6 The Chance to Escape

CHAPTER 6 The Chance to Escape Finally, one day my master took me and another slave, Ishmael, fishing with him. The weather quickly turned against us, and we were soon caught in a great fog. By the time we could see clearly, Ishmael and I had rowed out to sea instead of back home. After some hard work, we rowed safely back to shore.

终于有一天，我的主人带着我和另一个奴隶以实玛利一起去钓鱼。 天气很快对我们不利，我们很快就被大雾包围了。 等我们看清楚的时候，以实玛利和我已经划向大海，而不是回家了。 经过一番艰苦的努力，我们安全地划回岸边。

Two things happened next to get me thinking about how I could escape. First, my master had a carpenter fix up the fishing boat. Now, it was better prepared for a longer voyage. The new boat is sturdy. I could use it to travel away from Sallee if given the chance! I thought. What luck that our misadventure scared my master. Later that week, my master planned a fun evening on the boat for some friends. This was the second thing that happened to help along my escape. He ordered me to stock up with loads of supplies. I also had to shine the boat until it sparkled and decorate it for the party. The next day, just ten minutes before we were supposed to leave, the master came stomping up to the boat. He was angry! It seemed his friends no longer wanted to spend the day at sea. He ordered me to take

接下来发生的两件事让我开始思考如何逃跑。 首先，我的主人让木匠把渔船修好了。 现在，它为更长的航程做了更好的准备。 这艘新船很结实。如果有机会，我可以用它离开莎莉！我想。 真幸运，我们的不幸把我的主人吓坏了。 那个星期晚些时候，我的主人计划和一些朋友在船上度过一个愉快的夜晚。 这是帮助我逃跑的第二件事。 他命令我储备大量的物资。 我还得把船擦亮，直到它闪闪发光，并为聚会装饰它。 第二天，就在我们出发前十分钟，船长大步走到船前。 他生气了！他的朋友们似乎不再想在海上度过这一天了。 他命令我拿

Ishmael and Xury, another slave, fishing. Even if they weren't going to sea, he still wanted his friends to have fresh fish for the special dinner. This is my chance! I thought excitedly. I can escape! But how? I convinced Ishmael that we shouldn't eat the master's food, so he stocked the boat up with even more provisions. While he was off packing us a picnic of sorts, I grabbed some other things we would need: candles, a saw, a hammer, some twine, and a hatchet. Next, I tricked Xury into finding us some gunpowder. I told him we could kill some wild birds for our own supper. He smiled at me and said, "Yes, that's a really good idea!" A few minutes later, we were prepared. The three of us sailed off into the harbor. We rode out a ways and then dropped our sails to fish. That day, the wind blew in from the

以实玛利和另一个奴隶苏里在钓鱼。 即使他们不出海，他仍然希望他的朋友们在特别的晚餐上吃到新鲜的鱼。 这是我的机会！我兴奋地想。 我能逃脱！但如何?我说服了以实玛利，我们不应该吃主人的食物，所以他在船上放了更多的食物。 当他去给我们打包野餐的东西时，我拿了一些我们需要的东西：蜡烛、锯子、锤子、一些麻绳和一把斧头。 接下来，我骗苏里给我们找了些火药。 我告诉他我们可以猎杀一些野鸟作为我们自己的晚餐。 他笑着对我说：“是的，这真是个好主意！”几分钟后，我们准备好了。 我们三个人驶进了港口。 我们驶出一段路，然后放下帆去钓鱼。 那天，风从树上吹了进来

north-northeast. I wished for a wind from the south—with it, I could have sailed to Spain. But I didn't despair. Any wind would carry me up and away from my prison on this Earth. I was happy just thinking about escaping to freedom. It was now or never. "Ishmael," I said, "The water has gone cold here. I'm not catching anything. Let's sail out a bit farther." He nodded and raised the sails. We drove another league out to sea. Just before he was going to drop the anchor, I came up behind him and tossed him overboard. Ishmael screamed and yelled, "Let me back on board! What are you doing, Robinson? You're going to get yourself killed!" I called back, "You are a great swimmer. Head back to shore, Ishmael. I am escaping. There is no way for you to stop me!" He shook his head, accepted his fate, and started

东北偏北。我希望有一股南风，有了它，我就可以航行到西班牙了。 但我没有绝望。任何风都能把我从地球上的牢笼中带走。 一想到逃到自由的地方我就很开心。 机不可失，时不再来。“以实玛利，”我说，“这里的水已经凉了。 我什么也没抓到。 我们再往外驶一点吧。” 他点点头，扬起了帆。 我们又开了一个里格的车出海。 就在他要抛锚的时候，我走到他身后，把他扔到海里去了。 以实玛利尖叫着说：“让我回到船上！你在干什么，罗宾逊？ 你会害死自己的！”我回叫道：“你是个游泳好手。 回岸上去吧，以实玛利。 我在逃跑。你没有办法阻止我！”他摇了摇头，接受了自己的命运，出发了

to swim. Xury stood on deck, shivering. He was afraid I would throw him overboard, too. "Xury, you must swear to help me or else you're following Ishmael into the sea!" Xury couldn't swim that well, so he quickly agreed to my terms. For the next few hours, I sailed toward the Strait of Gibraltar. Ishmael would have to tell our master which direction we had taken, so I wanted him to think I was headed for the Spanish coast. As soon as dusk fell, I turned the boat around. The new course was due south. It was scary and unknown territory, but it was better than being caught. I never wanted to be a slave again.

游泳。佐立站在甲板上，瑟瑟发抖。 他怕我也会把他扔下船。 “佐立，你必须发誓帮我，否则你就会跟着以实玛利下海了！”苏里不太会游泳，所以他很快就同意了我的条件。 在接下来的几个小时里，我向直布罗陀海峡驶去。 以实玛利必须告诉主人我们所走的方向，所以我想让他以为我是向西班牙海岸驶去。 夜幕一降临，我就掉转船头。 新的航线是正南的。 这是一个可怕的未知领域，但总比被抓住要好。 我再也不想做奴隶了。