舌尖上的航海丨第30集 “幽灵船”里的“幽灵”

一则新闻吸引了众多人的眼球。

一艘在大洋里漂流了60多天的“幽灵船“被拖上岸边，里边竟有一个人还活着，船上没有食品和淡水，这简直是人间奇迹！人们称这个人是“幽灵船”里的“幽灵”。《环球航海》杂志记者潘欣坐不住了，没有费多少波折，他找到了“幽灵”所在单位的办公室。不料房门紧锁。

人们告诉潘欣，“幽灵“叫戴维斯。戴维斯去了著名的法国著名的医学博士邦巴尔的硏究室。原来，“幽灵”是按照邦巴尔的《邦巴尔法》，靠喝海水和鱼汁活下来的。《邦巴尔法》俗称《喝海水法》。

”海水不能喝，鱼汁不足取”是航海院校海上求生课的“金科玉律“。“幽灵“竟然喝海水和魚计活了下来，这究竟是怎么回事？

潘欣决心弄个明白。

通过船舶代理潘欣找到了邦巴尔博士。博士正忙于一个专题座谈会的准备工作，吩咐助手将”邦巴尔法“简介送给潘欣。

潘欣急不可耐地翻开了简介。

海水的主要成分是氯化钠。人体需要水份，也需要一定的盐份。如果人体里盐份过多，轻者会感到周身无力口渴，严重地会发生肾衰竭。

喝海水时务必要有节制，不应连续走超过6天，一次只喝1一2小口，吞咽要慢，每天数次。总量不超过一升。接着再喝3天淡水。往复交替，身体就能正常的补液。这样就能你坚持25天左右。

与此同时，你还可以获取海魚，雨露和海里的浮游生物等。海魚大多数是无毒可食用的。海魚体内主要成分是水，占50%一80%，并含有多种氨基酸和蛋白质，是遇难者的理想食物。

读完“邦巴尔法”简介，潘欣大开眼界，同时也心存疑惑，这真的可行吗？

”邦巴尔博士为证明自己理论的可靠性，曾做过一次震惊世界的实验。”博士助手信誓旦旦地说：“很安全。”

接着，博士助手讲述了邦巴尔博士“喝海水实验”。

一年夏天，邦巴尔博士与志同道合的朋友杰克，帕尔默|乘橡皮筏“埃雷蒂克“号出海，没带任何淡水和食品。他们从摩洛哥出发穿过地中海，接着又横跨大西洋。

经过几十天的艰难航行，邦巴尔终于抵达了巴巴多斯。（杰克己在丹吉尔下船）。此举轰动了世界。

在漫长的漂泊中，邦巴尔靠喝海水，魚汁和海洋生物生活，並没有腹泻和呕吐。

最后，医生对他进行了全面体检，给出惊人的结论：一切正常！

十分湊巧，潘欣离开硏究室时，“幽灵”戴维斯恰巧从里面走了出来。

潘欣没有放过这千载难逢的机会，邀请”幽灵”戴维斯接受采访。

船舶代理把他们安排在一个咖啡厅。“幽灵”戴维斯回忆起在”幽灵船”上刻骨铭心的日日夜夜。

“幽灵船”是艘被遗弃的破旧货船，被拖船拖至折船厂，在即将到达目的地的前一天，拖索不幸崩断。货船成了名符其实的”幽灵船”。

孤苦伶仃的戴维斯面对食品和淡水耗尽的“幽灵船”欲哭无泪

绝望中，戴维斯想起了曾经读过的一本书，里面介绍了“邦巴尔法”。他看到了一线生存的希望。

起初，戴维斯用小酒杯盛海水，坚持了几天。每天只喝一小杯，开始有些不适应，后来渐渐没有了不适应的感觉。甚至没有感到口渴。

不久，戴维斯开始试着捕海魚。

讲到这里，戴维斯来了精神，，呷了口咖啡，继债侃侃而谈：“大洋里的魚大多数在海的表层和中层生话。以比自已小的鱼和海洋生物为食。多群聚觅食。有的鱼是“睁眼瞎”，只用羽毛或布条做“鱼饵“投入海中，成群的鱼就会聚集过来。如此一来，海鱼成了我的“美食“和“饮料“。我在捕到的鱼背上开个口子，魚汁就会渗出来。如果等不及，把魚肉切成块，用布包起来用力拧，魚汁就会源源而来。有时，为了吃到更多的食物，我将栓住裤角的裤子拖在船尾，让裤子如同“拖网”随船漂流，，海中的众多生物尽收“网中”。够我吃上几天。就这样，喝海水，饮魚汁，吃浮游生物，我在海上坚持了60多天。”

说到这里，”幽灵“戴维斯伸出渵是肌肉疙瘩的手臂说：“经医生检查，除有些便秘外一切正常！”

望着戴维斯健硕的身体，潘欣万分感概地说：“人们称戴维斯是“幽灵船“里的“幽灵”真是不过分啊！”

张涛系中国航海学会科普专家、中国远洋海运作家协会副主席、中国知名海员作家、“一带一路”应用型海事 人才研究院特聘研究员。作为远洋船长，其在工作之余，笔耕不辍，为宣传航海文化做出了较大贡献，被誉 为“当代弘扬航海文化有突出贡献的航海人”。先后在人《民日报》《中国建设》《海事大观》《航海》《中国海 员》等报纸杂志上发表了大量文章，并出版了《我们都是无产者》《船长与黄金》《路娃航海记》《船长风云 录》《海上天方夜谭》《舌尖上的航海》等十余部近百万余字反映航海经历的文艺作品。其中《我们都是无产 者》和《海上天方夜谭》获国家优秀作品奖；《路娃航海记》获中国航海学会特别贡献奖；《舌尖上的航海》曾 在国内多家网站和报纸杂志上发表及刊登，受到广大读者，特别是航海爱好者的热烈欢迎和好评；同时被译 成英文，受到外国青少年和航海爱好者的喜爱。 2021年3月，江苏航运职业技术学院设立了“张涛海员作家”工作室。希望此工作室能够创作出更多更好的作 品来弘扬和发展海洋文化！

30 The Phantom of the Ghost Ship A news headline about a ghost ship took the world by storm.

When this ghost ship was discovered and rescued to shore after sixty days of floating

atop the ocean, one man was found alive in the cabins without any drinkable water or food

for over sixty days. People who heard this story called the man “The Phantom of the Ghost

Ship”, as there was no logical way that he should have survived those two months alone.

A reporter from The Global Nautical Journal named Pan knew he had to interview the

Phantom, and decided to pay a visit to the Phantom’s office himself, only to find it locked

and bolted from the inside.

After a few days of research, Pan found out that the Phantom’s name was Davis. After

becoming a seafarer, Davis had spent some time with a French biologist named Alain

Bombard, and even personally visited his workplace and laboratory. The Phantom took

advice and lessons from Bombard, and only survived because he used Bombard’s method of

drinking seawater and eating raw plankton and fish while he was lost at sea.

However, Pan remembered learning that saltwater was not drinkable and that plankton

and fish were not adequate sources of nutrition while he was in nautical school. So how did

Davis keep himself alive for over two months, living off of nothing but these minimal,

insufficient foods?

Pan was captivated by the mysteries behind this story, and needed to find out the truth.

Through the dock manager that he met in France, Pan was able to get the contact number and

address of the busy Doctor Bombard.

Because Bombard was preparing for an important biology conference and did not have

time to meet with Pan, he asked one of his assistants to explain his method to Pan in great

detail.

The assistant wrote that the main component of saltwater from the sea is sodium

chloride. The human body needs water, but it also needs a fair amount of salt. If there is too

much salt in the body, though, the person will feel weak and thirsty, and in serious cases, may

even suffer from kidney failure.

Therefore, when sailors are lost at sea, it is important for them to drink saltwater in

moderation. They shouldn’t continually drink saltwater for over six days in a row, and every

time they do drink it, they should only take one to two small sips and swallow very slowly,

keeping track of the amounts they consume. In total, the amount of saltwater they drink

should not go over one liter.

After drinking saltwater for a few days, the sailor should switch to drinking fresh water,

also in moderation. Alternating between the two types of water allows the body to hydrate

properly, and can keep the sailor alive for over 25 days.

At the same time, the sailor should try to catch fish and plankton from the ocean and

gather rainwater. Most of the fish in the sea are non-toxic and edible, as most fish’s bodies are

composed of 50-80% of water. They also contain a variety of amino acids and proteins,

making fish an ideal food for people who are in distress.

Pan read through Dr Bombard’s findings and results in awe. He was impressed, but at

the same time, he wondered, “Is this truly feasible?:”

“Dr Bombard once conducted an experiment that proved his findings and his reliability

to the entire world,” The assistant told Pan, “This method is definitely safe.”

Sensing Pan’s curiosity, the assistant began describing Dr Bombard’s experiment.

One summer, Dr Bombard and his friend Jack Palmer set out on a voyage together on an

inflatable boat named l’Heretique. They set sail from Morocco without any food or water

onboard.

Palmer abandoned Bombard when they arrived at Tangier, but Bombard completed his

ten-day voyage when he arrived at Barbados on December 23, 1952. During his journey, he

drank nothing but seawater, and ate nothing but fish, plankton, and other small ocean

animals. Though he lost a lot of weight, Bombard was not sick when he arrived at shore.

Pan shook his head in awe and thanked the assistant for all his help. As he got ready to

leave, coincidentally, Davis, the Phantom himself, appeared from Bombard’s office.

Pan was beyond delighted at the opportunity to meet the Phantom, and immediately

requested for an interview.

The assistant helped Pan and Davis book a table at a nearby cafe, where the Phantom

finally shared the details of his arduous two months onboard the ghost ship.

The ghost ship was an old, worn out cargo ship that was being towed to a shipyard when

the tow rope unfortunately tore in half and separated the ship from the tugboat. As it drifted

into obscurity, it gained the moniker of a “ghost ship”, with Davis still trapped within its

cabins.

Hopeless and lonely, Davis realized that he was running out of food and water, and

began to cry.

In his desperation, Davis remembered a book he once read about the Bombard method.

He saw a glimpse of a chance at life, and mustered all his mental energy to remember the

survival techniques that Dr Bombard illustrated.

At first, Davis filled a shot glass up with seawater and drank only one glass a day. He

was able to sustain himself over a few days drinking only the saltwater, with a little bit of

discomfort that gradually disappeared. Eventually, he no longer felt ill or even thirsty.

When he felt strong enough, Davis also made attempts at catching fish.

As he told his story to Pan, Davis excitedly took sips of his coffee, and told Pan

eloquently, “Most fish in the sea live near the surface or middle layers of the ocean and feed

on fish that are smaller than themselves. They also live in schools, so if you use feathers or

cloth as bait and throw it into the sea, groups of fish will soon gather all around you. This was

how fish became the most delicious and nutritious feast I could prepare while stranded on the

ocean. Every time I caught a fish, I poked a small hole in its back in order to kill it, and water

came flowing out of the opening, perfect to drink. If I couldn’t wait, I cut the fish into pieces

and wrapped them in cloth to soak up all the water inside. But sometimes, in order to

preserve my food, I tied my pants and shirts up into a net, tied it to the back of the boat, and

let all sorts of sea creatures swim into my trap for me to eat over the course of a few days.

Just like this, I was able to drink saltwater and eat fish and other small sea animals and

survive for sixty days.”

The Phantom rolled up his sleeves, flexed his biceps, and told Pan, “The doctor said I

was perfectly healthy and strong - except for having some constipation!”

Pan looked at Davis in disbelief, rapidly jotted down quotes in his notebook, and said,

“People call you the Phantom of the Ghost ship, but you’re really more like a beast!”

Zhang Tao is an expert in the fields of navigation, maritime history, and nautical science. He is involved in the Chinese Institute of Navigation, and is the vice president of the Chinese Association of Maritime Authors, a well-known Chinese author of subjects related to seafaring, as well as a distinguished researcher for the nautical analysis of the “One Belt One Road” Initiative. Aside from leading sailing crews as an esteemed captain of many Chinese ships, he works tirelessly in his spare time and has made important contributions to nautical culture and history. He has been described as “a navigator with momentous involvement in the promotion of seafaring culture in modern times”. He has published articles in People’s Daily, China’s Construction, Maritime Spectacle, Sailing, and Chinese Sailors and more magazines and newspapers. His authorial works include We Are All Proletarians, The Captain and Gold, Lu Wa’s Sailing Journal, The Captain of Wind and Clouds, Fairy Tales from the Sea, and The Taste of Seafaring, all of which reflect and promote the experience and culture of seafaring to millions of readers. Among his works, We Are All Proletarians and Fairy Tales from the Sea have won the National Outstanding Novel Award; Luwa’s Sailing Journal won the Outstanding Contribution Award from the Chinese Institute of Navigation; and The Taste of Seafaring has been published on multiple Chinese websites and magazines, attracting new waves of readers and audiences and acclaim from those with particular interest in sailing. The Taste of Seafaring has now been translated into English and is beloved by youths and nautical enthusiasts worldwide. In March of 2021, the Jiangsu Shipping College established the Zhang Tao Sailing Author’s Workshop. Hopefully, more wonderful stories and writings will come to fruition with the help of the workshop, and inspire people from all across the globe to learn about maritime culture!