"He's taken it,”he said, "Now I'll let him eat it well."
“它咬饵啦，”他说，“现在我来让它美美地吃一顿。”
He let the line slip through his fingers while he reached down with his left hand and made fast the free end of the two reserve coils to the loop of the two reserve coils of the next line. Now he was ready. He had three forty-fathom coils of line in reserve now, as well as the coil he was using.
他让钓索在指间朝下溜，同时伸出左手，把两卷备用钓索的一端紧系在旁边那根钓索的两卷备用钓索上。他如今准备好了。他眼下除了正在使用的那钓索卷儿，还有三个40英寻长的卷儿可供备用。
"Eat it a little more,”he said，"Eat it well." "Eat it so that the point of the hook goes into your heart and kills you，”he thought,“Come up easy and let me put the harpoon into you.All right. Are you ready? Have you been long enough at table."
“再吃一些吧，”他说，“美美地吃吧。”
“Now!”he said aloud and struck hard with both hands，gained a yard of line and then struck again and again, swinging with each arm alternately on the cord with all the strength of his arms and the pivoted weight of his body.
“吃了吧，这样可以让钓钩的尖端扎进你的心脏，把你弄死，”他想。“轻松愉快地浮上来吧，让我把鱼叉刺进你的身子。得了。你准备好了吗?你进餐的时间够长了吗?”
Nothing happened. The fish just moved away slowly and the old man could not raise him an inch. His line was strong and made for heavy fish and he held it against his hack until it was so taut that beads of water were jumping from it.
“好了，就是现在!”他说出声来，用双手使劲猛拉钓索，收进了一码，然后连连猛拉，使出胳膊上的全副劲儿，拿身子的重量作为支撑，挥动双臂，轮换地把钓索往回拉。
Then it began to make a slow hissing sound in the water and he still held it, bracing himself against the thwart and leaning back against the pull. The boat began to move slowly off toward the north-west.
什么用也没有。那鱼只顾慢慢地游开去，老人无法把它往上拉一英寸。他这钓索很结实，是制作来钓大鱼的，他把它套在背上猛拉，钓索给绷得太紧，上面竟蹦出水珠来。
The fish moved steadily and they travelled slowly on the calm water. The other baits were still in the water but there was nothing to be done.
随后它在水里渐渐发出一阵拖长的噬噬声，但他依旧攥着它，在座板上死劲撑住了自己的身子，仰着上半身来抵消鱼的拉力。船儿慢慢地向西北方向驶去。
"I wish I had the boy,”the old man said aloud, "I'm being towed by a fish and I'm the towing bitt. I could make the line fast. But then he could break it. I must hold him all I can and give him line when he must have it. Thank God he is traveling and not going down.
大鱼一刻不停地游着，鱼和船在平静的水面上慢慢地行进。另外那几个鱼饵还在水里，没有动静，用不着应付。
"What I will do if he decides to go down, I don't know. What I'll do if he sounds and dies, I don't know. But I'll do something. There are plenty of things I can do.
“但愿那孩子在这儿就好了，”老人说出声来，“我正被一条鱼拖着走，成了一根系纤绳的短柱啦。我可以把钓索系在船舷上。不过这一来鱼儿会把它扯断的。我得拼命牵住它，必要的时候给它放出钓索。谢谢老天，它还在朝前游，没有朝下沉。”
He held the line against his back and watched its slant in the water and the skiff moving steadily to the north-west.
“如果它决意下沉，我该怎么办?我不知道。如果它潜入海底，死在那儿，我该怎么办?我不知道。可是我必须干些什么，我能做的事情多着呢。”
"This will kill him,”the old man thought, "He can't do this forever. But four hours later the fish was still swimming steadily out to sea, towing the skiff, and the old man was still braced solidly with the line across his back. "It was noon when I hooked him，”he said, "And I have never seen him."
他攥住了勒在背脊上的钓索，紧盯着它直往水中斜去，小船呢，不停地朝西北方驶去。
He had pushed his straw hat hard down on his head before he hooked the fish and it was cutting his forehead. He was thirsty too and he got down on his knees and，being careful not to jerk on the line, moved as far into the bow as he could get and reached the water bottle with one hand. He opened it and drank a little. Then he rested against the bow. He rested sitting on the unstepped mast and sail and tried not to think but only to endure.
“这样能叫它送命，”老人想，“它不能一直这样干下去。”然而过了四个钟点，那鱼照样拖着这条小船，不停地向大海游去，老人呢，依然紧紧攥着勒在背脊上的钓索。“我是中午把它钓上的，”他说，“可我始终还没见过它。”
