Jack. “I say, Bob, where in all the world have we got to?”
Bob. “Upon my word, I don’t know.”
Jack. “It’s very mysterious.”
Bob. “What’s very mysterious?”
Jack. “Where we’ve got to. Can’t you guess?”
Bob. “Certainly. Suppose I say Lapland?”
Jack. (Shaking his head), “Won’t do.”
Bob. “Why?”
Jack. “’Cause there are no palm-trees in Lapland.”
Bob. “Dear me, that’s true. How confused my head is! I’ll tell you what it is, Jack, I can’t think. That’s it—that’s the cause of the mystery that seems to beset6 me, I can’t tell how; and then I’ve been ill—that’s it too.”
Jack. “How can there be two causes for one effect, Bob? You’re talking stuff, man. If I couldn’t talk better sense than that, I’d not talk at all.”
Bob. “Then why don’t you hold your tongue? I tell you what it is, Jack, we’re bewitched. You said I was mad some time ago. You were right—so I am; so are you. There are too many mysteries here for any two sane7 men.” (Here Jack murmured we weren’t men, but boys.) “There’s the running away and not being caught—the ship ready to sail the moment we arrive; there’s your joining me after all your good advice; there’s that horrible fight, and the lions, and Edwards, and the sinking of our ship, and the—the—in short, I feel that I’m mad still. I’m not recovered yet. Here, Jack, take care of me!”
Instead of replying to this, Jack busied himself in fitting a piece of wood he had picked up to his wooden leg, and lashing9 it firmly to the old stump10. When he had accomplished11 his task, he turned gravely to me and said—
“Bob, your faculties12 are wandering pretty wildly to-day, but you’ve not yet hit upon the cause of all our misfortunes. The true cause is that you have disobeyed your father, and I my mother.”
I hung my head. I had now no longer difficulty in collecting my thoughts—they circled round that point until I thought that remorse14 would have killed me. Then suddenly I turned with a look of gladness to my friend.
“But you forget the letter! We are forgiven!”
“True,” cried Jack, with a cheerful expression; “we can face our fate with that assurance. Come, let us strike into the country and discover where we are. I’ll manage to hop15 along pretty well with my wooden leg. We’ll get home as soon as we can, by land if not by water, and then we’ll remain at home—won’t we, Bob?”
“Remain at home!” I cried; “ay, that will we. I’ve had more than enough of foreign experiences already. Oh! Jack, Jack, it’s little I care for the sufferings I have endured—but your leg, Jack! Willingly, most willingly, my dear friend, would I part with my own, if by so doing I could replace yours.”
Jack took my hand and squeezed it.
“It’s gone now, Bob,” he said sadly. “I must just make the most of the one that’s left. ’Tis a pity that the one that’s left is only the left one.”
So saying he turned his back to the sea, and, still retaining my hand in his, led me into the forest.
But here unthought-of trouble awaited us at the very outset of our wanderings. The ground which we first encountered was soft and swampy16, so that I sank above the ankles at every step. In these circumstances, as might have been expected, poor Jack’s wooden leg was totally useless. The first step he took after entering the jungle, his leg penetrated17 the soft ground to the depth of nine or ten inches, and at the second step it disappeared altogether—insomuch that he could by no means pull it out.
“I say, Bob,” said he, with a rueful expression of countenance18, “I’m in a real fix now, and no mistake. Come to anchor prematurely19. I resolved to stick at nothing, and here I have stuck at the first step. What is to be done?”
Jack’s right leg being deep down in the ground, it followed, as a physical consequence, that his left leg was bent20 as if he were in a sitting posture21. Observing this fact, just as he made the above remark, he placed both his hands on his left knee, rested his chin on his hands, and gazed meditatively22 at the ground. The action tickled24 me so much that I gave a short laugh. Jack looked up and laughed too, whereupon we both burst incontinently into an uproarious fit of laughter, which might have continued ever so long had not Jack, in the fulness of his mirth, given his fixed25 leg a twist that caused it to crack.
“Hallo! Bob,” he cried, becoming suddenly very grave, “I say, this won’t do, you know; if I break it short off you’ll have to carry me, my boy: so it behoves me to be careful. What is to be done?”
“Come, I’ll help you to pull it out.”
“Oh! that’s not what troubles me. But after we get it out what’s to be done?”
“Jack,” said I, seriously, “one thing at a time. When we get you out, then it will be time enough to inquire what to do next.”
“That’s sound philosophy, Bob; where did you pick it up? I suspect you must have been studying Shakespeare of late, on the sly. But come, get behind me, and put your hands under my arms, and heave; I’ll shove with my sound limb. Now let us act together. Stay! Bob, we’ve been long enough aboard ship to know the value of a song in producing unity26 of action. Take the tune13 from me.”
Suiting the action to the word, Jack gave forth27, at the top of his voice, one or two of those peculiarly nautical29 howls wherewith seamen30 are wont31 to constrain32 windlasses and capstans to creak, and anchors to let go their hold.
At the last word we both strained with all our might. I heard Jack’s braces34 burst with the effort. We both became purple in the face, but the leg remained immovable! With a loud simultaneous sigh we relaxed, and looking at each other groaned35 slightly.
“Come, come, Bob, never say die; one trial more; it was the braces that spoiled it that time. Now then, cheerily ho! my hearties, heave-yo-hee-o-Hoy!”
The united force applied36 this time was so great that we tore asunder37 all the fastenings of the leg at one wrench38, and Jack and I suddenly shot straight up as if we had been discharged from a hole in the ground. Losing our balance we fell over each other on our backs—the wooden leg remaining hard and fast in the ground.
“Ah! Jack,” said I sorrowfully, as I rubbed the mud off my garments, “if we had remained at home this would not have happened.”
“If we had remained at home,” returned Jack, rather gruffly, as he hopped39 towards his leg, “nothing would have happened. Come, Bob, lay hold of it. Out it shall come, if the inside of the world should come along with it. There now—heave!”
This time we gave vent40 to no shout, but we hove with such a will, that Jack split his jacket from the waist to the neck, and the leg came out with a crack that resembled the drawing of the largest possible cork41 out of the biggest conceivable bottle.
Having accomplished this feat42 we congratulated each other, and then sat down to repair damages. This was not an easy matter. It cost us no little thought to invent some contrivance that would prevent the leg from sinking, but at last we thought of a plan. We cut a square piece of bark off a tree, the outer rind of which was peculiarly tough and thick. In the centre of this we scooped43 a hole and inserted therein the end of the leg, fastening it thereto with pieces of twine44 that we chanced to have in our pockets. Thus we made, as it were, an artificial foot, which when Jack tried it served its purpose admirably—indeed, it acted too well, for being a broad base it did not permit the wooden leg to sink at all, while the natural leg did sink more or less, and, as the wooden limb had no knee, it was stiff from hip8 to heel, and could not bend, so that I had to walk behind my poor comrade, and when I observed him get somewhat into the position of the Leaning Tower of Pisa I sprang forward and supported him.
Thus we proceeded slowly through the forest, stumbling frequently, tumbling occasionally, and staggering oft; but strange to say, without either of us having any very definite idea of where we were going, or what we expected to find, or why we went in one direction more than another. In fact, we proceeded on that eminently45 simple principle which is couched in the well-known and time-honoured phrase, “follow your nose.”
True, once I ventured to ask my companion where he thought we were going, to which he replied, much to my surprise, that he didn’t know and didn’t care; that it was quite certain if we did not go forward we could not expect to get on, and that in the ordinary course of things if we proceeded we should undoubtedly46 come to something. To this I replied, in a meditative23 tone, that there was much truth in the observation, and that, at any rate, if we did not come to something, something would certainly come to us.
But we did not pursue the subject. In fact, we were too much taken up with the interesting and amusing sights that met our gaze in that singular forest; insomuch that on several occasions I neglected my peculiar28 duty of watching Jack, and was only made aware of my carelessness by hearing him shout, “Hallo! Bob, look alive!—I’m over!” when I would suddenly drop my eyes from the contemplation of the plumage of a parrot or the antics of a monkey, to behold47 my friend leaning over at an angle of “forty-five.” To leap forward and catch him in my arms was the work of an instant. On each of these occasions, after setting him upright, I used to give him a tender hug, to indicate my regret at having been so inattentive, and my sympathy with him in his calamitous48 circumstances.
Poor Jack was very gentle and uncomplaining. He even made light of his misfortune, and laughed a good deal at himself; but I could see, nevertheless, that his spirits were at times deeply affected49, in spite of his brave efforts to bear up and appear gay and cheerful.
点击
收听单词发音
收听单词发音 |
1
pertinaciously
|
|
| adv.坚持地；固执地；坚决地；执拗地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
2
scatter
|
|
| vt.撒，驱散，散开；散布/播；vi.分散，消散 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
3
illustrated
|
|
| adj. 有插图的，列举的 动词illustrate的过去式和过去分词 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
4
jack
|
|
| n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
5
momentous
|
|
| adj.重要的，重大的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
6
beset
|
|
| v.镶嵌；困扰，包围 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
7
sane
|
|
| adj.心智健全的，神志清醒的，明智的，稳健的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
8
hip
|
|
| n.臀部，髋；屋脊 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
9
lashing
|
|
| n.鞭打；痛斥；大量；许多v.鞭打( lash的现在分词 )；煽动；紧系；怒斥 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
10
stump
|
|
| n.残株，烟蒂，讲演台；v.砍断，蹒跚而走 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
11
accomplished
|
|
| adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
12
faculties
|
|
| n.能力( faculty的名词复数 )；全体教职员；技巧；院 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
13
tune
|
|
| n.调子；和谐，协调；v.调音，调节，调整 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
14
remorse
|
|
| n.痛恨，悔恨，自责 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
15
hop
|
|
| n.单脚跳，跳跃；vi.单脚跳，跳跃；着手做某事；vt.跳跃，跃过 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
16
swampy
|
|
| adj.沼泽的，湿地的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
17
penetrated
|
|
| adj. 击穿的，鞭辟入里的 动词penetrate的过去式和过去分词形式 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
18
countenance
|
|
| n.脸色，面容；面部表情；vt.支持，赞同 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
19
prematurely
|
|
| adv.过早地，贸然地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
20
bent
|
|
| n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
21
posture
|
|
| n.姿势，姿态，心态，态度；v.作出某种姿势 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
22
meditatively
|
|
| adv.冥想地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
23
meditative
|
|
| adj.沉思的，冥想的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
24
tickled
|
|
| （使）发痒( tickle的过去式和过去分词 )； （使）愉快，逗乐 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
25
fixed
|
|
| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
26
unity
|
|
| n.团结，联合，统一；和睦，协调 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
27
forth
|
|
| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
28
peculiar
|
|
| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
29
nautical
|
|
| adj.海上的，航海的，船员的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
30
seamen
|
|
| n.海员 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
31
wont
|
|
| adj.习惯于；v.习惯；n.习惯 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
32
constrain
|
|
| vt.限制，约束；克制，抑制 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
33
hearties
|
|
| 亲切的( hearty的名词复数 )； 热诚的； 健壮的； 精神饱满的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
34
braces
|
|
| n.吊带，背带；托架( brace的名词复数 )；箍子；括弧；（儿童）牙箍v.支住( brace的第三人称单数 )；撑牢；使自己站稳；振作起来 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
35
groaned
|
|
| v.呻吟( groan的过去式和过去分词 )；发牢骚；抱怨；受苦 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
36
applied
|
|
| adj.应用的；v.应用，适用 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
37
asunder
|
|
| adj.分离的，化为碎片 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
38
wrench
|
|
| v.猛拧；挣脱；使扭伤；n.扳手；痛苦，难受 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
39
hopped
|
|
| 跳上[下]( hop的过去式和过去分词 )； 单足蹦跳； 齐足（或双足）跳行； 摘葎草花 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
40
vent
|
|
| n.通风口，排放口；开衩；vt.表达，发泄 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
41
cork
|
|
| n.软木，软木塞 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
42
feat
|
|
| n.功绩；武艺，技艺；adj.灵巧的，漂亮的，合适的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
43
scooped
|
|
| v.抢先报道( scoop的过去式和过去分词 )；（敏捷地）抱起；抢先获得；用铲[勺]等挖（洞等） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
44
twine
|
|
| v.搓，织，编饰；（使）缠绕 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
45
eminently
|
|
| adv.突出地；显著地；不寻常地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
46
undoubtedly
|
|
| adv.确实地，无疑地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
47
behold
|
|
| v.看，注视，看到 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
48
calamitous
|
|
| adj.灾难的，悲惨的；多灾多难；惨重 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
49
affected
|
|
| adj.不自然的，假装的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
| 欢迎访问英文小说网 |