春夢婆

Next morning Stubb accosted Flask.

第二天早上，斯塔布找上了弗拉斯克攀談。

“Such a queer dream, King-Post, I never had. You know the old man’s ivory leg, well I dreamed he kicked me with it; and when I tried to kick back, upon my soul, my little man, I kicked my leg right off! And then, presto! Ahab seemed a pyramid, and I, like a blazing fool, kept kicking at it.

「我從沒做過這麼怪的夢，中柱。你曉得老頭那條象牙腿吧——我夢見他用那條腿踹我；我想回踢，結果，我的天哪，我的小個子，我一腳把自己的腿給踢飛了！接著，『變！』亞哈成了一座金字塔，而我像個火冒三丈的傻瓜，沒命地踢那金字塔。

But what was still more curious, Flask—you know how curious all dreams are—through all this rage that I was in, I somehow seemed to be thinking to myself, that after all, it was not much of an insult, that kick from Ahab.

可更怪的是，弗拉斯克——你曉得夢都有多怪——在我滿腔怒火當中，我心裡卻不知怎地一直在盤算：說到底，亞哈那一踢，算不上什麼大侮辱。

‘Why,’ thinks I, ‘what’s the row? It’s not a real leg, only a false leg.’ And there’s a mighty difference between a living thump and a dead thump.

『嘿，』我想，『有什麼好吵的？那又不是真腿，只是條假腿。』而活物的一擊和死物的一擊，可是大不相同。

That’s what makes a blow from the hand, Flask, fifty times more savage to bear than a blow from a cane. The living member—that makes the living insult, my little man.

這就是為什麼，弗拉斯克，挨手掌打，要比挨手杖打野蠻五十倍。活的肢體——才造成活的侮辱，我的小個子。

And thinks I to myself all the while, mind, while I was stubbing my silly toes against that cursed pyramid—so confoundedly contradictory was it all, all the while, I say, I was thinking to myself, ‘what’s his leg now, but a cane—a whalebone cane.

而我一邊拿我的傻腳趾去撞那座該死的金字塔，心裡卻一直在想——這一切矛盾得要命——我是說，我一直在心裡盤算：『他那條腿如今算什麼，不就是條手杖嘛——一條鯨骨手杖。

Yes,’ thinks I, ‘it was only a playful cudgelling—in fact, only a whaleboning that he gave me—not a base kick. Besides,’ thinks I, ‘look at it once; why, the end of it—the foot part—what a small sort of end it is; whereas, if a broad footed farmer kicked me, there’s a devilish broad insult. But this insult is whittled down to a point only.’

對，』我想，『那只是鬧著玩的一棍——其實，他不過給了我一頓「鯨骨敲」罷了——不是什麼下作的踢。再說，』我想，『你瞧瞧它——那末端、那腳的部分——是多小的一個尖端啊；換了個寬腳板的農夫踹我，那才是天大寬的侮辱；可這侮辱被削尖成了一個點而已。』

But now comes the greatest joke of the dream, Flask. While I was battering away at the pyramid, a sort of badger-haired old merman, with a hump on his back, takes me by the shoulders, and slews me round. ‘What are you ’bout?’ says he. Slid! man, but I was frightened. Such a phiz!

可現在夢裡最大的笑點來了，弗拉斯克。我正猛敲那金字塔，一個獾毛似的、背上駝著個峰的老人魚，一把抓住我的肩膀，把我扭了過來。『你在幹嘛？』他說。媽呀！老兄，我可嚇壞了。好一張怪臉！

But, somehow, next moment I was over the fright. ‘What am I about?’ says I at last. ‘And what business is that of yours, I should like to know, Mr. Humpback? Do you want a kick?’

可不知怎地，下一刻我就不怕了。『我在幹嘛？』我終於說。『這干你什麼事，我倒想知道，駝背先生？你想挨踢嗎？』

By the lord, Flask, I had no sooner said that, than he turned round his stern to me, bent over, and dragging up a lot of seaweed he had for a clout—what do you think, I saw?—why thunder alive, man, his stern was stuck full of marlinspikes, with the points out.

我的天，弗拉斯克，我這話一出口，他就把屁股轉向我、彎下腰、撩起他當遮布用的一大把海草——你猜我看見了什麼？——天打雷劈，老兄，他那屁股上密密插滿了索針，尖頭全朝外！

Says I, on second thoughts, ‘I guess I won’t kick you, old fellow.’ ‘Wise Stubb,’ said he, ‘wise Stubb;’ and kept muttering it all the time, a sort of eating of his own gums like a chimney hag.

我一轉念便說：『老兄，我看還是不踢你了。』『聰明的斯塔布，』他說，『聰明的斯塔布』——他一直這麼喃喃念著，像個煙囪老巫婆似的，嚼著自己的牙齦。

Seeing he wasn’t going to stop saying over his ‘wise Stubb, wise Stubb,’ I thought I might as well fall to kicking the pyramid again. But I had only just lifted my foot for it, when he roared out, ‘Stop that kicking!’ ‘Halloa,’ says I, ‘what’s the matter now, old fellow?’

見他「聰明的斯塔布、聰明的斯塔布」沒完沒了，我想那不如再去踢那金字塔吧。可我才剛抬起腳，他就吼起來：『別再踢了！』『喂，』我說，『又怎麼啦，老兄？』

‘Look ye here,’ says he; ‘let’s argue the insult. Captain Ahab kicked ye, didn’t he?’ ‘Yes, he did,’ says I—‘right here it was.’ ‘Very good,’ says he—‘he used his ivory leg, didn’t he?’ ‘Yes, he did,’ says I.

『你聽好，』他說，『咱們來論一論這場侮辱。亞哈船長踢了你，是吧？』『對，他踢了，』我說——『就踢在這兒。』『很好，』他說——『他用的是他那條象牙腿，是吧？』『對，是的，』我說。

‘Well then,’ says he, ‘wise Stubb, what have you to complain of? Didn’t he kick with right good will? it wasn’t a common pitch pine leg he kicked with, was it? No, you were kicked by a great man, and with a beautiful ivory leg, Stubb. It’s an honor; I consider it an honor.

『那麼，』他說，『聰明的斯塔布，你有什麼好抱怨的？他不是卯足了勁踢嗎？他踢你用的可不是條普通的松木腿，對吧？不，你是被一位偉人、用一條漂亮的象牙腿踢的，斯塔布。這是榮耀；我視之為一種榮耀。

Listen, wise Stubb. In old England the greatest lords think it great glory to be slapped by a queen, and made garter-knights of; but, be your boast, Stubb, that ye were kicked by old Ahab, and made a wise man of.

聽著，聰明的斯塔布。在古英格蘭，最大的貴族都把被女王賜掌、受封為嘉德騎士當作莫大的榮光；可你斯塔布要引以為傲的是：你被老亞哈踢了、還因此被造就成了個聰明人。

Remember what I say; be kicked by him; account his kicks honors; and on no account kick back; for you can’t help yourself, wise Stubb. Don’t you see that pyramid?’

記住我說的話：讓他踢；把他的踢當作榮耀；無論如何絕不要回踢——因為你也無能為力，聰明的斯塔布。你沒看見那座金字塔嗎？』

With that, he all of a sudden seemed somehow, in some queer fashion, to swim off into the air. I snored; rolled over; and there I was in my hammock! Now, what do you think of that dream, Flask?”

說著，他忽然以某種古怪的方式，彷彿就那麼游進了空中。我打了個鼾、翻了個身——人就在我的吊床裡了！喏，你覺得這夢怎麼樣，弗拉斯克？」

“I don’t know; it seems a sort of foolish to me, tho.’”

「我不知道；不過我倒覺得它有點蠢。」

“May be; may be. But it’s made a wise man of me, Flask. D’ye see Ahab standing there, sideways looking over the stern? Well, the best thing you can do, Flask, is to let the old man alone; never speak to him, whatever he says. Halloa! What’s that he shouts? Hark!”

「也許吧；也許吧。可它把我變成了個聰明人，弗拉斯克。瞧見亞哈站那兒、側身望著船尾沒？喏，你最好別去惹那老頭，弗拉斯克；不管他說什麼，都別跟他搭腔。喂！他在喊什麼？聽！」

“Mast-head, there! Look sharp, all of ye! There are whales hereabouts!

「桅頂上的！都給我盯緊了，你們所有人！這一帶有鯨！

“If ye see a white one, split your lungs for him!

「要是看見一條白的，就為牠喊破你的喉嚨！」

“What do you think of that now, Flask? ain’t there a small drop of something queer about that, eh? A white whale—did ye mark that, man? Look ye—there’s something special in the wind. Stand by for it, Flask. Ahab has that that’s bloody on his mind. But, mum; he comes this way.”

「你看這會兒怎麼樣，弗拉斯克？這裡頭沒有一小滴怪味兒嗎，嗯？一條白鯨——你聽清楚了沒，老兄？瞧著吧——這風裡有點不尋常的東西。準備著吧，弗拉斯克。亞哈心裡頭有件血腥的事。可是，噓——他往這邊來了。」