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 'I
  
 should
  
 go
  
 away,
  
 Captain
  
 Cuttle,
 '
  
 said
  
 Walter.
 'Dursn't
  
 do
  
 it,
  
 Wal'r,
 '
  
 returned
  
 the
  
 Captain.
  
 'She'd
  
 find
  
 me
  
 out,
  
 wherever
  
 I
  
 went.
  
 Sit
  
 down.
  
 How's
  
 Gills?
 '
  
 “我就要离开这里,卡特尔船长,”沃尔特说道。“别走,沃尔,”船长回答道。“我不论走到哪里,她都会把我找到的。请坐。吉尔斯好吗?”
  
 The
  
 Captain
  
 was
  
 dining
  (
 in
  
 his
  
 hat)
  
 off
  
 cold
  
 loin
  
 of
  
 mutton,
  
 porter,
  
 and
  
 some
  
 smoking
  
 hot
  
 potatoes,
  
 which
  
 he
  
 had
  
 cooked
  
 himself,
  
 and
  
 took
  
 out
  
 of
  
 a
  
 little
  
 saucepan
  
 before
  
 the
  
 fire
  
 as
  
 he
  
 wanted
  
 them.
  
 He
  
 unscrewed
  
 his
  
 hook
  
 at
  
 dinner-
 time,
  
 and
  
 screwed
  
 a
  
 knife
  
 into
  
 its
  
 wooden
  
 socket
  
 instead,
  
 with
  
 which
  
 he
  
 had
  
 already
  
 begun
  
 to
  
 peel
  
 one
  
 of
  
 these
  
 potatoes
  
 for
  
 Walter.
  
 His
  
 rooms
  
 were
  
 very
  
 small,
  
 and
  
 strongly
  
 impregnated
  
 with
  
 tobacco-
 smoke,
  
 but
  
 snug
  
 enough:
  
 everything
  
 being
  
 stowed
  
 away,
  
 as
  
 if
  
 there
  
 were
  
 an
  
 earthquake
  
 regularly
  
 every
  
 half-
 hour.
  
 船长戴着帽子,正在吃午饭:冷的羊腰子、黑啤酒和几个冒着热气的土豆。土豆是他自己煮的,他需要吃的时候,就从火炉前面的一只有柄的小平底锅中取出。吃饭的时候,他解下钩子,把一把小刀插进木制的插口里;他已经用这把小刀开始为沃尔特把一个土豆的皮剥去了。他的房间很小,充满了浓烈的吸烟草散发出的气味,但却十分温暖舒适。所有的东西都收藏了起来,仿佛这里每隔半小时就要发生一次地震似的。
  
 'How's
  
 Gills?
 '
  
 inquired
  
 the
  
 Captain.
  
 “吉尔斯好吗?”船长问道。
  
 Walter,
  
 who
  
 had
  
 by
  
 this
  
 time
  
 recovered
  
 his
  
 breath,
  
 and
  
 lost
  
 his
  
 spirits
  -
  
 or
  
 such
  
 temporary
  
 spirits
  
 as
  
 his
  
 rapid
  
 journey
  
 had
  
 given
  
 him
  -
  
 looked
  
 at
  
 his
  
 questioner
  
 for
  
 a
  
 moment,
  
 said
  
 'Oh,
  
 Captain
  
 Cuttle!
 '
  
 and
  
 burst
  
 into
  
 tears.
  
 沃尔特这时已经缓过气来,但却丧失了情绪——或者可以说是丧失了一种由于急速赶路而暂时振奋起来的情绪。他向问他的人望了一会儿,说道,“啊,卡特尔船长!”然后,就流出了眼泪。
  
 No
  
 words
  
 can
  
 describe
  
 the
  
 Captain's
  
 consternation
  
 at
  
 this
  
 sight
  
 Mrs
  
 MacStinger
  
 faded
  
 into
  
 nothing
  
 before
  
 it.
  
 He
  
 dropped
  
 the
  
 potato
  
 and
  
 the
  
 fork
  -
  
 and
  
 would
  
 have
  
 dropped
  
 the
  
 knife
  
 too
  
 if
  
 he
  
 could
  -
  
 and
  
 sat
  
 gazing
  
 at
  
 the
  
 boy,
  
 as
  
 if
  
 he
  
 expected
  
 to
  
 hear
  
 next
  
 moment
  
 that
  
 a
  
 gulf
  
 had
  
 opened
  
 in
  
 the
  
 City,
  
 which
  
 had
  
 swallowed
  
 up
  
 his
  
 old
  
 friend,
  
 coffee-
 coloured
  
 suit,
  
 buttons,
  
 chronometer,
  
 spectacles,
  
 and
  
 all.
  
 船长看到这种情景时的惊恐是不能用言语形容的。面对着这种情形,麦克斯廷杰太太已完全消失了。土豆和叉子从他手中掉下——如果可能的话,小刀也会掉下的——,他坐在那里凝视着这个孩子,仿佛他预料立刻就会听到,城里的土地已经裂开一个深坑,它已经把他的老朋友、他的咖啡色外衣、钮扣、精密计时表、眼镜以及一切都吞没了。
  
 But
  
 when
  
 Walter
  
 told
  
 him
  
 what
  
 was
  
 really
  
 the
  
 matter,
  
 Captain
  
 Cuttle,
  
 after
  
 a
  
 moment's
  
 reflection,
  
 started
  
 up
  
 into
  
 full
  
 activity.
  
 He
  
 emptied
  
 out
  
 of
  
 a
  
 little
  
 tin
  
 canister
  
 on
  
 the
  
 top
  
 shelf
  
 of
  
 the
  
 cupboard,
  
 his
  
 whole
  
 stock
  
 of
  
 ready
  
 money
  (
 amounting
  
 to
  
 thirteen
  
 pounds
  
 and
  
 half-
 a-
 crown),
  
 which
  
 he
  
 transferred
  
 to
  
 one
  
 of
  
 the
  
 pockets
  
 of
  
 his
  
 square
  
 blue
  
 coat;
  
 further
  
 enriched
  
 that
  
 repository
  
 with
  
 the
  
 contents
  
 of
  
 his
  
 plate
  
 chest,
  
 consisting
  
 of
  
 two
  
 withered
  
 atomies
  
 of
  
 tea-
 spoons,
  
 and
  
 an
  
 obsolete
  
 pair
  
 of
  
 knock-
 knee'd
  
 sugar-
 tongs;
  
 pulled
  
 up
  
 his
  
 immense
  
 double-
 cased
  
 silver
  
 watch
  
 from
  
 the
  
 depths
  
 in
  
 which
  
 it
  
 reposed,
  
 to
  
 assure
  
 himself
  
 that
  
 that
  
 valuable
  
 was
  
 sound
  
 and
  
 whole;
  
 
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