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LESSON 23 Greenland(II)
第二十三课 格陵兰岛（二）
The kayak, or man's boat, has a canoe-shaped frame work, from eighteen to twenty feet in length, tapering to a point at the head and stern, so that it is shaped like a weaver's shuttle. The breadth at the centre is from one foot and a half to two feet, and the depth about one foot. The interior of the vessel is hollowed just enough to allow a person to sit with his feet extended on the bottom; and as each man is his own boatbuilder, it is always constructed with a nice adaptation to his particular size and weight. When completed, the whole weight of the vessel is not more than sixty pounds, and it can be easily carried on the head without the assistance of the hands.
爱斯基摩人的小皮艇，或者说男式小艇，有着独木舟一样的框架结构，长度约18~20英尺，船头、船尾都是尖头的，因此，它的形状就像织布的梭子。船的中间宽度大约1·5~2英尺，深度大约1英尺。船体内部是中空的，只能容一个人坐在里面，脚可以伸到船的一头；而且，由于每个人都是自己的船的建造者，所以每艘小艇都按照主人的特定大小和体重而量身定制。完工时，小艇的总重量不会超过60磅，不用借助于手的帮助，人们便可轻松地将它顶在头上搬运。
In front of the kayaker lies his line, rolled up on a little raised seat made for it; and behind him rests his seal-skin bladder—an air-tight sack, which is always kept inflated and fastened to the sealing-line. This is said to answer the double purpose of a buoy and a brake or drag to retard the motion of the prey after it has been struck. The doublebladed oar or paddle is about seven feet in length. It is made of solid red deal, if that can be procure, with inlaid bone at the sides. The kayak is covered with new seal-skin once a year, and is so expeditious and convenient that the Danish authorities of Greenland use this kind of boat as an express for communication between different posts.
皮艇前方有绳子卷在为其特制的突起小座上；后面有一个海豹皮做的气囊——一个密封袋，一直充满着气，并被固定在密封线上。据说，它起到了救生圈和刹车的双重作用，或者说具备了在小艇被撞击后可以延缓船尾的猎物移动这一功能。双叶桨大约有七英尺长，由实心红衫木制成（如果可以得到的话），两边镶嵌着鱼骨。皮艇每年都要重新包一次海豹皮，由于它非常方便迅捷，丹麦格陵兰当局把它作为各地通信的最主要便捷工具。
The oomiak, or woman's boat, is usually about twenty feet long, five feet broad, and three feet deep. It is sometimes built so as to accommodate twenty persons. It is made of slender laths, fastened with whalebone, and covered with dressed sealskin. These boats are generally managed by three or four women together; and in fair weather they row them very rapidly. In any danger, a man with his kayak keeps them in sight, to aid them if required.
爱斯基摩人的木框皮艇，或是称为女式小艇，大约20英尺长，3英尺深。有时，它会被建造成可容纳20人的皮艇，它由细长的木板条构成，以鲸须固定，外面包着海豹皮。这种小艇一般会由三四个女人一起操控；天气晴朗时，她们会划得很快。遇到危险时，一个男人会划着皮艇跟在周围，如果有需要，他会随时伸出援手相救。
The next object of importance to the Esquimau is the sledge, which finds occupation during at least three-fourths of the year. A native who possesses both a kayak and a sledge is considered a person of property.
对爱斯基摩人来说，其次重要的就是雪橇，一年之中，至少有四分之三的时间要用到它。一个既有皮艇又有雪橇的当地人，就被认为是富有的人。
