【荆棘鸟】第二章 20

Now what am I going to do with you?"
  Meggie gaped 1 at the tiny thing roaming blindly round Fee's bare skin in search of more hirsute 2 territory, then she began to weep. Without needing to be told, Frank got the copper 3 going while Paddy paced up and down the kitchen roaring, his rage increasing every time he looked at Meggie. Finally he went to the row of hooks on the wall inside the back door, jammed his hat on his head and took the long horsewhip from its nail. "I'm going into Wahine, Fee, and I'm going to tell that blasted Dago what he can do with his slimy fish and chips! Then I'm going to see Sister Agatha and tell her what I think of her, allowing lousy children in her school!" "Paddy, be careful!" Fee pleaded. "What if it isn't the Eyetie girl? Even if she has lice, it's possible she might have got them from someone else along with Meggie."
  "Rot!" said Paddy scornfully. He pounded down-the back steps, and a few minutes later they heard his roan's hoofs 4 beating down the road. Fee sighed, looking at Frank hopelessly.
  "Well, I suppose we'll be lucky if he doesn't land in jail. Frank, you'd better bring the boys inside. No school today."
  One by one Fee went through her sons' hair minutely, then checked Frank's head and made him do the same for her. There was no evidence that anyone else had acquired poor Meggie's malady 5, but Fee did not intend to take chances. When the water in the huge laundry copper was boiling, Frank got the dish tub down from its hanging and filled it half with hot water and half with cold. Then he went out to the Bleed and fetched in an unopened five-gallon can of kerosene 6, took a bar of lye soap from the laundry and started work on Bob. Each head was briefly 7 damped in the tub, several cups of raw kerosene poured over it, and the whole draggled, greasy 8 mess lathered 9 with soap. The kerosene and lye burned; the boys howled and rubbed their eyes raw, scratching at their reddened, tingling 10 scalps and threatening ghastly vengeance 11 on all Dagos.
  Fee went to her sewing basket and took out her big shears 12. She came back to Meggie, who had not dared to move from the stool though an hour and more had elapsed, and stood with the shears in her hand, staring at the beautiful fall of hair. Then she began to cut it snip 13! snip!-until all the long curls were huddled 14 in glistening 15 heaps on the floor and Meggie's white skin was beginning to show in irregular patches all over her head. 
 

现在我该把你怎么办才好呢。"
　　梅吉目瞪口呆地望着那些在菲光溜溜的皮肤上瞎撞着、要想找到一个多毛的地方的小东西；接着，她哭了起来。
　　当帕迪在厨房里踱来踱去高声怒骂的时候，弗兰克没用吩咐就拿来了铜盆。帕迪每看梅吉一眼，他的怒火就增加一分。最后，他扣上了帽子，走到后门内的墙上钉着一排钩子的地方，从钉子上取下了马鞭。
　　"我到韦汉去，菲，我要告诉那该死的达戈人，他的油煎鱼加土豆片干了什么好事！然后我要去见见阿加莎嬷嬷，告诉她我对她都有什么看法，竟然允许满身虱子的孩子呆在她的学校里！"
      "帕迪，小心点儿！"菲恳求道。"要万一不是那意大利女孩子怎么办？即便她身上有虱子，也可能是和梅吉一起的别人传给她的。"
　　"废话！"帕迪轻蔑地说道。他步履沉重地走下后台阶，几分钟之后，他门听到他那花毛马的蹄声在路上得得响起。菲叹了门气，一筹莫展地望着弗兰克。
　　"哦，我想，要是他不进大狱的话，就算咱们走运了。弗兰克，你最好把小子们都带进去，今天不上学了。"
　　菲把孩子们的头逐个仔仔细细地检查了一遍，然后又检查了一下弗兰克的头，又叫他照样检查了她的头发。没有证据说明其他人传上了可怜的梅吉头上的那种玩艺儿，可是菲不想碰运气。当洗衣用的大铜盆里的水烧开时，弗兰克取下了挂着的洗碟盆，倒进了一半热水，一半凉水。然后他走出门，到棚屋取来了一听没启口的五加仑装的煤油，又从洗衣房拿来了一条碱性肥皂，就开始从鲍勃身上干了起来。每个人的脑袋都先在盆里浸了浸，倒上了几杯煤油，并在又湿又油腻的乱糟糟的头发上涂满了肥皂。煤油和碱性肥皂起作用了，孩子们连哭带嚎，把眼睛都揉红了；他们抓挠着又红又痛的头皮，狠狠地威胁着要向所有的达戈人报复。
　　菲走到针线篮那儿，从里面拿出了一把大剪子。他回到梅吉身边。尽管已经过了一个多钟头了，但梅吉还坐在凳子上，没敢动窝。菲手拿剪子站在凳子边上，注视着那飘垂着的美丽的头发。接着，她动手剪了起来--咔嚓！咔嚓！--直到所有的长卷发闪着亮光蓬乱地堆在地板上，梅吉那雪白的头皮深一块、浅一块地从头上露出来。