★ 第3章 ★
When I woke up in darkness, my head was hurting badly, and I was unable to move my hands or feet. I could hear the sailors' shouts and the sound of the wind and the waves. The whole world seemed to go up, up, up, and then down again. I felt very ill, and at first, could not understand what was happening. After a while, I realized that I must be somewhere inside the ship, which was moving very fast through the water. 'I've been kidnapped!' I thought angrily. It was clear that my uncle and the captain had planned it together. I began to feel frightened and hopeless, as I lay there in the dark.
我在黑暗中醒过来时，我的头疼得很厉害，手脚也动不了。我能听到水手们的叫声、风声和涛声。整个世界似乎在上升、上升，然后又下降了。我感到病得很厉害，最初稿不清在发生什么事。过了一会儿我意识到一定是在船里某处，那船又在水中快速行驶着。“我被诱拐了!”我气愤地想。显然我叔叔和船长合伙预谋了这一切。我黑暗中躺在那儿时，开始感到害怕和无望。
Some hours later, a light shone in my face. Mr. Riach, one of the ship's officers, stood looking down at me. He washed the cut on my head, gave me some water, and told me kindly to go to sleep. The next time he came, I was feeling very hot and ill. He had brought Captain Hoseasonwith him.
几个小时之后，有一束光照到我脸上。船上的一名叫里亚奇先生的高级船员站在那儿俯视着我。他擦洗了我头上的伤口，给我一些水，并和蔼地让我睡觉。下一次他来时，我感到很热，病了。他把霍齐亚森船长也带来了。
'Now, sir, see for yourself,' said Mr. Riach. 'The lad's seriously ill. We must take him out of this unhealthy hole at once.
“好，船长，你自己看看，”里亚奇先生说道，“这个小伙子病得很厉害。我们得立刻把他带出这个不卫生的牢房。”
'That's none of your business,' answered the captain. 'You're paid to do your job, not to worry about the by. He's staying down here.'
“那与你无关。”船长回答道，“给你付钱是让你干你的工作，不要为这男孩操心。他得待在下面这儿。”
'I'm only paid to be an officer on this ship,' replied Mr. Riach sharply. He looked hard at the captain. 'I'm not paid, like you, to kidnap and murder—'
“我只是受雇来当船上的高级船员。”里亚奇先生厉声答道。他盯着船长。“我不是收了钱，像你一样来诱拐和谋杀——”
Hoseason turned on him angrily. 'What did you say?' he cried. 'What do you mean?'
霍齐亚森恼怒地攻击里亚奇。“你说什么?”他叫道，“你是什么意思?”
'You understand,' said Mr. Riach, looking calmly at him.
“你明白，”里亚奇先生说道，平静地看着他。
'You should know me by now, Mr. Riach. I'm a hard man. But if you say the lad will die—'
“到现在你也应该了解我了，里亚奇先生。我可不是一个软弱的人。 但如果你说这个小伙子将要死掉的话——”
'Ay, he will!' said Mr. Riach.
“对，他要死了!”里亚奇先生说道。
'Well, sir, put him where you like!'
“好吧，先生，把他放在你想要放的地方!”
So I was carried up into the sunlight a few minutes later and put in a cabin where some of the sailors were sleeping. It was a wonderful feeling to see the daylight and to be able to talk to people again. I lay in the cabin for several days, and after a while began to feel better. The sailors were kind to me in their way. They brought me food and drink, and told me about their families at home. I discovered from them that the ship was sailing to the Carolinas, in NorthAmerica. There the captain was planning to sell me as a slave, to work in a rich man's house or on a farm.
于是几分钟后，我被人抬到上面阳光能照到之处，并被安置在一个里面有一些水手正在睡觉的机舱里。又能看见阳光、又能和人交谈是一种很好的感觉。我在机舱里躺了几天，不久之后开始感到好些了。水手们以自己的方式善待我。他们给我带来吃的、喝的，并给我讲他们家的事。从他们那儿我发现船正驶往北美洲的卡罗来纳。船长打算在那儿把我当奴隶卖掉，卖到一个有钱人家或一家农场。
I also learnt that both the ship's officers, Mr. Riach and Mr. Shuan, enjoyed drinking far too much. The sailors liked Mr. Shuan but said that he was sometimes violent when he had drunk a lot. One of the sailors was a young boy, called Ransome. His job was to bring meals to the captain and officers in the roundhouse, a big cabin on the top of the ship, where the officers slept and ate. When Ransome dropped something or did something wrong, Mr. Shuan used to hit him, and I often saw the poor boy crying.
我也了解到船上的高级船员里亚奇先生和舒安先生都酗酒。船员们喜欢舒安先生，但说舒安先生有时喝得太多时很凶。有一个水手是一个年轻的小男孩，名叫兰塞姆。他的工作是给后甲板室(即船顶上的一个大机舱)里的船长和高级船员送饭。高级船员吃住都在后甲板室里。当兰塞姆掉了东西或做错了事时，舒安先生时常揍他，我也经常看见这个可怜的小男孩在哭泣。
One night, about nine o'clock, I heard one of the sailors in the cabin saying quietly to the others, 'Shuan's killed him at last!' We all knew who he meant. Just then the captain came in. I was surprised to see him walk towards me and say kindly, 'My man, we want you to help us in the roundhouse. From now on, you'll sleep there instead of Ransome.' As he spoke, two sailors carried Ransome into the cabin. His face was as white as a sheet, and he did not move. My blood ran cold when I saw him.
一天晚上，约莫九点钟，我听见机舱里有位水手悄悄地对别的水手们说：“舒安到底杀了他!”我们大家都明白他指的是谁。正在那时船长进来了。我很吃惊地看见他走向我，和蔼地对我说：“小伙子，我们需要你到后甲板室给我们帮忙。从现在起，你就代替兰塞姆睡在那儿。”当他说话时，两名水手把兰塞姆抬进机舱。他的脸和纸一样白，并且他不动弹。我看见他时，被吓得不寒而栗。
I obeyed the captain and ran to the roundhouse. It was a large room, with a table, a bench, and locked cupboards. All the best food and drink was kept there, under the captain's eyes, as well as the guns. When I entered, I saw Mr. Shuan sitting at the table, with a bottle of whisky in front of him. He did not seem to notice what was happening around him and was looking fixedly at the table.
我遵从船长的话，跑到后甲板室。后甲板室很大，有一张桌子、一个凳子和锁住的一些小橱子。最好的食品和饮料都放在那儿，就在船长的眼皮底下，也在枪口保护之下。当我进去时，看见舒安先生正坐在桌旁，面前摆着一瓶威士忌。他似乎没有注意周围发生的一切，他的眼睛直直地看着桌子。
Mr. Riach soon joined the captain and me. He looked at Hoseason meaningfully, and I understood from his look that Ransome was dead. We three all stood silently looking down at Mr. Shuan.
里亚奇先生很快加入到我和船长中间。他意味深长地看看霍齐亚森，从他的表情我明白兰塞姆死了。我们三个都静静地站着，俯视着舒安先生。
Suddenly the captain stepped forward. 'Do you know what you've done?' he cried. 'You've murdered the boy!'
猛然间船长大步走向前。“你知道你干了些什么吗?”他喊道。“你杀了那个男孩!”
Mr. Shuan put a hand to his head. 'Well,' he said, 'He brought me a dirty glass!'
舒安先生把一只手放到头上。“唔，”他说道，“他当时给我拿来一个脏杯子!”
The captain and Mr. Riach and I looked at each other, almost frightened. Then Hoseason took Mr. Shuan by the arm and told him to go to bed. The murderer cried a little at first, but he took off his boots and lay down, like a small child.
我、船长还有里亚奇你看我、我望你，差不多给吓住了。接着霍齐亚森抓住舒安先生的胳膊，命令他上床睡觉。这个谋杀犯起初叫了一小下，但是他还是像一个小孩似地脱了靴子并且躺了下来。
'Mr. Riach,' said the captain, when we could see that Mr. Shuan was asleep, 'nobody on land must know what happened tonight. We'll say that the boy fell into the sea. Get us a drink, David, we both need one,' and he gave me the key to the cupboards.
“里亚奇先生，”当我们确实看到舒安睡着之后船长开口说道，“不能让岸上的人知道今晚发生的事儿。我们就说那个男孩掉进了海里。戴维，给我们拿点喝的来，我们二人都需要喝一杯。”接着他给了我开小橱子的钥匙。
In the next few days, I was very busy, running here and there with the officers' food and drink. Mr. Riach and the captain were surprisingly patient with me when I made mistakes. Perhaps they were thinking of the poor boy who had died. But Mr. Shuan was very strange afterRansome's death. He did not seem to know what he had done or to recognize me. On my second day in the roundhouse, he looked at me with a white face and fear in his eyes. 'You weren't here before?' he asked.
在接下来的几天里，我很忙，一会儿跑到这儿、一会儿跑到那儿地拿高级船员们的食品和饮料。里亚奇先生和船长即使在我出了错时也对我很出奇地耐心。也许是他们还在想那个已死的可怜的小男孩。但兰塞姆死后舒安先生变得很怪了。他似乎不知道他做了些什么，也不认识我。在我待在后甲板室的第二天，他脸色苍白、眼带恐惧地看着我。“你以前不在这儿吗?”他问道。
'No, sir,' I replied.
“对，先生，”我回答道。
'There was another boy?' he asked. 'Ah! Yes, I thought so,' and sitting down, he called for some more whisky.
“有另外一个小男孩吗?”他问道。“啊！是的，我想有。”他又叫了些威士忌，坐了下来。
It wasn't a hard life for me. I was able to eat well and talk to Mr. Riach, who spoke to me like a friend. But I could not forget poor Ransome. As the days passed, I became more and more worried. I knew that when the ship arrived in the Carolinas, I would no longer be a free man, but a slave. I thought hard, but there did not seem to be any way of escaping.
这生活对我来说并不艰难。我能吃好，能够与里亚奇先生交谈。他像一个朋友一样对我说话。但我不能忘记可怜的兰塞姆。当日子一天天过去时，我变得越来越担忧了。我明白，当船抵达卡罗来纳时，我将不再是个自由人，而是一个奴隶了。我使劲想，但似乎没有逃跑的方法。
罗伯特·路易斯·斯蒂文森(1850——1894)是英国著名的小说家和散文家。他出生于苏格兰爱丁堡一个富裕人家，祖父和父亲都是土木工程师，以建筑灯塔著名。或许是受家庭影响，他于一八六七年进爱丁堡大学读土木工程，但是后来改学法律。
在《诱拐》这部作品里，斯蒂文森以其一以贯之的创作风格，向我们讲述了一个紧张刺激、扣人心弦的故事，同时塑造了一系列让人难忘的人物形象。主人公戴维·鲍尔弗不必多说，读者从他的历险故事中自能感受到他的机智勇敢，活脱脱一个少年英雄的形象跃然纸上;其他人物不管正邪，都各有其貌，栩栩如生，随着故事的展开，让我们逐一看到了送戴维上路的神父坎贝尔的忠厚，想要独吞家产的戴维叔叔埃比尼译·鲍尔弗的奸诈，与埃比尼译·鲍尔弗共谋诱拐戴维的船长霍西森的贪婪，与戴维同甘共苦的艾伦对事业的坚贞、对朋友的忠诚，以及帮戴维讨回公道的律师兰基勒的诚信，等等。
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