For upwards6 of an hour the party in the boat hovered7 about the place, not so much with the hope of rescuing any of their shipmates as on account of the difficulty of tearing themselves away from the fatal spot. Perhaps the natural tendency of man to hope against hope had something to do with it. Then they passed silently out of the cavern and rowed slowly along the base of the tremendous cliffs.
At length the feeling of self-preservation began to assert itself, and Bob Massey was the first to break silence with the question—
“Does any one know if there’s anything to eat aboard?”
Bob Massey pulled in his oar8, and, without remark, began to search the boat. It was found that all the food they had brought away consisted of nine tins of preserved meat and three pieces of pork, a supply which would not go far among ten persons.
The ten survivors10 were Dr Hayward and his wife; Massey and Nellie; Joe Slag11; John Mitford and his wife Peggy; Terrence O’Connor, the assistant cook; Tomlin, one of the cabin passengers; and Ned Jarring. All the rest, as we have said, had perished with the ill-fated Lapwing.
Little was said at first, for the hopelessness of their condition seemed so obvious that the men shrank from expressing their gloomy fears to the women who sat huddled12 together, wet and cold, in the bottom of the boat.
As we have said, as far as the eye could see in any direction, the frowning cliffs rose perpendicularly13 out of deep water. There was not even a strip of sand or a bay into which they could run in case of the wind increasing.
“There is nothing for it but to push on till we come to an inlet or break of some sort in the cliffs by which we may land,” said Hayward, speaking encouragingly to the women. “God helping14 us, we are sure to find some such place ere long.”
“Don’t look very like it,” muttered Black Ned, gloomily.
“We can see how it looks about as well as you can,” retorted John Mitford, indignantly. “If ye can’t say somethin’ to cheer the women, there’s no need for to look blue an’ tell us what a mere15 babby could see for itself.”
This remark, coming as it did from lugubrious16 Mitford, caused Terrence O’Connor to smile.
“True for ye,” he said, “we can see what’s fornint us, but even Black Ned can’t see round the corner.”
“Besides, there may be a flat shore on the other side o’ the island,” added Bob Massey in a cheerful tone; “I’ve often noticed islands o’ this build, and when they’re so high on one side they usually are low on the opposite side; so we’ll only have to pull round—an’ mayhap there are people on it—who knows?”
“Ay, natives pr’aps,” growled17 Jarring, “an’ cannibals who are fond of eatin’ white folk—specially women!”
“Shut up your black muzzle18, or I’ll heave ye overboard!” said Mitford, fiercely, for like many easy-going, quiet men, he was unusually savage19 when fairly roused.
Whatever Black Ned may have felt, he gave no expression to his thoughts or feelings by word or look, but continued calmly to pull his oar.
All that day, and all that night, however, the party pulled steadily20 along the shore without finding an opening in the cliffs or any part which could be scaled by man. During this period their plight21 was miserable22 in the extreme, for the weather at the time was bitterly cold; they were drenched23 through and through with spray, which broke so frequently over the side as to necessitate24 constant baling, and, to make matters worse, towards evening of the second day snow began to fall and continued to do so the greater part of the night. Fortunately, before dark they came to some small rocky islets, on which they could not land as the waves washed over them, but in the lee of which they cast anchor, and thus were enabled to ride out a furious gale25, which sprang up at sunset and did not subside26 till morning.
It need scarcely be said that the men did all that lay in their power to shelter the poor women, who had exhibited great fortitude27 and uncomplaining endurance all that weary time; but little could be done for them, for there was not even a bit of sail to put over them as a protection.
“Nellie, dear,” said Massey, when the boat was brought up under the lee of the rocks, “d’ee feel very cold?”
“Not very,” replied his wife, raising her head. “I’m strong, thank God, and can stand it; but Peggy here is shudderin’ awful bad. I believe she’ll die if somethin’ isn’t done for her.”
“I think if she could only ring the water out of her clothes,” whispered Mrs Hayward to her husband, “it might do her some good, but—”
“I know that, Eva: it would do you all good, and we must have it done somehow—”
An exclamation28 in the bow of the boat at that moment attracted attention. It was John Mitford, who, having taken off his own coat, and wrapped it round his shivering wife, had gone to the bow to rummage29 in a locker30 there, and had found a tarpaulin31. Massey had overhauled32 the locker for food before him, but the tarpaulin had been so well folded, and laid so flat in the bottom, that it had escaped his notice.
Retiring aft with this god-send, the lugubrious man speedily, with the assistance of his comrades, covered over the centre of the boat so completely that a small chamber33 was formed, into which the women could retire. It was not high enough, indeed, to stand in, but it formed a sufficient shelter from wind and spray.
“Now, Peggy, my dear,” said her husband when it was finished, “get in there—off wi’ your things an’ wring34 ’em out.”
“Th–thank you, J–John,” replied Peggy, whose teeth chattered35 like castanets, “but ’ow am I t–to d–dry ’em? For wet c–clo’es won’t dry wi–without a fire. At least I n–never ’eard of—”
The remainder of her remarks were lost to male ears as the tarpaulin dropped around her after Eva Hayward and Nellie had led, or half-lifted, her under its sheltering folds. How they managed to manipulate the shivering Peggy it is not our province to tell, but there can be no doubt that the treatment of her two friends in misfortune was the cause of her emerging from under the tarpaulin the following morning alive and comparatively well, though still far from dry.
The aspect of things had changed greatly for the better when the unfortunates resumed their voyage. The wind had abated36, the sea, although still heaving, was smooth. The snow had ceased, and the sun arose in a cloudless sky, so that when poor Mrs Mitford raised her dishevelled head and felt the sun’s cheering rays she exclaimed, with a sigh of relief: “La! if the sun ain’t blazin’ ’ot! An’ I’m so ’ungry. Dear, dear, ’ave you bin4 rowin’ all night, John? ’Ow tired you must be; an’ your ’ands blistered37, though you are pretty tough in the ’ands, but you couldn’t ’old a candle to Bob Massey at that— Yes, yes, Nellie, I ’ear you, but la! what does it matter ’ow your ’air an’ things is deranged38 w’en you’re wrecked39 at sea and—”
The abrupt40 disappearance41 of the dishevelled head at that moment suggested the idea that Mrs Mitford had either fallen backward suddenly or been pulled under cover by her companions.
“She’s all right, anyhow,” said O’Connor, adjusting his oar.
“She’s always all right,” remarked Mitford in a funereal42 tone, which, however, was meant to be confidential43. “Bless your heart, I’ve seen that woman under all circumstances, but although she’s timid by nature, an’ not over strong in body, I’ve never seen her give in or fairly cast down. No doubt she was pretty low last night, poor thing, but that was ’cause she was nigh dead wi’ cold—yet her spirit wasn’t crushed. It’s my solemn conviction that if my Peggy ever dies at all she’ll die game.”
With a profound sigh of satisfaction at having thus borne testimony44 to the rare and admirable qualities of his wife, the worthy45 man applied46 himself to his oar with redoubled vigour47.
It is quite a pleasure in this censorious world to see any man absolutely blind to his wife’s faults, and thoroughly48 awake to her good qualities. The opinion formed of Peggy—by Mrs Massey and Mrs Hayward respectively, did not quite coincide with that of John Mitford.
“How did you get on with poor Peggy last night, Eva?” asked Dr Hayward of his wife, in an undertone, as they breakfasted that forenoon beside the tiller, while the rest of their companions were similarly engaged in the middle of the boat, and at the bow.
“Pretty well, Tom, but she’s troublesome to manage. She is so unusually timid, poor creature, so prone49 to give way to despair when things look bad, yet so sweetly apt to bound into high spirits when things are looking hopeful,—and withal, so amusingly garrulous50!”
Strange to say, at the very moment that this was uttered, Nellie was remarking to her husband in a low tone that, “poor Peggy was quite a puzzle, that she was all but dead at one moment, and quite lively at another, that she professed51 to be all submission52, but was as obstinate53 as a pig, and that her tongue—soft though it was—went like the clapper of a mill!”
We have referred to breakfast, but the meal spread before the castaways hardly merits that name, for it consisted of only a small slice of pork to each; a few pieces of ship’s biscuit that Slag had discovered in his pockets; and a cup of water drawn54 from the pond which had accumulated in a hollow of the tarpaulin during the night.
“It is lucky that one of the pieces of pork happened to be cooked,” observed Dr Hayward, as he served out the allowance, “for I would have been sorry to break into the preserved meat tins till forced to do so. We must keep these as a reserve as long as possible.”
“Right you are, sir!” said Slag, with his mouth full, while with a clasp-knife he carefully cut off another morsel55 to be ready, “right you are! That ’minds me when we was starvin’, me and my shipmates in the Arctic regions, so as our ribs56 was all but comin’ through our skins, an’ we was beginnin’ to cast an evil eye on the stooard who’d kep’ fatter than the rest of us somehow, an’ was therefore likely to prove a more satisfyin’ kind o’ grub, d’ee see—”
“I say, Joe,” said Hayward, interrupting, for he feared that Slag’s anecdote57 might not tend to render the pork breakfast more palatable58.
“Sir?” said Slag.
“Will you just go to the bow and take a squint59 ahead? I think there seems to be something like an end o’ the cliffs in view—your eyes are better than mine.”
Slag swallowed the mouthful on which he was engaged, thrust after it the morsel that was ready to follow, wiped the clasp-knife on his thigh60, and went forward to “take a squint.”
It turned out that the “end” of the cliffs which the doctor had only supposed possible, was a reality, for, after a long gaze, Slag turned and said—
“Your eyes are better than you think, sir, for the end o’ the cliff is visible, an’ a spit o’ sand beyond is quite plain.”
As this report was corroborated61 by Bob Massey, and then by all the other men, it sent a thrill of gratitude62 into the hearts of most of the party—especially the women, who, having lain so long wet and almost motionless, were nearly benumbed in spite of the sunshine. Longer exposure, indeed, would probably have proved fatal to poor Mrs Mitford, possibly also to Mrs Hayward, who was by no means robust63. As for our coxswain’s wife, having been reared among the health-giving breezes of the sea-shore, and inured64 from infancy65 to exposure and hard work, she suffered much less than her female companions, and busied herself a great part of the time in chafing66 their cold limbs. In doing this she reaped the natural advantage of being herself both warmed and invigorated. Thus virtue67 not only “is,” but inevitably68 brings, its own reward! Similarly, vice69 produced its natural consequences in the case of Black Ned, for that selfish man, being lazy, shirked work a good deal. It is possible to pull an oar in such a way that, though the rower may be apparently70 doing his best, he is, in reality, taking the work very lightly and doing next to nothing. Acting71 in this way, Ned Jarring became cold when the sleet72 and spray were driving in his face, his blood flowed sluggishly73 in his veins74, and his sufferings were, consequently, much more severe than those of his comrades. Towards the afternoon of that day, they rounded the spit of sand mentioned by Joe Slag, and came upon a low-lying coast. After proceeding75 a considerable distance along which, they discovered a good harbour. This was fortunate, for grey clouds had again covered the sun and a bitter east wind began to blow.
“Thank God, Eva,” said Hayward, as he steered76 into the bay, “for if we had not come upon this harbour, your strength and that of poor Peggy, I fear, would have failed, but now you’ll be all right in a short time.”
“Oh, no, sir, I don’t think as my strength would fail,” said Peggy, in a feeble voice, for she had overheard the remark. “Not that I shouldn’t be thankful all the same, I allow—for thankfulness for mercies received is a dooty, an’ most on us do fail in that, though I say it that shouldn’t, but my strength ain’t quite gone yet—”
“Stand by, Slag, to fend77 off with your oar when we get close in,” said the doctor, interrupting Peggy’s discourse78.
“Have any of you got matches in your pockets?” asked Massey, clapping his hands suddenly to the various receptacles about his person, with a look of unwonted anxiety.
“Ye may well ax that, Bob,” said O’Connor, using his own hands in the same way. “Cold, wet weather, and no house! It ’ud be death to the women, sure, av—”
“Here you are!” shouted Tomlin in a burst of triumph, in spite of his naturally reserved disposition79.
“I hope they ain’t wet,” remarked Black Ned, suggestively.
“Wrap ’em well up,” said Slag.
Tomlin drew out his handkerchief and proceeded to do so. At the same moment the boat’s keel grated softly on the shingly81 shore.
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收听单词发音
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1
catastrophe
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| n.大灾难，大祸 | |
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cavern
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| n.洞穴，大山洞 | |
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throbbing
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| a. 跳动的,悸动的 | |
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bin
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| n.箱柜；vt.放入箱内；[计算机] DOS文件名:二进制目标文件 | |
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enacted
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| 制定（法律），通过（法案）( enact的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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upwards
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| adv.向上，在更高处...以上 | |
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hovered
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| 鸟( hover的过去式和过去分词 )； 靠近（某事物）； （人）徘徊； 犹豫 | |
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oar
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| n.桨，橹，划手；v.划行 | |
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steering
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| n.操舵装置 | |
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survivors
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| 幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 ) | |
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slag
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| n.熔渣，铁屑，矿渣；v.使变成熔渣，变熔渣 | |
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huddled
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| 挤在一起（huddle的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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perpendicularly
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| adv. 垂直地, 笔直地, 纵向地 | |
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helping
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| n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的 | |
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mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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lugubrious
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| adj.悲哀的，忧郁的 | |
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17
growled
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| v.（动物）发狺狺声， （雷）作隆隆声( growl的过去式和过去分词 )；低声咆哮着说 | |
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18
muzzle
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| n.鼻口部；口套；枪(炮)口；vt.使缄默 | |
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savage
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| adj.野蛮的；凶恶的，残暴的；n.未开化的人 | |
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steadily
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| adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地 | |
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plight
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| n.困境，境况，誓约，艰难；vt.宣誓，保证，约定 | |
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miserable
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| adj.悲惨的，痛苦的；可怜的，糟糕的 | |
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drenched
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| adj.湿透的；充满的v.使湿透( drench的过去式和过去分词 )；在某人（某物）上大量使用（某液体） | |
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necessitate
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| v.使成为必要，需要 | |
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gale
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| n.大风，强风，一阵闹声（尤指笑声等） | |
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subside
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| vi.平静，平息；下沉，塌陷，沉降 | |
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fortitude
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| n.坚忍不拔；刚毅 | |
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exclamation
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| n.感叹号，惊呼，惊叹词 | |
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rummage
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| v./n.翻寻，仔细检查 | |
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locker
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| n.更衣箱，储物柜，冷藏室，上锁的人 | |
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tarpaulin
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| n.涂油防水布，防水衣，防水帽 | |
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overhauled
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| v.彻底检查( overhaul的过去式和过去分词 )；大修；赶上；超越 | |
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chamber
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| n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所 | |
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wring
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| n.扭绞；v.拧，绞出，扭 | |
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chattered
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| （人）喋喋不休( chatter的过去式 )； 唠叨； （牙齿）打战； （机器）震颤 | |
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abated
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| 减少( abate的过去式和过去分词 )； 减去； 降价； 撤消（诉讼） | |
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blistered
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| adj.水疮状的，泡状的v.（使）起水泡( blister的过去式和过去分词 )；（使表皮等）涨破，爆裂 | |
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38
deranged
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| adj.疯狂的 | |
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wrecked
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| adj.失事的，遇难的 | |
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abrupt
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| adj.突然的，意外的；唐突的，鲁莽的 | |
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disappearance
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| n.消失，消散，失踪 | |
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42
funereal
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| adj.悲哀的；送葬的 | |
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43
confidential
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| adj.秘（机）密的，表示信任的，担任机密工作的 | |
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44
testimony
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| n.证词；见证，证明 | |
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45
worthy
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| adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的 | |
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46
applied
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| adj.应用的；v.应用，适用 | |
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vigour
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| （=vigor）n.智力，体力，精力 | |
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48
thoroughly
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| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
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49
prone
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| adj.(to)易于…的，很可能…的；俯卧的 | |
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50
garrulous
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| adj.唠叨的，多话的 | |
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51
professed
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| 公开声称的，伪称的，已立誓信教的 | |
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52
submission
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| n.服从，投降；温顺，谦虚；提出 | |
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53
obstinate
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| adj.顽固的，倔强的，不易屈服的，较难治愈的 | |
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54
drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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morsel
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| n.一口，一点点 | |
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56
ribs
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| n.肋骨( rib的名词复数 )；（船或屋顶等的）肋拱；肋骨状的东西；（织物的）凸条花纹 | |
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57
anecdote
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| n.轶事，趣闻，短故事 | |
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58
palatable
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| adj.可口的，美味的；惬意的 | |
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59
squint
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| v. 使变斜视眼, 斜视, 眯眼看, 偏移, 窥视; n. 斜视, 斜孔小窗; adj. 斜视的, 斜的 | |
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thigh
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| n.大腿；股骨 | |
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61
corroborated
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| v.证实，支持（某种说法、信仰、理论等）( corroborate的过去式 ) | |
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62
gratitude
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| adj.感激，感谢 | |
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robust
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| adj.强壮的，强健的，粗野的，需要体力的，浓的 | |
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inured
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| adj.坚强的，习惯的 | |
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65
infancy
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| n.婴儿期；幼年期；初期 | |
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66
chafing
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| n.皮肤发炎v.擦热（尤指皮肤）( chafe的现在分词 )；擦痛；发怒；惹怒 | |
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67
virtue
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| n.德行，美德；贞操；优点；功效，效力 | |
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68
inevitably
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| adv.不可避免地；必然发生地 | |
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69
vice
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| n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的 | |
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70
apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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71
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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72
sleet
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| n.雨雪；v.下雨雪，下冰雹 | |
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73
sluggishly
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| adv.懒惰地；缓慢地 | |
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74
veins
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| n.纹理；矿脉( vein的名词复数 )；静脉；叶脉；纹理 | |
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75
proceeding
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| n.行动，进行，(pl.)会议录，学报 | |
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76
steered
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| v.驾驶( steer的过去式和过去分词 )；操纵；控制；引导 | |
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77
fend
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| v.照料（自己），（自己）谋生，挡开，避开 | |
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78
discourse
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| n.论文，演说；谈话；话语；vi.讲述，著述 | |
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79
disposition
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| n.性情，性格；意向，倾向；排列，部署 | |
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80
smoker
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| n.吸烟者，吸烟车厢，吸烟室 | |
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81
shingly
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| adj.小石子多的 | |
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