During the whole course of my Life I had never seen a man at first so chapfallen; and then so furiously indignant.
The terrible fatigues3 of our sea voyage, the fearful dangers we had passed through, had all, all, gone for nothing. We had to begin them all over again.
Instead of progressing, as we fondly expected, during a voyage of so many days, we had retreated. Every hour of our expedition on the raft had been so much lost time!
Presently, however, the indomitable energy of my uncle overcame every other consideration.
"So," he said, between his set teeth, "fatality4 will play me these terrible tricks. The elements themselves conspire5 to overwhelm me with mortification6. Air, fire, and water combine their united efforts to oppose my passage. Well, they shall see what the earnest will of a determined7 man can do. I will not yield, I will not retreat even one inch; and we shall see who shall triumph in this great contest—man or nature."
Standing8 upright on a rock, irritated and menacing, Professor Hardwigg, like the ferocious9 Ajax, seemed to defy the fates. I, however, took upon myself to interfere10, and to impose some sort of check upon such insensate enthusiasm.
"Listen to me, Uncle," I said, in a firm but temperate11 tone of voice, "there must be some limit to ambition here below. It is utterly12 useless to struggle against the impossible. Pray listen to reason. We are utterly unprepared for a sea voyage; it is simply madness to think of performing a journey of five hundred leagues upon a wretched pile of beams, with a counterpane for a sail, a paltry13 stick for a mast, and a tempest to contend with. As we are totally incapable14 of steering15 our frail16 craft, we shall become the mere17 plaything of the storm, and it is acting18 the part of madmen if we, a second time, run any risk upon this dangerous and treacherous19 Central Sea."
These are only a few of the reasons and arguments I put together—reasons and arguments which to me appeared unanswerable. I was allowed to go on without interruption for about ten minutes. The explanation to this I soon discovered. The Professor was not even listening, and did not hear a word of all my eloquence20.
Such was the result of my strenuous22 effort to resist his iron will. I tried again; I begged and implored23 him; I got into a passion; but I had to deal with a will more determined than my own. I seemed to feel like the waves which fought and battled against the huge mass of granite24 at our feet, which had smiled grimly for so many ages at their puny25 efforts.
Hans, meanwhile, without taking part in our discussion, had been repairing the raft. One would have supposed that he instinctively26 guessed at the further projects of my uncle.
By means of some fragments of cordage, he had again made the raft seaworthy.
While I had been speaking, he had hoisted28 a new mast and sail, the latter already fluttering and waving in the breeze.
The worthy27 Professor spoke29 a few words to our imperturbable30 guide, who immediately began to put our baggage on board and to prepare for our departure. The atmosphere was now tolerably clear and pure, and the northeast wind blew steadily31 and serenely32. It appeared likely to last for some time.
What, then, could I do? Could I undertake to resist the iron will of two men? It was simply impossible if even I could have hoped for the support of Hans. This, however, was out of the question. It appeared to me that the Icelander had set aside all personal will and identity. He was a picture of abnegation.
I could hope for nothing from one so infatuated with and devoted33 to his master. All I could do, therefore, was to swim with the stream.
In a mood of stolid34 and sullen35 resignation, I was about to take my accustomed place on the raft when my uncle placed his hand upon my shoulder.
"There is no hurry, my boy," he said, "we shall not start until tomorrow."
"Under the circumstances," he said, "I ought to neglect no precautions. As fate has cast me upon these shores, I shall not leave without having completely examined them."
In order to understand this remark, I must explain that though we had been driven back to the northern shore, we had landed at a very different spot from that which had been our starting point.
Port Gretchen must, we calculated, be very much to the westward37. Nothing, therefore, was more natural and reasonable than that we should reconnoiter this new shore upon which we had so unexpectedly landed.
"Let us go on a journey of discovery," I cried.
And leaving Hans to his important operation, we started on our expedition. The distance between the foreshore at high water and the foot of the rocks was considerable. It would take about half an hour's walking to get from one to the other.
As we trudged38 along, our feet crushed innumerable shells of every shape and size—once the dwelling39 place of animals of every period of creation.
I particularly noticed some enormous shells—carapaces (turtle and tortoise species) the diameter of which exceeded fifteen feet.
They had in past ages belonged to those gigantic Glyptodons of the Pliocene period, of which the modern turtle is but a minute specimen40. In addition, the whole soil was covered by a vast quantity of stony41 relics42, having the appearance of flints worn by the action of the waves, and lying in successive layers one above the other. I came to the conclusion that in past ages the sea must have covered the whole district. Upon the scattered43 rocks, now lying far beyond its reach, the mighty44 waves of ages had left evident marks of their passage.
On reflection, this appeared to me partially45 to explain the existence of this remarkable46 ocean, forty leagues below the surface of the earth's crust. According to my new, and perhaps fanciful, theory, this liquid mass must be gradually lost in the deep bowels47 of the earth. I had also no doubt that this mysterious sea was fed by infiltration48 of the ocean above, through imperceptible fissures50.
Nevertheless, it was impossible not to admit that these fissures must now be nearly choked up, for if not, the cavern51, or rather the immense and stupendous reservoir, would have been completely filled in a short space of time. Perhaps even this water, having to contend against the accumulated subterraneous fires of the interior of the earth, had become partially vaporized. Hence the explanation of those heavy clouds suspended over our heads, and the superabundant display of that electricity which occasioned such terrible storms in this deep and cavernous sea.
This lucid52 explanation of the phenomena53 we had witnessed appeared to me quite satisfactory. However great and mighty the marvels54 of nature may seem to us, they are always to be explained by physical reasons. Everything is subordinate to some great law of nature.
It now appeared clear that we were walking upon a kind of sedimentary soil, formed like all the soils of that period, so frequent on the surface of the globe, by the subsidence of the waters. The Professor, who was now in his element, carefully examined every rocky fissure49. Let him only find an opening and it directly became important to him to examine its depth.
For a whole mile we followed the windings55 of the Central Sea, when suddenly an important change took place in the aspect of the soil. It seemed to have been rudely cast up, convulsionized, as it were, by a violent upheaving of the lower strata56. In many places, hollows here and hillocks there attested57 great dislocations at some other period of the terrestrial mass.
We advanced with great difficulty over the broken masses of granite mixed with flint, quartz58, and alluvial59 deposits, when a large field, more even than a field, a plain of bones, appeared suddenly before our eyes! It looked like an immense cemetery60, where generation after generation had mingled61 their mortal dust.
Lofty barrows of early remains62 rose at intervals63. They undulated away to the limits of the distant horizon and were lost in a thick and brown fog.
On that spot, some three square miles in extent, was accumulated the whole history of animal life—scarcely one creature upon the comparatively modern soil of the upper and inhabited world had not there existed.
Nevertheless, we were drawn64 forward by an all-absorbing and impatient curiosity. Our feet crushed with a dry and crackling sound the remains of those prehistoric65 fossils, for which the museums of great cities quarrel, even when they obtain only rare and curious morsels66. A thousand such naturalists67 as Cuvier would not have sufficed to recompose the skeletons of the organic beings which lay in this magnificent osseous collection.
I was utterly confounded. My uncle stood for some minutes with his arms raised on high towards the thick granite vault68 which served us for a sky. His mouth was wide open; his eyes sparkled wildly behind his spectacles (which he had fortunately saved), his head bobbed up and down and from side to side, while his whole attitude and mien69 expressed unbounded astonishment.
He stood in the presence of an endless, wondrous70, and inexhaustibly rich collection of antediluvian71 monsters, piled up for his own private and peculiar72 satisfaction.
Fancy an enthusiastic lover of books carried suddenly into the very midst of the famous library of Alexandria burned by the sacrilegious Omar, and which some miracle had restored to its pristine73 splendor74! Such was something of the state of mind in which Uncle Hardwigg was now placed.
But it was even a greater excitement when, darting76 wildly over this mass of organic dust, he caught up a naked skull77 and addressed me in a quivering voice:
"A human head, Uncle!" I said, no less amazed and stupefied than himself.
"Yes, nephew. Ah! Mr. Milne-Edwards—ah! Mr. De Quatrefages—why are you not here where I am—I, Professor Hardwigg!"
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1
astonishment
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| n.惊奇，惊异 | |
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amazement
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| n.惊奇，惊讶 | |
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fatigues
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| n.疲劳( fatigue的名词复数 )；杂役；厌倦；（士兵穿的）工作服 | |
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fatality
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| n.不幸，灾祸，天命 | |
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conspire
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| v.密谋，（事件等）巧合，共同导致 | |
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mortification
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| n.耻辱，屈辱 | |
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determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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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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ferocious
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| adj.凶猛的，残暴的，极度的，十分强烈的 | |
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interfere
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| v.(in)干涉，干预；(with)妨碍，打扰 | |
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temperate
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| adj.温和的，温带的，自我克制的，不过分的 | |
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utterly
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| adv.完全地，绝对地 | |
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paltry
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| adj.无价值的，微不足道的 | |
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incapable
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| adj.无能力的，不能做某事的 | |
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15
steering
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| n.操舵装置 | |
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frail
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| adj.身体虚弱的；易损坏的 | |
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17
mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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18
acting
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| n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的 | |
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19
treacherous
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| adj.不可靠的，有暗藏的危险的；adj.背叛的，背信弃义的 | |
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20
eloquence
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| n.雄辩；口才，修辞 | |
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hoarse
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| adj.嘶哑的，沙哑的 | |
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strenuous
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| adj.奋发的，使劲的；紧张的；热烈的，狂热的 | |
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23
implored
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| 恳求或乞求（某人）( implore的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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granite
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| adj.花岗岩，花岗石 | |
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puny
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| adj.微不足道的，弱小的 | |
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instinctively
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| adv.本能地 | |
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worthy
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| adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的 | |
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28
hoisted
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| 把…吊起，升起( hoist的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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29
spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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30
imperturbable
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| adj.镇静的 | |
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steadily
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| adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地 | |
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serenely
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| adv.安详地，宁静地，平静地 | |
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devoted
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| adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的 | |
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stolid
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| adj.无动于衷的，感情麻木的 | |
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sullen
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| adj.愠怒的，闷闷不乐的，(天气等)阴沉的 | |
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dire
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| adj.可怕的，悲惨的，阴惨的，极端的 | |
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westward
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| n.西方，西部；adj.西方的，向西的；adv.向西 | |
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trudged
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| vt.& vi.跋涉，吃力地走（trudge的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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dwelling
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| n.住宅，住所，寓所 | |
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specimen
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| n.样本，标本 | |
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41
stony
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| adj.石头的，多石头的，冷酷的，无情的 | |
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42
relics
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| [pl.］n.遗物，遗迹，遗产；遗体，尸骸 | |
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43
scattered
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| adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的 | |
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mighty
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| adj.强有力的；巨大的 | |
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partially
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| adv.部分地，从某些方面讲 | |
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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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47
bowels
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| n.肠，内脏，内部；肠( bowel的名词复数 )；内部，最深处 | |
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48
infiltration
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| n.渗透；下渗；渗滤；入渗 | |
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49
fissure
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| n.裂缝；裂伤 | |
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50
fissures
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| n.狭长裂缝或裂隙( fissure的名词复数 )；裂伤；分歧；分裂v.裂开( fissure的第三人称单数 ) | |
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51
cavern
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| n.洞穴，大山洞 | |
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52
lucid
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| adj.明白易懂的，清晰的，头脑清楚的 | |
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phenomena
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| n.现象 | |
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54
marvels
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| n.奇迹( marvel的名词复数 )；令人惊奇的事物（或事例）；不平凡的成果；成就v.惊奇，对…感到惊奇( marvel的第三人称单数 ) | |
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55
windings
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| （道路、河流等）蜿蜒的，弯曲的( winding的名词复数 )； 缠绕( wind的现在分词 )； 卷绕； 转动（把手） | |
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strata
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| n.地层（复数）；社会阶层 | |
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57
attested
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| adj.经检验证明无病的，经检验证明无菌的v.证明( attest的过去式和过去分词 )；证实；声称…属实；使宣誓 | |
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58
quartz
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| n.石英 | |
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alluvial
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| adj.冲积的；淤积的 | |
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60
cemetery
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| n.坟墓，墓地，坟场 | |
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61
mingled
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| 混合，混入( mingle的过去式和过去分词 )； 混进，与…交往[联系] | |
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remains
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| n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹 | |
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intervals
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| n.[军事]间隔( interval的名词复数 )；间隔时间；[数学]区间；（戏剧、电影或音乐会的）幕间休息 | |
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64
drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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prehistoric
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| adj.（有记载的）历史以前的，史前的，古老的 | |
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morsels
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| n.一口( morsel的名词复数 )；（尤指食物）小块，碎屑 | |
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naturalists
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| n.博物学家( naturalist的名词复数 )；（文学艺术的）自然主义者 | |
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68
vault
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| n.拱形圆顶，地窖，地下室 | |
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69
mien
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| n.风采；态度 | |
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70
wondrous
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| adj.令人惊奇的，奇妙的；adv.惊人地；异乎寻常地；令人惊叹地 | |
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71
antediluvian
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| adj.史前的，陈旧的 | |
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72
peculiar
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| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
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73
pristine
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| adj.原来的，古时的，原始的，纯净的，无垢的 | |
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74
splendor
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| n.光彩；壮丽，华丽；显赫，辉煌 | |
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literally
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| adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实 | |
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76
darting
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| v.投掷，投射( dart的现在分词 )；向前冲，飞奔 | |
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77
skull
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| n.头骨；颅骨 | |
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harry
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| vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼 | |
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