A wolfish head, wistful-eyed and frost-rimed, thrust aside the tent-flaps.

一颗狼一样的脑袋把帐篷的门帘顶到了一边，脑袋上的毛都结了一层白霜，眼中带着渴求的目光。

"Hi! Chook! Siwash! Chook, you limb of Satan!" chorused the protesting inmates. Bettles rapped the dog sharply with a tin plate, and it withdrew hastily. Louis Savoy refastened the flaps, kicked a frying-pan over against the bottom, and warmed his hands. It was very cold without. Forty-eight hours gone, the spirit thermometer had burst at sixty-eight below, and since that time it had grown steadily and bitterly colder. There was no telling when the snap would end. And it is poor policy, unless the gods will it, to venture far from a stove at such times, or to increase the quantity of cold atmosphere one must breathe. Men sometimes do it, and sometimes they chill their lungs. This leads up to a dry, hacking cough, noticeably irritable when bacon is being fried. After that, somewhere along in the spring or summer, a hole is burned in the frozen muck. Into this a man's carcass is dumped, covered over with moss, and left with the assurance that it will rise on the crack of Doom, wholly and frigidly intact. For those of little faith, sceptical of material integration on that fateful day, no fitter country than the Klondike can be recommended to die in. But it is not to be inferred from this that it is a fit country for living purposes.

“嗨！去！锡沃斯！去，你这坏家伙！”帐篷里的人齐声抗议道。贝特斯拿一块镀锡铁皮对着狗猛敲，狗急忙缩回了脑袋。路易斯·萨沃伊重新固定好帐篷门帘，又把一只煎锅踢翻，用它顶着门帘底部，之后暖了暖手。帐篷外面太冷了。两天两夜过去了，温度降到零下68度的时候，酒精温度计就爆裂了。自那之后，天气一天比一天寒冷刺骨。谁也不知道这段寒冷天气什么时候才会结束。在这样的时候，除非是迫不得已，否则没人愿意远离火炉，或去多呼吸一口不必要的冷空气。间或也有人会干这样的事，于是有时就会把自己的肺冻着了。结果便会导致断断续续的干咳，煎熏肉时发作得尤其厉害。那之后，在春日或夏日，在某个地方，有人就会在冻住的淤泥地上烧出一个洞。接着，这人把一具男人的尸体扔进洞里，在上面盖上苔藓后再离开，确信这样一来，冰凉的躯体就能保持完好，在末日审判到来时顺利复活。对于那些没有信仰、怀疑世界末日那天肉体没法复活的人，克朗代克真是再合适不过的长眠之地。不过，也不能就此推断这里是个适宜生存的地方。

It was very cold without, but it was not over-warm within. The only article which might be designated furniture was the stove, and for this the men were frank in displaying their preference. Upon half of the floor pine boughs had been cast; above this were spread the sleeping-furs, beneath lay the winter's snowfall. The remainder of the floor was moccasin-packed snow, littered with pots and pans and the general impedimenta of an Arctic camp. The stove was red and roaring hot, but only a bare three feet away lay a block of ice, as sharp-edged and dry as when first quarried from the creek bottom. The pressure of the outside cold forced the inner heat upward. Just above the stove, where the pipe penetrated the roof, was a tiny circle of dry canvas; next, with the pipe always as centre, a circle of steaming canvas; next a damp and moisture-exuding ring; and finally, the rest of the tent, sidewalls and top, coated with a half-inch of dry, white, crystal-encrusted frost.

外面很冷，帐篷里面也并不太暖和。唯一勉强称得上家具的东西就是那个火炉，而人们也毫不掩饰对它的偏爱。地上有一半地方都盖着大松枝；松枝上铺着用来睡觉的毛皮，下面则是冬天的积雪。剩下的地方全是塞在“莫卡辛”鞋里的雪，上面散放着坛坛罐罐，还有些北极帐篷里常见的杂七杂八的东西。尽管炉子烧得又红又烫，仅仅三英尺开外的地方却放着一块冰，棱角分明，干燥得就像刚从溪谷挖出来似的。外面的冷气压迫使帐篷里的热量向上流动。就在火炉正上方，也就是烟囱伸入帐顶的地方，是一小圈干燥的帆布；往下，通常以烟囱为中心，是一圈冒着热气的帆布；再往下是一个潮湿的、渗着水的圆圈。此外，帐篷剩下的部分，包括侧壁和顶棚，都罩着一层半寸厚的霜，又干又白，表面亮晶晶的。

"Oh! OH! OH! A young fellow, lying asleep in the furs, bearded and wan and weary, raised a moan of pain, and without waking increased the pitch and intensity of his anguish. His body half-lifted from the blankets, and quivered and shrank spasmodically, as though drawing away from a bed of nettles.

“唉哟！唉哟！唉哟！一个年轻小伙子，留着胡子，苍白憔悴，正躺在毛皮上面睡觉，发出一阵阵痛苦的呻吟；人还没有醒，呻吟的声音却渐渐高起来，痛得也更厉害了。他的身子半离开毯子，痉挛般地颤抖、抽搐起来，仿佛试图从一床荨麻上坐起身来。

"Roll'm over!" ordered Bettles. "He's crampin'."

“给他翻个身！”贝特斯吩咐道，“他在抽筋。”

And thereat, with pitiless good-will, he was pitched upon and rolled and thumped and pounded by half-a-dozen willing comrades.

就这样，出于好心，六个同伴毫不留情地迅速把他压回毯子，给他翻了个身，又重重锤了他一顿。

"Damn the trail," he muttered softly, as he threw off the robes and sat up. "I've run across country, played quarter three seasons hand-running, and hardened myself in all manner of ways; and then I pilgrim it into this God-forsaken land and find myself an effeminate Athenian without the simplest rudiments of manhood!” He hunched up to the fire and rolled a cigarette. "Oh, I'm not whining. I can take my medicine all right, all right; but I'm just decently ashamed of myself, that's all. Here I am, on top of a dirty thirty miles, as knocked up and stiff and sore as a pink-tea degenerate after a five-mile walk on a country turn-pike. Bah! It makes me sick! Got a match?” "Don't git the tantrums, youngster." Bettles passed over the required fire-stick and waxed patriarchal. "Ye've gotter 'low some for the breakin'-in. Sufferin' cracky! don't I recollect the first time I hit the trail! Stiff? I've seen the time it'd take me ten minutes to git my mouth from the waterhole an' come to my feet—every jint crackin' an' kickin' fit to kill. Cramp? In sech knots it'd take the camp half a day to untangle me. You're all right, for a cub, any ye've the true sperrit. Come this day year, you'll walk all us old bucks into the ground any time. An' best in your favor, you hain't got that streak of fat in your make-up which has sent many a husky man to the bosom of Abraham afore his right and proper time.”

“这该死的路，”小伙子轻声嘟囔着，掀开盖毯坐起身来，“我跑遍了整个国家，大半年都没停歇，用各种方法把自己的身板练强了，然后辛辛苦苦跑到这个鬼地方来，发现自个儿娇气得像个雅典人，没有一点儿男人的样子！”他弯着身子靠近火，卷了一根烟。“唉，我可不是发牢骚。我活该遭罪，活该，就是觉得自个儿挺丢人的，没别的意思。我走了三十英里烂路，到了这儿，筋疲力尽，浑身又僵又酸，就像个在乡村公路上走了五英里的娇小姐一样瘫掉了。呸！简直恶心死我了！有火柴没？”“消消气，年轻人。”贝特斯把火柴递给他，用长辈的语气说道，“你得知道怎么适应新环境。这算什么遭罪！我难道不记得我第一次怎么走这条路的！全身僵硬？有一次我把嘴凑到冰窟窿喝水，起身就花了十分钟——每个关节都嘎吱作响，疼得要死。抽筋？遇上抽筋的问题，整个帐篷的伙计得花上半天捶我，我才会好。你这个年轻人，算不错了，精力好。每年这个时候都来一趟，你早晚都会超过我们这些老骨头的。你最大的优势就是身上没什么肥肉，很多大块头正是因为肥肉太多，早早地就去了天堂。

"Streak of fat?"

“肥肉？”

"Yep. Comes along of bulk. 'T ain't the big men as is the best when it comes to the trail."

“没错。就是说块头大。走这条路，可不是块头越大越好。”

"Never heard of it."

“从来没听说过。”

"Never heered of it, eh? Well, it's a dead straight, open-an'-shut fact, an' no gittin' round. Bulk's all well enough for a mighty big effort, but 'thout stayin' powers it ain't worth a continental whoop; an' stayin' powers an' bulk ain't runnin' mates. Takes the small, wiry fellows when it comes to gittin' right down an' hangin' on like a lean-jowled dog to a bone. Why, hell's fire, the big men they ain't in it!"

“没听说过，真的？得了，这可是绝对可靠又明显的事实，我可不是唬人。大块头使起劲来再厉害不过，不过要论耐力可就不怎么样了，大块头往往耐力很差。而那些小个儿、瘦长结实的家伙，他们认真干起来，就像瘦骨嶙峋的狗咬定一块骨头一样，丝毫不放松。唉，这些个煎熬，大个子可受不了！”

"By gar!" broke in Louis Savoy, "dat is no, vot you call, josh! I know one mans, so vaire beeg like ze buffalo. Wit him, on ze Sulphur Creek stampede, go one small mans, Lon McFane. You know dat Lon McFane, dat leetle Irisher wit ze red hair and ze grin. An' dey walk an' walk an' walk, all ze day long an' ze night long. And beeg mans, him become vaire tired, an' lay down mooch in ze snow. And leetle mans keek beeg mans, an' him cry like, vot you call—ah! vot you call ze kid. And leetle mans keek an' keek an' keek, an' bime by, long time, long way, keek beeg mans into my cabin. Tree days 'fore him crawl out my blankets. Nevaire I see beeg squaw like him. No nevaire. Him haf vot you call ze streak of fat. You bet."

“老天爷作证！”路易斯·萨沃伊插话说，“那可不是——用你们的话说——那可不是开玩笑的！”我认识一个人，壮得像头水牛。大家一窝蜂似的去萨尔弗溪的时候，他和一个小个子朗·麦克范一道走。你们认识朗·麦克范吧，那个小个子爱尔兰人，头发红红的，总爱咧着嘴笑。他们走啊，走啊，走啊，走了整整一天一夜。大个子呢，累极了，就躺在雪地上了。小个子踢他，他就哭，哭得像什么来着——啊！像你们说的，活像个小娃娃似的。小个子踢啊，踢啊，踢啊，踢了好长一段时间，好长一段路，才慢慢把那个大个子踢到我的小屋里。三天过后，那大个子才从我家毯子上爬起来。我还没见过像他这么娘们儿气的大个子呢。从来没见过。他活脱脱就是一堆肥肉。没错。”

"But there was Axel Gunderson," Prince spoke up. The great Scandinavian, with the tragic events which shadowed his passing, had made a deep mark on the mining engineer. "He lies up there, somewhere." He swept his hand in the vague direction of the mysterious east.

“不过，别忘了还有个阿克塞尔·冈德森。”普林斯开口道。那位伟大的斯堪的纳维亚人，以及那些影射他死亡的悲剧事件，曾给这位采矿工程师留下了很深的印象。“他就长眠在那儿，某个地方。”他手一挥，朝神秘的东方草草一指。

"Biggest man that ever turned his heels to Salt Water, or run a moose down with sheer grit," supplemented Bettles; "but he's the prove-the-rule exception. Look at his woman, Unga,—tip the scales at a hundred an' ten, clean meat an' nary ounce to spare. She'd bank grit 'gainst his for all there was in him, an' see him, an' go him better if it was possible. Nothing over the earth, or in it, or under it, she wouldn't 'a' done."

“在那些到过海边的或者全凭毅力猎到过一只麋鹿的人当中，就数他个头最大。”贝特斯补充道，“不过他可是绝对的例外。你看看他的女人，恩卡——才一百一十磅，精瘦，一点儿赘肉也没有。她胆量过人，堪比他体内的全部勇气之和；她陪伴着他，想尽办法让他变得更加优秀。天上飞的、地上跑的、水里游的，没什么她搞不定的。”

"But she loved him," objected the engineer.

“可她爱他。”工程师反驳道。

"'T ain't that. It—”

“我不是说那个。我是说——”

"Look you, brothers," broke in Sitka Charley from his seat on the grub-box. "Ye have spoken of the streak of fat that runs in big men's muscles, of the grit of women and the love, and ye have spoken fair; but I have in mind things which happened when the land was young and the fires of men apart as the stars. It was then I had concern with a big man, and a streak of fat, and a woman. And the woman was small; but her heart was greater than the beef-heart of the man, and she had grit. And we traveled a weary trail, even to the Salt Water, and the cold was bitter, the snow deep, the hunger great. And the woman's love was a mighty love—no more can man say than this.”

“瞧你们说的，兄弟们，”坐在粮柜子上的赛特卡·查利插嘴道，“你们刚刚提到大个子肌肉里藏着的肥肉，提到女人的毅力和爱，你们都说得没错。不过，我倒是想起了这块土地刚开荒那会儿，人烟还像星星一样稀少时发生的一些事情。也就是在那时，我跟一个大个子男人，就是一堆肥肉的那种，还有一个女人有了瓜葛。这个女人个子小小的，可她的心比男人牛一样的心脏还要强大，她真有毅力。我们一路劳累奔波，甚至走到了海边。天气寒冷刺骨，积雪又深，我们都饿得要命。这个女人的爱是伟大的——没有比这更好的说法了。”

He paused, and with the hatchet broke pieces of ice from the large chunk beside him. These he threw into the gold pan on the stove, where the drinking-water thawed. The men drew up closer, and he of the cramps sought greater comfort vainly for his stiffened body.

他停顿了一下，用一把短柄小斧子将冰一片片地从他身旁的大冰块上削下来。他把这些碎冰扔进火炉上的金黄色锅里，融化成饮用水。大伙儿靠得更近了些，那个刚才抽筋的人也想让僵硬的身体更舒服些，却没什么效果。

"Brothers, my blood is red with Siwash, but my heart is white. To the faults of my fathers I owe the one, to the virtues of my friends the other. A great truth came to me when I was yet a boy. I learned that to your kind and you was given the earth; that the Siwash could not withstand you, and like the caribou and the bear, must perish in the cold. So I came into the warm and sat among you, by your fires, and behold, I became one of you, I have seen much in my time. I have known strange things, and bucked big, on big trails, with men of many breeds. And because of these things, I measure deeds after your manner, and judge men, and think thoughts. Wherefore, when I speak harshly of one of your own kind, I know you will not take it amiss; and when I speak high of one of my father's people, you will not take it upon you to say, 'Sitka Charley is Siwash, and there is a crooked light in his eyes and small honor to his tongue.' Is it not so?"

“兄弟们，我流的是锡沃斯人鲜红的血，我的心却是向着白人的。血脉是父辈们传下来的，改变不了，但因为朋友们良好品格的影响，我的心却向着白人。我还是小男孩的时候，就明白一个重要的道理。我明白这块土地属于你们，属于你们这一族；锡沃斯人无法抵抗你们，只会像驯鹿和熊一样，必定在寒冷中灭绝。所以我来到这暖和的地方，坐到你们中间，坐到你们的火堆旁。瞧，我变成了你们中的一员，我一辈子见过的事也算多了。我遇到过各种奇奇怪怪的事情，在大路上和各色人等打过交道。有了这些经历，我学着像你们一样观察事情、观察人，以及思考问题。所以，我要是对你们的一个同族说了狠话，我知道你们不会见怪；我要是称赞了我的一个族人，你们也不会贸然说：‘赛特卡·查利是锡沃斯人，他的眼神狡猾，话不可信。’是不是？”

Deep down in throat, the circle vouchsafed its assent.

四周的人都从嗓子眼里发出声音，表示赞同。

"The woman was Passuk. I got her in fair trade from her people, who were of the Coast and whose Chilcat totem stood at the head of a salt arm of the sea. My heart did not go out to the woman, nor did I take stock of her looks. For she scarce took her eyes from the ground, and she was timid and afraid, as girls will be when cast into a stranger's arms whom they have never seen before. As I say, there was no place in my heart for her to creep, for I had a great journey in mind, and stood in need of one to feed my dogs and to lift a paddle with me through the long river days. One blanket would cover the twain; so I chose Passuk.

“这个女人叫帕苏克。我通过公平交易，从她的族人那里买了她，他们住在海岸边，他们民族的契尔凯特图腾就矗立在一座咸水海湾的岬角处。我当时没留意这个女人，也没看清她的模样。因为她很少将视线从地面上移开，看上去羞怯又害怕。女孩们突然被推到一个素未谋面的陌生人怀里时，就会这样。就像我说的，我心里没有地方容得下她，因为我一心想着一次重要的征程，需要一个人替我喂狗，和我一起划桨，挨过渡河那些漫长的日子。两个人可以合盖一条毯子，所以我选择帕苏克同行。

"Have I not said I was a servant to the Government? If not, it is well that ye know. So I was taken on a warship, sleds and dogs and evaporated foods, and with me came Passuk. And we went north, to the winter ice-rim of Bering Sea, where we were landed,—myself, and Passuk, and the dogs. I was also given moneys of the Government, for I was its servant, and charts of lands which the eyes of man had never dwelt upon, and messages. These messages were sealed, and protected shrewdly from the weather, and I was to deliver them to the whale-ships of the Arctic, ice-bound by the great Mackenzie. Never was there so great a river, forgetting only our own Yukon, the Mother of all Rivers.

“我是不是没说我当时是替政府办事？如果没提过，你们知道就好。于是我带上雪橇、狗和干粮登上了一艘战舰，和我一起走的还有帕苏克。我们朝北走，到达那已经被冬天冰封的白令海边，在那里登陆——我、帕苏克，还有那些狗。我身上还带着从政府领的钱，因为我是它的雇员，带着无人涉足过的大陆的地图，还有一些信。这些信件封了蜡，被巧妙地施加了能抵御这恶劣天气的保护措施。我要把它们送到被困在大马更些河冰块中的北极捕鲸船上。除了我们自己的众河之母——育空河，我可从没见过像这么大的一条河。

"All of which is neither here nor there, for my story deals not with the whale-ships, nor the berg-bound winter I spent by the Mackenzie. Afterward, in the spring, when the days lengthened and there was a crust to the snow, we came south, Passuk and I, to the Country of the Yukon. A weary journey, but the sun pointed out the way of our feet. It was a naked land then, as I have said, and we worked up the current, with pole and paddle, till we came to Forty Mile. Good it was to see white faces once again, so we put into the bank. And that winter was a hard winter. The darkness and the cold drew down upon us, and with them the famine. To each man the agent of the Company gave forty pounds of flour and twenty of bacon. There were no beans. And, the dogs howled always, and there were flat bellies and deep-lined faces, and strong men became weak, and weak men died. There was also much scurvy.

“这些都是闲话，因为我的故事和捕鲸船无关，也和我在马更些河畔度过的那个冰封的冬天无关。后来到了春天，白天变长，大雪消融得只剩一层又薄又硬的冰，帕苏克和我开始向南走，前往育空地区。那是一次让人筋疲力尽的旅行，好在太阳为我们指明了前进的道路。就像我说的，那时这里还是一片荒芜，我们用棍杖和船桨同激流奋战，终于抵达了四十英里站。再次见到白人的脸孔真让人高兴，我们也就上了岸。那个冬天不好过。黑暗和寒冷降临，随之而来的还有饥荒。公司的代理人给每个人发了四十磅面粉，二十磅熏肉。没有豆子。狗哀嚎个不停，随处可见饿得扁扁的肚子和满是皱纹的脸，强壮的人变得虚弱，虚弱的人死了。坏血病也在肆虐横行。

"Then came we together in the store one night, and the empty shelves made us feel our own emptiness the more. We talked low, by the light of the fire, for the candles had been set aside for those who might yet gasp in the spring. Discussion was held, and it was said that a man must go forth to the Salt Water and tell to the world our misery. At this all eyes turned to me, for it was understood that I was a great traveler. 'It is seven hundred miles,' said I, 'to Haines Mission by the sea, and every inch of it snowshoe work. Give me the pick of your dogs and the best of your grub, and I will go. And with me shall go Passuk.'

“后来有一晚，我们一起走进一家店铺，货架全都空空的，让我们觉得肚子更空了。我们就着火光低声交谈，因为蜡烛要省着用，留给那些在春天还可能活着的人。讨论了一阵，大家说必须得有一个人走到海边去，把我们的困境告诉外面的人。说到这儿，所有人的眼睛都看向我，因为众所周知我是一个了不起的旅行者。‘要走七百英里，’我说，‘才能从这儿走到海边的海恩斯教区，而且每一英寸都需要雪鞋开路。给我你们最好的狗，最好的粮，我就去。帕苏克也要和我一块儿。’

"To this they were agreed. But there arose one, Long Jeff, a Yankee-man, big-boned and big-muscled. Also his talk was big. He, too, was a mighty traveler, he said, born to the snowshoe and bred up on buffalo milk. He would go with me, in case I fell by the trail, that he might carry the word on to the Mission. I was young, and I knew not Yankee-men. How was I to know that big talk betokened the streak of fat, or that Yankee-men who did great things kept their teeth together? So we took the pick of the dogs and the best of the grub, and struck the trail, we three,—Passuk, Long Jeff, and I.

这些条件他们都同意了。有个人却起身反对，他叫朗·杰夫，是一个美国佬，骨架大，肌肉结实。他说话口气也大。他同样是一个了不起的旅行者。据他说，他天生擅长走雪路，又是喝水牛的奶长大的。他要和我一道去，说要是我在路边倒下了，他还可以把话带到教区去。我当时太年轻，不了解美国佬。我怎么知道说大话的人其实空长一身肥肉，做大事的美国佬反而不会轻易开口？于是我们就带上了最好的狗和最好的粮上路了，我们三个——帕苏克、朗·杰夫和我。

"Well, ye have broken virgin snow, labored at the gee-pole, and are not unused to the packed river-jams; so I will talk little of the toil, save that on some days we made ten miles, and on others thirty, but more often ten. And the best of the grub was not good, while we went on stint from the start. Likewise the pick of the dogs was poor, and we were hard put to keep them on their legs. At the White River our three sleds became two sleds, and we had only come two hundred miles. But we lost nothing; the dogs that left the traces went into the bellies of those that remained.

“好了，你们都在没人走过的雪地里开过路，费劲儿扳过雪橇的方向杆，也习惯了河上大量冰块的堵塞，所以这些辛苦我也就不说了，只是有些天我们走了十英里，有些天走了三十英里，但通常是十英里。那些最好的食物也并不怎么样，何况我们一开始就省着吃。同样地，最壮实的狗其实也不怎么样，让它们好好站立起来都很困难。到白河时，我们的三驾雪橇剩了两驾，可我们才走了两百英里。不过我们也没什么损失，掉队的狗全进了其他狗的肚子。

"Not a greeting, not a curl of smoke, till we made Pelly. Here I had counted on grub; and here I had counted on leaving Long Jeff, who was whining and trail-sore. But the factor's lungs were wheezing, his eyes bright, his cache nigh empty; and he showed us the empty cache of the missionary, also his grave with the rocks piled high to keep off the dogs. There was a bunch of Indians there, but babies and old men there were none, and it was clear that few would see the spring.

“没听见一句招呼，没看到一缕炊烟，我们就这样到了佩利。我指望在这儿补充些粮食，也打算着在这儿离开朗·杰夫。他走得乏了，一直在抱怨。可惜这儿的代理商正犯哮喘，病得两眼发亮，他的地窖几乎空了。他还给我们看了传教士空空的地窖，还有传教士的坟墓。为了防狗，周围全是垒得高高的石头。那儿还有一群印第安人，但其中没有小孩和老人。显然，只有少数几个人能熬到春天。

"So we pulled on, light-stomached and heavy-hearted, with half a thousand miles of snow and silence between us and Haines Mission by the sea. The darkness was at its worst, and at midday the sun could not clear the sky-line to the south. But the ice-jams were smaller, the going better; so I pushed the dogs hard and traveled late and early. As I said at Forty Mile, every inch of it was snow-shoe work. And the shoes made great sores on our feet, which cracked and scabbed but would not heal. And every day these sores grew more grievous, till in the morning, when we girded on the shoes, Long Jeff cried like a child. I put him at the fore of the light sled to break trail, but he slipped off the shoes for comfort. Because of this the trail was not packed, his moccasins made great holes, and into these holes the dogs wallowed. The bones of the dogs were ready to break through their hides, and this was not good for them. So I spoke hard words to the man, and he promised, and broke his word. Then I beat him with the dog-whip, and after that the dogs wallowed no more. He was a child, what of the pain and the streak of fat.

“于是我们继续上路，肚子空空，心情沉重，在我们和海边的海恩斯教区之间，隔着五百英里寂静的雪路。天从没这么黑过，到了正午，太阳还没照亮南边的天际线。不过冰坝小了，路也好走了。我趁机卖力赶着狗，起早贪黑地赶路。和我在四十英里站说的一样，每一英寸都需要雪鞋。鞋磨痛了我们的脚，已经开裂结痂，但就是好不了。每一天，脚痛都在加重，直到一天早晨，我们系鞋的时候，朗·杰夫终于像个孩子一样哭了起来。我让他坐到负重比较轻的雪橇前部开路，但他为了舒服，脱下了鞋。这样路就没压平整，他的鹿皮鞋在路面上弄出一个个大洞，狗踩到这些洞，都摔了跤。狗已经瘦得骨头快刺穿皮毛了，这样一来情况就更糟了。所以我狠狠骂了他，他答应再不这样，却又食言。我就用狗鞭打他，之后狗才不再摔了。他就是个小孩子，一身肥肉受这点痛算得了什么。

"But Passuk. While the man lay by the fire and wept, she cooked, and in the morning helped lash the sleds, and in the evening to unlash them. And she saved the dogs. Ever was she to the fore, lifting the webbed shoes and making the way easy. Passuk—how shall I say?—I took it for granted that she should do these things, and thought no more about it. For my mind was busy with other matters, and besides, I was young in years and knew little of woman. It was only on looking back that I came to understand.

“帕苏克可不一样。那个男人躺在火边抹眼泪的时候，她在煮饭，早上又帮忙赶雪橇，晚上再卸下雪橇。是她保全了那些狗。她总是坐在雪橇前部，抬起雪鞋，把路压得平整易走。帕苏克——我该怎么说呢？——我当时觉得她做这些事情都理所当然，从来也没有多想。我心里总是忙着想别的事情，而且，我当时还年轻，对女人一无所知。直到现在回想起来，我才明白。

"And the man became worthless. The dogs had little strength in them, but he stole rides on the sled when he lagged behind. Passuk said she would take the one sled, so the man had nothing to do. In the morning I gave him his fair share of grub and started him on the trail alone. Then the woman and I broke camp, packed the sleds, and harnessed the dogs. By midday, when the sun mocked us, we would overtake the man, with the tears frozen on his cheeks, and pass him. In the night we made camp, set aside his fair share of grub, and spread his furs. Also we made a big fire, that he might see. And hours afterward he would come limping in, and eat his grub with moans and groans, and sleep. He was not sick, this man. He was only trail-sore and tired, and weak with hunger. But Passuk and I were trail-sore and tired, and weak with hunger; and we did all the work and he did none. But he had the streak of fat of which our brother Bettles has spoken. Further, we gave the man always his fair share of grub.

“那男人变得一点儿用也没有。狗身上本来已没什么气力，他跟不上了还会偷偷坐上雪橇。帕苏克说她可以赶一驾雪橇，这样那个男人就彻底无事可做了。早上我给足他那份口粮，让他一个人上路。然后女人和我一起收起帐篷，装好雪橇，给狗套上。到了中午，当太阳嘲弄起我们的时候，我们就会赶上这个脸颊上眼泪结成冰的男人，然后超过他。晚上我们支起帐篷，留足他那份口粮，还替他铺好皮毛毯子。我们还把火烧旺，方便他看见。几个小时过后，他才一瘸一拐地进来，满腹牢骚地吃下东西，然后去睡了。这个男人没有生病。他只是脚痛、劳累，饿得虚弱无力。但帕苏克和我也累，脚也痛，也饿得虚弱无力，而且什么事都是我们做，他什么也没做。他只有一身肥肉，就像我们的贝特斯兄弟说的。更别说我们还总是给他足足一份口粮。

"Then one day we met two ghosts journeying through the Silence. They were a man and a boy, and they were white. The ice had opened on Lake Le Barge, and through it had gone their main outfit. One blanket each carried about his shoulders. At night they built a fire and crouched over it till morning. They had a little flour. This they stirred in warm water and drank. The man showed me eight cups of flour—all they had, and Pelly, stricken with famine, two hundred miles away. They said, also, that there was an Indian behind; that they had whacked fair, but that he could not keep up. I did not believe they had whacked fair, else would the Indian have kept up. But I could give them no grub. They strove to steal a dog—the fattest, which was very thin—but I shoved my pistol in their faces and told them begone. And they went away, like drunken men, through the Silence toward Pelly.

“然后有一天，我们遇到了两个在死寂之地中穿行的、幽魂般的人。一个男人和一个男孩，都是白人。巴尔杰湖上的冰已经解冻，他们的主要装备全掉进了冰窟窿。他们每人肩上围着一条毯子。晚上他们生起一堆火，在火边一直蹲到天明。他们只有一点儿面粉。他们把这点儿面粉混在热水里搅开喝了。那个男人给我看了他们的八杯面粉——这是他们所有的食物，还告诉我两百英里外的佩利正在闹饥荒。他们还说后面有一个印第安人；他们已经公平分粮，但他还是没能赶上来。我不相信他们分得公平，要不然印第安人肯定已经赶上他们了。但我也不能分出粮食给他们。他们试图偷一条狗——最肥的一条，其实也非常瘦——但我拔枪指着他们的脑袋，叫他们快滚。他们逃跑了，像醉酒的人一样，穿过这片死寂之地，向着佩利方向去了。

"I had three dogs now, and one sled, and the dogs were only bones and hair. When there is little wood, the fire burns low and the cabin grows cold. So with us. With little grub the frost bites sharp, and our faces were black and frozen till our own mothers would not have known us. And our feet were very sore. In the morning, when I hit the trail, I sweated to keep down the cry when the pain of the snowshoes smote me. Passuk never opened her lips, but stepped to the fore to break the way. The man howled.

“现在，我还剩下三条狗、一驾雪橇，狗也只剩皮包骨头。没什么柴禾，火就烧不旺，小屋里面也会更冷。我们的情形也是一样。粮食所剩无几，冰霜更加刺骨，我们面色发黑，脸已冻僵，那模样亲生母亲也认不出来。脚也非常疼。早上我上路的时候，脚痛折磨着我，为了不叫出声，我忍得直冒汗。帕苏克从不吭声，只是登上雪橇在前面开路。那男人却大呼小叫的。

"The Thirty Mile was swift, and the current ate away the ice from beneath, and there were many air-holes and cracks, and much open water. One day we came upon the man, resting, for he had gone ahead, as was his wont, in the morning. But between us was open water. This he had passed around by taking to the rim-ice where it was too narrow for a sled. So we found an ice-bridge. Passuk weighed little, and went first, with a long pole crosswise in her hands in chance she broke through. But she was light, and her shoes large, and she passed over. Then she called the dogs. But they had neither poles nor shoes, and they broke through and were swept under by the water. I held tight to the sled from behind, till the traces broke and the dogs went on down under the ice. There was little meat to them, but I had counted on them for a week's grub, and they were gone.

“三十英里河流速很快，水流从下方融化着冰面，形成了许多窟窿和裂缝，还有大片无冰水面。一天我们遇到了那个男人，他在休息，因为他早上总是习惯提前出发。但我们之间是一片无冰水面。他早就从水边那圈冰上绕了过去，但冰圈太窄，雪橇过不去。我们就找到了一处冰桥。帕苏克很轻，她先走，手上横握着一根长杆，万一她掉下冰桥可以救急。但她体型轻盈，鞋子又大，就过去了。过去之后她就开始招呼狗。狗可没有长杆也没有鞋，结果掉下桥，被水卷进了河里。我从后面紧紧揪着雪橇，直到冰面开裂，狗落到冰下。狗身上几乎没什么肉了，但我原本还指望着用它们做一个星期的口粮，现在全泡汤了。

"The next morning I divided all the grub, which was little, into three portions. And I told Long Jeff that he could keep up with us, or not, as he saw fit; for we were going to travel light and fast. But he raised his voice and cried over his sore feet and his troubles, and said harsh things against comradeship. Passuk's feet were sore, and my feet were sore—ay, sorer than his, for we had worked with the dogs; also, we looked to see. Long Jeff swore he would die before he hit the trail again; so Passuk took a fur robe, and I a cooking pot and an axe, and we made ready to go. But she looked on the man's portion, and said, 'It is wrong to waste good food on a baby. He is better dead.' I shook my head and said no—that a comrade once was a comrade always. Then she spoke of the men of Forty Mile; that they were many men and good; and that they looked to me for grub in the spring. But when I still said no, she snatched the pistol from my belt, quick, and as our brother Bettles has spoken, Long Jeff went to the bosom of Abraham before his time. I chided Passuk for this; but she showed no sorrow, nor was she sorrowful. And in my heart I knew she was right.” 质检

“第二天早晨，我把仅剩的一点儿口粮分成了三份。我告诉朗·杰夫他可以跟着我们，也可以不跟着，全看他自己；我们要轻装上路，加速前进了。他却提高了嗓门，哭诉他酸痛的脚和他的麻烦，骂我们不讲义气。帕苏克的脚也痛，我的脚也痛——唉，比他的还痛，因为我们要照看狗，还有，我们要探路。朗·杰夫赌咒说他等不到再次上路就会死了。就这样，帕苏克拿上一条毛皮盖毯，我拿上一只煮饭锅和一把斧头，我们就准备出发了。但她看着那男人的那份口粮，说：‘我们不该在一个没用的人身上浪费粮食。他死了更好。’我摇摇头，说不行——一天是伙伴，一辈子都是伙伴。然后，她提起四十英里站的那些人，说他们人数众多而且都是好人，说他们还盼着我在春天给他们带去粮食。但我仍然说不行，这时她从我腰带里抽出手枪，一下子，就像我们兄弟贝特斯讲的，朗·杰夫提早上了天。我为此责骂了帕苏克，但她一点儿不后悔，也不觉得难过。我心里也知道她是对的。”

Sitka Charley paused and threw pieces of ice into the gold pan on the stove. The men were silent, and their backs chilled to the sobbing cries of the dogs as they gave tongue to their misery in the outer cold.

赛特卡·查利停了停，将片片碎冰扔进炉子上的金黄色锅里。人人都很沉默，狗似乎在哭诉处于外面酷寒的痛苦，发出的哀嚎让人脊背发凉。

"And day by day we passed in the snow the sleeping-places of the two ghosts—Passuk and I—and we knew we would be glad for such ere we made Salt Water. Then we came to the Indian, like another ghost, with his face set toward Pelly. They had not whacked up fair, the man and the boy, he said, and he had had no flour for three days. Each night he boiled pieces of his moccasins in a cup, and ate them. He did not have much moccasins left. And he was a Coast Indian, and told us these things through Passuk, who talked his tongue. He was a stranger in the Yukon, and he knew not the way, but his face was set to Pelly. How far was it? Two sleeps? ten? a hundred—he did not know, but he was going to Pelly. It was too far to turn back; he could only keep on.

“每天，我们走在雪地，睡在雪地，两个幽魂——帕苏克和我——而且我们明白，在到达海边之前能有这样的条件已经是万幸了。后来我们遇到了那个印第安人，他就像另一个幽魂，正朝着佩利方向走。那个男人和那个男孩没有公平分粮。他说，他已经三天没吃过面粉了。每天晚上他都会用杯子煮片鹿皮鞋，然后吃掉。鹿皮鞋也没剩多少了。他是海岸边的印第安人，这些事都是他通过帕苏克告诉我们的，帕苏克会说他们的话。他在育空河是外地人，不认识路，但他一直在朝佩利走。那儿有多远？两天路程？十天？还是一百天——他不知道，但他要去佩利。他已经走得太远，没办法回头，只有一直往前走。

"He did not ask for grub, for he could see we, too, were hard put. Passuk looked at the man, and at me, as though she were of two minds, like a mother partridge whose young are in trouble. So I turned to her and said, 'This man has been dealt unfair. Shall I give him of our grub a portion?' I saw her eyes light, as with quick pleasure; but she looked long at the man and at me, and her mouth drew close and hard, and she said, 'No. The Salt Water is afar off, and Death lies in wait. Better it is that he take this stranger man and let my man Charley pass.' So the man went away in the Silence toward Pelly. That night she wept. Never had I seen her weep before. Nor was it the smoke of the fire, for the wood was dry wood. So I marveled at her sorrow, and thought her woman's heart had grown soft at the darkness of the trail and the pain.

“他没求我们分给他粮食，因为他看得出来，我们也自顾不暇。帕苏克看看这个男人，又看看我，踌躇不定，就像一只看到孩子陷入麻烦的母山鹑。于是我转向她说：‘这个人受到了不公平的对待。给他一份我们的口粮，好吗？’我看见她双眼放光，一瞬间似乎透着开心，但她久久看着这个人和我，双唇紧闭，然后说道：‘不行。海边还很远，死神正在等着。最好他还是带走这个外乡人，让我的男人查利活下来。’于是，这个人在一片寂静中离开了，向着佩利出发。那晚她哭了。我以前从来没见她哭过。不是烟火熏的，因为木头都很干燥。所以她这么伤心我很奇怪，以为路途昏暗加上苦痛让她这颗女人的心变得多愁善感起来。

"Life is a strange thing. Much have I thought on it, and pondered long, yet daily the strangeness of it grows not less, but more. Why this longing for Life? It is a game which no man wins. To live is to toil hard, and to suffer sore, till Old Age creeps heavily upon us and we throw down our hands on the cold ashes of dead fires. It is hard to live. In pain the babe sucks his first breath, in pain the old man gasps his last, and all his days are full of trouble and sorrow; yet he goes down to the open arms of Death, stumbling, falling, with head turned backward, fighting to the last. And Death is kind. It is only Life, and the things of Life that hurt. Yet we love Life, and we hate Death. It is very strange.

“生命真是个奇怪的玩意儿。我想得越多，琢磨得越久，那种奇怪的感觉却不见减少，反而与日俱增。人为什么这么渴望生？生就是个没人能赢的游戏。生存就是磨难，就是受苦，直到年迈体衰，垂垂老矣，我们就两手一伸，火熄了，灰也冷了。活着是艰难的。婴孩在痛苦中吸进他第一口气，老人在痛苦中呼出他最后一口气，一生之中又满是不幸和悔恨，然而他走向死神张开的怀抱时，步履蹒跚，跌跌撞撞，却还扭头留恋着，抗拒到最后一刻。死神则是慈爱的。只有生，还有和生有关的一切才让人痛苦。而我们却爱恋着生，对死深恶痛绝。真是奇怪。

"We spoke little, Passuk and I, in the days which came. In the night we lay in the snow like dead people, and in the morning we went on our way, walking like dead people. And all things were dead. There were no ptarmigan, no squirrels, no snowshoe rabbits,—nothing. The river made no sound beneath its white robes. The sap was frozen in the forest. And it became cold, as now; and in the night the stars drew near and large, and leaped and danced; and in the day the sun-dogs mocked us till we saw many suns, and all the air flashed and sparkled, and the snow was diamond dust. And there was no heat, no sound, only the bitter cold and the Silence. As I say, we walked like dead people, as in a dream, and we kept no count of time. Only our faces were set to Salt Water, our souls strained for Salt Water, and our feet carried us toward Salt Water. We camped by the Tahkeena, and knew it not. Our eyes looked upon the White Horse, but we saw it not. Our feet trod the portage of the Canyon, but they felt it not. We felt nothing. And we fell often by the way, but we fell, always, with our faces toward Salt Water.

“在接下来的日子里，帕苏克和我，我们很少说话。晚上我们躺在雪地里，就像死人一般，早上我们继续赶路，走得也像死人一般。万物都死了一般。没有雷鸟，没有松鼠，没有雪兔——什么都没有。白雪覆盖下的河流寂静无声。森林里树汁都结了冰。天气冷了，像现在一样冷。晚上，星星又近又大，不断跳动闪烁着。白天，幻日嘲弄着我们，照得我们看见许多个太阳，周围的空气闪烁炫目，雪就像钻石磨成的粉末。没有热度，没有声响，只有严寒和寂静。就像我说的，我们像死人一样行走，就像在梦里一样，对时间没什么概念。只是我们一直面朝着海，魂魄渴望着海，脚也拖着我们走向海。我们在塔基纳扎营，自己却不知道。我们的眼睛望着怀特霍斯，却认不出来。我们的脚踏上了大峡谷的陆运区，却感觉不到。我们什么都感觉不到。我们常常在路上摔倒，但就算摔倒，我们的脸也总是朝着海的方向。

"Our last grub went, and we had shared fair, Passuk and I, but she fell more often, and at Caribou Crossing her strength left her. And in the morning we lay beneath the one robe and did not take the trail. It was in my mind to stay there and meet Death hand-in-hand with Passuk; for I had grown old, and had learned the love of woman. Also, it was eighty miles to Haines Mission, and the great Chilcoot, far above the timber-line, reared his storm-swept head between. But Passuk spoke to me, low, with my ear against her lips that I might hear. And now, because she need not fear my anger, she spoke her heart, and told me of her love, and of many things which I did not understand.

“我们最后一点儿口粮也没了，我们平分的，帕苏克和我，但是她摔倒的次数更多，在卡里布道口，她身体垮了。早上我们躺在一条盖毯下面，没有上路。我想呆在那儿，和帕苏克手拉手去见死神，因为随着年岁增长，我已经明白了女人的爱。况且，离海恩斯教区还有八十英里，中间还横亘着雄伟的奇尔库特山，这座山高出树木许多，山头风雪肆虐。但帕苏克对我说了许多话，声音很低，嘴唇贴着我的耳朵好让我听见。现在，因为她不必担心我会生气，便向我吐露了心声，告诉我她对我的爱，还有很多我之前不明白的事情。

"And she said: 'You are my man, Charley, and I have been a good woman to you. And in all the days I have made your fire, and cooked your food, and fed your dogs, and lifted paddle or broken trail, I have not complained. Nor did I say that there was more warmth in the lodge of my father, or that there was more grub on the Chilcat. When you have spoken, I have listened. When you have ordered, I have obeyed. Is it not so, Charley?'

她说：‘你是我的男人，查利，对你，我尽了一个好女人的本分。一直以来，我为你生火，为你煮饭，替你喂狗，和你一起划桨、开路，没有一句怨言。我没说过我父亲的小屋里更暖和，也没说过契尔凯特粮食更多。你说话，我就听着。你吩咐，我就遵从。对吗，查利?'

"And I said: 'Ay, it is so.'

“我说：‘唉，没错。’

"And she said: 'When first you came to the Chilcat, nor looked upon me, but bought me as a man buys a dog, and took me away, my heart was hard against you and filled with bitterness and fear. But that was long ago. For you were kind to me, Charley, as a good man is kind to his dog. Your heart was cold, and there was no room for me; yet you dealt me fair and your ways were just. And I was with you when you did bold deeds and led great ventures, and I measured you against the men of other breeds, and I saw you stood among them full of honor, and your word was wise, your tongue true. And I grew proud of you, till it came that you filled all my heart, and all my thought was of you. You were as the midsummer sun, when its golden trail runs in a circle and never leaves the sky. And whatever way I cast my eyes I beheld the sun. But your heart was ever cold, Charley, and there was no room.'

“她说：‘你刚到契尔凯特的时候，没好好看过我，而是像买条狗一样买了我带走，我心里对你十分反感，全是苦涩和恐惧。不过那都是很久以前的事了。你对我的好，查利，就像一个好心人对他的狗那种好。你的心冷酷，没有我的位置；但你对我不错，处事也公平。你冒险、做大事的时候，我和你在一起，我拿你和其他种族的人比较，看见你在他们中间倍受尊重，讲出来的话明智又诚实。渐渐地，我以你为傲，直到你充满了我的整颗心，我所想的只有你。你就像盛夏的太阳，金色的足迹在天空中绕着圈，永远不落。无论我的眼睛看到哪里，都能见到你这个太阳。但你的心还是一如从前的冷酷，查利，没有我的位置。’

"And I said: 'It is so. It was cold, and there was no room. But that is past. Now my heart is like the snowfall in the spring, when the sun has come back. There is a great thaw and a bending, a sound of running waters, and a budding and sprouting of green things. And there is drumming of partridges, and songs of robins, and great music, for the winter is broken, Passuk, and I have learned the love of woman.'

“我说：‘没错。我的内心冷酷，没有你的位置。但那都是过去的事情了。现在，我的心就像太阳重回天上时春天的积雪。大片的雪融化了，拐弯处，流水叮咚响，绿色植物在抽枝发芽。那里有山鹑鼓翅的声音，知更鸟的歌声，有美妙的音乐，因为冬天已经结束，帕苏克，我已经懂得了女人的爱。’

"She smiled and moved for me to draw her closer. And she said, 'I am glad.' After that she lay quiet for a long time, breathing softly, her head upon my breast. Then she whispered: 'The trail ends here, and I am tired. But first I would speak of other things. In the long ago, when I was a girl on the Chilcat, I played alone among the skin bales of my father's lodge; for the men were away on the hunt, and the women and boys were dragging in the meat. It was in the spring, and I was alone. A great brown bear, just awake from his winter's sleep, hungry, his fur hanging to the bones in flaps of leanness, shoved his head within the lodge and said, "Oof!" My brother came running back with the first sled of meat. And he fought the bear with burning sticks from the fire, and the dogs in their harnesses, with the sled behind them, fell upon the bear. There was a great battle and much noise. They rolled in the fire, the skin bales were scattered, the lodge overthrown. But in the end the bear lay dead, with the fingers of my brother in his mouth and the marks of his claws upon my brother's face. Did you mark the Indian by the Pelly trail, his mitten which had no thumb, his hand which he warmed by our fire? He was my brother. And I said he should have no grub. And he went away in the Silence without grub.'

“她微微笑了，向我靠近，让我将她抱得更紧。她说：‘我很开心。’之后，她静静地躺了很久，呼吸很轻，头靠着我的胸口。然后她小声说：‘路在这儿到头了，我也累了。但我要先说点儿别的事情。很久以前，我还是契尔凯特的一个小女孩的时候，我在父亲放着一捆捆动物皮子的小屋里独自玩耍，因为男人们都出去打猎了，女人和男孩们正把猎回的肉拖进屋。那时正值春季，我又独自一人。一只冬眠刚醒的大棕熊正饿着，瘦得皮包骨头，一下子把头伸进屋里叫了一声：“嗷唔！”我哥哥拉着第一驾载着肉的雪橇跑了回来。他从火上拿起烧着的棍子，去打那头熊，狗套着挽具，后面还拉着雪橇，也都扑向大熊。那是一场混战，动静很大。他们在火里打滚，成捆的皮子打散了，小屋也翻了。不过最后，熊倒下死了，嘴里咬着我哥哥的手指，我哥哥的脸上还留有熊爪子抓伤的痕迹。在佩利那段路上遇到的那个印第安人，他在我们火堆边暖过手，你注意到他的手套里没有大拇指了吗？他就是我的哥哥。我还说他不该分我们的粮食。他没带任何吃的，消失在这片死寂之地。’

"This, my brothers, was the love of Passuk, who died in the snow, by the Caribou Crossing. It was a mighty love, for she denied her brother for the man who led her away on weary trails to a bitter end. And, further, such was this woman's love, she denied herself. Ere her eyes closed for the last time she took my hand and slipped it under her squirrel-skin parka to her waist. I felt there a well-filled pouch, and learned the secret of her lost strength. Day by day we had shared fair, to the last least bit; and day by day but half her share had she eaten. The other half had gone into the well-filled pouch.

“我的兄弟们，这就是帕苏克的爱。她死在了卡里布道口旁的雪地里。这爱太伟大，为了一个让她离乡背井、踏上疲惫旅途、最后凄惨死去的男人，她连自己的哥哥也不顾。不止这样，她也不顾她自己，这女人的爱到这种程度。在闭眼前，她最后一次拉起我的手，伸到她松鼠皮派克大衣的里面，放到她的腰上。我摸到那儿有一只装得满满的小袋子，才知道她身体垮掉的原因。每天我们都平分粮食，直到分尽最后一粒；每天她都只吃掉她那份粮食的一半。另一半都进了这个装得满满的口袋。

"And she said: 'This is the end of the trail for Passuk; but your trail, Charley, leads on and on, over the great Chilcoot, down to Haines Mission and the sea. And it leads on and on, by the light of many suns, over unknown lands and strange waters, and it is full of years and honors and great glories. It leads you to the lodges of many women, and good women, but it will never lead you to a greater love than the love of Passuk.'

“她说：‘对帕苏克来说，路的尽头就是这儿了，但你的路，查利，还会越走越远，越过雄伟的奇尔库特山，抵达海恩斯教区，直到海边。你的路会越走越远，有许多日头的光辉照耀，越过未知的土地、陌生的湖海，年复一年，赢得众多荣誉和无上的荣耀。你的路会带你走进很多女人的小屋，遇到很多好女人，但你再也遇不到比帕苏克的爱更深的爱了。’

"And I knew the woman spoke true. But a madness came upon me, and I threw the well-filled pouch from me, and swore that my trail had reached an end, till her tired eyes grew soft with tears, and she said: 'Among men has Sitka Charley walked in honor, and ever has his word been true. Does he forget that honor now, and talk vain words by the Caribou Crossing? Does he remember no more the men of Forty Mile, who gave him of their grub the best, of their dogs the pick? Ever has Passuk been proud of her man. Let him lift himself up, gird on his snow-shoes, and begone, that she may still keep her pride.'

“我知道这个女人说得对。但是一股疯狂突然攫住了我，我丢开那只装得满满的小袋子，发誓说我的路已经到头。她疲惫的眼睛里满是泪水，目光也变得柔和起来，她说：‘赛特卡·查利在人们中间倍受尊重，他向来言出必行。他现在忘记他的荣誉了吗？在卡里布道口就言而无信了吗？他难道不再记得四十英里站的那些人，那些给了他最好的粮食、最好的狗的人了吗？帕苏克一向以她的男人为傲。让他站起来，穿上雪鞋，离开她上路吧，这样她才能仍旧保有她的骄傲。’

"And when she grew cold in my arms I arose, and sought out the well-filled pouch, and girt on my snowshoes, and staggered along the trail; for there was a weakness in my knees, and my head was dizzy, and in my ears there was a roaring, and a flashing of fire upon my eyes. The forgotten trails of boyhood came back to me. I sat by the full pots of the potlach feast, and raised my voice in song, and danced to the chanting of the men and maidens and the booming of the walrus drums. And Passuk held my hand and walked by my side. When I laid down to sleep, she waked me. When I stumbled and fell, she raised me. When I wandered in the deep snow, she led me back to the trail. And in this wise, like a man bereft of reason, who sees strange visions and whose thoughts are light with wine, I came to Haines Mission by the sea.”

“直到她在我怀中冷去，我才起身，找到那个装得满满的小袋子，穿上雪鞋，踉跄着上路了。我的腿发软，脑袋发晕，耳中轰响，眼前全是跳跃的火花。被遗忘的青年时代又重回我的脑海。我坐在赠礼节宴会满满的锅旁，放声歌唱，随着男男女女的歌声和海象鼓的咚咚声起舞。帕苏克拉着我的手，走在我身边。我躺下睡着时，是她叫醒我。我绊倒时，是她扶起我。我在大雪里迷路时，是她领我回到路上。我就像一个失去理智的人看见奇怪的幻象，仿佛喝了酒一般，思绪轻飘飘的，就这样，我到了海边的海恩斯教区。”

Sitka Charley threw back the tent-flaps. It was midday. To the south, just clearing the bleak Henderson Divide, poised the cold- disked sun. On either hand the sun-dogs blazed. The air was a gossamer of glittering frost. In the foreground, beside the trail, a wolf-dog, bristling with frost, thrust a long snout heavenward and mourned.

赛特卡·查利掀开帐篷门帘。这时正是正午。一轮冰冷的、圆盘状的太阳悬在正南方，就在那荒凉的亨德森分水岭旁。日晕两侧，幻日闪耀。空气好像璀璨霜花结成的薄纱。帐前路旁，一条狼狗竖着结了霜的毛，仰天长啸，发出悲鸣。