end of the tether-第15部分

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always　present　at　the　back　of　his　head；　as　a　matter　of



course。　　It　filled　the　leisure　of　his　waking　hours　with



the　reveries　of　careful　plans　and　compromising　discov…



eriesthe　dreams　of　his　sleep　with　images　of　lucky



turns　and　favorable　accidents。　　Skippers　had　been



known　to　sicken　and　die　at　sea；　than　which　nothing



could　be　better　to　give　a　smart　mate　a　chance　of　showing



what　he's　made　of。　　They　also　would　tumble　overboard



sometimes：　he　had　heard　of　one　or　two　such　cases。



Others　again　。　。　。　　But；　as　it　were　constitutionally；　he



was　faithful　to　the　belief　that　the　conduct　of　no　single



one　of　them　would　stand　the　test　of　careful　watching



by　a　man　who　〃knew　what's　what〃　and　who　kept　his



eyes　〃skinned　pretty　well〃　all　the　time。







After　he　had　gained　a　permanent　footing　on　board



the　Sofala　he　allowed　his　perennial　hope　to　rise　high。



To　begin　with；　it　was　a　great　advantage　to　have　an　old



man　for　captain：　the　sort　of　man　besides　who　in　the



nature　of　things　was　likely　to　give　up　the　job　before



long　from　one　cause　or　another。　　Sterne　was　greatly



chagrined；　however；　to　notice　that　he　did　not　seem　any…



way　near　being　past　his　work　yet。　　Still；　these　old　men



go　to　pieces　all　at　once　sometimes。　　Then　there　was　the



owner…engineer　close　at　hand　to　be　impressed　by　his　zeal



and　steadiness。　　Sterne　never　for　a　moment　doubted　the



obvious　nature　of　his　own　merits　（he　was　really　an　ex…



cellent　officer）；　only；　nowadays；　professional　merit　alone



does　not　take　a　man　along　fast　enough。　　A　chap　must



have　some　push　in　him；　and　must　keep　his　wits　at　work



too　to　help　him　forward。　　He　made　up　his　mind　to



inherit　the　charge　of　this　steamer　if　it　was　to　be　done



at　all；　not　indeed　estimating　the　command　of　the



Sofala　as　a　very　great　catch；　but　for　the　reason　that；



out　East　especially；　to　make　a　start　is　everything；　and



one　command　leads　to　another。







He　began　by　promising　himself　to　behave　with　great



circumspection；　Massy's　somber　and　fantastic　humors



intimidated　him　as　being　outside　one's　usual　sea　experi…



ence；　but　he　was　quite　intelligent　enough　to　realize　al…



most　from　the　first　that　he　was　there　in　the　presence　of



an　exceptional　situation。　　His　peculiar　prying　imagina…



tion　penetrated　it　quickly；　the　feeling　that　there　was



in　it　an　element　which　eluded　his　grasp　exasperated　his



impatience　to　get　on。　　And　so　one　trip　came　to　an　end；



then　another；　and　he　had　begun　his　third　before　he　saw



an　opening　by　which　he　could　step　in　with　any　sort　of



effect。　　It　had　all　been　very　queer　and　very　obscure；



something　had　been　going　on　near　him；　as　if　separated



by　a　chasm　from　the　common　life　and　the　working



routine　of　the　ship；　which　was　exactly　like　the　life　and



the　routine　of　any　other　coasting　steamer　of　that　class。







Then　one　day　he　made　his　discovery。







It　came　to　him　after　all　these　weeks　of　watchful　ob…



servation　and　puzzled　surmises；　suddenly；　like　the　long…



sought　solution　of　a　riddle　that　suggests　itself　to　the



mind　in　a　flash。　　Not　with　the　same　authority；　however。



Great　heavens！　　Could　it　be　that？　　And　after　remain…



ing　thunderstruck　for　a　few　seconds　he　tried　to　shake



it　off　with　self…contumely；　as　though　it　had　been　the



product　of　an　unhealthy　bias　towards　the　Incredible；



the　Inexplicable；　the　Unheard…ofthe　Mad！







Thisthe　illuminating　momenthad　occurred　the　trip



before；　on　the　return　passage。　　They　had　just　left　a



place　of　call　on　the　mainland　called　Pangu；　they　were



steaming　straight　out　of　a　bay。　　To　the　east　a　massive



headland　closed　the　view；　with　the　tilted　edges　of　the



rocky　strata　showing　through　its　ragged　clothing　of



rank　bushes　and　thorny　creepers。　　The　wind　had　begun



to　sing　in　the　rigging；　the　sea　along　the　coast；　green



and　as　if　swollen　a　little　above　the　line　of　the　horizon；



seemed　to　pour　itself　over；　time　after　time；　with　a　slow



and　thundering　fall；　into　the　shadow　of　the　leeward



cape；　and　across　the　wide　opening　the　nearest　of　a



group　of　small　islands　stood　enveloped　in　the　hazy



yellow　light　of　a　breezy　sunrise；　still　farther　out　the



hummocky　tops　of　other　islets　peeped　out　motionless



above　the　water　of　the　channels　between；　scoured



tumultuously　by　the　breeze。







The　usual　track　of　the　Sofala　both　going　and　return…



ing　on　every　trip　led　her　for　a　few　miles　along　this　reef…



infested　region。　　She　followed　a　broad　lane　of　water；



dropping　astern；　one　after　another；　these　crumbs　of　the



earth's　crust　resembling　a　squadron　of　dismasted　hulks



run　in　disorder　upon　a　foul　ground　of　rocks　and　shoals。



Some　of　these　fragments　of　land　appeared；　indeed；　no



bigger　than　a　stranded　ship；　others；　quite　flat；　lay



awash　like　anchored　rafts；　like　ponderous；　black　rafts



of　stone；　several；　heavily　timbered　and　round　at　the



base；　emerged　in　squat　domes　of　deep　green　foliage　that



shuddered　darkly　all　over　to　the　flying　touch　of　cloud



shadows　driven　by　the　sudden　gusts　of　the　squally　sea…



son。　　The　thunderstorms　of　the　coast　broke　frequently



over　that　cluster；　it　turned　then　shadowy　in　its　whole



extent；　it　turned　more　dark；　and　as　if　more　still　in　the



play　of　fire；　as　if　more　impenetrably　silent　in　the　peals



of　thunder；　its　blurred　shapes　vanisheddissolving　ut…



terly　at　times　in　the　thick　rainto　reappear　clear…cut



and　black　in　the　stormy　light　against　the　gray　sheet　of



the　cloudscattered　on　the　slaty　round　table　of



the　sea。　　Unscathed　by　storms；　resisting　the　work　of



years；　unfretted　by　the　strife　of　the　world；　there　it　lay



unchanged　as　on　that　day；　four　hundred　years　ago；



when　first　beheld　by　Western　eyes　from　the　deck　of



a　high…pooped　caravel。







It　was　one　of　these　secluded　spots　that　may　be　found



on　the　busy　sea；　as　on　land　you　come　sometimes　upon　the



clustered　houses　of　a　hamlet　untouched　by　men's　rest…



lessness；　untouched　by　their　need；　by　their　thought；　and



as　if　forgotten　by　time　itself。　　The　lives　of　uncounted



generations　had　passed　it　by；　and　the　multitudes　of　sea…



fowl；　urging　their　way　from　all　the　points　of　the　horizon



to　sleep　on　the　outer　rocks　of　the　group；　unrolled　the



converging　evolutions　of　their　flight　in　long　somber



streamers　upon　the　glow　of　the　sky。　　The　palpitating



cloud　of　their　wings　soared　and　stooped　over　the　pinna…



cles　of　the　rocks；　over　the　rocks　slender　like　spires；　squat



like　martello　towers；　over　the　pyramidal　heaps　like　fallen



ruins；　over　the　lines　of　bald　bowlders　showing　like　a　wall



of　stones　battered　to　pieces　and　scorched　by　lightning



with　the　sleepy；　clear　glimmer　of　water　in　every　breach。



The　noise　of　their　continuous　and　violent　screaming



filled　the　air。







This　great　noise　would　meet　the　Sofala　coming　up　from



Batu　Beru；　it　would　meet　her　on　quiet　evenings；　a　piti…



less　and　savage　clamor　enfeebled　by　distance；　the



clamor　of　seabirds　settling　to　rest；　and　struggling　for



a　footing　at　the　end　of　the　day。　　No　one　noticed　it



especially　on　board；　it　was　the　voice　of　their　ship's　un…



erring　landfall；　ending　the　steady　stretch　of　a　hundred



miles。　　She　had　made　good　her　course；　she　had　run　her



distance　till　the　punctual　islets　began　to　emerge　one　by



one；　the　points　of　rocks；　the　hummocks　of　earth　。　。　。



and　the　cloud　of　birds　hoveredthe　restless　cloud　emit…



ting　a　strident　and　cruel　uproar；　the　sound　of　the　fa…



miliar　scene；　the　living　part　of　the　broken　land　beneath；



of　the　outspread　sea；　and　of　the　high　sky　without　a



flaw。







But　when　the　Sofala　happened　to　close　with　the　land



after　sunset　she　would　find　everything　very　still　there



under　the　mantle　of　the　night。　　All　would　be　still；　dumb；



almost　invisiblebut　for　the　blotting　out　of　the　low



constellations　occulted　in　turns　behind　the　vague　masses



of　the　islets　whose　true　outlines　eluded　the　eye　amongst



the　dark　spaces　of　the　heaven：　and　the　ship's　three　lights；



resembling　three　starsthe　red　and　the　green　with　the



white　aboveher　three　lights；　like　three　companion



stars　wandering　on　the　earth；　held　their　unswerving



course　for　the　passage　at　the　southern　end　of　the　group。



Sometimes　there　were　human　eyes　open　to　watch　them



come　nearer；　traveling　smoothly　in　the　somber　void；　the



eyes　of　a　naked　fisherman　in　his　canoe　floating　over　a



reef。　　He　thought　drowsily：　〃Ha！　　The　fire…ship　that



once　in　every　moon　goes　in　and　comes　out　of　Pangu



bay。〃　　More　he　did　not　know　of　her。　　And　just　as　he



had　detected　the　faint　rhythm　of　the　propeller　beating



the　calm　water　a　mile　and　a　half　away；　the　time　would



come　for　the　Sofala　to　alter　her　course；　the　lights　would



swing　off　him　their　triple　beamand　disappear。







A　few　miserable；　half…naked　families；　a　sort　of　outcast



tribe　of　long…haired；　lean；　and　wild…eyed　people；　strove



for　their　living　in　this　lonely　wilderness　of　islets；　lying



like　an　abandoned　outwork　of　the　land　at　the　gates　of



the　bay。　　Within　the　knots　and　loops　of　the　rocks　the



water　rested　more　transparent　than　crystal　under　their



crooked　and　leaky　canoes；　scooped　out　of　the　trunk　of



a　tree：　the　forms　of　the　bottom　undulated　slightly　to



the　dip　of　a　paddle；　and　the　men　seemed　to　hang　in　the



air；　they　seemed　to　hang　inclosed　within　the　fibers　of　a



dark；　sodden　log；　fishing　patiently　in　a　strange；　un…



steady；　pellucid；　green　air　above　the　shoals。







Their　bodies　stalked　brown　an