04-02-05-金银岛 [12]
温暖，我却憎恨这个金银岛，害怕可能发生的一切。
因为没有风，我们用小船拖着大船在岛的周围绕了三四英里，到一个安全的地方下锚。我上了其中一只小船。
用小船拖大船是件苦差事，大家都在抱怨。然后，他们就坐在甲板上，哪怕一个小小的命令也会遭到白眼。
“如果我再下命令，”船长说，“所有的船员都会暴乱，只有一个人能帮我们。”
“谁？”乡绅问。
“西尔弗，”船长回答。“他也和我们一样想稳住局面，他希望他的人不要轻易动手。我建议下午让他们上岸去。如果他们都去，我们就夺回船。如果几个人去，西尔弗带他们回来的时候，他们会像绵羊一样听话。”
枪已分发给所有可靠的人。亨特、乔伊斯、雷德拉斯也知道了事情的真相，他们并不像我们想像的那么惊讶。船长走上甲板向全体船员宣布：
“朋友们，”他说，“大家过了又累又热的一天，小船还在水里。谁要是愿意，下午都可以上岸去。在日落前半小时我放炮通知大家。”
他们一下子都笑逐颜开。我想，他们以为一上岸就能在沙滩上找到他们要的宝藏。他们商量了一下，六名水手留在船上，其他人，包括西尔弗，都登上小船上了岸。
我忽然想到第一个近乎疯狂的想法——正是这主意后来救了我们的命。既然留下六个人，我们就无法控制船；但又因为只留下六个人，船长的人也不是非要我帮忙不可。我迅速逃离大船跳上一只最近处的小船。
没人注意到我，只有一个人问了一句：“是你吗，吉姆？”西尔弗在另一只船上喊了一句，以便确定是不是我。我又开始担心是不是应该这么做。
小船都争先恐后向岸边驶去，我们的小船第一个到达。我上岸后就向树林里跑去，西尔弗他们还在百米之后，我听见他在喊：“吉姆，吉姆！”但我没有理睬他，在树和灌木丛间飞跑，一直跑到不能再跑为止。
我很高兴逃离高个约翰，我开始巡视这个奇怪的小岛。我穿过一片沼泽地带，来到一片长而开阔的沙地，然后到了沙地附近一片树高叶茂的地方。
我忽然听见远处有说话的声音，西尔弗也在其中，他站在一棵树后面。透过树叶，我看见高个约翰正和几个船员说话。
“因为我和你是朋友，我才警告你，汤姆，”西尔弗说。
“西尔弗，”汤姆说，“你年纪大了，又很老实，名声不坏——至少人们是这么说的；又很有钱，不像那些穷海员。你很勇敢，为什么不和那些蠢东西断绝来往呢？要是我，宁可死也不——”
忽然，远处传来一阵叫喊声，然后是一声长长的惨叫。我在这儿找到了一个诚实的人，而那声惨叫让我知道还有另外一个人。
“约翰！”汤姆喊道，“那是什么声音？”
“哪个？”西尔弗答道，他的眼睛像碎玻璃在阳光下一样发亮。“那是艾伦的声音。”
“艾伦！”汤姆嚷起来，“那么忠厚老实的人！约翰·西尔弗，你曾经是我的朋友，但今后不是了。你杀了艾伦，对吗？你也杀了我吧！如果你做得到。”
这个勇敢的人转身背对着西尔弗向岸边走去。西尔弗大叫一声，把拐杖扔出去。拐杖击中了汤姆背脊中央，汤姆大叫一声倒在地上。西尔弗像猴子一样灵巧地蹿到汤姆身边，在他身上狠狠捅了两刀。
看到这一切，整个世界像一团雾飘离而去——西尔弗、头上的鸟儿、高高的望远镜山。我恢复清醒以后，西尔弗已经拄着拐杖站起来了，正用草擦拭刀上的血。
我尽可能不出声，一点一点挪动脚步，等我离开那片树林后，撒腿就跑，比以前任何时候跑得都快。
■ 9 The man of the island
But almost immediately I ran into a new danger.As I ran, I heard some small stones falling from the side of a steep hill. I stopped to look round, and saw a figure jump quickly behind a tree.Frightened, I turned back towards the boats, but the figure appeared again and moved with the speedof an animal. But it was a man, I knew that now.
I remembered I had a pistol if I needed it, and turned back towards this man of the island. He was hiding behind another tree but stepped out to meet me.
‘Who are you
I asked, staring at him.
‘Ben Gunn ,’he answered, and his voice sounded rough andstrange .His skin was burnt nearly black by the sun and his clothes were made from pieces of a ship's sail.‘Poor Ben Gunn,’he went on.‘Alone for three years.’
‘Were you shipwrecked
’I asked.
‘No ,my friend,’he said.‘Marooned.’
I had heard the word before, and knew it meant a cruel pun－ishment often used by pirates－leaving a man alone on some distant, empty island.
‘Marooned three years, he continued,‘ living on wild goats and fish. But I'm desperate for real English food. You don't have a piece of cheese, do you
Many nights I've dreamed of cheese.’
‘If I can get on board ship again, ’I said, ‘you can have as much cheese as you want.’
‘Who's going to prevent you
’he said.‘And tell me your name.
‘Jim,’I told him.
‘Well, Jim,’he said, looking around and lowering his voice to a whisper, ‘I'm rich.’I was now sure the poor man was crazy ,but he repeated his words.‘Rich, I say! Now ,Jim ,that isn't Flint's ship, is it
’
I began to think that I had found a friend, and I answered him at once.‘It's not Flint's ship. Flint is dead, but there are some of Flint's men aboard, and that's bad news for us.’
‘A man with one leg
’he asked, fear in his voice.
‘Silver
’I asked.
‘Yes ,Silver,’he said,‘that was his name.’
‘He's the cook, and their leader ,too.’ And I told him the whole story of our voyage, and the danger we were now in.
‘You're in trouble, Jim,’he said when I'd finished.‘Well, Ben Gunn will help you. Will your squire be generous if I do, do you think
I don't want him to give me a job, but will he give me one thousand pounds out of money that's really mine
’
‘I'm sure he will,’I said.
‘And take me home on your ship
’
‘If we can escape from the others,’I told him,‘we'll need your help to get the ship home.’
He seemed happy with this．‘I was in Flint's ship when he and six seamen hid the treasure，’he said．‘They were on shore nearly a week，then Flint came back alone．Not a man on board could guess how he had killed the others．Then I was in another ship，three years ago，and we saw this island
因为没有风，我们用小船拖着大船在岛的周围绕了三四英里，到一个安全的地方下锚。我上了其中一只小船。
用小船拖大船是件苦差事，大家都在抱怨。然后，他们就坐在甲板上，哪怕一个小小的命令也会遭到白眼。
“如果我再下命令，”船长说，“所有的船员都会暴乱，只有一个人能帮我们。”
“谁？”乡绅问。
“西尔弗，”船长回答。“他也和我们一样想稳住局面，他希望他的人不要轻易动手。我建议下午让他们上岸去。如果他们都去，我们就夺回船。如果几个人去，西尔弗带他们回来的时候，他们会像绵羊一样听话。”
枪已分发给所有可靠的人。亨特、乔伊斯、雷德拉斯也知道了事情的真相，他们并不像我们想像的那么惊讶。船长走上甲板向全体船员宣布：
“朋友们，”他说，“大家过了又累又热的一天，小船还在水里。谁要是愿意，下午都可以上岸去。在日落前半小时我放炮通知大家。”
他们一下子都笑逐颜开。我想，他们以为一上岸就能在沙滩上找到他们要的宝藏。他们商量了一下，六名水手留在船上，其他人，包括西尔弗，都登上小船上了岸。
我忽然想到第一个近乎疯狂的想法——正是这主意后来救了我们的命。既然留下六个人，我们就无法控制船；但又因为只留下六个人，船长的人也不是非要我帮忙不可。我迅速逃离大船跳上一只最近处的小船。
没人注意到我，只有一个人问了一句：“是你吗，吉姆？”西尔弗在另一只船上喊了一句，以便确定是不是我。我又开始担心是不是应该这么做。
小船都争先恐后向岸边驶去，我们的小船第一个到达。我上岸后就向树林里跑去，西尔弗他们还在百米之后，我听见他在喊：“吉姆，吉姆！”但我没有理睬他，在树和灌木丛间飞跑，一直跑到不能再跑为止。
我很高兴逃离高个约翰，我开始巡视这个奇怪的小岛。我穿过一片沼泽地带，来到一片长而开阔的沙地，然后到了沙地附近一片树高叶茂的地方。
我忽然听见远处有说话的声音，西尔弗也在其中，他站在一棵树后面。透过树叶，我看见高个约翰正和几个船员说话。
“因为我和你是朋友，我才警告你，汤姆，”西尔弗说。
“西尔弗，”汤姆说，“你年纪大了，又很老实，名声不坏——至少人们是这么说的；又很有钱，不像那些穷海员。你很勇敢，为什么不和那些蠢东西断绝来往呢？要是我，宁可死也不——”
忽然，远处传来一阵叫喊声，然后是一声长长的惨叫。我在这儿找到了一个诚实的人，而那声惨叫让我知道还有另外一个人。
“约翰！”汤姆喊道，“那是什么声音？”
“哪个？”西尔弗答道，他的眼睛像碎玻璃在阳光下一样发亮。“那是艾伦的声音。”
“艾伦！”汤姆嚷起来，“那么忠厚老实的人！约翰·西尔弗，你曾经是我的朋友，但今后不是了。你杀了艾伦，对吗？你也杀了我吧！如果你做得到。”
这个勇敢的人转身背对着西尔弗向岸边走去。西尔弗大叫一声，把拐杖扔出去。拐杖击中了汤姆背脊中央，汤姆大叫一声倒在地上。西尔弗像猴子一样灵巧地蹿到汤姆身边，在他身上狠狠捅了两刀。
看到这一切，整个世界像一团雾飘离而去——西尔弗、头上的鸟儿、高高的望远镜山。我恢复清醒以后，西尔弗已经拄着拐杖站起来了，正用草擦拭刀上的血。
我尽可能不出声，一点一点挪动脚步，等我离开那片树林后，撒腿就跑，比以前任何时候跑得都快。
■ 9 The man of the island
But almost immediately I ran into a new danger.As I ran, I heard some small stones falling from the side of a steep hill. I stopped to look round, and saw a figure jump quickly behind a tree.Frightened, I turned back towards the boats, but the figure appeared again and moved with the speedof an animal. But it was a man, I knew that now.
I remembered I had a pistol if I needed it, and turned back towards this man of the island. He was hiding behind another tree but stepped out to meet me.
‘Who are you
I asked, staring at him.
‘Ben Gunn ,’he answered, and his voice sounded rough andstrange .His skin was burnt nearly black by the sun and his clothes were made from pieces of a ship's sail.‘Poor Ben Gunn,’he went on.‘Alone for three years.’
‘Were you shipwrecked
’I asked.
‘No ,my friend,’he said.‘Marooned.’
I had heard the word before, and knew it meant a cruel pun－ishment often used by pirates－leaving a man alone on some distant, empty island.
‘Marooned three years, he continued,‘ living on wild goats and fish. But I'm desperate for real English food. You don't have a piece of cheese, do you
Many nights I've dreamed of cheese.’
‘If I can get on board ship again, ’I said, ‘you can have as much cheese as you want.’
‘Who's going to prevent you
’he said.‘And tell me your name.
‘Jim,’I told him.
‘Well, Jim,’he said, looking around and lowering his voice to a whisper, ‘I'm rich.’I was now sure the poor man was crazy ,but he repeated his words.‘Rich, I say! Now ,Jim ,that isn't Flint's ship, is it
’
I began to think that I had found a friend, and I answered him at once.‘It's not Flint's ship. Flint is dead, but there are some of Flint's men aboard, and that's bad news for us.’
‘A man with one leg
’he asked, fear in his voice.
‘Silver
’I asked.
‘Yes ,Silver,’he said,‘that was his name.’
‘He's the cook, and their leader ,too.’ And I told him the whole story of our voyage, and the danger we were now in.
‘You're in trouble, Jim,’he said when I'd finished.‘Well, Ben Gunn will help you. Will your squire be generous if I do, do you think
I don't want him to give me a job, but will he give me one thousand pounds out of money that's really mine
’
‘I'm sure he will,’I said.
‘And take me home on your ship
’
‘If we can escape from the others,’I told him,‘we'll need your help to get the ship home.’
He seemed happy with this．‘I was in Flint's ship when he and six seamen hid the treasure，’he said．‘They were on shore nearly a week，then Flint came back alone．Not a man on board could guess how he had killed the others．Then I was in another ship，three years ago，and we saw this island