Not at all; and therein consisted his chief peculiarity. He would say the most terrific things to his crew, in a tone so strangely compounded of fun and fury, and the fury seemed so calculated merely as a spice to the fun, that no oarsman could hear such queer invocations without pulling for dear life, and yet pulling for the mere joke of the thing. Besides he all the time looked so easy and indolent himself, so loungingly managed his steering-oar, and so broadly gaped-- open-mouthed at times--that the mere sight of such a yawning commander, by sheer force of contrast, acted like a charm upon the crew. Then again, Stubb was one of those oddsort of humorists, whose jollity is sometimes so curiously ambiguous, as to put all inferiors on their guardin the matter of obeying them.
完全不是這樣,這就是他的主要的特色。他會對他的水手說出最可怕的話來,腔調非常奇特,其中既含有開玩笑又象冒火,而且那種冒火也冒得象是完全只給開玩笑添加情趣那般,所以任何一個槳手聽到這樣奇怪的咒語,無不拚著性命劃起來,好象只是為了這種笑料才在劃槳。再說,他始終顯得這樣隨便,這樣懶散,撐著他的舵槳也是這樣吊兒郎當,嘴巴張得那么大。時常張開嘴巴。教人一看到這樣一個盡打呵欠的指揮人,就好象他是完全借對比的力量,對他的水手施了魔術。再說一遍,斯塔布是屬于罕見的幽默家一類的,他的嘻嘻哈哈的態(tài)度有時竟是這樣出奇地含含糊糊,好象要使他所有的下屬都得小心聽從他的命令似的。
In obedience to a sign from Ahab, Starbuck was now pulling obliquely across Stubb's bow; and when for a minute or so the two boats were pretty near to each other, Stubb hailed the mate.
聽從了亞哈的手勢,斯達巴克現(xiàn)在正打斜地掠過斯塔布的船頭;當兩只小艇在分把鐘里彼此靠得很攏的時候,斯塔布向這個大副招呼了。
Mr. Starbuck! larboard boat there, ahoy! a word with ye, sir, if ye please!
"斯達巴克先生!喂,左邊的小艇呀!跟你說一句話,你可要聽呀?"
Halloa! returned Starbuck, turning round not a single inch as he spoke; still earnestly but whisperingly urging his crew; his face set like a flint from Stubb's.
"好呀!"斯達巴克回答道,他答話的時候,連頭也不回過來;他還在用心而悄悄地催促著他的水手;他的臉色顯得比斯塔布還要堅決。
What think ye of those yellow boys, sir!
"你對那些個黃漢子是怎么看法,先生!"
Smuggled on board, somehow, before the ship sailed. (Strong, strong, boys!)" in a whisper to his crew, then speaking out loud again: "A sad business, Mr. Stubb! (seethe her, seethe her, my lads!) but never mind, Mr. Stubb, all for the best. Let all your crew pull strong, come what will. (Spring, my men, spring!) There's hogsheads of sperm ahead, Mr. Stubb, and that's what ye came for. (Pull, my boys!) Sperm, sperm's the play! This at least is duty; duty and profit hand in hand."
"走私上來的,大概是在船要開的時候。(用力呀,用力呀,伙伴們?。?quot;他悄悄地對他的水手說后,又大聲地說話了:"這是一件令人憂愁的行當呀,斯塔布先生!(沖過去,沖過去,我的孩子們?。┎贿^,不打緊,斯塔布先生,一切都是天意呀。叫你那些水手加勁劃呀,隨它怎樣吧。(拚命劃呀,大家,拚命劃呀?。┣斑吘褪谴罅康啮L油,斯塔布先生,你就是為這個來的呀。(劃呀,我的伙伴們!)鯨油,鯨油才是正經(jīng)活兒??!這至少也是本份呀;本份可跟利益分不開的。"