英语听书《白鲸记》第19期

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 who seemed to be praying in a sing song or else singing some pagan psalmody or other,during which his face twitched¹ about in the most unnatural² manner. 

 At last extinguishing the fire,he took the idol³ up very unceremoniously, 

 and bagged it again in his grego pocket as carelessly as if he were a sportsman bagging a dead woodcock. 

 All these queer proceedings⁴ increased my uncomfortableness,and seeing him now exhibiting strong symptoms of concluding his business operations, 

 and jumping into bed with me,I thought it was high time,now or never,before the light was put out,to break the spell in which I had so long been bound. 

 But the interval⁵ I spent in deliberating what to say,was a fatal one.Taking up his tomahawk from the table, 

 he examined the head of it for an instant,and then holding it to the light,with his mouth at the handle,he puffed⁶ out great clouds of tobacco smoke. 

 The next moment the light was extinguished,and this wild cannibal,tomahawk between his teeth,sprang into bed with me. 

 I sang out,I could not help it now;and giving a sudden grunt⁷ of astonishment⁸ he began feeling me. 

 Stammering out something,I knew not what,I rolled away from him against the wall,and then conjured⁹ him, 

 whoever or whatever he might be,to keep quiet,and let me get up and light the lamp again. 

 But his guttural responses satisfied me at once that he but ill comprehended my meaning. 

 Whoe debel you?he at last said you no speak e,dam me,I kille.And so saying the lighted tomahawk began flourishing about me in the dark. 

 Landlord,for God's sake,Peter Coffin¹⁰!shouted I. Landlord!Watch!Coffin!Angels!save me! 

 Speake!tellee me who ee be,or damme,I kille!again growled¹¹ the cannibal, 

 while his horrid¹² flourishings of the tomahawk scattered¹³ the hot tobacco ashes about me till I thought my linen¹⁴ would get on fire. 

 But thank heaven,at that moment the landlord came into the room light in hand,and leaping from the bed I ran up to him. 

 do not be afraid now,said he,grinning again,Queequeg here would not harm a hair of your head. 

 Stop your grinning,shouted I,and why did not you tell me that that infernal harpooneer was a cannibal? 

 I thought ye know 'd it;did not I tell ye,he was a peddlin ' heads around town?but turn flukes again and go to sleep. 

 Queequeg,look here you sabbee me,I sabbee you this man sleepe you you sabbee? 

 Me sabbee plenty grunted¹⁵ Queequeg,puffing away at his pipe and sitting up in bed. 

 You gettee in,he added,motioning to me with his tomahawk,and throwing the clothes to one side. 

 He really did this in not only a civil but a really kind and charitable way.I stood looking at him a moment. 

 For all his tattooings he was on the whole a clean,comely looking cannibal. 

 What's all this fuss I have been making about,thought I to myself the man's a human being just as I am: 

 he has just as much reason to fear me,as I have to be afraid of him.Better sleep with a sober cannibal than a drunken Christian¹⁶. 

 Landlord,said I,tell him to stash¹⁷ his tomahawk there,or pipe,or whatever you call it;tell him to stop smoking, 

 in short,and I will turn in with him.But I do not fancy having a man smoking in bed with me.It's dangerous.Besides,I ai not insured. 

 This being told to Queequeg,he at once complied,and again politely motioned me to get into bed rolling over to one side as much as to say I will not touch a leg of ye. 

 Good night,landlord,said I,you may go. 

 I turned in,and never slept better in my life. 

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