第一百二十九章 水手舱
（亚哈正要往甲板走，比普抓着他的手想跟上。）
“小子，小子，我告诉你现在你可不能跟着亚哈。等时候到了，亚哈不会把你从他身边赶走，但也不会把你留在身边。可怜的小子，你身上有种东西，对我的病有太强的疗效。以毒攻毒，对这次追猎来说，我的病恰恰是我最渴望的健康。你还是待在下面吧，他们会像伺候船长一样伺候你。没错，小子，你可以坐在这张我亲手拧紧的椅子上；椅子再加一道螺丝，你得来拧。”
“不，不，不！您不是个完整的人，先生，您就用我这可怜人代替您失去的那条腿吧；只管踩着我，先生；我别无所求，只要还能成为您的一部分。”
“哦！尽管有万千恶人，这让我对人类不褪色的忠诚更加执迷！——而且还是个黑人！还是个疯子！——不过我想以毒攻毒对他也有用，他又变得这么清醒了。”
“先生，他们跟我说，斯塔布曾经抛弃了可怜的小比普，虽然他活着时皮肤是黑的，可他淹死的骨头现在显露出白色。但我绝不会抛弃您，先生，就像斯塔布抛弃他那样。先生，我必须跟您去。”
“要是你再这么跟我说话，亚哈的念头就要在他心里翻船了。我告诉你不行；这不可能。”
“哦，好主人，主人，主人啊！”
“再哭，我就杀了你！小心点，因为亚哈也疯了。听着，你常常会听到我的象牙脚在甲板上的声音，就知道我在那儿了。现在我要离开你了。你的手！——握住了！小子，你就像圆周对着圆心一样真实。那么：愿上帝永远保佑你；如果真到了那一步——愿上帝永远拯救你，不管发生什么事。”
（亚哈走了；比普向前迈了一步。）
“他刚才就站在这里；我站在他站过的空气里——可只有我一个人。现在就算可怜的小比普在这儿我也能忍受，可他不见了。比普！比普！叮，咚，叮！谁见过比普？他一定在上边；我们试试开门。怎么？既没锁链，没门闩，也没横条；可就是打不开。一定是咒语；他叫我待在这儿；是啊，还告诉我这把拧紧的椅子是我的。那么，我就坐在这儿，靠着船尾横梁，在船的正中央，整条船的龙骨和三根桅杆都在我面前。我们老水手说，在他们黑色的七十四炮战船上，伟大的海军上将有时就坐在桌边，对着一排排舰长和中尉发号施令。哈！这是什么？肩章！肩章！肩章全都涌过来了！把酒瓶传一圈；很高兴见到你们；斟满吧，先生们！现在感觉真奇怪，一个黑人男孩竟然招待穿着金边大衣的白人！——先生们，你们见过一个叫比普的吗？——一个五英尺高的小黑人，畏畏缩缩，胆小如鼠！有一次从捕鲸艇上跳下来；——见过他吗？没有！那好吧，再斟满，舰长们，让我们为所有懦夫干杯，以示羞辱！我不点名。让他们蒙羞！把一只脚踩在桌子上。让所有懦夫蒙羞。——嘘！上边有动静，我听见象牙声——哦，主人！主人！当你从我身上走过时，我确实心灰意冷。但我还是要待在这儿，就算这船尾撞上礁石；礁石突出来；连牡蛎也要来和我作伴。”
(_Ahab moving to go on deck; Pip catches him by the hand to follow._)
“Lad, lad, I tell thee thou must not follow Ahab now. The hour is
coming when Ahab would not scare thee from him, yet would not have thee
by him. There is that in thee, poor lad, which I feel too curing to my
malady. Like cures like; and for this hunt, my malady becomes my most
desired health. Do thou abide below here, where they shall serve thee,
as if thou wert the captain. Aye, lad, thou shalt sit here in my own
screwed chair; another screw to it, thou must be.”
“No, no, no! ye have not a whole body, sir; do ye but use poor me for
your one lost leg; only tread upon me, sir; I ask no more, so I remain
a part of ye.”
“Oh! spite of million villains, this makes me a bigot in the fadeless
fidelity of man!—and a black! and crazy!—but methinks like-cures-like
applies to him too; he grows so sane again.”
“They tell me, sir, that Stubb did once desert poor little Pip, whose
drowned bones now show white, for all the blackness of his living skin.
But I will never desert ye, sir, as Stubb did him. Sir, I must go with
ye.”
“If thou speakest thus to me much more, Ahab’s purpose keels up in him.
I tell thee no; it cannot be.”
“Oh good master, master, master!
“Weep so, and I will murder thee! have a care, for Ahab too is mad.
Listen, and thou wilt often hear my ivory foot upon the deck, and still
know that I am there. And now I quit thee. Thy hand!—Met! True art
thou, lad, as the circumference to its centre. So: God for ever bless
thee; and if it come to that,—God for ever save thee, let what will
befall.”
(_Ahab goes; Pip steps one step forward._)
“Here he this instant stood; I stand in his air,—but I’m alone. Now
were even poor Pip here I could endure it, but he’s missing. Pip! Pip!
Ding, dong, ding! Who’s seen Pip? He must be up here; let’s try the
door. What? neither lock, nor bolt, nor bar; and yet there’s no opening
it. It must be the spell; he told me to stay here: Aye, and told me
this screwed chair was mine. Here, then, I’ll seat me, against the
transom, in the ship’s full middle, all her keel and her three masts
before me. Here, our old sailors say, in their black seventy-fours
great admirals sometimes sit at table, and lord it over rows of
captains and lieutenants. Ha! what’s this? epaulets! epaulets! the
epaulets all come crowding! Pass round the decanters; glad to see ye;
fill up, monsieurs! What an odd feeling, now, when a black boy’s host
to white men with gold lace upon their coats!—Monsieurs, have ye seen
one Pip?—a little negro lad, five feet high, hang-dog look, and
cowardly! Jumped from a whale-boat once;—seen him? No! Well then, fill
up again, captains, and let’s drink shame upon all cowards! I name no
names. Shame upon them! Put one foot upon the table. Shame upon all
cowards.—Hist! above there, I hear ivory—Oh, master! master! I am
indeed down-hearted when you walk over me. But here I’ll stay, though
this stern strikes rocks; and they bulge through; and oysters come to
join me.”
