and they were in very poor condition
并且他们的生活条件非常贫困
and had to be made into soldiers.'
他们不得不应征入伍
'Many of us had given our wrong ages to join the army.'
我们中很多人参军的年龄都不对
'The adjutant walked down the lines and gave an order,
副官走下队伍下达命令
"Every man under the age of 19 to take two paces forward."
"所有19岁以下的向前两步走"
'I was a lad of 17,
我当时17岁
and they'd probably see I wasn't 19,
他们可能看出来了
which you had to be to join up,
我还不到19岁的参军年龄
but they says, "How long do you want to sign on for?"'
但是他们却说"你想登记多少岁"
'Everybody else was joining up,
其他人都参军了
so I went into the recruiting office.
所以我去了征兵办
He said to me, "How old are you?" I said, "17, sir."
他问我 你多大了 我说 17岁 长官
"Well," he says, "Go outside and come back and say you're 18."
他说 好吧 再来一遍 说你18岁
So, of course, I went outside and said I were 18.
所以 我就又来了一次说我18岁
Then straight to the sea for Flanders.
然后就直奔佛兰德了
The sergeant said, "How old are you?"
中士问我 你多大了
I said, "I'm 18 and one month."
我说 18岁零一个月
He said, "Do you mean 19 and one month?"
他问 你是说19岁零一个月吗
So I thought a moment.
我想了一下
I said, "Yes, sir." He said, "Right, sign here, please."'
说 是的长官 他说 请在这儿签字
He asked me how old I was and I said I was 16 in March.
他问我多大了 我说三月份我就16岁了
"Oh." he said, "You're too young.
他说 你太年轻了
You'd better go outside and have a birthday."
最好是马上出去过个生日
I was 16 years old in 1917, and I was six-foot-two tall,
1917年我16岁 高188厘米
and my father allowed me to go.
并且我父亲也允许我去
So I entered my age as 19 years old,
所以我就谎报年龄为19参军了
three years older than what I really was.
比我的实际年龄大了3岁
I was 15 years, just two-and-a-half years short of 18,
我当时15岁 离18岁只差两年半
and I got before this medical officer
我站在一个医务人员面前
who said, "All right, you pass."
他说 好吧 你通过了
I was just turned 17 at the time,
我当时才17岁
and I went up to Whitehall and enlisted in the 16th Lancers.
就去了怀特霍尔加入了第十六骑兵队
and I thought I'd have a better chance than when I were 14,
我觉得入伍的机会比14岁的时候大
so I walked into the barracks
所以我就走进军营
and just said, "I'm 18," and that was it.
说我18岁了 然后就这样了
My parents wrote to the commanding officer
我父母给指挥官写信
and asked for me, as I was underage, to be released.
要求拒收当时未成年的我
He said, "Your parents want you back. Do you want to go?"
他说 你父母要你回去 你想回去吗
The chaplain asked me my age and I said I was 16.
牧师问我的年龄 我说我16岁
He said, "Much too young.
他说 太年轻了
Would you like me to pray for you?"
你想让我帮你祈祷吗
The clothing came piecemeal into the quartermaster's stores.
这些衣服一件件地进了军需品商店
One lad said, "These boots don't fit me."
一个小伙子说 这个鞋子不合脚
The quartermaster said, "There isn't such a thing as boots that don't fit,
军需官说 世界上没有不合脚的鞋子
it's your feet, they don't fit the boots."
只有不合鞋的脚
Some men would find a tunic to fit them
有的人会找到合适的上衣
or perhaps a pair of trousers.
或者一条裤子
And so it went on for nearly a fortnight. Just one uniform.
就这样持续了两周 只有一套制服
I was in the army nearly four years. I only had one uniform.
我从军四年只有一套制服
We were all issued with these famous puttees,
他们给每个人都分发了绑腿
which were news to all of us,
对我们来说都是新闻
and I personally could never quite master the putting on of puttees.'
我自己永远都掌握不了绑腿的穿法
The main reason for puttees were
绑腿的主要作用是
to support the legs in marching.
支撑行进中的双腿
I was issued with a kilt, but nothing to wear underneath it,
我领了一条裙子 但没有穿在里面的东西
and I was given a slip of paper to say,
然后有人给我一张纸条说
"This man has not been issued with underpants."
这个人的内裤还没发
I was given strict instructions that
我收到严格的指示
I couldn't ride on top of a tram car.
说我不能坐在电车顶层
I had to ride downstairs.
只能坐在楼下
Now, the pack was for everything that you owned.
这个包是用来装你所有的东西的
The overcoat had to be folded very, very neatly and tightly.
大衣必须叠得非常整齐严格
There was a needle, thread, spare buttons, knife, fork, spoon,
有针线 备用扣子 刀叉 勺子
razor, shaving brush, toothbrush,
剃须刀 剃须刷 牙刷
and also a half-pint mug,
一个半品脱的杯子
one spare shirt and one spare pair of socks,
一件备用衬衫和一双备用袜子
and that was your kit.
这些就是所有的装备
The army razor with which we were issued was absolutely useless,
军队发的军用剃刀对胡须并没什么用
but it came in handy for cutting up meat and so forth.
但在切肉等方面还是大有用场的
The toothbrush, that came in handy for cleaning buttons.
牙刷用来刷纽扣还是挺有用的
One of the peculiarities about the army was,
军队的一个特点是
although it was a crime to have dirty buttons,
虽然脏纽扣是一种罪行
you were never issued with the materials to clean the buttons with.
但他们不会给你发清洁纽扣的材料
You had to buy them yourself.
你只能自己买
We were awakened by the bugle which sounded Reveille.
我们被起床号吵醒了
Wash, shave, pack your bed up
洗漱 刮胡子 整理床铺
and pack your kit about half-past six
六点半左右收拾好装备
and you would have an hour PT before breakfast.
早餐前做一个小时的体格锻炼
Press-ups and physical exercises, arms upward stretch.
俯卧撑和体育锻炼 伸展运动
They knew you were fresh and they tried to take you by stages.
他们知道你是新手 就会分阶段训练
There wasn't any bullying or anything like that.
没有欺负人之类的事情
Breakfast consisted of bread,
早餐包括面包
butter, one rasher of Lance Corporal bacon,
黄油 一小片一等兵培根
cos it was streaky bacon, it had one stripe in it.
因为是五花肉 上面有一条条纹
There was jam and they seemed to make
还有果酱 并且好像
nothing but plum and apple, you know.
只有李子和苹果味
If you got any other kind, it was a celebration event.
如果拿到其他口味 那可得好好庆祝了
Well, Bruce Bairnsfather's cartoons depicted that.
布鲁斯·贝尔斯法瑟的卡通就是这样描述的
They'd hand him a tin of plum and apple jam.
他们会递给他一罐李子苹果酱
"When the hell is it goin' to be strawberry?"
什么时候才能有草莓味
Ooh, he was wonderful, that chap.
那个家伙太逗了
Ticklers, the jam manufacturers,
痒痒牌 那个果酱制造商
they must have made millions of tins of P&A: plum and apple.
他们一定做了几百万罐李子苹果酱
♪ Oh, oh, oh, it's a lovely war ♪
♪ 噢 噢 噢 有趣的战争 ♪
♪ What do we want with eggs and ham ♪
♪ 有了这么多痒痒牌果酱 ♪
♪ when we've got bags of Ticklers jam? ♪
♪ 还要鸡蛋和火腿干嘛 ♪
Then it would be parade time, then the sergeant would take over
然后就是练方阵时间 中士会接管
