这首Macavity the Mystery Cat 《猫卡帝：神秘的猫》选自T.S.艾略特唯一一部为年轻读者而写的诗集《老负鼠的猫经》（Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats）, 出版于1939年。此诗尤其适合有一定双语基础的青少年阅读。

Macavity: The Mystery Cat

   Thomas Stearns Eliot

Macavity's a Mystery Cat: he's called the Hidden Paw—
For he's the master criminal who can defy the Law.
He's the bafflement of Scotland Yard, the Flying Squad's despair:
For when they reach the scene of crime—Macavity's not there!

Macavity, Macavity, there's no one like Macavity,
He's broken every human law, he breaks the law of gravity.
His powers of levitation would make a fakir stare,
And when you reach the scene of crime—Macavity's not there!
You may seek him in the basement, you may look up in the air—
But I tell you once and once again, Macavity's not there!

Macavity's a ginger cat, he's very tall and thin;
You would know him if you saw him, for his eyes are sunken in.
His brow is deeply lined with thought, his head is highly domed;
His coat is dusty from neglect, his whiskers are uncombed.
He sways his head from side to side, with movements like a snake;
And when you think he's half asleep, he's always wide awake.

Macavity, Macavity, there's no one like Macavity,
For he's a fiend in feline shape, a monster of depravity.
You may meet him in a by-street, you may see him in the square—
But when a crime's discovered, then Macavity's not there!

He's outwardly respectable. (They say he cheats at cards.)
And his footprints are not found in any file of Scotland Yard's
And when the larder's looted, or the jewel-case is rifled,
Or when the milk is missing, or another Peke's been stifled,
Or the greenhouse glass is broken, and the trellis past repair
Ay, there's the wonder of the thing! Macavity's not there!

And when the Foreign Office find a Treaty's gone astray,
Or the Admiralty lose some plans and drawings by the way,
There may be a scrap of paper in the hall or on the stair—
But it's useless to investigate—Macavity's not there!
And when the loss has been disclosed, the Secret Service say:
It must have been Macavity!'—but he's a mile away.
You'll be sure to find him resting, or a-licking of his thumb;
Or engaged in doing complicated long division sums.

Macavity, Macavity, there's no one like Macavity,
There never was a Cat of such deceitfulness and suavity.
He always has an alibi, and one or two to spare:
At whatever time the deed took place—MACAVITY WASN'T THERE !
And they say that all the Cats whose wicked deeds are widely known
(I might mention Mungojerrie, I might mention Griddlebone)
Are nothing more than agents for the Cat who all the time
Just controls their operations: the Napoleon of Crime!

猫卡帝：神秘的猫

       托马斯. 艾略特
           译/李雪梅

猫卡帝是只神秘猫，外号叫暗爪：
他目无法纪性桀骜，行凶犯罪头号。
伦敦警察束手无策，机动空警没招：
每当他们赶到现场，猫卡帝早逃掉！

猫卡帝，猫卡帝，猫卡帝是第一，
他打破了所有法律，还违背了重力。
他能悬浮在空气，魔法师都惊奇，
可当你们赶到那里，猫卡帝早逃匿！
你会搜查地下室，你会望天看地，
可我再次告诉你，猫卡帝不在那里！

猫卡帝长着米色毛，个子又瘦又高；
你看见他一定知道，他的眼睛深凹。
他双眉紧蹙常思考，头顶鼓包包；
他外套肮脏不爱好，胡须乱糟糟。
他的脑袋左看右摇，活像毒蛇放哨；
当你以为他在眯觉，他却全神偷瞄。

猫卡帝，猫卡帝，猫卡帝是第一，
他是堕落的魔鬼，披着猫的皮。
大街小巷行踪诡秘，他会跟你偶遇；
可是一旦案发时，猫卡帝不在那里！

他貌似体面（可人说，他打牌时作弊）
伦敦警察档案里，没有他的痕迹。
当储粮柜遭劫，当珠宝箱被洗，
当牛奶瓶丢失，狮子狗被掐死，
暖棚玻璃打碎，格子架全倒地，
唉，你说奇怪不奇怪！猫卡帝他不在！

外交部的办公室，一份协议错置，
海军部的作战计划还有地图丢失，
过道楼梯时不时，洒些细屑碎纸。
可是调查没用处，猫卡帝不在此！

每当损失被披露，安全局有说词：
猫卡帝难逃罪责！可就是没他踪迹。
三里之外只见他，吮着拇指休息；
或者比划盘算着，难解的除法题。

猫卡帝，猫卡帝，猫卡帝是第一，
从来没有哪只猫，既虚伪又和气。
他总是不在现场，证据绰绰有余，
不论案发在何时，他就是没有踪迹！

臭名昭著的恶猫，人人都知几分，
（比如蒙哥杰瑞，比如骨离豆奔），
他们都是毛毛兵，行事只是奉命；
只有猫王掌控全局，尊如拿破仑！

＊苏格兰场（New Scotland Yard，又称Scotland Yard、The Yard），是英国首都伦敦警察厅Metropolitan Police Service的代称。

托马斯·艾略特（Thomas Stearns Eliot, 1888 – 1965) ，是二十世纪文坛影响深远的诗人、评论家、剧作家，诗歌现代派运动领袖。他出生于美国密苏里州，1906年入哈佛大学学哲学和比较文学，接触过梵文和东方文化，对黑格尔派哲学颇感兴趣，也曾受法国象征主义文学的影响。1914年他结识了美国意象派诗人庞德，并于一战爆发后移居英国伦敦。1927年取得英国国籍，1965年逝于伦敦。

艾略特1922年发表的《荒原》（ The Waste Land)为他赢得了国际声誉，被看作是二十世纪最有影响力的诗作、英美现代诗歌的里程碑。全诗极少用韵， 大多是有节奏的自由体。 他于1935至1941年间写成《四个四重奏》（Four Quartets ），于1943年结集出版。此诗集为他赢得了1948年度的诺贝尔文学家奖。这是一组哲学宗教冥想诗，语言节奏性强，读来自然流畅，被认为是艾略特登峰造极的诗作。艾略特晚年致力于诗剧创作。