第八十四章 标枪投掷法
为使车辆轻便飞驰，车轴需涂油润滑；出于极相似的目的，某些捕鲸人也对他们的艇施行类似操作——他们给船底上油。毋庸置疑，既然此举无害，便可能带来不小的益处；须知油水相克，油乃滑腻之物，而所求无非是让艇身畅滑如飞。魁魁格笃信给艇上油之效，在“处女号”德船消失后不久的一个早晨，他比平日更费心力地从事此事；他爬到悬于船侧的艇底之下，将油膏用力揉入，仿佛殷勤地盼着从这秃舵上催生出一层毛发。他似是依着某种特别的预感行事。而事态也未使他这预感落空。
近午时分，发现了鲸群；然船刚驶近，它们便迅疾仓皇逃窜；那溃乱的奔逃，一如克娄巴特拉的楼船逃离阿克提乌姆。
尽管如此，小艇仍穷追不舍，斯塔布的艇一马当先。塔什蒂哥拼力挣扎，终将一柄鱼叉扎入；但中叉之鲸并不下潜，只水平逃窜愈急。那扎入之叉承受不间断的拉扯，迟早必被拔脱。要么以标枪刺这飞逃之鲸，要么甘心失之。然艇速难及，那鲸游得又猛又快，无法靠至其侧。余下何策？
老练捕鲸人屡被迫施展的诸般奇巧手段、手法与无数机变中，无出于标枪投掷法这等以标枪施展的精妙动作之上者。小剑阔刀，其诸般演练皆无可比。唯遇倔强奔逃之鲸方不可缺此技；其要旨奇观，在于自剧烈颠簸摇甩、全速疾进之艇中，将长标枪精准投出极远。连钢带木，整枪约长十至十二英尺；杆比鱼叉杆细得多，质亦轻——乃松木。其上系一颇长之小绳曰“牵索”，掷出后可借此拉回手中。
然未续前言，此处须先言明：虽鱼叉亦可以标枪同法投掷，然鲜为之；纵为之，因鱼叉较重且短于标枪，反成严重掣肘，故更少成功。是故大抵须先牢系于鲸，方有标枪投掷之用。
且看斯塔布；此人临绝境而诙谐从容、镇定自若，最堪精于此道。看他便知；他直立于飞艇颠簸的艇首；周身裹着雪沫，前曳之鲸相去四十英尺。他轻持长枪，沿杆瞥视两三回以验其直，口衔哨音，一手收拢牵索之圈，使自由端牢握掌中，余者无阻。继而将枪平举于腰带前中，瞄准鲸身；以枪覆之，稳按手中柄端，遂抬枪尖，直至兵刃平衡于掌心，凌空十五英尺。你颇觉他似弄戏者以颔承长竿。俄顷，以迅疾难名之劲，亮钢划一崇伟弧线，越沸沫之距，颤立于鲸之命处。喷者非晶亮之水，乃赤红之血。
“这一下把他塞子捅出来了！”斯塔布喊道。“今乃七月不朽之四日；诸泉今日皆须涌酒！恨不如今流的是老奥尔良威士忌，或老俄亥俄，或那不可言说之老莫农加希拉！那时，塔什蒂哥，小子，我教你持杯承那喷流，咱轮着饮！然也，活心们，咱就在他喷孔张处酿绝妙宾治，从这活宾治碗里啜活物。”
如此戏言间，巧掷屡施，标枪如善驭之灰犬归其主。苦鲸入狂乱；拖绳稍松，掷者落于尾后，交手默观巨兽之死。
To make them run easily and swiftly, the axles of carriages are
anointed; and for much the same purpose, some whalers perform an
analogous operation upon their boat; they grease the bottom. Nor is it
to be doubted that as such a procedure can do no harm, it may possibly
be of no contemptible advantage; considering that oil and water are
hostile; that oil is a sliding thing, and that the object in view is to
make the boat slide bravely. Queequeg believed strongly in anointing
his boat, and one morning not long after the German ship Jungfrau
disappeared, took more than customary pains in that occupation;
crawling under its bottom, where it hung over the side, and rubbing in
the unctuousness as though diligently seeking to insure a crop of hair
from the craft’s bald keel. He seemed to be working in obedience to
some particular presentiment. Nor did it remain unwarranted by the
event.
Towards noon whales were raised; but so soon as the ship sailed down to
them, they turned and fled with swift precipitancy; a disordered
flight, as of Cleopatra’s barges from Actium.
Nevertheless, the boats pursued, and Stubb’s was foremost. By great
exertion, Tashtego at last succeeded in planting one iron; but the
stricken whale, without at all sounding, still continued his horizontal
flight, with added fleetness. Such unintermitted strainings upon the
planted iron must sooner or later inevitably extract it. It became
imperative to lance the flying whale, or be content to lose him. But to
haul the boat up to his flank was impossible, he swam so fast and
furious. What then remained?
Of all the wondrous devices and dexterities, the sleights of hand and
countless subtleties, to which the veteran whaleman is so often forced,
none exceed that fine manœuvre with the lance called pitchpoling. Small
sword, or broad sword, in all its exercises boasts nothing like it. It
is only indispensable with an inveterate running whale; its grand fact
and feature is the wonderful distance to which the long lance is
accurately darted from a violently rocking, jerking boat, under extreme
headway. Steel and wood included, the entire spear is some ten or
twelve feet in length; the staff is much slighter than that of the
harpoon, and also of a lighter material—pine. It is furnished with a
small rope called a warp, of considerable length, by which it can be
hauled back to the hand after darting.
But before going further, it is important to mention here, that though
the harpoon may be pitchpoled in the same way with the lance, yet it is
seldom done; and when done, is still less frequently successful, on
account of the greater weight and inferior length of the harpoon as
compared with the lance, which in effect become serious drawbacks. As a
general thing, therefore, you must first get fast to a whale, before
any pitchpoling comes into play.
Look now at Stubb; a man who from his humorous, deliberate coolness and
equanimity in the direst emergencies, was specially qualified to excel
in pitchpoling. Look at him; he stands upright in the tossed bow of the
flying boat; wrapt in fleecy foam, the towing whale is forty feet
ahead. Handling the long lance lightly, glancing twice or thrice along
its length to see if it be exactly straight, Stubb whistlingly gathers
up the coil of the warp in one hand, so as to secure its free end in
his grasp, leaving the rest unobstructed. Then holding the lance full
before his waistband’s middle, he levels it at the whale; when,
covering him with it, he steadily depresses the butt-end in his hand,
thereby elevating the point till the weapon stands fairly balanced upon
his palm, fifteen feet in the air. He minds you somewhat of a juggler,
balancing a long staff on his chin. Next moment with a rapid, nameless
impulse, in a superb lofty arch the bright steel spans the foaming
distance, and quivers in the life spot of the whale. Instead of
sparkling water, he now spouts red blood.
“That drove the spigot out of him!” cried Stubb. “’Tis July’s immortal
Fourth; all fountains must run wine today! Would now, it were old
Orleans whiskey, or old Ohio, or unspeakable old Monongahela! Then,
Tashtego, lad, I’d have ye hold a canakin to the jet, and we’d drink
round it! Yea, verily, hearts alive, we’d brew choice punch in the
spread of his spout-hole there, and from that live punch-bowl quaff the
living stuff.”
Again and again to such gamesome talk, the dexterous dart is repeated,
the spear returning to its master like a greyhound held in skilful
leash. The agonized whale goes into his flurry; the tow-line is
slackened, and the pitchpoler dropping astern, folds his hands, and
mutely watches the monster die.
