After the heat of the day, the evening came as a welcome relief (安慰) to all. The Ferris wheel was lighted now. It went round and round in the sky and seemed twice as high as by day.
There were lights on the midway (游乐场), and you could hear the crackle (发噼啪声) of the gambling machines (赌博机) and the music of the merry-go-round (旋转木马) and the voice of the man in the beano (宴席) booth calling numbers.
The children felt refreshed(恢复精神) after their nap (小睡). Fern met her friend Henry Fussy, and he invited her to ride with him in the Ferris wheel.
He even bought a ticket for her, so it didn't cost her anything. When Mrs. Arable happened to look up into the starry (布满星星的) sky and saw her little daughter sitting with Henry Fussy and going higher and higher into the air, and saw how happy Fern looked, she just shook her head.
"My, my!" she said. "Henry Fussy. Think of that!"
Templeton kept out of sight. In the tall grass behind the cattle barn(牛谷仓) he found a folded (折叠的) newspaper. Inside it were left leftovers from somebody's lunch:
a deviled (抹了很多芥末的) ham (火腿) sandwich, a piece of Swiss cheese, part of a hard-boiled egg (熟鸡蛋), and the core of a wormy apple (虫蛀了的苹果).
The rat crawled (爬) in and ate everything. Then he tore a word out of the paper, rolled it up, and started back to Wilbur's pen.
Charlotte had her web almost finished when Templeton returned, carrying the newspaper clipping. She had left a space in the middle of the web.
At this hour, no people were around the pigpen, so the rat and the spider and the pig were by themselves.
"I hope you brought a good one," Charlotte said. "It's the last word I shall ever write."
"Here," said Templeton, unrolling (展开) the paper.
"What does it say?" asked Charlotte. "You'll have to read it for me."
"It says 'Humble (谦虚的),'" replied the rat.
"Humble?" said Charlotte. "'Humble' has two meanings. It means 'not proud' and it means 'near the ground.' That's Wilbur all over. He's not proud and he's near the ground."
"Well, I hope you're satisfied (满意的)," sneered (冷笑) the rat. "I'm not going to spend all my time fetching and carrying. I came to this Fair to enjoy myself, not to deliver papers."
"You've been very helpful," Charlotte said. "Run along , if you want to see more of the Fair."
The rat grinned (咧开嘴笑). "I'm going to make a night of it," he said.
"The old sheep was right--the Fair is a rat's paradise. What eating! And what drinking! And everywhere good hiding and good hunting.
Bye, bye, my humble Wilbur! Fare thee well (再会吧), Charlotte, you old schemer (老阴谋家)! This will be a night to remember in a rat's life." He vanished (销声匿迹) into the shadows.
Charlotte went back to her work. It was quite dark now. In the distance, fireworks began going off--rockets, scattering (散开) fiery (燃烧的) balls in the sky.
By the time the Arables and the Zuckermans and Lurvy returned from the grandstand (看台), Charlotte had finished her web. The word HUMBLE was woven neatly (整洁地) in the center.
Nobody noticed it in the darkness. Everyone was tired and happy.
Fern and Avery climbed into the truck and lay down. They pulled the Indian blanket over them. Lurvy gave Wilbur a forkful of (一叉的量) fresh straw.
Mr. Arable patted (轻轻拍打) him. "Time for us to go home," he said to the pig. "See you tomorrow."
The grownups (大人) climbed slowly into the truck and Wilbur heard the engine start and then heard the truck moving away in slow speed. He would have felt lonely and homesick, had Charlotte not been with him.
He never felt lonely when she was near. In the distance he could still hear the music of the merry-go-round.
As he was dropping off to sleep he spoke to Charlotte.
"Sing me that song again, about the dung (粪堆) and the dark," he begged.
"Not tonight," she said in a low voice. "I'm too tired." Her voice didn't seem to come from the web.
"Where are you?" asked Wilbur. "I can't see you. Are you on your web?"
"I'm back here," she answered. "Up in this back corner."
"Why aren't you on your web?" asked Wilbur. "You almost never leave your web."
"I've left it tonight," she said.
Wilbur closed his eyes. "Charlotte," he said, after a while, "do you really think Zuckerman will let me live and not kill me when the cold weather comes? Do you really think so?"
"Of course," said Charlotte. "You are a famous pig and you are a good pig. Tomorrow you will probably win a prize. The whole world will hear about you.
Zuckerman will be proud and happy to own such a pig. You have nothing to fear, Wilbur--nothing to worry about. Maybe you'll live forever--who knows? and now, go to sleep."
For a while there was no sound. Then Wilbur's voice:
"What are you doing up there, Charlotte?"
"Oh, making something," she said. "Making something, as usual."
"Is it something for me?" asked Wilbur.
"No," said Charlotte. "It's something for me, for a change."
"Please tell me what it is," begged Wilbur.
"I'll tell you in the morning," she said. "When the first light comes into the sky and the sparrows (麻雀) stir and the cows rattle their chains, when the rooster crows and the stars fade, when early cars whisper along the highway, you look up here and I'll show you something. I will show you my masterpiece (杰作)."
Before she finished the sentence, Wilbur was asleep. She could tell by the sound of his breathing that he was sleeping peacefully (平静地) , deep in the straw.
Miles away, at the Arables' house, the men sat around the kitchen table eating a dish of canned peaches (桃子罐头) and talking over the events of the day.
Upstairs, Avery was already in bed and asleep. Mrs. Arable was tucking (掖被子) Fern into bed.
"Did you have a good time at the Fair?" she asked as she kissed her daughter.
Fern nodded. "I had the best time I have ever had anywhere or any time in all of my whole life."
"Well!" said Mrs. Arable. "Isn't that nice!"
Next morning when the first light came into the sky and the sparrows stirred in the trees, when the cows rattled their chains and the rooster crowed and the early automobiles went whispering along the road, Wilbur awoke and looked for Charlotte.
He saw her up overhead (在头顶上) in a corner near the back of his pen. she was very quiet. Her eight legs were spread wide. She seemed to have shrunk (收缩) during the night.
Next to her, attached to the ceiling, Wilbur saw a curious (奇怪的) object. It was a sort of sac (囊), or cocoon (茧).
It was peach-colored (桃红色的) and looked as though it were made of cotton candy (棉花糖).
"Are you awake, Charlotte?" he said softly.
"Yes," came the answer.
"What is that nifty (漂亮的) little thing? Did you make it?"
"I did indeed," replied Charlotte in a weak voice.
"Is it a plaything (玩具)?"
"Plaything? I should say not. It is my egg sac (卵囊), my magnum opus (杰作)."
"I don't know what a magnum opus is," said Wilbur.
"That's Latin," explained Charlotte. "It means 'great work.' This egg sac is my great work--the finest thing I have ever made."
"What's inside it?" asked Wilbur. "Eggs?"
"Five hundred and fourteen of them," she replied.
"Five hundred and fourteen?" said Wilbur. "You're kidding."
"No, I'm not. I counted them. I got started counting, so I kept on--just to keep my mind occupied."
"It's a perfectly beautiful egg sac," said Wilbur, feeling as happy as though he had constructed (建造) it himself.
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"Yes, it is pretty," replied Charlotte, patting the sac with her two front legs. "Anyway, I can guarantee (保证) that it is strong.
It's made out of the toughest material I have. It is also waterproof (防水的). The eggs are inside and will be warm and dry."
"Charlotte," said Wilbur dreamily (做梦般地), "are you really going to have five hundred and fourteen children?"
"If nothing happens, yes," she said. "Of course, they won't show up till next spring." Wilbur noticed that Charlotte's voice sounded sad.
"What makes you sound so down-hearted (低落的)? I should think you'd be terribly happy about this."
"Oh, don't pay any attention to me," said Charlotte. "I just don't have much pep (活力) any more. I guess I feel sad because I won't ever see my children."
"What do you mean you won't see your children! Of course you will. We'll all see them. It's going to be simply wonderful next spring in the barn cellar with five hundred and fourteen baby spiders running around all over the place. and the geese will have a new set of goslings, and the sheep will have their new lambs..."