Twas not so hard a task. I thought to find one stubborn, at the least; but my one cogged circle fits into all their various wheels, and they revolve. Or, if you will, like so many ant-hills of powder, they all stand before me; and I their match. Oh, hard! that to fire others, the match itself must needs be wasting! What I've dared, I've willed; and what I've willed, I'll do! They think me mad-- Starbuck does; but I'm demoniac, I am madness maddened! That wild madness that's only calm to comprehend itself! The prophecy was that I should be dismembered; and--Aye! I lost this leg. I now prophesy that I will dismember my dismemberer. Now, then, be the prophet and the fulfiller one. That's more than ye, ye great gods, ever were. I laugh and hoot at ye, ye CRIcket-players, ye pugilists, ye deaf Burkes and blinded Bendigoes! I will not say as schoolboys do to bullies--Take some one of your own size; don't pommel me! No, ye've knocked me down, and I am up again; but ye have run and hidden. Come forth from behind your cotton bags! I have no long gun to reach ye. Come, Ahab's compliments to ye; come and see if ye can swerve me. Swerve me? ye cannot swerve me, else ye swerve yourselves! man has ye there. Swerve me? The path to my fixed purpose is laid with iron rails, whereon my soul is grooved to run. Over unsounded gorges, through the rifled hearts of mountains, under torrents' beds, unerringly I rush! Naught's an obstacle, naught's an angle to the iron way!
這并不是怎樣困難的事。我想至少總得找個(gè)倔強(qiáng)的人;但是,我的獨(dú)腳輪一裝進(jìn)了他們那各式各樣的輪盤,他們也就滾著走了?;蛘呤?如果你高興的話,把他們弄成許多埋藏火藥的蟻冢,擺在我的面前;那么,我就是他們的火柴。困難啊!要去點(diǎn)燃別人,火柴本身也必須要犧牲呀!我所敢做的,我就有決心做;而我有決心做的,我就要做!他們當(dāng)我發(fā)瘋了...斯達(dá)巴克就這么想;可是,我是惡魔,我是瘋上加瘋!瘋狂的人才真會(huì)平心靜氣地了解他自己!預(yù)言說(shuō)我必須割斷四肢;所以...呀!我失掉了這條腿。我現(xiàn)在預(yù)言,我一定要肢解那肢解我的家伙。那么,但愿預(yù)言應(yīng)驗(yàn)。那是連你們,你們這些大神也望塵莫及的。我笑你們,噓你們,你們這些玩板球的人,你們這些拳師,你們這些啞巴柏克斯和瞎眼的本第哥佬!我決不會(huì)象小學(xué)生對(duì)那些欺弱凌善的惡徒那樣說(shuō)...去找些跟你身材差不多的人干吧!別來(lái)打我!不,你已經(jīng)把我敲倒了,我又爬起來(lái)了,但是,你卻跑了,藏了起來(lái)。出來(lái)呀,打你那棉花包后面出來(lái)呀!我沒(méi)有射得到你的長(zhǎng)槍。出來(lái)呀,亞哈向你致意,出來(lái)呀,看看你可逃得了我。逃得了我?你是逃不了的,除非是你自己消滅了!人看到你在那邊,逃得了我么?那條通向我的既定目標(biāo)的道路都是鋪著鐵軌的,我的靈魂就要嵌在那上面的槽溝飛奔而去。越過(guò)杳無(wú)人煙的峽谷,穿過(guò)深山叢壑,鉆過(guò)急流的河床,我就這樣正確地沖出去!這條鐵路毫無(wú)阻礙,毫不彎曲。