I'm a sort of strange-thoughted sometimes, they say; but that's only haphazard-like. Then, a short, little old body like me, should never undertake to wade out into deep waters with tall, heron-built captains; the water chucks you under the chin pretty quick, and there's a great cry for life-boats. And here's the heron's leg! long and slim, sure enough! Now, for most folks one pair of legs lasts a lifetime, and that must be because they use them mercifully, as a tender-hearted old lady uses her roly-poly old coach-horses. But Ahab; oh he's a hard driver. Look, driven one leg to death, and spavined the other for life, and now wears out bone legs by the cord. Halloa, there, you Smut! bear a hand there with those screws, and let's finish it before the resurrection fellow comes a-calling with his horn for all legs, true or false, as brewery men go round collecting old beer barrels, to fill 'em up again. What a leg this is! It looks like a real live leg, filed down to nothing but the core; he'll be standing on this to-morrow; he'll be taking altitudes on it. Halloa! I almost forgot the little oval slate, smoothed ivory, where he figures up the latitude. So, so; chisel, file, and sand-paper, now!
他们都说，我有时候是个奇思怪想的人；可是这倒有点象偶然的事。那么，象我这样一个又矮又小的老头儿，决不应该跟那些个苍鹭一般身材高大的船长一起蹚到深水的地方去；海水很快就会卡住你的头颈，那就得大叫救命啦。嗯，这就是一只苍鹭腿！又长又细，果真不错！大多数的人，一双腿可以用上一生一世，那一定是因为用得仔仔细细的缘故，就象一个慈心善肠的老太太用着她那些圆胖胖的老马一般。可是，亚哈呀，他是个硬心肠的赶车人。你瞧，把一条腿也赶死了，还要不惜牺牲另一条腿去求生，现在却把两条骨腿的筋都蹩断了。喂，喂，你老人家！帮帮忙。把那些螺丝递给我吧，让我们把它完工算啦！免得那个使人复活的家伙（指迦百列天使长。）又拿着号角来催唤了，是真是假，就象酿酒人走遍各地去收回旧酒桶，拿来再装酒那样。这可是多漂亮的一条腿呀！样子很象条真的活腿，全是用榫头敲起的；他明天就要靠它来撑住啦；他就可以站在这上面量高度了。嗳哟！我简直把那小块卵石板给忘掉了，得把这块牙骨磨磨光，他要靠它来计算宽度呢。唔，唔；凿子，锉子，砂纸，来吧！