19 万尼科罗群岛(9)

Two months later, testimony from a certain Commander Bowen, aboard the Albemarle, alleged that rubble from shipwrecked vessels had been seen on the coast of New Georgia. But d'Entrecasteaux was unaware of this news--which seemed a bit dubious anyhow--and headed toward the Admiralty Islands, which had been named in a report by one Captain Hunter as the site of the Count de La Perouse's shipwreck.

“但两个月后,从指挥阿伯马尔号船的船长,名叫波温的这个人送来的报告知道,失事的两艘战舰的残骸在新佐治岛沿岸看到了。当,土尔加斯朵并不知道这个报告—而且这报告也不很可靠—他向海军部岛出发,前去找寻,固他根据韩德船长的一个报告,说这岛是拉?白鲁斯失事遇难的地点。

They looked in vain. The Hope and the Search passed right by Vanikoro without stopping there; and overall, this voyage was plagued by misfortune, ultimately costing the lives of Rear Admiral d'Entrecasteaux, two of his subordinate officers, and several seamen from his crew.

他的搜寻完全没有结果,完全落空了。希望号和搜索号甚至于经过万尼科罗岛面前没有停留,总起来说,这次、航行很不幸,因为当土尔加斯朵,他的两名副手和他船员中的好几名水手都丢命。

It was an old hand at the Pacific, the English adventurer Captain Peter Dillon, who was the first to pick up the trail left by castaways from the wrecked vessels. On May 15, 1824, his ship, the St. Patrick, passed by Tikopia Island, one of the New Hebrides. There a native boatman pulled alongside in a dugout canoe and sold Dillon a silver sword hilt bearing the imprint of characters engraved with a cutting tool known as a burin.

第一个把这次遇难人的无可争辩的可靠遗物找出来的,是一位经常航行在太平洋上的老航海家狄勇船长。1824年5月15日,他的船圣巴土利克号,经过新赫布里底岛之一的第克贝亚岛附近。在那里,一个印第安人乘着独木舟,靠近他的船边,卖给他-把银质的刀上有镂别的文字痕迹。