VOA慢速英语2020 《基什的故事》by杰克·伦敦（在线收听）

'Keesh' by Jack London

Our story this week is "Keesh." It was written by Jack London. Here is Shep O'Neal to tell you the story.

Keesh lived at the edge of the polar sea. He had seen thirteen suns in the Eskimo way of keeping time. Among the Eskimos, the sun each winter leaves the land in darkness. And the next year, a new sun returns, so it might be warm again.

The father of Keesh had been a brave man. But he had died hunting for food. Keesh was his only son. Keesh lived along with his mother, Ikeega.

One night, the village council met in the big igloo of Klosh-kwan, the chief. Keesh was there with the others. He listened, then waited for silence.

He said, "It is true that you give us some meat. But it is often old and tough meat, and has many bones."

The hunters were surprised. This was a child speaking against them. A child talking like a grown man!

Keesh said, "My father, Bok, was a great hunter. It is said that Bok brought home more meat than any of the two best hunters. And that he divided the meat so that all got an equal share."

"Naah! Naah!" the hunters cried. "Put the child out! Send him to bed. He should not talk to gray-beards this way!"

Keesh waited until the noise stopped. "You have a wife, Ugh-gluk," he said. "And you speak for her. My mother has no one but me. So I speak. As I say, Bok hunted greatly, but is now dead. It is only fair then that my mother, who was his wife, and I, his son, should have meat when the tribe has meat. I, Keesh, son of Bok, have spoken."

Again, there was a great noise in the igloo. The council ordered Keesh to bed. It even talked of giving him no food.

Keesh jumped to his feet. "Hear me!" he cried. "Never shall I speak in the council igloo again. I shall go hunt meat like my father, Bok."

There was much laughter when Keesh spoke of hunting. The laughter followed Keesh as he left the council meeting.

The next day, Keesh started out for the shore, where the land meets the ice. Those who watched saw that he carried his bow and many arrows. Across his shoulder was his father's big hunting spear. Again there was laughter.

One day passed, then a second. On the third day, a great wind blew. There was no sign of Keesh. His mother, Ikeega, put burned seal oil on her face to show her sorrow. The women shouted at their men for letting the little boy go. The men made no answer, but got ready to search for the body of Keesh.

Early next morning, Keesh walked into the village. Across his shoulders was fresh meat. "Go you men, with dogs and sleds. Follow my footsteps. Travel for a day," he said. "There is much meat on the ice. A she-bear and her two cubs."

His mother was very happy. Keesh, trying to be a man, said to her, "Come, Ikeega, let us eat. And after that, I shall sleep. For I am tired."

There was much talk after Keesh went to his igloo. The killing of a bear was dangerous. But it was three times more dangerous to kill a mother bear with cubs. The men did not believe Keesh had done so. But the women pointed to the fresh meat. At last, the men agreed to go for the meat that was left. But they were not very happy.

One said that even if Keesh had killed the bear, he probably had not cut the meat into pieces. But when the men arrived, they found that Keesh had not only killed the bear, but had also cut it into pieces, just like a grown hunter.

So began the mystery of Keesh.

On his next trip, he killed a young bear...and on the following trip, a large male bear and its mate.

Then there was talk of magic and witchcraft in the village. "He hunts with evil spirits," said one. "Maybe his father's spirit hunts with him," said another.

Keesh continued to bring meat to the village. Some people thought he was a great hunter. There was talk of making him chief, after old Klosh-kwan. They waited, hoping he would come to council meetings. But he never came.

"I would like to build an igloo." Keesh said one day, "but I have no time. My job is hunting. So it would be just if the men and women of the village who eat my meat, build my igloo." And the igloo was built. It was even bigger than the igloo of the Chief Klosh-kwan.

One day, Ugh-gluk talked to Keesh. "It is said that you hunt with evil spirits, and they help you kill the bear."

"Is not the meat good?" Keesh answered. "Has anyone in the village yet become sick after eating it? How do you know evil spirits are with me? Or do you say it because I am a good hunter?"

Ugh-gluk had no answer.

The council sat up late talking about Keesh and the meat. They decided to spy on him.

On Keesh's next trip, two young hunters, Bim and Bawn, followed him. After five days, they returned. The council met to hear their story.

"Brothers," Bim said, "we followed Keesh, and he did not see us. The first day he came to a great bear. Keesh shouted at the bear, loudly. The bear saw him and became angry. It rose high on its legs and growled. But Keesh walked up to it."

"We saw it," Bawn, the other hunter, said. "The bear began to run toward Keesh. Keesh ran away. But as he ran, he dropped a little round ball on the ice. The bear stopped and smelled the ball, then ate it. Keesh continued to run, dropping more balls on the ice. The bear followed and ate the balls."

The council members listened to every word. Bim continued the story. "The bear suddenly stood up straight and began to shout in pain."

"Evil spirits," said Ugh-gluk.

I do not know," said Bawn. "I can tell only what my eyes saw. The bear grew weak. Then it sat down and pulled at its own fur with its sharp claws. Keesh watched the bear that whole day. For three more days, Keesh continued to watch the bear. It was getting weaker and weaker. Keesh moved carefully up to the bear and pushed his father's spear into it."

"And then?" asked Klosh-kwan.

"And then we left."

That afternoon, the council talked and talked. When Keesh arrived in the village, the council sent a messenger to ask him to come to the meeting. But Keesh said he was tired and hungry. He said his igloo was big and could hold many people, if the council wanted a meeting.

Klosh-kwan led the council to the igloo of Keesh. Keesh was eating, but he welcomed them. Klosh-kwan told Keesh that two hunters had seen him kill a bear. And then, in a serious voice to Keesh, he said, "We want to know how you did it." Did you use magic and witchcraft?"

Keesh looked up and smiled. "No, Klosh-kwan. I am a boy. I know nothing of magic or witchcraft. But I have found an easy way to kill the ice-bear. It is head-craft, not witchcraft."

"And will you tell us, O Keesh?" Klosh-kwan asked in a shaking voice.

"I will tell you. It is very simple. Watch."

Keesh picked up a thin piece of whalebone. The ends were pointed and sharp as a knife. Keesh bent the bone into a circle. Suddenly he let the bone go, and it became straight with a sharp snap. He picked up a piece of seal meat.

"So," he said, "first make a circle with a sharp, thin piece of whalebone. Put the circle of bone inside some seal meat. Put it in the snow to freeze. The bear eats the ball of meat with the circle of bone inside. When the meat gets inside the bear, the meat gets warm, and the bone goes snap! The sharp points make the bear sick. It is easy to kill then. It is simple."

Ugh-gluk said, "Ohhh!" Klosh-kwan said "Ahh!" Each said something in his own way. And all understood.

That is the story of Keesh, who lived long ago on the edge of the polar sea. Because he used head-craft, instead of witchcraft, he rose from the poorest igloo to be the chief in the village. And for all the years that followed, his people were happy. No one cried at night with pains of hunger.

我们今天的故事叫做《基什的故事》，作者杰克·伦敦。演播者谢普·奥尼尔。

基什生活在北极海边。按照爱基斯摩人的说法，他已经十三岁了。

对爱基斯摩人来说，每年冬天，太阳把黑暗留给了大地。

第二年新的太阳重新会回来，一切又暖和起来。

基什的父亲是一个勇敢的人。但是去打猎寻找食物的时候死了。

基什是他唯一的儿子。现在他和妈妈，伊凯嘎相依为命。

一天晚上，村里的首领克劳什·克万在他家的大冰屋里开会。

基什和其他的人一起去了那儿。他听着，安静地等待着。

他说，“你们给了我们一些肉。可是总是一些老肉，还有很多骨头。”

猎人们吃了一惊。这是一个小孩在说话，竟然敢反对他们。一个小孩象成人那样说话。

基什说：“我的父亲，波克，是一位伟大的猎手。他带回来的肉比任何两个最好的猎人还要多。

他总是把肉分开，大家都能平分。”

“去！去！”猎人们叫嚷着。“把那个孩子推出去！让他上床去睡觉。他不该用那种态度跟大人说话。”

基什等到大家都静了下来。又说道：“你有老婆，乌葛·哥拉克，”

“你为她说话。我的妈妈除了我就没别人了。所以我为她说话。

我说过，波克是位伟大的猎手，但是现在他去世了。

当部落有肉的时候，我，波克的儿子，我妈妈，他的妻子，也该有肉，只有这样才算公平。我，基什，作为波克的儿子，就说这些。”

冰屋里有传出了一阵震耳的嘈杂声。大人们命令基什去睡觉。他们甚至说不给他食物。

基什气得蹦了起来。 “你们听好了！”他吼道。

“我再也不会在你们委员会的冰屋里说话了。我会象我的父亲波克那样出去打猎获取食物。”

当基什说到打猎时，传来了一阵狂笑。凯什离开委员会时，他们不断在背后嘲笑他。

第二天，基什向海滩进发了，那是大陆和冰块交界的地方。

放哨的人看到他带着弓和不少的箭。

肩膀上扛着他父亲打猎用的大长矛。于是又有人嘲笑起他来了。

一天过去了，又一天过去了。到了第三天，刮起了狂风。

基什一点音讯也没有。他的妈妈把熬出的海豹油涂在了脸上，表示她自己的悲痛。

女人们冲着他们的男人大喊着，是他们把这小小的孩子赶走的。男人们也不吭声，只是准备好了去搜寻基什的尸体。

第二天一大早，基什走进了村子。肩膀上扛着新鲜的肉。

“快，你们大家带着狗和雪橇。跟着我的脚印。要走一天的路。”他说，“冰上有很多肉。一头母熊，还有它的两个小熊。”

他的妈妈非常高兴。

基什正在成为一个男人，他对妈妈说：“来，妈妈，咱们吃肉吧。吃完以后，我要睡一觉。我太累了。”

基什回到冰屋以后，人们便开始议论纷纷了。

杀死一头熊很危险。而杀死一头带着幼崽的母熊要更危险三倍。

男人们不相信基什能做到。但是女人们却指着新鲜的肉让男人们看。

最后，男人们同意去运回那些剩下的肉。但他们心里并不高兴。

一个人说，即使基什杀死了那头熊，他也许没有把肉剁成一块一块的。

但是当男人们到了那以后，却发现基什不仅杀死了那头熊，而且把它剁成了一块一块的，就象一个成熟的猎手一样。

于是，基什便开始了自己的传奇经历。

接下来的打猎，他杀死了一头幼熊，接下来他又杀死了一头巨大的公熊和它的配偶。

后来，村子里流传起了关于法术和魔法的话题。

“他和可怕的精灵一起打猎。”一个人说。“可能是他父亲的灵魂跟着他一起打猎。”另一个人说。

但是基什不断地把肉带回到村里。

一些人觉得他是个伟大的猎人。

有人想选他代替老克劳什·克万作首领。

他们甚至等待着，希望他能出席委员会议，但他一次也没来参加。

“我想建一间冰屋。”一天基什说，“但是我没有时间。

我的工作就是打猎。如果村里那些吃过我打的肉的男人和女人们帮我建冰屋就太好了。”

于是冰屋建好了，它甚至比克劳什·克万的冰屋还要大。

一天，乌葛·哥拉克跟基什说：“有人说邪恶的精灵在帮你打猎，它们帮你杀死的熊。”

“肉不好吃吗？”凯什问道。

“村子里有人因为吃了我打的肉而得病的吗？

你怎么知道邪恶的恶魔跟着我？难道你这样说就因为我是个出色的猎人吗？”

乌葛·哥拉克没有回答。

委员会一晚上没睡，都在讨论基什和他打回来的肉。他们决定跟踪他。

在接下来的打猎中，两个年轻人，比姆和邦恩跟在他后面。

五天以后，他们回来了，委员会聚集在一起，听他们的报告。

“兄弟们，”比姆说，“我们跟着凯什，他没有发现我们。第一天，他撞见了一头大熊。

凯什冲着它大吼。然后，我们看到它发起怒来。

立起了两条前腿，咆哮着，但凯什没有走近它。”

“我们看见它，”邦恩说。“熊，开始向他跑来，基什跑了。

但是他跑的时候，把一个小圆球放在了冰上。熊停下来闻了闻那球，然后就吃掉了。

基什继续跑，把更多的球放在冰上。熊一边跟在后边，一边吃那些球。”

委员会的人仔细地听着每一个字。比姆继续讲道。

“熊突然直直地站了起来，疼得大叫。”

“邪恶的幽灵，”乌葛·哥拉克说。

“我不知道，”邦恩说。“我只能讲我亲眼见过的事。熊变得虚弱起来。

然后一下就坐在了地上，用尖利的爪子撕扯着自己的皮毛。

基什一整天都看着那头熊。接下来的三天，他还在观察那头熊。

它越来越弱了，基什小心地接近了那头熊，把他父亲的长矛插进了熊的身体里。”

“然后呢？”克劳什·克万问道。

“然后我们离开了。”

那天下午，委员会一直在讨论。这时，基什回到了村子，委员会给他去了个信，让他来参加会议。

但是，基什说他又累又饿。他说自己的冰屋很大，如果委员会想开会，那里可以盛很多人。

克劳什·克万领着委员会的人来到了基什的冰屋。基什正在吃饭，但他热情地欢迎了他们。

克劳什·克万告诉基什，有两个猎人看见他杀死了一头熊。

但他严肃地对基什说：“我们想知道你是怎么做的？你使用法术或魔法了吗？”

基什抬起头笑了笑，“不，我只是个小孩子，不懂什么法术。

但我发现了一个杀死冰熊的简易方法。这是智谋而不是魔法。”

“你愿意告诉我们吗，基什？”克劳什·克万用颤抖的声音问。

“我愿意告诉你们，很简单，瞧！”

基什拿起了一块细细的鲸鱼骨头。两头尖尖的，锋利得象把刀子。

基什把骨头弯成了个环。

他突然松开骨头，它“啪！”地一下又变直了。他又拿起了一片海豹肉。

“所以，”他说，“首先，把细而锋利的鲸鱼骨头弯成环。

把它放进海豹肉里。然后把它放在雪里冻住。

当熊吃下肉球，里面有骨头。

当肉进入熊体内，肉就会变热，骨头就弹开了。

这些尖尖的骨头使熊很难受。这时候，它就很容易被杀死了。就这么简单。”

乌葛·哥拉克叫道：“噢！”，克劳什·克万也喊道：“啊！”。每个人都用自己的方式发出了惊叹声。

这就是很久以前居住在北极海边的基什的故事。

由于他运用了智慧而不是魔法，他从最穷的人变成了村里的首领。

在接下来的岁月里，他的人民都很幸福。再没有人会在晚上饿得叫起来了。 

今天的故事叫做《基什的故事》。作者杰克·伦敦。

Words in This Story

Eskimo - n. a member of a group of peoples of northern Canada, Greenland, Alaska, and eastern Siberia

igloo - n. a house made of blocks of snow or ice in the form of a dome

spear - n. a weapon that has a long straight handle and a sharp point

witchcraft - n. magical things that are done by witches; the use of magical powers obtained especially from evil spirits

whalebone - n. a hard substance that is found in the jaw of some types of whales