Boxer's split hoof was a long time in healing.

鲍克瑟蹄掌上的裂口过了很长时间才痊愈。

They had started the rebuilding of the windmill the day after the victory celebrations were ended.

庆祝活动结束后第二天，动物们就开始第三次建造风车了。

Boxer refused to take even a day off work, and made it a point of honour not to let it be seen that he was in pain.

对此，鲍克瑟哪里肯闲着，他一天不干活都不行，于是就忍住伤痛不让他们有所察觉。

In the evenings he would admit privately to Clover that the hoof troubled him a great deal.

到了晚上他悄悄告诉克拉弗，他的掌子疼得厉害。

Clover treated the hoof with poultices of herbs which she prepared by chewing them, and both she and Benjamin urged Boxer to work less hard.

克拉弗就用嘴巴嚼着草药给他敷上，她和本杰明一起恳求鲍克瑟干活轻一点。

"A horse's lungs do not last for ever," she said to him.

她对他说："马肺又不能永保不衰。"

But Boxer would not listen.

但鲍克瑟不听。

He had, he said, only one real ambition left--to see the windmill well under way before he reached the age for retirement.

他说，他剩下的唯一一个心愿就是在他到退休年龄之前，能看到风车建设顺利进行。

At the beginning, when the laws of Animal Farm were first formulated, the retiring age had been fixed for horses and pigs at twelve,

想当初，当动物庄园初次制定律法时，退休年龄分别规定为：马和猪十二岁，

for cows at fourteen, for dogs at nine, for sheep at seven, and for hens and geese at five.

牛十四岁，狗九岁，羊七岁，鸡和鹅五岁。

Liberal old-age pensions had been agreed upon.

还允诺要发给充足的养老津贴。

As yet no animal had actually retired on pension, but of late the subject had been discussed more and more.

虽然至今还没有一个动物真正领过养老津贴，但近来这个话题讨论得越来越多了。

Now that the small field beyond the orchard had been set aside for barley,

眼下，因为苹果园那边的那块小牧场已被留作大麦田，

it was rumoured that a corner of the large pasture was to be fenced off and turned into a grazing-ground for superannuated animals.

就又有小道消息说大牧场的一角要围起来给退休动物留作牧场用。

For a horse, it was said, the pension would be five pounds of corn a day and, in winter, fifteen pounds of hay, with a carrot or possibly an apple on public holidays.

据说，每匹马的养老津贴是每天五磅谷子，到冬天是每天十五磅干草，公共节假日里还发给一根胡萝卜，或者尽量给一个苹果。

Boxer's twelfth birthday was due in the late summer of the following year.

鲍克瑟的十二岁生日就在来年的夏末。

Meanwhile life was hard.

这个时期的生活十分艰苦。

The winter was as cold as the last one had been, and food was even shorter.

冬天象去年一样冷，食物也更少了。

Once again all rations were reduced, except those of the pigs and the dogs.

除了那些猪和狗以外，所有动物的饲料粮再次减少。

A too rigid equality in rations, Squealer explained, would have been contrary to the principles of Animalism.

斯奎拉解释说，在定量上过于教条的平等是违背动物主义原则的。

In any case he had no difficulty in proving to the other animals that they were NOT in reality short of food, whatever the appearances might be.

不论在什么情况下，他都毫不费力地向其他动物证明，无论表面现象是什么，他们事实上并不缺粮。