第4章
加入书架 A- A+
点击下载App,搜索"THE SEA—WOLF",免费读到尾

  \"Sir,\"hecorrected,notharshly,butsternly。

  \"Ihavebeenrobbed,sir,\"Iamended。

  \"Howdidithappen?\"heasked。

  ThenItoldhimthewholecircumstance,howmyclotheshadbeenlefttodryinthegalley,andhow,later,IwasnearlybeatenbythecookwhenImentionedthematter。

  Hesmiledatmyrecital。\"Pickings,\"heconcluded;\"Cooky’spickings。

  Anddon’tyouthinkyourmiserablelifeworththeprice?Besides,consideritalesson。You’lllearnintimehowtotakecareofyourmoneyforyourself。

  Isuppose,uptonow,yourlawyerhasdoneitforyou,oryourbusinessagent。\"

  Icouldfeelthequietsneerthroughhiswords,butdemanded,\"HowcanIgetitbackagain?\"

  \"That’syourlookout。Youhaven’tanylawyerorbusinessagentnow,soyou’llhavetodependonyourself。Whenyougetadollar,hangontoit。Amanwholeaveshismoneylyingaround,thewayyoudid,deservestoloseit。Besides,youhavesinned。Youhavenorighttoputtemptationinthewayofyourfellow—creatures。YoutemptedCooky,andhefell。Youhaveplacedhisimmortalsoulinjeopardy。Bytheway,doyoubelieveintheimmortalsoul?\"

  Hislidsliftedlazilyasheaskedthequestion,anditseemedthatthedeepswereopeningtomeandthatIwasgazingintohissoul。Butitwasanillusion。Farasitmighthaveseemed,nomanhaseverseenveryfarintoWolfLarsen’ssoul,orseenitatall;ofthisamconvinced。Itwasaverylonelysoul,Iwastolearn,thatneverunmasked,thoughatraremomentsitplayedatdoingso。

  \"Ireadimmortalityinyoureyes,\"Ianswered,droppingthe\"sir,\"——

  anexperiment,forIthoughttheintimacyoftheconversationwarrantedit。

  Hetooknonotice。\"Bythat,Itakeit,youseesomethingthatisalive,butthatnecessarilydoesnothavetoliveforever。\"

  \"Ireadmorethanthat,\"Icontinuedboldly。

  \"Thenyoureadconsciousness。Youreadtheconsciousnessoflifethatitisalive;butstillnofurtheraway,noendlessnessoflife。\"

  Howclearlyhethought,andhowwellheexpressedwhathethought!Fromregardingmecuriously,heturnedhisheadandglancedoutovertheleadenseatowindward。Ableaknesscameintohiseyes,andthelinesofhismouthgrewsevereandharsh。Hewasevidentlyinapessimisticmood。

  \"Thentowhatend?\"hedemandedabruptly,turningbacktome。\"IfI

  amimmortal,why?\"

  Ihalted。HowcouldIexplainmyidealismtothisman?HowcouldIputintospeechasomethingfelt,asomethinglikethestrainsofmusicheardinsleep,asomethingthatconvincedyettranscendedutterance?

  \"Whatdoyoubelieve,then?\"Icountered。

  \"Ibelievethatlifeisamess,\"heansweredpromptly。\"Itislikeyeast,aferment,athingthatmovesandmaymoveforaminute,anhour,ayear,orahundredyears,butthatintheendwillceasetomove。Thebigeatthelittlethattheymaycontinuetomove,thestrongeattheweakthattheymayretaintheirstrength。Theluckyeatthemostandmovethelongest,thatisall。Whatdoyoumakeofthosethings?\"

  Heswepthisarminanimpatientgesturetowardanumberofthesailorswhowereworkingonsomekindofropestuffamidships。

  \"Theymove;sodoesthejellyfishmove。Theymoveinordertoeatinorderthattheymaykeepmoving。Thereyouhaveit。Theylivefortheirbelly’ssake,andthebellyisfortheirsake。It’sacircle;yougetnowhere。

  Neitherdothey。Intheendtheycometoastandstill。Theymovenomore。

  Theyaredead。\"

  \"Theyhavedreams,\"Iinterrupted,\"radiant,flashingdreams——\"

  \"Ofgrub,\"heconcludedsententiously。

  \"Andofmore——\"

  \"Grub。Ofalargerappetiteandmoreluckinsatisfyingit。\"Hisvoicesoundedharsh。Therewasnolevityinit。\"Forlookyou,theydreamofmakingluckyvoyageswhichwillbringthemmoremoney,ofbecomingthematesofships,offindingfortunes——inshort,ofbeinginabetterpositionforpreyingontheirfellows,ofhavingallnightin,goodgrub,andsomebodyelsetodothedirtywork。YouandIarejustlikethem。Thereisnodifference,exceptthatwehaveeatenmoreandbetter。Iameatingthemnow,andyou,too。ButinthepastyouhaveeatenmorethanIhave。Youhavesleptinsoftbeds,andwornfineclothes,andeatengoodmeals。Whomadethosebeds?andthoseclothes?andthosemeals?Notyou。Younevermadeanythinginyourownsweat。Youliveonanincomewhichyourfatherearned。Youarelikeafrigatebirdswoopingdownupontheboobiesandrobbingthemofthefishtheyhavecaught。Youareonewithacrowdofmenwhohavemadewhattheycallagovernment,whoaremastersofalltheothermen,andwhoeatthefoodtheothermengetandwouldliketoeatthemselves。

  Youwearthewarmclothes。Theymadetheclothes,buttheyshiverinragsandaskyou,thelawyer,orbusinessagentwhohandlesyourmoney,forajob。\"

  \"Butthatisbesidethematter,\"Icried。

  \"Notatall。\"Hewasspeakingrapidly,now,andhiseyeswereflashing。

  \"Itispiggishness,anditislife。Ofwhatuseorsenseisanimmortalityofpiggishness?Whatistheend?Whatisitallabout?Youhavemadenofood。Yetthefoodyouhaveeatenorwastedmighthavesavedthelivesofascoreofwretcheswhomadethefoodbutdidnoteatit。Whatimmortalenddidyouserve?Ordidthey?Consideryourselfandme。Whatdoesyourboastedimmortalityamounttowhenyourliferunsfoulofmine?Youwouldliketogobacktotheland,whichisafavorableplaceforyourkindofpiggishness。Itisawhimofminetokeepyouaboardthisship,wheremypiggishnessflourishes。AndkeepyouIwill。Imaymakeorbreakyou。Youmaydieto—day,thisweek,ornextmonth。Icouldkillyounow,withablowofmyfist,foryouareamiserableweakling。Butifweareimmortal,whatisthereasonforthis?TobepiggishasyouandIhavebeenallourlivesdoesnotseemtobejustthethingforimmortalstobedoing。Again,what’sitallabout?WhyhaveIkeptyouhere?\"

  \"Becauseyouarestronger,\"Imanagedtoblurtout。

  \"Butwhystronger?\"hewentonatoncewithhisperpetualqueries。\"BecauseIamabiggerbitofthefermentthanyou?Don’tyousee?Don’tyousee?\"

  \"Butthehopelessnessofit,\"Iprotested。

  \"Iagreewithyou,\"heanswered。\"Thenwhymoveatall,sincemovingisliving?Withoutmovingandbeingpartoftheyeasttherewouldbenohopelessness。But,——andthereitis,——wewanttoliveandmove,thoughwehavenoreasonto,becauseithappensthatitisthenatureoflifetoliveandmove,towanttoliveandmove。Ifitwerenotforthis,lifewouldbedead。Itisbecauseofthislifethatisinyouthatyoudreamofyourimmortality。Thelifethatisinyouisaliveandwantstogoonbeingaliveforever。Bah!Aneternityofpiggishness!\"

  Heabruptlyturnedonhisheelandstartedforward。Hestoppedatthebreakofthepoopandcalledmetohim。

  \"Bytheway,howmuchwasitthatCookygotawaywith?\"heasked。

  \"Onehundredandeighty—fivedollars,sir,\"Ianswered。

  Henoddedhishead。Amomentlater,asIstarteddownthecompanionstairstolaythetablefordinner,Iheardhimloudlycursingsomemenamidships。TheSeaWolf:Chapter6CHAPTER6

  BythefollowingmorningthestormhadblownitselfquiteoutandtheGhostwasrollingslightlyonacalmseawithoutabreathofwind。

  Occasionallightairswerefelt,however,andWolfLarsenpatrolledthepoopconstantly,hiseyeseversearchingtheseatothenortheastward,fromwhichdirectionthegreattrade—windmustblow。

  Themenwereallondeckandbusypreparingtheirvariousboatsfortheseason’shunting。Therearesevenboatsaboard,thecaptain’sdingey,andthesixwhichthehunterswilluse。Three,ahunter,aboat—puller,andaboat—steerer,composeaboat’screw。Onboardtheschoonertheboat—pullersandsteerersarethecrew。Thehunters,too,aresupposedtobeincommandofthewatches,subject,always,totheordersofWolfLarsen。

  Allthis,andmore,Ihavelearned。TheGhostisconsideredthefastestschoonerinboththeSanFranciscoandVictoriafleets。Infact,shewasonceaprivateyacht,andwasbuiltforspeed。Herlinesandfittings——thoughIknownothingaboutsuchthings——speakforthemselves。JohnsonwastellingmeaboutherinashortchatIhadwithhimduringyesterday’sseconddog—watch。Hespokeenthusiastically,withtheloveforafinecraftsuchassomemenfeelforhorses。Heisgreatlydisgustedwiththeoutlook,andIamgiventounderstandthatWolfLarsenbearsaveryunsavoryreputationamongthesealingcaptains。ItwastheGhostherselfthatluredJohnsonintosigningforthevoyage,butheisalreadybeginningtorepent。

  Ashetoldme,theGhostisaneighty—tonschoonerofaremarkablyfinemodel。Herbeam,orwidth,istwenty—threefeet,andherlengthalittleoverninetyfeet。Aleadkeeloffabulousbutunknownweightmakesherverystable,whileshecarriesanimmensespreadofcanvas。Fromthedecktothetruckofthemaintopmastissomethingoverahundredfeet,whiletheforemastwithitstopmastiseightortenfeetshorter。Iamgivingthesedetailssothatthesizeofthislittlefloatingworldwhichholdstwenty—twomenmaybeappreciated。Itisaverylittleworld,amote,aspeck,andImarvelthatmenshoulddaretoventuretheseaonacontrivancesosmallandfragile。

  WolfLarsenhas,also,areputationforrecklesscarryingonofsail。

  IoverheardHendersonandanotherofthehunters,Standish,aCalifornian,talkingaboutit。TwoyearsagohedismastedtheGhostinagaleonBeringSea,whereuponthepresentmastswereputin,whicharestrongerandheavierineveryway。Heissaidtohaveremarked,whenheputthemin,thathepreferredturningherovertolosingthesticks。

  Everymanaboard,withtheexceptionofJohansen,whoisratherovercomebyhispromotion,seemstohaveanexcuseforhavingsailedontheGhost。

  Halfthemenforwardaredeep—watersailors,andtheirexcuseisthattheydidnotknowanythingaboutherorhercaptain。Andthosewhodoknow,whisperthatthehunters,whileexcellentshots,weresonotoriousfortheirquarrelsomeandrascallyproclivitiesthattheycouldnotsignonanydecentschooner。

  Ihavemadetheacquaintanceofanotheroneofthecrew,——Louisheiscalled,arotundandjovial—facedNovaScotiaIrishman,andaverysociablefellow,pronetotalkaslongashecanfindalistener。Intheafternoon,whilethecookwasbelowasleepandIwaspeelingtheeverlastingpotatoes,Louisdroppedintothegalleyfora\"yarn。\"Hisexcuseforbeingaboardwasthathewasdrunkwhenhesigned。Heassuredmeagainandagainthatitwasthelastthingintheworldhewoulddreamofdoinginasobermoment。

  Itseemsthathehasbeenseal—huntingregularlyeachseasonforadozenyears,andisaccountedoneofthetwoorthreeverybestboat—steerersinbothfleets。

  \"Ah,myboy,\"heshookhisheadominouslyatme,\"’tistheworstschooneryecouldivselected,norwereyedrunkatthetimeaswasI。’Tissealin’

  isthesailor’sparadise——onothershipsthanthis。Thematewasthefirst,butmarkmewords,there’llbemoredeadmenbeforethetripisdonewith。Hist,now,betweenyouan’meselfandthestanchionthere,thisWolfLarsenisaregulardevil,an’theGhost’llbeahell—shiplikeshe’salwaysbensincehehadholdivher。Don’tIknow?Don’tIknow?

  Don’tIrememberhiminHakodatetwoyearsgone,whenhehadarowan’

  shotfourivhismen?Wasn’tIa—layin’ontheEmmaL。,notthreehundredyardsaway?An’therewasamanthesameyearhekilledwithablowivhisfist。Yes,sir,killed’imdead—oh。Hisheadmustivsmashedlikeaneggshell。An’wasn’ttheretheGovernorofKuraIsland,an’theChiefivPolice,Japanesegentlemen,sir,an’didn’ttheycomeaboardtheGhostashisguests,abringin’theirwivesalong——weean’prettylittlebitsofthingslikeyousee’empaintedonfans。An’ashewasa—gettin’

  underway,didn’tthefondhusbandsgetleftastern—likeintheirsampan,asitmightbebyaccident?An’wasn’titaweeklaterthatthepoorlittleladieswasputashoreontheothersideoftheisland,withnothin’before’embuttowalkhomeacrostthemountainsontheirweeny—teenylittlestrawsandalswhichwouldn’thangtogetheramile?Don’tknow?’Tisthebeastheis,thisWolfLarsen——thegreatbigbeastmentionedivinRevelation;

  an’nogoodendwillheevercometo。ButI’vesaidnothin’toye,mindye。I’vewhisperedneveraword;foroldfatLouis’lllivethevoyageoutifthelastmother’ssonofyezgotothefishes。\"

  \"WolfLarsen!\"hesnortedamomentlater。\"Listentotheword,willye!Wolf——’tiswhatheis。He’snotblack—heartedlikesomemen。’Tisnohearthehasatall。Wolf,justwolf,’tiswhatheis。D’yewonderhe’swellnamed?\"

  \"Butifheissowellknownforwhatheis,\"Iqueried,\"howisitthathecangetmentoshipwithhim?\"

  \"An’howisityecangetmentodoanythingonGod’searthan’sea?\"

  LouisdemandedwithCelticfire。\"Howd’yefindmeaboardif’twasn’tthatIwasdrunkasapigwhenIputmenamedown?There’sthemthatcan’tsailwithbettermen,likethehunters,andthemthatdon’tknow,likethepoordevilsofwind—jammersfor’ardthere。Butthey’llcometoit,they’llcometoit,an’besorrythedaytheywasborn。Icouldweepforthepoorcreatures,didIbutforgetpooroldfatLouisandthetroublesbeforehim。But’tisnotawhisperI’vedropped,mindye,notawhisper。\"

  \"Themhuntersisthewickedboys,\"hebrokeforthagain,forhesufferedfromaconstitutionalplethoraofspeech。\"Butwaittilltheygettocuttingupivjinksandrowin’’round。He’stheboy’llfix’em。’Tishimthat’llputthefearofGodintheirrottenblackhearts。Lookatthathunterivmine,Horner。`Jock’Hornertheycallhim,soquiet—likean’easy—goin’,soft—spokenasagirl,tillye’dthinkbutterwouldn’tmeltinthemouthivhim。Didn’thekillhisboat—steererlastyear?’Twascalledasadaccident,butImettheboat—pullerinYokohamaan’thestraightivitwasgivenme。An’there’sSmoke,theblacklittledevil——didn’ttheRoosianshavehimforthreeyearsinthesaltminesofSiberia,forpoachin’onCopperIsland,whichisaRoosianpreserve?Shackledhewas,handan’foot,withhismate。An’didn’ttheyhavewordsoraructionofsomekind?——for’twastheotherfellowSmokesentupinthebucketstothetopofthemine;

  an’apieceatthetimehewentup,alegto—day,an’to—morrowanarm,thenextdaythehead,an’soon。\"

  \"Butyoucan’tmeanit!\"Icriedout,overcomewiththehorrorofit。

  \"Meanwhat?\"hedemanded,quickasaflash。\"’Tisnothin’I’vesaid。

  DeefIam,anddumb,asyeshouldbeforthesakeivyourmother;an’neveroncehaveIopenedmelipsbuttosayfinethingsivtheman’him,Godcursehissoul,an’mayherotinpurgatorytenthousandyears,andthengodowntothelastan’deepesthellivall!\"

  Johnson,themanwhohadchafedmerawwhenIfirstcameaboard,seemedtheleastequivocalofthemenforwardoraft。Infact,therewasnothingequivocalabouthim。Onewasstruckatoncebyhisstraightforwardnessandmanliness,which,inturn,weretemperedbyamodestywhichmightbemistakenfortimidity。Buttimidhewasnot。Heseemed,rather,tohavethecourageofhisconvictions,thecertaintyofhismanhood。Itwasthisthatmadehimprotest,atthecommencementofouracquaintance,againstbeingcalledYonson。Anduponthis,andhim,Louispassedjudgmentandprophecy。

  \"’Tisafinechap,thatsquareheadJohnsonwe’vefor’ardwithus,\"hesaid。\"Thebestsailormaninthefo’c’sle。He’smyboat—puller。Butit’stotroublehe’llcomewithWolfLarsen,asthesparksflyupward。It’smeselfthatknows。Icanseeitbrewin’an’comin’uplikeastorminthesky。I’vetalkedtohimlikeabrother,butit’slittleheseesintakin’

  inhislightsorflyin’falsesignals。Hegrumblesoutwhenthingsdon’tgotosuithim,andthere’llbealwayssometelltalecarryin’wordivitafttotheWolf。TheWolfisstrong,andit’sthewayofawolftohatestrength,an’strengthitishe’llseeinJohnson——noknucklin’under,anda`Yes,sir,thankyekindly,sir,’foracurseorablow。Oh,she’sa—comin’!She’sa—comin’!An’GodknowswhereI’llgetanotherboat—puller!

  Whatdoesthefoolupan’say,whentheoldmancallshimYonson,but`MenameisJohnson,sir,’an’thenspellsitout,letterforletter。Yeshouldivseentheoldman’sface!Ithoughthe’dletdriveathimonthespot。

  Hedidn’t,buthewill,an’he’llbreakthatsquarehead’sheart,orit’slittleIknowivthewaysivmenontheshipsivthesea。\"

  ThomasMugridgeisbecomingunendurable。IamcompelledtoMisterhimandtoSirhimwitheveryspeech。OnereasonforthisisthatWolfLarsenseemstohavetakenafancytohim。Itisanunprecedentedthing,Itakeit,foracaptaintobechummywiththecook;butthisiscertainlywhatWolfLarsenisdoing。TwoorthreetimesheputhisheadintothegalleyandchaffedMugridgegood—naturedly,andonce,thisafternoon,hestoodbythebreakofthepoopandchattedwithhimforfullyfifteenminutes。

  Whenitwasover,andMugridgewasbackinthegalley,hebecamegreasilyradiant,andwentabouthiswork,hummingcostersongsinanerve—rackinganddiscordantfalsetto。

  \"Ialwaysgetalongwiththeofficers,\"heremarkedtomeinaconfidentialtone。\"Iknowthew’y,Ido,tomykemyselfuppreciyted。Therewasmylastskipper——w’yIthoughtnothin’ofdroppin’downinthecabinforalittlechatandafriendlyglass。`Mugridge,’sez’etome,`Mugridge,’sez’e,`you’vemissedyervokytion。’`An’’ow’sthat?’sezI。`Yershould’abeenbornagentleman,an’never’adtoworkforyerlivin’。’Godstrikemedead,’Ump,ifthatayn’twot’esez,an’mea—sittin’therein’isowncabin,jolly—likean’comfortable,a—smokin’’iscigarsan’drinkin’’isrum。\"

  Thischitter—chatterdrovemetodistraction。IneverheardavoiceIhatedso。Hisoily,insinuatingtones,hisgreasysmile,andhismonstrousself—conceitgratedonmynervestillsometimesIwasallinatremble。

  Positively,hewasthemostdisgustingandloathsomepersonIhaveevermet。Thefilthofhiscookingwasindescribable;and,ashecookedeverythingthatwaseatenaboard,IwascompelledtoselectwhatIatewithgreatcircumspection,choosingfromtheleastdirtyofhisconcoctions。

  Myhandsbotheredmeagreatdeal,unusedastheyweretowork。Thenailswerediscoloredandblack,whiletheskinwasalreadygrainedwithdirtwhichevenascrubbing—brushcouldnotremove。Thenblisterscame,inapainfulandnever—endingprocession,andIhadagreatburnonmyforearm,acquiredbylosingmybalanceinarolloftheshipandpitchingagainstthegalleystove。Norwasmykneeanybetter。Theswellinghadnotgonedown,andthecapwasstilluponedge。Hobblingaboutonitfrommorningtonightwasnothelpingitany。WhatIneededwasrest,ifitwereevertogetwell。

  Rest!Ineverbeforeknewthemeaningoftheword。Ihadbeenrestingallmylifeanddidnotknowit。Butnow,couldIsitstillforonehalf—houranddonothing,noteventhink,itwouldbethemostpleasurablethingintheworld。Butitisarevelation,ontheotherhand。Ishallbeabletoappreciatethelivesoftheworkingpeoplehereafter。Ididnotdreamthatworkwassoterribleathing。Fromhalf—pastfiveinthemorningtillteno’clockatnightIameverybody’sslave,withnotonemomenttomyself,exceptsuchasIcanstealneartheendoftheseconddog—watch。Letmepauseforaminutetolookoutovertheseasparklinginthesun,ortogazeatasailorgoingalofttothegaff—topsails,orrunningoutthebowsprit,andIamsuretohearthehatefulvoice,\"’Ere,you,’Ump,nosodgerin’。

  I’vegotmypeepersonyer。\"

  Therearesignsoframpantbadtemperinthesteerage,andthegossipisgoingaroundthatSmokeandHendersonhavehadafight。Hendersonseemsthebestofthehunters,aslow—goingfellow,andhardtorouse;butrousedhemusthavebeen,forSmokehadabruisedanddiscoloredeye,andlookedparticularlyviciouswhenhecameintothecabinforsupper。

  Acruelthinghappenedjustbeforesupper,indicativeofthecallousnessandbrutishnessofthesemen。Thereisonegreenhandinthecrew,Harrisonbyname,aclumsy—lookingcountryboy,mastered,imagine,bythespiritofadventure,andmakinghisfirstvoyage。Inthelightbafflingairstheschoonerhadbeentackingaboutagreatdeal,atwhichtimesthesailspassfromonesidetotheotherandamanissentalofttoshiftoverthefore—gaff—topsail。Insomeway,whenHarrisonwasaloft,thesheetjammedintheblockthroughwhichitrunsattheendofthegaff。AsIunderstoodit,thereweretwowaysofgettingitcleared,——first,byloweringtheforesail,whichwascomparativelyeasyandwithoutdanger;andsecond,byclimbingoutthepeak—halyardstotheendofthegaffitself,anexceedinglyhazardousperformance。

  JohansencalledouttoHarrisontogooutthehalyards。Itwaspatenttoeverybodythattheboywasafraid。Andwellhemightbe,eightyfeetabovethedeck,totrusthimselfonthosethinandjerkingropes。Hadtherebeenasteadybreezeitwouldnothavebeensobad,buttheGhostwasrollingemptilyinalongsea,andwitheachrollthecanvasflappedandboomedandthehalyardsslackedandjerkedtaut。Theywerecapableofsnappingamanofflikeaflyfromawhip—lash。

  Harrisonheardtheorderandunderstoodwhatwasdemandedofhim,buthesitated。Itwasprobablythefirsttimehehadbeenaloftinhislife。

  Johansen,whohadcaughtthecontagionofWolfLarsen’smasterfulness,burstoutwithavolleyofabuseandcurses。

  \"That’lldo,Johansen,\"WolfLarsensaidbrusquely。\"I’llhaveyouknowthatIdotheswearingonthisship。IfIneedyourassistance,I’llcallyouin。\"

  \"Yes,sir,\"themateacknowledgedsubmissively。

  InthemeantimeHarrisonhadstartedoutonthehalyards。waslookingupfromthegalleydoor,andIcouldseehimtrembling,aswithague,ineverylimb。Heproceededveryslowlyandcautiously,aninchatatime。

  Outlinedagainsttheclearblueofthesky,hehadtheappearanceofanenormousspidercrawlingalongthetraceryofitsweb。

  Itwasaslightuphillclimb,fortheforesailpeakedhigh;andthehalyards,runningthroughvariousblocksonthegaffandmast,gavehimseparateholdsforhandsandfeet。Butthetroublelayinthatthewindwasnotstrongenoughnorsteadyenoughtokeepthesailfull。Whenhewashalfwayout,theGhosttookalongrolltowindwardandbackagainintothehollowbetweentwoseas。Harrisonceasedhisprogressandheldontightly。Eightyfeetbeneath,Icouldseetheagonizedstrainofhismusclesashegrippedforverylife。Thesailemptiedandthegaffswungamidships。Thehalyardsslackened,and,thoughitallhappenedveryquickly,Icouldseethemsagbeneaththeweightofhisbody。Thenthegaffswungtothesidewithanabruptswiftness,thegreatsailboomedlikeacannon,andthethreerowsofreef—pointsslattedagainstthecanvaslikeavolleyofrifles。Harrison,clingingon,madethegiddyrushthroughtheair。Thisrushceasedabruptly。Thehalyardsbecameinstantlytaut。

  Itwasthesnapofthewhip。Hisclutchwasbroken。Onehandwastornloosefromitshold。Theotherlingereddesperatelyforamoment,andfollowed。

  Hisbodypitchedoutanddown,butinsomewayhemanagedtosavehimselfwithhislegs。Hewashangingbythem,headdownward。Aquickeffortbroughthishandsuptothehalyardsagain;buthewasalongtimeregaininghisformerposition,wherehehung,apitiableobject。

  \"I’llbethehasnoappetiteforsupper,\"IheardWolfLarsen’svoice,whichcametomefromaroundthecornerofthegalley。\"Standfromunder,you,Johansen!Watchout!Hereshecomes!\"

  Intruth,Harrisonwasverysick,asapersonisseasick;andforalongtimeheclungtohisprecariousperchwithoutattemptingtomove。

  Johansen,however,continuedviolentlytourgehimontothecompletionofhistask。

  \"Itisashame,\"IheardJohnsongrowlinginpainfullyslowandcorrectEnglish。Hewasstandingbythemainrigging,afewfeetawayfromme。

  \"Theboyiswillingenough。Hewilllearnifhehasachance。Butthisis——\"Hepausedawhile,fortheword\"murder\"washisfinaljudgment。

  \"Hist,willye!\"Louiswhisperedtohim。\"Fortheloveivyourmotherholdyourmouth!\"

  ButJohnson,lookingon,stillcontinuedhisgrumbling。

  \"Lookhere,\"thehunter,Standish,spoketoWolfLarsen,\"that’smyboat—puller,andIdon’twanttolosehim。\"

  \"That’sallright,Standish,\"wasthereply。\"He’syourboat—pullerwhenyou’vegothimintheboat;buthe’smysailorwhenIhavehimaboard,andI’lldowhatIdamnwellpleasewithhim。\"

  \"Butthat’snoreason——\"Standishbeganinatorrentofspeech。

  \"That’lldo,easyasshegoes,\"WolfLarsencounselledback。\"I’vetoldyouwhat’swhat,andletitstopatthat。Theman’smine,andI’llmakesoupofhimandeatitifIwantto。\"

点击下载App,搜索"THE SEA—WOLF",免费读到尾