“不過，吉爾斯，在我一生中還不曾發生過我不知道到哪里去找到我所需要的兩、三個字的，”他說道， “因此，我不像有些人那樣愛講廢話。”
這個意見也許提醒他，他最好像年輕的諾瓦爾①的父親一樣，“增加他的儲存”，使他的知識更豐富一些。不管怎么樣，他沉默下來，而且保持著沉默，直到老所爾離開餐桌到店鋪里去點燈的時候，他才轉向沃爾特，沒有開場白，就說道：

'I suppose he could make a clock if he tried?'
'I shouldn't wonder, Captain Cuttle,' returned the boy.

“我想如果他試一試的話，他能做出一只鐘。”
“我對這不會奇怪，卡特爾船長，”孩子回答道。

'And it would go!' said Captain Cuttle, making a species of serpent in the air with his hook. 'Lord, how that clock would go!'

“這只鐘還能走！”船長用鉤子在空中劃了一道像一種蛇一樣的線條，“我的天主，那種怎么會走哪！”

For a moment or two he seemed quite lost in contemplating the pace of this ideal timepiece, and sat looking at the boy as if his face were the dial.

在一兩秒鐘的時間內，他似乎完全出神地在思考著這只理想的鐘走動的快慢，并坐在那里看著孩子，仿佛他的臉是針盤似的。

'But he's chockful of science,' he observed, waving his hook towards the stock-in-trade. 'Look'ye here! Here's a collection of 'em. Earth, air, or water. It's all one. Only say where you'll have it. Up in a balloon? There you are. Down in a bell? There you are. D'ye want to put the North Star in a pair of scales and weigh it? He'll do it for you.'

“可是他腦子里裝滿了科學，”他用鉤子指著那些存貨，說道，“往這里看一看吧！這里是這些東西的集合：泥土、空氣或水。這里全都有了。只要說一下你準備到哪里去就行了。你想乘汽球到天上去嗎？那你就到那里了！你想乘潛水艇到水底下去嗎？那你就到那里了！你是不是想把北極星放到天平上去稱一稱？他會給你辦到。”

It may be gathered from these remarks that Captain Cuttle's reverence for the stock of instruments was profound, and that his philosophy knew little or no distinction between trading in it and inventing it.

從這些話中可以看出，卡特爾船長對這些儀器的存貨懷著深深的敬意；也可以看出，他對買賣這些儀器與發明這些儀器之間的區別沒有什么理解或完全不理解。

注釋：introductory adj. 引導的，介紹的；開端的
例句：
1. The first two chapters provide introductory and background material.
頭兩篇提供入門性的和背景性的材料。
2. This book includes a good introductory chapter on forests.
這本書有一章關于森林的很好的序篇。
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①諾瓦爾（Norval）：蘇格蘭戲劇家瓊•霍姆（JoneHom，1722—1808年）所寫悲劇《道格拉斯》（Douglas）中的主人翁；該悲劇的主題取自蘇格蘭的敘事詩。