Chapter 3 In the launch
第三章 在救生艇上

The launch was seven metres long, and there were nineteen men in it.
救生艇长七米,上面有十九个人。

Captain Bligh sat at the back of the launch, and looked at his men.
布莱船长坐在救生艇尾部,看着他的船员们。

The sides of the launch were only ten centimetres above the sea.
救生艇的船舷高出海面仅十厘米。

‘Mr Hall, look at our food, please,’ Bligh said.
“霍尔先生,请检查一下我们的食物,”布莱说。

‘Yes, sir.’
“是,长官。”

Bligh looked away, over the sea.
布莱转过头去,望向大海。

The Bounty was very far away now, but there was a small island, Tafua, about twenty kilometres to the west.
邦蒂号现在已经很远了,但西边约二十公里处有一个小岛,塔富阿岛。

After some minutes, Mr Hall, a young officer, said: ‘Sir, we have 150 kilos of bread, two kilos of meat, six bottles of rum, and 126 litres of water, sir.’
几分钟后,年轻的军官霍尔先生说:“长官,我们有150公斤面包、2公斤肉、6瓶朗姆酒和126升水,长官。”

‘Is that all?’ Bligh asked.
“就这些吗?”布莱问。

‘We have a small sail, and some coats, sir,’ Hall said. ‘That’s all.’
“我们还有一张小帆和一些外套,长官,”霍尔说,“就这些了。”

‘Thank you, Mr Hall,’ Bligh said. ‘It’s not much, but we’re going to Tafua, so perhaps we can find some more food and water there.’
“谢谢你,霍尔先生,”布莱说,“虽然不多,但我们要去塔富阿岛,也许在那里能找到更多食物和水。”

Bligh was afraid, but he didn’t want them to see that.
布莱心里害怕,但他不想让船员们看出来。

The men were quiet; they didn’t look angry.
船员们很安静,看起来并不愤怒。

Next day they landed at Tafua.
第二天他们在塔富阿岛登陆。

They found breadfruit, bananas, and coconuts, but no water.
他们找到了面包果、香蕉和椰子,但没有找到水。

A lot of islanders came down to the sea. ‘Where is your ship?’ they asked.
许多岛民来到海边。“你们的船在哪里?”他们问。

‘It sank,’ Bligh said. ‘All our friends are dead. We need food and water.’
“沉了,”布莱说,“我们所有的朋友都死了。我们需要食物和水。”

The islanders laughed. It was not a friendly laugh. They talked quietly. More men came, soon there were nearly a hundred.
岛民们笑了。那不是友善的笑。他们低声交谈着。更多的人来了,很快就有将近一百人。

They began to pick up stones. ‘Get back into the boat!’ Bligh said. ‘Quickly, now.’
他们开始捡起石头。“回到船上去!”布莱说,“快,马上!”

But the islanders killed one man with stones.
但是岛民用石头砸死了一名船员。

When the launch went out to sea, the islanders came after it in their canoes. They threw stones at the sailors.
当救生艇驶向大海时,岛民们划着独木舟追了上来。他们向水手们投掷石头。

‘Throw the coats into the sea,’ Bligh said. ‘Quick!’
“把外套扔进海里,”布莱说,“快!”

The islanders stopped and picked the coats out of the sea. Then the canoes went back to Tafua.
岛民们停下来,从海里捞起外套。然后独木舟返回了塔富阿岛。

‘We can’t land on any islands, then,’ Bligh said. ‘Not without a big ship, and guns.’
“那我们不能再在任何岛屿登陆了,”布莱说,“没有大船和枪支是不行的。”

He looked at his men. They were quiet, and afraid.
他看着他的船员们。他们沉默而恐惧。

‘We must be very careful with our food,’ he said. ‘Every man can have a small piece of bread and coconut today, and a cup of water. That’s all.’
“我们必须非常节省食物,”他说,“今天每人只能分到一小块面包和椰子,以及一杯水。就这些。”

‘When it’s cold we can have some rum. But don’t worry. Remember, I’m your captain. Listen to me, and we can stay alive.’
“天冷的时候我们可以喝点朗姆酒。但别担心。记住,我是你们的船长。听我的指挥,我们就能活下去。”

‘Yes, sir.’
“是,长官。”

Then the youngest, a boy called Robert Tinkler, said: ‘I want to go home.’
这时,年纪最小的一个叫罗伯特·廷克勒的男孩说:“我想回家。”

Bligh looked at him, and for a minute the boy was afraid, because Bligh was often angry.
布莱看着他,男孩一度感到害怕,因为布莱经常发脾气。

Then he saw a small, cold smile on Bligh’s face. ‘To England, Robert?’
随后他看到布莱脸上露出一丝冷淡的微笑。“回英格兰吗,罗伯特?”

‘Yes, sir.’
“是的,长官。”

‘Well, that’s about thirty thousand kilometres away. So first, let’s find Timor. That’s much nearer. There are Dutch ships there; they can take us home.’
“嗯,那大约有三万公里远。所以首先,我们要找到帝汶岛。那里近得多。那里有荷兰船只,他们可以带我们回家。”

‘Yes, sir.’ The boy looked happier. ‘How far is it to Timor, sir?’
“是,长官。”男孩看起来高兴了一些。“到帝汶岛有多远,长官?”

For a minute Bligh didn’t answer. He looked away, over the cold, green sea. The wind was stronger now, and the sky was dark.
布莱有一分钟没有回答。他转过头去,望着冰冷碧绿的大海。风现在更大了,天空也暗了下来。

‘Oh, not far,’ he said slowly. ‘Only about seven thousand kilometres.’
“哦,不远,”他缓慢地说,“只有大约七千公里。”

Next morning the wind got stronger and stronger, and the launch went up and down over big green waves.
第二天早上,风越来越大,救生艇在巨大的绿浪中起伏颠簸。

Everyone was wet, and white water came into the launch.
每个人都湿透了,白色的浪花打进了救生艇里。

The sailors used the empty coconuts to throw the water back into the sea.
水手们用空椰子壳把水舀回海里。

At mid-day they ate five small coconuts and drank some rum, and they ate some wet breadfruit in the evening.
中午他们吃了五个小椰子,喝了些朗姆酒,晚上则吃了一些湿透的面包果。

The wind and waves were strong all night, so no one could sleep.
整夜风急浪高,没人能睡着。

Next day, the bread was wet, but they didn’t throw it away.
第二天,面包湿了,但他们没有扔掉。

In the afternoon it rained, and they caught the water in cups and coconuts.
下午下起了雨,他们用杯子和椰子壳接雨水。

But it rained all night, so everyone was cold and wet.
但是雨下了一整夜,所以每个人又冷又湿。

The launch was small, so they could not all sleep. Most men sat up all night.
救生艇太小了,容不下所有人同时睡觉。大多数人坐了一整夜。

On 8th May it was sunny. The men took off their wet shirts and trousers.
5月8日天气晴朗。男人们脱下湿透的衬衫和裤子。

Bligh gave them some rum, coconut milk, and eighty grams of bread.
布莱分给他们一些朗姆酒、椰汁和八十克面包。

Often he talked about New Guinea, Australia, and Timor.
他经常谈起新几内亚、澳大利亚和帝汶岛。

There were storms for the next two weeks. Sometimes they saw the sun for an hour, but every day it rained.
接下来的两周里一直有暴风雨。有时他们能看到一小时的太阳,但每天都会下雨。

Big green waves threw white water into the launch. They were always wet, tired, and hungry.
巨大的绿浪将白色的海水卷入艇内。他们总是浑身湿透,疲惫不堪且饥肠辘辘。

Three times they saw islands, but they didn’t go near them.
他们有三次看到了岛屿,但都没有靠近。

They ate bad bread and old meat, but they had lots of rain water to drink.
他们吃着变质的面包和陈肉,但有充足的雨水可以喝。

When they were very wet, Bligh gave his men some rum.
当他们浑身湿透时,布莱会给船员们一些朗姆酒。

No one could sleep for more than one or two hours.
没人能睡超过一两个小时。

But every hour, Bligh held a long rope over the side. The rope had knots in it.
但每隔一小时,布莱就会把一根打结的长绳放到船舷外。

The men watched carefully. The knots went behind the launch, and Bligh looked at his watch.
船员们仔细观察。绳结从救生艇后方滑过,布莱看着他的怀表。

‘We’re going quickly today,’ Bligh told them, and wrote in a little book.
“我们今天走得很快,”布莱告诉他们,并在一个小本子上记录着。

‘We’re going about one hundred and sixty kilometres every day,’ he told his men.
“我们每天大约航行一百六十公里,”他对船员们说。

‘But we can’t always sail west, because of the wind. So, I’m sorry, but today we can only have forty grams of bread.’
“但由于风向原因,我们不能一直向西航行。所以,很抱歉,今天我们每人只能分到四十克面包。”

‘Bad bread, too,’ said one man, Purcell.
“而且还是坏面包,”一个名叫珀塞尔的人说。

‘Yes, but it keeps us alive,’ Bligh answered angrily. Then he laughed.
“是的,但它能让我们活下去,”布莱生气地回答。然后他笑了。

‘Look, up there!’ he said. There was a bird on the front of the launch. Its small yellow eye looked at them.
“看,上面!”他说。一只鸟停在救生艇的船头。它那小小的黄眼睛看着他们。

Carefully, two sailors opened their hands, very slowly. The bird didn’t move.
两名水手小心翼翼地、极其缓慢地张开双手。鸟儿没有动。

One man put his hand on it. The bird moved away.
一个人把手放了上去。鸟儿移开了。

But at the same time, his friend caught the bird’s feet, and killed it.
但与此同时,他的同伴抓住了鸟的脚,把它杀死了。

The sailors laughed and shouted. It was only a very small black and white bird, but it was food! Good food!
水手们欢呼大笑。这只是一只很小的黑白相间的鸟,但它是食物!美味的食物!

‘I caught it!’ the first sailor said. ‘No, you didn’t!’ the other man said. ‘I did!’
“是我抓到的!”第一个水手说。“不,不是你!”另一个人说。“是我!”

‘Be quiet!’ Bligh said. ‘Give it to me.’
“安静!”布莱说,“把它给我。”

He cut the bird with his knife, and caught its red blood in a cup. The men drank the blood.
他用刀割开鸟,用杯子接住红色的血。男人们喝了鸟血。

Then Bligh cut the bird into eighteen pieces and put them in front of him.
然后布莱把鸟切成十八块,放在自己面前。

‘Right,’ he said. ‘Fryer, sit here, with your back to the bird. Now, I have one piece of the bird in my hand.’
“好了,”他说,“弗赖尔,坐在这里,背对着鸟。现在,我手里拿着一块鸟肉。”

He held up a piece of its leg. ‘Tell me, Fryer, who shall have this?’
他举起一块腿肉。“告诉我,弗赖尔,这块给谁?”

‘Ledward,’ Fryer said. ‘All right.’
“莱德沃德,”弗赖尔说。“好的。”

Bligh gave the piece to Ledward, and picked up a second piece. ‘And who shall have this?’
布莱把那块肉给了莱德沃德,又拿起第二块。“这块给谁?”

‘Hall.’ ‘All right.’
“霍尔。”“好的。”

No one was angry, because Fryer couldn’t see the pieces. Everyone watched.
没有人不满,因为弗赖尔看不见那些肉块。大家都注视着。

Bligh picked up the bird’s head and feet. ‘Who shall have this?’ he asked.
布莱拿起鸟的头和脚。“这个给谁?”他问。

‘Bligh,’ Fryer answered. Everyone laughed, and Bligh looked at the head and feet sadly.
“布莱,”弗赖尔回答。大家都笑了,布莱悲伤地看着那些头和脚。

‘Oh well,’ he said. ‘I know it’s good for me.’ Slowly, he began to eat them.
“噢,好吧,”他说,“我知道这对我有好处。”慢慢地,他开始吃起来。

That evening, they caught a bigger bird, and ate that too. Next day they caught one more. Everyone was happy.
那天晚上,他们抓到了一只更大的鸟,也把它吃了。第二天他们又抓到了一只。每个人都很高兴。

‘Why are all these birds here?’ the boy Robert asked. Bligh smiled. ‘Because we are near land,’ he said.
“为什么这里有这么多鸟?”男孩罗伯特问。布莱微笑着说:“因为我们离陆地近了。”

On 28th May, at midnight, they saw white water in front of them.
5月28日午夜,他们看到前方有白色的水花。

‘The Barrier Reef,’ Bligh said. ‘A line of rocks underwater. We must be careful, ships often sink here! Take down the sail, and move slowly. We must find a way through!’
“是大堡礁,”布莱说,“水下的一排岩石。我们必须小心,船只经常在这里沉没!降下帆,缓慢移动。我们必须找到一条通道!”

They sailed slowly near the white angry water. Then, after four hours, they found a way through.
他们在汹涌的白色浪花附近缓慢航行。四小时后,他们终于找到了一条通道。

Behind the Barrier Reef, the sea was blue and quiet. They sailed quietly to a small island.
在大堡礁后面,海水湛蓝而平静。他们静静地驶向一个小岛。

They could sleep on the island, and walk about. They began to look stronger.
他们可以在岛上睡觉,四处走动。他们看起来开始恢复体力。

But they were two thousand kilometres from Timor, so they could not stay long.
但他们距离帝汶岛还有两千公里,所以不能停留太久。

After six days they went to sea again, west, towards Timor.
六天后,他们再次出海,向西驶向帝汶岛。

The sun was very hot, and two men were ill.
阳光非常毒辣,两个人生病了。

Bligh gave them some rum, and the blood of birds.
布莱给了他们一些朗姆酒和鸟血。

‘But they can’t live much longer in a little boat like this,’ he thought. ‘We’re all tired and hungry, someone is going to die soon.’
“但在这样的小船上他们活不了多久了,”他想,“我们都又累又饿,很快就要有人死了。”

But it was not far now. Every hour Bligh held the rope over the side, and wrote in his little book.
但现在距离已经不远了。每小时布莱都会把绳子放到船舷外测量,并在小本子上记录。

He watched the sun and the sea and the sky.
他观察着太阳、大海和天空。

And then, on 11th June, Bligh said: ‘You cannot see it, but south of us, there’s a big island called Timor.’
终于,在6月11日,布莱说:“你们还看不见,但在我们南边,有一座叫帝汶的大岛。”

They laughed and smiled and sang.
他们欢笑、微笑并唱起了歌。

Next day, they saw the island, green trees and hills.
第二天,他们看到了那座岛,绿树成荫,山峦起伏。

Two days later, they came to a town called Caupang.
两天后,他们来到了一个叫古邦的城镇。

There were some Dutch sailors by the sea. Bligh and his men walked up to them.
海边有一些荷兰水手。布莱和他的人走向他们。

‘Who are you?’ a Dutch officer asked. ‘You look hungry, and ill. Where are you from?’
“你们是谁?”一位荷兰军官问,“你们看起来又饿又病。你们从哪里来?”

‘I’m Captain William Bligh, of the English ship HMS Bounty. These men are English sailors. We left Tafua forty-one days ago.’
“我是英国皇家海军邦蒂号的威廉·布莱船长。这些人是英国水手。我们四十一前离开了塔富阿岛。”

‘Tafua?’ the Dutch officer asked. ‘Where is that?’
“塔富阿岛?”荷兰军官问,“那是哪里?”

‘It is a small island, about seven thousand kilometres away. We came in that small launch.’
“那是一个小岛,大约在七千公里外。我们是坐那艘小救生艇来的。”

‘My God! Forty-one days, in that!’ The Dutchman looked at the launch, and for a minute he said nothing.
“我的天啊!四十一 天,就靠那个!”荷兰人看着救生艇,一时说不出话来。

Then he asked: ‘Did many of you die?’
然后他问道:“你们死了很多人吗?”

Bligh smiled. ‘Oh no. Only one, and the islanders on Tafua killed him. Seventeen men left Tafua with me, and seventeen men are here now. Alive.’
布莱微笑着说:“哦,不。只有一个,是被塔富阿岛的岛民杀死的。十七个人随我离开塔富阿岛,现在有十七个人站在这里。都活着。”


yewandou

一个人要有坚强的毅力,否则他将一事无成

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