But suddenly reined back by some counter thought, he hurried towards the helm, huskily demanding how the ship was heading.
可是，他突然象是起了什么相反的念头，在脑子里勒马收缰了。他匆匆奔到舵边，嘎声嘎气地问船是朝哪里驶的。
East-sou-east, sir, said the frightened steersman.
东南东，先生，那个吃了一惊的舵手说。
Thou liest! smiting him with his clenched fist. "Heading East at this hour in the morning, and the sun astern?"
你在说谎！他用紧握着的拳头打了他。"大清老早这个时辰，往东驶，可太阳却在后边？"
Upon this every soul was confounded; for the phenomenon just then observed by Ahab had unaccountably escaped every one else; but its very blinding palpableness must have been the cause.
大家听到这番话，都惊慌失措；因为亚哈这时所觉察到的这种现象，谁都没有注意到；毛病一定出在那股弄得人们眼花缭乱的阳光上。
Thrusting his head half-way into the binnacle, Ahab caught one glimpse of the compasses; his uplifted arm slowly fell; for a moment he almost seemed to stagger. Standing behind him Starbuck looked, and lo! the two compasses pointed East, and the Pequod was as infallibly going West.
亚哈半路里把头探进罗盘针里，看一看那罗盘针后，他那只高举的胳膊慢慢地落下来；一时间他简直是立不稳了。站在他后边的斯达巴克一看，哎哟！两只罗盘针都指着东方，而事实上，"裴廓德号"却在朝西驶去。
But ere the first wild alarm could get out abroad among the crew, the old man with a rigid laugh exclaimed, "I have it! It has happened before. Mr. Starbuck, last night's thunder turned our compasses — that's all. Thou hast before now heard of such a thing, I take it."
但在这一刚发现的离奇的秘密让水手们知道之前，这老头子却一声生硬的大笑，高叫了起来，"我明白啦！这事情从前也碰到过。斯达巴克先生，昨儿晚上的雷电把我们这只罗盘针给转了向啦——就是这么回事。我相信，你从前也听到过这种事情。"
Aye; but never before has it happened to me, sir, said the pale mate, gloomily.
唔，我自己可从来没有碰到过，先生。面色灰白的大副阴郁郁地说。
Here, it must needs be said, that accidents like this have in more than one case occurred to ships in violent storms.
这里，必须说明一下，象这样的事故，在强暴风雨里，船只是不止一次发生过的。