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Allan Quatermain-Part18_H.Rider Haggard(1856-1925)_English Literature(文学名著)-第2页

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-- I dared not lift it -- and looked up. By the feeble light

that yet reached the canoe, I could make out that a dense arch



of rock hung just over our heads, and that was all. In another

minute I could not even see as much as that, for the faint light



had merged into shadow, and the shadows had been swallowed up

in darkness, utter and complete.



For an hour or so we lay there, not daring to lift our heads

for fear lest the brains should be dashed out of them, and scarcely



able to speak even, on account of the noise of the rushing water

which drowned our voices. Not, indeed, that we had much inclination



to speak, seeing that we were overwhelmed by the awfulness of

our position and the imminent fear of instant death, either by



being dashed against the sides of the cavern, or on a rock, or

being sucked down in the raging waters, or perhaps asphyxiated



by want of air. All of these and many other modes of death presented

themselves to my imagination as I lay at the bottom of the canoe,



listening to the swirl of the hurrying waters which ran whither

we knew not. One only other sound could I hear, and that was



Alphonse's intermittent howl of terror coming from the centre

of the canoe, and even that seemed faint and unnatural. Indeed,



the whole thing overpowered my brain, and I began to believe

that I was the victim of some ghastly spirit-shaking nightmare.



CHAPTER X

THE ROSE OF FIRE



On we flew, drawn by the mighty current, till at last I noticed

that the sound of the water was not half so deafening as it had



been, and concluded that this must be because there was more

room for the echoes to disperse in. I could now hear Alphonse's



howls much more distinctly; they were made up of the oddest mixture

of invocations to the Supreme Power and the name of his beloved



Annette that it is possible to conceive; and, in short, though

their evidentearnestness saved them from profanity, were, to



say the least, very remarkable. Taking up a paddle I managed

to drive it into his ribs, whereon he, thinking that the end



had come, howled louder than ever. Then I slowly and cautiously

raised myself on my knees and stretched my hand upwards, but



could touch no roof. Next I took the paddle and lifted it above

my head as high as I could, but with the same result. I also



thrust it out laterally to the right and left, but could touch

nothing except water. Then I bethought me that there was in



the boat, amongst our other remaining possessions, a bull's-eye

lantern and a tin of oil. I groped about and found it, and having



a match on me carefully lit it, and as soon as the flame had

got a hold of the wick I turned it on down the boat. As it happened,



the first thing the light lit on was the white and scared face

of Alphonse, who, thinking that it was all over at last, and



that he was witnessing a preliminarycelestialphenomenon, gave

a terrific yell and was with difficulty reassured with the paddle.



As for the other three, Good was lying on the flat of his back,

his eyeglass still fixed in his eye, and gazing blankly into



the upper darkness. Sir Henry had his head resting on the thwarts

of the canoe, and with his hand was trying to test the speed



of the water. But when the beam of light fell upon old Umslopogaas

I could really have laughed. I think I have said that we had



put a roast quarter of water-buck into the canoe. Well, it so

happened that when we all prostrated ourselves to avoid being



swept out of the boat and into the water by the rock roof, Umslopogaas's

head had come down uncommonly near this roast buck, and so soon



as he had recovered a little from the first shock of our position

it occurred to him that he was hungry. Thereupon he coolly cut



off a chop with Inkosi-kaas, and was now employed in eating it

with every appearance of satisfaction. As he afterwards explained,



he thought that he was going 'on a long journey', and preferred

to start on a full stomach. It reminded me of the people who



are going to be hanged, and who are generally reported in the

English daily papers to have made 'an excellent breakfast'.



As soon as the others saw that I had managed to light the lamp,

we bundled Alphonse into the farther end of the canoe with a



threat which calmed him down wonderfully, that if he would insist




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