海底兩萬里 第360期 第23章 珊瑚王國(60)

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It took pulleys of great strength to hoist this dugong onto the platform. The beast weighed 5,000 kilograms. It was carved up in sight of the Canadian, who remained to watch every detail of the operation. At dinner the same day, my steward served me some slices of this flesh, skillfully dressed by the ship's cook. I found it excellent, even better than veal if not beef.

把這條海馬拉到大船的乎臺上，必須使用力量很大的起重滑車。它重五千公斤。人們就在加拿大人面前把它宰割了，他一定要看人宰割時的所有動作。當天，管事人在午餐時，就把船上廚師做得很好的這種肉拿出幾片來給我吃。我覺得這肉味道很好，甚至于賽過小牛肉，雖然不一定：勝過大牛肉。

The next morning, February 11, the Nautilus's pantry was enriched by more dainty game. A covey of terns alighted on the Nautilus. They were a species of Sterna nilotica unique to Egypt: beak black, head gray and stippled, eyes surrounded by white dots, back, wings, and tail grayish, belly and throat white, feet red. Also caught were a couple dozen Nile duck, superior-tasting wildfowl whose neck and crown of the head are white speckled with black.

第二天，2月11日，諾第留斯號的食物儲藏室又增加了一種美味的獵物。一群海燕落到諾第留斯號上面，被我們捕獲了。那是埃及特產(chǎn)的尼羅河海燕，嘴是黑的，頭灰黑，有斑點，眼睛周圍有白點的圈，脊背、兩翼和尾巴是灰黑色，肚腹和胸頸白色，腳爪紅色。我們另外還捉到十來個尼羅河的鴨子，這是很美味的野烏，脖子和頭上是白色，并且?guī)в泻诎帱c。

By then the Nautilus had reduced speed. It moved ahead at a saunter, so to speak. I observed that the Red Sea's water was becoming less salty the closer we got to Suez.

諾第留斯號的速度那時很緩慢。可以說，它是慢步溜達著前進。我注意到，紅海的水愈接近蘇伊士，愈少威味了。

Near five o'clock in the afternoon, we sighted Cape Ras Mohammed to the north. This cape forms the tip of Arabia Petraea, which lies between the Gulf of Suez and the Gulf of Aqaba.

下午五點左右，我們測定北方是拉斯一穆罕默德角，這角是石區(qū)阿拉伯的極端，在蘇伊士灣和亞喀巴灣中間。

The Nautilus entered the Strait of Jubal, which leads to the Gulf of Suez. I could clearly make out a high mountain crowning Ras Mohammed between the two gulfs. It was Mt. Horeb, that biblical Mt. Sinai on whose summit Moses met God face to face, that summit the mind's eye always pictures as wreathed in lightning.

諾第留斯號進入尤巴爾海峽，這海峽通到蘇伊士灣。我清楚地望見一座高山，山在兩灣之間俯瞰拉斯一穆罕默德角。那是何烈山、西奈山，山頂上就是摩西當年曾與上帝面面相對的地方，人們心中想象這山頭是不斷有閃電籠罩著。