新概念英語第三冊(cè)課文及翻譯11

Lesson1

ApumaatlargePumasarelarge,cat-likeanimalswhicharefoundinAmerica.WhenreportscameintoLondonZoothatawildpumahadbeenspottedforty-fivemilessouthofLondon,theywerenottakenseriously.However,astheevidencebegantoaccumulate,expertsfromtheZoofeltobligedtoinvestigate,forthedescriptionsgivenbypeoplewhoclaimedtohaveseenthepumawereextraordinarilysimilar.

Thehuntforthepumabeganinasmallvillagewhereawomanpickingblackberriessaw'alargecat'onlyfiveyardsawayfromher.Itimmediatelyranawaywhenshesawit,andexpertsconfirmedthatapumawillnotattackahumanbeingunlessitiscornered〔adj.被困得走投無路的〕.Thesearchproveddifficult,forthepumawasoftenobservedatoneplaceinthemorningandatanotherplacetwentymilesawayintheevening.Whereveritwent,itleftbehinditatrailofdeaddeerandsmallanimalslikerabbits.Pawprintswereseeninanumberofplacesandpumafurwasfoundclingingtobushes.Severalpeoplecomplainedof'cat-likenoises'atnightandabusinessmanonafishingtripsawthepumaupatree.Theexpertswerenowfullyconvincedthattheanimalwasapuma,butwherehaditcomefrom?Asnopumashadbeenreportedmissingfromanyzoointhecountry,thisonemusthavebeeninthepossessionofaprivatecollectorandsomehowmanagedtoescape.Thehuntwentonforseveralweeks,butthepumawasnotcaught.Itisdisturbingtothinkthatadangerouswildanimalisstillatlargeinthequietcountryside.

美洲獅是一種體形似貓的大動(dòng)物，產(chǎn)于美洲。當(dāng)倫敦動(dòng)物園接到報(bào)告說，在倫敦以南45英里處發(fā)現(xiàn)一只美洲獅時(shí)，這些報(bào)告并沒有受到重視?？墒牵S著證據(jù)越來越多，動(dòng)物園的專家們感到有必要進(jìn)行一番調(diào)查，因?yàn)榈猜暦Q見到過美洲獅的人們所描述的情況竟是出奇地相似。搜尋美洲獅的工作是從一座小村莊開始的。那里的一位婦女在采摘黑莓時(shí)的看見“一只大貓”，離她僅5碼遠(yuǎn)，她剛看見它，它就立刻逃走了。專家證實(shí)，美洲獅非被逼得走投無路，是決不會(huì)傷人的。事實(shí)上搜尋工作很困難，因?yàn)槌３Ｊ窃绯吭诩椎匕l(fā)現(xiàn)那只美洲獅，晚上卻在20英里外的乙地發(fā)現(xiàn)它的蹤跡。無論它走哪兒，一路上總會(huì)留下一串死鹿及死兔子之類的小動(dòng)物，在許多地方看見爪印，灌木叢中發(fā)現(xiàn)了粘在上面的美洲獅毛。有人抱怨說夜里聽見“像貓一樣的叫聲”；一位商人去釣魚，看見那只美洲獅在樹上。專家們?nèi)缃褚呀?jīng)完全肯定那只動(dòng)物就是美洲獅，但它是從哪兒來的呢？由于全國(guó)動(dòng)物園沒有一家報(bào)告丟了美洲獅，因此那只美洲獅一定是某位私人收藏豢養(yǎng)的，不知怎么設(shè)法逃出來了。搜尋工作進(jìn)行了好幾個(gè)星期，但始終未能逮住那只美洲獅。想到在寧靜的鄉(xiāng)村里有一頭危險(xiǎn)的野獸繼續(xù)逍遙流竄，真令人擔(dān)憂。Lesson2

ThirteenequalsoneOurvicarisalwaysraisingmoneyforonecauseoranother,buthehasnevermanagedtogetenoughmoneytohavethechurchclockrepaired.Thebigclockwhichusedtostrikethehoursdayandnightwasdamagedmanyyearsagoandhasbeensilenteversince.'Onenight,however,ourvicarwokeupwithastart:theclockwasstrikingthehours!Lookingathiswatch,hesawthatitwasoneo'clock,butthebellstruckthirteentimesbeforeitstopped.Armedwithatorch,thevicarwentupintotheclocktowertoseewhatwasgoingon.Inthetorchlight,hecaughtsightofafigurewhomheimmediatelyrecognizedasBillWilkins,ourlocalgrocer.

'WhateverareyoudoinguphereBill?'askedthevicarinsurprise.'I'mtryingtorepairthebell,'answeredBill.'I'vebeencomingupherenightafternightforweeksnow.Yousee,Iwashopingtogiveyouasurprise.''Youcertainlydidgivemeasurprise!'saidthevicar.'You'veprobablywokenupeveryoneinthevillageaswell.Still,I'mgladthebellisworkingagain.''That'sthetrouble,vicar,'answeredBill.'It'sworkingallright,butI'mafraidthatatoneo'clockitwillstrikethirteentimesandthere'snothingIcandoaboutit.''We'llgetusedtothatBill,'saidthevicar.'Thirteenisnotasgoodasonebutit'sbetterthannothing.Nowlet'sgodownstairsandhaveacupoftea.'

我們教區(qū)的牧師總是為各種各樣的事籌集資金。但始終未能籌足資金把教堂的鐘修好。教堂的鐘很大，以前不分晝夜打點(diǎn)報(bào)時(shí)，但很多年前遭到毀壞，從此便無聲無息了。一天夜里，我們的牧師突然被驚醒了，大鐘又在“打點(diǎn)”報(bào)時(shí)了！他一看表，才1點(diǎn)鐘，可是那鐘一邊敲了13下才停。牧師拿著一支電筒走上鐘樓想去看看究竟發(fā)生了什么事情。借著電筒光。他看見一個(gè)人，馬上認(rèn)出那是本地雜貨店主經(jīng)比爾.威爾金斯?！澳憔烤乖谶@上面干什么，比爾？”牧師驚訝地問。“我想把這口鐘修好，”比爾答復(fù)說?！昂脦讉€(gè)星期了，我天天夜里到鐘樓上來。嗯，我是想讓你大吃一驚?！薄澳愦_實(shí)使我大吃了一驚！”牧師說，“也許同時(shí)你把村里所有的人都吵醒了。不過，鐘又能報(bào)時(shí)了，我還是很快樂的?！薄皢栴}就在這里，牧師，”比爾答復(fù)說?！安诲e(cuò)，鐘能報(bào)時(shí)了，但是，恐怕每到1點(diǎn)鐘，它總要敲13下，對(duì)此我已無能為力了。”“大家慢慢就習(xí)慣了，比爾，”牧師說?！?3下是不如1下好，但總比1下也不敲強(qiáng)。來，咱們下樓去喝杯茶吧?！盠esson3AnunknowngoddessSometimeago，aninterestingdiscoverywasmadebyarchaeologistsontheAegean〔adj.愛琴海的；n.〕islandofKea．AnAmericanteamexploredatemplewhichstandsinanancientcityonthepromontoryofAyiaIrini．Thecityatonetimemusthavebeenprosperous，foritenjoyedahighlevelofcivilization．Houses--oftenthreestoreyshigh--werebuiltofstone．Theyhadlargeroomswithbeautifullydecoratedwalls．Thecitywasevenequippedwithadrainagesystem，foragreatmanyclaypipeswerefoundbeneaththenarrowstreets．ThetemplewhichthearchaeologistsexploredwasusedasaplaceofworshipfromthefifteenthcenturyB.C.untilRomantimes.Inthemostsacredroomofthetemple,clayfragmentsoffifteenstatueswerefound.Eachoftheserepresented

agoddessandhad,atonetime,beenpainted.ThebodyofonestatuewasfoundamongremainsdatingfromthefifteenthcenturyB.C.ItsmissingheadhappenedtobeamongremainsofthefifthcenturyB.C.ThisheadmusthavebeenfoundinClassicaltimesandcarefullypreserved.Itwasveryoldandpreciouseventhen.Whenthearchaeologistsreconstructedthefragments,theywereamazedtofindthatthegoddessturnedouttobeaverymodern-lookingwoman.Shestoodthreefeethighandherhandsrestedonherhip.Shewaswearingafull-lengthskirtwhichswepttheground.Despitehergreatage,shewasverygracefulindeed,but,sofar,thearchaeologistshavebeenunabletodiscoverheridentity.不久之前，在愛琴海的基亞島上，考古工作者有一項(xiàng)有趣的發(fā)現(xiàn)。一個(gè)美國(guó)考古隊(duì)在阿伊亞.依里尼海角的一座古城里考察了一座廟宇。這座古城肯定一度很繁榮，因?yàn)樗碛懈叨鹊奈拿鳎孔右话阌?層樓高，用石塊修建。里面房間很大，墻壁裝飾華美。城里甚至還敷設(shè)了排水系統(tǒng)，因?yàn)樵讵M窄的街道底下發(fā)現(xiàn)了許許多多陶土制作的排水管道?？脊殴ぷ髡呖疾斓倪@座廟宇從公元前15世紀(jì)直到羅馬時(shí)代一直是祭祀祈禱的場(chǎng)所。在廟中最神圣的一間殿堂里發(fā)現(xiàn)了15尊陶雕像的碎片。每一尊雕像代表一位女神，而且一度上過色。其中有一尊雕像，她的軀體是在公元前15世紀(jì)的歷史文物中發(fā)現(xiàn)的，而她那身異處的腦袋卻碰巧是在公元前5世紀(jì)的文物中找到的。她的腦袋一定是在古希臘羅馬時(shí)代就為人所發(fā)現(xiàn)，并受到精心的保護(hù)。卻使在當(dāng)時(shí)，它也屬歷史悠久的珍奇之物?？脊殴ぷ髡甙堰@些碎片重新拼裝起來后，驚奇地發(fā)現(xiàn)那位女神原來是一位相貌十分摩登的女郎。她身高3英尺，雙手叉腰。身穿一條拖地長(zhǎng)裙，盡管上了年紀(jì)，但體態(tài)確實(shí)優(yōu)美。不過，考古工作者至今未能確定這位女神的身份。

Lesson4ThedoublelifeofAlfredBloggsThesedays,peoplewhodomanualworkoftenreceivefarmoremoneythanclerkswhoworkinoffices.Peoplewhoworkinofficesarefrequentlyreferredtoas'whitecollarworkers'forthesimplereasonthattheyusuallywearacollarandtietogotowork.Suchishumannature,thatagreatmanypeopleareoftenwillingtosacrificehigherpayfortheprivilegeofbecomingwhitecollarworkers.Thiscangiverisetocurioussituations,asitdidinthecaseofAlfredBloggswhoworkedasadustmanfortheEllesmereCorporation.

Whenhegotmarried,Alfwastooembarrassedtosayanythingtohiswifeabouthisjob.HesimplytoldherthatheworkedfortheCorporation.Everymorning,helefthomedressedinasmartblacksuit.Hethenchangedintooveralls(n.工作服)andspentthenexteighthoursasadustman.Beforereturninghomeatnight,hetookashowerandchangedbackintohissuit.

Alfdidthisforovertwoyearsandhisfellowdustmenkepthissecret.Alf'swifehasneverdiscoveredthatshemarriedadustmanandshe

neverwill,forAlfhasjustfoundanotherjob.Hewillsoonbeworkinginanofficeasajuniorclerk.Hewillbeearningonlyhalfasmuchasheusedto,buthefeelsthathisriseinstatusiswellworththelossofmoney.Fromnowon,hewillwearasuitalldayandotherswillcallhim'Mr.Bloggs',not'Alf'.

如今，從事體力勞動(dòng)的人的收入一般要比坐辦公室的人高出許多。坐辦公室的之所以常常被稱作“白領(lǐng)工人”，就是因?yàn)樗麄兺ǔＪ谴┲差I(lǐng)白襯衫，系著領(lǐng)帶去上班。許多人常常情愿放棄較高的薪水以換取做白領(lǐng)工人的殊榮，此乃人之常情。而這常常會(huì)引起種種奇怪的現(xiàn)象，在埃爾斯米爾公司當(dāng)清潔工的艾爾弗雷德.布洛斯就是一個(gè)例子。艾爾弗結(jié)婚時(shí)，感到非常難為情，而沒有將自己的職業(yè)告訴妻子。他只說在埃爾斯米爾公司上班。每天早晨，他穿上一身漂亮的黑色西裝離家上班，然后換上工作服，當(dāng)8個(gè)小時(shí)清潔工。晚上回家前，他洗個(gè)淋浴，重新?lián)Q上那身黑色西服。兩年多以來，艾爾弗一直這樣，他的同事也為他保守秘密。艾爾弗的妻子一直不知道她嫁給了一個(gè)清潔工，而且她永遠(yuǎn)也不會(huì)知道了，因?yàn)榘瑺柛ヒ颜业叫铰?，不久就要坐辦公室里工作了。他將來掙的錢只有他現(xiàn)在的一半。不過他覺得，地位升高了，損失點(diǎn)兒錢也值得。從此，艾爾弗可以一天到晚穿西服了。別人將稱呼他為“布洛格斯先生”，而不再叫他“艾爾弗”了。Lesson5ThefactsEditorsofnewspapersandmagazinesoftengotoextremestoprovidetheirreaderswithunimportantfactsandstatistics.Lastyearajournalisthadbeeninstructedbyawell-knownmagazinetowriteanarticleonthepresident'spalaceinanewAfricanrepublic.Whenthearticlearrived,theeditorreadthefirstsentenceandthenrefusedtopublishit.Thearticlebegan:'Hundredsofstepsleadtothehighwallwhichsurroundsthepresident'spalace.'Theeditoratoncesentthejournalistafaxinstructinghimtofindouttheexactnumberofstepsandtheheightofthewall.

Thejournalistimmediatelysetouttoobtaintheseimportantfacts,buthetookalongtimetosendthem.Meanwhile,theeditorwasgettingimpatient,forthemagazinewouldsoongotopress.Hesentthejournalisttwourgenttelegrams,butreceivednoreply.Hesentyetanothertelegraminformingthejournalistthatifhedidnotreplysoonhewouldbefired.Whenthejournalistagainfailedtoreply,theeditorreluctantlypublishedthearticleasithadoriginallybeenwritten.Aweeklater,theeditoratlastreceivedatelegramfromthejournalist.Notonlyhadthepoormanbeenarrested,buthehadbeensenttoprisonaswell.However,hehadatlastbeenallowedtosendacableinwhichheinformedtheeditorthathehadbeenarrestedwhilecountingthe1084stepsleadingtothe15-footwallwhichsurroundedthepresident'spalace.

報(bào)刊雜志的編輯常常為了向讀者提供成立一些關(guān)緊要的事實(shí)和統(tǒng)計(jì)數(shù)字而走向極端。去年，一位記者受一家有名的雜志的委托寫一篇關(guān)于非洲某個(gè)新成立共和國(guó)總統(tǒng)府的文章。稿子寄來后，編輯看第一句話就拒絕予以發(fā)表。文章的開頭是這樣的：“幾百級(jí)臺(tái)階通向環(huán)繞總統(tǒng)的高墻?！本庉嬃⒓唇o那位記者發(fā)去，要求他核實(shí)一下臺(tái)階確實(shí)切數(shù)字和圍墻的高度。記者立即出發(fā)去核實(shí)這些重要的事實(shí)，但過了好長(zhǎng)時(shí)間不見他把數(shù)字寄來，在此期間，編輯等得不耐煩了，因?yàn)殡s志馬上要付印。他給記者先后發(fā)去兩份，但對(duì)方毫無反響。于是他又發(fā)了一份，通知那位記者說，假設(shè)再不迅速答復(fù)，將被解雇。但記者還是沒有回復(fù)。編輯無奈，勉強(qiáng)按原樣發(fā)稿了。一周之后，編輯終于接到記者的。那個(gè)可憐的記者不僅被捕了，而且還被送進(jìn)了監(jiān)獄。不過，他終于獲準(zhǔn)發(fā)回了一份。在中他告訴編輯，就在他數(shù)通向15英尺高的總統(tǒng)府圍墻的1，084級(jí)臺(tái)階時(shí)，被抓了起來。Lesson6

Smash-and-grabTheexpensiveshopsinafamousarcadenearPiccadillywerejustopening.Atthistimeofthemorning,thearcadewasalmostempty.MrTaylor,theownerofajewelleryshopwasadmiringanewwindowdisplay.Twoofhisassistantshadbeenworkingbusilysince8o'clockandhadonlyjustfinished.Diamondnecklacesandringshadbeenbeautifullyarrangedonabackgroundofblackvelvet.Aftergazingatthedisplayforseveralminutes,MrTaylorwentbackintohisshop.Thesilencewassuddenlybrokenwhenalargecar,withitsheadlightsonanditshornblaring,roareddownthearcade.Itcametoastopoutsidethejeweler's.Onemanstayedatthewheelwhiletwootherswithblackstockingsovertheirfacesjumpedoutandsmashedthewindowoftheshopwithironbars.Whilethiswasgoingon,MrTaylorwasupstairs.Heandhisstaffbeganthrowingfurnitureoutofthewindow.Chairsandtableswentflyingintothearcade.Oneofthethieveswasstruckbyaheavystatue,buthewastoobusyhelpinghimselftodiamondstonoticeanypain.Theraidwasalloverinthreeminutes,forthemenscrambledbackintothecaranditmovedoffatafantasticspeed.Justasitwasleaving,MrTaylorrushedoutandranafteritthrowingashtraysandvases,butitwasimpossibletostopthethieves.Theyhadgotawaywiththousandsofpoundsworthofdiamonds.

皮卡迪利大街附近的一條著名拱廊街道上，幾家高檔商店剛剛開始營(yíng)業(yè)。在早晨的這個(gè)時(shí)候，拱廊街上幾乎空無一人。珠寶店主泰勒先生正在欣賞新布置的櫥窗。他手下兩名店員從早上8點(diǎn)就開始忙碌，這時(shí)剛剛布置完畢。鉆石項(xiàng)鏈、戒指漂亮地陳列在黑色絲絨上面。泰勒先生站在櫥窗外凝神欣賞了幾分鐘就回到了店里。寧靜突然被打破，一輛大轎車亮著前燈，響著喇叭，吼叫著沖進(jìn)了拱廊街，在珠寶店門口停了下來。一人留在駕駛座上，另外兩個(gè)用黑色長(zhǎng)筒絲襪蒙面的人跳下車來。他們用鐵棒把商店櫥窗的玻璃砸碎。這開始發(fā)生時(shí)，泰勒先生正在樓上。他與店員動(dòng)手向窗外投擲家具，椅子，桌子飛落花流水在拱廊街上。一個(gè)竊賊被一尊很重的雕像擊中，但由于他忙著搶鉆石首飾，竟連疼痛都顧不上了。這場(chǎng)搶劫只持續(xù)了3分鐘，因?yàn)楦`賊爭(zhēng)先恐后地爬上轎車，以驚人的速度開跑了。就在轎車離開的時(shí)候，泰勒先生從店里沖了出來，跟在車后追趕，一邊還往車上扔煙灰缸、花瓶。但他已無法抓住那些竊賊了。他們已帶著價(jià)值數(shù)千鎊的首飾逃之夭夭了。Lesson7MutilatedladiesChildrenoftenhavefarmoresensethantheirelders.ThissimpletruthwasdemonstratedratherdramaticallyduringacivildefenceexerciseinasmalltowninCanada.Mostoftheinhabitantswereaskedtotakepartintheexerciseduringwhichtheyhadtopretendthattheircityhadbeenbombed.Air-raidwarningsweresoundedandthousandsofpeoplewentintospecialair-raidshelters.DoctorsandnursesremainedabovegroundwhilePolicepatrolledthestreetsincaseanyonetriedtoleavetheshelterstoosoon.Thepolicedidnothavemuchtodobecausethecitizenstooktheexerciseseriously.Theystayedundergroundfortwentyminutesandwaitedforthesirentosoundagain.Onleavingtheair-raidshelters,theysawthatdoctorsandnurseswerebusy.Agreatmanypeoplehadvolunteeredtoactascasualties.Theatricalmake-upandartificialbloodhadbeenusedtomaketheinjurieslookrealistic.AlotofPeoplewerelying'dead'inthestreets.Thelivinghelpedtocarrythedeadandwoundedtospecialstations.AChildofsixwasbroughtinbytwoadults.Thechildwassupposedtobedead.Withtheatricalmake-uponhisface,helookedasifhehaddiedofshock.Somepeopleweresomovedbythesightthattheybegantocry.However,thechildsuddenlysatupandadoctoraskedhimtocommentonhisdeath.Thechildlookedaroundforamomentandsaid,'Ithinkthey'reallcrazy!'

這種事情在你身上出現(xiàn)過嗎？你有沒有把褲子塞洗衣機(jī)，然后又想在褲子的后兜有一張大面值的紙幣？當(dāng)你把褲子搶救出來時(shí)，你有沒有發(fā)現(xiàn)那張紙幣已經(jīng)變得比白紙還白？當(dāng)英國(guó)人犯這種錯(cuò)誤時(shí)，他們不必感到絕望〔而許多國(guó)家的人都有這種絕望的感覺〕。對(duì)英國(guó)人來說，值得慶幸的是英國(guó)銀行有一個(gè)殘鈔鑒別組，負(fù)責(zé)理那些把錢塞進(jìn)機(jī)器或塞給狗的人提出的索賠要求?？雌饋?，狗很喜歡咀嚼錢幣。最近的一個(gè)案例與簡(jiǎn).巴特林有關(guān)，她的未婚夫約翰擁有一家生意興隆家具店。有一天約翰的生意很好，他把一只裝有3,000英鎊的錢包放進(jìn)微波爐內(nèi)保存。然后，他和簡(jiǎn)一起去騎馬?；丶液?，簡(jiǎn)用微波爐煮了晚飯，無意中之中把她未婚夫的錢包也一起煮了?？梢韵胂袼麄儼l(fā)現(xiàn)一只煮得很好看的錢包，鈔票已化成灰時(shí)的沮喪心情。約翰去找銀行經(jīng)理，經(jīng)理把約翰的錢包和紙幣的殘留物送到英國(guó)銀行在紐卡斯?fàn)柕囊粋€(gè)專門部門——?dú)堚n鑒別組。他們鑒定了這些殘留物。約翰拿回了他損失的全部數(shù)額?！爸灰袞|西可供識(shí)別，我們會(huì)把錢還給人家的，”銀行的一位女發(fā)言人說?！叭ツ?，我們對(duì)21，000起索賠要求支付了150萬英鎊?！盠esson8

AfamousmonasteryTheGreatStBernardPassconnectsSwitzerlandtoItaly.At2470metres,itisthehighestmountainpassinEurope.ThefamousmonasteryofStBernard,whichwasfoundedintheeleventhcentury,liesaboutamileaway.Forhundredsofyears,StBernarddogshavesavedthelivesoftravellerscrossingthedangerousPass.Thesefriendlydogs,whichwerefirstbroughtfromAsia,wereusedaswatch-dogseveninRomantimes.Nowthatatunnelhasbeenbuiltthroughthemountains,thePassislessdangerous,buteachyear,thedogsarestillsentoutintothesnowwheneveratravellerisindifficulty.Despitethenewtunnel,therearestillafewpeoplewhorashly

attempttocrossthePassonfoot.

Duringthesummermonths,themonasteryisverybusy,foritisvisitedbythousandsofpeoplewhocrossthePassincars,Astherearesomanypeopleabout,thedogshavetobekeptinaspecialenclosure.Inwinter,however,lifeatthemonasteryisquitedifferent.Thetemperaturedropsto-30andveryfewpeopleattempttocrossthePass.ThemonksPreferwintertosummerfortheyhavemoreprivacy.Thedogshavegreaterfreedom,too,fortheyareallowedtowanderoutsidetheirenclosure.TheonlyregularvisitorstothemonasteryinwinterarepartiesofskierswhogothereatChristmasandEaster.Theseyoungpeople,wholovethepeaceofthemountains,alwaysreceiveawarm.WelcomeatStBernard'smonastery.

圣伯納德大山口連接著瑞士與意大利，海拔2,473O米，是歐洲最高的山口。11世紀(jì)建造的著名的圣伯納德修道院位于離山口1英里遠(yuǎn)的地方。幾百年來，圣伯納德修道院馴養(yǎng)狗拯救了許多翻越這道山口的旅游者的生命。那些最先從亞洲引進(jìn)的狗，待人友好，早在羅馬時(shí)代就給人當(dāng)看門狗了。如今由于山里開挖了隧道，翻越山口已不那么危險(xiǎn)了。但每年還要派狗到雪山地里去幫助那些遇到困難的旅游者，盡管修通了隧道，但仍有一些人想冒險(xiǎn)徒步跨越圣伯納德山口。夏天的幾個(gè)月里，修道院十分忙碌，因?yàn)橛谐汕先f的人駕車通過山口，順道來修道院參觀。由于來人太多，狗被關(guān)在專門的圍欄里。然而到了冬天，修道院里的生活那么是另一番景象。氣溫下降到零下30度，試圖跨越山口的人寥寥無幾。修道士們喜歡冬天，而不太喜歡夏天。因?yàn)樵诙?，他們可以更多地過無人打攪的生活。狗也比擬自由，被放出圍欄，四處遛達(dá)。冬天常來修道院參觀的只有一批批滑雪者。他們?cè)谑フQ節(jié)或復(fù)活節(jié)到那兒去。這些熱愛高山清靜環(huán)境的年輕人每年都受到圣伯納德道院的熱烈歡送。Lesson9Flyingcats飛貓Catsneverfailtofascinatehumanbeings.Theycanbefriendlyandaffectionatetowardshumans,buttheyleadmysteriouslivesoftheirownaswell.Theyneverbecomesubmissivelikedogsandhorses.Asaresult,humanshavelearnedtorespectfelineindependence.Mostcatsremainsuspiciousofhumansalltheirlives.Oneofthethingsthatfascinatesusmostaboutcatsisthepopularbeliefthattheyhaveninelives.Apparently,theyisagooddealoftruthinthisidea.Acat’sabilitytosurvivefallsisbasedonfact.RecentlytheNewYorkAnimalMedicalCentremadeastudyof132catsoveraperiodoffivemonths.Allthesecatshadoneexperienceincommon:theyhadfallenoffhighbuildings,yetonlyeightofthemdiedfromshockorinjuries.Ofcourse,NewYorkistheidealplaceforsuchaninterestingstudy,becausethereisnoshortageoftallbuildings.Thereareplentyofhigh-risewindowsillstofallfrom!Onecat,Sabrina,fell32storeys,yetonlysufferedfromabrokentooth.‘Catsbehavelikewell-trainedparatroopers,’adoctorsaid.Itseemsthatthefurthercatsfall,thelesstheyarelikelytoinjurethemselves.Inalongdrop,theyreachspeedsof60milesanhourandmore.Athighspeeds,fallingcatshavetimetorelax.Theystretchouttheirlegslikeflyingsquirrel.Thisincreasestheirair-resistanceandreducestheshockofimpactwhentheyhittheground.

貓總能引起人們的極大興趣。它們可以對(duì)人友好，充滿柔情。但是，它們又有自己神秘的生活方式。它們從不像狗和馬一樣變得那么順從。結(jié)果是人們已經(jīng)學(xué)會(huì)尊重貓的獨(dú)立性。在它們的一生中，大多數(shù)貓都對(duì)人存有戒心。最使我們感興趣的一件事情就是一種通俗的信念——貓有九條命。顯然，這種說法里面包含著許多真實(shí)性。貓?jiān)诘鋾r(shí)能夠大難不死是有事實(shí)作為依據(jù)的。最近，紐約動(dòng)物醫(yī)療中心對(duì)132只貓進(jìn)行了為期5個(gè)月的綜合研究。所有這些貓有一個(gè)共同的經(jīng)歷：它們都曾從高層建筑上摔下來過，但只有其中的8只貓死于震蕩或跌傷。當(dāng)然，紐約是進(jìn)行這種有趣的試驗(yàn)的一個(gè)理想的地方，因?yàn)槟抢锔静蝗狈Ω邩谴髲B，有的是高層的窗檻從上往下墜落。有一只叫薩伯瑞的貓從32層樓上掉下來，但只摔斷一顆牙?！柏埦拖裼?xùn)練有素的跳傘隊(duì)員，”一位醫(yī)生說。看起來，貓跌落的距離越長(zhǎng)，它們就越不會(huì)傷害自己。在一個(gè)長(zhǎng)長(zhǎng)的跌落過程中，它們可以到達(dá)每小時(shí)60里甚至更快的速度。在高速下落中，貓有時(shí)間放松自己。它們伸展四肢，就像飛行中的松鼠一樣。這樣就加大了空氣阻力，并減少了它們著地時(shí)沖擊力帶來的震動(dòng)。Lesson10ThelossofTitanicThegreatship,Titanic,sailedforNewYorkfromSouthamptononApril10th,1912.Shewascarrying1316passengersandacrewof89l.Evenbymodernstandards,the46,000tonTitanicwasacolossalship.Atthattime,however,shewasnotonlythelargestshipthathadeverbeenbuilt,butwasregardedasunsinkable,forshehadsixteenwater-tightcompartments.Eveniftwoofthesewereflooded,shewouldstillbeabletofloat.Thetragicsinkingofthisgreatlinerwillalwaysberemembered,forshewentdownonherfirstvoyagewithheavylossoflife.Fourdaysaftersettingout,whiletheTitanicwassailingacrosstheicywatersoftheNorthAtlantic,ahugeicebergwassuddenlyspottedbyalook-out.Afterthealarmhadbeengiven,thegreatshipturnedsharplytoavoidadirectcollision.TheTitanicturnedjustintime,narrowlymissingtheimmensewalloficewhichroseover100feetoutofthewaterbesideher.Suddenly,therewasaslighttremblingsoundfrombelow,andthecaptainwentdowntoseewhathadhappened.Thenoisehadbeensofaintthatnoonethoughtthattheshiphadbeendamaged.Below,thecaptainrealizedtohishorrorthattheTitanicwassinkingrapidly,forfiveofhersixteenwater-tightcompartmentshadalreadybeenflooded!Theordertoabandonshipwasgivenandhundredsofpeopleplungedintotheicywater.Astherewerenotenoughlife-boatsforeverybody,1500liveswerelost.

巨輪“泰坦尼克”號(hào)1912年4月10日從南安普敦起錨駛向紐約。船上載有1,316名乘客與891名船員。卻使用現(xiàn)代標(biāo)準(zhǔn)來衡量，45,000噸的“泰坦尼克”號(hào)與算得上一艘巨輪了。當(dāng)時(shí)，這艘輪船不僅是造船史上建造的最大的一艘船，而且也被認(rèn)為是不會(huì)漂浮的。因?yàn)榇?6個(gè)密封艙組成，即使有兩個(gè)艙進(jìn)水，仍可漂浮的水面上。然而，這艘巨輪首航就下沉，造成大批人員死亡。人們將永遠(yuǎn)記著這艘巨輪的漂浮慘劇。“泰坦尼克”起航后的第4天，它正行駛在北大西洋冰冷的海面上。突然，了望員發(fā)現(xiàn)一座冰山。警報(bào)響過不久，巨輪急轉(zhuǎn)彎，以防止與冰山正面相撞?！疤┨鼓峥恕边@個(gè)彎拐得及時(shí)，緊貼著高出海面100英尺的巨大的冰墻擦過去。突然，從船艙下部傳來一聲微顫音，船長(zhǎng)走下船艙去查看究竟。由于這個(gè)聲音非常輕，沒人會(huì)想到船身已遭損壞。在下面，船長(zhǎng)驚恐的地發(fā)現(xiàn)“泰坦尼克”號(hào)正在急速下沉，16個(gè)密封艙已有5個(gè)進(jìn)水。于是，他發(fā)出棄船的命令，幾百人跳進(jìn)了冰冷刺骨的海水里。由于沒有足夠的救生艇運(yùn)載所有乘客，結(jié)果，1,500人喪生。Lesson11NotguiltyGoingthroughtheCustomsisatiresomebusiness.Thestrangestthingaboutitisthatreallyhonestpeopleareoftenmadetofeelguilty.Thehardenedprofessionalsmuggler,ontheotherhand,isnevertroubledbysuchfeelings,evenifhehasfivehundredgoldwatcheshiddeninhissuitcase.WhenIreturnedfromabroadrecently,aparticularlyofficiousyoungCustomsOfficerclearlyregardedmeasasmuggler.'Haveyouanythingtodeclare?'heasked,lookingmeintheeye.'No,'Iansweredconfidently.'Wouldyoumindunlockingthissuitcaseplease?''Notatall,'Ianswered.TheOfficerwentthroughthecasewithgreatcare.AllthethingsIhadpackedsocarefullyweresooninadreadfulmess.IfeltsureIwouldneverbeabletoclosethecaseagain.Suddenly,IsawtheOfficer'sfacelightup.Hehadspottedatinybottleatthebottomofmycaseandhepouncedonitwithdelight.'Perfume,eh?'heaskedsarcastically.'Youshouldhavedeclaredthat.'Perfumeisnotexemptfromimportduty.''Butitisn'tperfume,'Isaid.'It'shair-oil.'ThenIaddedwithasmile,'It'sastrangemixtureImakemyself.'AsIexpected,hedidnotbelieveme.'Tryit!'Isaidencouragingly.TheOfficerunscrewedthecapandputthebottletohisnostrils.HewasgreetedbyanunpleasantsmellwhichconvincedhimthatIwastellingthetruth.Afewminuteslater,Iwasabletohurryawaywithpreciouschalk-marksonmybaggage.

現(xiàn)在的海關(guān)官員往往相當(dāng)寬容。但是，當(dāng)你通過綠色通道，沒有任何東西需要申報(bào)時(shí)，他們?nèi)钥梢詳r住你。甚至是最老實(shí)的人也常弄得覺得有罪似的，而老練的職業(yè)走私犯卻使手提箱里藏著500只金表，卻也處之泰然。最近一次，我也出國(guó)歸來，碰上一位特別好管閑事的年輕海關(guān)官員，他顯然把我當(dāng)成走私犯?！澳惺裁葱枰陥?bào)的嗎？”他直盯著我的眼睛問?！皼]有?！蔽易孕诺卮饛?fù)說。“請(qǐng)翻開這只手提箱好嗎？”“好的。”我答復(fù)說。那位官員十分仔細(xì)地把箱子檢查了一遍。所有細(xì)心包裝好的東西一會(huì)兒工夫就亂成一團(tuán)。我相信那箱子再也關(guān)不上了。突然，我看到官員臉上露出了得意的神色。他在我的箱底發(fā)現(xiàn)了一只小瓶，快樂地一把抓了起來?！跋闼?，嗯？”他譏諷地說道，“你剛剛應(yīng)該申報(bào)，香水要上進(jìn)口稅的?！薄安?，這不是香水，”我說，“是發(fā)膠。”接著我臉帶微笑補(bǔ)充說：“這是一種我自己配制的奇特的混合物?！薄澳憔吐勔宦劙桑　蔽掖叽僬f。海關(guān)官員擰開瓶蓋，把瓶子放到鼻子底下。一股怪味襲來，使他相信了我說的真話。幾分鐘后，我終于被放行，手提劃著珍貴的粉筆記號(hào)的行李，匆匆離去。Lesson12LifeonadesertislandMostofushaveformedanunrealisticpictureoflifeonadesertisland.Wesometimesimagineadesertislandtobeasortofparadisewherethesunalwaysshines.Lifethereissimpleandgood.Ripefruitfallsfromthetreesandyouneverhavetowork.Theothersideofthepictureisquitetheopposite.Lifeonadesertislandiswretched.YoueitherstarvetodeathorlivelikeRobinsonCrusoe,waitingforaboatwhichnevercomes.Perhapsthereisanelementoftruthinboththesepictures,butfewofushavehadtheopportunitytofindout.Twomenwhorecentlyspentfivedaysonacoralislandwishedtheyhadstayedtherelonger.TheyweretakingabadlydamagedboatfromtheVirginIslandstoMiamitohaveitrepaired.Duringthejourney,theirboatbegantosink.Theyquicklyloadedasmallrubberdinghywithfood,matches,andtinsofbeerandrowedforafewmilesacrosstheCaribbeanuntiltheyarrivedatatinycoralisland.Therewerehardlyanytreesontheislandandtherewasnowater,butthisdidnotprovetobeaproblem.Themencollectedrain-waterintherubberdinghy.Astheyhadbroughtaspeargunwiththem,theyhadplentytoeat.Theycaughtlobsterandfisheveryday,and,asoneofthemputit'atelikekings'.Whenapassingtankerrescuedthemfivedayslater,bothmenweregenuinelysorrythattheyhadtoleave.我們?cè)S多人對(duì)于荒島生活有一種不切實(shí)際的想法。我們有時(shí)想象荒島是陽光終日普照的天堂。在那里，生活簡(jiǎn)單又美好。成熟的水果從樹上掉下來，人們根本無需勞動(dòng)。另一種想法恰恰相反，認(rèn)為荒島生活很可怕，要么餓死，要么像魯濱孫那樣，天天盼船來，卻總沒見船影。也許，這兩種都像都有可信之處。但很少有人能有時(shí)機(jī)去弄個(gè)究竟。最近有兩個(gè)人在一座珊瑚島上呆了5天，他們真希望在那兒再多呆一些日子。他們駕著一條嚴(yán)重?fù)p壞的小船從維爾京群島阿密修理。途中，船開始下沉，他們迅速把食物、火柴、罐裝啤酒往一只救生筏上裝。然后在加勒比海上劃行了幾英里，到了一座珊瑚島上。島上幾乎沒有一顆樹，也沒有淡水，但這不算什么問題。他們用像皮艇蓄積雨水。由于他們隨身帶了一支捕魚槍，因此，吃飯不愁。他們天天捕捉龍蝦和魚，正如其中一位所說，吃得“像國(guó)王一樣好”。5天后，一條油輪從那兒路過，搭救了他們。這二位不得不離開那個(gè)荒島時(shí)，還真的感到遺憾呢！Lesson13It’sonlymeAfterherhusbandhadgonetowork,MrsRichardssentherchildrentoschoolandwentupstairstoherbedroom.Shewastooexcitedtodoanyhouseworkthatmorning,forintheeveningshewouldbegoingtoafancydresspartywithherhusband.Sheintendedtodressupasaghostandasshehadmadehercostumethenightbefore,shewasimpatienttotryiton.Thoughthecostumeconsistedonlyofasheet,itwasveryeffective.Afterputtingiton,MrsRichardswentdownstairs.Shewantedtofindoutwhetheritwouldbecomfortabletowear.JustasMrsRichardswasenteringthedining-room,therewasaknockonthefrontdoor.Sheknewthatitmustbethebaker.Shehadtoldhimtocomestraightinifevershefailedtoopenthedoorandtoleavethebreadonthekitchentable.Notwantingtofrightenthepoorman,MrsRichardsquicklyhidinthesmallstore-roomunderthestairs.Sheheardthefrontdooropenandheavyfootstepsinthehall.Suddenlythedoorofthestore-roomwasopenedandamanentered.MrsRichardsrealizedthatitmustbethemanfromtheElectricityBoardwhohadcometoreadthemeter.Shetriedtoexplainthesituation,saying'It'sonlyme',butitwastoolate.Themanletoutacryandjumpedbackseveralpaces.WhenMrsRichardswalkedtowardshim,hefled,slammingthedoorbehindhim.

理查茲夫人等丈夫上班走后，把孩子送去上學(xué)，然后來到樓上自己的臥室。那天上午，她興奮得什么家務(wù)活都不想做，因?yàn)橥砩纤煞蛞黄饏⒓右粋€(gè)化裝舞會(huì)。她打算裝扮成鬼的模樣。頭天晚上她已把化裝服做好，這時(shí)她急于想試試。盡管化裝服僅由一個(gè)被單制成，卻十分逼真。理查茲夫人穿上化裝服后下了樓，想看穿起來是否舒服。理查茲夫人剛剛走進(jìn)餐廳，前門就傳來敲門聲。她知道來了一定面包師。她曾告訴過面包師，如果她不去開門，他可直接進(jìn)門，把面包放在廚房的桌上。理查茲夫人不想嚇唬這個(gè)可憐人，便趕緊躲到了樓梯下的小儲(chǔ)藏室里。她聽見前門被翻開，走廊里響起重重的腳步聲。突然貯藏門開了，一個(gè)男人走了進(jìn)來。理查茲夫人這才想到一定是供電局來人查電表了。她說了聲“是我，別怕！”然后想進(jìn)行一番解釋，但已來不及了。那人大叫了一聲，驚退了幾步。理查茲夫人朝他走去，只見他“砰”的一聲關(guān)上門逃走了。Lesson14AnoblegangsterTherewasatimewhentheownersofshopandbusinessesinChicagohadtopaylargesumsofmoneytogangstersinreturnfor'protection'Ifthemoneywasnotpaidpromptly,thegangsterswouldquicklyputamanoutofbusinessbydestroyinghisshop.Obtaining'protechonmoney'isnotamoderncrime.Aslongagoasthefourteenthcentury,anEnglishman,SirJohnHawkwood,madetheremarkablediscoverythatpeoplewouldratherpaylargesumsofmoneythanhavetheirlifeworkdestroyedbygangsters.Sixhundredyearsago,SirJohnHawkwoodarrivedinItalywithabandofsoldiersandsettlednearFlorence.HesoonmadeanameforhimselfandcametobeknowntotheItaliansasGiovanniAcuto.WhenevertheItaliancity-stateswereatwarwitheachother,Hawkwoodusedtohirehissoldierstoprinceswhowerewillingtopaythehighpricehedemanded.Intimesofpeace,whenbusinesswasbad,Hawkwoodandhismenwouldmarchintoacity-stateand,afterburningdownafewfarms,wouldoffertogoawayifprotectionmoneywaspaidtothem.Hawkwoodmadelargesumsofmoneyinthisway.Inspiteofthis,theItaliansregardedhimasasortofhero.Whenhediedattheageofeighty,theFlorentinesgavehimastatefuneralandhadapicturepaintedwhichwasdedicatedtothememoryof'themostvaliantsoldierandmostnotableleader,SignorGiovanniHaukodue'.

曾經(jīng)有一個(gè)時(shí)期,芝加哥的店主和商行的老板們不得不拿出大筆的錢給歹徒以換取"保護(hù)"。如果交款不及時(shí),歹徒們就會(huì)很快搗毀他的商店,讓他破產(chǎn).榨取"保護(hù)金"并不是一種現(xiàn)代的罪惡行徑.早在14世紀(jì),英國(guó)人約翰.霍克伍德就有過非凡的發(fā)現(xiàn):"人們情愿拿出大筆的錢,也不愿畢生的心血?dú)в诖跬街?600年前,約翰.霍克伍德爵士帶著一隊(duì)士兵來到意大利,在佛羅倫薩附近駐扎下來,很快就出了名.意大利人叫他喬凡尼.阿庫托.每次意大利各城邦之間打伏,霍克伍德把他的士兵雇傭給愿給他出高價(jià)的君主。和平時(shí)期,當(dāng)生意蕭條時(shí),霍克伍德便帶著士兵進(jìn)入某個(gè)城邦,縱火燒毀一兩個(gè)農(nóng)場(chǎng),然后提出,如向他們繳納保護(hù)金,他們便主動(dòng)撤離。霍克伍德用這種方法掙了大筆錢.盡管如此,意大利人還是把他視作某種英雄。他80歲那年死去時(shí),佛羅倫薩人為他舉行了國(guó)葬,并為他畫像以紀(jì)念這位"驍勇無比的戰(zhàn)士、杰出的領(lǐng)袖喬凡尼.阿庫托先生."Lesson15FiftypenceworthoftroubleChildrenalwaysappreciatesmallgiftsofmoney.Father,ofcourse,providesaregularsupplyofpocket-money,butunclesandauntsarealwaysasourceofextraincome.Withsomechildren,smallsumsgoalongway.Ifsixpencesarenotexchangedforsweets,theyrattleformonthsinsidemoney-boxes.Onlyverythriftychildrenmanagetofillupamoney-box.Formostofthem,sixpenceisasmallpricetopayforasatisfyingbarofchocolate.Mynephew,George,hasamoney-boxbutitisalwaysempty.VeryfewofthesixpencesIhavegivenhimhavefoundtheirwaythere.Igavehimsixpenceyesterdayandadvisedhimtosaveit.Instead,heboughthimselfsixpencew