Chapter 5 Death, life, and Thursday
第五章 死亡、生存与瑟斯代
There were nine captains at the trial.
审判席上坐着九位舰长。
Peter Heywood stood in front of them, and talked about the night of the mutiny.
彼得·海伍德站在他们面前，讲述了叛变当晚的情形。
‘It was four years ago,’ he said.
“那是四年前的事了，”他说。
‘I was a young officer, Fifteen years old.’
“我当时是个年轻的军官，只有十五岁。”
‘When I came up on deck, Captain Bligh was Mr Christian’s prisoner.’
“当我来到甲板上时，布莱船长已经成了克里斯蒂安先生的俘虏。”
‘How could I help him? I didn’t have a sword or a gun.’
“我怎么能帮他呢？我没有剑也没有枪。”
‘Mr Christian put Captain Bligh and eighteen men into the launch.’
“克里斯蒂安先生把布莱船长和十八名船员赶上了小艇。”
One of the nine captains asked: ‘Did you try to help Captain Bligh, Mr Heywood?’
九位舰长中的一位问道：“海伍德先生，你试图帮助过布莱船长吗？”
‘No, sir. I couldn’t. Christian and his men had swords and guns . . . I had nothing.’
“没有，长官。我无能为力。克里斯蒂安和他的人有刀有枪……而我什么都没有。”
A different captain asked: ‘Did Mr Christian do the right thing, then? What do you think?’
另一位舰长问：“那么，你觉得克里斯蒂安先生做得对吗？你怎么看？”
‘No sir, of course not!’
“不对，长官，当然不对！”
‘But you didn’t get into the launch with Captain Bligh. Why not?’
“但你并没有和布莱船长一起上小艇。为什么？”
‘I couldn’t, sir! It was full. There were nineteen men in it. It nearly sank without me.’
“我上不去啊，长官！艇已经满了。上面已经有十九个人了。就算没有我，它也差点沉了。”
‘Did you say anything to Captain Bligh?’
“你对布莱船长说过什么吗？”
‘Er . . . no, sir, I didn’t. Some men did, but not me.’
“呃……没有，长官，我没说。有些人说了，但我没有。”
‘So, Mr Heywood, you were an officer on the Bounty, and you saw this mutiny, but you did nothing. You just stood, and watched. Is that right?’
“所以，海伍德先生，作为邦蒂号上的军官，你目睹了这场叛变，却无所作为。你只是站在那里看着。是这样吗？”
‘Er . . . yes, sir.’ Peter Heywood was afraid now.
“呃……是的，长官。”彼得·海伍德此刻害怕了。
‘I was . . . very young then, sir.’
“我当时……还太小，长官。”
‘You were an officer. An officer must always help his captain. Wait there.’
“你是军官。军官必须随时援助自己的船长。在那儿候着吧。”
The nine captains walked out of the room.
九位舰长走出了房间。
Peter waited for a long time. His mother and sister were with him, but he felt afraid.
彼得等了很久。虽然母亲和姐妹陪在身边，但他仍感到恐惧。
Then the captains came back, and the oldest captain said:
随后舰长们回来了，最年长的那位说道：
‘Peter Heywood, because you did not help Captain Bligh, we say you helped the mutiny.’
“彼得·海伍德，鉴于你未援助布莱船长，我们认定你协助了叛变。”
‘And there is only one punishment for mutiny. Death. Do you understand?’
“而叛变的惩罚只有一种：死刑。你明白吗？”
Peter’s face was white and he felt ill. But he said quietly: ‘Yes, sir. I understand.’
彼得脸色苍白，感到一阵恶心。但他轻声回答：“明白，长官。我明白了。”
Two days later he saw the oldest captain again. There was a small, cold smile on his face.
两天后，他再次见到了那位最年长的舰长。对方脸上带着一丝冷淡的微笑。
‘Mr Heywood, I have a letter from the king.’
“海伍德先生，我这里有一封国王的信。”
‘The older sailors must die, but because you were a young boy on the Bounty, the king says you can live.’
“年长的水手必须处死，但鉴于你在邦蒂号上时尚且年幼，国王恩准你免于一死。”
‘You can go, Mr Heywood. You are a free man.’
“你可以走了，海伍德先生。你自由了。”
‘Oh, sir! Thank you. Thank you very much.’
“哦，长官！谢谢。太感谢您了。”
Peter Heywood lived for many years. Twenty years later, he was a captain of a ship, like Captain Bligh.
彼得·海伍德活了很多年。二十年后，他也像布莱船长一样，成为了一艘船的船长。
Captain Bligh went back to Tahiti, and took some more breadfruit trees to Jamaica.
布莱船长重返塔希提岛，将更多的面包果树运到了牙买加。
After that, he sailed many more ships. He was an important man. He died in 1817.
此后，他又指挥了许多船只。他成了一位重要人物，于1817年去世。
But what happened to the Bounty, and Fletcher Christian? For years, no one knew.
但是邦蒂号和弗莱彻·克里斯蒂安后来怎么样了？多年来无人知晓。
Then, twenty years after the mutiny, in 1809, an American ship, the Topaz, visited a small island called Pitcairn.
直到叛变二十年后的1809年，一艘名为“黄玉号”的美国船只造访了一座名叫皮特凯恩的小岛。
When the captain of the Topaz came home, he had an interesting story.
当“黄玉号”船长回国时，带回了一个有趣的故事。
And five years after that, in 1814, two British ships , the Briton and the Tagus, arrived.
又过了五年，即1814年，两艘英国军舰“不列颠人号”和“塔古斯号”抵达了该岛。
Pitcairn was a small island with nowhere good for ships to land.
皮特凯恩是个小岛，没有适合船只停靠的好地方。
But a canoe came out through the white water to the British ships.
但有一艘独木舟穿过白色的浪花，驶向了英国军舰。
The men from the canoe came onto the Briton and looked for the captain, Sir Thomas Staines.
独木舟上的人登上了“不列颠人号”，寻找托马斯·斯坦恩斯爵士船长。
‘Good afternoon,’ he said. ‘Who are you?’
“下午好，”他说，“你们是谁？”
A tall young man answered: ‘I’m Thursday.’
一个高个子年轻人回答道：“我是瑟斯代。”
‘I’m sorry,’ Captain Staines said. ‘What did you say?’
“抱歉，”斯坦恩斯船长说，“你说什么？”
‘My name is Thursday,’ answered the young man. ‘Thursday October Christian.’
“我叫瑟斯代，”年轻人答道，“瑟斯代·十月·克里斯蒂安。”
‘I live on this island. You are welcome here.’
“我住在这个岛上。欢迎你们的到来。”
‘Would you like to come to my village, and eat with us? Mr Adams would like to see you.’
“愿意去我们的村子共进晚餐吗？亚当斯先生想见见你们。”
‘Well, thank you very much,’ said Captain Staines.
“好的，非常感谢，”斯坦恩斯船长说。
‘And Captain Pipon, from the Tagus, can he come too?’
“那‘塔古斯号’的皮蓬船长也能一起去吗？”
‘Of course,’ said Thursday. ‘He is welcome.’
“当然可以，”瑟斯代说，“我们也欢迎他。”
The two captains got into the canoe, and Thursday and his friends took it through big green and white waves to the island.
两位船长坐上独木舟，瑟斯代和他的朋友们划着船，穿过绿白相间的大浪回到了岛上。
Near the beach was a small village.
海滩附近有一个小村庄。
‘How many people live here?’ Captain Staines asked.
“这里住了多少人？”斯坦恩斯船长问。
‘About forty,’ said Thursday. ‘Here is our king, John Adams.’
“大约四十人，”瑟斯代说，“这位是我们的首领，约翰·亚当斯。”
An old man with white hair came towards the two captains. He wore trousers and an English sailor’s shirt.
一位白发老人向两位船长走来。他穿着长裤和一件英国水手衬衫。
‘Good afternoon,’ he said. ‘My name is John Adams, of HMS Bounty. Welcome to Pitcairn Island.’
“下午好，”他说，“我是皇家海军邦蒂号的约翰·亚当斯。欢迎来到皮特凯恩岛。”
Some old women gave the captains wonderful food, and John Adams told them his story.
几位老妇人端来了丰盛的食物招待船长们，约翰·亚当斯则向他们讲述了自己的经历。
When the Bounty left Tahiti, Christian was very worried.
“当初邦蒂号离开塔希提岛时，克里斯蒂安非常担忧。”
‘A ship is going to come from England,’ he said. ‘They want to kill me. They must never find us.’
“他说：‘会有船从英国开来抓我。我们必须躲起来，绝不能让他们找到。’”
So when we landed here, we took all the pigs and goats, and burned the Bounty.
“所以当我们在这里登陆后，就把所有的猪和山羊都搬了下来，然后烧毁了邦蒂号。”
We stood by the sea and watched. Then we made our village.’
“我们站在海边看着它烧毁。然后建立了这个村庄。”
‘But Christian was always worried and afraid, and it was difficult to live here.’
“但克里斯蒂安总是忧心忡忡、担惊受怕，在这里生活很艰难。”
The Tahitian men didn’t like the English sailors.
“塔希提男人们不喜欢这些英国水手。”
There were ten English men, seven Tahitian men, and twelve Tahitian women.
“当时有十个英国男人、七个塔希提男人和十二个塔希提女人。”
When Christian took the wife of one of the Tahitian men, the Tahitian man killed him.
“当克里斯蒂安抢走了一个塔希提男人的妻子时，那个男人杀了他。”
Then the Tahitian men killed most of the English men , they nearly killed me!
“接着塔希提男人们杀死了大多数英国人，连我也差点被杀！”
But the women stopped them, the women killed the Tahitian men!
“但是女人们阻止了他们，那些女人反过来杀死了塔希提男人！”
After that, there was one man alive on the island, me!’
“在那之后，岛上只剩下一个活着的男人，就是我！”
‘But there were nine women, and some small children, this young man, Thursday, is Fletcher Christian’s son.’
“不过还有九个女人和一些小孩，这个年轻人瑟斯代，就是弗莱彻·克里斯蒂安的儿子。”
‘Oh, I see!’ said Captain Staines. ‘So . . . you were alone here, with nine wives!’
“噢，我明白了！”斯坦恩斯船长说，“所以……你独自一人留在这里，还有九个妻子！”
John Adams smiled. He looked a tired but happy man. The old women near him smiled too.
约翰·亚当斯笑了。他看起来虽疲惫却很幸福。旁边的老妇人们也笑了。
‘Well, yes, sir,’ he said. ‘But I’m a good husband to them, and a good father to all these children.’
“嗯，是的，长官，”他说，“但我对她们来说是个好丈夫，对这些孩子来说也是个好父亲。”
‘And of course, now that these boys are men, they have wives too . . .’
“而且当然了，现在这些男孩长大成人了，他们也有了自己的妻子……”
‘Do you all speak English?’ Captain Pipon asked.
“你们都说英语吗？”皮蓬船长问。
‘Yes, sir. English and Tahitian too.’
“是的，长官。英语和塔希提语都会。”
We have our pigs and goats and coconut trees, and we think about God every day, sir.’
“我们有猪、山羊和椰子树，而且我们每天都敬拜上帝，长官。”
‘You are very happy,’ Captain Staines said.
“你们过得很幸福啊，”斯坦恩斯船长说。
‘We are, sir,’ John Adams said. ‘All of us.’
“是的，长官，”约翰·亚当斯说，“我们所有人都是。”
But . . . He stood up slowly. I know why you are here. You are going to take me to England with you. I must die there.’
“但是……”他缓缓站起身来，“我知道你们为何而来。你们要把我带回英国。我必须在那里接受死刑。”
Captain Staines looked at him. The Pitcairn islanders looked very sad, and some of the women began to cry.
斯坦恩斯船长看着他。皮特凯恩岛的居民们显得非常悲伤，一些妇女开始哭泣。
‘What do you mean, man?’ Captain Staines asked.
“你这话是什么意思，老人家？”斯坦恩斯船长问。
‘Well, Captain, I was in the mutiny against Captain Bligh. It was a long time ago, but I did it. I must take my punishment.’
“唉，船长，我参与了反对布莱船长的叛变。虽然是很久以前的事了，但我确实做了。我必须接受惩罚。”
‘But . . . my God!’ Captain Staines looked at Captain Pipon.
“可是……天哪！”斯坦恩斯船长看向皮蓬船长。
‘Of course the man is right,’ he said. ‘But . . . we can’t do this.’
“按理说这人说得没错，”他说，“但是……我们不能这么做。”
You’re an old man, Mr Adams, and you are happy here. Your wives and children need you.
“亚当斯先生，你已经老了，而且在这里过得很幸福。你的妻子和孩子需要你。”
It was twenty years ago, man! People in England don’t talk about the Bounty today. And Fletcher Christian is dead!’
“那都是二十年前的事了！如今英国人早已不再谈论邦蒂号了。况且弗莱彻·克里斯蒂安也已经死了！”
‘He is dead, but I’m not,’ John Adams said. ‘I helped him, and I’m here, now, in front of you.’
“他是死了，但我还活着，”约翰·亚当斯说，“我曾协助过他，而现在我就站在你们面前。”
‘And this is your home,’ Captain Staines said. ‘You are an old man. You must die here , not in England.’
“而这里是你的家，”斯坦恩斯船长说，“你是个老人了。你应该终老于此，而不是死在英国。”
Sit down, Mr Adams. Let’s Finish this wonderful food.’
“坐下吧，亚当斯先生。让我们享用完这顿美餐。”
‘All right, captain,’ John Adams said. ‘And . . . thank you.’
“好吧，船长，”约翰·亚当斯说，“还有……谢谢你。”
He sat down, and the Pitcairn islanders smiled.
他坐了下来，皮特凯恩岛的居民们都露出了笑容。
‘Tell me about Bligh,’ Captain Staines said. ‘He’s an important man now, you know. But most people like him. Why were you all angry with him?’
“跟我说说布莱的事吧，”斯坦恩斯船长说，“你知道，他现在可是个大人物了。而且大多数人都喜欢他。你们当初为什么那么生他的气？”
Adams thought for a minute. He looked up at the trees over his village, and at the smiling faces of his wives and children.
亚当斯沉思了片刻。他抬头看了看村庄上方的树木，又看了看妻子和孩子们的笑脸。
‘Bligh,’ he said. ‘Well, he was a good sailor, of course. We were angry with him, but I can’t remember why. It’s a very long time ago . . .’
“布莱啊，”他说，“嗯，他当然是个出色的航海家。我们当时确实很生他的气，但我已经记不清原因了。那已经是很久很久以前的事了……”
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