英語聽書《白鯨記》第469期

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Now, to any one not fully acquainted with the ways of the leviathans, it might seem an absurdly hopeless task thus to seek out one solitary creature in the unhooped oceans of this planet.

任何一個不十分熟悉大海獸的情況的人也許會以為,要在這樣茫茫的大海里發(fā)現(xiàn)一只孤零零的生物,是一種荒誕而無望的工作。

But not so did it seem to Ahab, who knew the sets of all tides and currents;

可是,亞哈卻不是這樣看法,他熟悉一切大小潮流的形勢,

and thereby calculating the driftings of the sperm whale's food;

可以從中預(yù)測抹香鯨的食料的漂流情況;

and, also calling to mind the regular, ascertained seasons for hunting him in particular latitudes;

也想得出在特定的地方獵擊它的正常而肯定的季節(jié);

could arrive at reasonable surmises, almost approaching to certainties, concerning the timeliest day to be upon this or that ground in search of his prey.

因而對于該在這里還是那里去搜索他的獵物的最適當(dāng)?shù)娜兆?也就能夠得到合理的。差不多是近乎正確的推算了。

So assured, indeed, is the fact concerning the periodicalness of the sperm whale's resorting to given waters, that many hunters believe that, could he be closely observed and studied throughout the world;

事實(shí)上,關(guān)于抹香鯨常常到特定的海洋去的定期性,倒是非常有事實(shí)根據(jù)的,因此許多捕鯨者都認(rèn)為,如果全世界都能對大鯨加以仔細(xì)研究和觀察;

were the logs for one voyage of the entire whale fleet carefully collated, then the migrations of the sperm whale would be found to correspond in invariability to those of the herring-shoals or the flights of swallows.

如果把整個捕鯨隊(duì)的每個航次的航海日志都仔細(xì)的核對整理一番,那么,就可以發(fā)現(xiàn)抹香鯨的移棲,在不變性上說來,是跟青魚群或者燕群之類的移棲相一致的。

On this hint, attempts have been made to construct elaborate migratory charts of the sperm whale.

基于這種提示,有許多人竭盡心力,企圖制出抹香鯨的移棲圖。

Since the above was written, the statement is happily borne out by an official circular, issued by Lieutenant Maury, of the National Observatory, Washington, April 16th, 1851.

一八五一年四月十六日,華盛頓國立測候所的莫里上尉馬修芳登莫里所發(fā)表的一件官方通報,榮幸地證實(shí)我以上的陳述。

By that circular, it appears that precisely such a chart is in course of completion.

就那份通報看來,似乎表明類似的移棲圖已將告成。