It was a slow，laborious process. Frequently it took a whole day of exhausting effort to drag a single boulder to the top of the quarry，and sometimes when it was pushed over the edge it failed to break. Nothing could have been achieved without Boxer，Whose strength seemed equal to that of all that rest of the animals put together. When the boulder began to slip and the animals cried out in despair at finding themselves dragged down the hill，it was always Boxer who strained himself against the rope and brought the boulder to a stop. To see him toiling up the slope inch by inch，his breath coming fast，the tips of his hoofs clawing at the ground，and his great sides matted with sweat，filled everyone with admiration. Clovet warned him sometimes to be careful not to overstrain himself，but Boxer would never listen to her. His two slogans，“ I will work harder”and“Napoleon is always right，”seemed to him a sufficient answer to all problems. He had made arrangements with the cockerel to call him three-quarters of an hour earlier in the mornings instead of half and hour. And in his spare moments，of which there were not many nowadays，he would go alone to the quarry，collect a load of broken stone，and drag it down to the site of the windmill unasisted.
这是一个缓慢而艰苦的过程。要把一块巨石拖到采石场的顶部，常常要耗费一整天的精力，有时甚至把它推下悬崖也不会断裂。没有鲍克瑟，就不会有什么成就，他的力气似乎可以和其他所有动物加在一起相提并论。当巨石开始滑落，动物们发现自己被拖下山坡而绝望地大叫时，总是鲍克瑟用尽全力抓住绳子，把巨石拉了下来。看着他一寸一寸地吃力地爬上山坡，呼吸急促，马蹄尖抓着地面，巨大的身躯沾满了汗水，每个人心中都充满了赞叹。克洛维提醒他有时要小心，不要让自己过度劳累，但鲍克瑟从不听她的。他的两个口号，“我将更加努力工作”和“拿破仑永远是对的”，在他看来是对所有问题的充分回答。他和小公鸡商量好了，每天早上把叫醒他的时间从半小时提前到三刻钟。在他现在不多的空闲时间里，他就一个人到采石场去，收集一车碎石，不加阻碍地拖到风车厂里去。
