6.One of the hunters immediately ran up with a wisp of lighted hay，as a defense against the bees.The latter，however，made no attack，and sought no revenge；they seemed stupefied by the catastrophe and unsuspicious of its cause，and remained crawling and buzzing about the ruins，without offering us any molestation.Every one of the party now fell to，with spoon and hunting-knife，to scoop out the flakes of the honeycomb，with which the hollow trunk was stored.Some of them were of old date，and a deep brown color；others were beautifully white，and the honey in their cells was almost limpid.Such of the combs as were entire were placed in camp-kettles，to be conveyed to the encampment；those which had been shivered in the fall were devoured upon the spot.Every stark bee-hunter was to be seen with a rich morsel in his hand，dripping about his fingers，and disappearing as rapidly as a creamtart before the holiday appetite of a schoolboy.
7.Nor was it the bee-hunters alone that profited by the downfall of this industrious community.As if the bees would carry through the similitude of their habits with those of laborious and gainful man，Ibeheld numbers from rival hives，arriving on eager wing，to enrich themselves with the ruin of their neighbors.These busied themselves as eagerly and cheerfully as so many wreckers on an Indiaman that has been driven on shore；plunging into the cells of the broken honey-combs，banqueting greedily on the spoil，and then winging their way，full freighted，to their homes.As to the poor proprietors of the ruin，they seemed to have no heart to do any thing，not oven to taste the nectar that flowed around them；but crawled backward and forward，in vacant desolation，as I have seen a poor fellow with his hands in his breeches pocket，whistling vacantly and despondingly about the ruins of his house that had been burnt.
8.It is difficult to describe the bewilderment and confusion of the bees of the bankrupt hive，who had been absent at the time of the catastrophe，and who arrived from time to time with full cargoes from abroad.At first they wheeled about in the air，in the place where their fallen tree had once reared its head，astonished at finding it all a vacuum.At length，as if comprehending their disaster，they settled down in clusters，on a dry branch of a neighboring tree，from whence they seemed to contemplate the prostrate ruin，and to buzz forth doleful lamentations over the downfall of their republic.It was a scene on which the “melancholy Jacques”might have moralized by the hour.
9.We now abandoned the place，leaving much honey in the hollow of the tree.“It will all be cleared off by varmint，”said one of the rangers.“What vermin？”asked I.“Oh，bears，and skunks and raccoons，and ‘possums，”said he；“the bears is the knowingest varmint for finding out a bee-tree in the world.They’ll gnaw for days together at the trunk，till they make a hole big enough to get in their paws，and then they‘ll haul out honey，bees and all.”
（FROM IRVING ）
中文阅读
1.在我们野营的漂亮的树林中有许多蜜蜂树，换句话说，有许多蜜蜂在枯朽的树干里搭建蜂房。令人惊奇的是，仅仅几年时间，这些不计其数的蜜蜂就遍布了西部地区。印第安人把它们看成是白人的先头部队，就像野牛是红种人的先兆一样。他们还说，蜜蜂前进多少，印第安人和野牛就要后退多少。蜜蜂常常能让人联想起农场或花园，人们也想把这些勤劳的小动物和辛勤劳动的人联系到一起。而且他们还告诉我这种野生蜜蜂很难在边界地区找到。蜜蜂雷打不动地在文明到来之前进行着预报。自从文明从大西洋沿岸开始推进以后，一些老的西部居民便假称某年是第一只蜜蜂越过密西西比河的时间。
2.印第安人惊讶地发现他们那些腐朽的树木竟突然变得芳香四溢。他们还告诉我说，没有任何东西能和他们第一次享用这些免费野味时的那种令人垂涎的美味相比。现在，成群结队的蜜蜂拥进了那些与草原相邻和贯通的高贵的果园和树林里，并一直延伸到冲积河床上。对我来说，这块美丽的土地就像是应了关于“希望之地”的描述：“流淌着牛奶和蜂蜜的土地。”因为草原上有着富足的农场，而这些农场适合为多得像海滩上的沙粒似的数不清的畜群提供食物，与此同时，这里还为寻找花蜜的蜜蜂提供了五彩缤纷的花的天堂。
3.我们在帐篷里没待多久，就有一队人要去找蜜蜂树。出于好奇，我想去亲眼目睹这一活动，便高兴地接受了邀请，跟他们一起去了。队伍由一个采蜜老手带领。这个老手又瘦又高，一身土布衣衫松松地套在身上，头上戴的草帽形状不能说与蜂窝不相似。他的搭档衣服和他一样不雅，没戴帽子，叉着腿跟了过来，肩上背着一支长长的来福枪。有六个人跟着他们，有的带着斧子，有的带着来福枪。没有人在远离营地时不带着家伙的，这些家伙主要是用来对付野生动物或野蛮的印第安人的。
4.走了一段路后，我们到了树林边缘的一块开阔的沼泽地。我们的领队在这里停下来，然后悄悄地来到低矮的灌木丛下，在上面放置了一块蜜一样的东西。我发现这东西原来是给野蜂的诱饵。很快就有好几只蜂在周围嗡嗡地飞了起来，然后一头扎了进去。它们浑身沾满蜜以后，就飞到空中呈直线射了出去，速度快得像出膛的子弹。猎人们仔细观察着它们的飞行路线，然后向同一方向出发，在盘根错节的树根和倒下的树干间艰难前进，眼睛望着天空。他们就这样跟着沾满蜂蜜的蜜蜂追到了这些蜜蜂的巢穴。这是一棵枯死中空的橡树，它们围着这棵树嗡嗡地飞了一阵子，就钻入了一个离地面六十英尺高的树洞里。
5.这时，两个采蜜人举起斧子，起劲儿地砍着树干底端想把树放倒。如果是旁观者和业余爱好者，在这时候就会小心翼翼地躲得远远的，防止树倒下后砸了自己，也以免遭到蜜蜂的报复。斧子砍树时发出的刺耳的声音似乎没有惊动或打扰到这个辛劳的群体。它们仍在不停地做着平日所做的工作：有的刚刚采蜜返回，把满载的蜂蜜卸到家里；有的踏上新的旅途，就好像在大都市忙着赚钱的商人，丝毫没有意识到自己即将破产和倒闭。甚至宣告树木断裂的那声巨响，也没能转移它们对获取的追求。最终，随着一声巨响，大树轰然倒塌，从头到尾断裂开来，把其贮藏的所有公共的财富展露无遗。
6.一个猎人立刻跑上前去，手里拿着一把点燃的干草，用来驱赶前来攻击的蜜蜂。然而过了一会儿，蜜蜂却没有发动攻击，也没有寻求报复。它们似乎被这突如其来的灾难惊呆了，一点也没有意识到灾难发生的原因，仍然在废墟上继续嗡嗡地叫着，丝毫没有要攻击我们的意思。我们队伍的每一个人都开始用勺子和猎刀来挖取储存在树洞里的片状蜂蜜。有一些蜂蜜储存较久，呈现出深棕色，其他的则是诱人的白色，而蜂巢里的蜂蜜都是透明状的。如果蜂穴里的蜂蜜都是透明完整的，我们就把它整个儿装进野营用的水壶里带回营地，而那些快要流出来的蜜汁，当场就被吃掉了。你可以看到，那些结实的采蜜人每人手里都有一片丰满的蜜片，蜜汁在手指间滴滴答答地流着。它们很快就被吃掉了，那速度就像每逢过节前孩子们对待奶油果饼一样。
7.这个勤劳的群体倒下后的受益者不仅仅是采蜜人，正如勤劳赚钱的人跟这些蜜蜂都有相似的习惯一样，我看到许多来自敌对群落的蜜蜂，它们挥舞着翅膀急切地赶来，在自己邻居的废墟上狠狠地捞了一把。它们和靠岸的印度贸易船上的人一样急切而兴奋地忙于劫掠，一头扎进被摧毁的蜂巢里，贪婪地享受着战利品，然后，扑扇着翅般满载而归。至于那些废墟的所有者，它们似乎没有心情做任何事情，甚至没有品尝身边流淌着的花蜜。它们只是前前后后地爬动着，茫然而悲伤，就好像我见过的一个可怜的家伙，站在自己被烧毁的房子面前，双手插在裤兜里，沮丧地吹着口哨一样。
8.很难描述那些适才灾难发生时不在蜂巢的蜜蜂回来时看到坍塌的蜂巢所表现出的混乱和慌张。它们一批批地从外面回来，满载着刚采回来的蜜，先在空中转啊转--它们那棵坍塌的树已经调转了方向，然后惊愕地发现那棵树现在成了空的。最终，它们好像明白了这场灾难是怎么回事，于是，一群群地落在附近一棵树的干枯的树枝上，像是在注视着这片坍塌的废墟，嗡嗡地叫着，悲痛地哀悼着共和国的崩溃。这倒成了一个“忧郁的雅克”①届时说教的场景。
9.我们离开了那个地方，树洞里还残留着大量的蜂蜜。“害兽一定会来收拾干净的。”一个侍从说道。“什么害兽？”我问。“哦，狗熊、臭鼬、浣熊或者负鼠。”他回答说，“狗熊是这世界上最会寻找蜜蜂树的害兽了。它们会连续几天地啃咬树干，直到啃出一个够把爪子伸进去的树洞，然后它们会把蜂蜜、蜜蜂什么的全部弄出来。”
（欧文）
