【荆棘鸟】第九章 02

Behind them Tom, the garden rouseabout, finished filling thebig water truck from the bore-drain pump, then started the engine.Not that any amount of water short of a downpour from the skywould help put out a fire this big, but he would be needed to keepthe bags damp, and the people wielding 1 them. As he shoved thetruck down into bottom gear to grind up the far creek 2 bank helooked back for a moment at the empty head stockman’s house,the two vacant houses beyond it; there was the homestead’s softunderbelly, the only place where flammable things came closeenough to the trees on the far side of the creek to catch. Old Tomlooked westward 3, shook his head in sudden decision, and managedto get the truck back across the creek and up the near bank in reverse.They’d never stop that fire out in the paddocks; they’d return.On top of the gully and just beside the head stockman’s house, inwhich he had been camping, he attached the hose to the tank andbegan saturating 4 the building, then passed beyond it to the twosmaller dwellings 5, hosed them down. This was where he could helpthe most; keep those three homes so wet they’d never catch.As Meggie rode beside Fee the ominous 6 cloud in  the west grew, and stronger and stronger on the wind came thesmell of burning. It was growing dark; creatures fleeing from thewest came thicker and thicker across the paddock, kangaroos andwild pigs, frightened sheep and cattle, emus and goannas, rabbitsby the thousands. Bob was leaving the gates open, she noticed asshe rode from Borehead into Billa-Billa; every paddock on Droghedahad a name. But sheep were so stupid they would blunder into afence and stop three feet from an open gate, never see it. 
The fire had gone ten miles when they reached it, and it wasspreading laterally 7 as well, along a front expanding with everysecond. As the long dry grass and the high wind took it leapingfrom timber stand to timber stand they sat their frightened, jobbinghorses and looked into the west helplessly. No use trying to stopit here; an army couldn’t stop it here. They would have to go backto the homestead and defend that if they could. Already the frontwas five miles wide; if they didn’t push their weary mounts theytoo would be caught, and passed. Too bad for the sheep, too bad.But it couldn’t be helped.Old Tom was still hosing the houses by the creek when theyclattered through the thin blanket of water on the ford 8.“Good bloke, Tom!” Bob shouted. “Keep it up until it gets toohot to stay, then get out in plenty of time, hear me? No rash heroism;you’re more important than some bits of wood and glass.”The homestead grounds were full of cars, and more headlightswere bouncing and glaring down the road from Gilly; a large groupof men stood waiting for them as Bob turned into the horse yards.“How big is it, Bob?” Martin King asked.“Too big to fight, I think,” said Bob despairingly. “I reckon it’sabout five miles wide and in this wind it’s traveling almost as fastas a horse can gallop 9. I don’t know if we can save the homestead,but I think Horry ought to get ready to defend his place. He’s goingto get it next, because I don’t see how we can ever stop it.”“Well, we’re overdue 10 for a big fire. The last big one was in 1919.I’ll organize a party to go to Beel-Beel, but there are plenty of usand more coming. Gilly can put out close to five hundred men tofight a fire. Some of us will stay here to help. Thank God I’m westof Drogheda is all I can say.” Bob grinned. “You’re a bloody 11 comfort, Martin.”Martin looked around. “Where’s your father, Bob?”“West of the fire, like Bugela. He was out in Wilga musteringsome ewes for the lambing, and Wilga’s at least five miles west ofwhere the fire started, I reckon.”“No other men you’re worried about?”“Not today, thank heavens.”In a way it was like being in a war, Meggie thought as she enteredthe house: a controlled speed, a concern for food and drink, thekeeping up of one’s strength and courage. And the threat of imminentdisaster. As more men arrived they went to join those alreadyin the Home Paddock, cutting down the few trees that had sprungup close to the creek bank, and clearing away any overlong grasson the perimeter 12. Meggie remembered thinking when she first arrivedon Drogheda how much prettier the Home Paddock mighthave been, for compared to the wealth of timber all around it, itwas bare and bleak 13. Now she understood why. The Home Paddockwas nothing less than a gigantic circular firebreak.Everyone talked of the fires Gilly had seen in its seventy-oddyears of existence. Curiously 14 enough, fires were never a major threatduring prolonged drought, because there wasn’t sufficient grassthen to keep a fire going far. It was times like this, a year or twoafter heavy rain had made the grass grow so long and tinder-lush,that Gilly saw its big fires, the ones which sometimes burned outof control for hundreds of miles. 
Martin King had taken charge of the three hundred men remainingto defend Drogheda. He was the senior grazier of the district, and had fought fires for fifty years.“I’ve got 150,000 acres on Bugela,” he said, “and in 1905 I lostevery sheep and every tree on the place. It took me fifteen years torecover, and I thought for a while I wouldn’t, because wool wasn’tfetching much in those days, nor was beef.”The wind was still howling, the smell of burning was everywhere.Night had fallen, but the western sky was lit to unholy brillianceand lowering smoke was beginning to make them cough. Not longafterward they saw the first flames, vast tongues leaping andwrithing a hundred feet into the smoke, and a roaring came to theirears like a huge crowd overexcited at a football game. The trees onthe western side of the timber ringing the Home Paddock caughtand went up in a solid sheet of fire; as Meggie watched petrifiedfrom the homestead veranda 15 she could see little pygmy silhouettesof men outlined against them, jumping and cavorting 17 like anguishedsouls in Hell.“Meggie, will you get in here and stack those plates on the sideboard,girl! We’re not at a picnic, you know!” came her mother’svoice. She turned away reluctantly.Two hours later the first relay of exhausted 18 men staggered in tosnatch food and drink, gather up their waning 19 strength to go backand fight on. For this had the station women toiled 20, to make surethere was stew 21 and damper bread, tea and rum and beer aplenty,even for three hundred men. In a fire, everyone did what he or shewas best equipped to do, and that meant the women cooked tokeep up the superior physical strength of the men. Case after caseof liquor emptied and was replaced by new cases; black from sootand reeling with fatigue 22, the men stood to drink copiously 23 and stuffhuge chunks 24 of damper into their mouths, gobble down a platefulof stew when it had cooled, gulp 25 a last tumbler of rum, then outagain to the fire. In between trips to the cookhouse Meggie watches the fire, awedand terrified. In its way it had a beauty beyond the beauty of anythingearthly, for it was thing of the skies, of suns so far away theirlight camp coldly, of God and the Devil. The front had gallopedon eastward 26, they were completely surrounded now and Meggiecould pick out details the undefined holocaust 27 of the front did notpermit. Now there were black and orange and red and white andyellow; a tall tree in black silhouette 16 rimmed 28 with an orange crustthat simmered and glowered 29; red embers floating and pirouettinglike frolicsome 30 phantoms 31 in the air above, yellow pulsations fromthe exhausted hearts of burned-out trees; a shower of spinningcrimson sparks as a gum exploded; sudden licks of orange-and whiteflames from something that had resisted until now, and finallyyielded its being to the fire. Oh, yes, it was beautiful in the night;she would carry the memory of it all her life.A sudden increase in the wind velocity 32 sent all the women upthe wistaria boughs 33 onto the silver iron roof muffled 34 in bags, forall the men were out in the Home Paddock. Armed with wet bags,their hands and knees scorched 35 even through the bags they wore,they beat out embers on the frying roof, terrified the iron mightgive way under the coals, drop flaming pieces down into thewooden struts 36 below. But the worst of the fire was ten miles eastwardon Beel-Beel.Drogheda homestead was only three miles from the easternboundary of the property, it being closest to Gilly. Beel-Beel adjoinedit, and beyond that farther east lay Narrengang. When thewind picked up from forty to sixty miles an hour the whole districtknew nothing but rain could prevent the fire burning on for weeks,and laying waste to hundreds of square miles of prime land.Through the worst of the blaze the houses by the creek had endured,with Tom like a man possessed 37 filling his tank truck, hosing, filling again, hosing again. But themoment the wind increased the houses went up, and Tom retreatedin the truck, weeping.“You’d better get down on your knees and thank God the winddidn’t pick up while the front was to the west of us,” said MartinKing. “If it had, not only would the homestead have gone, but usas well. God Jesus, I hope they’re all right on Beel-Beel!”Fee handed him a big glass of neat rum; he was not a youngman, but he had fought as long as it was needed, and directed operationswith a master’s touch.“It’s silly,” she said to him, “but when it looked as if it all mightgo I kept thinking of the most peculiar 38 things. I didn’t think of dying,or of the children, or of this beautiful house in ruins. All I couldthink of were my sewing basket, my half-done knitting, the box ofodd buttons I’d been saving for years, my heart-shaped cake pansFrank made me years ago. How could I survive without them? Allthe little things, you know, the things which can’t be replaced, orbought in a shop.”“That’s how most women think, as a matter of fact. Funny, isn’tit, how the mind reacts? I remember in 1905 my wife running backinto the house while I yelled after her like a madman, just to get atambour with a bit of fancywork on it.” He grinned. “But we gotout in time, though we lost the house. When I built the new place,the first thing she did was finish the fancywork. It was one of thoseold-fashioned samplers, you know the sort I mean. And it said‘Home Sweet Home.’” He put down the empty glass, shaking hishead over the strangenes of women. “I must go. Gareth Davies isgoing to need us on Narrengang, and unless I miss my guess sowill Angus on Rudna Hunish.”Fee whitened. “Oh, Martin! So far away?”“The word’s out, Fee. Booroo and Bourke are rallying.” 
For three days more the fire rampaged eastward on a front that kept widening and widening, then came a sudden heavyfall of rain that lasted for nearly four days, and quenched 39 every lastcoal. But it had gone over a hundred miles and laid a charred,blackened path twenty miles wide from midway out acrossDrogheda to the boundary of the last property in the Gillanbonedistrict eastward, Rudna Hunish.Until it began to rain no one expected to hear from Paddy, forthey thought him safely on the far side of the burned zone, cut offfrom them by heat in the ground and the still-flaring trees. Had thefire not brought the telephone line down, Bob thought they wouldhave got a call from Martin King, for it was logical that Paddywould strike westward for shelter at Bugela homestead. But whenthe rain had been falling for six hours and there was still no signof him, they began to worry. For almost four days they had beenassuring themselves continually that there was no reason to beanxious, that of course he was just cut off, and had decided 40 to waituntil he could head for his own home rather than go to Bugela.“He ought to be in by now,” said Bob, pacing up and down thedrawing room while the others watched; 
 

她们的后面是园丁汤姆，他用钻井泵灌满了那辆大水车，然后发动了引擎。由于老天没有下大雨，没有足够的水去扑灭这场大火，便是，他需要使那些麻袋保持濡湿，人们正在挥动着那些麻袋。当他挂着低档把卡车开到远处小河的岸边时，便踩住了闸，回头望了一会儿那人去屋空的牧工工头住宅。远处还有两座空房子，这里是庄园最薄弱的部分，这里是易燃物能接近小河远处那片树林的唯一的地方。老汤姆向西边望去，摇了摇头，突然下定了决心。他设法将卡车倒过小河，掉头来到了附近的岸上。他们根本无法阻止围场那边的火势，他们不得不退回来，他来到了紧挨着他曾经住过的牧场工头住宅的冲沟顶上，将水管和水箱接了起来，开始用水冲淋着这些建筑；接着，他又越过工头住宅向沟边的两座小一些的房子走去，也把它们浇湿了。这是他最能帮得上忙的地方，让这三座房子湿透，这样就不会起火了。
　　在菲和梅吉并辔而驰的时候，不祥的烟云在西边升起，随风扑过愈来愈浓的燃烧气味。天色渐暗，越来越多的野兽从西边逃窜过来，有袋鼠、野猪、发抖的绵羊和牛、鸸鹋、大晰蜴以及成百上千的兔子。当她策马从鲍尔海德进入比拉-比拉的时候，发现鲍勃把围场的门全都敞开了--德罗海达的每一个围场都有名称。绵羊竟会如此愚蠢，它们会慌里慌张地跑进一片围篱，站在离敞开的大门不远的篱脚下，可是却根本看不到大门。
　　人们到达火场时，大火已经向前推进了十英里，并且还在向两侧蔓延，每一秒钟大火都在向前延伸着。又长又深的草和疾风使大火从一片树林跃向另一片树林。她们骑在惊惶万状、被嚼子勒疼的马身上，无可奈何地望着西边。想在这边拦住火是办不到的，一支军队也休想在这里拦住。他们不得不撤回庄园去，职卫庄园，倘若办得到的话。火的前缘已经有五英里宽了，假若他们不催逼疲惫的坐骑的话，大火也会赶上他们，并且超过他们的。这情形对绵羊来说是太糟糕了，但是却无计可施。
　　当他们马蹄得得地从可涉水而过的地方穿过那浅浅的水流时，老汤姆仍在小河旁冲淋着房屋。
　　"好汉子，汤姆！"鲍勃喊道。"浇下去，让它们湿透为止，这样就能坚持很长时间了听见了吗？你不是个莽撞地逞英雄的人，比有些榆木脑袋的人强得多。"
　　庄园的院子里停满了小汽车，从基里而来的道路上还有更多的汽车大灯在跳动着，闪着耀眼的光；当鲍勃拨马走进牲畜围场的时候，一大群人工站在那里等着他们。
　　"火大吗，鲍勃？"马丁·金问道。
　　"我想，火势太太了，没法救了，"鲍勃绝望地说道。"我估计火大约有五英里宽。风这么大，火延伸的速度几乎象飞跑的马那么快。我不知道我们是不是能把这座庄园救下来，不过我想，基里应该准备保卫他的地方去了，下一个就要轮到他了，因为我不知道怎么扑灭这场大火。"
　　"唔，这样一场大火，我们已经晚了。上一次大火是在1919年。我将组织一批人到比尔-比尔去，不过我们在这里的人太多了，而且还要来更多的人呢。基里可以动员差不多500人来救火。谢天谢地，幸亏我在德罗海达的西边，我能讲的就是这些。"
　　鲍勃咧嘴一笑。"你真是个狠心的安慰者，马丁。"
　　马丁环视了一下。"鲍勃，你父亲在哪儿呢？"
　　"象你的布吉拉牧场一样，在大火的西边。他到芸香树林那边，去把一些要生羔的母羊赶到一起。我估计，芸香树林离起火的地方至少还要往西五英里。"
　　"没有其他人让你担忧的吧？"
　　"谢天谢地，今天还没有。"
　　梅吉走进房子的时候，她想，从某种意义上说，这真象是一场战争：有指挥的迅速行动，必须关心食物和饮料，保持力量和勇气。灾难的威胁迫在眉睫。其他人来到之后。便加入了已经在家内圈地中的人群，那些人正在放倒紧挨着小河岸边的零星树木，清除四周长得过长的草。梅吉回忆起她头一次到德罗海达的时候曾经想过，家内圈地以前一定优美得多。相比之下，它周围的树木显得葱笼蓊郁，而它却光秃秃的，十分凄凉。现在，她明白这是为什么了。家内圈地无非是一个巨大的圆形防火场。
　　每个人都在谈着70余年来基里地区所发生的各种各样的火灾。真是太奇怪了，在长期干旱期间，火灾从来没有形成主要的威胁，因为这里没有足够的草可以使火势向远处蔓延。有几次火灾和这回一样，伏雨过后一两年，草长得根深，茂茂盛盛地成了引火场，于是基里就有大火灾发生了。有时候，这样的火灾会失去控制，直烧数百英里。
　　马丁·金指挥着300个留下的男人保护德罗海达。他是这个地区年长的牧场主，与火灾搏斗了50年。
　　"我在布吉拉有15万公顷的地。"他说，"1905年，我那地方的羊和树损失殆尽。我用了15年才恢复起来，有那么一阵工夫，我以为我恢复不起来了，因为那年头羊毛和牛肉都卖不出好价钱。"
　　风依然在号叫着，到处都可以闻到燃烧的气味。夜幕已经降临，可是，西边的天空被那可怕的火光照得通亮，低垂的烟开始呛得他们咳嗽了。没过多久，他们便看到了火的前缘，巨大的火舌在跳动着，扭曲着，腾起100码高，变成了浓烟，呼呼的声音就象足球场中观众那过份兴奋的狂喊声，震耳欲聋，围绕着家内围场那片树林的西边已经起火，变成了一堵厚厚的火墙。当梅吉呆若木鸡地在庄园的走廊下望去的时候，可以看到大火映出了人们那渺小的身影，跳来跳去，就象是地狱中那些极其痛苦的灵魂。
　　"梅吉，你能进来一下，把这些盘子归置到餐具橱里吗？姑娘！你知道，咱们可不是在野餐呐！"传来了妈妈的声音。她勉勉强强地转身走了过去。
　　两个小时之后，第一批换下来的、筋疲力竭的人摇摇晃晃地来了，急不可耐地吃着、喝着，恢复一下耗尽的体力，再回去接着搏斗。牧场的女人们为此吃力地干着活儿，以保证充分供应炖肉、饮料面包、茶、兰姆酒和啤酒，即使供300人吃也绰绰有余。在发生火灾的时候，每个人都在干着最适合于他或她干的工作，也就开说，女人要做出饭来，以保证男人们体力充沛。一箱一箱的酒被喝完了，又代之以新的箱子；男人们被烟灰弄得浑身漆黑，被疲劳弄得摇摇晃晃。他们站在那里大口大口地喝着酒，大块大块地往嘴里塞着面包，肉一炖好，便狼吞虎咽地吃下满满一大盘，将最后一大杯兰姆酒一饮而尽，便又返回火场去了。
　　在厨房里跑来跑去的梅吉惊惶恐惧地望着那片大火。火本身有一种超乎世间万物之美的壮观，因为它是一种来自天上的东西，一种无情地来自遥远的日光的东西，一种来自上帝和魔鬼的东西。火的前部已经迅速地推进到了东边，现在，他们已经完全被包围了。梅吉什么都能看得一清二楚，在这场范围难定的大播烧的前缘所过之处，什么东西都休想存活。黑、橙、红、白、黄，搅成了一团，一棵大树的黑色侧影四周镶上了一层橙色的外壳，缓缓地燃着，闪着刺眼的白光；红色的余烬就象熔戏的幽灵一样在上空飘动着，旋转着：烧空了心的树木呈现出黄色，跳动着；一棵桉树就象爆裂了似的，令人目眩的深红色的树皮纷纷如雨下；突然从某个直到现在还烧着的东西上窜起了橙黄和白色相混的火舌，它终于顶不住这场大火了。哦，是啊，在茫茫夜色中这景色实在壮大，她会一辈子记住这场面的。
　　风速突然加大，迫使女人们都顺着紫藤枝爬上了覆盖着麻袋的银色铁皮的房顶，因为男人全到外面的牲畜围场上去上。尽管她们已经用湿麻袋武装了起来，可她们的手和膝盖还是隔着麻袋被烧伤了。她们在炙人的房顶上打扫着余烬，深怕铁屋顶抵不住上面灰烬的积层而坍塌下来，冒着火苗的碎片会落在下面的木桩上。但是，最可怕的火势已经东移十英里，向比尔-比尔去了。
　　德罗海达庄园离这片产业的东界只有三英里，离基里最近。比尔-比尔与这片产业搭界，再往东是奈仁甘。当风速从每小时40英里增加到60英里的时候，所有这个地区的人们都明白，除非下一场雨，否则无法阻止这场大火继续烧上几个星期，使方圆数百英里的第一流土地变成一片焦土。
　　在这场大火中，小河边的房子被烧得最惨，尽管汤姆把他的水罐车灌满，去浇，再灌满，再去烧。可是眼下风速增加了，房子烧了起来。汤姆到了卡车中，哭泣着。
　　"你最好跪倒在地，求求上帝，当大火的前缘在我们的西边时，风力不要加大了，"马丁·金说道。"要是风再大的话，不仅庄园要完蛋，咱们也得玩完啦。耶稣啊，我希望比尔-比尔别出什么事！"
　　菲递给他一大杯没掺水的兰姆酒。尽管他不是个年轻人，但是他却在搏斗着，情况需要怎么干就怎么干，并且以主人般的风度指挥着一切行动。
　　"真是太傻了，"她对他说道。"在一切都似乎要烧起来的时候，风却在不断地惦念着一些奇怪的东西。我并没有想到死，没有想到孩子，或想到这座华丽的房子将毁于一旦。我想到的不过就是我的针线篮，我那干了一半的编织活儿，还有几年前弗兰克给我做的那些心形的蛋糕盘。失去了这些东西我怎么能活下去呢？你知道，所有这些小东西都是些不可替代的、商店里买不到的东西。"
　　"实际上，大多数女人都是这样想的。头脑的反应很有意思，对吗？我记得，那还是1905年的事了，我就象发疯了似地高声喊叫着，跟在我妻子的后面逃回了家，可她却只是抓起了一只绷着一小块绣花活儿的绷子。"马丁·金咧嘴一笑。"虽然我们的房子完蛋了，可我们却及时逃了出来。当我建成了一个新家以后，她做的头一件事就是把她那块绣花活儿完成。那是一块老式的刺绣品，你是了解我说的这种东西的。那上面绣着。'故乡啊，可爱的故乡。'"他放下了那只空杯子，摇了摇头，对女人不可思议的行为大不以为然。"我得走了。加里夫·戴维斯需要我们到奈仁甘去。安格斯会到鲁德纳·胡尼施去的，除非我猜错了。"
　　菲的脸变白了。"天啊，马上要去那么远吗？"
　　"君子一言，驷马难追，菲。布鲁和伯克正在集中人马。"
　　大火往东横冲直撞地蔓延了三天，其前缘在不断地加宽着。随后，突然下了一场暴雨几乎连续下了四天，浇灭了每一块火炭。可是，大火已经横扫了数百英里，从德罗海在的中部以东，直到基兰博边界地区的最后一片产业鲁德纳·胡尼施，在这片地区之间烧出了一道宽二十英里的黑色焦土地带。
　　直到开始降雨之前，谁都没指望能接到有关帕迪的消息，因为他们以为他安然无恙、远远地呆在燃烧带的另一边，被地上的热气和依然在燃烧的树林隔开了。大火并没有使电话线受到损伤，鲍勃以为他们会接到马丁·金的电话，因为顺理成章的推论的，帕迪会努力西去，到布吉拉庄园避难的。可是，在雨下过六个小时以后，依然没有他的消息，他们就开始着急了。四天以来，他们一直心安理得，看不出有什么值得焦急的理由，以为他不过就是被隔开了，并且决定等待；与其到布吉拉去找他，倒不如等他自己回家。
　　"现在他该回来了呀，"鲍勃说道。他在客厅里走来走去，其他人都望着他。