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it was carrying more than the 1,200 people selected to be the lucky colonists.
它承载着1200多名 被幸运选中的殖民地人民
It was carrying the hopes of an entire nation.
也承载者整个苏格兰的希冀
But the only information the Company of Scotland had about Darien
而苏格兰公司对达连湾的唯一了解
was from a pirate surgeon called Lionel Wafer,
源于一个名为莱昂内尔·韦弗的海盗船医
who claimed he knew the Caribbean very well and had convinced them the place was paradise.
声称对加勒比海了如指掌 并说服人们相信那是片失落人间的伊甸园
The climate was mild, he said,the soil fertile and the natives friendly.
那里气候温和 他形容道 土地肥沃 且民风淳朴
They were also vain,spending much of the day combing their long hair
那里的人们也爱慕虚荣 每天花上大量的时间梳理他们长长的头发
so, naturally,the ship's cargo included combs,thousands of them.
因而很自然的 船上的货物中有成千上万把梳子
The rest of the cargo says something about the conditions they were expecting to encounter.
其余的货物则是他们期望 为当地人所需要的物品
Crate-loads of catechisms and Bibles for converting the pagans.
他们装载了成箱的教义书和圣经 想要转变异教徒的信仰
1,400 hats, an even greater supply of wigs.
还有1400顶帽子以及更大数量的假发
The Darienites were expecting to live like lairds of the Lagoon!
他们预计达连人的生活方式 与泻湖的苏格兰地主相差无几
But before the ship got anywhere near Darien,
然而船还未靠近达连湾
the dream had turned into a nightmare.
美梦就变成了噩梦
Forty crew and passengers died on the long voyage,
四十名船员及乘客死于长途颠簸
and when they found their golden island,
而当所谓的金银岛呈现在眼前的时候
it was, of course, a mosquito-infested swamp.
他们发现那不过是片蚊飞蝇舞的沼泽
The natives did not, it seemed,
当地人看来并不需要他们带来的任何货物
want their combs or anything else.
更不用说那些梳子了
