Our last farewell to the brig was made with more solemnity. The entire ship’s company was collected in our dismantled1 winter-chamber to take part in the ceremonial. It was Sunday. Our moss2 walls had been torn down, and the wood that supported them burned. Our beds were off at the boats. The galley3 was unfurnished and cold. Everything about the little den4 of refuge was desolate5.
Leaving the “Advance”
We read prayers and a chapter of the Bible; and then, all standing6 silently round, I took Sir John Franklin’s portrait from its frame and cased it in an India-rubber scroll7. I next read the reports of inspection8 and survey which had been made by the several commissions organized ? 182 ? for the purpose, all of them testifying to the necessities under which I was about to act. I then addressed the party: I did not affect to disguise the difficulties that were before us; but I assured them that they could all be overcome by energy and subordination to command; and that the thirteen hundred miles of ice and water that lay between us and North Greenland could be traversed with safety for most of us, and hope for all. I added, that as men and messmates, it was the duty of us all, enjoined9 by gallantry as well as religion, to postpone10 every consideration of self to the protection of the wounded and sick; and that this must be regarded by every man, and under all circumstances, as a paramount11 order. In conclusion, I told them to think over the trials we had all of us gone through, and to remember each man for himself how often an unseen Power had rescued him in peril12; and I admonished13 them still to place reliance on Him who could not change.
I was met with a right spirit. After a short conference, an engagement was drawn14 up by one of the officers, and brought to me with the signatures of all the company, without an exception. It read as follows:—
“Second Grinnell Expedition,
“Brig ‘Advance,’ May 20, 1855.
“The undersigned, being convinced of the impossibility of the liberation of the brig, and equally convinced of the impossibility of remaining in the ice a third winter, do fervently15 concur16 with the commander in his attempt to reach the south by means of boats.
“Knowing the trials and hardships which are before us, and feeling the necessity of union, harmony, and discipline, we have determined17 to abide18 faithfully by the expedition ? 183 ? and our sick comrades, and to do all that we can, as true men, to advance the objects in view.
“Henry Brooks19, J. Wall Wilson,
James M’Gary, Amos Bonsall,
George Riley, I. I. Hates,
William Morton, August Sontag,
C. Ohlsen, &c., &c.”
The Memorial
I had prepared a brief memorial of the considerations which justified21 our abandonment of the vessel22, and had read it as part of my address. I now fixed23 it to a stanchion near the gangway, where it must attract the notice of any who might seek us hereafter, and stand with them as my vindication24 for the step, in case we should be overtaken by disaster. It closed with these words:—
“I regard the abandonment of the brig as inevitable25. We have by actual inspection but thirty-six days’ provisions, and a careful survey shows that we cannot cut more firewood without rendering26 our craft unseaworthy. A third winter would force us, as the only means of escaping starvation, to resort to Esquimaux habits and give up all hope of remaining by the vessel and her resources. It would therefore in no manner advance the search after Sir John Franklin.
“Under any circumstances, to remain longer would be destructive to those of our little party who have already suffered from the extreme severity of the climate and its tendencies to disease. Scurvy27 has enfeebled more or less every man in the expedition; and an anomalous28 spasmodic disorder29, allied30 to tetanus, has cost us the life of two of our most prized comrades.
“I hope, speaking on the part of my companions and myself, that we have done all that we ought to do to prove our tenacity31 of purpose and devotion to the cause which we have undertaken. This attempt to escape ? 184 ? by crossing the southern ice on sledges32 is regarded by me as an imperative34 duty,—the only means of saving ourselves and preserving the laboriously-earned results of the expedition.
“E. K. Kane,
“Commander, Grinnell Expedition.
“‘Advance,’ Rensselaer Bay, May 20, 1855.”
We then went upon deck: the flags were hoisted35 and hauled down again, and our party walked once or twice around the brig, looking at her timbers and exchanging comments upon the scars which reminded them of every stage of her dismantling36. Our figure-head—the fair Augusta, the little blue girl with pink cheeks, who had lost her breast by an iceberg37 and her nose by a nip off Bedevilled Reach—was taken from our bows and placed aboard the “Hope.” “She is at any rate wood,” said the men, when I hesitated about giving them the additional burden; “and if we cannot carry her far we can burn her.”
No one thought of the mockery of cheers: we had no festival-liquor to mislead our perception of the real state of things. When all hands were quite ready, we scrambled38 off over the ice together, much like a gang of stevedores39 going to work over a quayful of broken cargo40.
Excluding four sick men, who were unable to move, and myself, who had to drive the dog-team and serve as common carrier and courier, we numbered but twelve men,—which would have given six to a sledge33, or too few to move it. It was therefore necessary to concentrate our entire force upon one sledge at a time. On the other hand, however, it was important to the efficiency of our organization that matters of cooking, sleeping baggage, and rations20, should be regulated by separate messes.
? 185 ?
The routine I established was the most precise:—Daily prayers both morning and evening, all hands gathering41 round in a circle and standing uncovered during the short exercise; regulated hours; fixed duties and positions at the track-lines and on the halt; the cooking to be taken by turns, the captains of the boats alone being excused. The charge of the log was confided42 to Dr Hayes, and the running survey to Mr Sontag. Though little could be expected from either of these gentlemen at this time, I deemed it best to keep up the appearance of ordinary voyaging; and after we left the first ices of Smith’s Straits I was indebted to them for valuable results. The thermometer was observed every three hours.
The Boats’ Crews
To my faithful friend and first officer, boatswain Brooks, I assigned the command of the boats and sledges. I knew how well he was fitted for it; and when forced, as I was afterward43 during the descent, to be in constant motion between the sick-station, the Esquimaux settlements, and the deserted44 brig, I felt safe in the assurance of his tried fidelity45 and indomitable resolution. The party under him was marshalled at the rue-raddies as a single gang; but the messes were arranged with reference to the two whale-boats, and when we came afterward to the open water the crews distributed in the same way:—
To the Faith. To the Hope.
James M’Gary, William Morton,
Christian46 Ohlsen, August Sontag,
Amos Bonsall, George Riley,
Carl J. Petersen, John Blake,
Thomas Hickey. William Godfrey.
With this organization we set out on our march.
Up to the evening of the 23d, the progress was little more than a mile a day for one sledge; on the 24th, both ? 186 ? sledges reached First Ravine, a distance of seven miles, when we found that the dog-sledge had brought on to this station the buffalo47 bags and other sleeping appliances which we had prepared during the winter. The condition of the party was such that it was essential they should sleep in comfort; and it was a rule, therefore, during the whole journey, never departed from unless in extreme emergency, never to begin a new day’s labour till the party was refreshed from the exertions48 of the day before. Our halts were regulated by the condition of the men rather than by arbitrary hours, and sleep was meted49 out in proportion to the trials of the march. We slept by day when the sun was warmest, and travelled when we could avoid his greatest glare.
Mr Morton, Ohlsen, and Petersen, during this time performed a double duty. They took their turn at the sledges with the rest, but they were also engaged in preparing the Red Eric as a comrade boat. She was mounted on our good old sledge, the Faith—a sledge that, like her namesake, our most reliable whale-boat, had been our very present help in many times of trouble. I believe every man felt, when he saw her brought out, that stout50 work was to be done, and under auspices51 of good.
In the meantime I had carried Mr Goodfellow, with my dog-sledge, to a sick-station, which I had arranged at Anoatok; and had managed to convey the rest one by one to the same spot. Mr Wilson, whose stump52 was still unhealed, and who suffered besides from scurvy; George Whipple, whose tendons were so contracted that he could not extend his legs, and poor Stephenson, just able to keep the lamps burning and warm up food for the rest, were the other invalids53, all incapable55 of moving without assistance. ? 187 ? It is just that I should speak of the manly56 fortitude57 with which they bore up during this painful imprisonment58. Dr Hayes, though still disabled from his frozen foot, adhered manfully to the sledges.
As I review my notes of the first few days of our ice-journey, I find them full of incidents, interesting and even momentous59 when they occurred, but which cannot claim a place in this narrative60. The sledges were advancing slowly, the men often discouraged, and now and then one giving way under the unaccustomed labour.
The “Red Boat”
The Red Boat was completed for service in a few days, and joined the sledge-party on the floes,—an additional burden, but a necessary one, for our weary rue-raddies; and I set out for the sick-station with Mr Goodfellow, our last remaining invalid54. As my team reached the entrance of Force Bay, I saw that poor Nessark, the Esquimaux, who had carried Mr Wilson and some stores to Anoatok, finding his sledge-load too heavy, had thrown out a portion of it upon the ice. He had naturally enough selected the bread for his jettison62, an article of diet unknown among the Esquimaux, but precisely63 that of which our sick were most in need. I lost some time in collecting such parts of his rejected cargo as I could find, and, when I reached the huts after a twelve hours’ drive, the condition of our sick men made it imperative that I should return at once to the brig. The strength of the dogs began to fail while crossing the reach of Force Bay, and I was forced to camp out with them on the ice-belt, but early in the morning I came upon the fires of the sledge-party.
The men were at prayers when I first saw them; but, as they passed to the drag-ropes, I was pained to see how wearily they moved. Poor Brooks’ legs were so swollen64 that he could not brace65 them in his blanket coverings, and ? 188 ? Dr Hayes could hardly keep his place. The men generally showed symptoms of increasing scurvy. It was plain that they could not hold their own without an increased allowance, if not of meat, at least of fresh bread and hot tea.
Taking with me Morton, my faithful adjutant always, I hurried on to the brig.
We lighted fires in the galley, melted pork, baked a large batch66 of bread, gathered together a quantity of beans and dried apples, somewhat damaged, but still eatable, and by the time our dogs had fed and rested, we were ready for the return. Distributing our supplies as we passed the squads67 on the floe61, I hastened to Anoatok. I had taken Godfrey with us from his party, and, as it was painfully evident that the men could not continue to work without more generous food, I sent him on to Etah with the dogs, in the hope of procuring68 a stock of walrus-meat.
The little company at the hut welcomed my return. They had exhausted69 their provisions; their lamp had gone out; the snow-drift had forced its way in at the door, so that they could not close it; it was blowing a north-easter; and the thermometer, which hung against the blanketed walls, stood only sixteen degree above zero. The poor fellows had all the will to protect themselves, but they were lame70, and weak, and hungry, and disheartened. We built a fire for them of tarred rope, dried their bedding, cooked them a porridge of meat-biscuit and pea-soup, fastened up their desolate doorway71, hung a dripping-slab of pork-fat over their lamp-wick, and, first joining in a prayer of thankfulness, and then a round of merry gossip, all hands forgot sickness, and privation, and distance in the contentment of our sleeping-bags. I cannot tell how long we slept, for all our watches ran down before we awoke.
? 189 ?
The gale72 had risen, and it was snowing hard when I replenished73 the fires of our heartstone. But we went on burning rope and fat, in a regular tea-drinking frolic, till not an icicle or even a frost-mark was to be seen on the roof. After a time Godfrey rejoined us; Metek came with him; and between their two sledges they brought an ample supply of meat. With part of this I hastened to the sledge-party. They were now off Ten-mile Ravine, struggling through the accumulated snows, and much exhausted, though not out of heart. In spite of their swollen feet, they had worked fourteen hours a day, passing in that time over some twelve miles of surface, and advancing a mile and a half on their way.
The Sledge-Party
Once more leaving the party on the floe, Morton and myself, with Metek and his sledge in company, revisited the brig, and set ourselves to work baking bread. The brig was dreary74 enough, and Metek was glad to bid it good-bye, with one hundred and fifty pounds on his dog-sledge, consigned75 to Mr Brooks. But he carried besides a letter, safely trusted to his inspection, which directed that he should be sent back forthwith for another load. It was something like a breach76 of faith, perhaps; but his services were indispensable, and his dogs still more so. He returned, of course, for there was no escaping us; his village lay in the opposite direction, and he could not deviate77 from the track after once setting out. In the time we had cooked about a hundred pounds of flour pudding, and tried out a couple of bagfuls of pork-fat,—a good days work,—and we were quite ready, before the subdued78 brightness of midnight came, to turn in to our beds. Our beds!—there was not an article of covering left on board. We ripped open the old mattresses79, and, all three crawling down among the curled hair, Morton, Metek, ? 190 ? and the Nalegak, slept as sound as vagrants80 on a haystack.
On Monday, the 28th, we all set out for the boats and Anoatok. Both Metek and myself had all our sledges heavily laden81. We carried the last of our provision-bags, completing now our full complement82 of fifteen hundred pounds, the limit of capacity of our otherwise crowded boats.
It caused me a bitter pang83 to abandon our collection of objects of natural history, the cherished fruit of so much exposure and toil84; and it was hardly easier to leave some other things behind,—several of my well-tested instruments, for instance, and those silent friends, my books. They had all been packed up, hoping for a chance of saving them; and, to the credit of my comrades, let me say gratefully that they offered to exclude both clothes and food in favour of a full freight of these treasures.
But the thing was not to be thought of. I gave a last look at the desolate galley-stove, the representative of our long winter’s fireside, at the still bright coppers85 now full of frozen water, the theodolite, the chart-box, and poor Wilson’s guitar,—one more at the remnant of the old moss-walls, the useless daguerreotypes, and the skeletons of dog, and deer, and bear, and musk-ox,—stoppered in the rigging;—and, that done, whipped up my dogs so much after the manner of a sentimentalising Christian, that our pagan Metek raised a prayer in their behalf.
点击
收听单词发音
收听单词发音 |
1
dismantled
|
|
| 拆开( dismantle的过去式和过去分词 )； 拆卸； 废除； 取消 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
2
moss
|
|
| n.苔，藓，地衣 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
3
galley
|
|
| n.（飞机或船上的）厨房单层甲板大帆船；军舰舰长用的大划艇； | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
4
den
|
|
| n.兽穴；秘密地方；安静的小房间，私室 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
5
desolate
|
|
| adj.荒凉的，荒芜的；孤独的，凄凉的；v.使荒芜，使孤寂 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
6
standing
|
|
| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
7
scroll
|
|
| n.卷轴，纸卷；(石刻上的)漩涡 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
8
inspection
|
|
| n.检查，审查，检阅 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
9
enjoined
|
|
| v.命令( enjoin的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
10
postpone
|
|
| v.延期，推迟 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
11
paramount
|
|
| a.最重要的，最高权力的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
12
peril
|
|
| n.(严重的)危险；危险的事物 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
13
admonished
|
|
| v.劝告( admonish的过去式和过去分词 )；训诫；（温和地）责备；轻责 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
14
drawn
|
|
| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
15
fervently
|
|
| adv.热烈地，热情地，强烈地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
16
concur
|
|
| v.同意，意见一致，互助，同时发生 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
17
determined
|
|
| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
18
abide
|
|
| vi.遵守；坚持；vt.忍受 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
19
brooks
|
|
| n.小溪( brook的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
20
rations
|
|
| 定量( ration的名词复数 )； 配给量； 正常量； 合理的量 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
21
justified
|
|
| a.正当的，有理的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
22
vessel
|
|
| n.船舶；容器，器皿；管，导管，血管 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
23
fixed
|
|
| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
24
vindication
|
|
| n.洗冤，证实 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
25
inevitable
|
|
| adj.不可避免的，必然发生的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
26
rendering
|
|
| n.表现，描写 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
27
scurvy
|
|
| adj.下流的，卑鄙的，无礼的；n.坏血病 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
28
anomalous
|
|
| adj.反常的；不规则的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
29
disorder
|
|
| n.紊乱，混乱；骚动，骚乱；疾病，失调 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
30
allied
|
|
| adj.协约国的；同盟国的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
31
tenacity
|
|
| n.坚韧 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
32
sledges
|
|
| n.雪橇，雪车( sledge的名词复数 )v.乘雪橇( sledge的第三人称单数 )；用雪橇运载 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
33
sledge
|
|
| n.雪橇，大锤；v.用雪橇搬运，坐雪橇往 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
34
imperative
|
|
| n.命令，需要；规则；祈使语气；adj.强制的；紧急的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
35
hoisted
|
|
| 把…吊起，升起( hoist的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
36
dismantling
|
|
| （枪支）分解 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
37
iceberg
|
|
| n.冰山，流冰，冷冰冰的人 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
38
scrambled
|
|
| v.快速爬行( scramble的过去式和过去分词 )；攀登；争夺；（军事飞机）紧急起飞 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
39
stevedores
|
|
| n.码头装卸工人，搬运工( stevedore的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
40
cargo
|
|
| n.(一只船或一架飞机运载的)货物 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
41
gathering
|
|
| n.集会，聚会，聚集 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
42
confided
|
|
| v.吐露（秘密，心事等）( confide的过去式和过去分词 )；（向某人）吐露（隐私、秘密等） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
43
afterward
|
|
| adv.后来；以后 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
44
deserted
|
|
| adj.荒芜的，荒废的，无人的，被遗弃的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
45
fidelity
|
|
| n.忠诚，忠实；精确 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
46
Christian
|
|
| adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
47
buffalo
|
|
| n.(北美)野牛；(亚洲)水牛 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
48
exertions
|
|
| n.努力( exertion的名词复数 )；费力；（能力、权力等的）运用；行使 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
49
meted
|
|
| v.（对某人）施以，给予（处罚等）( mete的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
51
auspices
|
|
| n.资助，赞助 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
52
stump
|
|
| n.残株，烟蒂，讲演台；v.砍断，蹒跚而走 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
53
invalids
|
|
| 病人，残疾者( invalid的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
54
invalid
|
|
| n.病人，伤残人；adj.有病的，伤残的；无效的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
55
incapable
|
|
| adj.无能力的，不能做某事的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
56
manly
|
|
| adj.有男子气概的；adv.男子般地，果断地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
57
fortitude
|
|
| n.坚忍不拔；刚毅 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
58
imprisonment
|
|
| n.关押，监禁，坐牢 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
59
momentous
|
|
| adj.重要的，重大的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
60
narrative
|
|
| n.叙述，故事；adj.叙事的，故事体的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
61
floe
|
|
| n.大片浮冰 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
62
jettison
|
|
| n.投弃，投弃货物 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
63
precisely
|
|
| adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
64
swollen
|
|
| adj.肿大的，水涨的；v.使变大，肿胀 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
65
brace
|
|
| n. 支柱,曲柄,大括号; v. 绷紧,顶住,(为困难或坏事)做准备 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
66
batch
|
|
| n.一批(组，群)；一批生产量 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
67
squads
|
|
| n.（军队中的）班( squad的名词复数 )；（暗杀）小组；体育运动的运动（代表）队；（对付某类犯罪活动的）警察队伍 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
68
procuring
|
|
| v.（努力）取得， （设法）获得( procure的现在分词 )；拉皮条 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
69
exhausted
|
|
| adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
70
lame
|
|
| adj.跛的，(辩解、论据等)无说服力的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
71
doorway
|
|
| n.门口，(喻)入门；门路，途径 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
72
gale
|
|
| n.大风，强风，一阵闹声（尤指笑声等） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
73
replenished
|
|
| 补充( replenish的过去式和过去分词 )； 重新装满 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
74
dreary
|
|
| adj.令人沮丧的，沉闷的，单调乏味的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
75
consigned
|
|
| v.把…置于（令人不快的境地）( consign的过去式和过去分词 )；把…托付给；把…托人代售；丟弃 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
76
breach
|
|
| n.违反，不履行；破裂；vt.冲破，攻破 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
77
deviate
|
|
| v.(from)背离，偏离 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
78
subdued
|
|
| adj. 屈服的，柔和的，减弱的 动词subdue的过去式和过去分词 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
79
mattresses
|
|
| 褥垫，床垫( mattress的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
80
vagrants
|
|
| 流浪者( vagrant的名词复数 )； 无业游民； 乞丐； 无赖 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
81
laden
|
|
| adj.装满了的；充满了的；负了重担的；苦恼的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
82
complement
|
|
| n.补足物，船上的定员；补语；vt.补充，补足 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
83
pang
|
|
| n.剧痛，悲痛，苦闷 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
84
toil
|
|
| vi.辛劳工作，艰难地行动；n.苦工，难事 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
85
coppers
|
|
| 铜( copper的名词复数 )； 铜币 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
| 欢迎访问英文小说网 |