橡樹島上的神秘“錢坑”

這是一個怪坑。它構造極其精巧，在地下每隔十英尺，就有一層橡木板、石板或是鐵板阻隔。尋寶者根據種種跡象，認定坑底埋有大筆的寶藏。可兩百多年來，尋寶者耗盡了數百萬美元，付出了六條人命的代價，卻始終敵不過怪坑的精巧設計，被拒之“坑”外，傳說中的寶藏更是始終不見蹤影。

The romance of searching for pirate treasure has been celebrated1) in dozens of stories since Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island. But is there really any buried treasure to be found? Maybe so...on Oak Island， a tiny island off the coast of Nova Scotia， Canada.

繼羅伯特·路易斯·斯蒂文森的小說《金銀島》之后，尋找海盜藏寶的傳奇便為很多故事所津津樂道。但真有這種埋藏的寶藏嗎？或許……橡樹島——一座位于加拿大新斯科舍省海岸附近的小島上有。

First Discovery 最初的發現

It began as every boy's dream adventure. In 1795， Daniel McGinnis， a boy of 16， went to Oak Island on a journey of exploration. On the eastern end of this wooded island， he discovered an unusual， circular2) depression3). Next to it was an ancient oak tree with sawed off limbs. And， according to legend， a ship's tackle4) hung from the tree directly over the depression—as if it had been used to lower something very heavy into the hole.

Young Daniel was certain that he had found buried pirate treasure， and with the help of two friends， he began digging for it. What they found astonished them. 2 feet below the surface they came across a layer of flagstones5) covering the pit. At 10 feet down they ran into a layer of oak logs. Again at 20 feet and 30 feet they found the same thing， a layer of logs. By then the difficulty and frustration won， and the boys gave up. Yet word of their discovery spread.

Around 1803， a mining group called the Onslow Company came and made the first really serious effort. Finding a layer of oak logs at every 10 foot interval6)， they quickly dug down to 90 feet， where one of the most puzzling clues was found—a stone inscribed7) with mysterious writing， which was later translated to read: \"Forty Feet Below Two Million Pounds Are Buried.\"

Of course， at that time， no one knew what the stone meant， but they got encouraged and kept digging. As night fell， they hit what felt like a wooden chest8) at 98 feet deep. Due to the poor visibility9)， they went back to sleep. Returning the next day， they were shocked to find that overnight the pit had filled with water up to the 33-foot level. Bailing10) was useless. As soon as water was removed from the pit， more flowed in. It was also unsuccessful to dig another shaft11) nearby and get at the treasure by running a tunnel underneath the pit.

Since then， more than 15 big excavations have been made on this mysterious pit， costing millions of dollars as well as six treasure hunters' lives. Yet the treasure is still no where to be found. Thus people call this pit \"The Money Pit\".

事情的開端就像每個男孩夢想中的冒險故事一樣。1795年，16歲的男孩丹尼爾·麥金尼斯來到橡樹島上展開他的探險之旅。在這座林木繁茂的島嶼東端，他發現地面上有一處很不尋常的圓形凹陷，凹陷旁長著一棵樹枝被鋸掉了的老橡樹。并且據說就在凹陷處的正上方，從樹上垂掛下一套船用的滑輪——似乎有人曾用它將某樣很重的東西吊到下面的洞里。

年輕的丹尼爾確信自己找到了海盜埋藏的財寶，在兩個朋友的幫助下，他開始挖尋寶藏。挖掘結果令他們震驚。在地下2英尺處，他們挖到了一層覆蓋在坑洞上的石板。在10英尺深處，他們挖到一層橡木板。在20和30英尺深處，他們又分別挖到了相同的東西——一層橡木板。至此，挖掘工作中的困難及挫敗感占了上風，男孩們放棄了尋寶的努力。不過，他們的這一發現卻流傳開了。

1803年前后，一家名為昂斯洛公司的采礦隊來到這里，進行了首次正規的發掘。他們每隔10英尺就會挖到一層橡木板。很快他們挖到了90英尺深處，就在這兒，他們發現了最令人費解的線索之一—一塊刻有神秘符號的石板，那些符號后來被破譯為：“下方40英尺處埋有200萬英鎊。”

當然，在當時并沒有人知道石頭上刻的是些什么，但這個發現很是鼓舞人心，人們又繼續向下挖掘。夜幕降臨時，他們在98英尺深處探到了一個像是木箱子的物體。由于能見度太差，他們就回去休息了。等第二天返回時，人們大吃一驚：僅僅一夜之間，坑中蓄滿了距地面僅33英尺的積水。排水純屬徒勞。這邊剛排出去水，那邊就會有水流進來。人們在坑的附近挖了一條豎井，然后從那里挖了一條通往坑底下方的地道以取得寶藏，但也是徒勞。

此后，人們在這個神秘的坑洞處開展過15次以上的大規模發掘活動，耗資高達數百萬美金，還搭上了六名尋寶者的生命。盡管如此，寶藏仍然不見蹤影。因此，人們稱這個坑為“錢坑”。

Ingenious12) Design 精巧的設計

The Money Pit is just a pit. But why it is so hard to explore?

Flood tunnel

In 1803， the Onslow Company inadvertently13) unplugged14) a 500-foot waterway that had been dug from the pit to nearby Smith's Cove by the pit's designers. As quickly as the water could be pumped out it was refilled by the sea. This discovery， however， is only a small part of the intricate15) plan by the unknown designers to keep people away from the cache16).

“錢坑”就只是個坑，可為何如此難以挖掘呢？

引流渠

1803年，昂斯洛公司不小心挖穿了一條長達500英尺的水道——錢坑的設計者們用它把錢坑和附近的史密斯灣連了起來。錢坑中的積水能以多快的速度被排出去，海水就會以多快的速度將錢坑注滿。而這一發現只是那些不為人知的設計者們為使寶藏不被世人奪取所做的復雜設計的冰山一角。

Artificial beach

In 1849， the Truro Company drilled core samples and the results were encouraging. It seemed they had drilled through 2 chests filled with coins at 98 feet. Also three small gold links， as from a chain were brought up from the pit. During the low tide， they also noticed that the beach at Smith's Cove gave out water like a sponge17) being squeezed. It turned out that the beach was artificial! Underground stone drains18) were filled with beach rocks， covered with several inches of grass， and then covered by several more inches of coconut fiber. Such a filtering19) system kept the drains clear of silt20) and sand. These drains finally met the 500-foot flood tunnel found in 1803， which eventually joined the Money Pit between the depths of 95 to 110 feet.

Another flood tunnel

In 1893， the Oak Island Treasure Company began their search on the Money Pit. In 1897， they made some surprising finds which drilling a new set of core samples. Between130 and 171 feet， a 7 foot high cement vault21) was discovered. Inside the vault the drill first struck wood， then a void22) several inches high. Next a layer of soft metal was reached， then almost 3 feet of metal pieces， and then more soft metal. When the drill was brought back up， attached to the drill came a small piece of sheepskin parchment23) with strange letters. Yet the more startling discovery didn't come until May of 1899. Besides the flood tunnel discovered at Smith's Cove in 1803， there was a second flood tunnel located in South Shore Cove.

Poison gas

In August， 1965， treasure hunter Bob Restall blacked out24) and fell into the pit he had dug. His son and four others tried to rescue him， but they also blacked out and fell in. Bob， his son， and two of the workers were killed. The autopsy25) finding: death by \"marsh gas26) poisoning and/or drowning.\"

人造海灘

1849年，特魯羅公司鉆取了許多巖芯樣本，得到的結果令人振奮。他們似乎鉆穿了位于98英尺深處的兩個裝滿錢幣的箱子。從錢坑中還帶上來三個小金環，好像是從一條金鏈子上截下來的。在退潮的時候，他們還發現史密斯灣的海灘會像被擠壓的海綿一樣涌出水來。人們最終發現這片海灘居然是人造的！地下暗渠卵石遍布，上面還鋪著幾英寸厚的草，再往上還鋪有更厚的一層椰棕。正是這樣的一個過濾系統使得暗渠免于泥沙淤積。這些暗渠最后匯入了1803年發現的那條500英尺長的引流渠中，并最終在距地表95~110英尺處與“錢坑”連通。

再現引流渠

1893年，橡樹島探寶公司開始了對“錢坑”的發掘。1897年，他們在鉆取一組新的巖芯樣本時，有了一些意外的發現。在地下130~171英尺之間，他們發現了一處7英尺高的水泥秘室。在這個秘室中，鉆頭先觸到了木頭，木頭下是幾英尺厚的空層。接下來，鉆頭又探到了一層軟金屬，下邊是接近3英尺厚的一層金屬片，再往下又是軟金屬。當鉆頭被拿上來的時候，上面粘了一小片寫有奇怪字符的羊皮紙。不過，到了1899年5月，他們又有了更為驚人的發現：除了1803年在史密斯灣發現的那條引流渠，在南岸灣還有一條引流渠。

有毒氣體

1965年8月，尋寶者鮑伯·萊斯達爾昏倒后跌進了自己挖的坑洞中。他的兒子和另外四個人想要去救他，但也全部暈倒跌入了坑中。鮑伯和他的兒子以及兩名幫工在這次事故中喪生。尸檢表明：死于“沼氣中毒及/或溺水死亡”。

Amazing Discoveries 驚人的發現

錢坑的設計者們似乎比人們先前想象的還要更加足智多謀，并且下了更多的功夫。在接下來的那些年里，人們又有了更多的發現。1939年，一位名叫歐文·漢密爾頓的尋寶者鉆探到地下176英尺處，發現在一層天然石灰巖的下方存在木頭。1967年，著名的尋寶者丹尼爾·布蘭肯希普在史密斯灣的排水渠下發現了一把熟鐵剪刀，經檢測它已有將近300年的歷史。1970年，史密斯灣又向丹尼爾·布蘭肯希普組建的特賴登(譯者注：希臘神話中人身魚尾海神的名字)探寶隊展露了更多的秘密。他們發現了幾根2英尺粗、65英尺長的木頭，上面每隔4英尺就標有一個羅馬數字。經碳14測年法測定，這些木頭是250年前的。下一項重大發現是在1976年，當時特賴登探寶隊在錢坑東北方向，距錢坑180英尺處挖了一口新的豎井。在距地表230英尺處，他們發現了幾個明顯是人為挖就的洞穴。人們將一架相機垂降到其中的一個洞穴中，結果傳回的畫面令人稱奇：三口箱子、各式各樣的工具，還有一只人手。但沒等他們來得及展開進一步的工作，這口豎井就塌方了，迄今再沒被打通過。

It seems the designers had been more ingenious and had done more work than previously thought! In the later years， more discoveries were made. In 1939， a treasure hunter named Erwin Hamilton drilled down to 176 feet and found there was wood below a layer of natural limestone. In 1967， below the Smith's Cove drains， famous treasure hunter Daniel Blankenship found a pair of wrought iron27) scissors， which were tested to be up to 300 years old. In 1970， Smith's Cove revealed some more secrets to Triton， a group formed by Daniel Blankenship. They found several logs 2 feet thick and up to 65 feet long， marked every 4 feet with Roman numerals. These logs have been carbon dated to 250 years ago. The next major discovery came in 1976 when Triton dug a new shaft 180 feet northeast of the Money Pit. They found several apparently28) artificial cavities down to 230 feet. A camera lowered down to one of the cavities returned some amazing images: three chests， various tools， as well as a human hand. But before they could do anything further， the new shaft collapsed and has not been reopened.

趣 聞 Treasure Trove License 尋寶要辦證

To hunt for treasure in Nova Scotia， one must hold a valid (有效的) Treasure Trove License (TTL) issued by the Nova Scotian government.

In 2007， Oak Island Tours Inc.， a group from Michigan， along with Dan Blankenship， received their TTL expiring in June 2008. Though the renewal (更新) of the TTL has slowed things down for Oak Island Tours Inc.， they managed to get it. So in 2009， we can expect to see more excavations taking place on Oak Island.

(From oakislandtreasure.co.uk)

The Money Pit is regarded as one of the largest great buried treasure mysteries. Maybe its mystery will be revealed only when someone comes along who is clever enough， and rich enough， to beat the designer of the Money Pit and make a thorough investigation of what lies at the bottom.

現在，錢坑被稱為最大的神秘寶藏之一。或許只有當某個才智足以勝過錢坑的設計者，并有足夠財力對埋在坑底的東西進行一次徹底勘察的人出現后，錢坑的謎底才能揭曉。

Vocabulary

1.celebrated [5selIbreItId] adj. 著名的，遠近馳名的

2.circular [5sE:kjulE(r)] adj. 圓形的

3.depression [dI5preFEn] n. 洼地，凹地，坑；凹陷

4.tackle [5tAkl] n. 滑車(組)，轆轱

5.flagstone [5flA^stEJn] n. (鋪路用的)石板，板石

6.interval [5IntEvEl] n. (時間、空間上的)間隔；間距

7.inscribe [In5skraIb] vt. 刻，雕

8.chest [tFest] n. (放置物品或作運輸包裝用的)箱，箱子

9.visibility [7vIzI5bIlItI] n. 可見度，能見度

10.bail [beIl] vt. (從船里向外)舀水

11.shaft [FB:ft] n. 井狀通道

12.ingenious [In5dVi:njEs] adj. (機器等)制作精巧的

13.inadvertently [7InEd5vE:tEntlI] adv. 因疏忽造成地

14.unplug [7Qn5plQ^] vt. 拔除……的障礙物

15.intricate [5IntrIkIt] adj. 復雜的，錯綜的

16.cache [kAF] n. (藏食物、給養、財寶等的)秘窖

17.sponge [spQndV] n. 海綿，海綿狀物

18.stone drain: 石砌排水溝

19.filter [5fIltE(r)] vt. 過濾

20.silt [sIlt] n. (水流夾帶或水底沉積的)泥沙，淤泥

21.vault [vC:lt] n. 儲藏室，(銀行等存放貴重物品的)金庫，保險庫

22.void [vCId] n. 空間；空處

23.parchment [5pB:tFmEnt] n. 羊皮紙

24.black out: (使)眼前短時發黑；(使)暫時失去知覺，(使)昏過去

25.autopsy [5C:tEpsI] n. (為查明死因而做的)尸體解剖，驗尸

26.marsh gas: 沼氣

27.wrought iron: 熟鐵，鍛鐵

28.apparently [E5pArEntlI] adv. 明顯地，顯然地