We had a few passengers — not nearly so many as we had laid in basins and stewards7 for; for before coming off to the ship most of those who had bought tickets would inquire whither she was bound, and when not informed would go back to their hotels and send a bandit on board to remove their baggage. But there were enough left to be rather troublesome. They cultivated the rolling gait peculiar8 to sailors when drunk, and the upper deck was hardly wide enough for them to go from the forecastle to the binnacle to set their watches by the ship’s compass. They were always petitioning Captain Abersouth to let the big anchor go, just to hear it plunge9 in the water, threatening in case of refusal to write to the newspapers. A favorite amusement with them was to sit in the lee of the bulwarks10, relating their experiences in former voyages — voyages distinguished11 in every instance by two remarkable12 features, the frequency of unprecedented13 hurricanes and the entire immunity14 of the narrator from seasickness15. It was very interesting to see them sitting in a row telling these things, each man with a basin between his legs.
One day there arose a great storm. The sea walked over the ship as if it had never seen a ship before and meant to enjoy it all it could. The Mudlark labored16 very much — far more, indeed, than the crew did; for these innocents had discovered in possession of one of their number a pair of leather-seated trousers, and would do nothing but sit and play cards for them; in a month from leaving port each sailor had owned them a dozen times. They were so worn by being pushed over to the winner that there was little but the seat remaining, and that immortal17 part the captain finally kicked overboard — not maliciously18, nor in an unfriendly spirit, but because he had a habit of kicking the seats of trousers.
The storm increased in violence until it succeeded in so straining the Mudlark that she took in water like a teetotaler; then it appeared to get relief directly. This may be said in justice to a storm at sea: when it has broken off your masts, pulled out your rudder, carried away your boats and made a nice hole in some inaccessible19 part of your hull20 it will often go away in search of a fresh ship, leaving you to take such measures for your comfort as you may think fit. In our case the captain thought fit to sit on the taffrail reading a three-volume novel.
Seeing he had got about half way through the second volume, at which point the lovers would naturally be involved in the most hopeless and heart-rending difficulties, I thought he would be in a particularly cheerful humor, so I approached him and informed him the ship was going down.
“Well,” said he, closing the book, but keeping his forefinger21 between the pages to mark his place, “she never would be good for much after such a shaking-up as this. But, I say — I wish you would just send the bo’sn for’d there to break up that prayer-meeting. The Mudlark isn’t a seamen’s chapel22, I suppose.”
“But,” I replied, impatiently, “can’t something be done to lighten the ship?”
“Well,” he drawled, reflectively, “seeing she hasn’t any masts left to cut away, nor any cargo to — stay, you might throw over some of the heaviest of the passengers if you think it would do any good.”
It was a happy thought — the intuition of genius. Walking rapidly forward to the foc’sle, which, being highest out of water, was crowded with passengers, I seized a stout23 old gentleman by the nape of the neck, pushed him up to the rail, and chucked him over. He did not touch the water: he fell on the apex24 of a cone25 of sharks which sprang up from the sea to meet him, their noses gathered to a point, their tails just clearing the surface. I think it unlikely that the old gentleman knew what disposition26 had been made of him. Next, I hurled27 over a woman and flung a fat baby to the wild winds. The former was sharked out of sight, the same as the old man; the latter divided amongst the gulls28.
I am relating these things exactly as they occurred. It would be very easy to make a fine story out of all this material — to tell how that, while I was engaged in lightening the ship, I was touched by the self-sacrificing spirit of a beautiful young woman, who, to save the life of her lover, pushed her aged29 mother forward to where I was operating, imploring30 me to take the old lady, but spare, O, spare her dear Henry. I might go on to set forth31 how that I not only did take the old lady, as requested, but immediately seized dear Henry, and sent him flying as far as I could to leeward32, having first broken his back across the rail and pulled a double-fistful of his curly hair out. I might proceed to state that, feeling appeased33, I then stole the long boat and taking the beautiful maiden34 pulled away from the ill-fated ship to the church of St. Massaker, Fiji, where we were united by a knot which I afterward35 untied36 with my teeth by eating her. But, in truth, nothing of all this occurred, and I can not afford to be the first writer to tell a lie just to interest the reader. What really did occur is this: as I stood on the quarter-deck, heaving over the passengers, one after another, Captain Abersouth, having finished his novel, walked aft and quietly hove me over.
The sensations of a drowning man have been so often related that I shall only briefly37 explain that memory at once displayed her treasures: all the scenes of my eventful life crowded, though without confusion or fighting, into my mind. I saw my whole career spread out before me, like a map of Central Africa since the discovery of the gorilla38. There were the cradle in which I had lain, as a child, stupefied with soothing39 syrups40; the perambulator, seated in which and propelled from behind, I overthrew41 the schoolmaster, and in which my infantile spine42 received its curvature; the nursery-maid, surrendering her lips alternately to me and the gardener; the old home of my youth, with the ivy43 and the mortgage on it; my eldest44 brother, who by will succeeded to the family debts; my sister, who ran away with the Count von Pretzel, coachman to a most respectable New York family; my mother, standing45 in the attitude of a saint, pressing with both hands her prayer-book against the patent palpitators from Madame Fahertini’s; my venerable father, sitting in his chimney corner, his silvered head bowed upon his breast, his withered46 hands crossed patiently in his lap, waiting with Christian47 resignation for death, and drunk as a lord — all this, and much more, came before my mind’s eye, and there was no charge for admission to the show. Then there was a ringing sound in my ears, my senses swam better than I could, and as I sank down, down, through fathomless48 depths, the amber49 light falling through the water above my head failed and darkened into blackness. Suddenly my feet struck something firm — it was the bottom. Thank heaven, I was saved!
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1
expedient
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| adj.有用的，有利的；n.紧急的办法，权宜之计 | |
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hamper
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| vt.妨碍，束缚，限制；n.(有盖的)大篮子 | |
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contrive
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| vt.谋划，策划；设法做到；设计，想出 | |
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4
cargoes
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| n.（船或飞机装载的）货物( cargo的名词复数 )；大量，重负 | |
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cargo
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| n.(一只船或一架飞机运载的)货物 | |
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mariner
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| n.水手号不载人航天探测器，海员，航海者 | |
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7
stewards
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| （轮船、飞机等的）乘务员( steward的名词复数 )； （俱乐部、旅馆、工会等的）管理员； （大型活动的）组织者； （私人家中的）管家 | |
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8
peculiar
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| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
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plunge
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| v.跳入，(使)投入，(使)陷入；猛冲 | |
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bulwarks
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| n.堡垒( bulwark的名词复数 )；保障；支柱；舷墙 | |
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11
distinguished
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| adj.卓越的，杰出的，著名的 | |
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remarkable
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| adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的 | |
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unprecedented
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| adj.无前例的，新奇的 | |
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immunity
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| n.优惠；免除；豁免，豁免权 | |
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seasickness
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| n.晕船 | |
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labored
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| adj.吃力的，谨慎的v.努力争取(for)( labor的过去式和过去分词 )；苦干；详细分析；（指引擎）缓慢而困难地运转 | |
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immortal
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| adj.不朽的；永生的，不死的；神的 | |
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maliciously
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| adv.有敌意地 | |
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inaccessible
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| adj.达不到的，难接近的 | |
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hull
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| n.船身；(果、实等的)外壳；vt.去(谷物等)壳 | |
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forefinger
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| n.食指 | |
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chapel
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| n.小教堂，殡仪馆 | |
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apex
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| n.顶点，最高点 | |
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cone
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| n.圆锥体，圆锥形东西，球果 | |
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disposition
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| n.性情，性格；意向，倾向；排列，部署 | |
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hurled
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| v.猛投，用力掷( hurl的过去式和过去分词 )；大声叫骂 | |
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28
gulls
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| n.鸥( gull的名词复数 )v.欺骗某人( gull的第三人称单数 ) | |
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29
aged
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| adj.年老的，陈年的 | |
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imploring
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| 恳求的，哀求的 | |
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forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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leeward
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| adj.背风的；下风的 | |
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appeased
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| 安抚，抚慰( appease的过去式和过去分词 )； 绥靖（满足另一国的要求以避免战争） | |
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maiden
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| n.少女，处女；adj.未婚的，纯洁的，无经验的 | |
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afterward
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| adv.后来；以后 | |
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untied
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| 松开，解开( untie的过去式和过去分词 )； 解除，使自由； 解决 | |
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briefly
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| adv.简单地，简短地 | |
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gorilla
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| n.大猩猩，暴徒，打手 | |
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soothing
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| adj.慰藉的；使人宽心的；镇静的 | |
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40
syrups
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| n.糖浆，糖汁( syrup的名词复数 )；糖浆类药品 | |
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41
overthrew
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| overthrow的过去式 | |
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42
spine
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| n.脊柱，脊椎；(动植物的)刺；书脊 | |
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43
ivy
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| n.常青藤，常春藤 | |
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44
eldest
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| adj.最年长的，最年老的 | |
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45
standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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46
withered
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| adj. 枯萎的，干瘪的，（人身体的部分器官）因病萎缩的或未发育良好的 动词wither的过去式和过去分词形式 | |
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47
Christian
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| adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒 | |
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48
fathomless
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| a.深不可测的 | |
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49
amber
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| n.琥珀；琥珀色；adj.琥珀制的 | |
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