THE captain’s first care was to anchor his vessel1 securely. He found excellent moorage2 in five fathoms3’ depth of water, with a solid bottom of hard granite4, which afforded a firm hold. There was no danger now of either being driven away or stranded5 at low water. After so many hours of danger, the Duncan found herself in a sort of creek6, sheltered by a high circular point from the winds outside in the open sea.
Lord Glenarvan grasped John Mangles7’ hand, and simply said: “Thank you, John.”
This was all, but John felt it ample recompense. Glenarvan kept to himself the secret of his anxiety, and neither Lady Helena, nor Mary, nor Robert suspected the grave perils8 they had just escaped.
One important fact had to be ascertained10. On what part of the coast had the tempest thrown them? How far must they go to regain11 the parallel. At what distance S. W. was Cape9 Bernouilli? This was soon determined12 by taking the position of the ship, and it was found that she had scarcely deviated13 two degrees from the route. They were in longitude14 36 degrees 12 minutes, and latitude15 32 degrees 67 minutes, at Cape Catastrophe16, three hundred miles from Cape Bernouilli. The nearest port was Adelaide, the Capital of Southern Australia.
Could the Duncan be repaired there? This was the question. The extent of the injuries must first be ascertained, and in order to do this he ordered some of the men to dive down below the stern. Their report was that one of the branches of the screw was bent17, and had got jammed against the stern post, which of course prevented all possibility of rotation18. This was a serious damage, so serious as to require more skilful19 workmen than could be found in Adelaide.
After mature reflection, Lord Glenarvan and John Mangles came to the determination to sail round the Australian coast, stopping at Cape Bernouilli, and continuing their route south as far as Melbourne, where the Duncan could speedily be put right. This effected, they would proceed to cruise along the eastern coast to complete their search for the Britannia.
This decision was unanimously approved, and it was agreed that they should start with the first fair wind. They had not to wait long for the same night the hurricane had ceased entirely20, and there was only a manageable breeze from the S. W. Preparations for sailing were instantly commenced, and at four o’clock in the morning the crew lifted the anchors, and got under way with fresh canvas outspread, and a wind blowing right for the Australian shores.
Two hours afterward21 Cape Catastrophe was out of sight. In the evening they doubled Cape Borda, and came alongside Kangaroo Island. This is the largest of the Australian islands, and a great hiding place for runaway22 convicts. Its appearance was enchanting23. The stratified rocks on the shore were richly carpeted with verdure, and innumerable kangaroos were jumping over the woods and plains, just as at the time of its discovery in 1802. Next day, boats were sent ashore24 to examine the coast minutely, as they were now on the 36th parallel, and between that and the 38th Glenarvan wished to leave no part unexplored.
The boats had hard, rough work of it now, but the men never complained. Glenarvan and his inseparable companion, Paganel, and young Robert generally accompanied them. But all this painstaking25 exploration came to nothing. Not a trace of the shipwreck26 could be seen anywhere. The Australian shores revealed no more than the Patagonian. However, it was not time yet to lose hope altogether, for they had not reached the exact point indicated by the document.
On the 20th of December, they arrived off Cape Bernouilli, which terminates Lacepede Bay, and yet not a vestige28 of the Britannia had been discovered. Still this was not surprising, as it was two years since the occurrence of the catastrophe, and the sea might, and indeed must, have scattered29 and destroyed whatever fragments of the brig had remained. Besides, the natives who scent30 a wreck27 as the vultures do a dead body, would have pounced31 upon it and carried off the smaller DEBRIS32. There was no doubt whatever Harry33 Grant and his companions had been made prisoners the moment the waves threw them on the shore, and been dragged away into the interior of the continent.
But if so, what becomes of Paganel’s ingenious hypothesis about the document? viz., that it had been thrown into a river and carried by a current into the sea. That was a plausible34 enough theory in Patagonia, but not in the part of Australia intersected by the 37th parallel. Besides the Patagonian rivers, the Rio Colorado and the Rio Negro, flow into the sea along deserted35 solitudes36, uninhabited and uninhabitable; while, on the contrary, the principal rivers of Australia — the Murray, the Yarrow, the Torrens, the Darling — all connected with each other, throw themselves into the ocean by well-frequented routes, and their mouths are ports of great activity. What likelihood, consequently, would there be that a fragile bottle would ever find its way along such busy thoroughfares right out into the Indian Ocean?
Paganel himself saw the impossibility of it, and confessed to the Major, who raised a discussion on the subject, that his hypothesis would be altogether illogical in Australia. It was evident that the degrees given related to the place where the Britannia was actually shipwrecked and not the place of captivity38, and that the bottle therefore had been thrown into the sea on the western coast of the continent.
However, as Glenarvan justly remarked, this did not alter the fact of Captain Grant’s captivity in the least degree, though there was no reason now for prosecuting39 the search for him along the 37th parallel, more than any other. It followed, consequently, that if no traces of the Britannia were discovered at Cape Bernouilli, the only thing to be done was to return to Europe. Lord Glenarvan would have been unsuccessful, but he would have done his duty courageously40 and conscientiously41.
But the young Grants did not feel disheartened. They had long since said to themselves that the question of their father’s deliverance was about to be finally settled. Irrevocably, indeed, they might consider it, for as Paganel had judiciously42 demonstrated, if the wreck had occurred on the eastern side, the survivors43 would have found their way back to their own country long since.
“Hope on! Hope on, Mary!” said Lady Helena to the young girl, as they neared the shore; “God’s hand will still lead us.”
“Yes, Miss Mary,” said Captain John. “Man’s extremity44 is God’s opportunity. When one way is hedged up another is sure to open.”
“God grant it,” replied Mary.
Land was quite close now. The cape ran out two miles into the sea, and terminated in a gentle slope, and the boat glided45 easily into a sort of natural creek between coral banks in a state of formation, which in course of time would be a belt of coral reefs round the southern point of the Australian coast. Even now they were quite sufficiently46 formidable to destroy the keel of a ship, and the Britannia might likely enough have been dashed to pieces on them.
The passengers landed without the least difficulty on an absolutely desert shore. Cliffs composed of beds of strata47 made a coast line sixty to eighty feet high, which it would have been difficult to scale without ladders or cramp-irons. John Mangles happened to discover a natural breach48 about half a mile south. Part of the cliff had been partially49 beaten down, no doubt, by the sea in some equinoctial gale50. Through this opening the whole party passed and reached the top of the cliff by a pretty steep path. Robert climbed like a young cat, and was the first on the summit, to the despair of Paganel, who was quite ashamed to see his long legs, forty years old, out-distanced by a young urchin51 of twelve. However, he was far ahead of the Major, who gave himself no concern on the subject.
They were all soon assembled on the lofty crags, and from this elevation52 could command a view of the whole plain below. It appeared entirely uncultivated, and covered with shrubs53 and bushes. Glenarvan thought it resembled some glens in the lowlands of Scotland, and Paganel fancied it like some barren parts of Britanny. But along the coast the country appeared to be inhabited, and significant signs of industry revealed the presence of civilized54 men, not savages55.
“A mill!” exclaimed Robert.
And, sure enough, in the distance the long sails of a mill appeared, apparently56 about three miles off.
“It certainly is a windmill,” said Paganel, after examining the object in question through his telescope.
“Let us go to it, then,” said Glenarvan.
Away they started, and, after walking about half an hour, the country began to assume a new aspect, suddenly changing its sterility57 for cultivation58. Instead of bushes, quick-set hedges met the eye, inclosing recent clearings. Several bullocks and about half a dozen horses were feeding in meadows, surrounded by acacias supplied from the vast plantations59 of Kangaroo Island. Gradually fields covered with cereals came in sight, whole acres covered with bristling60 ears of corn, hay-ricks in the shape of large bee-hives, blooming orchards61, a fine garden worthy62 of Horace, in which the useful and agreeable were blended; then came sheds; commons wisely distributed, and last of all, a plain comfortable dwelling-house, crowned by a joyous-sounding mill, and fanned and shaded by its long sails as they kept constantly moving round.
Just at that moment a pleasant-faced man, about fifty years of age, came out of the house, warned, by the loud barking of four dogs, of the arrival of strangers. He was followed by five handsome strapping63 lads, his sons, and their mother, a fine tall woman. There was no mistaking the little group. This was a perfect type of the Irish colonist64 — a man who, weary of the miseries65 of his country, had come, with his family, to seek fortune and happiness beyond the seas.
Before Glenarvan and his party had time to reach the house and present themselves in due form, they heard the cordial words: “Strangers! welcome to the house of Paddy O’Moore!”
“You are Irish,” said Glenarvan, “if I am not mistaken,” warmly grasping the outstretched hand of the colonist.
“I was,” replied Paddy O’Moore, “but now I am Australian. Come in, gentlemen, whoever you may be, this house is yours.”
It was impossible not to accept an invitation given with such grace. Lady Helena and Mary Grant were led in by Mrs. O’Moore, while the gentlemen were assisted by his sturdy sons to disencumber themselves of their fire-arms.
An immense hall, light and airy, occupied the ground floor of the house, which was built of strong planks66 laid horizontally. A few wooden benches fastened against the gaily-colored walls, about ten stools, two oak chests on tin mugs, a large long table where twenty guests could sit comfortably, composed the furniture, which looked in perfect keeping with the solid house and robust67 inmates68.
The noonday meal was spread; the soup tureen was smoking between roast beef and a leg of mutton, surrounded by large plates of olives, grapes, and oranges. The necessary was there and there was no lack of the superfluous69. The host and hostess were so pleasant, and the big table, with its abundant fare, looked so inviting70, that it would have been ungracious not to have seated themselves. The farm servants, on equal footing with their master, were already in their places to take their share of the meal. Paddy O’Moore pointed71 to the seats reserved for the strangers, and said to Glenarvan:
“I was waiting for you.”
“Waiting for us!” replied Glenarvan in a tone of surprise.
“I am always waiting for those who come,” said the Irishman; and then, in a solemn voice, while the family and domestics reverently72 stood, he repeated the BENEDICITE.
Dinner followed immediately, during which an animated73 conversation was kept up on all sides. From Scotch74 to Irish is but a handsbreadth. The Tweed, several fathoms wide, digs a deeper trench75 between Scotland and England than the twenty leagues of Irish Channel, which separates Old Caledonia from the Emerald Isle76. Paddy O’Moore related his history. It was that of all emigrants77 driven by misfortune from their own country. Many come to seek fortunes who only find trouble and sorrow, and then they throw the blame on chance, and forget the true cause is their own idleness and vice78 and want of commonsense79. Whoever is sober and industrious80, honest and economical, gets on.
Such a one had been and was Paddy O’Moore. He left Dundalk, where he was starving, and came with his family to Australia, landed at Adelaide, where, refusing employment as a miner, he got engaged on a farm, and two months afterward commenced clearing ground on his own account.
The whole territory of South Australia is divided into lots, each containing eighty acres, and these are granted to colonists81 by the government. Any industrious man, by proper cultivation, can not only get a living out of his lot, but lay by pounds 80 a year.
Paddy O’Moore knew this. He profited by his own former experience, and laid by every penny he could till he had saved enough to purchase new lots. His family prospered82, and his farm also. The Irish peasant became a landed proprietor83, and though his little estate had only been under cultivation for two years, he had five hundred acres cleared by his own hands, and five hundred head of cattle. He was his own master, after having been a serf in Europe, and as independent as one can be in the freest country in the world.
His guests congratulated him heartily84 as he ended his narration85; and Paddy O’Moore no doubt expected confidence for confidence, but he waited in vain. However, he was one of those discreet86 people who can say, “I tell you who I am, but I don’t ask who you are.” Glenarvan’s great object was to get information about the Britannia, and like a man who goes right to the point, he began at once to interrogate87 O’Moore as to whether he had heard of the shipwreck.
The reply of the Irishman was not favorable; he had never heard the vessel mentioned. For two years, at least, no ship had been wrecked37 on that coast, neither above nor below the Cape. Now, the date of the catastrophe was within two years. He could, therefore, declare positively88 that the survivors of the wreck had not been thrown on that part of the western shore. Now, my Lord,” he added, “may I ask what interest you have in making the inquiry89?”
This pointed question elicited90 in reply the whole history of the expedition. Glenarvan related the discovery of the document, and the various attempts that had been made to follow up the precise indications given of the whereabouts of the unfortunate captives; and he concluded his account by expressing his doubt whether they should ever find the Captain after all.
His dispirited tone made a painful impression on the minds of his auditors91. Robert and Mary could not keep back their tears, and Paganel had not a word of hope or comfort to give them. John Mangles was grieved to the heart, though he, too, was beginning to yield to the feeling of hopelessness which had crept over the rest, when suddenly the whole party were electrified92 by hearing a voice exclaim: “My Lord, praise and thank God! if Captain Grant is alive, he is on this Australian continent.”
收听单词发音 |
1
vessel
|
|
| n.船舶；容器，器皿；管，导管，血管 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
2
moorage
|
|
| n.系泊，系泊处，系泊费 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
|
3
fathoms
|
|
| 英寻( fathom的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
4
granite
|
|
| adj.花岗岩，花岗石 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
5
stranded
|
|
| a.搁浅的，进退两难的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
6
creek
|
|
| n.小溪，小河，小湾 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
7
mangles
|
|
| n.轧布机，轧板机，碾压机（mangle的复数形式）vt.乱砍（mangle的第三人称单数形式） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
8
perils
|
|
| 极大危险( peril的名词复数 )； 危险的事（或环境） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
9
cape
|
|
| n.海角，岬；披肩，短披风 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
10
ascertained
|
|
| v.弄清，确定，查明( ascertain的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
11
regain
|
|
| vt.重新获得，收复，恢复 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
12
determined
|
|
| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
13
deviated
|
|
| v.偏离，越轨( deviate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
14
longitude
|
|
| n.经线，经度 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
15
latitude
|
|
| n.纬度，行动或言论的自由(范围)，(pl.)地区 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
16
catastrophe
|
|
| n.大灾难，大祸 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
17
bent
|
|
| n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
18
rotation
|
|
| n.旋转；循环，轮流 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
19
skilful
|
|
| (=skillful)adj.灵巧的，熟练的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
20
entirely
|
|
| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
21
afterward
|
|
| adv.后来；以后 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
22
runaway
|
|
| n.逃走的人，逃亡，亡命者；adj.逃亡的，逃走的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
23
enchanting
|
|
| a.讨人喜欢的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
24
ashore
|
|
| adv.在(向)岸上，上岸 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
25
painstaking
|
|
| adj.苦干的；艰苦的，费力的，刻苦的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
26
shipwreck
|
|
| n.船舶失事，海难 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
27
wreck
|
|
| n.失事，遇难；沉船；vt.(船等)失事，遇难 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
28
vestige
|
|
| n.痕迹，遗迹，残余 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
29
scattered
|
|
| adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
30
scent
|
|
| n.气味，香味，香水，线索，嗅觉；v.嗅，发觉 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
31
pounced
|
|
| v.突然袭击( pounce的过去式和过去分词 )；猛扑；一眼看出；抓住机会（进行抨击） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
32
debris
|
|
| n.瓦砾堆，废墟，碎片 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
33
harry
|
|
| vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
34
plausible
|
|
| adj.似真实的，似乎有理的，似乎可信的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
35
deserted
|
|
| adj.荒芜的，荒废的，无人的，被遗弃的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
36
solitudes
|
|
| n.独居( solitude的名词复数 )；孤独；荒僻的地方；人迹罕至的地方 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
37
wrecked
|
|
| adj.失事的，遇难的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
38
captivity
|
|
| n.囚禁；被俘；束缚 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
39
prosecuting
|
|
| 检举、告发某人( prosecute的现在分词 )； 对某人提起公诉； 继续从事（某事物）； 担任控方律师 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
40
courageously
|
|
| ad.勇敢地，无畏地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
41
conscientiously
|
|
| adv.凭良心地；认真地，负责尽职地；老老实实 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
42
judiciously
|
|
| adv.明断地，明智而审慎地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
43
survivors
|
|
| 幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
44
extremity
|
|
| n.末端，尽头；尽力；终极；极度 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
45
glided
|
|
| v.滑动( glide的过去式和过去分词 )；掠过；（鸟或飞机 ） 滑翔 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
46
sufficiently
|
|
| adv.足够地，充分地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
47
strata
|
|
| n.地层（复数）；社会阶层 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
48
breach
|
|
| n.违反，不履行；破裂；vt.冲破，攻破 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
49
partially
|
|
| adv.部分地，从某些方面讲 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
50
gale
|
|
| n.大风，强风，一阵闹声（尤指笑声等） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
51
urchin
|
|
| n.顽童；海胆 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
52
elevation
|
|
| n.高度；海拔；高地；上升；提高 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
53
shrubs
|
|
| 灌木( shrub的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
54
civilized
|
|
| a.有教养的，文雅的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
55
savages
|
|
| 未开化的人，野蛮人( savage的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
56
apparently
|
|
| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
57
sterility
|
|
| n.不生育，不结果，贫瘠，消毒，无菌 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
58
cultivation
|
|
| n.耕作，培养，栽培（法），养成 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
59
plantations
|
|
| n.种植园，大农场( plantation的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
60
bristling
|
|
| a.竖立的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
61
orchards
|
|
| （通常指围起来的）果园( orchard的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
62
worthy
|
|
| adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
63
strapping
|
|
| adj. 魁伟的, 身材高大健壮的 n. 皮绳或皮带的材料, 裹伤胶带, 皮鞭 动词strap的现在分词形式 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
64
colonist
|
|
| n.殖民者，移民 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
65
miseries
|
|
| n.痛苦( misery的名词复数 )；痛苦的事；穷困；常发牢骚的人 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
66
planks
|
|
| （厚）木板( plank的名词复数 )； 政纲条目，政策要点 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
67
robust
|
|
| adj.强壮的，强健的，粗野的，需要体力的，浓的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
68
inmates
|
|
| n.囚犯( inmate的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
69
superfluous
|
|
| adj.过多的，过剩的，多余的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
70
inviting
|
|
| adj.诱人的，引人注目的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
71
pointed
|
|
| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
72
reverently
|
|
| adv.虔诚地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
73
animated
|
|
| adj.生气勃勃的，活跃的，愉快的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
74
scotch
|
|
| n.伤口，刻痕；苏格兰威士忌酒；v.粉碎，消灭，阻止；adj.苏格兰(人)的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
75
trench
|
|
| n./v.(挖)沟，(挖)战壕 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
76
isle
|
|
| n.小岛，岛 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
77
emigrants
|
|
| n.（从本国移往他国的）移民( emigrant的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
78
vice
|
|
| n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
79
commonsense
|
|
| adj.有常识的；明白事理的；注重实际的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
80
industrious
|
|
| adj.勤劳的，刻苦的，奋发的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
81
colonists
|
|
| n.殖民地开拓者，移民，殖民地居民( colonist的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
82
prospered
|
|
| 成功，兴旺( prosper的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
83
proprietor
|
|
| n.所有人；业主；经营者 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
84
heartily
|
|
| adv.衷心地，诚恳地，十分，很 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
85
narration
|
|
| n.讲述，叙述；故事；记叙体 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
86
discreet
|
|
| adj.(言行)谨慎的；慎重的；有判断力的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
87
interrogate
|
|
| vt.讯问，审问，盘问 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
88
positively
|
|
| adv.明确地，断然，坚决地；实在，确实 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
89
inquiry
|
|
| n.打听，询问，调查，查问 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
90
elicited
|
|
| 引出，探出( elicit的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
91
auditors
|
|
| n.审计员，稽核员( auditor的名词复数 )；（大学课程的）旁听生 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
92
electrified
|
|
| v.使电气化( electrify的过去式和过去分词 )；使兴奋 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
| 欢迎访问英文小说网 |