or the runaways to send me aloft as look-out. Utrom ischezla lodka nomer tri, a s neyu -- Dzhonson i Lich. Odnovremenno ischezli ankerki s vodoj i yashchiki s proviziej so vseh ostal'nyh shlyupok, a takzhe postel'nye prinadlezhnosti i sunduchki oboih beglecov. Volk Larsen neistovstvoval. On postavil parusa i pomchalsya na zapad-severo-zapad. Dvoe ohotnikov ne shodili s salinga, osmatrivaya more v binokl', a sam on, kak raz®yarennyj lev, metalsya po palube. On slishkom horosho znal moyu simpatiyu k beglecam, chtoby poslat' nablyudayushchim menya. The wind was fair but fitful, and it was like looking for a needle in a haystack to raise that tiny boat out of the blue immensity. But he put the Ghost through her best paces so as to get between the deserters and the land. This accomplished, he cruised back and forth across what he knew must be their course. Veter byl svezhij, no ne rovnyj, i legche bylo by najti igolku v stoge sena, chem kroshechnuyu shlyupku v bespredel'nom sinem prostore. No kapitan staralsya vyzhat' iz "Prizraka" vse, chto mog, i otrezat' beglecov ot sushi. Kogda, po ego raschetam, emu eto udalos', on stal krejsirovat' poperek ih predpolagaemogo puti. On the morning of the third day, shortly after eight bells, a cry that the boat was sighted came down from Smoke at the masthead. All hands lined the rail. A snappy breeze was blowing from the west with the promise of more wind behind it; and there, to leeward, in the troubled silver of the rising sun, appeared and disappeared a black speck. Na utro tret'ego dnya, edva probilo vosem' sklyanok, Smok kriknul s salinga, chto vidna shlyupka. Vse stolpilis' u borta. Rezkij veter dul s zapada i krepchal, predveshchaya shtorm. I vot, s podvetrennoj storony, na fone voln, pozolochennyh pervymi luchami solnca, nachala poyavlyat'sya i ischezat' chernaya tochka. We squared away and ran for it. My heart was as lead. I felt myself turning sick in anticipation; and as I looked at the gleam of triumph in Wolf Larsen's eyes, his form swam before me, and I felt almost irresistibly impelled to fling myself upon him. So unnerved was I by the thought of impending violence to Leach and Johnson that my reason must have left me. I know that I slipped down into the steerage in a daze, and that I was just beginning the ascent to the deck, a loaded shot-gun in my hands, when I heard the startled cry: My izmenili kurs i pomchalis' k nej. U menya bylo tyazhelo na dushe. YA videl torzhestvuyushchij blesk v glazah Volka Larsena i, vnezapno ohvachennyj mrachnym predchuvstviem, oshchutil nepreodolimoe zhelanie kinut'sya na etogo cheloveka. Mysl' o sud'be Licha i Dzhonsona tak vzvolnovala menya, chto razum moj pomutilsya. Figura Larsena poplyla u menya pered glazami, i, ne pomnya sebya, ya brosilsya v kubrik ohotnikov i gotov uzhe byl vyskochit' na palubu s zaryazhennym ruzh'em v rukah, kak vdrug uslyhal chej-to izumlennyj vozglas: "There's five men in that boat!" -- Na shlyupke pyat' chelovek! I supported myself in the companion-way, weak and trembling, while the observation was being verified by the remarks of the rest of the men. Then my knees gave from under me and I sank down, myself again, but overcome by shock at knowledge of what I had so nearly done. Also, I was very thankful as I put the gun away and slipped back on deck. YA zadrozhal i uhvatilsya za trap, prislushivayas' k golosam na palube, podtverzhdavshim sdelannoe kem-to otkrytie. Zatem strashnaya slabost' vdrug ohvatila menya, koleni podognulis', ya opustilsya na stupen'ki i tol'ko tut okonchatel'no prishel v sebya i sodrognulsya pri mysli o tom, chto ya gotov byl sovershit'. Vozblagodariv sud'bu, ya polozhil ruzh'e na mesto i podnyalsya na palubu. No one had remarked my absence. The boat was near enough for us to make out that it was larger than any sealing boat and built on different lines. As we drew closer, the sail was taken in and the mast unstepped. Oars were shipped, and its occupants waited for us to heave to and take them aboard. Nikto ne zametil moego otsutstviya. SHlyupka byla teper' uzhe blizko, i ya uvidel, chto ona krupnee ohotnich'ej i postroena inache. Kogda ona pochti sovsem priblizilas' k nam, na nej ubrali parus i snyali machtu. Vstaviv vesla v uklyuchiny, lyudi v lodke zhdali, poka my lyazhem v drejf i voz'mem ih na bort. Smoke, who had descended to the deck and was now standing by my side, began to chuckle in a significant way. I looked at him inquiringly. Smok uzhe spustilsya na palubu i stoyal teper' ryadom so mnoj; on mnogoznachitel'no uhmyl'nulsya. YA voprositel'no vzglyanul na nego. "Talk of a mess!" he giggled. -- Nu i zavaritsya kasha! -- hmyknul on. "What's wrong?" I demanded. -- V chem delo? -- sprosil ya. Again he chuckled. "Don't you see there, in the stern-sheets, on the bottom? May I never shoot a seal again if that ain't a woman!" On snova hmyknul. -- Razve ne vidite, kto tam na korme? CHtob mne ne ubit' bol'she ni odnogo kotika, esli eto ne zhenshchina! I looked closely, but was not sure until exclamations broke out on all sides. The boat contained four men, and its fifth occupant was certainly a woman. We were agog with excitement, all except Wolf Larsen, who was too evidently disappointed in that it was not his own boat with the two victims of his malice. YA vglyadelsya, no ne srazu smog chto-nibud' razlichit'. Odnako vse vokrug govorili, chto v lodke chetvero muzhchin, a na korme, po-vidimomu, -- zhenshchina. |to otkrytie vzvolnovalo vseh, za isklyucheniem Volka Larsena, kotoryj byl yavno razocharovan tem, chto eto ne ego shlyupka i emu ne na kogo obrushit' svoyu zlobu. We ran down the flying jib, hauled the jib-sheets to wind-ward and the main-sheet flat, and came up into the wind. The oars struck the water, and with a few strokes the boat was alongside. I now caught my first fair glimpse of the woman. She was wrapped in a long ulster, for the morning was raw; and I could see nothing but her face and a mass of light brown hair escaping from under the seaman's cap on her head. The eyes were large and brown and lustrous, the mouth sweet and sensitive, and the face itself a delicate oval, though sun and exposure to briny wind had burnt the face scarlet. My spustili bom-kliver, vybrali kliver-shkot na navetrennyj bort, dobrali grota-shkot i legli v drejf. Vesla opustilis' v vodu, i posle neskol'kih vzmahov shlyupka podoshla k bortu shhuny. Teper' ya uzhe mog luchshe razglyadet' zhenshchinu. Ona kutalas' v dlinnoe shirokoe pal'to, tak kak ugryu bylo holodnoe. YA uvidel ee lico i svetlo-kashtanovye volosy, vybivshiesya izpod morskoj furazhki. U nee byli bol'shie karie blestyashchie glaza, nezhnyj, priyatno ocherchennyj rot i pravil'nyj oval lica, obvetrennogo i obozhzhennogo solncem. She seemed to me like a being from another world. I was aware of a hungry out-reaching for her, as of a starving man for bread. But then, I had not seen a woman for a very long time. I know that I was lost in a great wonder, almost a stupor, - this, then, was a woman? - so that I forgot myself and my mate's duties, and took no part in helping the new-comers aboard. For when one of the sailors lifted her into Wolf Larsen's downstretched arms, she looked up into our curious faces and smiled amusedly and sweetly, as only a woman can smile, and as I had seen no one smile for so long that I had forgotten such smiles existed. Ona pokazalas' mne sushchestvom iz drugogo mira. Menya potyanulo k nej, kak golodnogo k hlebu. Ved' ya tak davno ne videl zhenshchinVsecelo pogloshchennyj etim chudesnym videniem, ya sovershenno zabyl o svoih obyazannostyah pomoshchnika i dazhe ne pomogal podnyat' spasennyh na bort. Kogda odin iz matrosov podhvatil zhenshchinu na ruki i peredal ee Volku Larsenu, ona vzglyanula na nashi ispolnennye lyubopytstva lica i ulybnulas' tak privetlivo i milo, kak mozhet ulybat'sya tol'ko zhenshchina. Kak davno ne videl ya podobnoj ulybkiKazalos', ya uzhe zabyl, chto na svete est' lyudi, kotorye umeyut tak ulybat'sya! "Mr. Van Weyden!" Wolf Larsen's voice brought me sharply back to myself. -- Mister Van-VejdenGolos Larsena vernul menya k dejstvitel'nosti. "Will you take the lady below and see to her comfort? Make up that spare port cabin. Put Cooky to work on it. And see what you can do for that face. It's burned badly." -- Bud'te dobry, provodite etu damu vniz i ustrojte ee poudobnee.Prikazhite prigotovit' svobodnuyu kayutu na levom bortu. Poruchite eto koku. I podumajte, chem vy mozhete pomoch' dame, -- u nee sil'no obozhzheno lico. He turned brusquely away from us and began to question the new men. The boat was cast adrift, though one of them called it a "bloody shame" with Yokohama so near. S etimi slovami on otvernulsya ot nas i prinyalsya rassprashivat' muzhchin. SHlyupka byla broshena na proizvol sud'by, hotya odin iz spasennyh vozmushchalsya etim, tak kak Iokogama byla sovsem blizko. I found myself strangely afraid of this woman I was escorting aft. Also I was awkward. It seemed to me that I was realizing for the first time what a delicate, fragile creature a woman is; and as I caught her arm to help her down the companion stairs, I was startled by its smallness and softness. Indeed, she was a slender, delicate woman as women go, but to me she was so ethereally slender and delicate that I was quite prepared for her arm to crumble in my grasp. All this, in frankness, to show my first impression, after long denial of women in general and of Maud Brewster in particular. Soprovozhdaya neznakomku v kayutu, ya stranno robel i byl nelovok. Mne kak by vpervye otkrylos', kakoe hrupkoe, nezhnoe sozdanie zhenshchina. Pomogaya ej spustit'sya po trapu, ya vzyal ee za ruku, i menya porazilo, kakaya eto malen'kaya, nezhnaya ruchka. Da i sama ona byla udivitel'no tonen'kaya i hrupkaya i kazalas' mne takoj vozdushnoj, chto ya boyalsya razdavit' ee ruku v svoej ruchishche. Vot chto chuvstvoval ya, tak dolgo lishennyj zhenskogo obshchestva, kogda uvidel Mod Bruster -- pervuyu zhenshchinu, vstretivshuyusya na moem puti s teh por, kak ya popal na shhunu. "No need to go to any great trouble for me," she protested, when I had seated her in Wolf Larsen's arm-chair, which I had dragged hastily from his cabin. "The men were looking for land at any moment this morning, and the vessel should be in by night; don't you think so?" -- Vy naprasno tak bespokoites' obo mne, -- zaprotestovala ona, kogda ya usadil ee v kreslo Volka Larsena, kotoroe pospeshil pritashchit' iz ego kayuty. -- Segodnya utrom my kazhduyu minutu ozhidali uvidet' zemlyu i k vecheru, veroyatno, budem uzhe v portu. Ne pravda li? Her simple faith in the immediate future took me aback. How could I explain to her the situation, the strange man who stalked the sea like Destiny, all that it had taken me months to learn? But I answered honestly: Ee spokojnaya uverennost' smutila menya. Kak mog ya ob®yasnit' ej polozhenie veshchej i strashnyj harakter nashego kapitana, kotoryj, podobno zlomu roku, skitalsya po moryam, -- slovom, vse to, chto otkrylos' mne za eti mesyacy? No ya otvetil ej napryamik: "If it were any other captain except ours, I should say you would be ashore in Yokohama to-morrow. But our captain is a strange man, and I beg of you to be prepared for anything - understand? - for anything." -- Bud' u nas drugoj kapitan, ya skazal by, chto zavtra utrom vas dostavyat v Iokogamu. No Larsen chelovek so strannostyami, i ya proshu vas byt' gotovoj ko vsemu. Vy ponimaete, -- ko vsemu! "I - I confess I hardly do understand," she hesitated, a perturbed but not frightened expression in her eyes. "Or is it a misconception of mine that shipwrecked people are always shown every consideration? This is such a little thing, you know. We are so close to land." -- Net, priznayus', ya ne sovsem ponimayu vas, -- otvetila ona. V glazah ee promel'knulo nedoumenie, no ne ispug. -- Byt' mozhet, ya oshibayus', no mne kazalos', chto poterpevshim korablekrushenie vsegda okazyvayut vnimanie. Da i v sushchnosti eto takoj pustyak: ved' my sovsem blizko ot berega. "Candidly, I do not know," I strove to reassure her. "I wished merely to prepare you for the worst, if the worst is to come. This man, this captain, is a brute, a demon, and one can never tell what will be his next fantastic act." -- Pravdu skazat', ya sam nichego ne znayu, -- pospeshil ya uspokoit' ee. -- Mne hotelos' tol'ko na vsyakij sluchaj podgotovit' vas k hudshemu. Nash kapitan -- grubaya skotina, ne chelovek, a d'yavol. Nikto ne znaet, chto mozhet vdrug vzbresti emu na um.) I was growing excited, but she interrupted me with an "Oh, I see," and her voice sounded weary. To think was patently an effort. She was clearly on the verge of physical collapse. YA nachinal volnovat'sya, no ona ustalo prervala menya: -- Da, da, ponimayu! -- Ej, po-vidimomu, trudno bylo sejchas sobrat'sya s myslyami. YA videl, chto ona vot-vot lishitsya chuvstv ot iznemozheniya. She asked no further questions, and I vouchsafed no remark, devoting myself to Wolf Larsen's command, which was to make her comfortable. I bustled about in quite housewifely fashion, procuring soothing lotions for her sunburn, raiding Wolf Larsen's private stores for a bottle of port I knew to be there, and directing Thomas Mugridge in the preparation of the spare state- room. Bol'she ona ni o chem ne sprashivala, i ya, vozderzhavshis' ot dal'nejshih zamechanij, pristupil k ispolneniyu rasporyazhenij Volka Larsena i postaralsya ustroit' ee poudobnee. YA hlopotal vokrug nee, kak zabotlivaya hozyajka: dostal iz aptechki maz' ot ozhogov, velel Tomasu Magridzhu ubrat' svobodnuyu kayutu i, sovershiv nalet na lichnye zapasy Volka Larsena, izvlek ottuda butylku portvejna. The wind was freshening rapidly, the Ghost heeling over more and more, and by the time the state-room was ready she was dashing through the water at a lively clip. I had quite forgotten the existence of Leach and Johnson, when suddenly, like a thunderclap, "Boat ho!" came down the open companion-way. It was Smoke's unmistakable voice, crying from the masthead. I shot a glance at the woman, but she was leaning back in the arm-chair, her eyes closed, unutterably tired. I doubted that she had heard, and I resolved to prevent her seeing the brutality I knew would follow the capture of the deserters. She was tired. Very good. She should sleep. Veter bystro krepchal, kren uvelichilsya, i k tomu vremeni, kogda kayuta byla gotova, "Prizrak" uzhe streloj letel po volnam. YA sovershenno zabyl o sushchestvovanii Licha i Dzhonsona i byl kak gromom porazhen, kogda cherez otkrytyj lyuk donessya vozglas: "SHlyupka vperedi!" Somnenij byt' ne moglo -- eto krichal Smok s machty. YA brosil vzglyad na zhenshchinu: ona sidela smertel'no ustalaya, otkinuvshis' na spinku kresla, zakryv glaza. YA somnevalsya dazhe, slyshala li ona krik Smoka, i reshil, chto ne dopushchu, chtoby ona stala svidetel'nicej zverstv, kotorye neminuemo dolzhny byli posledovat' za poimkoj beglecov. Ona ustala -- i otlichno! Pust' spit! There were swift commands on deck, a stamping of feet and a slapping of reef-points as the Ghost shot into the wind and about on the other tack. As she filled away and heeled, the arm-chair began to slide across the cabin floor, and I sprang for it just in time to prevent the rescued woman from being spilled out. Na palube razdalis' rezkie slova komandy, poslyshalsya topot nog, zahlopali rif-shterty, i "Prizrak" leg na drugoj gals. Pri vnezapnom povorote shhuna nakrenilas', kreslo nachalo skol'zit' po polu, i ya edva uspel podhvatit' zadremavshuyu zhenshchinu, chtoby ne dat' ej svalit'sya na pol. Her eyes were too heavy to suggest more than a hint of the sleepy surprise that perplexed her as she looked up at me, and she half stumbled, half tottered, as I led her to her cabin. Mugridge grinned insinuatingly in my face as I shoved him out and ordered him back to his galley work; and he won his revenge by spreading glowing reports among the hunters as to what an excellent "lydy's- myde" I was proving myself to be. Ona priotkryla glaza i sonno i nedoumenno vzglyanula na menya. YA povel ee v prigotovlennuyu ej kayutu. Ona ele peredvigala nogi i spotykalas' na kazhdom shagu. Magridzh gadko osklabilsya, kogda ya vyprovodil ego iz kayuty i prikazal emu vernut'sya k svoim obyazannostyam. On raskvitalsya so mnoj, raspisav ohotnikam, kakoj prekrasnoj kameristkoj ya okazalsya. She leaned heavily against me, and I do believe that she had fallen asleep again between the arm-chair and the state-room. This I discovered when she nearly fell into the bunk during a sudden lurch of the schooner. She aroused, smiled drowsily, and was off to sleep again; and asleep I left her, under a heavy pair of sailor's blankets, her head resting on a pillow I had appropriated from Wolf Larsen's bunk. Nasha novaya passazhirka, kogda ya vel ee, tyazhelo opiralas' na moyu ruku i, kazhetsya, nachala zasypat', eshche ne dojdya do svoej kayuty. Da, konechno, ona spala na hodu, i kogda shhunu rezko kachnulo, ne ustoyala na nogah i upala na kojku. Potom pripodnyala golovu, ulybnulas' i snova pogruzilas' v son. YA ostavil ee spyashchej pod dvumya tolstymi matrosskimi odeyalami; golova ee pokoilas' na podushke, kotoruyu ya vzyal s kojki Volka Larsena. CHAPTER XIX GLAVA XIX I came on deck to find the Ghost heading up close on the port tack and cutting in to windward of a familiar spritsail close-hauled on the same tack ahead of us. All hands were on deck, for they knew that something was to happen when Leach and Johnson were dragged aboard. Podnyavshis' na palubu, ya uvidel, chto "Prizrak" dogonyaet s navetrennoj storony znakomuyu mne parusnuyu shlyupku, idushchuyu protiv vetra tem zhe galsom, chto i my, no chut' pravee. Vsya komanda byla na palube, vse zhdali, chto proizojdet, kogda Licha i Dzhonsona podnimut na bort. It was four bells. Louis came aft to relieve the wheel. There was a dampness in the air, and I noticed he had on his oilskins. Probilo chetyre sklyanki. Luis prishel na kormu smenit' rulevogo. Vozduh byl vlazhen, i ya zametil, chto Luis nadel kleenchatuyu kurtku i shtany. "What are we going to have?" I asked him. -- CHto nas ozhidaet na etot raz? -- sprosil ya ego. "A healthy young slip of a gale from the breath iv it, sir," he answered, "with a splatter iv rain just to wet our gills an' no more." -- Sudya po vsemu, ser, -- otvechal on, -- nebol'shoj shtorm s dozhdichkom -- kak raz hvatit, chtoby promochit' nam zhabry. "Too bad we sighted them," I said, as the Ghost's bow was flung off a point by a large sea and the boat leaped for a moment past the jibs and into our line of vision. -- Kakaya dosada, chto u nas zametili shlyupku! -- skazal ya. Bol'shaya volna, udariv v nos shhuny, povernula ee primerno na rumb, i shlyupka na mig mel'knula mezhdu kliverami. Louis gave a spoke and temporized. "They'd never iv made the land, sir, I'm thinkin'." Luis perehvatil ruchki shturvala i, pomolchav, skazal: -- A mne dumaetsya, oni vse ravno ne dobralis' by do berega, ser. "Think not?" I queried. -- Ne dobralis' by? -- peresprosil ya. "No, sir. Did you feel that?" (A puff had caught the schooner, and he was forced to put the wheel up rapidly to keep her out of the wind.) "'Tis no egg-shell'll float on this sea an hour come, an' it's a stroke iv luck for them we're here to pick 'em up." -- Net, ser. Vidali? -- Poryv vetra nakrenil shhunu i zastavil Luisa bystro zavertet' shturval. -- CHerez chas nachnetsya takoe, -- prodolzhal on, -- chto im na svoej skorlupe nesdobrovat'. Im eshche povezlo, chto my podospeli vovremya i mozhem ih podobrat'. Wolf Larsen strode aft from amidships, where he had been talking with the rescued men. The cat-like springiness in his tread was a little more pronounced than usual, and his eyes were bright and snappy. Volk Larsen razgovarival na palube so spasennymi moryakami, potom podnyalsya na yut. V ego pohodke bol'she obychnogo chuvstvovalos' chto-to koshach'e, a v glazah vspyhivali holodnye ogon'ki. "Three oilers and a fourth engineer," was his greeting. "But we'll make sailors out of them, or boat-pullers at any rate. Now, what of the lady?" -- Tri smazchika i mehanik, -- skazal on vmesto privetstviya. -- No my iz nih sdelaem matrosov ili hotya by grebcov. Nu, a kak tam eta osoba? I know not why, but I was aware of a twinge or pang like the cut of a knife when he mentioned her. I thought it a certain silly fastidiousness on my part, but it persisted in spite of me, and I merely shrugged my shoulders in answer. Ne znayu pochemu, no kogda Larsen zagovoril o spasennoj zhenshchine, ego slova polosnuli menya, slovno nozhom. Soznavaya, kak glupo byt' takim sentimental'nym, ya vse zhe ne mog izbavit'sya ot tyazhelogo oshchushcheniya i v otvet tol'ko pozhal plechami. Wolf Larsen pursed his lips in a long, quizzical whistle. Volk Larsen protyazhno i nasmeshlivo svistnul. "What's her name, then?" he demanded. -- Kak ee zovut? -- rezko sprosil on. "I don't know," I replied. "She is asleep. She was very tired. In fact, I am waiting to hear the news from you. What vessel was it?" -- Ne znayu, -- otvetil ya. -- Ona spit. Ochen' utomlena. Po pravde govorya, ya rasschityval uznat' chto-nibud' ot vas. S kakogo oni sudna? "Mail steamer," he answered shortly. "The City of Tokio, from 'Frisco, bound for Yokohama. Disabled in that typhoon. Old tub. Opened up top and bottom like a sieve. They were adrift four days. And you don't know who or what she is, eh? - maid, wife, or widow? Well, well." -- S pochtovogo parohodishka "Gorod Tokio", -- burknul on. -- SHel iz Frisko v Iokogamu. Tajfun dokonal eto staroe koryto -- poteklo, kak resheto. Ih nosilo po volnam chetvero sutok. Tak vy ne znaete, kto ona -- devica, zamuzhnyaya dama ili vdova? Nu, nu... He shook his head in a bantering way, and regarded me with laughing eyes. On smotrel na menya, nasmeshlivo prishchurivshis' i pokachivaya golovoj. "Are you - " I began. It was on the verge of my tongue to ask if he were going to take the castaways into Yokohama. -- A vy... -- nachal ya. U menya chut' ne sorvalsya s yazyka vopros, sobiraetsya li on dostavit' poterpevshih korablekrushenie v Iokogamu. "Am I what?" he asked. -- A ya?.. -- peresprosil on. "What do you intend doing with Leach and Johnson?" -- Kak vy namereny postupit' s Lichem i Dzhonsonom? He shook his head. "Really, Hump, I don't know. You see, with these additions I've about all the crew I want." -- Ne znayu, Hemp, ne znayu. Vidite li, s etimi chetyr'mya u menya teper' dostatochno lyudej. "And they've about all the escaping they want," I said. "Why not give them a change of treatment? Take them aboard, and deal gently with them. Whatever they have done they have been hounded into doing." -- A Dzhonson i Lich dostatochno naterpelis' pri popytke bezhat', -- skazal ya. -- Otchego by vam ne izmenit' svoe otnoshenie k nim? Voz'mite ih na bort i poprobujte obhodit'sya s nimi myagche. CHto by tam oni ni sdelali, ih do etogo doveli. "By me?" -- Kto? YA? "By you," I answered steadily. "And I give you warning, Wolf Larsen, that I may forget love of my own life in the desire to kill you if you go too far in maltreating those poor wretches." -- Da, vy, -- otvechal ya, ne koleblyas'. -- I preduprezhdayu vas, Larsen, esli vy budete po-prezhnemu izdevat'sya nad etimi bednyagami, ya mogu zabyt' vse, dazhe svoyu lyubov' k zhizni, i ubit' vas. "Bravo!" he cried. "You do me proud, Hump! You've found your legs with a vengeance. You're quite an individual. You were unfortunate in having your life cast in easy places, but you're developing, and I like you the better for it." -- Bravo! -- voskliknul on. -- YA gorzhus' vami, Hemp. Vy prevoshodno nauchilis' stoyat' na nogah. YA vizhu pered soboj vpolne samostoyatel'nuyu lichnost'! Do sih por vam ne vezlo: zhizn' vasha protekala slishkom legko, -- no teper' vy podaete nadezhdy. Takim vy mne nravites' kuda bol'she. His voice and expression changed. His face was serious. Vnezapno ton ego izmenilsya, lico stalo ser'eznym. "Do you believe in promises?" he asked. "Are they sacred things?" -- Verite li vy lyudyam na slovo? -- sprosil on. -- Schitaete li, chto slovo svyashchenno? "Of course," I answered. -- Konechno, -- podtverdil ya. "Then here's a compact," he went on, consummate actor. "If I promise not to lay my hands upon Leach will you promise, in turn, not to attempt to kill me?" "Oh, not that I'm afraid of you, not that I'm afraid of you," he hastened to add. -- Tak vot, predlagayu vam soglashenie, -- prodolzhal etot nepodrazhaemyj akter. -- Esli ya dam slovo ne pritronut'sya pal'cem k Lichu i Dzhonsonu, obeshchaete li vy, v svoyu ochered', otkazat'sya ot popytok ubit' menya? Tol'ko ne podumajte, chto ya boyus' vas, net, net, ne voobrazhajte! -- pospeshno dobavil on. I could hardly believe my ears. What was coming over the man? YA edva mog poverit' svoim usham, -- chto eto vdrug na nego nashlo? "Is it a go?" he asked impatiently. -- Idet? -- neterpelivo sprosil on. "A go," I answered. -- Idet, -- otvechal ya. His hand went out to mine, and as I shook it heartily I could have sworn I saw the mocking devil shine up for a moment in his eyes. On protyanul mne ruku, i ya s zharom pozhal ee, no v glazah u nego -- ya mog by poklyast'sya -- promel'knula izdevka. We strolled across the poop to the lee side. The boat was close at hand now, and in desperate plight. Johnson was steering, Leach bailing. We overhauled them about two feet to their one. Wolf Larsen motioned Louis to keep off slightly, and we dashed abreast of the boat, not a score of feet to windward. The Ghost blanketed it. The spritsail flapped emptily and the boat righted to an even keel, causing the two men swiftly to change position. The boat lost headway, and, as we lifted on a huge surge, toppled and fell into the trough. My pereshli na podvetrennuyu storonu yuta. SHlyupka byla sovsem blizko, i ya uvidel, chto polozhenie ee poistine otchayannoe. Dzhonson sidel na rule, Lich vycherpyval vodu. My shli vdvoe bystree ih. Volk Larsen podal Luisu znak otklonit'sya nemnogo v storonu, i my proneslis' v kakih-nibud' dvadcati futah ot shlyupki s navetrennoj storony. Na mgnovenie "Prizrak" zakryl ee ot vetra. Parus na shlyupke zahlopal, ona poteryala skorost' i stala pryamo, chto zastavilo matrosov pospeshno otodvinut'sya ot borta. Tut nas podhvatila ogromnaya volna, a shlyupka skol'znula vniz. It was at this moment that Leach and Johnson looked up into the faces of their shipmates, who lined the rail amidships. There was no greeting. They were as dead men in their comrades' eyes, and between them was the gulf that parts the living and the dead. V eto mgnovenie Lich i Dzhonson vzglyanuli v lica svoim tovarishcham, stolpivshimsya u borta. No nikto so shhuny ne poslal im privetstviya. V glazah komandy te dvoe byli uzhe mertvecami, prostranstvo vody, otdelyavshee ih ot nas, bylo kak by rubezhom mezhdu zhizn'yu i smert'yu. The next instant they were opposite the poop, where stood Wolf Larsen and I. We were falling in the trough, they were rising on the surge. Johnson looked at me, and I could see that his face was worn and haggard. I waved my hand to him, and he answered the greeting, but with a wave that was hopeless and despairing. It was as if he were saying farewell. I did not see into the eyes of Leach, for he was looking at Wolf Larsen, the old and implacable snarl of hatred strong as ever on his face. CHerez mig oni ochutilis' protiv yuta, gde stoyali my s Volkom Larsenom. Teper' uzhe shhuna skol'znula vniz, a shlyupka vzletela na greben' volny. Dzhonson posmotrel na menya, i ya uvidel ego izmuchennoe, osunuvsheesya lico. YA pomahal emu rukoj, i on otvetil mne, no v etom zheste bylo glubokoe otchayanie. On slovno proshchalsya so mnoj. Mne ne udalos' vstretit'sya glazami s Lichem, -- on smotrel na Volka Larsena, i lico ego, kak i sledovalo ozhidat', bylo perekosheno ot nenavisti. Then they were gone astern. The spritsail filled with the wind, suddenly, careening the frail open craft till it seemed it would surely capsize. A whitecap foamed above it and broke across in a snow-white smother. Then the boat emerged, half swamped, Leach flinging the water out and Johnson clinging to the steering-oar, his face white and anxious. Eshche mgnovenie, i shlyupka okazalas' uzhe za kormoj. Parus totchas napolnilsya vetrom i tak nakrenil utloe sudenyshko, chto ono chut' ne perevernulos'. Greben' ogromnoj volny navis nad shlyupkoj i obrushil na nee shapku belosnezhnoj peny. Potom poluzatoplennaya shlyupka vynyrnula: Lich pospeshno vycherpyval vodu, a Dzhonson s blednym, ispugannym licom sudorozhno szhimal v ruke kormovoe veslo. Wolf Larsen barked a short laugh in my ear and strode away to the weather side of the poop. I expected him to give orders for the Ghost to heave to, but she kept on her course and he made no sign. Louis stood imperturbably at the wheel, but I noticed the grouped sailors forward turning troubled faces in our direction. Still the Ghost tore along, till the boat dwindled to a speck, when Wolf Larsen's voice rang out in command and he went about on the starboard tack. Volk Larsen rezko rashohotalsya, slovno prolayal nad samym moim uhom, i pereshel na navetrennuyu storonu yuta. YA ozhidal, chto on velit lech' v drejf, no shhuna prodolzhala idti vpered; a on ne podaval nikakoj komandy. Luis nevozmutimo stoyal u shturvala, no ya zametil, chto stolpivshiesya na nosu matrosy s bespokojstvom poglyadyvayut v nashu storonu. "Prizrak" mchalsya vse vpered i vpered, i shlyupka prevratilas' uzhe v ele zametnuyu tochku, kogda razdalsya golos Volka Larsena -- matrosy poluchili prikazaniya sdelat' povorot na pravyj gals. Back we held, two miles and more to windward of the struggling cockle-shell, when the flying jib was run down and the schooner hove to. The sealing boats are not made for windward work. Their hope lies in keeping a weather position so that they may run before the wind for the schooner when it breezes up. But in all that wild waste there was no refuge for Leach and Johnson save on the Ghost, and they resolutely began the windward beat. It was slow work in the heavy sea that was running. At any moment they were liable to be overwhelmed by the hissing combers. Time and again and countless times we watched the boat luff into the big whitecaps, lose headway, and be flung back like a cork. My poshli nazad po vetru navstrechu borovshejsya s volnami shlyupke, no milyah v dvuh ot nee byla otdana novaya komanda spustit' bom-kliver i lech' v drejf Promyslovye lodki ne prisposobleny lavirovat' protiv vetra. Ves' raschet stroitsya na tom, chto v more oni nahodyatsya s navetrennoj storony, i kogda veter krepchaet, on gonit ih pryamo k shhune. No teper', sredi razgulyavshejsya stihii, u Licha i Dzhonsona ne bylo inogo vyhoda, kak iskat' ubezhishcha na "Prizrake", i oni vstupili v otchayannuyu bor'bu, napraviv shlyupku protiv vetra. Pri takoj volne oni s trudom probivalis' vpered. Kazhduyu minutu im grozila gibel' sredi raz®yarennyh valov. Snova i snova videli my, kak lodka zaryvaetsya nosom v belopennye grebni i ee, slovno shchepku, otbrasyvaet nazad. Johnson was a splendid seaman, and he knew as much about small boats as he did about ships. At the end of an hour and a half he was nearly alongside, standing past our stern on the last leg out, aiming to fetch us on the next leg back. No Dzhonson byl prevoshodnym moryakom i so shlyupkoj umel upravlyat'sya ne huzhe, chem so shhunoj. CHasa cherez poltora on pochti poravnyalsya s nami i proshel u nas za kormoj, rasschityvaya sleduyushchim galsom podojti k shhune. "So you've changed your mind?" I heard Wolf Larsen mutter, half to himself, half to them as though they could hear. "You want to come aboard, eh? Well, then, just keep a-coming." -- Znachit, vy peredumali? -- uslyshal ya golos Volka Larsena i ne ponyal, to li on bormochet pro sebya, to li obrashchaetsya k lyudyam v shlyupke, slovno oni mogut ego uslyshat'. -- Vy ne proch' vernut'sya na shhunu, a? Nu chto zh, popytajtes', popytajtes'! "Hard up with that helm!" he commanded Oofty-Oofty, the Kanaka, who had in the meantime relieved Louis at the wheel. -- Rul' pod veter! -- skomandoval on Ufti-Ufti, kotoryj tem vremenem smenil Luisa. Command followed command. As the schooner paid off, the fore- and main-sheets were slacked away for fair wind. And before the wind we were, and leaping, when Johnson, easing his sheet at imminent peril, cut across our wake a hundred feet away. Again Wolf Larsen laughed, at the same time beckoning them with his arm to follow. It was evidently his intention to play with them, - a lesson, I took it, in lieu of a beating, though a dangerous lesson, for the frail craft stood in momentary danger of being overwhelmed. Komanda sledovala za komandoj. Potravili foka i grota-shkoty, i shhuna, prygaya po volnam, bystro rvanulas' vpered s sil'nym poputnym vetrom, kak raz v tu minutu, kogda Dzhonson, prenebregaya opasnost'yu, potravil shkot i proshel u nas za kormoj futah v sta. Volk Larsen snova gromko rassmeyalsya i pomahal rukoyu, priglashaya shlyupku sledovat' za nami. Ego namerenie bylo ochevidno -- on reshil poigrat' s nimi, dumal ya, dat' im horoshij urok vmesto poboev. No eto byl ochen' opasnyj urok, tak kak shlyupku v lyubuyu minutu moglo zahlestnut' volnoj. Johnson squared away promptly and ran after us. There was nothing else for him to do. Death stalked everywhere, and it was only a matter of time when some one of those many huge seas would fall upon the boat, roll over it, and pass on. Dzhonson bystro povernul shlyupku i pognalsya za nami. Emu bol'she nichego ne ostavalos' Smert' podsteregala ih so vseh storon. Rano ili pozdno odna iz etih ogromnyh voln obrushitsya na shlyupku, perekatitsya cherez nee, i vse budet koncheno. "'Tis the fear iv death at the hearts iv them," Louis muttered in my ear, as I passed forward to see to taking in the flying jib and staysail. -- To-to im sejchas, podi, toshno u smerti-to v lapah, -- shepnul mne Luis, kogda ya prohodil mimo, chtoby otdat' prikaz ubrat' bom-kliver i staksel'. "Oh, he'll heave to in a little while and pick them up," I answered cheerfully. "He's bent upon giving them a lesson, that's all." -- Nu, on skoro lyazhet v drejf i podberet ih, -- bodro skazal ya. -- Reshil, kak vidno, prouchit' ih. Louis looked at me shrewdly. Luis mnogoznachitel'no posmotrel na menya. "Think so?" he asked. -- Vy tak dumaete? -- sprosil on. "Surely," I answered. "Don't you?" -- Konechno, -- otvechal ya. -- A vy? "I think nothing but iv my own skin, these days," was his answer. "An' 'tis with wonder I'm filled as to the workin' out iv things. A pretty mess that 'Frisco whisky got me into, an' a prettier mess that woman's got you into aft there. Ah, it's myself that knows ye for a blitherin' fool." -- YA teper' dumayu tol'ko ob odnom -- o sobstvennoj shkure, -- byl ego otvet. -- I ne perestayu divit'sya, kak vse skladyvaetsya. V horoshuyu istoriyu popal ya iz-za lishnego stakanchika v Frisko. No vy-to vlopalis' i togo huzhe -- iz-za etoj damochki. Budto ya vas ne znayuVidali my takih prostakov! "What do you mean?" I demanded; for, having sped his shaft, he was turning away. -- CHto vy hotite etim skazat'? -- pospeshno sprosil ya, tak kak, vypustiv etot zaryad, on uzhe dvinulsya proch'. "What do I mean?" he cried. "And it's you that asks me! 'Tis not what I mean, but what the Wolf 'll mean. The Wolf, I said, the Wolf!" -- CHto ya hochu skazat'? -- voskliknul on. -- Ne vam by ob etom sprashivat'Nevazhno, chto hochu skazat' ya, vazhno, chto skazhet Volk. Volk, da, da. Volk! "If trouble comes, will you stand by?" I asked impulsively, for he had voiced my own fear. -- Esli zavaritsya kasha, vy budete na moej storone? -- nevol'no vyrvalos' u menya, ibo on vyrazil to, chego v dushe boyalsya ya sam. "Stand by? 'Tis old fat Louis I stand by, an' trouble enough it'll be. We're at the beginnin' iv things, I'm tellin' ye, the bare beginnin' iv things." -- Na vashej storone? YA budu na storone starogo, tolstogo Luisa. |to eshche vse pustyaki, tol'ko nachalo, govoryu vam. "I had not thought you so great a coward," I sneered. -- Ne dumal ya, chto vy takoj trus, -- ukoril ya ego. He favoured me with a contemptuous stare. On okinul menya prezritel'nym vzglyadom. "If I raised never a hand for that poor fool," - pointing astern to the tiny sail, - "d'ye think I'm hungerin' for a broken head for a woman I never laid me eyes upon before this day?" -- Esli ya pal'cem ne poshevel'nul, chtoby pomoch' etomu durnyu, -- on kivnul v storonu kroshechnogo parusa gde-to tam za kormoj, -- tak neuzhto vy dumaete, chto ya dam prolomit' sebe bashku iz-za kakoj-to damochki, kotoroj i v glaza-to ne vidal? I turned scornfully away and went aft. YA otvernulsya, vozmushchennyj, i poshel na kormu. "Better get in those topsails, Mr. Van Weyden," Wolf Larsen said, as I came on the poop. -- Uberite topselya, mister Van-Vejden, -- skazal mne Volk Larsen, kogda ya podnyalsya na yut. I felt relief, at least as far as the two men were concerned. It was clear he did not wish to run too far away from them. I picked up hope at the thought and put the order swiftly into execution. I had scarcely opened my mouth to issue the necessary commands, when eager men were springing to halyards and downhauls, and others were racing aloft. This eagerness on their part was noted by Wolf Larsen with a grim smile. Uslyshav eto prikazanie, ya neskol'ko uspokoilsya za sud'bu beglecov. Bylo yasno, chto kapitan ne imeet namereniya slishkom udalyat'sya ot nih. |ta mysl' priobodrila menya, i ya bystro ispolnil ego rasporyazhenie. Edva uspel ya otdat' komandu, kak odni matrosy uzhe brosilis' k falam i niralam, a drugie polezli vverh po vantam. Volk Larsen zametil ih userdie i mrachno ulybnulsya. Still we increased our lead, and when the boat had dropped astern several miles we hove to and waited. All eyes watched it coming, even Wolf Larsen's; but he was the only unperturbed man aboard. Louis, gazing fixedly, betrayed a trouble in his face he was not quite able to hide. I vse zhe rasstoyanie mezhdu shhunoj i shlyupkoj prodolzhalo uvelichivat'sya, i tol'ko kogda shlyupka otstala na neskol'ko mil', my legli v drejf i stali podzhidat' ee. Vse s trevogoj sledili za ee priblizheniem. Odin Volk Larsen ostavalsya nevozmutim. Dazhe u Luisa, pristal'no vglyadyvavshegosya vdal', otrazilos' na lice bespokojstvo, kotorogo on ne sumel skryt'. The boat drew closer and closer, hurling along through the seething green like a thing alive, lifting and sending and uptossing across the huge-backed breakers, or disappearing behind them only to rush into sight again and shoot skyward. It seemed impossible that it could continue to live, yet with each dizzying sweep it did achieve the impossible. A rain-squall drove past, and out of the flying wet the boat emerged, almost upon us. SHlyupka podhodila vse blizhe i blizhe, tochno zhivoe sushchestvo, ryvkami probirayas' sredi zelenyh burlyashchih voln. Ona to raskachivalas' na grebnyah ogromnyh valov, to skryvalas' iz glaz, chtoby cherez sekundu snova vzletet' na greben'. Kazalos' nepostizhimym, chto ona eshche cela, i vsyakij raz ee poyavlenie, soprovozhdavsheesya ocherednym golovokruzhitel'nym vzletom, vosprinimalos' kak chudo. Naletel shkval s dozhdem, i iz-za kolyshushchejsya vodyanoj zavesy vdrug vynyrnula shlyupka -- pochti vroven' s nami. "Hard up, there!" Wolf Larsen shouted, himself springing to the wheel and whirling it over. -- Rul' na bort! -- zaoral Volk Larsen i, brosivshis' k shturvalu, sam rezko povernul ego. Again the Ghost sprang away and raced before the wind, and for two hours Johnson and Leac