I shall ere long paint to you as well as one can without canvas,  再一会儿，我不必用画布，就可以象那些名家一样，

　　something like the true form of the whale as he actually appears to the eye of the whaleman  给你们各位画出一种真正的鲸来，画得它在捕鲸者看来，

　　when in his own absolute body the whale is moored alongside the whaleship so that he can be fairly stepped upon there. 实际上就是一只拉到捕鲸船边来的纯真的鲸，好教他一脚就跨上它的身体。

　　It may be worth while, therefore, previously to advert to those curious imaginary portraits of him 因此，先来谈谈它那种想象上的古怪的画像，倒是值得一做的，

　　which even down to the present day confidently challenge the faith of the landsman.  因为那些画像，甚至时至今日，还能赢得陆地人的深切的信任。

　　It is time to set the world right in this matter, by proving such pictures of the whale all wrong. 现在正是证明这些鲸的画像是完全错误的，从而在这个问题上纠正世人的观感的时候了。

　　It may be that the primal source of all those pictorial delusions will be found among the oldest Hindoo, Egyptian, and Grecian sculptures. 在最古老的印度，埃及和希腊的雕刻品中，也许还可以找到所有这些自欺欺人的图画的原始来源。

　　For ever since those inventive but unscrupulous times when on the marble panellings of temples,  因为自从那个巧计百出而肆无忌惮的时期以来，不论在庙宇的大理石嵌板细工上，

　　the pedestals of statues, and on shields, medallions, cups, and coins,  在雕像架上，在盾牌上，大奖章上，杯子和钱币上，

　　the dolphin was drawn in scales of chain-armor like Saladin's, and a helmeted head like St. George's;  海豚都被画得跟萨拉丁(萨拉丁(1138—1193)——叙利亚和埃及皇帝，以反抗十字军侵略著名，一一九二年迫使十字军结束第三次东征。)的锁子甲一般大小，那只戴了钢盔的脑袋则象圣乔治(圣乔治(？—303？)——英国的守护神。)的戴了钢盔的脑袋一样；

　　ever since then has something of the same sort of license prevailed,  自从那时以来，就流行这样一种风气，

　　not only in most popular pictures of the whale, but in many scientific presentations of him. 它不但表现在最通行的鲸画像上，还表现在许多有关鲸的科学论著上。