1、NEVER LET A FRIEND DOWNJim Hutchison“Coming to the football match this afternoon?” Bill McIntosh asked 59-year-old Royce Wedding as they drank beer at the Eureka Hotel in the Australian town of Rainbow. Royce shook his head. “I promised Mom I d burn off the weeds on one of our fields.” Bill, who was
2、 thin but strong, looking far less than his 79 years, peered outside at the heat. A light breeze was blowing from the north, making conditions perfect for the burn. But Bill felt uneasy about Royce doing the job alone. The farmer had a bad leg and walked with great difficulty. The pair had been best
3、 of friends for 30 years, ever since the days when they traveled together from farm to farm in search of work. Now, living alone 12 miles east of town, Bill scraped a living hunting foxes and rabbits. Once a fortnight he went to town to buy supplies and catch up with Royce, who helped run the Weddin
4、g family s farm. “Ill give you a hand,“ Bill said. The pair set off in Royce s car. Soon they were bumping over a sandy track to the weed-choked 120-acre field. “Fires the only way to get rid of this stuff,” said Bill as they tied an old tire to the tow bar with a 50-foot chain. Soaking the tire wit
5、h gasoline, Bill put a match to it and jumped in the car. Driving slowly from the southern edge of the field, they worked their way upwind, leaving a line ot burning weeds in their wake. Half way up the field, and without warning, the car pitched violently forward, plowing into a hidden bank of sand
6、. The breeze suddenly swung around to their backs and began to gather strength. Fanned to white heat, the fire line suddenly burst into a wall of flame, heading directly toward them. “Let s get out of here!” Royce said. Desperately he tried to back the car out of the sand bank. But the wheels only s
7、pun deeper in the soft sand. Suddenly the fire was on them. Bill pushed open his door only to find himself flung through the air as, with a roar, the gasoline tank exploded and the car leapt three feet off the ground. When it crashed back down Royce found himself pinned against the steering wheel, u
8、nable to move. The car s seats and roof were now on fire. Bill lay where he fell, all the breath knocked out of him. The front of his shirt, shorts, bare arms and legs were soaked in burning gasoline. Then the sight of the car in flames brought him upright with a start. “Royce!“ he cried, struggling
9、 to his feet and heading for the car. Pulling open the door, he seized Royce s arms through the smoke. “I m stuck,“ Royce said. “Get yourself away!” The fire bit at Bill s arms, face and legs, but he tightened his grip on Royce. “I m not leaving you here.“ he said. Now Bill dug his heels into the sa
10、nd and pulled as hard as he could. Suddenly he fell backward. Royce was free and out of the car. As soon as he had dragged him away he patted out the flames on Royce s body and on his own legs and arms with his bare hands. Royce saw a second explosion rock the car, as it was eaten up by flames. I d
11、be ashes now if Bill hadnt gotten me out, he thought. Looking down, Royce was shocked by the extent of his injuries. His stomach and left hip were covered in deep burns. Worse still, his fingers were burned completely out of shape. Lying on his back, Bill was in equally bad shape. Pieces of blackene
12、d flesh and skin hung from his forearms, hands and legs. Bill looked across at his friend. Reading the despair clouding Royce s face, Bill said, “Ill get help. You hang on. ” Royce nodded, but as he watched Bill set off slowly across the blackened field, he wondered how his friend was going to walk
13、almost two miles and get over three fences. A lifetime spent around the tough people who make their home in the Australian bush had permanently fixed into Bill s soul two principles: never give up no matter how bad the odds and never let a friend down. Now, with every step sending pain piercing thro
14、ugh every part of his body, he drew on those twin pillars of character. If I dont make it, Royce will die out there, he told himself over and over. “Whats the matter with that dog?“ said Vicky Wedding, Royce s mom, peering out her window. Startled by a noise behind her, she turned to see Bill leanin
15、g against the door. “Dear God, what happened?“ she exclaimed, grabbing Bill as he slid down the doorframe. “We got caught in the fire,” he whispered, barely able to speak. “Get help. ” Vicky sat Bill down, covered him in wet towels to ease the pain of his burns, and then picked up the phone. Through
16、out the bumpy, hour-and-a-half ride to the hospital in Horsham, neither of the two injured men spoke of their pain. “We should ve gone to the football match,“ Royce said, trying to keep their spirits up. Bill grinned weakly. Not long after Bill found himself at Government House being pre sented with
17、 the Bravery Medal for his courageous rescue. But the real highlight for Bill came six months after the fire, when Royce, just out of hospital, walked into the Eureka Hotel and bought him a beer. “ We made it,” said Royce as they raised their glasses. “Heres to the best friend a man could have.” 友谊
18、如果我不能挺住的话，我的朋友就会死在那里，老猎手比尔麦金托什一次又一次告诫自己。决不抛弃朋友 吉姆赫奇森“下午去看足球赛吗 ? ”比尔麦金托什问 59 岁的罗伊斯韦丁。他们两人正在澳大利亚的虹镇尤里卡饭店喝啤酒。罗伊斯摇摇头。“我答应我妈给我家的一块地烧荒。” 比尔瘦削而结实， 79 岁，但看上去远没有那么老。他望着外面的炎热空气。阵轻风自北向南吹，这条件最适宜烧荒了。不过比尔对罗伊斯独自干这活不放心。这个农夫有条腿不好，行走很费劲。 两人曾一起从一个农场走到另一个农场寻些活儿干，迄今已是 30 年的好朋友了。如尔独自人住在镇东 12 英里处，靠打狐狸和野兔勉强过活。他两个星期一次前来小镇购物
19、会会帮着经管自家的农场的罗伊斯。“我帮你一把，”比尔说。 两人坐着罗伊斯的车动身了。没多一会儿他们就颠簸在一条沙土路上，朝一块面积 120 公顷、杂草丛生的田地开去。“火是除去这玩意儿的惟一办法，”比尔说。他们用根 50 英尺长的链条把一个旧轮胎绑在牵引杆上。比尔在轮胎上浇透汽油，划根火柴一点，便跳进车里。 两人从农田的南边缓缓开车逆风而行，所过之处留下一条燃着的草带。开到地当中，车猛地朝前一颠，没等察觉，就陷进了一个被草遮着的沙堆。 微风突然转向，朝两人身后吹来，而且越吹越强。火仗风势，烧得炽热，一条火带顿时就变成道火墙，直扑两人而来。“咱们快离开这儿 ! ”罗伊斯说道。 他拼命想把车倒出沙
20、堆。可车轮在软沙里越转陷得越深。 火顿时就扑到两人身上。比尔推开车门，却听得一声巨响，油箱爆炸了，车子飞离地面三英尺，他自己则被抛到空中。车子摔回地面后，罗伊斯发现自己被方向盘卡住，动弹不得。这时，车座和车顶也都烧着了。 比尔躺在跌落的地方，摔得气都喘不过来。他的衬衣前襟、短裤、光裸的手臂和双腿都浸在燃烧着的汽油里。接着汽车着火了，见此情景他惊坐起来。“罗伊斯 ! ”他边喊边挣扎着站起身来，向汽车冲去。 他拉开车门，在烟雾中抓住罗伊斯的手臂。“我给卡住了，”罗伊斯说。“你快走 ! ” (1 ）火舌舔着比尔的双臂、脸和双腿，但他紧紧地抓住罗伊斯不放。“我不会把你丢在这儿的，”他说道。 比尔两个脚
21、跟扎在沙堆里，拼命用力拉。突然他仰面倒下，罗伊斯被拉出了汽车。他把将罗伊斯拉开，便赶紧赤手去扑灭罗伊斯身上以及自己腿上、手臂上的火。 罗伊斯看着又一次爆炸把汽车震得直晃，车下子被火苗吞噬。“要不是比尔把我拉出来，我这会儿就烧成灰了，”他暗想。他低头一看，身上伤势之严重令他大为惊讶。他腹部及左臀严重烧伤。更糟糕的是，手指被烧得完全变了形。 比尔仰天躺在地上，也样被烧得不成样子。前臂以及手和腿上，块块烧得焦黑的皮肉挂了下来。 比尔朝自己的朋友望去，看出罗伊斯满脸绝望，便说：“我去叫人。你顶住。”罗伊斯点了点头，可当他看着比尔穿过焦黑的田地缓缓走开时，真不知道这位朋友怎么去走那几乎整整两英里的路，还
22、要跨越三道栅栏。 (2) 一辈子与居住在澳大利亚灌木地带的那些刚强的硬汉一起生活的人生经历，将两条准则永久地铭刻在比尔心头：无论多么艰难，决不泄气，决不抛弃朋友。 此时此刻，他每迈出一步，浑身上下便针扎似地疼，他完全是靠这两种品质支撑着。 (3) 如果我不能挺住的话，罗伊斯就死在那里，比尔一次又一次的告诫自己。 “那条狗怎么啦 ? ”罗伊斯的老母维基韦丁说着朝窗外望去。听到身后响动，她吓了跳，转身一看，比尔正倚靠在门上。 “天哪，出了什么事 ? ”她惊问道，赶紧扶住正沿着门框瘫坐下去的比尔。 “我们遭火烧了，”他低声道，几乎说不出话来。“快去叫人。”维基扶比尔坐下，用湿毛巾敷在他身上以减轻烧伤的疼痛，随后便拿起了电话。 他们坐上汽车前往霍舍姆的医院，在长达个半小时的颠簸的路途中，两位伤者只字未提自己的伤痛 o “咱们真该去看足球赛，”罗伊斯开口说道，想让自己和朋友振作一下精神。比尔也轻轻一笑。 不久，比尔在镇公所被授予勇敢奖章，以表彰其勇救他人的壮举。 (4) 但真正最令比尔激的时刻是火灾发生六个月之后，刚刚出院的罗伊斯走进尤里卡饭店，请他喝啤酒。 “咱们赢了，”两人举杯时，罗伊斯说道。“为生死之交干杯。”
