Page 503 - 血字的研究·四签名(外研社双语读库) (福尔摩斯探案全集)

"At last it seemed to me to have come. I was changed
from Agra to Madras, and from there to Blair Island in the

Andamans. There are very few white convicts at this
settlement, and, as I had behaved well from the first, I soon
found myself a sort of privileged person. I was given a hut in
Hope Town, which is a small place on the slopes of Mount
Harriet, and I was left pretty much to myself. It is a dreary,

fever-stricken place, and all beyond our little clearings was
infested with wild cannibal natives, who were ready enough
to blow a poisoned dart at us if they saw a chance. There

was digging and ditching and yam-planting, and a dozen
other things to be done, so we were busy enough all day,
though in the evening we had a little time to ourselves.
Among other things, I learned to dispense drugs for the
surgeon, and picked up a smattering of his knowledge. All

the time I was on the lookout for a chance to escape; but it
is hundreds of miles from any other land, and there is little
or no wind in those seas: so it was a terribly difficult job to

get away."

“最后，时机好像终于到了。我由阿格拉被转押到马德拉斯，又从
那里被转到安达曼群岛的布莱尔岛。岛上的白种人囚犯很少，又因为

我一开始就表现得不错，所以不久，我就受到了一点儿优待。在哈丽
雅特山麓的霍普镇上，我得到了一间小茅屋，过得很是自在。那岛上

是可怕的热病流行区，就在我们那一小片空地之外，都是野蛮的食人
土著，一有机会就向我们施放毒刺。在那里整天忙于开垦、挖沟和种

番薯，还有许多其他杂差，因此整个白天都很忙碌，到夜晚才能有一
些闲暇。除了干其他事以外，我还学会了为外科医师调配药物，学到

了一点儿外科的知识。我时时刻刻在寻找逃走的机会，可是，那里离

任何大陆都有几百英里远，而且在附近一带，海面上风很小，甚至没
有风，因此，要想逃跑真是万难。”

"The surgeon, Dr. Somerton, was a fast, sporting young
chap, and the other young officers would meet in his rooms
of an evening and play cards. The surgery, where I used to