Beside the ungathered rice he lay,

他躺在没有割完的稻禾旁，

His sickle in his hand;

镰刀还握在手上；

His breast was bare, his matted hair

蓬乱的头发埋入沙土，

Was buried in the sand.

露出黧黑的胸膛。

Again, in the mist and shadow of sleep,

他在睡梦的烟雾阴影里

He saw his Native Land.

又一次看见了故乡。

Wide through the landscape of his dreams

穿越他梦中的辽阔大地，

The lordly Niger flowed;

尼日尔河水奔流；

Beneath the palm-trees on the plain

他又成了尊严的国王，

Once more a king he strode;

在平原棕树下行走；

And heard the tinkling caravans

又听见商队清脆的驼铃

Descend the mountain road.

慢悠悠下了山头。

He saw once more his dark-eyed queen

又看见他那黑眼珠王后

Among her children stand;

站在孩子们中间；

They clasped his neck, they kissed his cheeks,

他们搂住他脖子，抓住手，

They held him by the hand!—

一个劲亲着他的脸！——

A tear burst from the sleeper's lids

他的睡眼里迸出一滴泪，

And fell into the sand.

滚落到沙土里面。

And then at furious speed he rode

沿着尼日尔河畔的沙岸，

Along the Niger's bank;

他骑着马儿飞跑；

His bridle-reins were golden chains,

手上的缰绳是黄金链子，

And, with a martial clank,

每一次纵跳，都听到

At each leap he could feel his scabbard of steel

青钢的刀鞘铿锵作响，

Smiting his stallion's flank.

拍打着马儿身腰。

Before him, like a blood-red flag,

像血红的旌旗，一群火烈鸟

The bright flamingoes flew;

飞翔在他的前面；

From morn till night he followed their flight,

他追随它们，整天奔驰在

O'er plains where the tamarind grew,

  婆树生长的平原，

Till he saw the roofs of Caffre huts,

直到他望见卡菲人村舍，

And the ocean rose to view.

大海也闪入眼帘。

At night he heard the lion roar,

夜间，他听到狮子吼叫，

And the hyena scream,

也听到鬣狗嘶鸣，

And the river-horse, as he crushed the reeds

而当他双足踏倒芦苇，

Beside some hidden stream;

走在隐僻的河滨，

And it passed, like a glorious roll of drums,

又听到河马，脚步似擂鼓，

Through the triumph of his dream.

闯过他辉煌梦境。

The forests, with their myriad tongues,

森林转动千万条舌头，

Shouted of liberty;

高声呼唤着自由；

And the Blast of the Desert cried aloud,

嗓门粗厉的荒漠暴风

With a voice so wild and free,

任性地狂呼怒吼；

That he started in his sleep and smiled

梦中被惊动，他含笑倾听

At their tempestuous glee.

这一曲威猛的合奏。

He did not feel the driver's whip,

再也不晓得监工的鞭挞，

Nor the burning heat of day;

不觉得烈日的炙烤；

For Death had illumined the Land of Sleep,

因为死亡照亮了睡乡，

And his lifeless body lay

他失却生命的躯壳

A worn-out fetter, that the soul

像一副残破枷锁，已经

Had broken and thrown away!

被灵魂挣脱甩掉！