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第16部分

the red one(红色的那人)-第16部分

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autumn snow。        Those below; without firewood; on the bitter rim of Crater 

Lake; heard from the driving obscurity above them a weird voice chanting: 

       〃Like Argus of the ancient times; We leave this modern Greece; Tum… 

tum; tum…tum; tum; tum; tum…tum; To shear the Golden Fleece。〃 

       And out of the snow flurries they saw appear a tall; gaunt form; with 

whiskers   of   flying   white   that   blended   with   the   storm;   bending   under   a 

sixty…pound pack of camp dunnage。 

     〃Father Christmas!〃 was the hail。           And then:      〃Three rousing cheers 

for Father Christmas!〃 

     Two miles beyond Crater Lake lay Happy Camp … so named because 

here was found the uppermost fringe of the timber line; where men might 

warm themselves by fire again。            Scarcely could it be called timber; for it 

was a dwarf rock…spruce that never raised its loftiest branches higher than 

a foot above the moss; and that twisted and grovelled like a pig…vegetable 

under the moss。       Here; on the trail leading into Happy Camp; in the first 

sunshine of half a dozen days; Old Tarwater rested his pack against a huge 

boulder and caught his breath。         Around this boulder the trail passed; laden 

men     toiling  slowly    forward    and   men    with   empty    pack…straps    limping 

rapidly back for fresh loads。         Twice Old Tarwater essayed to rise and go 

on;   and   each   time;   warned   by   his   shakiness;   sank   back   to   recover   more 

strength。      From      around    the   boulder     he   heard    voices    in  greeting; 

recognized Charles Crayton's voice; and realized that at last they had met 

up   with Young   Liverpool。       Quickly;   Charles   plunged   into   business;   and 

Tarwater heard with great distinctness every word of Charles' unflattering 

description of him and the proposition to give him passage to Dawson。 



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     〃A   dam   fool   proposition;〃   was   Liverpool's   judgment;   when   Charles 

had concluded。        〃An   old granddad of seventy!           If   he's on   his last   legs; 

why in hell did you hook up with him?                If there's going to be a famine; 

and it looks like it; we need every ounce of grub for ourselves。                  We only 

out…fitted for four; not five。〃 

     〃It's   all   right;〃   Tarwater   heard   Charles   assuring   the   other。   〃Don't   get 

excited。     The old codger agreed to leave the final decision to you when 

we caught up with you。           All you've got to do is put your foot down and 

say no。〃 

     〃You     mean    it's  up   to  me    to  turn   the  old   one   down;     after  your 

encouraging him and taking advantage of his work clear from Dyea here?〃 

     〃It's   a   hard   trail;   Liverpool;   and   only   the   men   that   are   hard   will   get 

through;〃 Charles strove to palliate。 

     〃And      I'm   to  do   the   dirty   work?〃     Liverpool      complained;      while 

Tarwater's heart sank。 

     〃That's    just  about    the  size   of  it;〃  Charles    said。   〃You've      got  the 

deciding。〃 

     Then old Tarwater's heart uprose again as the air was rent by a cyclone 

of   profanity;  from  the   midst   of   which   crackled sentences   like:       …   〃Dirty 

skunks! 。 。 。 See you in hell first! 。 。 。 My mind's made up! 。 。 。 Hell's fire 

and corruption! 。 。 。 The old codger goes down the Yukon with us; stack on 

that; my hearty! 。 。 。 Hard?          You don't know what hard is unless I show 

you! 。 。 。 I'll bust the whole outfit to hell and gone if any of you try to side… 

track him! 。 。 。 Just try to side…track him; that is all; and you'll think the 

Day   of   Judgment   and   all   God's   blastingness   has   hit   the   camp   in   one 

chunk!〃 

     Such was the invigoratingness of Liverpool's flow of speech that; quite 

without consciousness of   effort;  the   old   man   arose   easily  under his  load 

and strode on toward Happy Camp。 

     From Happy Camp to Long Lake; from Long Lake to Deep Lake; and 

from Deep Lake up over the enormous hog…back and down to Linderman; 

the man…killing race against winter kept on。              Men broke their hearts and 

backs   and   wept   beside   the   trail   in   sheer   exhaustion。   But   winter   never 

faltered。     The   fall   gales   blew;   and   amid   bitter   soaking   rains   and   ever… 



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increasing snow flurries; Tarwater and the party to which he was attached 

piled the last of their outfit on the beach。 

     There was no rest。         Across the lake; a mile above a roaring torrent; 

they located a patch of spruce and built their saw…pit。 Here; by hand; with 

an inadequate whipsaw; they sawed the spruce… trunks into lumber。                      They 

worked night and day。          Thrice; on the night…shift; underneath in the saw… 

pit;   Old   Tarwater     fainted。    By     day   he   cooked    as   well;   and;   in  the 

betweenwhiles; helped Anson in the building of the boat beside the torrent 

as the green planks came down。 

     The   days   grew   shorter。     The   wind   shifted   into   the   north   and   blew 

unending      gales。    In   the  mornings      the  weary    men    crawled     from   their 

blankets   and   in    their   socks   thawed    out   their   frozen   shoes   by   the  fire 

Tarwater always had burning for them。               Ever arose the increasing tale of 

famine on the Inside。         The last grub steamboats up from Bering Sea were 

stalled by low water at the beginning of the Yukon Flats hundreds of miles 

north   of   Dawson。      In   fact;   they   lay   at   the   old   Hudson   Bay   Company's 

post at Fort Yukon inside the Arctic Circle。              Flour in Dawson was up to 

two   dollars    a  pound;    but   no  one    would    sell。  Bonanza      and   Eldorado 

Kings;   with   money   to   burn;   were   leaving   for   the   Outside   because   they 

could   buy   no   grub。   Miners'   Committees   were   confiscating   all   grub   and 

putting the population on strict rations。           A man who held out an ounce of 

grub was shot like a dog。         A score had been so executed already。 

     And;   under   a   strain   which   had   broken   so   many   younger   men;   Old 

Tarwater began to break。          His cough had become terrible; and had not his 

exhausted comrades slept like the dead; he would have kept them awake 

nights。    Also; he began to take chills; so that he dressed up to go to bed。 

When he had finished so dressing; not a rag of garment remained in his 

clothes bag。       All he possessed was on his back and swathed around his 

gaunt old form。 

     〃Gee!〃   said   Big   Bill。   〃If   he   puts   all   he's   got   on   now;   when   it   ain't 

lower than twenty above; what'll he do later on when it goes down to fifty 

and sixty below?〃 

     They   lined   the   rough…made   boat   down   the   mountain   torrent;   nearly 

losing it a dozen times; and rowed across the south end of Lake Linderman 



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in   the   thick   of   a   fall   blizzard。 Next   morning   they   planned   to   load   and 

start; squarely into the teeth of the north; on their perilous traverse of half 

a   thousand   miles   of   lakes   and   rapids   and   box   canyons。    But   before   he 

went   to   bed   that   night;   Young   Liverpool   was   out   over   the   camp。     He 

returned to find his whole party asleep。            Rousing Tarwater; he talked with 

him in low tones。 

     〃Listen; dad;〃 he said。 … 〃You've got a passage in our boat; and if ever a 

man   earned   a   passage   you   have。     But   you   know   yourself   you're   pretty 

well along in years; and your health right now ain't exciting。                If you go on 

with us you'll croak surer'n hell。 … Now wait till I finish; dad。                The price 

for a passage has jumped to five hundred dollars。                I've been throwing my 

feet    and   I've   hustled    a  passenger。      He's    an   official   of   the  Alaska 

Commercial and just has to get in。            He's bid up to six hundred to go with 

me in our boat。       Now the passage is yours。           You sell it to him; poke the 

six hundred into your jeans; and pull South for California while the goin's 

good。     You can be in Dyea in two days; and in California in a week more。 

What d'ye say?〃 

     Tarwater coughed and shivered for a space; ere he could get freedom 

of breath for speech。 

     〃Son;〃   he   said;   〃I   just   want   to   tell   you   one  thing。 I   drove   my   four 

yoke of oxen across the Plains in Forty…nine and lost nary a one。                   I drove 

them   plumb   to     Californy;   and   I   freighted   with   them   afterward   out     of 

Sutter's    Fort   to  American      Bar。    Now     I'm   going    to  Klondike。      Ain't 

nothing can stop me; ain't nothing at all。           I'm going to ride that boat; with 

you at the steering sweep; clean to Klondike; and I'm going to shake three 

hundred thousand out of the moss…roots。                That being so; it's contrary to 

reason and common sense for me to sell out my passage。                   But I thank you 

kindly; son; I thank you kindly。〃 

     The   young   sailor   shot   out   his   hand   impulsively   and   gripped   the   old 

man's。 

     〃By God; dad!〃 he cried。          〃You're sure going to go then。           You're the 

real stuff。〃    He looked with undisguised contempt across the sleepers to 

where   Charles   Crayton   snored   in   his   red   

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