There is a train that comes from Namibia and Malawi,
來自那米比亞和馬拉威的火車，
There is a train that comes from Zambia and Zimbabwe,
來自尚比亞以及辛巴威的火車，
There is a train that comes from Angola and Mozambique,
來自安哥拉和莫三比克的火車，
From Lesotho, from Botswana, from Zwaziland,
來自賴索托、波札那，還有史瓦濟蘭的火車，
From all the hinterland of Southern and Central Africa.
所有來自非洲中南腹地的火車，
This train carries young and old, African men
載著非洲的老少青壯，
Who are conscripted to come and work on contract
聽信招募而簽下合約，
In the golden mineral mines of Johannesburg and its surrounding metropolis,
來到約翰尼斯堡和周遭城市的澄黃礦坑裡，
Sixteen hours or more a day, for almost no pay.
只為了微薄的收入每天工作至少十六小時。
Deep, deep, deep down in the belly of the earth, when they are digging and drilling that shiny mighty evasive stone,
當他們在地底深處挖掘著耀眼威武的稀有石頭時，
Or when they dish that mish mesh mush food into their iron plates with the iron shank,
當他們將難以下嚥的稀糊食物用鐵勺盛入鐵盤時，
Or when they sit in their stinking, funky, filthy, flea-ridden barracks and hostels.
當他們呆坐在臭氣四溢滿是跳蚤的營帳或旅店時，
They think about the loved ones they may never see again,
他們思念著或許永遠不能再見的家人，
Because they might have already been forcibly removed from where they last left them,
因為他們的家人早已被強迫遷離家園，
Or wantonly murdered in the dead of night by roving, marauding gangs of no particular origin.
或因為他們的家人已被無名盜賊所害。
So we are told.
至少我們是這麼聽說的。
They think about their lands, their herds that were taken away from them with a gun, bomb, teargas and the cannon.
他們思念著被蠻橫搶走的牲畜和土地。
And when they hear that Choo-Choo train,
所以每當他們聽見火車行進的蒸氣聲時，
*********
They always curse, curse the coal train,
總是口出穢言一解心中無盡的憤恨怨氣，
The coal train that brought them to Johannesburg, Stimela
咒罵著那載他們來到約翰尼斯堡的火車。
