Accordingly, here she was installed with Jack2 and old Nan; and here she took all her meals, in company with the captain and Cousin Benedict.
For Cousin Benedict tolerably comfortable sleeping accommodation had been contrived3 close at hand, while Captain Hull4 himself retired5 to the crew's quarter, occupying the cabin which properly belonged to the chief mate, but as already indicated, the services of a second officer were quite dispensed6 with.
All the crew were civil and attentive7 to the wife of their employer, a master to whom they were faithfully attached. They were all natives of the coast of California, brave and experienced seamen8, and united by tastes and habits in a common bond of sympathy. Few as they were in number, their work was never shirked, not simply from the sense of duty, but because they were directly interested in the profits of their undertaking9; the success of their labours always told to their own advantage. The present expedition was the fourth that they had taken together; and, as it turned out to be the first in which they had failed to meet with success, it may be imagined that they were full of resentment10 against the mutinous11 whalemen who had been the cause of so serious a diminution12 of their ordinary gains.
[Illustration: Negoro.]
The only one on board who was not an American was a man who had been temporarily engaged as cook. His name was Negoro; he was a Portuguese13 by birth, but spoke14 English with perfect fluency15. The previous cook had deserted16 the ship at Auckland, and when Negoro, who was out of employment, applied17 for the place, Captain Hull, only too glad to avoid detention18, engaged him at once without inquiry19 into his antecedents. There was not the slightest fault to be found with the way in which the cook performed his duties, but there was something in his manner, or perhaps, rather in the expression of his countenance20, which excited the Captain's misgivings22, and made him regret that he had not taken more pains to investigate the character of one with whom he was now brought into such close contact
Negoro looked about forty years of age. Although he had the appearance of being slightly built, he was muscular; he was of middle height, and seemed to have a robust23 constitution; his hair was dark, his complexion24 somewhat swarthy. His manner was taciturn, and although, from occasional remarks that he dropped, it was evident that he had received some education, he was very reserved on the subjects both of his family and of his past life. No one knew where he had come from, and he admitted no one to his confidence as to where he was going, except that he made no secret of his intention to land at Valparaiso. His freedom from sea-sickness demonstrated that this could hardly be his first voyage, but on the other hand his complete ignorance of seamen's phraseology made it certain that he had never been accustomed to his present occupation. He kept himself aloof25 as much as possible from the rest of the crew, during the day rarely leaving the great cast-iron stove, which was out of proportion to the measurement of the cramped26 little kitchen; and at night, as soon as the fire was extinguished, took the earliest opportunity of retiring to his berth27 and going to sleep.
It has been already stated that the crew of the "Pilgrim" consisted of five seamen and an apprentice28. This apprentice was Dick Sands.
Dick was fifteen years old; he was a foundling, his unknown parents having abandoned him at his birth, and he had been brought up in a public charitable institution. He had been called Dick, after the benevolent29 passer-by who had discovered him when he was but an infant a few hours old, and he had received the surname of Sands as a memorial of the spot where he had been exposed, Sandy Hook, a point at the mouth of the Hudson, where it forms an entrance to the harbour of New York.
As Dick was so young it was most likely he would yet grow a little taller, but it did not seem probable that he would ever exceed middle height, he looked too stoutly30 and strongly built to grow much. His complexion was dark, but his beaming blue eyes attested31, with scarcely room for doubt, his Anglo-Saxon origin, and his countenance betokened32 energy and intelligence. The profession that he had adopted seemed to have equipped him betimes for fighting the battle of life.
Misquoted often as Virgil's are the words
"Audaces fortuna juvat!"
but the true reading is
"Audentes fortuna juvat!"
and, slight as the difference may seem, it is very significant. It is upon the confident rather than the rash, the daring rather than the bold, that Fortune sheds her smiles; the bold man often acts without thinking, whilst the daring always thinks before he acts.
And Dick Sands was truly courageous33; he was one of the daring. At fifteen years old, an age at which few boys have laid aside the frivolities of childhood, he had acquired the stability of a man, and the most casual observer could scarcely fail to be attracted by his bright, yet thoughtful countenance. At an early period of his life he had realized all the difficulties of his position, and had made a resolution, from which nothing tempted34 him to flinch35, that he would carve out for himself an honourable36 and independent career. Lithe37 and agile38 in his movements, he was an adept39 in every kind of athletic40 exercise; and so marvellous was his success in everything he undertook, that he might almost be supposed to be one of those gifted mortals who have two right hands and two left feet.
Until he was four years old the little orphan41 had found a home in one of those institutions in America where forsaken42 children are sure of an asylum43, and he was subsequently sent to an industrial school supported by charitable aid, where he learnt reading, writing, and arithmetic. From the days of infancy44 he had never deviated45 from the expression of his wish to be a sailor, and accordingly, as soon as he was eight, he was placed as cabin-boy on board one of the ships that navigate46 the Southern Seas. The officers all took a peculiar47 interest in him, and he received, in consequence, a thoroughly48 good grounding in the duties and discipline of a seaman's life. There was no room to doubt that he must ultimately rise to eminence49 in his profession, for when a child from the very first has been trained in the knowledge that he must gain his bread by the sweat of his brow, it is comparatively rare that he lacks the will to do so.
Whilst he was still acting50 as cabin-boy on one of those trading-vessels, Dick attracted the notice of Captain Hull, who took a fancy to the lad and introduced him to his employer. Mr. Weldon at once took a lively interest in Dick's welfare, and had his education continued in San Francisco, taking care that he was instructed in the doctrines52 of the Roman Catholic Church, to which his own family belonged.
Throughout his studies Dick Sands' favourite subjects were always those which had a reference to his future profession; he mastered the details of the geography of the world; he applied himself diligently53 to such branches of mathematics as were necessary for the science of navigation; whilst for recreation in his hours of leisure, he would greedily devour54 every book of adventure in travel that came in his way. Nor did he omit duly to combine the practical with the theoretical; and when he was bound apprentice on board the "Pilgrim," a vessel51 not only belonging to his benefactor55, but under the command of his kind friend Captain Hull, he congratulated himself most heartily56, and felt that the experience he should gain in the southern whale-fisheries could hardly fail to be of service to him in after-life. A first-rate sailor ought to be a first-rate fisherman too.
It was a matter of the greatest pleasure to Dick Sands when he heard to his surprise that Mrs. Weldon was about to become a passenger on board the "Pilgrim." His devotion to the family of his benefactor was large and genuine. For several years Mrs. Weldon had acted towards him little short of a mother's part, and for Jack, although he never forgot the difference in their position, he entertained well-nigh a brother's affection. His friends had the satisfaction of being assured that they had sown the seeds of kindness on a generous soil, for there was no room to doubt that the heart of the orphan boy was overflowing57 with sincere gratitude58. Should the occasion arise, ought he not, he asked, to be ready to sacrifice everything in behalf of those to whom he was indebted not only for his start in life, but for the knowledge of all that was right and holy?
Confiding59 in the good principles of her protégé, Mrs. Weldon had no hesitation60 in entrusting61 her little son to his especial charge. During the frequent periods of leisure, when the sea was fair, and the sails required no shifting, the apprentice was never weary of amusing Jack by making him familiar with the practice of a sailor's craft; he made him scramble62 up the shrouds63, perch64 upon the yards, and slip down the back-stays; and the mother had no alarm; her assurance of Dick Sands' ability and watchfulness65 to protect her boy was so complete that she could only rejoice in an occupation for him that seemed more than anything to restore the colour he had lost in his recent illness.
Time passed on without incident; and had it not been for the constant prevalence of an adverse66 wind, neither passengers nor crew could have found the least cause of complaint. The pertinacity67, however, with which the wind kept to the east could not do otherwise than make Captain Hull somewhat concerned; it absolutely prevented him from getting his ship into her proper course, and he could not altogether suppress his misgiving21 that the calms near the
[Illustration: Dick and little Jack.]
Tropic of Capricorn, and the equatorial current driving him on westwards, would entail68 a delay that might be serious.
It was principally on Mrs. Weldon's account that the Captain began to feel uneasiness, and he made up his mind that if he could hail a vessel proceeding69 to America he should advise his passengers to embark70 on her; unfortunately, however, he felt that they were still in a latitude71 far too much to the south to make it likely that they should sight a steamer going to Panama; and at that date, communication between Australia and the New World was much less frequent than it has since become.
Still, nothing occurred to interrupt the general monotony of the voyage until the 2nd of February, the date at which our narrative72 commences.
It was about nine o'clock in the morning of that day that Dick and little Jack had perched themselves together on the top-mast-yards. The weather was very clear, and they could see the horizon right round except the section behind them, hidden by the brigantine-sail on the main-mast. Below them, the bowsprit seemed to lie along the water with its stay-sails attached like three unequal wings; from the lads' feet to the deck was the smooth surface of the fore-mast; and above their heads nothing but the small top-sail and the top-mast. The schooner73 was running on the larboard tack74 as close to the wind as possible.
Dick Sand was pointing out to Jack how well the ship was ballasted, and was trying to explain how it was impossible for her to capsize, however much she heeled to starboard, when suddenly the little fellow cried out,-
"I can see something in the water!"
"Where? what?" exclaimed Dick, clambering to his feet upon the yard.
"There!" said the child, directing attention to the portion of the sea-surface that was visible between the stay-sails.
"Look out in front, to starboard! There is something afloat. To windward, look out!"
点击收听单词发音
1 acquiesce | |
vi.默许,顺从,同意 | |
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2 jack | |
n.插座,千斤顶,男人;v.抬起,提醒,扛举;n.(Jake)杰克 | |
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3 contrived | |
adj.不自然的,做作的;虚构的 | |
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4 hull | |
n.船身;(果、实等的)外壳;vt.去(谷物等)壳 | |
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5 retired | |
adj.隐退的,退休的,退役的 | |
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6 dispensed | |
v.分配( dispense的过去式和过去分词 );施与;配(药) | |
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7 attentive | |
adj.注意的,专心的;关心(别人)的,殷勤的 | |
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8 seamen | |
n.海员 | |
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9 undertaking | |
n.保证,许诺,事业 | |
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10 resentment | |
n.怨愤,忿恨 | |
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11 mutinous | |
adj.叛变的,反抗的;adv.反抗地,叛变地;n.反抗,叛变 | |
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12 diminution | |
n.减少;变小 | |
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13 Portuguese | |
n.葡萄牙人;葡萄牙语 | |
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14 spoke | |
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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15 fluency | |
n.流畅,雄辩,善辩 | |
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16 deserted | |
adj.荒芜的,荒废的,无人的,被遗弃的 | |
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17 applied | |
adj.应用的;v.应用,适用 | |
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18 detention | |
n.滞留,停留;拘留,扣留;(教育)留下 | |
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19 inquiry | |
n.打听,询问,调查,查问 | |
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20 countenance | |
n.脸色,面容;面部表情;vt.支持,赞同 | |
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21 misgiving | |
n.疑虑,担忧,害怕 | |
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22 misgivings | |
n.疑虑,担忧,害怕;疑虑,担心,恐惧( misgiving的名词复数 );疑惧 | |
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23 robust | |
adj.强壮的,强健的,粗野的,需要体力的,浓的 | |
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24 complexion | |
n.肤色;情况,局面;气质,性格 | |
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25 aloof | |
adj.远离的;冷淡的,漠不关心的 | |
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26 cramped | |
a.狭窄的 | |
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27 berth | |
n.卧铺,停泊地,锚位;v.使停泊 | |
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28 apprentice | |
n.学徒,徒弟 | |
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29 benevolent | |
adj.仁慈的,乐善好施的 | |
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30 stoutly | |
adv.牢固地,粗壮的 | |
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31 attested | |
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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32 betokened | |
v.预示,表示( betoken的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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33 courageous | |
adj.勇敢的,有胆量的 | |
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34 tempted | |
v.怂恿(某人)干不正当的事;冒…的险(tempt的过去分词) | |
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35 flinch | |
v.畏缩,退缩 | |
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36 honourable | |
adj.可敬的;荣誉的,光荣的 | |
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37 lithe | |
adj.(指人、身体)柔软的,易弯的 | |
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38 agile | |
adj.敏捷的,灵活的 | |
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39 adept | |
adj.老练的,精通的 | |
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40 athletic | |
adj.擅长运动的,强健的;活跃的,体格健壮的 | |
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41 orphan | |
n.孤儿;adj.无父母的 | |
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42 Forsaken | |
adj. 被遗忘的, 被抛弃的 动词forsake的过去分词 | |
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43 asylum | |
n.避难所,庇护所,避难 | |
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44 infancy | |
n.婴儿期;幼年期;初期 | |
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45 deviated | |
v.偏离,越轨( deviate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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46 navigate | |
v.航行,飞行;导航,领航 | |
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47 peculiar | |
adj.古怪的,异常的;特殊的,特有的 | |
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48 thoroughly | |
adv.完全地,彻底地,十足地 | |
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49 eminence | |
n.卓越,显赫;高地,高处;名家 | |
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50 acting | |
n.演戏,行为,假装;adj.代理的,临时的,演出用的 | |
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51 vessel | |
n.船舶;容器,器皿;管,导管,血管 | |
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52 doctrines | |
n.教条( doctrine的名词复数 );教义;学说;(政府政策的)正式声明 | |
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53 diligently | |
ad.industriously;carefully | |
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54 devour | |
v.吞没;贪婪地注视或谛听,贪读;使着迷 | |
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55 benefactor | |
n. 恩人,行善的人,捐助人 | |
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56 heartily | |
adv.衷心地,诚恳地,十分,很 | |
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57 overflowing | |
n. 溢出物,溢流 adj. 充沛的,充满的 动词overflow的现在分词形式 | |
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58 gratitude | |
adj.感激,感谢 | |
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59 confiding | |
adj.相信人的,易于相信的v.吐露(秘密,心事等)( confide的现在分词 );(向某人)吐露(隐私、秘密等) | |
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60 hesitation | |
n.犹豫,踌躇 | |
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61 entrusting | |
v.委托,托付( entrust的现在分词 ) | |
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62 scramble | |
v.爬行,攀爬,杂乱蔓延,碎片,片段,废料 | |
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63 shrouds | |
n.裹尸布( shroud的名词复数 );寿衣;遮蔽物;覆盖物v.隐瞒( shroud的第三人称单数 );保密 | |
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64 perch | |
n.栖木,高位,杆;v.栖息,就位,位于 | |
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65 watchfulness | |
警惕,留心; 警觉(性) | |
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66 adverse | |
adj.不利的;有害的;敌对的,不友好的 | |
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67 pertinacity | |
n.执拗,顽固 | |
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68 entail | |
vt.使承担,使成为必要,需要 | |
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69 proceeding | |
n.行动,进行,(pl.)会议录,学报 | |
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70 embark | |
vi.乘船,着手,从事,上飞机 | |
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71 latitude | |
n.纬度,行动或言论的自由(范围),(pl.)地区 | |
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72 narrative | |
n.叙述,故事;adj.叙事的,故事体的 | |
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73 schooner | |
n.纵帆船 | |
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74 tack | |
n.大头钉;假缝,粗缝 | |
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75 fixed | |
adj.固定的,不变的,准备好的;(计算机)固定的 | |
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