wounded men on board. He then ran back to the battle, but found that his comrades had been killed or captured. Two Boers spotted him. Churchill leapt into a shallow ditch. One Boer rode up and levelled his rifle. Intending to kill him, Churchill reached for his Mauser pistol, but he had left it on the train. It was surrender or die, so he surrendered, comforting himself that Napoleon would probably have done the same.

Sure enough： 果真，果然(尤用在讲故事时)；

ambush：伏击；

lead effort to：带头做某事；

engine：火车头；

on board：在车上，在船上；

ditch：沟;渠;

level：摧毁；

rifle：步枪;来复枪;

Mauser：毛瑟;毛瑟枪;

在接下来的几天里，丘吉尔要求以记者的身份释放他。布尔人拒绝了，并引用了英国报纸的报道，这些报道清楚地表明他在小规模冲突中是一名战斗人员。（“丘吉尔先生的英雄主义”读了一个标题。此外，正如一位布尔人所说：“我们不会放过你的，老家伙......我们不是每天都能抓到贵族的儿子。

For the next few days Churchill demanded that as a journalist he be released. The Boers refused, citing British newspaper accounts that made clear he had been a combatant during the skirmish. (“MR CHURCHILL’S HEROISM” read one headline.) Also, as one Boer put it: “We are not going to let you go, old chappie...We don’t catch the son of a lord every day.”

combatant： 战斗人员;战士;参战者;

skirmish： 小冲突;小规模战斗;(尤指)遭遇战;(尤指政治上对立双方的)小争执，小争论;

HEROISM： 英雄精神;英勇表现;

chappie：家伙;花花公子;伙伴;

Churchill was taken to Pretoria, the capital of Transvaal, and locked up with British officers in a converted school. “I certainly hated every minute of my captivity more than I have ever hated any other period in my whole life,” he wrote. “Luckily it was very short.”

丘吉尔被带到德兰士瓦首府比勒陀利亚，与英国军官一起被关在一所改建的学校里。“我当然比我一生中任何其他时期都更讨厌被囚禁的每一分钟，”他写道。“幸运的是，它很短。”

Pretoria： 比勒陀利亚;

converted：改变的，改建的；

captivity：囚禁;关押;监禁;困住;

他下定决心要越狱。其他囚犯对让他加入他们的越狱计划持谨慎态度，因为他“不合适，太有名了，而且他无法保守秘密”，正如米勒德女士所写的那样。但他也很有说服力。12 月 12 日，他通过谈话加入了一个阴谋，该阴谋涉及躲在厕所里，趁警卫不注意时爬墙。在他的同谋准备好之前，丘吉尔抢先逃跑了，警卫阻止他们跟上。丘吉尔自由但孤身一人，没有食物和指南针，不得不到达 500 公里外的葡属东非（今莫桑比克）的中立领土。

He resolved to break out. Other prisoners were wary of letting him join their escape plans, since he was “unfit, too famous and he couldn’t keep a secret”, as Ms Millard writes. But he was also persuasive. He talked his way into joining a plot that involved hiding in a toilet and scaling the wall when the guards were not looking, on December 12th. Churchill went first, before his co-plotters were ready, and guards prevented them from following. Free but alone and lacking food and a compass, he had to get to the neutral territory of Portuguese East Africa (now Mozambique), 500km away.

resolved：坚定;下定决心;

break out：摆脱;越狱;

wary： (对待人或事物时)小心的，谨慎的，留神的，小心翼翼的;警惕的;

unfit： 不适合的;不适宜的;不合格的;健康状况欠佳;(因病等)不能做某事，不宜做事;身体状态差;

persuasive:有说服力的，能使人信服的;劝说的，劝诱的;

plot：阴谋;密谋;

scaling：攀登;去鳞;刮除牙石;到达…顶点;

co-plotters：同谋者；

neutral：中性的;中立的;中立国的;持平的;素净的;无倾向性的;不含褒贬义的;

在黑暗的掩护下，他步行逃亡，口袋里装着75英镑和四块巧克力。“我在敌人国家的心脏地带......黎明时分他们肯定会知道我逃跑了，追捕将会立刻展开。他继续前进，到达铁路，等待火车。当它到来时，他猛地跳上火车，钻进了空煤袋里。

Under cover of darkness, he set off on foot, with £75 and four slabs of chocolate in his pocket. “I was in the heart of the enemy’s country…My escape must be known at dawn. Pursuit would be immediate.” He pressed on, reached the railway and waited for a train. When it came, he hurled himself aboard and burrowed in among the empty coal bags.

set off： 动身，出发，启程;引发，激起;引爆（炸弹）;衬托，使显得更漂亮;触发，拉响（警报等）;

slabs：厚板;厚片;厚块；

press on： 继续前进;坚定地继续;

hurl： 投掷;猛投;猛扔;猛摔;大声说出(辱骂或斥责等);呕吐;

burrowed：v. 挖掘(洞或洞穴通道);挖洞;(在…里)搜寻;使…钻到(…下面);偎依;

丘吉尔越狱后，他的狱友们为他打掩护，在他的毯子下塞了一个假人，假装他睡着了。不幸的是，丘吉尔已经预订了第二天早上布尔理发师的理发和剃须，却忘记了取消预约。他的缺席被注意到了。布尔人很生气，并为重新俘虏他开出了丰厚的奖金。

After Churchill escaped, his fellow prisoners covered for him, stuffing a dummy under his blankets and pretending he was asleep. Unfortunately Churchill had booked a haircut and shave from a Boer barber for the next morning and forgotten to cancel it. His absence was noticed. The Boers were livid, and offered a hefty reward for his recapture.

fellow：家伙;同事;同伴;会员;小伙子;（接受奖学金的）研究生;同类;(某些学院或大学的)董事;男人;男孩;同辈;哥儿们;配对物;

dummy： 笨蛋;(尤指缝制或陈列服装用的)人体模型;蠢货;仿制品;明手牌;橡皮奶嘴;假传球;仿造物;

livid：青灰色的;暴怒的;狂怒的;乌青色的;

hefty：高大健壮的，笨重的;巨大的，很大的;可观的;（尤指金钱）大量的，巨额的;大而重的;用力的，重重的;猛烈的;超出一般的;相当程度的;

recapture：夺回;重温;抓回;回忆;再次捕获;再体验;赢回;

丘吉尔睡在煤袋里。当他醒来时，他意识到他必须在黎明前跳下火车，否则就有可能被发现。他这样做是在当时叫威特班克（现在的埃马拉莱尼）的煤炭小镇附近。

Churchill slept among the coal sacks. When he awoke, he realised he would have to jump off the train before dawn, or risk discovery. He did so, near a coal town then called Witbank (now Emalahleni).

sack： 开除;床;抢劫，劫掠;(厚纸的)购物袋;麻布(或厚纸、塑料等)大袋;一大袋东西;一满袋;

约翰·伯德（John Bird）是当地历史爱好者，他根据自己对景观的了解和对丘吉尔作品的仔细阅读，准确地绘制了他认为接下来发生的事情。他向记者展示了火车减速的轨道弯道，让丘吉尔跳了下来;他贪婪地喝水的水池和第二天躲在树林中的山丘。“我唯一的同伴，”丘吉尔抱怨道，“是一只巨大的秃鹫，它对我的状况表现出极大的兴趣。今天，这座山是一个尚未开放的野生动物保护区的一部分。

John Bird, a local history buff, has mapped exactly what he thinks happened next, based on his knowledge of the landscape and a close reading of Churchill’s works. He showed your correspondent the bend in the tracks where the train slowed down, allowing Churchill to jump off; the pool of water from which he drank voraciously and the hill where he spent the next day hiding among the trees. “My sole companion”, Churchill griped, “was a gigantic vulture, who manifested an extravagant interest in my condition.” Today the hill is part of a not-yet-opened game park.

buff： 爱好者;米色;行家里手;坚韧的黄褐色软皮革;浅黄褐色;

voraciously：贪婪的;贪婪地;狼吞虎咽地;

griped：抱怨;发牢骚;

gigantic： 巨大的;庞大的;

vulture： 秃鹫;兀鹫;乘人之危的人;趁火打劫的人;

manifest： 表明;显示;显现;清楚显示(尤指情感、态度或品质);使人注意到;

extravagant：奢侈的;铺张浪费的;挥霍的;过分的;放肆的;不切实际的;无节制的;过于昂贵的;

not-yet-opened：尚未开放的；

game park：(尤指非洲的)禁猎区，野生动物保护区;

从山顶上，丘吉尔可以看到远处的定居点。当夜幕降临时，他走向它，绝望地敲了一扇门。一个男人用荷兰语问“谁在那儿？丘吉尔用英语回答说：“我是市民[即布尔共和国的公民]......我出事了......我从火车上掉下来了，摔的飞了起来，我已经昏迷了好几个小时了。我想我的肩膀脱臼了。

From the top of the hill Churchill could see a settlement in the distance. When darkness fell, he headed towards it and, desperate, knocked on a door. A man asked “Who’s there?” in Dutch. Churchill replied, in English: “I am a burgher [ie, a citizen of a Boer republic]…I have had an accident…I have fallen off the train. We were skylarking. I have been unconscious for hours. I think I have dislocated my shoulder.”

in the distance：在远处;

desperate： (因绝望而)不惜冒险的，不顾一切的，拼命的;绝望的;渴望;孤注一掷的;铤而走险的;非常需要;极想;极严重的;

burgher：(某市的)市民;

ie： 即：

skylarking：云雀;嬉戏;欢笑；此处指摔的飞了起来；

dislocated：使(骨头)脱位;使脱臼;使混乱;扰乱(制度、计划等);使运转不正常;

陌生人邀请他进来，让他坐下，把一把左轮手枪放在桌子上。“我想我想更多地了解你的这起铁路事故，”他用英语说。“我想，”丘吉尔说，“我最好告诉你真相。“我想你有，”他的主人说。

The stranger invited him in, sat him down and laid a revolver on the table. “I think I’d like to know a little more about this railway accident of yours,” he said, in English. “I think”, said Churchill, “I had better tell you the truth.” “I think you had,” said his host.

revolver：左轮手枪；

丘吉尔非常幸运地敲开了该地区为数不多的英国大门之一。他的主人约翰·霍华德（John Howard）是一家煤矿的经理，他给他喂食，把他藏在矿井里，里面有床垫、毯子和一盒雪茄，还有那瓶威士忌。

It was Churchill’s astonishing good fortune to have knocked on one of the few British doors in the area. His host, John Howard, a manager of a coalmine, fed him and hid him in a mineshaft, with a mattress, blankets and a box of cigars, as well as that bottle of whisky.

astonishing： 令人吃惊的;难以置信的;令人十分惊讶的;使人大为惊奇的;

mineshaft： 井筒;竖井;

mattress：床垫;

今天的矿井是密封的，周围的地面不稳定。当地的煤田在夜间由被称为zama-zama的非法矿工挖掘，他们总会导致隧道坍塌。当警察试图驱逐他们时，枪战爆发了。

The mineshaft today is sealed, and the ground around it is unstable. The local coalfields are excavated at night by illegal miners, known as zama-zama, who sometimes cause tunnels to collapse. When police try to evict them, gunfights erupt.

sealed：密封(容器);封上(信封);封盖…的表面;

coalfields：煤田；

evict：驱逐;逐出;(尤指依法从房屋或土地上)赶出;

gunfights： 枪战;炮战;

霍华德制定了一个计划，用一列羊毛火车将丘吉尔偷运到海岸，并于 12 月 19 日出发。正在搬运羊毛的英国店主查尔斯·伯纳姆（Charles Burnham）参与了阴谋并陪同货物。在沿途的一家旅馆里，他听到一个谣言，说丘吉尔已经伪装成天主教神父路过那个地方。大约在同一时间，霍华德遇到了一些布尔人，他们带着一名他们认为是丘吉尔的英国囚犯。他没有指出他们的错误。

Howard hatched a plan to smuggle Churchill to the coast in a trainload of wool, setting off on December 19th. The British shopkeeper who was moving the wool, Charles Burnham, was in on the plot and accompanied the cargo. At one hotel along the way, he heard a rumour that Churchill had already passed by that spot, disguised as a Catholic priest. Around the same time Howard met some Boers with a British prisoner who they thought was Churchill. He did not disabuse them.

hatched：v. 孵化;使(小鸟、小鱼、小虫等)孵出;孵出;破壳;出壳;

smuggle： 走私;偷运;私运;

trainload：用火车装载；

shopkeeper： (通常指小商店的)店主;

be in on the plot：同谋

cargo：货物；

spot：地点；

disabuse：使省悟;去掉(某人)的错误想法；

抵达葡属东非后，丘吉尔走进浑身是烟灰的英国领事馆，向惊愕的领事介绍了自己。他乘船返回南非，在那里他遇到了挥舞着旗帜、欢呼的人群，他们要求发表演讲。他答应了。对于英国人来说，他的逃跑是一场糟糕的战争中为数不多的好消息之一。丘吉尔决心加入战斗。

Arriving in Portuguese East Africa, Churchill walked into the British consulate covered in soot and introduced himself to the startled consul. He took a ship back to South Africa, where he was met by a flag-waving, cheering crowd who demanded a speech. He obliged. For the British, his escape was one of the few scraps of good news to have come out of a war that was going badly. Churchill resolved to join the fight.

consulate：领事馆；

consul：领事;

soot：烟灰;油烟;煤烟子;

startled：受惊吓了的;

obliged： (以法律、义务等)强迫，迫使;(根据要求或需要)帮忙，效劳;

He obliged.他同意了，他乐意效劳或帮忙；

scraps： 碎片，小块(纸、织物等);残羹剩饭;残片;丝毫;一丁点;

他去见了英国指挥官雷德弗斯·布勒爵士，并要求重新入伍成为一名军官，同时又不放弃他的报业工作。他后来回忆说，这“非常尴尬”。反对将新闻与战斗结合起来的规则是因为他而制定的。布勒“在房间里转了两三圈，以一种沉闷的方式盯着我。最后他说：'好吧。

He went to see Sir Redvers Buller, the British commander, and asked to re-enlist as an officer, without giving up his newspaper job. This was “very awkward”, he later recalled. The rule against combining journalism with combat had been written because of him. Buller “took two or three tours round the room, eyeing me in a droll manner. Then at last he said: ‘All right.’”

re-enlist：重新入伍;

droll：滑稽;离奇可笑的;

丘吉尔在斯皮恩科普（Spion Kop）传递了信息，这是一场可怕的斗争，争夺一座“平顶与特拉法加广场一样大”的战略山丘。战斗中的担架手之一是莫罕达斯·甘地，丘吉尔后来开始憎恨他（没有证据表明他们在那里见过面）。

Churchill carried messages at Spion Kop, a gruesome struggle for a strategic hill “with a flat top about as large as Trafalgar Square”. One of the stretcher-bearers during the battle was Mohandas Gandhi, whom Churchill later came to detest (there is no evidence that they met there).

gruesome：令人厌恶的;恐怖的;可怕的;

stretcher-bearers：担架手；

detest：讨厌；

接下来，丘吉尔为解除对莱迪史密斯的围困而战，在那里，英国驻军蜷缩着，食物耗尽。这给了他一生中“最快乐的回忆”：

Next Churchill fought to lift the siege of Ladysmith, where a British garrison was hunkered down and running out of food. It gave him some of “the most happy memories” of his life:

siege：围攻;(军队对城镇的)围困;(警察对建筑物的)包围;封锁;

lift：解除；

garrison：卫戍部队;卫戍区;守备部队;驻防地;

hunker：蹲下;保守主义者；hunkered down蹲着，蜷缩着；

“日复一日，我们在清晨骑马从一侧或另一侧出发，与布尔人玩耍，在岩石山丘上驰骋或爬上，瞥见远处飞奔的、转瞬即逝的骑兵，听到几颗子弹呼啸而过，小心翼翼地开了几枪，然后安全地回家吃了一顿丰盛的晚餐和欢快的， 敏锐的聪明伙伴。

“Day after day we rode out in the early morning on one flank or another and played about with the Boers, galloped around or clambered up the rocky hills, caught glimpses of darting, fleeting, horsemen in the distance, heard a few bullets whistle, had a few careful shots and came safe home to a good dinner and cheery, keenly intelligent companions.”

flank：(建筑物、山等的)侧面;(动物的)胁腹;(军队或运动队的)翼侧;(建筑物、山等的)侧面;(动物的)胁腹;(军队或运动队的)翼侧;

galloped： (马等)飞奔，奔驰，疾驰;使(马)飞奔;奔跑;飞跑;骑马奔驰;

clambered：爬上，攀登；

darting：飞奔;猛冲;突进;(朝某人猛然)看一眼，瞥一眼;

fleeting：短暂的;转瞬即逝的;闪现的;

in the distance：远处的；

whistle：呼啸而行；

cheery： 高兴的;兴高采烈的;

keenly：敏锐的;清清楚楚地;

intelligent：聪明的;智能的;有才智的;有智力的;有理解和学习能力的;悟性强的;

最终，布尔人无法抗拒英军人数上的优势。1900年6月，英国军队进入比勒陀利亚。丘吉尔去看了剩下的战俘。他们举起了一个临时的英国国旗。然后丘吉尔回家，并在 25 岁时当选为议会议员。

Ultimately, the Boers could not resist superior numbers. In June 1900 British troops entered Pretoria. Churchill went to see the remaining prisoners-of-war. They raised a makeshift Union Jack. Then Churchill went home and was elected to parliament aged 25.

prisoners-of-war：战俘；

makeshift：临时的;权宜的;临时替代的;

Union Jackn：英国国旗;联合王国国旗;

军事胜利并不总是带来政治胜利

许多英国人认为，当布尔主要城市投降时，战争就结束了。但布尔人采取了游击战术，又打了两年。英国人以焦土战术作为回应。他们把布尔平民赶进他们所谓的“集中营”——这句话在几十年后被赋予了可怕的新含义。这些难民营的条件非常恶劣，成千上万的妇女和儿童死于疾病。后来，这在伦敦引起了愤怒，并玷污了英国最终的胜利。

Military victory does not always bring political triumph

Many Brits thought the war was over when the main Boer cities surrendered. But the Boers resorted to guerrilla tactics and fought on for another two years. The British responded with scorched-earth tactics. They herded Boer civilians into what they called “concentration camps”—a phrase that was to take on a hideous new meaning decades later. Conditions in these camps were atrocious—thousands of women and children died of disease. In time this caused outrage back in London, and tarnished the eventual British victory.

Brits：英国人；

resorted：求助，诉诸;常去;采取某手段或方法;

guerrilla：游击队员；guerrilla tactics：游击战术；

fight on：继续战斗;

scorched-earth tactics：焦土政策；

scorch： 烧焦;烤焦(物体表面);(使)枯黄，枯萎(尤指因曝晒或化学品的作用);(把…)烫坏，烧煳;飞驰;疾驰;

herded： 牧放(牲畜、兽群);(使)向…移动;

hideous：adj. 可怕的;令人厌恶的;十分丑陋的;

atrocious： 糟透的;残忍的;凶恶的;残暴的;十分讨厌的;

tarnished：v. 玷污，败坏，损坏(名声等);(使)失去光泽，暗淡;

从布尔战争中可以吸取的一个教训是，大国往往低估了较小的敌人。布尔人机动性强，积极进取，了解这片土地。他们躲在伪装良好的战壕里，使用无烟火药。认为与他们作战很容易的英国人与今天的俄罗斯人有一些共同点，他们未能预见到乌克兰人会多么凶猛地保卫他们的国家。

One lesson that can be drawn from the Boer war is that great powers often underestimate smaller enemies. The Boers were mobile, motivated and knew the land. They hid in well-disguised trenches and used smokeless gunpowder. The Brits who thought fighting them would be easy had something in common with Russians today who failed to foresee how ferociously Ukrainians would defend their country.

mobile：可移动的;流动的;多变的;非固定的;行动方便;腿脚灵便;易于变换社会阶层(或工作、住处)的;

trenches： 沟;战壕;海沟;渠;堑壕;大洋沟;

smokeless gunpowder：无烟火药；

ferociously：凶猛地;残忍地;野蛮地;

另一个教训是，军事胜利并不总是带来政治胜利。这场战争创造了“我们所知道的南非;作为一个政治现实，而不仅仅是一个地理术语，“《南非史》的作者图拉·辛普森教授指出。但在下个世纪的大部分时间里，它由布尔人而不是英国人主导。

Another lesson is that military victory does not always bring political triumph. The war created “South Africa as we know it; as a political reality rather than a mere geographical term,” notes Professor Thula Simpson, author of “History of South Africa”. But it came to be dominated by the Boers, not the British, for most of the next century.

双方于 1902 年签署了一项和平协议，将布尔共和国并入大英帝国。它回避了最重要的问题：是否给黑人投票权。一段时间以来，英属开普殖民地允许有财产的人不分种族投票。实际上，没有多少黑人有资格，但布尔人对这种安排感到恐惧。他们谈判达成了和平条约中的一项条款，规定“土著”特许经营权问题“要等到实行自治之后才能决定”。

The two sides signed a peace deal in 1902 that absorbed the Boer republics into the British empire. It ducked the most important question: whether to give black people the vote. The British Cape Colony had for some time allowed men of property to vote regardless of race. In practice not many blacks qualified, but the Boers regarded this arrangement with horror. They negotiated a clause in the peace treaty stating that the question of the “native” franchise would “not be decided until after the introduction of self-government”.

absorbed：v. 吸收(液体、气体等);理解;使并入;掌握;吞并;同化;

ducked：躲避;低下头，弯下身(以免被打中或看见);躲闪;迅速行进，飞快行走(以免被看见);

In practice：实际上;事实上;

native：土著;本地人;当地人;

franchise：(公司授予的)特许经销权;(公民)选举权;(国家授予的)特别经营权，特许;获特许权的商业(或服务)机构;

self-government：自治；

introduction：投入使用；

In 1910 South Africa became a “self-governing dominion”. Its new Boer citizens helped make sure that the black franchise was never extended beyond the Cape. It was gradually curbed and, under apartheid, abolished. Had the British colonies never swallowed the Boer republics, might South Africa’s awful racial history have evolved differently? We will never know.

1910年，南非成为“自治领”。它的新布尔公民，帮助确保了黑人的特许经营权永远不会扩展到开普敦之外。它逐渐受到遏制，并在种族隔离制度下被废除。如果英国殖民地从未吞并布尔共和国，南非可怕的种族历史会不会以不同的方式演变？我们永远不会知道。

dominion：统治(权);领土;统治权;支配;管辖;版图;英联邦自治领;

apartheid：种族隔离(前南非政府推行的政策);

abolished： 废除，废止(法律、制度、习俗等);

History will be kind to me

In a YouGov poll, 69% of Britons viewed Churchill positively. That is more than double the 32% who said, in 2019, that the British empire was “more something to be proud of than ashamed”. He is remembered less, and less kindly in South Africa. “In Europe, he was a crusader for democracy and against fascism, but in the South African context, he was opposed to democratic rights and majority rule,” notes Professor Simpson.

历史会善待我

在YouGov的一项民意调查中，69%的英国人对丘吉尔持积极态度。这比2019年32%的人说大英帝国“更值得骄傲而不是羞耻”的人数增加了一倍多。在南非，人们对他的记忆越来越少，也不那么友善。辛普森教授指出：“在欧洲，他是民主和反法西斯主义的斗士，但在南非，他反对民主权利和多数统治。

crusader： 十字军;十字军战士;(某)运动的参加者;

context： 上下文;(事情发生的)背景，环境，来龙去脉;语境;

opposed：强烈反对;截然不同;

majority rule：多数统治；

历史很复杂。通常，人们对自己的感觉取决于简单的道德叙事。今天的南非政客们谈论殖民主义和种族隔离的罪恶;然而，许多人认为俄罗斯瓜分乌克兰的企图没有问题。《身份陷阱》一书的作者亚沙·蒙克（Yascha Mounk）写道：“在英国......一些人认为，这个国家的性格是由帝国主义的残酷决定的，而另一些人则认为它完全由不列颠之战的英雄主义组成。正如丘吉尔的一生提醒我们的那样，一个公平的描述必须包括这两个方面，除此之外还有更多方面。

History is complicated. Often people’s sense of who they are depends on a simple, moralistic narrative. South African politicians today talk of the evils of colonialism and apartheid; yet many see no problem with Russia’s attempt to carve up Ukraine. Yascha Mounk, author of “The Identity Trap”, writes that “In Britain …some believe that the nation’s character is defined by the cruelties of imperialism, while others think it consists exclusively of the heroism of the Battle of Britain.” As Churchill’s life reminds us, a fair account must include both strands, and many more besides.

moralistic：道德的;说教的;道学的;是非观念坚定的;

colonialism：殖民主义；

apartheid：种族隔离；

carve up：瓜分;分割;拆散;

cruelties：(尤指蓄意的)残酷，残忍，残暴;虐待;不公;残暴的行为;

account：账户;账户，账号;解释，说明，叙述;账目;描述;赊购;老主顾;赊销账;赊欠账;

strands： (线、绳、金属线、毛发等的)股，缕;(观点、计划、故事等的)部分，方面;(海洋、湖或河的)岸，滨;

年轻的丘吉尔对帝国的信念受到了他童年时代的一位英雄的挑战。在美国的一次巡回演讲中，他遇到了年迈的马克吐温。“当然，我们争论过[布尔]战争。经过一番交流后，我发现自己又回到了“我的国家是对还是错”的城堡。“啊，”老绅士说，“当贫穷的国家为自己的生命而战时，我同意。但你的情况并不是这样。■

The young Churchill’s belief in empire was challenged, a little, by one of his boyhood heroes. During a speaking tour of America he met an ageing Mark Twain. “Of course we argued about the [Boer] war. After some interchanges I found myself beaten back to the citadel ‘My country right or wrong’. ‘Ah,’ said the old gentleman, ‘when the poor country is fighting for its life, I agree. But this was not your case.’” ■

interchange： (思想、信息等的)交换，互换;(进出高速公路的)互通式立交，立体交叉道;

citadel：城堡；