新概念頻道為大家整理的 新概念英語第二冊課文及翻譯51到60，供大家參考。更多閱讀請查看本站 新概念英語網(wǎng)頻道。
Lesson51 Reward for virtue 對美德的獎(jiǎng)賞
My friend, Herbert, has always been fat, but things got so bad recently that he decided to go on a diet. He began his diet a week ago. First of all, he wrote out a long list of all the foods which were forbidden. The list included most of the things Herbert loves: butter, potatoes, rice, beer, milk, chocolate, and sweets. Yesterday I paid him a visit. I rang the bell and was not surprised to see that Herbert was still as fat as ever. He led me into his room and hurriedly hid a large parcel under his desk. It was obvious that he was very embarrassed. When I asked him what he was doing, he smiled guiltily and then put the parcel on the desk. He explained that his diet was so strict that he had to reward himself occasionally. Then he showed me the contents of the parcel. It contained five large bars of chocolate and three bags of sweets!
我的朋友休一直很胖，但是近來情況變得越發(fā)糟糕，以致他決定節(jié)食。他是一星期前開始節(jié)食的。首先，他開列了一張長長的單子，上面列了所有禁吃的食物。這張單子上的大多數(shù)食物都是休喜歡吃的：黃油、土豆、米飯、啤酒、牛奶、巧克力和糖果。昨天我去看望了他。我按響了門鈴，當(dāng)看到休仍和往常一樣胖時(shí)，我并不感到驚奇。他把我領(lǐng)進(jìn)屋，慌忙把一個(gè)大包藏到了桌子下面。顯然他感到很尷尬。當(dāng)我問他正干什么時(shí)，他內(nèi)疚地笑了，然后把那個(gè)大包拿到了桌上。他解釋說，他的飲食控制得太嚴(yán)格了，以致不得不偶爾獎(jiǎng)賞自己一下。接著他給我看了包里的東西。里面裝了5大塊巧克力和3袋糖果！
Lesson52 A pretty carpet 漂亮的地毯
We have just moved into a new house and I have been working hard all morning. I have been trying to get my new room in order. This has not been easy because I own over a thousand books. To make matters worse, the room is rather small, so I have temporarily put my books on the floor. At the moment, they cover every inch of floor space and I actually have to walk on them to get in or out of the room. A short while ago, my sister helped me to carry one of my old bookcases up the stairs. She went into my room and got a big surprise when she saw all those books on the floor. 'This is the prettiest carpet I have ever seen,' she said. She gazed at it for some time then added, 'You don't need bookcases at all. You can sit here in your spare time and read the carpet!'
我們剛剛搬進(jìn)一所新房子，我辛辛苦苦地干了整整一個(gè)上午。我試圖把我的新房間收拾整齊，但這并不容易，因?yàn)槲矣?,000多本書。更糟糕的是房間還非常小，所以我暫時(shí)把書放在了地板上。這會(huì)兒，書把地板的每一點(diǎn)空隙都占據(jù)了，我實(shí)際上是踩著這些書進(jìn)出房間的。幾分鐘前，我妹妹幫我把一個(gè)舊書櫥抬上了樓。她走進(jìn)我的房間，當(dāng)她看到地板上的那些書時(shí)，大吃一驚?！斑@是我見過的漂亮的地毯，”她說。她盯著“地毯”看了一會(huì)兒，又說：“你根本用不著書櫥，空閑時(shí)你可以坐在這兒讀地毯！”
Lesson53 Hot snake 觸電的蛇
At last firemen have put out a big forest fire in California. Since then, they have been trying to find out how the fire began. Forest fire are often caused by broken glass or by cigarette ends which people carelessly throw away. Yesterday the firemen examined the ground carefully, but were not able to find any broken glass. They were also quite sure that a cigarette end did not start the fire. This morning, however, a fireman accidentally discovered the cause. He noticed the remains of a snake which was wound round the electric wires of a 16,000-volt power line. In this way, he was able to solve the mystery. The explanation was simple but very unusual. A bird had snatched up the snake from the ground and then dropped it on to the wires. The snake then wound itself round the wires. When it did so, it sent sparks down to the ground and these immediately started a fire.
消防隊(duì)員們終于撲滅了加利福尼亞的一場森林大火。從那時(shí)起，他們一直試圖找出起火的原因。森林火災(zāi)時(shí)常由破碎的玻璃或人們隨手扔掉的香煙頭引起。昨天，消防隊(duì)員仔細(xì)查看了地面，但未能發(fā)現(xiàn)碎玻璃。他們還十分肯定火災(zāi)也不是由煙頭引起的。然而今天上午，一個(gè)消防隊(duì)員偶然發(fā)現(xiàn)了起火的原因。他發(fā)現(xiàn)了纏繞在16,000伏高壓線上的一條死蛇。就這樣，他解開了起火之謎。解釋很簡單，卻異乎尋常。一只鳥把蛇從地上抓起來，然后把它扔到了電線上。于是蛇就纏住了幾根電線。當(dāng)它這樣做時(shí)，把火花送到了地面，這些火花立刻引起了一場大火。
Lesson54 Sticky fingers 粘糊的手指
After breakfast, I sent the children to school and then I went to market. It was still early when I returned home. The children were at school, my husband was at work and the house was quiet. So I decided to make some tarts for tea. In a short time I was busy mixing butter and flour and my hands were soon covered with sticky pastry. At exactly that moment, the telephone rang. Nothing could have been more annoying. I picked up the receiver between two sticky fingers and was dismayed when I recognized the voice of Mrs Bates. It took me ten minutes to persuade her to ring back later. At last I hung up the receiver. What a mess! There was pastry on my fingers, on the telephone, and on the door-knobs. I had no sooner got back to the kitchen than the door-bell rang loud enough to wake the dead. This time it was the postman and he wanted me to sign for a registered letter !
早飯后，我送孩子們上學(xué)，然后就去了商店。我回到家時(shí)，時(shí)間還早。孩子們在上學(xué)，我丈夫在上班，家里清靜得很。于是我決定做些肉餡餅。不一會(huì)兒我就忙著調(diào)拌起了黃油和面粉，很快我的手上就沾滿了粘粘的面糊。恰恰在此時(shí)，電話鈴響了。沒有什么能比這更煩人了。我用兩個(gè)沾滿面糊的手指捏起了話筒。當(dāng)聽出是海倫.貝茨的聲音時(shí)，非常喪氣。我用了10分鐘的時(shí)間才說服她過會(huì)兒再來電話。我終于掛上了話筒。真是糟糕透了！我的手指上、電話機(jī)上以及門的把手上，都沾上了面糊。我剛回到廚房，門鈴又響了起來，響聲足以把死人喚醒。這次是郵遞員，他要我簽收一封掛號(hào)信！
Lesson55 Not a gold mine 并非金礦
Dreams of finding lost treasure almost came true recently. A new machine called 'The Revealer' has been invented and it has been used to detect gold which has been buried in the ground. The machine was used in a cave near the seashore where--it is said--pirates used to hide gold. The pirates would often bury gold in the cave and then fail to collect it. Armed with the new machine, a search party went into the cave hoping to find buried treasure. The leader of the party was examining the soil near the entrance to the cave when the machine showed that there was gold under the ground. Very excited, the party dug a hole two feet deep. They finally found a small gold coin which was almost worthless. The party then searched the whole cave thoroughly but did not find anything except an empty tin trunk. In spite of this, many people are confident that 'The Revealer' may reveal something of value fairly soon.
近，找到失蹤寶藏的夢想差一點(diǎn)兒變成現(xiàn)實(shí)。一種叫“探寶器”的新機(jī)器已經(jīng)發(fā)明出來，并被人們用來探測地下埋藏的金子。在靠近海邊的一個(gè)據(jù)說過去海盜常在里面藏金子的巖洞里，這種機(jī)器被派上了用場。海盜們過去常把金子埋藏在那個(gè)洞里，可后來卻沒能取走。一支用這種新機(jī)器裝備起來的探寶隊(duì)進(jìn)入了這個(gè)巖洞，希望找到埋藏著的金子。當(dāng)這個(gè)隊(duì)的隊(duì)長正在檢查洞口附近的土壤時(shí)，那臺(tái)機(jī)器顯示出它的下面埋有金子。隊(duì)員們異常激動(dòng)，就地挖了一個(gè)兩英尺深的坑，但后找到的是一枚幾乎一錢不值的小金幣。隊(duì)員們接著又把整個(gè)洞徹底搜尋了一遍，但除了一只空鐵皮箱外什么也沒找到。盡管如此，很多人仍然相信“探寶器”很快就會(huì)探出值錢的東西來。
Lesson56 Faster than sound! 比聲音還快！
Once a year a race is held for old cars. A lot of cars entered for this race last year and there was a great deal of excitement just before it began. One of the most handsome cars was a Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost. The most unusual car was a Benz which had only three wheels. Built in 1885, it was the oldest car taking part. After a great many loud explosions, the race began. Many of the cars broke down on the course and some drivers spent more time under their cars than in them ! A few cars, however, completed the race. The winning car reached a speed of forty miles an hour--much faster than any of its rivals. It sped downhill at the end of the race and its driver had a lot of trouble trying to stop it. The race gave everyone a great deal of pleasure. It was very different from modern car races but no less exciting.
舊式汽車的比賽每年舉行。去年有很多汽車參加了這項(xiàng)比賽。比賽開始之前，人們異常激動(dòng)。漂亮的汽車之一是羅爾斯--羅伊斯生產(chǎn)的銀鬼汽車，而不尋常的一輛則要屬只有3只輪子的奔馳牌汽車了。該車造于1885年，是參賽車中老的一輛。在好一陣喧鬧的爆炸聲之后，比賽開始了。很多汽車在途中就拋了錨，而有些駕駛員花在汽車底下的時(shí)間比坐在汽車?yán)锩娴臅r(shí)間還長。然而還是有幾輛汽車跑完了全程。獲勝的那輛車達(dá)到了時(shí)速40英里--遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)超過任何對手。它在接近終點(diǎn)時(shí)，沖下了山坡，駕駛員費(fèi)了好大勁才把車停下來。這次比賽使每個(gè)人都挺開心。它雖然與現(xiàn)代汽車比賽大不相同，但激動(dòng)人心的程度并不亞于現(xiàn)代化汽車大賽。
Lesson57 Can I help you, madam? 你要買什么，夫人？
A woman in blue jeans stood at the window of an expensive shop. Though she hesitated for a moment, she finally went in and asked to see a dress that was in the window. The assistant who served her did not like the way she was dressed. Glancing at her scornfully, he told her that the dress was sold. The woman walked out of the shop angrily and decided to punish the assistant next day. She returned to the shop the following morning dressed in a fur coat, with a handbag in one hand and a long umbrella in the other. After seeking out the rude assistant she asked for the same dress. Not realizing who she was, the assistant was eager to serve her this time with great difficulty, he climbed into the shop window to get the dress. As soon as she saw it, the woman said she did not like it. She enjoyed herself making the assistant bring almost everything in the window before finally buying the dress she had first asked for.
一位穿著牛仔褲的婦女站在一家高檔商店的櫥窗前。她雖然猶豫了片刻，但終于還是走進(jìn)了商店，要求把陳列在櫥窗里的一件衣服拿給她看。接待她的售貨員不喜歡她的那副打扮，輕蔑地看了她一眼后，便告訴她那件衣服已經(jīng)賣出去了。這位婦女怒氣沖沖地走出了商店，決定第二天教訓(xùn)一下那個(gè)售貨員。第二天上午，她又來到這家商店，穿了一件裘皮大衣，一只手拎著一只手提包，另一只手拿著一把長柄傘。找到那個(gè)無禮的售貨員后，她還要看昨天的那件衣服。那個(gè)售貨員沒有認(rèn)出她是誰，這一回接待她的態(tài)度非常殷勤。費(fèi)了好大勁兒，他爬進(jìn)櫥窗去取那件衣服。這位婦女對那件衣服只看一眼，就說不喜歡。她開心地迫使那位售貨員把櫥窗里幾乎所有的東西都拿了出來，后才買下了她先要看的那一件。
Lesson58 A blessing in disguise? 是因禍得福嗎？
The tiny village of Frinley is said to possess a 'cursed tree'. Because the tree was mentioned in a newspaper, the number of visitors to Frinley has now increased. The tree was planted near a church fifty years ago, but it is only in recent years that it has gained an evil reputation. It is said that if anyone touches the tree, he will have bad luck; if he picks a leaf, he will die. Many villagers believe that the tree has already claimed a number of victims. The vicar has been asked to have the tree cut down, but so far he has refused. He has pointed out that the tree is a useful source of income as tourists have been coming from all parts of the country to see it. In spite of all that has been said, the tourists-have been picking leaves and cutting their names on the tree-trunk. So far, not one of them has been struck down by sudden death!
據(jù)說弗林利這個(gè)小村里有一棵“該詛咒的樹”。就因?yàn)閳?bào)上提到過這棵樹，所以現(xiàn)在來弗林利參觀的人越來越多。該樹是50年前栽在教堂附近的，但只是近幾年才得到了一個(gè)壞名聲。據(jù)說，誰要是觸摸了這棵樹，誰就會(huì)交上惡運(yùn)；如果誰摘了一片樹葉，誰就會(huì)死去。很多村民相信此樹已經(jīng)害了不少人。人們曾請求教區(qū)的牧師叫人把樹砍掉，但他直到現(xiàn)在也沒有同意。他指出，由于人們從全國各地紛紛前來參觀這棵樹，它成了一個(gè)有用的財(cái)源。盡管有上述種種說法，但游客們還是照常摘樹葉和把他們的名字刻在樹干上。然而到目前為止，還沒有一個(gè)人暴死呢！
Lesson59 In or out ？ 進(jìn)來還是出去？
Our dog, Rex, used to sit outside our front gate and bark. Every time he wanted to come into the garden he would bark until someone opened the gate. As the neighbours complained of the noise, my husband spent weeks training him to press his paw on the latch to let himself in. Rex soon became an expert at opening the gate. However, when I was going out shopping last week, I noticed him in the garden near the gate. This time he was barking so that someone would let him out ! Since then, he has developed another bad habit. As soon as he opens the gate from the outside, he comes into the garden and waits until the gate shuts. Then he sits and barks until someone lets him out. After this he immediately lets himself in and begins barking again. Yesterday my husband removed the gate and Rex got so annoyed we have not seen him since.
我家的狗雷克斯，過去常坐在大門外面叫。每當(dāng)它想到花園里來時(shí)，便汪汪叫個(gè)不停，直到有人把門打開。由于鄰居們對狗叫很有意見，所以我丈夫花了幾個(gè)星期的時(shí)間訓(xùn)練它用腳爪按住門閂把自己放進(jìn)來。雷克斯很快成了開門的專家。然而上星期我正要出去買東西時(shí)，發(fā)現(xiàn)它正呆在花園里邊靠門的地方。這次它叫著讓人把它放出去！從那以后，它養(yǎng)成了另外一種壞習(xí)慣。它從外面把門一打開，就走進(jìn)花園，等著門自動(dòng)關(guān)上。這之后他就坐下汪汪叫起來，直到有人來把它放出去。出去之后，它又馬上把自己放進(jìn)來，接著再開始叫。昨天，我丈夫把門卸了下來，雷克斯很生氣，此后我們便再也沒有見到它。
Lesson60 The future 卜算未來
At a village fair, I decided to visit a fortune-teller called Madam Bellinsky. I went into her tent and she told me to sit down. After I had given her some money, she looked into a crystal ball and said: 'A relation of yours is coming to see you. She will be arriving this evening and intends to stay for a few days. The moment you leave this tent, you will get a big surprise. A woman you know well will rush towards you. She will speak to you and then she will lead you away from this place. That is all.' As soon as I went outside, I forgot all about Madam Bellinsky because my wife hurried towards me. 'Where have you been hiding ?' she asked impatiently. 'Your sister will be here in less than an hour and we must be at the station to meet her. We are late already.' As she walked away, I followed her out of the fair.
在一個(gè)鄉(xiāng)村集市上，我決定去拜訪一位稱作別林斯夫人的算命人。我走進(jìn)她的帳篷，她叫我坐下。我給了她一些錢后，她便查看著一個(gè)水晶球說道：“您的一個(gè)親戚就要來看您了。她將于今天傍晚到達(dá)，并準(zhǔn)備住上幾天。您一走出這個(gè)帳篷，就會(huì)大吃一驚。一位您很熟悉的女人將向您沖來。她會(huì)對您說點(diǎn)什么，然后帶您離開這個(gè)地方。就是這些?！?BR> 我一走出帳篷，就把別林斯基夫人給算卦的事忘得一干二凈了，因?yàn)槲业钠拮诱掖蚁蛭遗軄??！澳愣愕侥膬喝チ?？”她不耐煩地問，“再有不到一個(gè)小時(shí)你姐姐就要到這兒了，我們得去車站接她?，F(xiàn)在就已經(jīng)晚了。”當(dāng)她走開時(shí)，我也跟著她出了集市。
Lesson51 Reward for virtue 對美德的獎(jiǎng)賞
My friend, Herbert, has always been fat, but things got so bad recently that he decided to go on a diet. He began his diet a week ago. First of all, he wrote out a long list of all the foods which were forbidden. The list included most of the things Herbert loves: butter, potatoes, rice, beer, milk, chocolate, and sweets. Yesterday I paid him a visit. I rang the bell and was not surprised to see that Herbert was still as fat as ever. He led me into his room and hurriedly hid a large parcel under his desk. It was obvious that he was very embarrassed. When I asked him what he was doing, he smiled guiltily and then put the parcel on the desk. He explained that his diet was so strict that he had to reward himself occasionally. Then he showed me the contents of the parcel. It contained five large bars of chocolate and three bags of sweets!
我的朋友休一直很胖，但是近來情況變得越發(fā)糟糕，以致他決定節(jié)食。他是一星期前開始節(jié)食的。首先，他開列了一張長長的單子，上面列了所有禁吃的食物。這張單子上的大多數(shù)食物都是休喜歡吃的：黃油、土豆、米飯、啤酒、牛奶、巧克力和糖果。昨天我去看望了他。我按響了門鈴，當(dāng)看到休仍和往常一樣胖時(shí)，我并不感到驚奇。他把我領(lǐng)進(jìn)屋，慌忙把一個(gè)大包藏到了桌子下面。顯然他感到很尷尬。當(dāng)我問他正干什么時(shí)，他內(nèi)疚地笑了，然后把那個(gè)大包拿到了桌上。他解釋說，他的飲食控制得太嚴(yán)格了，以致不得不偶爾獎(jiǎng)賞自己一下。接著他給我看了包里的東西。里面裝了5大塊巧克力和3袋糖果！
Lesson52 A pretty carpet 漂亮的地毯
We have just moved into a new house and I have been working hard all morning. I have been trying to get my new room in order. This has not been easy because I own over a thousand books. To make matters worse, the room is rather small, so I have temporarily put my books on the floor. At the moment, they cover every inch of floor space and I actually have to walk on them to get in or out of the room. A short while ago, my sister helped me to carry one of my old bookcases up the stairs. She went into my room and got a big surprise when she saw all those books on the floor. 'This is the prettiest carpet I have ever seen,' she said. She gazed at it for some time then added, 'You don't need bookcases at all. You can sit here in your spare time and read the carpet!'
我們剛剛搬進(jìn)一所新房子，我辛辛苦苦地干了整整一個(gè)上午。我試圖把我的新房間收拾整齊，但這并不容易，因?yàn)槲矣?,000多本書。更糟糕的是房間還非常小，所以我暫時(shí)把書放在了地板上。這會(huì)兒，書把地板的每一點(diǎn)空隙都占據(jù)了，我實(shí)際上是踩著這些書進(jìn)出房間的。幾分鐘前，我妹妹幫我把一個(gè)舊書櫥抬上了樓。她走進(jìn)我的房間，當(dāng)她看到地板上的那些書時(shí)，大吃一驚?！斑@是我見過的漂亮的地毯，”她說。她盯著“地毯”看了一會(huì)兒，又說：“你根本用不著書櫥，空閑時(shí)你可以坐在這兒讀地毯！”
Lesson53 Hot snake 觸電的蛇
At last firemen have put out a big forest fire in California. Since then, they have been trying to find out how the fire began. Forest fire are often caused by broken glass or by cigarette ends which people carelessly throw away. Yesterday the firemen examined the ground carefully, but were not able to find any broken glass. They were also quite sure that a cigarette end did not start the fire. This morning, however, a fireman accidentally discovered the cause. He noticed the remains of a snake which was wound round the electric wires of a 16,000-volt power line. In this way, he was able to solve the mystery. The explanation was simple but very unusual. A bird had snatched up the snake from the ground and then dropped it on to the wires. The snake then wound itself round the wires. When it did so, it sent sparks down to the ground and these immediately started a fire.
消防隊(duì)員們終于撲滅了加利福尼亞的一場森林大火。從那時(shí)起，他們一直試圖找出起火的原因。森林火災(zāi)時(shí)常由破碎的玻璃或人們隨手扔掉的香煙頭引起。昨天，消防隊(duì)員仔細(xì)查看了地面，但未能發(fā)現(xiàn)碎玻璃。他們還十分肯定火災(zāi)也不是由煙頭引起的。然而今天上午，一個(gè)消防隊(duì)員偶然發(fā)現(xiàn)了起火的原因。他發(fā)現(xiàn)了纏繞在16,000伏高壓線上的一條死蛇。就這樣，他解開了起火之謎。解釋很簡單，卻異乎尋常。一只鳥把蛇從地上抓起來，然后把它扔到了電線上。于是蛇就纏住了幾根電線。當(dāng)它這樣做時(shí)，把火花送到了地面，這些火花立刻引起了一場大火。
Lesson54 Sticky fingers 粘糊的手指
After breakfast, I sent the children to school and then I went to market. It was still early when I returned home. The children were at school, my husband was at work and the house was quiet. So I decided to make some tarts for tea. In a short time I was busy mixing butter and flour and my hands were soon covered with sticky pastry. At exactly that moment, the telephone rang. Nothing could have been more annoying. I picked up the receiver between two sticky fingers and was dismayed when I recognized the voice of Mrs Bates. It took me ten minutes to persuade her to ring back later. At last I hung up the receiver. What a mess! There was pastry on my fingers, on the telephone, and on the door-knobs. I had no sooner got back to the kitchen than the door-bell rang loud enough to wake the dead. This time it was the postman and he wanted me to sign for a registered letter !
早飯后，我送孩子們上學(xué)，然后就去了商店。我回到家時(shí)，時(shí)間還早。孩子們在上學(xué)，我丈夫在上班，家里清靜得很。于是我決定做些肉餡餅。不一會(huì)兒我就忙著調(diào)拌起了黃油和面粉，很快我的手上就沾滿了粘粘的面糊。恰恰在此時(shí)，電話鈴響了。沒有什么能比這更煩人了。我用兩個(gè)沾滿面糊的手指捏起了話筒。當(dāng)聽出是海倫.貝茨的聲音時(shí)，非常喪氣。我用了10分鐘的時(shí)間才說服她過會(huì)兒再來電話。我終于掛上了話筒。真是糟糕透了！我的手指上、電話機(jī)上以及門的把手上，都沾上了面糊。我剛回到廚房，門鈴又響了起來，響聲足以把死人喚醒。這次是郵遞員，他要我簽收一封掛號(hào)信！
Lesson55 Not a gold mine 并非金礦
Dreams of finding lost treasure almost came true recently. A new machine called 'The Revealer' has been invented and it has been used to detect gold which has been buried in the ground. The machine was used in a cave near the seashore where--it is said--pirates used to hide gold. The pirates would often bury gold in the cave and then fail to collect it. Armed with the new machine, a search party went into the cave hoping to find buried treasure. The leader of the party was examining the soil near the entrance to the cave when the machine showed that there was gold under the ground. Very excited, the party dug a hole two feet deep. They finally found a small gold coin which was almost worthless. The party then searched the whole cave thoroughly but did not find anything except an empty tin trunk. In spite of this, many people are confident that 'The Revealer' may reveal something of value fairly soon.
近，找到失蹤寶藏的夢想差一點(diǎn)兒變成現(xiàn)實(shí)。一種叫“探寶器”的新機(jī)器已經(jīng)發(fā)明出來，并被人們用來探測地下埋藏的金子。在靠近海邊的一個(gè)據(jù)說過去海盜常在里面藏金子的巖洞里，這種機(jī)器被派上了用場。海盜們過去常把金子埋藏在那個(gè)洞里，可后來卻沒能取走。一支用這種新機(jī)器裝備起來的探寶隊(duì)進(jìn)入了這個(gè)巖洞，希望找到埋藏著的金子。當(dāng)這個(gè)隊(duì)的隊(duì)長正在檢查洞口附近的土壤時(shí)，那臺(tái)機(jī)器顯示出它的下面埋有金子。隊(duì)員們異常激動(dòng)，就地挖了一個(gè)兩英尺深的坑，但后找到的是一枚幾乎一錢不值的小金幣。隊(duì)員們接著又把整個(gè)洞徹底搜尋了一遍，但除了一只空鐵皮箱外什么也沒找到。盡管如此，很多人仍然相信“探寶器”很快就會(huì)探出值錢的東西來。
Lesson56 Faster than sound! 比聲音還快！
Once a year a race is held for old cars. A lot of cars entered for this race last year and there was a great deal of excitement just before it began. One of the most handsome cars was a Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost. The most unusual car was a Benz which had only three wheels. Built in 1885, it was the oldest car taking part. After a great many loud explosions, the race began. Many of the cars broke down on the course and some drivers spent more time under their cars than in them ! A few cars, however, completed the race. The winning car reached a speed of forty miles an hour--much faster than any of its rivals. It sped downhill at the end of the race and its driver had a lot of trouble trying to stop it. The race gave everyone a great deal of pleasure. It was very different from modern car races but no less exciting.
舊式汽車的比賽每年舉行。去年有很多汽車參加了這項(xiàng)比賽。比賽開始之前，人們異常激動(dòng)。漂亮的汽車之一是羅爾斯--羅伊斯生產(chǎn)的銀鬼汽車，而不尋常的一輛則要屬只有3只輪子的奔馳牌汽車了。該車造于1885年，是參賽車中老的一輛。在好一陣喧鬧的爆炸聲之后，比賽開始了。很多汽車在途中就拋了錨，而有些駕駛員花在汽車底下的時(shí)間比坐在汽車?yán)锩娴臅r(shí)間還長。然而還是有幾輛汽車跑完了全程。獲勝的那輛車達(dá)到了時(shí)速40英里--遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)超過任何對手。它在接近終點(diǎn)時(shí)，沖下了山坡，駕駛員費(fèi)了好大勁才把車停下來。這次比賽使每個(gè)人都挺開心。它雖然與現(xiàn)代汽車比賽大不相同，但激動(dòng)人心的程度并不亞于現(xiàn)代化汽車大賽。
Lesson57 Can I help you, madam? 你要買什么，夫人？
A woman in blue jeans stood at the window of an expensive shop. Though she hesitated for a moment, she finally went in and asked to see a dress that was in the window. The assistant who served her did not like the way she was dressed. Glancing at her scornfully, he told her that the dress was sold. The woman walked out of the shop angrily and decided to punish the assistant next day. She returned to the shop the following morning dressed in a fur coat, with a handbag in one hand and a long umbrella in the other. After seeking out the rude assistant she asked for the same dress. Not realizing who she was, the assistant was eager to serve her this time with great difficulty, he climbed into the shop window to get the dress. As soon as she saw it, the woman said she did not like it. She enjoyed herself making the assistant bring almost everything in the window before finally buying the dress she had first asked for.
一位穿著牛仔褲的婦女站在一家高檔商店的櫥窗前。她雖然猶豫了片刻，但終于還是走進(jìn)了商店，要求把陳列在櫥窗里的一件衣服拿給她看。接待她的售貨員不喜歡她的那副打扮，輕蔑地看了她一眼后，便告訴她那件衣服已經(jīng)賣出去了。這位婦女怒氣沖沖地走出了商店，決定第二天教訓(xùn)一下那個(gè)售貨員。第二天上午，她又來到這家商店，穿了一件裘皮大衣，一只手拎著一只手提包，另一只手拿著一把長柄傘。找到那個(gè)無禮的售貨員后，她還要看昨天的那件衣服。那個(gè)售貨員沒有認(rèn)出她是誰，這一回接待她的態(tài)度非常殷勤。費(fèi)了好大勁兒，他爬進(jìn)櫥窗去取那件衣服。這位婦女對那件衣服只看一眼，就說不喜歡。她開心地迫使那位售貨員把櫥窗里幾乎所有的東西都拿了出來，后才買下了她先要看的那一件。
Lesson58 A blessing in disguise? 是因禍得福嗎？
The tiny village of Frinley is said to possess a 'cursed tree'. Because the tree was mentioned in a newspaper, the number of visitors to Frinley has now increased. The tree was planted near a church fifty years ago, but it is only in recent years that it has gained an evil reputation. It is said that if anyone touches the tree, he will have bad luck; if he picks a leaf, he will die. Many villagers believe that the tree has already claimed a number of victims. The vicar has been asked to have the tree cut down, but so far he has refused. He has pointed out that the tree is a useful source of income as tourists have been coming from all parts of the country to see it. In spite of all that has been said, the tourists-have been picking leaves and cutting their names on the tree-trunk. So far, not one of them has been struck down by sudden death!
據(jù)說弗林利這個(gè)小村里有一棵“該詛咒的樹”。就因?yàn)閳?bào)上提到過這棵樹，所以現(xiàn)在來弗林利參觀的人越來越多。該樹是50年前栽在教堂附近的，但只是近幾年才得到了一個(gè)壞名聲。據(jù)說，誰要是觸摸了這棵樹，誰就會(huì)交上惡運(yùn)；如果誰摘了一片樹葉，誰就會(huì)死去。很多村民相信此樹已經(jīng)害了不少人。人們曾請求教區(qū)的牧師叫人把樹砍掉，但他直到現(xiàn)在也沒有同意。他指出，由于人們從全國各地紛紛前來參觀這棵樹，它成了一個(gè)有用的財(cái)源。盡管有上述種種說法，但游客們還是照常摘樹葉和把他們的名字刻在樹干上。然而到目前為止，還沒有一個(gè)人暴死呢！
Lesson59 In or out ？ 進(jìn)來還是出去？
Our dog, Rex, used to sit outside our front gate and bark. Every time he wanted to come into the garden he would bark until someone opened the gate. As the neighbours complained of the noise, my husband spent weeks training him to press his paw on the latch to let himself in. Rex soon became an expert at opening the gate. However, when I was going out shopping last week, I noticed him in the garden near the gate. This time he was barking so that someone would let him out ! Since then, he has developed another bad habit. As soon as he opens the gate from the outside, he comes into the garden and waits until the gate shuts. Then he sits and barks until someone lets him out. After this he immediately lets himself in and begins barking again. Yesterday my husband removed the gate and Rex got so annoyed we have not seen him since.
我家的狗雷克斯，過去常坐在大門外面叫。每當(dāng)它想到花園里來時(shí)，便汪汪叫個(gè)不停，直到有人把門打開。由于鄰居們對狗叫很有意見，所以我丈夫花了幾個(gè)星期的時(shí)間訓(xùn)練它用腳爪按住門閂把自己放進(jìn)來。雷克斯很快成了開門的專家。然而上星期我正要出去買東西時(shí)，發(fā)現(xiàn)它正呆在花園里邊靠門的地方。這次它叫著讓人把它放出去！從那以后，它養(yǎng)成了另外一種壞習(xí)慣。它從外面把門一打開，就走進(jìn)花園，等著門自動(dòng)關(guān)上。這之后他就坐下汪汪叫起來，直到有人來把它放出去。出去之后，它又馬上把自己放進(jìn)來，接著再開始叫。昨天，我丈夫把門卸了下來，雷克斯很生氣，此后我們便再也沒有見到它。
Lesson60 The future 卜算未來
At a village fair, I decided to visit a fortune-teller called Madam Bellinsky. I went into her tent and she told me to sit down. After I had given her some money, she looked into a crystal ball and said: 'A relation of yours is coming to see you. She will be arriving this evening and intends to stay for a few days. The moment you leave this tent, you will get a big surprise. A woman you know well will rush towards you. She will speak to you and then she will lead you away from this place. That is all.' As soon as I went outside, I forgot all about Madam Bellinsky because my wife hurried towards me. 'Where have you been hiding ?' she asked impatiently. 'Your sister will be here in less than an hour and we must be at the station to meet her. We are late already.' As she walked away, I followed her out of the fair.
在一個(gè)鄉(xiāng)村集市上，我決定去拜訪一位稱作別林斯夫人的算命人。我走進(jìn)她的帳篷，她叫我坐下。我給了她一些錢后，她便查看著一個(gè)水晶球說道：“您的一個(gè)親戚就要來看您了。她將于今天傍晚到達(dá)，并準(zhǔn)備住上幾天。您一走出這個(gè)帳篷，就會(huì)大吃一驚。一位您很熟悉的女人將向您沖來。她會(huì)對您說點(diǎn)什么，然后帶您離開這個(gè)地方。就是這些?！?BR> 我一走出帳篷，就把別林斯基夫人給算卦的事忘得一干二凈了，因?yàn)槲业钠拮诱掖蚁蛭遗軄??！澳愣愕侥膬喝チ?？”她不耐煩地問，“再有不到一個(gè)小時(shí)你姐姐就要到這兒了，我們得去車站接她?，F(xiàn)在就已經(jīng)晚了。”當(dāng)她走開時(shí)，我也跟著她出了集市。