美国小学英语教材5:第24课 邮件必须送达(6)

 　　The exact hour of the arrival of the mail from the West was always doubtful. 西方邮件到达的确切之间总是不确定的。

　　Any one of a hundred things might hinder its progress from the coast. 一百件事里就有一件可能会阻止邮件到达海岸。

　　But from the earliest possible moment when it might arrive, William was on the watch for it. 但从邮件可能到达的最早时刻起，威廉就守望着它。

　　Night or day, it made no difference, he was on hand to greet the rider, to awaken¹ the clerk if need be, 无论白天黑夜，他都在旁边迎接骑手，如果需要的话，他会叫醒执事，

　　or to poke² his head through the door of Mr. Majors's office and sing out, “The mail has come through, sir.” 或者把头伸进梅杰斯先生办公室的门，大声喊道：“邮件来了，先生。”

　　Then he took the pony³ in charge, cooled him down, blanketed him if the weather was severe, fed and watered him, and examined him for any wound or injury that needed attention. 然后，他照看小马，给它降温，如果天气恶劣就给它盖毯子，喂它吃东西，给它喝水，检查它是否有任何需要注意的伤口。

　　The riders, depending for their very lives upon those ponies⁴, repaid him with the stories of their adventures. 骑手们依靠着马的生命，所以用他们的冒险故事回报了威廉。

　　They passed on to him what they knew of the plains and Indians and woodcraft until the boy became wise in the ways of the plains country. 他们把他们对平原、印第安人和木匠活的了解传授给他，直到威廉都了解了平原国家的知识。

　　Carrying Supplies to a Reply Station 把补给送到回收站

　　In time, William went to his employer with the thing closest to his heart. 不久，威廉最贴身的东西去找雇主。

　　“I want to be a Pony Express rider, sir,” he said. “我想当“快马邮递”骑士，先生，”他说。

　　Mr. Majors did not laugh, as William had half feared he would. Instead, he patted the boy on the shoulder. 梅杰斯先生没有笑，威廉担心他会笑。相反，他拍了拍威廉的肩膀。

　　“You're a bit young yet, lad,” he said kindly⁵. “你太小了，小伙子，”他和蔼地说。

　　“You gave a job as rider to Willy Cody” (the famous Buffalo⁶ Bill), pointed⁷ out the boy. “你给了威利·科迪一个骑手的工作（著名的水牛比尔）”，威廉指着一个小伙子。

　　“He's only a year older than I am.” “他只比我大一岁。”

1 awaken   

vi.醒，觉醒；vt.唤醒，使觉醒，唤起，激起

参考例句：

• Old people awaken early in the morning.老年人早晨醒得早。
• Please awaken me at six.请于六点叫醒我。

2 poke   

n.刺，戳，袋；vt.拨开，刺，戳；vi.戳，刺，捅，搜索，伸出，行动散慢

参考例句：

• We never thought she would poke her nose into this.想不到她会插上一手。
• Don't poke fun at me.别拿我凑趣儿。

3 pony   

adj.小型的；n.小马

参考例句：

• His father gave him a pony as a Christmas present.他父亲给了他一匹小马驹作为圣诞礼物。
• They made him pony up the money he owed.他们逼他还债。

4 ponies   

矮种马，小型马( pony的名词复数 )； ￡25 25 英镑

参考例句：

• They drove the ponies into a corral. 他们把矮种马赶进了畜栏。
• She has a mania for ponies. 她特别喜欢小马。

5 kindly   

adj.和蔼的，温和的，爽快的；adv.温和地，亲切地

参考例句：

• Her neighbours spoke of her as kindly and hospitable.她的邻居都说她和蔼可亲、热情好客。
• A shadow passed over the kindly face of the old woman.一道阴影掠过老太太慈祥的面孔。

6 buffalo   

n.(北美)野牛；(亚洲)水牛

参考例句：

• Asian buffalo isn't as wild as that of America's. 亚洲水牛比美洲水牛温顺些。
• The boots are made of buffalo hide. 这双靴子是由水牛皮制成的。

7 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。