书城公版Robinson Crusoe
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第9章

I could ha' been content to ha' taken this Moor with me,and ha' drown'd the Boy,but there was no venturing to trust him:When he was gone I turn'd to the Boy,who they call'd Xury,and said to him,Xury,if you will be faithful to me I'll make you a great man,but if you will not stroak our Face to be true to me,that is,swear by Mahomet and is Father's Beard,I must throw you into the Sea too;the boy smil'd in my Face and spoke so innocently that I could mistrust him;and swore to be faithful to me,and go all over the World with me.

While I was in View of the Moor that was swimming,I stood out directly to Sea with the Boat,rather stretching to Windward,that they might think me gone towards the Straits-mouth (as indeed any one that had been in their wits must ha' been supposed to do),or who would ha' suppos'd we were sail'd on to the southward to the truly Barbarian Coast,where whole Nations of Negroes were sure to surround us with their Canoes,and destroy us;where we could ne'er once go on shoar but we should be devour'd by savage Beasts,or more merciless Savages of humane kind.

But as soon as it grew dusk in the Evening,I chang'd my Course,and steer'd directly South and by East,bending my Course a little toward the East,that I might keep in with the Shoar;and having a fair fresh Gale of Wind,and a smooth quiet Sea,I made such Sail that I believe by the next Day at Three a Clock in the Afternoon,when I first made the Land,I could not be less than 150 Miles South of Sallee;quite beyond the Emperor of Morocco's Dominions,or indeed of any other King thereabouts,for we saw no People.

Yet such was the Fright I had taken at the Moors,and the dreadful Apprehensions I had of falling into their Hands,that I would not stop,or go on Shoar,or come to an Anchor;the Wind continuing fair,'till I had sail'd in that manner five Days:And then the Wind shifting to the southward,I concluded also that if any of our Vessels were in Chase of me,they also would now give over;so I ventur'd to make to the Coast,and came to an Anchor in the Mouth of a little River,I knew not what,or where;neither what Latitude,what Country,what Nations,or what River:I neither saw,or desir'd to see any People,the principal thing I wanted was fresh Water:We came into this Creek in the Evening,resolving to swim on shoar as soon as it was dark,and discover the Country;but as soon as it was quite dark,we heard such dreadful Noises of the Barking,Roaring,and Howling of Wild Creatures,of we knew not what Kinds,that the poor Boy was ready to die with Fear,and beg'd of me not to go on shoar till Day;well Xury said I,then I won't,but it may be we may see Men by Day,who will be as bad to us as those Lyons;then me give them the shoot Gun says Xury laughing,make them run wey;such English Xury spoke by conversing among us Slaves;however I was glad to see the Boy so cheerful,and I gave him a Dram (out of our Patroon's Case of Bottles) to chear him up:After all,Xury's Advice was good,and I took it,we dropt our little Anchor and lay still all Night;I say still,for we slept none! for in two or three Hours we saw vast great Creatures (we knew not what to call them) of many sorts,come down to the Sea-shoar and run into the Water,wallowing and washing themselves for the Pleasure of cooling themselves;and they made such hideous Howlings and Yellings,that I never indeed heard the like.

Xury was dreadfully frighted,and indeed so was I too;but we were both more frighted when we heard one of these mighty Creatures come swimming towards our Boat,we could not see him,but we might hear him by his blowing to be a monstrous,huge and furious Beast;Xury said it was a Lyon,and it might be so for ought I know;but poor Xury cryed to me to weigh the Anchor and row away;no says I,Xury,we can slip our Cable with the Buoy to it and go off to Sea,they cannot follow us far;I had no sooner said so,but I perceiv'd the Creature (whatever it was) within Two Oars Length,which something surprized me;however I immediately stept to the Cabbin-door,and taking up my un fir'd at him,upon which he immediately turn'd about and swam towards the Shoar again.

But it is impossible to describe the horrible Noises,and hideous Cryes and Howlings,that were raised as well upon the Edge of the Shoar,as higher within the Country;upon the Noise or Report of the Gun,a Thing I have some Reason to believe those Creatures had never heard before:This Convinc'd me that there was no going on Shoar for us in the Night upon that Coast,and how to venture on Shoar in the Day was another Question too;for to have fallen into the Hands of any of the Savages,had been as bad as to have fallen into the Hands of Lyons and Tygers;at least we were equally apprehensive of the Danger of it.

Be that as it would,we were oblig'd to go on Shoar somewhere or other for Water,for we had not a Pint left in the Boat;when or where to get to it was the Point:Xury said,if I would let him go on Shoar with one of the Jarrs,he would find if there was any Water and bring some to me. I ask'd him why he would go? Why I should not go and he stay in the Boat? The Boy answer'd with so much Affection that made me love him ever after. Says he,If wild Mans come,they eat me,you go wey. Well,Xury,said I,we will both go,and if the wild Mans come we will kill them,they shall eat neither of us;so I gave Xury a piece of Rusk-bread to Eat and a Dram out of our Patroon's Case of Bottles which I mentioned before;and we hal'd the Boat in as near the Shoar as we thought was proper,and so waded on Shoar,carrying nothing but our Arms and two Jarrs for Water.