Those whom the hurricane had just thrown on this coast were neither aeronauts by profession nor amateurs. —
这些被飓风刚刚摔到这海岸的人既不是专业的飞行员，也不是业余爱好者。 —

They were prisoners of war whose boldness had induced them to escape in this extraordinary manner.
他们是战俘，因为他们的大胆逃跑而以这种特殊方式逃离。

A hundred times they had almost perished! —
他们几乎丧命了一百次！ —

A hundred times had they almost fallen from their torn balloon into the depths of the ocean. —
他们几乎从破烂的气球中掉进大海的深处一百次。 —

But Heaven had reserved them for a strange destiny, and after having, on the 20th of March, escaped from Richmond, besieged by the troops of General Ulysses Grant, they found themselves seven thousand miles from the capital of Virginia, which was the principal stronghold of the South, during the terrible War of Secession. —
但命运让他们活下来，就在3月20日，从被尤利西斯·格兰特将军的部队围攻的里士满逃脱出来后，他们发现自己离弗吉尼亚首府，即南方最主要的城堡，有着严重的分裂战争。 —

Their aerial voyage had lasted five days.
他们的航空之旅持续了五天。

The curious circumstances which led to the escape of the prisoners were as follows:
导致囚犯逃跑的奇异情况如下：

That same year, in the month of February, 1865, in one of the coups de main by which General Grant attempted, though in vain, to possess himself of Richmond, several of his officers fell into the power of the enemy and were detained in the town. —
那一年的2月1865年，在格兰特将军试图夺取里士满的几次突袭中，他的几名军官落入敌人手中，并被关押在城里。 —

One of the most distinguished was Captain Cyrus Harding. —
其中一位最杰出的是赛勒斯·哈丁船长。 —

He was a native of Massachusetts, a first-class engineer, to whom the government had confided, during the war, the direction of the railways, which were so important at that time. —
他是马萨诸塞州人，一名一流的工程师，战争期间政府委托他负责铁路的管理，这在当时非常重要。 —

A true Northerner, thin, bony, lean, about forty-five years of age; —
一个真正的北方人，瘦削，骨瘦如柴，大约四十五岁； —

his close-cut hair and his beard, of which he only kept a thick mustache, were already getting gray. He had one-of those finely-developed heads which appear made to be struck on a medal, piercing eyes, a serious mouth, the physiognomy of a clever man of the military school. —
他短剪的头发和胡须，只留了一头浓密的胡子，已经开始变白。他有着那种看起来像是为了被打上勋章而生的头，有透视力的眼睛，一张严肃的嘴，是一个军校里聪明人的相貌。 —

He was one of those engineers who began by handling the hammer and pickaxe, like generals who first act as common soldiers. —
他是那种从挥锤和镐开始的工程师，就像从普通士兵开始行动的将军一样。 —

Besides mental power, he also possessed great manual dexterity. —
除了智力，他还具有极高的手工灵巧。 —

His muscles exhibited remarkable proofs of tenacity. —
他的肌肉展现出杰出的韧性。 —

A man of action as well as a man of thought, all he did was without effort to one of his vigorous and sanguine temperament. —
一个思想与行动并重的人，他做的一切都毫不费力，对于他这样充满活力和血气方刚的体质来说。 —

Learned, clear-headed, and practical, he fulfilled in all emergencies those three conditions which united ought to insure human success–activity of mind and body, impetuous wishes, and powerful will. —
博学、头脑清晰、实事求是，他在一切紧急情况下都具备了确保人类成功的三个条件–敏捷的头脑和身体、强烈的愿望以及坚强的意志。 —

He might have taken for his motto that of William of Orange in the 17th century: —
他可能把奥兰治的那句座右铭作为自己的座右铭： —

“I can undertake and persevere even without hope of success.” —
“即使没有成功的希望，我也能承担并坚持下去。” —

Cyrus Harding was courage personified. He had been in all the battles of that war. —
西里斯·哈丁就是无畏的化身。他参加了那场战争的所有战斗。 —

After having begun as a volunteer at Illinois, under Ulysses Grant, he fought at Paducah, Belmont, Pittsburg Landing, at the siege of Corinth, Port Gibson, Black River, Chattanooga, the Wilderness, on the Potomac, everywhere and valiantly, a soldier worthy of the general who said, “I never count my dead!” —
他从伊利诺伊州开始作为尤利西斯·格兰特的志愿者，参加了帕杜卡、贝尔蒙特、匹茨堡登陆、科林斯围城、波特吉布森、黑河、查塔努加、荒野以及波托马克的战斗，无所不在，勇猛无畏，一个与那位说过“我从不计算我的阵亡者！“的将军相配的士兵。 —

And hundreds of times Captain Harding had almost been among those who were not counted by the terrible Grant; —
数百次，哈丁上尉差点就成为那些被可怕的格兰特不计在内的人之一； —

but in these combats where he never spared himself, fortune favored him till the moment when he was wounded and taken prisoner on the field of battle near Richmond. —
但在这些战斗中，他从未怜惜自己，幸运之神一直眷顾着他，直到他在位于里士满附近战场上受伤被俘的那一刻。 —

At the same time and on the same day another important personage fell into the hands of the Southerners. —
同一天，同一时刻，另一位重要人物也落入了南方人手中。 —

This was no other than Gideon Spilen, a reporter for the New York Herald, who had been ordered to follow the changes of the war in the midst of the Northern armies.
这就是吉迪昂·斯普林，纽约先驱报的一名记者，他被派遣跟踪战争的变化，身处北方军队中。

Gideon Spilett was one of that race of indomitable English or American chroniclers, like Stanley and others, who stop at nothing to obtain exact information, and transmit it to their journal in the shortest possible time. —
吉迪昂·斯普利特是那种不屈不挠的英国或美国的记者，像斯坦利和其他人，他们不惜一切获取准确信息，尽快传达给他们的报纸。 —

The newspapers of the Union, such as the New York Herald, are genuine powers, and their reporters are men to be reckoned with. —
联邦的报纸，比如纽约先驱报，是真正的势力，他们的记者是必须考虑的人。 —

Gideon Spilett ranked among the first of those reporters: —
吉迪昂·斯普利特是那些记者中排名前列的人： —

a man of great merit, energetic, prompt and ready for anything, full of ideas, having traveled over the whole world, soldier and artist, enthusiastic in council, resolute in action, caring neither for trouble, fatigue, nor danger, when in pursuit of information, for himself first, and then for his journal, a perfect treasury of knowledge on all sorts of curious subjects, of the unpublished, of the unknown, and of the impossible. —
他是一个非常有才华的人，充满活力、迅速行动，对任何事都准备就绪，富有想法，环游世界，是军人和艺术家，在会议上充满热情，在行动中果断，为获取信息时无论多么困难、疲劳和危险都不在乎，首先是为了自己，然后是为了他的报纸，他对各种奇异主题、未公开的信息、未知的事情和不可能的事情了如指掌。 —

He was one of those intrepid observers who write under fire, “reporting” among bullets, and to whom every danger is welcome.
他是那种在战火中写作，”报道”弹雨中的无畏观察者，对他们来说，每一种危险都是受欢迎的。

He also had been in all the battles, in the first rank, revolver in one hand, note-book in the other; grape-shot never made his pencil tremble. —
他也参加了所有战斗，总在第一线，一手拿着左轮手枪，一手拿着笔记本；炮弹从未让他的铅笔颤抖。 —

He did not fatigue the wires with incessant telegrams, like those who speak when they have nothing to say, but each of his notes, short, decisive, and clear, threw light on some important point. —
他没有像那些没话可说的人一样用不断发出的电报来疲劳电线，而是他的每一条说明，都是简短、果断和清晰的，给一些重要的问题带来了光明。 —

Besides, he was not wanting in humor. It was he who, after the affair of the Black River, determined at any cost to keep his place at the wicket of the telegraph office, and after having announced to his journal the result of the battle, telegraphed for two hours the first chapters of the Bible. It cost the New York Herald two thousand dollars, but the New York Herald published the first intelligence.
而且，他也具有幽默感。就拿黑河之战后的事来说，他决定不惜一切代价保住自己在电报办公室的位置，并在向报社宣布战果后，连续两个小时发了《圣经》的头几章。这花费了纽约先驱报两千美元，但纽约先驱报却刊登了最新的信息。

Gideon Spilett was tall. He was rather more than forty years of age. —
吉迪恩·斯皮莱特身材高大。他略超过四十岁。 —

Light whiskers bordering on red surrounded his face. —
散发着微红色的胡子围绕着他的脸庞。 —

His eye was steady, lively, rapid in its changes. —
他的眼睛专注、活泼，变化迅速。 —

It was the eye of a man accustomed to take in at a glance all the details of a scene. —
这是一个习惯于一眼看透场景的人的眼睛。 —

Well built, he was inured to all climates, like a bar of steel hardened in cold water.
身体壮实的他习惯于各种气候，就像一个在冷水中锻炼过的钢铁棒。

For ten years Gideon Spilett had been the reporter of the New York Herald, which he enriched by his letters and drawings, for he was as skilful in the use of the pencil as of the pen. —
十年来，吉迪恩·斯皮莱特一直是纽约先驱报的记者，他通过他的信件和画作使报纸丰富起来，因为他在用笔和用笔上一样熟练。 —

When he was captured, he was in the act of making a description and sketch of the battle. —
当他被俘时，他正忙着记录并绘制那场战斗。 —

The last words in his note-book were these: —
他笔记本上的最后一句话是： —

“A Southern rifleman has just taken aim at me, but–” The Southerner notwithstanding missed Gideon Spilett, who, with his usual fortune, came out of this affair without a scratch.
“一名南方来的来复手正瞄准我，但——” 然而不顾南方人的不良看法，吉迪恩·斯皮莱特成功地从这场事故中毫发无损地走出来。

Cyrus Harding and Gideon Spilett, who did not know each other except by reputation, had both been carried to Richmond. —
辛普利特和吉迪恩·斯皮莱特，除了通过声誉相识外，并不认识彼此，两人都被带到里士满。 —

The engineer’s wounds rapidly healed, and it was during his convalescence that he made acquaintance with the reporter. —
工程师的伤口迅速痊愈，而就在他康复期间，他认识了记者。 —

The two men then learned to appreciate each other. —
这两个人后来学会了互相欣赏。 —

Soon their common aim had but one object, that of escaping, rejoining Grant’s army, and fighting together in the ranks of the Federals.
他们共同的目标很快就只有一个，那就是逃跑，重新加入格兰特的军队，一起在联邦军队中战斗。

The two Americans had from the first determined to seize every chance; —
这两个美国人从一开始就决定抓住每一个机会； —

but although they were allowed to wander at liberty in the town, Richmond was so strictly guarded, that escape appeared impossible. —
但是尽管他们被允许在城里自由活动，里士满被严密监视，逃跑似乎是不可能的。 —

In the meanwhile Captain Harding was rejoined by a servant who was devoted to him in life and in death. —
与此同时，哈丁上尉被一名生死相依的仆人重新相遇。 —

This intrepid fellow was a Negro born on the engineer’s estate, of a slave father and mother, but to whom Cyrus, who was an Abolitionist from conviction and heart, had long since given his freedom. —
这位无畏的家伙是在工程师庄园出生的黑奴，父母都是奴隶，但西勒斯，一个出于信仰和内心是废奴主义者，早就给了他自由。 —

The once slave, though free, would not leave his master. He would have died for him. —
这个曾是奴隶的人，虽然已经自由，却不愿离开他的主人。他愿意为他而死。 —

He was a man of about thirty, vigorous, active, clever, intelligent, gentle, and calm, sometimes naive, always merry, obliging, and honest. —
他是一个30岁左右的人，健壮、活跃、聪明、智慧、温和、冷静，有时天真，总是快乐、乐于助人、诚实。 —

His name was Nebuchadnezzar, but he only answered to the familiar abbreviation of Neb.
他的名字是尼布甲尼撒，但他只回答熟悉的尼布。

When Neb heard that his master had been made prisoner, he left Massachusetts without hesitating an instant, arrived before Richmond, and by dint of stratagem and shrewdness, after having risked his life twenty times over, managed to penetrate into the besieged town. —
当尼布听说他的主人被困，毫不犹豫地离开了马萨诸塞，到达里士满，并且经过策略和精明，冒着20次生命危险，设法进入了被围困的城镇。 —

The pleasure of Harding on seeing his servant, and the joy of Neb at finding his master, can scarcely be described.
哈丁见到仆人时的喜悦，以及尼布找到主人时的快乐，几乎无法形容。

But though Neb had been able to make his way into Richmond, it was quite another thing to get out again, for the Northern prisoners were very strictly watched. —
但尽管尼布得以进入里士满，要再次离开却是另外一回事，因为北方的囚犯受到严格监视。 —

Some extraordinary opportunity was needed to make the attempt with any chance of success, and this opportunity not only did not present itself, but was very difficult to find.
为了有可能成功，需要一些特别的机会，但这样的机会不仅不会出现，而且很难找到。

Meanwhile Grant continued his energetic operations. —
与此同时，格兰特继续他的有力行动。 —

The victory of Petersburg had been very dearly bought. —
彼得堡的胜利是付出了极大代价。 —

His forces, united to those of Butler, had as yet been unsuccessful before Richmond, and nothing gave the prisoners any hope of a speedy deliverance.
他的部队与巴特勒的部队联合，目前在里士满前还没有取得成功，并且囚犯们也没有任何希望能够很快获得解救。

The reporter, to whom his tedious captivity did not offer a single incident worthy of note, could stand it no longer. —
那位记者，对于单调的囚禁没有一次值得注意的事件，实在无法忍受了。 —

His usually active mind was occupied with one sole thought–how he might get out of Richmond at any cost. —
他通常活跃的头脑被一个想法所占据——无论如何，他都要想办法离开里士满。 —

Several times had he even made the attempt, but was stopped by some insurmountable obstacle. —
他多次尝试过，但总是被一些无法逾越的障碍所阻止。 —

However, the siege continued; and if the prisoners were anxious to escape and join Grant’s army, certain of the besieged were no less anxious to join the Southern forces. —
然而，围城持续着；虽然囚禁者渴望逃脱并加入格兰特的军队，但围城者同样渴望加入南方部队。 —

Among them was one Jonathan Forster, a determined Southerner. —
其中一个是坚决的南方人乔纳森·福斯特。 —

The truth was, that if the prisoners of the Secessionists could not leave the town, neither could the Secessionists themselves while the Northern army invested it. —
事实是，如果分裂分子的囚禁者无法离开这个城镇，那么南方人自己也无法在北方军队围困时离开。 —

The Governor of Richmond for a long time had been unable to communicate with General Lee, and he very much wished to make known to him the situation of the town, so as to hasten the march of the army to their relief. —
里士满的州长长期以来一直无法与李将军取得联系，他非常希望告知李将军镇上的情况，以加快军队赶来解围。 —

Thus Jonathan Forster accordingly conceived the idea of rising in a balloon, so as to pass over the besieging lines, and in that way reach the Secessionist camp.
因此，乔纳森·福斯特便构想了乘坐气球升空，以便越过围城线，达到分裂者的营地。

The Governor authorized the attempt. A balloon was manufactured and placed at the disposal of Forster, who was to be accompanied by five other persons. —
州长批准了这个计划。气球制造好了，供福斯特等五人使用。 —

They were furnished with arms in case they might have to defend themselves when they alighted, and provisions in the event of their aerial voyage being prolonged.
他们被提供了武器，以防他们着陆时需要自卫，还有食物以备他们的空中航行持续较长时间。

The departure of the balloon was fixed for the 18th of March. It should be effected during the night, with a northwest wind of moderate force, and the aeronauts calculated that they would reach General Lee’s camp in a few hours.
气球的出发时间定在3月18日。应在夜间启程，乘着一股适中的西北风，热气球搭载的人们估计几个小时就能到达李将军的营地。

But this northwest wind was not a simple breeze. —
但这西北风并非一阵和风。 —

From the 18th it was evident that it was changing to a hurricane. —
从18日开始，明显感觉到它在变成飓风。 —

The tempest soon became such that Forster’s departure was deferred, for it was impossible to risk the balloon and those whom it carried in the midst of the furious elements.
风暴很快变得如此猛烈，以至于福斯特的出发被推迟，因为在狂风肆虐的情况下不可能冒险放飞气球和那些乘坐者。

The balloon, inflated on the great square of Richmond, was ready to depart on the first abatement of the wind, and, as may be supposed, the impatience among the besieged to see the storm moderate was very great.
风暴减弱之时，里士满广场上充气的气球已经准备好启程，围城者急于看到风暴平息可想而知。

The 18th, the 19th of March passed without any alteration in the weather. —
三月十八日、十九日天气没有任何变化。 —

There was even great difficulty in keeping the balloon fastened to the ground, as the squalls dashed it furiously about.
达不到把气球牢固固定在地面上的难度，暴风雨猛烈地把它甩来甩去。

The night of the 19th passed, but the next morning the storm blew with redoubled force. —
十九日的夜晚过去了，但第二天早上风暴更加猛烈。 —

The departure of the balloon was impossible.
气球的出发是不可能的。

On that day the engineer, Cyrus Harding, was accosted in one of the streets of Richmond by a person whom he did not in the least know. —
那一天，工程师赛勒斯·哈丁在里士满的一条街上被一个他完全不认识的人搭讪了。 —

This was a sailor named Pencroft, a man of about thirty-five or forty years of age, strongly built, very sunburnt, and possessed of a pair of bright sparkling eyes and a remarkably good physiognomy. —
这个人就是一个叫潘克罗夫特的水手，一个大约三十五或四十岁、身材强壮、晒得非常黑、一双闪闪发光的眼睛和相当好看的面部特征。 —

Pencroft was an American from the North, who had sailed all the ocean over, and who had gone through every possible and almost impossible adventure that a being with two feet and no wings would encounter. —
潘克罗夫特是一个北方来的美国人，航过所有的海洋，经历过一个有两只脚却没有翅膀的生物会遇到的一切可能和几乎不可能的冒险。 —

It is needless to say that he was a bold, dashing fellow, ready to dare anything and was astonished at nothing. —
无需多说，他是一个大胆、冒险的家伙，准备冒任何风险，并对任何事情心存惊讶。 —

Pencroft at the beginning of the year had gone to Richmond on business, with a young boy of fifteen from New Jersey, son of a former captain, an orphan, whom he loved as if he had been his own child. —
今年年初，潘克罗夫特带着一个来自新泽西的十五岁少年去里士满办事，这个男孩是一位前船长的孤儿，他爱得像是他自己的孩子。 —

Not having been able to leave the town before the first operations of the siege, he found himself shut up, to his great disgust; —
由于无法在围城的首次行动前离开城市，他发现自己被困住，这让他非常不满； —

but, not accustomed to succumb to difficulties, he resolved to escape by some means or other. —
但不习惯于让困难压倒自己，他决定设法逃跑。 —

He knew the engineer-officer by reputation; —
他知道这位工程师军官的名声； —

he knew with what impatience that determined man chafed under his restraint. —
他知道那位坚定的人迫不及待地渴望摆脱束缚。 —

On this day he did not, therefore, hesitate to accost him, saying, without circumlocution, “Have you had enough of Richmond, captain?”
在这一天，他毫不犹豫地上前搭讪他，低声说道，”里士满够你受了吧，船长？”

The engineer looked fixedly at the man who spoke, and who added, in a low voice,–
工程师凝视着那个说话的人，又加了一句，”没有绕圈子，”。

“Captain Harding, will you try to escape?”
“哈定队长，你会试图逃跑吗？”

“When?” asked the engineer quickly, and it was evident that this question was uttered without consideration, for he had not yet examined the stranger who addressed him. —
“什么时候？”工程师迅速地问道，显然这个问题是毫无考虑地说出来的，因为他还没有检查和他交谈的陌生人。 —

But after having with a penetrating eye observed the open face of the sailor, he was convinced that he had before him an honest man.
但是在用一双犀利的眼睛观察了水手朴克罗夫的开放的面孔之后，他确信他面前是一个诚实的人。

“Who are you?” he asked briefly.
“你是谁？”他简要地问道。

Pencroft made himself known.
朴克罗夫表示自己的身份。

“Well,” replied Harding, “and in what way do you propose to escape?”
“好吧,“哈定回答道，“你打算如何逃跑？”

“By that lazy balloon which is left there doing nothing, and which looks to me as if it was waiting on purpose for us–”
“借助那个懒散的热气球，它就在那里闲置着，看起来好像特意在等着我们–”

There was no necessity for the sailor to finish his sentence. The engineer understood him at once. —
水手无需结束他的话。工程师立刻明白了他的意图。 —

He seized Pencroft by the arm, and dragged him to his house. —
他抓住朴克罗夫的胳膊，把他拖到自己的房子里。 —

There the sailor developed his project, which was indeed extremely simple. —
在那里，水手提出了他的计划，这的确非常简单。 —

They risked nothing but their lives in its execution. —
他们在执行中冒的风险只有生命。 —

The hurricane was in all its violence, it is true, but so clever and daring an engineer as Cyrus Harding knew perfectly well how to manage a balloon. —
飓风确实正处于最猛烈的时候，但像赛勒斯·哈定这样聪明和大胆的工程师完全知道如何操作一只热气球。 —

Had he himself been as well acquainted with the art of sailing in the air as he was with the navigation of a ship, Pencroft would not have hesitated to set out, of course taking his young friend Herbert with him; —
如果他本人像他熟悉航海一样精通空中航行的技艺，朴克罗夫肯定会毫不犹豫地出发，当然会带上他年轻的朋友赫伯特； —

for, accustomed to brave the fiercest tempests of the ocean, he was not to be hindered on account of the hurricane.
因为习惯于勇敢地冒着海上最猛烈的风暴，他不会因为飓风而退缩。

Captain Harding had listened to the sailor without saying a word, but his eyes shone with satisfaction. —
哈定队长听着水手的话，没有说一句话，但他的眼睛闪耀着满意之情。 —

Here was the long-sought-for opportunity–he was not a man to let it pass. —
这是他一直寻找的机会–他不会让它错过。 —

The plan was feasible, though, it must be confessed, dangerous in the extreme. —
计划是可行的，尽管必须承认，极其危险。 —

In the night, in spite of their guards, they might approach the balloon, slip into the car, and then cut the cords which held it. —
在夜晚，尽管有护卫，他们可能接近气球，溜进篮子，然后剪断固定它的绳子。 —

There was no doubt that they might be killed, but on the other hand they might succeed, and without this storm! —
他们可能会被杀死，但另一方面他们可能会成功，而没有这场风暴！ —

–Without this storm the balloon would have started already and the looked-for opportunity would not have then presented itself.
–没有这场风暴，气球本来早就起飞了，这个期待已经消失了。

“I am not alone!” said Harding at last.
“我不是一个人！”哈定最后说道。

“How many people do you wish to bring with you?” asked the sailor.
“你想带多少人一起去？”水手问道。

“Two; my friend Spilett, and my servant Neb.”
“两个；我的朋友斯普利特和我的仆人内布。”

“That will be three,” replied Pencroft; “and with Herbert and me five. —
“那就是三个，”潘克罗夫回答说；“还有赫伯特和我是五个。 —

But the balloon will hold six–”
但气球可以容纳六个–”

“That will be enough, we will go,” answered Harding in a firm voice.
“那就够了，我们会去的，”哈定坚定地回答。

This “we” included Spilett, for the reporter, as his friend well knew, was not a man to draw back, and when the project was communicated to him he approved of it unreservedly. —
这里的“我们”包括斯普利特，因为记者，正如他的朋友了解的那样，不是一个会退缩的人，当这个计划被告知给他时，他毫不保留地支持。 —

What astonished him was, that so simple an idea had not occurred to him before. —
令他惊讶的是，一个如此简单的想法居然之前没有出现在他脑海中。 —

As to Neb, he followed his master wherever his master wished to go.
至于内布，他会跟着他的主人去他主人想去的任何地方。

“This evening, then,” said Pencroft, “we will all meet out there.”
“那么今晚我们都会在那里见面。”潘克罗夫说。

“This evening, at ten o’clock,” replied Captain Harding; —
“亨丁船长回答说：“今晚十点。” —

“and Heaven grant that the storm does not abate before our departure.”
“愿天公不要在我们出发前停止这场风暴。”

Pencroft took leave of the two friends, and returned to his lodging, where young Herbert Brown had remained. —
彭克罗夫向两位朋友告别后回到了他的住处，年轻的赫伯特·布朗也留在那里。 —

The courageous boy knew of the sailor’s plan, and it was not without anxiety that he awaited the result of the proposal being made to the engineer. —
那个勇敢的男孩知道了水手的计划，他焦急地等待着工程师对提议的回应。 —

Thus five determined persons were about to abandon themselves to the mercy of the tempestuous elements!
因此，五个决心坚定的人将要置身于暴风雨的怀抱之中！

No! the storm did not abate, and neither Jonathan Forster nor his companions dreamed of confronting it in that frail car.
不！风暴没有减弱，乔纳森·福斯特和他的同伴们也没有想过要在那辆脆弱的气球中对抗它。

It would be a terrible journey. The engineer only feared one thing; —
这将是一次可怕的旅程。工程师唯一担心的是； —

it was that the balloon, held to the ground and dashed about by the wind, would be torn into shreds. For several hours he roamed round the nearly- deserted square, surveying the apparatus. —
害怕气球被地面固定住并被风裹挟，并最终被撕成碎片。他围着几乎空无一人的广场转了好几个小时，审视着设备。 —

Pencroft did the same on his side, his hands in his pockets, yawning now and then like a man who did not know how to kill the time, but really dreading, like his friend, either the escape or destruction of the balloon. —
彭克罗夫也在那一侧做着同样的事情，双手插在口袋里，时不时打着哈欠，像一个无聊无所事事的人，但实际上像他的朋友一样非常担心，不是气球的逃逸，就是气球的毁灭。 —

Evening arrived. The night was dark in the extreme. —
夜幕降临。黑夜极为幽暗。 —

Thick mists passed like clouds close to the ground. Rain fell mingled with snow. it was very cold. —
浓雾近似云朵般贴地而过。雨点和雪花混合着下落。天气非常寒冷。 —

A mist hung over Richmond. it seemed as if the violent storm had produced a truce between the besiegers and the besieged, and that the cannon were silenced by the louder detonations of the storm. —
里士满笼罩在一片薄雾之中。看起来猛烈的风暴在围攻者和被围者之间达成了休战协议，大炮的轰鸣声被风暴更大的雷鸣声淹没。 —

The streets of the town were deserted. It had not even appeared necessary in that horrible weather to place a guard in the square, in the midst of which plunged the balloon. —
城镇的街道空无一人。在这样恶劣的天气中，甚至看起来并不需要在广场上设置守卫，那里正好是气球所在之处。 —

Everything favored the departure of the prisoners, but what might possibly be the termination of the hazardous voyage they contemplated in the midst of the furious elements?–
一切都为囚犯的出发有力。但在这猛烈元素的怒吼中，他们所构想的冒险旅程可能会有什么结局？

“Dirty weather!” exclaimed Pencroft, fixing his hat firmly on his head with a blow of his fist; —
“天气真阴沉！”彭克罗夫用拳头猛击帽子，紧紧地压在头上。 —

“but pshaw, we shall succeed all the same!”
“但是，哼，我们仍然会成功的！”

At half-past nine, Harding and his companions glided from different directions into the square, which the gas-lamps, extinguished by the wind, had left in total obscurity. —
在九点半时，哈丁和他的同伴们从不同的方向悄悄进入了广场，因为被风灭掉的煤气灯让整个广场陷入了黑暗。 —

Even the enormous balloon, almost beaten to the ground, could not be seen. —
甚至巨大的气球也几乎被吹到了地面，看不见了。 —

Independently of the sacks of ballast, to which the cords of the net were fastened, the car was held by a strong cable passed through a ring in the pavement. —
除了吊篮的囊袋外，系网的绳子经过一个固定在地面的环的强大的缆绳来固定吊篮。 —

The five prisoners met by the car. They had not been perceived, and such was the darkness that they could not even see each other.
五名囚犯在吊篮旁汇合。他们没有被察觉到，黑暗是如此之深，以至于他们连彼此都看不见。

Without speaking a word, Harding, Spilett, Neb, and Herbert took their places in the car, while Pencroft by the engineer’s order detached successively the bags of ballast. —
哈丁、斯普莱特、内布和赫伯特默默无言地登上了吊篮，而潘克罗夫则按照工程师的命令连续搬开了几袋沙袋。 —

It was the work of a few minutes only, and the sailor rejoined his companions.
这些只是几分钟的工作，水手随后加入了他的同伴。

The balloon was then only held by the cable, and the engineer had nothing to do but to give the word.
气球此时只被缆绳牵着，工程师只需发出指令。

At that moment a dog sprang with a bound into the car. It was Top, a favorite of the engineer. —
就在那时，一只狗跳进了吊篮。那是工程师的宠物Top。 —

The faithful creature, having broken his chain, had followed his master. —
这只忠诚的生物打断了链条，跟着主人来了。 —

He, however, fearing that its additional weight might impede their ascent, wished to send away the animal.
然而，担心它的额外重量会影响他们的上升，想要把这只动物赶走。

“One more will make but little difference, poor beast!” —
“再多一个也不会有太大影响，可怜的家伙！” —

exclaimed Pencroft, heaving out two bags of sand, and as he spoke letting go the cable; —
潘克罗夫说着，搬走了两袋沙子，然后松开了缆绳； —

the balloon ascending in an oblique direction, disappeared, after having dashed the car against two chimneys, which it threw down as it swept by them.
气球以斜向上升的方向消失了，它在掠过时撞倒了两个烟囱，把吊篮弄出了轨道。

Then, indeed, the full rage of the hurricane was exhibited to the voyagers. —
然后，风暴的狂怒展现给了航行者们。 —

During the night the engineer could not dream of descending, and when day broke, even a glimpse of the earth below was intercepted by fog.
在夜里，工程师无法想象下降，而当天亮时，即使一瞥地面也被雾气挡住。

Five days had passed when a partial clearing allowed them to see the wide extending ocean beneath their feet, now lashed into the maddest fury by the gale.
五天过去了，一丝清晰的天空让他们看到了他们脚下广阔的海洋，现在被狂风骤雨所笼罩。

Our readers will recollect what befell these five daring individuals who set out on their hazardous expedition in the balloon on the 20th of March. Five days afterwards four of them were thrown on a desert coast, seven thousand miles from their country! —
我们的读者会记得，五名大胆的人在3月20日乘热气球出发进行危险的探险。五天后，其中四人被抛至一个荒凉的海岸，离他们的国家有七千英里之遥！ —

But one of their number was missing, the man who was to be their guide, their leading spirit, the engineer, Captain Harding! —
但其中一员失踪了，那位原本应该是他们的向导、领袖精神、工程师、哈丁上尉！ —

The instant they had recovered their feet, they all hurried to the beach in the hopes of rendering him
他们站稳脚跟后立刻都朝着海滩赶去，希望救助他。