他们的脸色吓得苍白，不过还是尽可能优雅地表示赞同。哈里斯想给他的母亲发封电报——他认为这是他的责任，因为他是母亲在这个世界上唯一的亲人——因此，他去发电报了。与此同时，我跑上那条最长、最好的木筏，热情地向舵手打招呼道：“嗨，你们好啊！”这一问候立刻使气氛活跃起来，接着我们便进入了正题。我说我们?本是要徒步到海德堡去的，但现在打算乘坐他的木筏去那里。我的这些话一部分是通过Z先生·译的，他的德语说得很好；一部分则是通过X先生·译的，他的德语说得尤其好。我能像发明德语的狂人一样听明白它，不过我要通过·译才能把它说好。
木筏上的老大提提裤子，若有所思地动动嘴里嚼着的烟草块，说出了我预料中的话——他没有运送旅客的执照，担心万一这件事宣扬出去或者万一出了事故，法律会追究到他头上。于是，我租下了这条木筏，雇了他的舵手，一切责任由我承担。
伴着一阵激昂的号子声，右舷的舵手们弯腰开始了自己的活计，收起缆索，升起筏锚，我们的木筏便飞速地向前移去。很快，它的时速就达到了两海里。
我们一行人聚集在木筏的中央。起初，大家的交谈有些低沉，主要是围绕着生命短暂，难测，危机重重，时刻作好最坏的准备是必需和明智的。这种交谈渐渐变成低语，内容都是些海洋的危险之类的东西。然而，当灰色的东方出现红霞，黎明那神秘的庄严和静寂响起小鸟欢快的歌声时，大家的音调也欢快了许多，我们的情绪逐渐高昂起来。
夏日的德国是至善至美的。但是，如果不乘木筏从内卡河漂流而下，是没有人能够理解、感知、享受这种至高的温柔、平和的美妙的。木筏的漂流是不可或缺的运动，它柔美、顺滑、流畅、无声；它平息一切狂躁的行为；缓和所有不安的仓促和急躁情绪。在其宁静的影响下，一切影响情绪的烦恼、悲伤都销声匿迹，变成一个梦，一种魅力，一种深深的、宁静的喜悦。这与炎热、辛劳的徒步行走，与尘土飞扬、隆隆行驶的火车，还有在炫目的大道上单调颠簸的疲惫马车，形成了怎样的对比啊!
带着不断高涨的愉悦和满足感，我们在郁葱芳香的河岸间静静地滑行。有的地方，岸边倒垂下的浓密柳枝，覆盖了后面所有的土地；有的地方，河岸一侧是壮丽的山脉，上面植被丰盈，另一侧则是一望无际的平?，开放着鲜艳的罂粟花，或是靛蓝怡人的矢车菊。我们时而漂流在林的阴影之下，时而沿着天鹅绒般柔软的草地边缘滑行。那映入眼帘的草地是那么碧绿清新，灼灼明亮，蕴o着无限的魅力。还有那鸟儿——随处可见。它们频繁地穿梭于两岸之间，鸣起的欢歌不绝于耳。
看日出能让人百般回味且愉悦人心。太阳冉冉升起，耐心地、温柔地铺上一层又一层光彩，披上一片又一片壮丽，直到一个新的早晨完整地筑就起来。在木筏上观赏日出，与等候在火车站的候车室中，嚼着干巴巴的三明治，透过窗户眺望破落的小村庄的感觉，有着天壤之别。
巨轮能乘风破浪，却驶不进浅滩。人生没有过多的大风大浪，在众多的小溪流中前进，我们是否也能像小木筏一样，灵活地前进？
马可·波罗游记
The Travels of Marco Polo
[意大利]马可·波罗/Marco Polo
马可·波罗（1254—1324），出生于意大利威尼斯城的一个商人家庭，公元1275年随父亲和叔父到达中国，居留了17年，1295年返回故乡。不久，马可·波罗参加了对热那亚城的海战，兵败被俘入狱。他在狱中口述了其在东方的见闻，由同狱难友为之笔录，这就是举世闻名的《马可·波罗游记》。马可·波罗是中世纪的大旅行家，是使西方人了解中国的重要人物之一。他的游记不仅在西方世界产生了重大影响，也是中国和西方，特别是中国和意大利人民友好关系的历史见证。
Upon leaving Va-giu you pass，in the course of three days' journey，many towns, castles, and villages, all of them well inhabited and opulent. At the end of three days you reach the noble and magnificent city of Kin-sai, a name that signifies "the celestial city".
There are within the city ten principal squares or market-places, besides innumerable shops along the streets. Each side of these squares is half a mile in length, and in front of them is the main street, forty paces in width, and running in a direct line from one extremity of the city to the other. There is an abundant quantity of game of all kinds, such as roebucks, stags, fallow deer, hares, and rabbits, together with partridges, pheasants, francolins, quails, common fowls, capons, and such numbers of ducks and geese as can scarcely be expressed.
At all seasons there is in the markets a great variety of herbs and fruits, and especially pears of an extraordinary size, weighing ten pounds each, that are white in the inside, like paste, and have a very fragrant smell. There are peaches also, in their season, both of the yellow and the white kind, and of a delicious flavour. From the sea, which is fifteen miles distant, there is daily brought up the river, to the city, a vast quantity of fish; and in the lake also there is abundance, which gives employment at all times to persons whose sole occupation it is to catch them.
On each side of the principal street, there are houses and mansions of great size, with their gardens, and near to these, the dwellings of the artisans, who work in shops, at their several trades. The inhabitants of the city use paper money as currency. The men as well as the women have fair complexions, and are handsome. The greater part of them are always clothed in silk, in consequence of the vast quantity of that material produced in the territory of Kin-sai. They are friendly towards each other, and persons who inhabit the same street, both men and women, from the mere circumstance of neighborhoods, appear like one family. In their domestic manners they are free from jealousy or suspicion of their wives, to whom great respect is shown, and any man would be accounted infamous who should presume to use indecent expressions to a married woman. To strangers also, who visit their city in the way of commerce, they give proofs of cordiality, inviting them freely to their houses, showing them hospitable attention, and furnishing them with the best advice and assistance in their mercantile transactions.
At the distance of twenty-five miles from this city, in a direction to the northward of east, lies the sea, near to which is a town named Gan-pu, where there is an extremely fine port, frequented by all the ships that bring merchandise from India.
途?吴州的这三天行程中，我看到了许多城镇、宫殿和村庄，这些地方人口密集，繁荣昌盛。第三天，我们到达了宏伟壮丽的临安城，意即“皇城”。
临安城内有十个主要的广场，或称市集，沿街还有许多店铺。广场每边各有半英里长，正前方是主街道，各有40步宽，从城的一端笔直地延伸到另一端。市集上野味的品种和数量丰富充足，有鹌鹑、雉鸡、鹧鸪、松鸡、家禽、阉鸡，还有雄獐、牡鹿、扁角鹿和野兔，除此之外，还有不计其数的鸭和鹅。
市集上，各种各样的药草和水果一年四季都在出售，尤其是大个梨，每个足有10磅重，果肉呈白色，像晶莹剔透的糨糊，还散发出一种浓郁的香味。当然，也有正当时令的桃子，有黄有白，味美可口。每天，从15英里以外的海中捕捞的大量鱼品，从河道运到城内。湖中渔产也很丰富，这就给那些专以打鱼为生的渔夫提供了常年的就业机会。
主街道两边都是带有花园的大豪宅、大官邸，而近旁就是依靠各自手艺开店铺的工匠屋舍了。市民用的都是纸币。这里的男男女女肤色白皙，俊朗漂亮。临安城盛产丝绸，因而人们大多都穿着丝制衣裳。人们相亲相爱，关爱有加，街坊邻居，不论男女，俨然一家人。家庭礼法中，丈夫不会猜忌妻子，反而对其十分尊敬；要是哪个丈夫对妻子出言不逊，他肯定会声名狼藉。对来城?商的外地人，人们也会礼貌相待，真诚地邀请他们常到家中做客，热情款待他们，并会提供?商的最好建议和帮助。
临安城25英里外的东南方有一片大海，海附近有一个叫澉浦的城镇，那是一个优良的港口城，停泊着从印度驶来的所有货船。
我们的国土曾?如此繁华，吸引全世界的目光。如今的中国将再度崛起，我们为自己是中国人感到骄傲！
骑马乡行记
Rural Rides
[英国]威廉·科贝特/William Cobbett
THE "EDUCATION" CANTERS
Burghclere,
Monday Morning, 31 Oct., 1825