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The engineers then proceeded to inspect the Scotia, which had been put in dry dock.
斯各脫亞號被架了起來，工程師們開始檢查。
They couldn't believe their eyes.
他們眼睛所看見的情形連自己也不能相信。
Two and a half meters below its waterline, there gaped a symmetrical gash in the shape of an isosceles triangle.
在船身吃水線下兩米半的地方，露出一個很規則的等邊三角形的缺口。
This breach in the sheet iron was so perfectly formed, no punch could have done a cleaner job of it.
鐵皮上的傷痕十分整齊，、就是鉆孔機也不能鑿得這么準確，
Consequently, it must have been produced by a perforating tool of uncommon toughness,
弄成這個裂口的銳利器械一定不是用普通的鋼鐵制的，
plus, after being launched with prodigious power and then piercing four centimeters of sheet iron,
因為，這家伙在以驚人的力量向前猛撞，鑿穿了四厘米厚的鐵皮以后、
this tool had needed to withdraw itself by a backward motion truly inexplicable.
還能用一種很難做到的后退動作，使自己脫身逃走。
This was the last straw, and it resulted in arousing public passions all over again.
最近這次事件的經過大致就是這樣。
Indeed, from this moment on, any maritime casualty without an established cause was charged to the monster's account.
結果這又一次使輿論哄動起來。從這時候起，所有從前原因不明的航海遇難事件，現在都算在這個怪物的賬上了。
This outrageous animal had to shoulder responsibility for all derelict vessels,
這只離奇古怪的動物于是負起了所有船只沉沒的責任。
whose numbers are unfortunately considerable, since out of those 3,000 ships whose losses are recorded annually at the marine insurance bureau,
不幸的是船沉的數目相當大，按照統計年鑒的記載，包括帆船和汽船在內，每年的損失約有三千艘左右，
the figure for steam or sailing ships supposedly lost with all hands, in the absence of any news, amounts to at least 200!
至于因下落不明而斷定失蹤：的，每年的數目也不下兩百艘！
Now then, justly or unjustly, it was the "monster" who stood accused of their disappearance;
不管有沒有冤枉這怪物，人們都把船只失蹤的原因算在它身上。
and since, thanks to it, travel between the various continents had become more and more dangerous,
由于它的存在，五大洲間的海上交通越來越危險了，
the public spoke up and demanded straight out that, at all cost, the seas be purged of this fearsome cetacean.
大家都堅決要求不惜任何代價清除海上這條可怕盼鯨魚怪。
