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At the Earth’s Core by Edgar Rice Burrough, PROLOGUE

PROLOGUE

IN THE FIRST PLACE PLEASE BEAR IN MIND THAT I do not expect you to believe this story. Nor could you wonder had you witnessed a recent experience of mine when, in the armor of blissful and stupendous ignorance, I gaily narrated the gist of it to a Fellow of the Royal Geological Society on the occasion of my last trip to London.

You would surely have thought that I had been detected in no less a heinous crime than the purloining of the Crown Jewels from the Tower, or putting poison in the coffee of His Majesty the King.

The erudite gentleman in whom I confided congealed before I was half through!—it is all that saved him from exploding—and my dreams of an Honorary Fellowship, gold medals, and a niche in the Hall of Fame faded into the thin, cold air of his arctic atmosphere.

But I believe the story, and so would you, and so would the learned Fellow of the Royal Geological Society, had you and he heard it from the lips of the man who told it to me. Had you seen, as I did, the fire of truth in those gray eyes; had you felt the ring of sincerity in that quiet voice; had you realized the pathos of it all—you, too, would believe. You would not have needed the final ocular proof that I had—the weird rhamphorhynchus-like creature which he had brought back with him from the inner world.

I came upon him quite suddenly, and no less unexpectedly, upon the rim of the great Sahara Desert. He was standing before a goat-skin tent amidst a clump of date palms within a tiny oasis. Close by was an Arab douar of some eight or ten tents.

I had come down from the north to hunt lion. My party consisted of a dozen children of the desert—I was the only "white" man. As we approached the little clump of verdure I saw the man come from his tent and with hand-shaded eyes peer intently at us. At sight of me he advanced rapidly to meet us.

"A white man!" he cried. "May the good Lord be praised! I have been watching you for hours, hoping against hope that THIS time there would be a white man. Tell me the date. What year is it?" And when I had told him he staggered as though he had been struck full in the face, so that he was compelled to grasp my stirrup leather for support.

"It cannot be!" he cried after a moment. "It cannot be! Tell me that you are mistaken, or that you are but joking." "I am telling you the truth, my friend," I replied. "Why should I deceive a stranger, or attempt to, in so simple a matter as the date?" For some time he stood in silence, with bowed head.

"Ten years!" he murmured, at last. "Ten years, and I thought that at the most it could be scarce more than one!" That night he told me his story—the story that I give you here as nearly in his own words as I can recall them.

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PROLOGUE پیش‌گفتار مقدمة PROLOG PRÓLOGO プロローグ 序幕

IN THE FIRST PLACE PLEASE BEAR IN MIND THAT I do not expect you to believe this story. |||||در نظر داشته باشید|||||||||||| まず第一に、この話を信じてもらえるとは思っていないことを肝に銘じておいてほしい。 ПРЕЖДЕ ВСЕГО, ПОЖАЛУЙСТА, ЗАМЕТИТЕ, ЧТО Я не ожидаю, что вы поверите этой истории. НАСАМПЕРЕД, БУДЬ ЛАСКА, МАЙТЕ НА УВАЗІ, що я не очікую, що ви повірите в цю історію. 首先请记住，我不希望你相信这个故事。 Nor could you wonder had you witnessed a recent experience of mine when, in the armor of blissful and stupendous ignorance, I gaily narrated the gist of it to a Fellow of the Royal Geological Society on the occasion of my last trip to London. ||||||شاهد بودید|||||||||زره||سعادتمندانه||شگفت‌انگیز|نادانی شگفت‌انگیز||شادمانه|روایت کردم||جان کلام|||||همکار انجمن سلطنتی||||زمین‌شناسی|انجمن زمین‌شناسی سلطنتی|||مناسبت|||||| |||||||||||||||||dichosa||||||||||||||||||||||||||| ||||||спостерігали|||||||||панцирі||блаженного||вражаючий|||весело|переказував||суть цього|||||||||||||на випадку|||||| Вы также не могли бы удивиться, если бы вы были свидетелями моего недавнего опыта, когда в доспехах блаженного и изумительного невежества я весело рассказал суть его члену Королевского геологического общества по случаю моей последней поездки в Лондон. Ви не могли б здивуватися, якби стали свідком мого недавнього досвіду, коли, перебуваючи в обладунках блаженного і приголомшливого невігластва, я повсякденно розповідав про це члену Королівського геологічного товариства з нагоди моєї останньої поїздки до Лондона. 你也不会奇怪你是否亲眼目睹了我最近的一次经历，当时，我在上次伦敦之行时，披着幸福而惊人的无知的盔甲，兴高采烈地向皇家地质学会的一位会员讲述了它的要点。

You would surely have thought that I had been detected in no less a heinous crime than the purloining of the Crown Jewels from the Tower, or putting poison in the coffee of His Majesty the King. ||||||||||||||||||robo de joyas|||||||||||||||||| ||||||||||||||жахливий||||викрадення|||||||||||||||||| You would surely have thought that I had been detected in no less a heinous crime than the purloining of the Crown Jewels from the Tower, or putting poison in the coffee of His Majesty the King. Вы наверняка подумали бы, что меня уличили в не менее гнусном преступлении, чем в краже драгоценностей короны из Тауэра или в добавлении яда в кофе Его Величества Короля. 你一定会认为我被发现犯下的罪行不亚于从伦敦塔偷窃皇冠上的珠宝，或在国王陛下的咖啡中下毒。

The erudite gentleman in whom I confided congealed before I was half through!—it is all that saved him from exploding—and my dreams of an Honorary Fellowship, gold medals, and a niche in the Hall of Fame faded into the thin, cold air of his arctic atmosphere. ||||||||||||||||||||||||||افتخاری||||||||||||||||||||| |ерудований|||||довірився|застиг||||||||||||||||||||Почесне членство|||||ніша||||||||||||||| |erudito|||||||||||||||||||||||||Honorario||||||||||||||||||||| El erudito caballero en el que confié se congeló antes de que yo hubiera llegado a la mitad -es lo único que le salvó de explotar- y mis sueños de una Beca Honorífica, medallas de oro y un nicho en el Salón de la Fama se desvanecieron en el aire fino y frío de su atmósfera ártica. Эрудированный джентльмен, которому я доверилась, застыл, не успев и половины! — это все, что спасло его от взрыва, — и мои мечты о Почетном членстве, золотых медалях и нише в Зале славы растворились в разреженном, холодном воздухе. его арктической атмосферы. 我所倾诉的这位博学的绅士在我讲到一半之前就凝固了！——这一切使他免于爆炸——而我的荣誉院士、金牌和名人堂一席之地的梦想消失在稀薄、寒冷的空气中他的北极气氛。

But I believe the story, and so would you, and so would the learned Fellow of the Royal Geological Society, had you and he heard it from the lips of the man who told it to me. ||||||тож|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Aber ich glaube die Geschichte, und das würden Sie auch, und der gelehrte Fellow der Royal Geological Society auch, wenn Sie und er sie aus den Lippen des Mannes gehört hätten, der sie mir erzählt hat. Но я верю в эту историю, и вы бы тоже поверили, и ученый член Королевского геологического общества тоже поверил бы, если бы вы и он услышали ее из уст человека, который мне ее рассказал. 但如果你和他从告诉我这个故事的人嘴里听到这个故事，我也会相信这个故事，你也会相信，皇家地质学会这位博学的研究员也会相信这个故事。 Had you seen, as I did, the fire of truth in those gray eyes; had you felt the ring of sincerity in that quiet voice; had you realized the pathos of it all—you, too, would believe. |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||tristeza profunda||||||| ||||||||||||||||||||щирість|||спокійний||||||жалість||||||| Если бы вы видели, как я, огонь истины в этих серых глазах; чувствовали ли вы искренность в этом тихом голосе; сознай ты пафос всего этого - ты бы тоже поверил. 你是否像我一样看到了那双灰色眼睛里的真理之火？你是否感受到了那平静的声音中的真诚？如果你意识到这一切的悲痛——你也会相信。 You would not have needed the final ocular proof that I had—the weird rhamphorhynchus-like creature which he had brought back with him from the inner world. |||||||очний доказ|||||||рамфоринх-подібна істота||||||||||||| |||||||prueba ocular final|||||||rhamphorhynchus||||||||||||| 你不需要我拥有的最后的目击证据——他从内心世界带回来的奇怪的类似喙嘴兽的生物。

I came upon him quite suddenly, and no less unexpectedly, upon the rim of the great Sahara Desert. ||на||досить||||||||край пустелі||||| He was standing before a goat-skin tent amidst a clump of date palms within a tiny oasis. ||||||||серед||група дерев||||||| 他站在一个山羊皮帐篷前，帐篷周围是一片小绿洲内的椰枣丛。 Close by was an Arab douar of some eight or ten tents. |||||арабське поселення|||||| |||||asentamiento árabe|||||| Cerca había un douar árabe de unas ocho o diez tiendas. 附近有一个阿拉伯帐篷，大约有八到十个帐篷。

I had come down from the north to hunt lion. 我从北方下来是为了猎杀狮子。 My party consisted of a dozen children of the desert—I was the only "white" man. 我的队伍由十几个沙漠孩子组成——我是唯一的“白人”。 As we approached the little clump of verdure I saw the man come from his tent and with hand-shaded eyes peer intently at us. |||||||grupo de vegetación||||||||||||||||| |||||кущ рослинності||зелена рослинність|||||||||||||||пильно|| 当我们走近那一小丛青翠的时候，我看到那个人从他的帐篷里走出来，用用手遮住的眼睛专注地看着我们。 At sight of me he advanced rapidly to meet us. |побачивши мене|||||||| 一看到我，他就迅速走上前来迎接我们。

"A white man!" he cried. 他哭了。 "May the good Lord be praised! |||||хай буде прославлений “愿仁慈的主受到赞美！ I have been watching you for hours, hoping against hope that THIS time there would be a white man. 我已经观察你几个小时了，满怀希望地希望这次会有一个白人。 Tell me the date. 告诉我日期。 What year is it?" 现在是哪一年了？” And when I had told him he staggered as though he had been struck full in the face, so that he was compelled to grasp my stirrup leather for support. |||||||похитнувся||ніби||||вдарений|||||||||змушений||||стремено||| 当我告诉他时，他摇摇晃晃，好像脸上挨了重击，所以他不得不抓住我的马镫皮革作为支撑。

"It cannot be!" “它不可能是！” he cried after a moment. "It cannot be! Tell me that you are mistaken, or that you are but joking." |||||equivocado|||||| 告诉我你错了，或者你只是在开玩笑。” "I am telling you the truth, my friend," I replied. "Why should I deceive a stranger, or attempt to, in so simple a matter as the date?" “我为什么要在约会这么简单的事情上欺骗或试图欺骗一个陌生人呢？” For some time he stood in silence, with bowed head. 他低着头，沉默地站了一会儿。

"Ten years!" he murmured, at last. "Ten years, and I thought that at the most it could be scarce more than one!" ||||||||||||дефіцитний||| “十年，我以为最多也就稀缺不止一年！” That night he told me his story—the story that I give you here as nearly in his own words as I can recall them. |||||||||||||||||||||||пригадати|