WELL, I catched my breath and most fainted. Shut up on a wreck1 with such a gang as that! But it warn't no time to be sentimentering. We'd GOT to find that boat now -- had to have it for ourselves. So we went a-quaking and shaking down the stabboard side, and slow work it was, too -- seemed a week before we got to the stern. No sign of a boat. Jim said he didn't believe he could go any further -- so scared he hadn't hardly any strength left, he said. But I said, come on, if we get left on this wreck we are in a fix, sure. So on we prowled again. We struck for the stern of the texas, and found it, and then scrabbled along forwards on the skylight, hanging on from shutter3 to shutter, for the edge of the skylight was in the water. When we got pretty close to the cross-hall door there was the skiff, sure enough! I could just barely see her. I felt ever so thankful. In another second I would a been aboard of her, but just then the door opened. One of the men stuck his head out only about a couple of foot from me, and I thought I was gone; but he jerked it in again, and says:
"Heave that blame lantern out o' sight, Bill!"
He flung a bag of something into the boat, and then got in himself and set down. It was Packard. Then Bill HE come out and got in. Packard says, in a low voice:
"All ready -- shove off!"
I couldn't hardly hang on to the shutters4, I was so weak. But Bill says:
"Hold on -- 'd you go through him?"
"No. Didn't you?"
"No. So he's got his share o' the cash yet."
"Well, then, come along; no use to take truck and leave money."
"Say, won't he suspicion what we're up to?"
"Maybe he won't. But we got to have it anyway. Come along."
So they got out and went in.
The door slammed to because it was on the careened side; and in a half second I was in the boat, and Jim come tumbling after me. I out with my knife and cut the rope, and away we went!
We didn't touch an oar2, and we didn't speak nor whisper, nor hardly even breathe. We went gliding5 swift along, dead silent, past the tip of the paddlebox, and past the stern; then in a second or two more we was a hundred yards below the wreck, and the darkness soaked her up, every last sign of her, and we was safe, and knowed it.
When we was three or four hundred yards downstream we see the lantern show like a little spark at the texas door for a second, and we knowed by that that the rascals6 had missed their boat, and was beginning to understand that they was in just as much trouble now as Jim Turner was.
Then Jim manned the oars7, and we took out after our raft. Now was the first time that I begun to worry about the men -- I reckon I hadn't had time to before. I begun to think how dreadful it was, even for murderers, to be in such a fix. I says to myself, there ain't no telling but I might come to be a murderer myself yet, and then how would I like it? So says I to Jim:
"The first light we see we'll land a hundred yards below it or above it, in a place where it's a good hiding-place for you and the skiff, and then I'll go and fix up some kind of a yarn8, and get somebody to go for that gang and get them out of their scrape, so they can be hung when their time comes."
But that idea was a failure; for pretty soon it begun to storm again, and this time worse than ever. The rain poured down, and never a light showed; everybody in bed, I reckon. We boomed along down the river, watching for lights and watching for our raft. After a long time the rain let up, but the clouds stayed, and the lightning kept whimpering, and by and by a flash showed us a black thing ahead, floating, and we made for it.
It was the raft, and mighty9 glad was we to get aboard of it again. We seen a light now away down to the right, on shore. So I said I would go for it. The skiff was half full of plunder10 which that gang had stole there on the wreck. We hustled11 it on to the raft in a pile, and I told Jim to float along down, and show a light when he judged he had gone about two mile, and keep it burning till I come; then I manned my oars and shoved for the light. As I got down towards it three or four more showed -- up on a hillside. It was a village. I closed in above the shore light, and laid on my oars and floated. As I went by I see it was a lantern hanging on the jackstaff of a double-hull ferryboat. I skimmed around for the watchman, awondering whereabouts he slept; and by and by I found him roosting on the bitts forward, with his head down between his knees. I gave his shoulder two or three little shoves, and begun to cry.
He stirred up in a kind of a startlish way; but when he see it was only me he took a good gap and stretch, and then he says:
"Hello, what's up? Don't cry, bub. What's the trouble?"
I says:
"Pap, and mam, and sis, and --"
Then I broke down. He says:
"Oh, dang it now, DON'T take on so; we all has to have our troubles, and this 'n 'll come out all right. What's the matter with 'em?"
"They're -- they're -- are you the watchman of the boat?"
"Yes," he says, kind of pretty-well-satisfied like. "I'm the captain and the owner and the mate and the pilot and watchman and head deck-hand; and sometimes I'm the freight and passengers. I ain't as rich as old Jim Hornback, and I can't be so blame' generous and good to Tom, Dick, and Harry12 as what he is, and slam around money the way he does; but I've told him a many a time 't I wouldn't trade places with him; for, says I, a sailor's life's the life for me, and I'm derned if I'D live two mile out o' town, where there ain't nothing ever goin' on, not for all his spondulicks and as much more on top of it. Says I --"
I broke in and says:
"They're in an awful peck of trouble, and --"
"WHO is?"
"Why, pap and mam and sis and Miss Hooker; and if you'd take your ferryboat and go up there --"
"Up where? Where are they?"
"On the wreck."
"What wreck?"
"Why, there ain't but one."
"What, you don't mean the Walter Scott?"
"Yes."
"Good land! what are they doin' THERE, for gracious sakes?"
"Well, they didn't go there a-purpose."
"I bet they didn't! Why, great goodness, there ain't no chance for 'em if they don't git off mighty quick! Why, how in the nation did they ever git into such a scrape?"
"Easy enough. Miss Hooker was a-visiting up there to the town --"
"Yes, Booth's Landing -- go on."
"She was a-visiting there at Booth's Landing, and just in the edge of the evening she started over with her nigger woman in the horse-ferry to stay all night at her friend's house, Miss What-you-may-call-her I disremember her name -- and they lost their steeringoar, and swung around and went a-floating down, stern first, about two mile, and saddle-baggsed on the wreck, and the ferryman and the nigger woman and the horses was all lost, but Miss Hooker she made a grab and got aboard the wreck. Well, about an hour after dark we come along down in our trading-scow, and it was so dark we didn't notice the wreck till we was right on it; and so WE saddle-baggsed; but all of us was saved but Bill Whipple -- and oh, he WAS the best cretur ! -- I most wish 't it had been me, I do."
"My George! It's the beatenest thing I ever struck. And THEN what did you all do?"
"Well, we hollered and took on, but it's so wide there we couldn't make nobody hear. So pap said somebody got to get ashore13 and get help somehow. I was the only one that could swim, so I made a dash for it, and Miss Hooker she said if I didn't strike help sooner, come here and hunt up her uncle, and he'd fix the thing. I made the land about a mile below, and been fooling along ever since, trying to get people to do something, but they said, 'What, in such a night and such a current? There ain't no sense in it; go for the steam ferry.' Now if you'll go and --"
"By Jackson, I'd LIKE to, and, blame it, I don't know but I will; but who in the dingnation's a-going' to PAY for it? Do you reckon your pap --"
"Why THAT'S all right. Miss Hooker she tole me, PARTICULAR, that her uncle Hornback --"
"Great guns! is HE her uncle? Looky here, you break for that light over yonder-way, and turn out west when you git there, and about a quarter of a mile out you'll come to the tavern14; tell 'em to dart15 you out to Jim Hornback's, and he'll foot the bill. And don't you fool around any, because he'll want to know the news. Tell him I'll have his niece all safe before he can get to town. Hump yourself, now; I'm agoing up around the corner here to roust out my engineer."
I struck for the light, but as soon as he turned the corner I went back and got into my skiff and bailed16 her out, and then pulled up shore in the easy water about six hundred yards, and tucked myself in among some woodboats; for I couldn't rest easy till I could see the ferryboat start. But take it all around, I was feeling ruther comfortable on accounts of taking all this trouble for that gang, for not many would a done it. I wished the widow knowed about it. I judged she would be proud of me for helping17 these rapscallions, because rapscallions and dead beats is the kind the widow and good people takes the most interest in.
Well, before long here comes the wreck, dim and dusky, sliding along down! A kind of cold shiver went through me, and then I struck out for her. She was very deep, and I see in a minute there warn't much chance for anybody being alive in her. I pulled all around her and hollered a little, but there wasn't any answer; all dead still. I felt a little bit heavy-hearted about the gang, but not much, for I reckoned if they could stand it I could.
Then here comes the ferryboat; so I shoved for the middle of the river on a long down-stream slant18; and when I judged I was out of eye-reach I laid on my oars, and looked back and see her go and smell around the wreck for Miss Hooker's remainders, because the captain would know her uncle Hornback would want them; and then pretty soon the ferryboat give it up and went for the shore, and I laid into my work and went a-booming down the river.
It did seem a powerful long time before Jim's light showed up; and when it did show it looked like it was a thousand mile off. By the time I got there the sky was beginning to get a little gray in the east; so we struck for an island, and hid the raft, and sunk the skiff, and turned in and slept like dead people.
我一时之间背过气去，险些晕倒，竟跟这样一帮坏蛋一块儿被困在一条沉船上！不过这可没空唉声叹气。我们一定要找到那条船，现在--必须找到好让我们自己用。因此，我们哆哆嗦嗦战战兢兢地顺着右边摸，可真慢呐--好像是过了一个星期才摸索到了船尾。连个船影儿也没。吉姆说他感觉再也走不动了，他吓得一点力气都没有了，他这样说。但是我说，走啊，要是我们留在这条沉船上，我们就得遭殃，这一点确凿无疑。于是我们又继续向前摸索。我们朝船顶舱靠船尾那头去找，找到了那里，我们身体悬在天窗上，挨个儿抓牢窗板，摸索着朝前移动，因为天窗一边已淹进水里了。我们离过廊门很近之时，看见小船正停在那里，一点没错！我只能模模糊糊看到它。真是谢天谢地。再有一秒钟我就可以跳到船上，可就在这会儿，门开了。一个人探出脑袋，离我仅有几步远，我想这回可完了；可是，他又把头缩了回去，他说："拿开那盏讨厌的破灯，毕尔，别让人瞧见！"他将一袋东西扔进小船，然后跳进去坐下。那人是帕克德。紧跟着，毕尔也出来上了船。帕克德低低地说："准备好--开船！"我在窗板上几乎悬不住了，我吓得全身发软。但是毕尔说："等会儿--你搜过他了吗？""没有。你也没搜吗？""没有。这么来看，他那份儿钱还在他身上。""好吧，那么，上去--拿了东西丢下钱可不划算。""那--他不会怀疑我们上去要干嘛吧？""或许他不会。只是我们反正得拿到钱。上去吧。"于是，他们跳下船又进去了。
门"砰"地一声关上了，因为它在船歪着的那一边，不到半秒钟，我就上了船，吉姆紧紧地跟在我身后。我拿出刀子砍断缆绳，我们上路了！
我们不动桨，不说话，也不耳语，就连大气儿都不敢透。我们飞快地顺水滑行，寂静得要命，我们滑过明轮罩顶部那边，滑过船尾；一两秒钟之后，我们已经在沉船下游一百码开外了，黑夜笼罩着它，它的踪影消失了，我们安全脱险了，内心十分明白。
我们漂下去三四百码的时候，看到那盏灯在顶舱门口跟个小火花似地闪了一下，这样，我们知道那两个坏蛋已经知道他们的船不见了，他们也就明白现在跟那个吉姆·特纳一样地倒霉了。
不久，吉姆划着桨，我们去追赶我们的木排。这时我才开始为那几个人担心--我想刚才我是一直没有时间。我开始想，在那种走投无路的困境中有多么可怕，即便他们是一伙杀人凶手。我心想，说不定哪一天我自己也会变成一个凶手，到那时，我会怎么想？所以，我对吉姆说："我们一看到有亮光，就靠岸停在离它一百码远的地方，不管它是上游还是下游，找个地方能让你和小船安全藏身，然后我就上岸瞎骗个故事，让人去找那帮家伙并把他们救出来，这么一来，该他们死的时候，他们自然会被绞死。"不过这个主意是白想了。因为不久，暴风雨又开始了，这一比哪回都来势凶猛。大雨如注，漆黑一片，我猜想大家都在睡觉。我们急速顺流直下，一边注意看灯光，一边注意寻找我们的木排。过了好久，雨停了，可是阴云密布，雷声还在咕咚咕咚不住地响，后来，一道电闪，我们看见前面有个黑乎乎的东西在漂浮着，我们便追了上去。
就是那个木排，我们又上去了，心里别提有多高兴了。这时，我们看到一处灯光，远处靠右，在河岸上。因此我说，我要去看看。小船上装着半船那帮家伙的赃物，都是从那个沉船上偷来的。我们赶忙把它们搬上木排堆成一堆，我告诉吉姆顺水往下漂，估计漂出两英里多地就挂上灯，一直叫它亮着等我回来；然后，我自己摇着桨朝岸上的灯光划去。我向着那个灯光划过去时，又看见三四处亮点--都在山坡上，那是个村庄。我在那灯光上游一点靠岸，放下双桨，让船漂了过去。我经过之时，看明白那是一盏灯，刚好挂在一只双体渡船的船头旗杆上。我掠过岸边，找看船的人，同时想他会睡在什么地方；很快地，我看见他在拴锚的柱子上歇着，身子向前倾，头在双腿膝盖之间垂着。我推推他的肩膀，就哭了起来。
他醒了过来，像是被吓了一跳；但是，当他看到只有我一个人时，就打了个大大的哈欠又伸伸懒腰，然后他说："喂，出什么事了？别哭，小兄弟。有什么麻烦？"我说："爸，还有妈，还有姐，还有.."说着说着我就说不下去了。他叫道："哎，该死，别这样大哭大叫，我们都会有为难的时候，你这一回呢，最终也会没事儿的。他们怎么啦？""他们--他们--你是看这条船的吗？""当然，"他答道，脸上十分自豪，" 我是这条船的船长、船主、驾驶员、领航员和看守人，又是水手长，有时，我还是运货和乘客。我没老吉姆·豪贝克那么富有，我也不像他那样对随意什么人都那么大方仁慈，四处乱扔钱；可是我给他说过多少回了，我不愿意跟他调个儿换位置；因为我说呀，当个水手才是适合我的生活，如果让我住在镇外面两英里远的地方，什么事都见不着，那样就算把他的钱全给我，就是再加上一倍，我也不会去干。我还说.."我插嘴道："他们遇上一大堆麻烦，还..""他们是些什么人？""唉，爸，妈，还有姐，还有胡克小姐，要是你把你的渡船开过去..""开过哪儿去？他们在哪里？""在沉船上。""什么沉船？""唉，就那一条。""什么，你该不是说那条沃尔特·斯科特号吧？""就是。""天哪！他们上那儿干嘛去了？我的天哪！""呃，他们可不是专门到那儿去的。""我敢断定他们不是！唉，天哪，他们要不赶紧离开的话，那可就没命了！啊，究竟是怎么搞的，他们会被困到那个鬼地方呢？""很简单。胡克小姐要去看个人，到上边那个镇上..""噢，布斯码头--接着往下说。""她去看个人，就在布斯码头。天一黑，她带着她的女黑奴坐着运马的渡船过河去，要去她朋友家过夜，她朋友叫什么什么小姐，我忘了她的名字，他们的掌舵桨掉了，船一打旋儿，顺水就往下漂去了，船尾朝前，冲了大约两英里地，撞上那条沉船，摆渡人和那个女黑奴还有马全完了，光是胡克小姐伸手抓牢，上了沉船。这时大约是天黑后一个小时吧，我们驾着我们做买卖的平底驳船开了过来，天太黑了，我们一点儿没注意那条沉船，刚好撞上，这么一来，我们的船也翻了，只是我们全得救了，只有比尔·威普尔--噢，他可确实是个大好人哪！--我恨不得淹死的是我，我真这么想来着。""哎呀！这是我碰上的最倒霉的事了。那以后，你们都干什么了？""噢，我们拼命大喊，急得直哭，可是那边河太宽，没有人能听见。爸就说反正得有个人去岸上求救。只有我会游泳，我就出个风头冒个险吧，胡克小姐她说如果我不能立刻找到人来搭救，就来这一带找她伯父，他会来处理妥当这件事。我游到离这一英里远的岸上，一直乱撞，想找到人帮忙，可是他们说：'怎么着，在这么黑的深更半夜和这么急的水流里？一点门都没有，去找个蒸汽渡船嘛。'现在，要是您肯去，还..""天哪，我是愿意去，我怎么能不愿去呢；可是谁他妈的会出这一笔钱呢？你想你爸..""哎呀，那好办。胡克小姐专门叮嘱我说，她伯父豪贝克..""好家伙！他是她伯父？听我说，你朝着远处那个亮光走，到那以后向西拐，再走出大约四分之一英里地，你就进那个小酒馆；叫他们领你去吉姆·豪贝克家，他肯定会付这笔钱。你别闲逛荡了，他肯定想知道这个消息。告诉他不等他赶到镇上，我就会把他侄女平平安安救上来。好啦，加把劲儿，我这就去拐角那儿叫醒我的轮机手。"我朝那个灯光走去，可是等他一过拐角，我就转身回去，跳进我的小船，舀出了船里的水，然后在静水里沿着河岸朝前划了差不多六百码；我躲进一些木船当中，因为不看着那条渡船开动，我就觉得不踏实。不过，总的来说，为了那帮家伙费这么多事，我感觉还是痛快的，因为乐意这样做的人不多。我想让寡妇知道这件事。我敢肯定她会因为我帮了这些坏蛋而替我骄傲的，因为坏蛋无赖这一帮人是寡妇和善良的人们最感兴趣的。
很快地，那条沉船就过来了，黑魃魃的照直漂过来啦！我浑身颤栗，然后我就朝它划过去。它淹进水里很深了，我一眼就能看出来，它上面就算有人也不大可能活着了。我绕着它划了一圈儿，又喊了一阵，没有回答，全都死一般静；我为那帮家伙觉得心朝下沉，但是沉得不厉害，因为我想着只要他们受得了，我也能受。
不久，那条渡船过来了，因此，我就向河中间划过去，顺着那条长长的顺水斜流向前划，我断定没人看到我了，我就放下桨回头一看，看见渡船绕着那条沉船边转边找胡克小姐的尸体，因为船长必定以为她伯父豪贝克想要。不久，渡船就决定放弃了，它向岸边驶去，我动手开船，顺流直下。
差不多过了好长一段时间，我才看到吉姆的灯光露出来；当它确实露出来时，看上去简直有一千英里远。我赶到地方时，东方天空已经亮，于是，我向那岛上驶去，藏好木排，把小船沉到水里，钻入了窝棚，一夜睡得跟死人一般踏实。
收听单词发音 |
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wreck
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| n.失事，遇难；沉船；vt.(船等)失事，遇难 | |
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oar
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| n.桨，橹，划手；v.划行 | |
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shutter
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| n.百叶窗；(照相机)快门；关闭装置 | |
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shutters
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| 百叶窗( shutter的名词复数 )； （照相机的）快门 | |
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gliding
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| v. 滑翔 adj. 滑动的 | |
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rascals
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| 流氓( rascal的名词复数 )； 无赖； （开玩笑说法）淘气的人（尤指小孩）； 恶作剧的人 | |
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oars
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| n.桨，橹( oar的名词复数 )；划手v.划（行）( oar的第三人称单数 ) | |
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yarn
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| n.纱，纱线，纺线；奇闻漫谈，旅行轶事 | |
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mighty
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| adj.强有力的；巨大的 | |
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plunder
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| vt.劫掠财物，掠夺；n.劫掠物，赃物；劫掠 | |
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hustled
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| 催促（hustle的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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harry
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| vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼 | |
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ashore
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| adv.在(向)岸上，上岸 | |
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tavern
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| n.小旅馆，客栈；小酒店 | |
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dart
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| v.猛冲，投掷；n.飞镖，猛冲 | |
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bailed
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| 保释，帮助脱离困境( bail的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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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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slant
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| v.倾斜，倾向性地编写或报道；n.斜面，倾向 | |
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