英語聽書《白鯨記》第16期

Arter that, Sal said it wouldn't do. Come along here,I'll give ye a glim in a jiffy;" and so saying he lighteda candle and held it towards me, offering to lead theway. But I stood irresolute; when looking at a clockin the corner, he exclaimed "I vum it's Sunday—youwon't see that harpooneer to-night; he's come toanchor somewhere—come along then; DO come;WON'T ye come?"

I considered the matter a moment, and then upstairs we went, and I was ushered into a small room,cold as a clam, and furnished, sure enough, with aprodigious bed, almost big enough indeed for any four harpooneers to sleep abreast.

"There," said the landlord, placing the candle on a crazy old sea chest that did double duty as awash-stand and centre table; "there, make yourself comfortable now, and good night to ye." Iturned round from eyeing the bed, but he had disappeared.

Folding back the counterpane, I stooped over the bed. Though none of the most elegant, it yetstood the scrutiny tolerably well. I then glanced round the room; and besides the bedstead andcentre table, could see no other furniture belonging to the place, but a rude shelf, the fourwalls, and a papered fireboard representing a man striking a whale. Of things not properlybelonging to the room, there was a hammock lashed up, and thrown upon the floor in onecorner; also a large seaman's bag, containing the harpooneer's wardrobe, no doubt in lieu of aland trunk. Likewise, there was a parcel of outlandish bone fish hooks on the shelf over thefire-place, and a tall harpoon standing at the head of the bed.

But what is this on the chest? I took it up, and held it close to the light, and felt it, and smeltit, and tried every way possible to arrive at some satisfactory conclusion concerning it. I cancompare it to nothing but a large door mat, ornamented at the edges with little tinkling tagssomething like the stained porcupine quills round an Indian moccasin. There was a hole or slitin the middle of this mat, as you see the same in South American ponchos. But could it bepossible that any sober harpooneer would get into a door mat, and parade the streets of anyChristian town in that sort of guise? I put it on, to try it, and it weighed me down like ahamper, being uncommonly shaggy and thick, and I thought a little damp, as though thismysterious harpooneer had been wearing it of a rainy day. I went up in it to a bit of glassstuck against the wall, and I never saw such a sight in my life. I tore myself out of it in such ahurry that I gave myself a kink in the neck.

I sat down on the side of the bed, and commenced thinking about this head-peddlingharpooneer, and his door mat. After thinking some time on the bed-side, I got up and took offmy monkey jacket, and then stood in the middle of the room thinking. I then took off my coat,and thought a little more in my shirt sleeves. But beginning to feel very cold now, halfundressed as I was, and remembering what the landlord said about the harpooneer's notcoming home at all that night, it being so very late, I made no more ado, but jumped out of mypantaloons and boots, and then blowing out the light tumbled into bed, and commended myselfto the care of heaven.