上一节

居住地的进出口,我不是在栅栏上做门,而是用短梯子从栅栏顶上翻过来,进入里面,把梯子拿好。

这样,我四面都受保护,完全与外界隔绝,夜里就可以高枕无忧了。不过,我后来发现,对我所担心的敌人,根本不必如此戒备森严。我又花了极大的力气,把前面讲到的我的全部财产,全部粮食、弹药武器和补给品,一一搬到篱笆里面,或者可以说搬到这个堡垒里来。我又给自己搭了一个大帐篷用来防雨,由于这儿一年中有一个时期常下倾盆大雨。我把帐篷做成双层的;也就是说,里面一个小的,外面再罩一个大的,大帐篷上面又盖上一大块油布。那油布当然也是我在船上搜集帆布时一起拿下来的。现在我不再睡在搬上岸的那张床上了,而是睡在一张吊床上,这吊床原是船上大副所有,质地很好。我把粮食和一切可能受潮损坏的东西都搬进了帐篷。完成这工作后,就把篱笆的出入口堵起来。此后,我就像上面所说的,用一个短梯子翻越篱笆近处。做完这些工作后,我又开始在岩石壁上打洞,把挖出来的土石方从帐篷里运到外面,沿篱笆堆成一个平台,约一英尺(30公分)高。这样,帐篷算是我的住房,房后的山洞就成了我的地窖。这些工作既费时又费力,但总算一一完成了。

现在,我再回头追述一下其他几件使我煞费苦心的事情。在我计划搭帐篷打岩洞的同时,突然乌云密布,暴雨如注,雷电交加。在电光一闪,霹雳突至时,一个思想也像闪电一样掠过我的头脑,使我比对闪电本身更吃惊:“哎呦,我的火药啊!”想到一个霹雳就会把我的火药全部炸毁时,我机会完全绝望了。由于我不仅要靠火药自卫,还得靠其猎取食物为生。当时,我只想到火药,而没有想到火药一旦爆炸自己也就完了。假如真的火药爆炸,我自己都不知道死在谁的手里呢。

这场暴雨使我心有余悸。因此,我把所有其他工作,包括搭帐篷、筑篱笆等都先丢在一边。等雨一停,我立刻着手做一些小袋子和匣子,把火药分成许许多多小包。这样,万一发生什么情况,也不致全部炸毁。我把一包包火药分开贮藏起来,免得一包着火危及另一包。这件工作我足足费了两个星期的时间。火药大约有二百四十磅,我把它们分成一百多包。至于那桶受潮的火药,我倒并不担心会发生什么危险,因此我就把它放到新开的山洞里;我把这山洞戏称为我的厨房,其余的火药我都藏在石头缝里,以免受潮,并在储藏的地方小心地做上记号。

在包装和储藏火药的两星期中,我至少每天带枪出门一次。这样做可以达到三个目的:一来可以散散心;二来可以猎获点什么东西吃;三来也可以了解一下岛上的物产。第一次外出,我便发现岛上有不少山羊,使我十分满意。可我也发现这于我来说并非是件大好事。由于这些山羊胆小而又狡猾,而且跑得飞快,实在很难靠近他们。但我并不灰心,我相信总有办法打到一只的。不久我真的打死了一只。我首先发现山羊经常出没之地,就采用打埋伏的办法来获取我的猎物。我注意到,如果我在山谷里,哪怕它们在山岩上,它们也会惊恐地逃窜;但若它们在山谷里吃草,而我站在山岩上,它们就不会注意到我。我想,这是由于小羊眼睛生的部位,使它们只能向下看,而不容易看到上面的东西吧。因此,我就先爬到山上,从上面打下去,往往很容易打中。我第一次开枪,打死了一只正在哺育小羊的母羊,使我心里非常难过。母羊倒下后,小羊呆呆地站在它身旁;当我背起母羊往回走时,那小羊也跟着我一直走到围墙外面。于是我放下母羊,抱起小羊,进入木栅,一心想把它驯养大。可是小山羊就是不肯吃东西,没有办法,我只好把它也杀了吃了。这两只一大一小的山羊肉,供我吃了好长一段时间,由于我吃得很节省,我要节省粮食,尤其是面包。

The entrance into this place I made to be, not by a door, but by a short ladder to go over the top; which ladder, when I was in, I lifted over after me; and so I was completely fenced in and fortified, as I thought, from all the world, and consequently slept secure in the night, which otherwise I could not have done; though, as it appeared afterwards, there was no need of all this caution from the enemies that I apprehended担心,忧虑danger from.

Into this fence or fortress, with infintie labour, I carried all my riches, all my provisions食品,供给品, ammunition弹药, and stores贮藏,备用品, of which you have the account above; and I made a large tent, which to preserve me from the rains that in one part of the year are very violent there, I made double – one smaller tent within, and one larger tent above it; and covered the uppermost with a large tarpaulin, which I had saved among the sails.

And now I lay no more英文喜欢用否定词来表达意思 for a while in the bed which I had brought on shore, but in a hammock, which was indeed a very good one, and belonged to the mate of the ship.

Into this tent, I brought all my provisions, and everything that would spol by the wet; and having thus enclosed all my goods, I made up the entrance, which till now I had left open, and so passed and repassed, as I said, by a short ladder.

When I had done this, I began to work my way into the rock, and bringing all the earth and stones that I dug down out through my tent, I laid them up within my fence, in the nature of a terrace, so that it raised the ground within about a foot and a half; and thus I made me a cave, just behind my tent, which served me like a cellar to my house.

It cost me much labour and many days before all these things were brought to perfection; and therefore I must go back to some other things which took up some of my thoughts. At the same time it happened, after I had laid my scheme for the setting up my tent, and making the cave, that a storm of rain falling from a thick, dark cloud, a sudden flash of lighting happened, and after that a great clap of thunder, as is naturally the effect of it. I was not so much surprised with the lighting as I was with the thought which darted into my mind as swift as the lighting itself – Oh, my powder! My very heart sank within me when I thought that, at one blast, all my powder might be destroyed; on which, not my defence only ,but the providing my food, as I thought, entirely depended. I was nothing又是否定词表达意思near so anxious about my own danger, though, had the powder took fire, I should never have known who had hurt me.

Such impression did this make upon me, that after the storm was over I laid aside all my works, my building and fortifying, and apllied myself to make bags and boxes, to separate the powder, and to keep it a little and a little in a parcel, in the hope that, whatever might come, it might not all take fire at once; and to keep it so apart that it should not be possible to make one part fire another. I finished this work in about a fortnight; and I think my powder, which in all was about two hundred and forty pounds weight, was divided in not less than a hundred parcels. As to the barrel that had been wet, I did not apprehend any danger from that; so I placed it in my new cave, which, in my fancy, I called my kitchen; and the rest I hid up and down in holes among the rocks, so that no wet might come to it, marking very carefully where I laid it.

In the interval of time while this was doing, I went out once at least every day with my gun, as well to divert myself as to see if I could kill anything fit for food; and, as near as I could, to acquaint myself with what the island produced. The first time I went out, I presently discovered that there were goats in the island, which was a great satisfaction to me; but then it was attended with this misfortune to me namely, that they were so shy, so subtle, and so swift of foot, that it was the most difficult thing in the world to come at them; but I was not discouraged at this, not doubting, but I might now and then shoot one, as it soon happened; for after I had found their haunts a little, I laid wait in this manner for them: I observed if they saw me in the valleys, though they were upon the rocks, they would run away, as in a terrible fright; but if they were feeding in the valleys, and I was upon the rocks, they took no notice of me; from whence I concluded that, by the possion of their optics, their sight was so directed downward that they did not readily see objects that were above them; so afterwards I took this method – I always climbed the rocks first, to get above them, and then had frequently a fair mark.

The first shot I made among these cretures, I killed a she-goat, which had a little kid by her, which she gave suck to, which grieved me heartily; for when the old one fell, the kid stood stock still by her, till I came and took her up; and not only so, but when I carried the old one with me, upon my shoulders, the kid followed me quite to my enclouser; upon which I laid down the dam, and took the kid in my arms, and carried it over my pale栅栏, in hopes to have bred it up tame; but it would not eat; so I was forced to kill it and eat it myself. These two supplies me with flesh a great while, for I ate sparingly, and saved my provions, my bread especially, as much as possibly I could.