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don juan-第12部分
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Part was divided; part thrown in the sea;
And such things as the entrails and the brains
Regaled two sharks; who follow'd o'er the billow…
The sailors ate the rest of poor Pedrillo。
The sailors ate him; all save three or four;
Who were not quite so fond of animal food;
To these was added Juan; who; before
Refusing his own spaniel; hardly could
Feel now his appetite increased much more;
'T was not to be expected that he should;
Even in extremity of their disaster;
Dine with them on his pastor and his master。
'T was better that he did not; for; in fact;
The consequence was awful in the extreme;
For they; who were most ravenous in the act;
Went raging mad… Lord! how they did blaspheme!
And foam and roll; with strange convulsions rack'd;
Drinking salt water like a mountain…stream;
Tearing; and grinning; howling; screeching; swearing;
And; with hyaena…laughter; died despairing。
Their numbers were much thinn'd by this infliction;
And all the rest were thin enough; Heaven knows;
And some of them had lost their recollection;
Happier than they who still perceived their woes;
But others ponder'd on a new dissection;
As if not warn'd sufficiently by those
Who had already perish'd; suffering madly;
For having used their appetites so sadly。
And next they thought upon the master's mate;
As fattest; but he saved himself; because;
Besides being much averse from such a fate;
There were some other reasons: the first was;
He had been rather indisposed of late;
And that which chiefly proved his saving clause
Was a small present made to him at Cadiz;
By general subscription of the ladies。
Of poor Pedrillo something still remain'd;
But was used sparingly;… some were afraid;
And others still their appetites constrain'd;
Or but at times a little supper made;
All except Juan; who throughout abstain'd;
Chewing a piece of bamboo and some lead:
At length they caught two boobies and a noddy;
And then they left off eating the dead body。
And if Pedrillo's fate should shocking be;
Remember Ugolino condescends
To eat the head of his arch…enemy
The moment after he politely ends
His tale: if foes be food in hell; at sea
'T is surely fair to dine upon our friends;
When shipwreck's short allowance grows too scanty;
Without being much more horrible than Dante。
And the same night there fell a shower of rain;
For which their mouths gaped; like the cracks of earth
When dried to summer dust; till taught by pain
Men really know not what good water 's worth;
If you had been in Turkey or in Spain;
Or with a famish'd boat's…crew had your berth;
Or in the desert heard the camel's bell;
You 'd wish yourself where Truth is… in a well。
It pour'd down torrents; but they were no richer
Until they found a ragged piece of sheet;
Which served them as a sort of spongy pitcher;
And when they deem'd its moisture was plete
They wrung it out; and though a thirsty ditcher
Might not have thought the scanty draught so sweet
As a full pot of porter; to their thinking
They ne'er till now had known the joys of drinking。
And their baked lips; with many a bloody crack;
Suck'd in the moisture; which like nectar stream'd;
Their throats were ovens; their swoln tongues were black;
As the rich man's in hell; who vainly scream'd
To beg the beggar; who could not rain back
A drop of dew; when every drop had seem'd
To taste of heaven… If this be true; indeed
Some Christians have a fortable creed。
There were two fathers in this ghastly crew;
And with them their two sons; of whom the one
Was more robust and hardy to the view;
But he died early; and when he was gone;
His nearest messmate told his sire; who threw
One glance at him; and said; 'Heaven's will be done!
I can do nothing;' and he saw him thrown
Into the deep without a tear or groan。
The other father had a weaklier child;
Of a soft cheek and aspect delicate;
But the boy bore up long; and with a mild
And patient spirit held aloof his fate;
Little he said; and now and then he smiled;
As if to win a part from off the weight
He saw increasing on his father's heart;
With the deep deadly thought that they must part。
And o'er him bent his sire; and never raised
His eyes from off his face; but wiped the foam
From his pale lips; and ever on him gazed;
And when the wish'd…for shower at length was e;
And the boy's eyes; which the dull film half glazed;
Brighten'd; and for a moment seem'd to roam;
He squeezed from out a rag some drops of rain
Into his dying child's mouth… but in vain。
The boy expired… the father held the clay;
And look'd upon it long; and when at last
Death left no doubt; and the dead burthen lay
Stiff on his heart; and pulse and hope were past;
He watch'd it wistfully; until away
'T was borne by the rude wave wherein 't was cast;
Then he himself sunk down all dumb and shivering;
And gave no sign of life; save his limbs quivering。
Now overhead a rainbow; bursting through
The scattering clouds; shone; spanning the dark sea;
Resting its bright base on the quivering blue;
And all within its arch appear'd to be
Clearer than that without; and its wide hue
Wax'd broad and waving; like a banner free;
Then changed like to a bow that 's bent; and then
Forsook the dim eyes of these shipwreck'd men。
It changed; of course; a heavenly chameleon;
The airy child of vapour and the sun;
Brought forth in purple; cradled in vermilion;
Baptized in molten gold; and swathed in dun;
Glittering like crescents o'er a Turk's pavilion;
And blending every colour into one;
Just like a black eye in a recent scuffle
(For sometimes we must box without the muffle)。
Our shipwreck'd seamen thought it a good omen…
It is as well to think so; now and then;
'T was an old custom of the Greek and Roman;
And may bee of great advantage when
Folks are discouraged; and most surely no men
Had greater need to nerve themselves again
Than these; and so this rainbow look'd like hope…
Quite a celestial kaleidoscope。
About this time a beautiful white bird;
Webfooted; not unlike a dove in size
And plumage (probably it might have err'd
Upon its course); pass'd oft before their eyes;
And tried to perch; although it saw and heard
The men within the boat; and in this guise
It came and went; and flutter'd round them till
Night fell: this seem'd a better omen still。
But in this case I also must remark;
'T was well this bird of promise did not perch;
Because the tackle of our shatter'd bark
Was not so safe for roosting as a church;
And had it been the dove from Noah's ark;
Returning there from her successful search;
Which in their way that moment chanced to fall;
They would have eat her; olive…branch and all。
With twilight it again came on to blow;
But not with violence; the stars shone out;
The boat made way; yet now they were so low;
They knew not where nor what they were about;
Some fancied they saw land; and some said 'No!'
The frequent fog…banks gave them cause to doubt…
Some swore that they heard breakers; others guns;
And all mistook about the latter once。
As morning broke; the light wind died away;
When he who had the watch sung out and swore;
If 't was not land that rose with the sun's ray;
He wish'd that land he never might see more;
And the rest rubb'd their eyes and saw a bay;
Or thought they saw; and shaped their course for shore;
For shore it was; and gradually grew
Distinct; and high; and palpable to view。
And then of these some part burst into tears;
And others; looking with a stupid stare;
Could not yet separate their hopes from fears;
And seem'd as if they had no further care;
While a few pray'd (the first time for some years)…
And at the bottom of the boat three were
Asleep: they shook them by the hand and head;
And tried to awaken them; but found them dead。
The day before; fast sleeping on the water;
They found a turtle of the hawk's…bill kind;
And by good fortune; gliding softly; caught her;
Which yielded a day's life; and to their mind
Proved even still a more nutritious matter;
Because it left encouragement behind:
They thought that in such perils; more than chance
Had sent them this for their deliverance。
The land appear'd a high and rocky coast;
And higher grew the mountains as they drew;
Set by a current; toward it: they were lost
In various conjectures; for none knew
To what part of the earth they had been tost;
So changeable had been the winds that blew;
Some thought it was Mount AEtna; some the highlands;
Of Candia; Cyprus; Rhodes; or other islands。
Meantime the current; with a rising gale;
Still set them onwards to the wele shore;
Like Charon's bark of spectres; dull and pale:
Their living freight was now reduced to four;
And three dead; whom their strength could not avail
To heave into the deep with those before;
Though the two sharks still follow'd them; and dash'd
The spray into their faces as they splash'd。
Famine; despair; cold; thirst; and heat; had done
Their work on them by turns; and thinn'd them to
Such things a mother had not known her son
Amidst the skeletons of that gaunt crew;
By night chill'd; by day scorch'd; thus one by one
They perish'd; until wither'd to these few;
But chiefly by a species of self…slaughter;
In washing down Pedrillo with salt water。
As they drew nigh the land; which now was seen
Unequal in its aspect here and there;
They felt the freshness of its growing green;
That waved in forest…tops; and smooth'd the air;
And fell upon their glazed eyes like a screen
From glistening waves; and skies so hot and bare…
Lovely seem'd any object that should sweep
Away the vast; salt; dread; eternal deep。
The shore look'd wild; without a trace of man;
And girt by formidable waves; but they
Were mad for land; and thus their course they ran;
Though right ahead the roaring breakers lay:
A reef between them also now began
To show its boiling surf and bounding spray;
But finding no place for their landing better;
They ran the boat for shore;… and overset her。
But in his native stream; the Guadalquivir;
Juan to lave his youthful limbs was wont;
And having learnt to swim in that sweet river;
Had often turn'd the art to some account:
A better swimmer you could scarce see ever;
He could; perhaps; have p
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