英语听书《海底两万里》第472期 第29章 缺少空气(4)

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There was no point in dampening the energy they were putting into our arduous¹ rescue work. 以免他们做这种辛苦救护工作的勇气受到打击。

But when I returned on board, I mentioned this serious complication to Captain Nemo. 不过，当我回到船上的时候，我向尼摩船长提出，要他注意这种严重的复杂情形。

I know, he told me in that calm tone the most dreadful outlook couldn't change. “我知道这事，”他对我说，他总是这样，最可怕的意外也不能更改他的镇定。

"It's one more danger, but I don't know any way of warding² it off. “这是多加了一个危险，我看不见有什么方法可以躲过。

Our sole chance for salvation³ is to work faster than the water solidifies⁴.  我们得救的唯一机会，就是我们的工作比冻结作用进行得更快。

We've got to get there first, that's all."  问题在于谁先抢在前面。”

Get there first! By then I should have been used to this type of talk! 抢在前面！我早就应该习惯于这种说法了！

For several hours that day, I wielded⁵ my pick doggedly⁶. 这一天，在好几个钟头内，我坚持顽强地挥动铁锨。

The work kept me going. 这工作支持和鼓励我。

Besides, working meant leaving the Nautilus, which meant breathing the clean oxygen drawn⁷ from the air tanks and supplied by our equipment, 并且，工作就等于离开诺第留斯号，也就是直接呼吸那现在是从储藏库取来的、由空气箱供应的纯洁空气， 

which meant leaving the thin, foul⁸ air behind.  就是离开那贫乏和恶浊的船上空气。

Near evening one more meter had been dug from the trench⁹. 到了晚上，坑又挖去了一米。。

When I returned on board, I was wellnigh asphyxiated¹⁰ by the carbon dioxide saturating¹¹ the air.  当我回到船上时，我吸了空气中饱和的碳酸气，差不多窒息了

Oh, if only we had the chemical methods that would enable us to drive out this noxious¹² gas! 啊！我们为什么没有方法来消除这种有害的气体呢！

There was no lack of oxygen. 我们并不缺乏氧。

All this water contained a considerable amount, and after it was decomposed¹³ by our powerful batteries, this life-giving elastic¹⁴ fluid could have been restored to us. 这海水中含有大量的氧，我们的强力电池可以把它分解出来，它可能给我们把那兴奋刺激人的气体回复了原来状态。

I had thought it all out, but to no avail because the carbon dioxide produced by our breathing permeated¹⁵ every part of the ship.  我想过这事，但无济于事，因为，由我们呼吸产生的碳酸气已经侵入船上各部分了。

To absorb it, we would need to fill containers with potassium hydroxide and shake them continually. 吸收碳酸气，要把氯化钾放在排气管中，不停地摇动玻璃管。

But this substance was missing on board and nothing else could replace it. 可是船上缺乏氯化钾，没有别的物质可以替代。

That evening Captain Nemo was forced to open the spigots of his air tanks and shoot a few spouts¹⁶ of fresh oxygen through the Nautilus's interior. 这一晚上，尼摩船长必须打开储藏库的龙头，放出数阵纯洁空气到诺第留斯号内部。

Without this precaution we wouldn't have awakened¹⁷ the following morning. 没有这种措施，也许我们早上就不能醒来。

The next day, March 26, I returned to my miner's trade, working to remove the fifth meter. 第二天，3月26日，我又做矿工的工作，要把第五米的冰挖出来。

The Ice Bank's side walls and underbelly had visibly thickened. 冰山的两侧和底层显然加厚了。

Obviously they would come together before the Nautilus could break free. 很显然，这些冰块在诺第留斯号可能脱身之前，都要凝结起来。

For an instant I was gripped by despair. 我一时感到绝望。

My pick nearly slipped from my hands. 我的铁锨差不多要从我手中掉下来了。

What was the point of this digging if I was to die smothered¹⁸ and crushed by this water turning to stone, a torture undreamed of by even the wildest savages¹⁹! 挖有什么用处，既然我要被窒息死，被这变为石头的水所压扁，就是野蛮人的残酷也没有发明出这样的一种酷刑。

I felt like I was lying in the jaws²⁰ of a fearsome monster, jaws irresistibly²¹ closing. 好像我是夹在一个怪物的牙床里面，无法抵抗，逐渐收紧在利齿中了。

Supervising our work, working himself, Captain Nemo passed near me just then. 尼摩船长指挥工作，他自己也工作，这时候，从我身边走过。

I touched him with my hand and pointed²² to the walls of our prison.  我手挨他，把我们冰监牢的墙壁指给他看。

The starboard wall had moved forward to a point less than four meters from the Nautilus's hull²³. 船右舷的冰墙挨近诺第留斯号的船身不及四米了。

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