美国小学英语教材5:第26课 邮件必须送达(8)

 　　Winter and summer, the mails must go through, and in their lonely posts at remount and relay stations the men who looked after the ponies² must be fed. 无论冬季还是夏季，邮件必须送达，在换马站和中继站，在孤独的岗位上照顾小马的人，必须得到供应。

　　Already those on the far side of the mountains had received their supplies from a wagon³ train which had gone out several weeks before. 那些住在山那边的人已经收到了几星期前已经用马车送去的补给。

　　Now it was necessary only to supply the posts closer to St. Joseph. 现在只需要提供给靠近圣约瑟夫的哨所就行了。

　　A swiftly moving train of twenty wagons⁴, drawn⁵ by mules⁶ and in charge of experienced fighting men, left the settlement; 一列快速行进的火车运送20匹马，由骡子拉着，有经验的勇士负责指挥，离开了定居点；

　　and with it rode William Saunders. 威廉·桑德斯也在其中。

　　His duty was to check the supplies as they were dealt out, to keep the records for Russell, Majors and Waddell. 他的职责是检查分发的物资，为拉塞尔、梅杰斯和瓦德尔做好记录。

　　Three days out of St. Joseph and a hundred miles to the west, a lone¹ rider overtook the wagons and passed them at a gallop⁷ with a wave of the hand by way of greeting. 在圣约瑟城的第三天，向西一百英里的地方，有一个孤独的骑手追上了货车，用一只手挥手致意，疾驰而过。

　　It was the Pony⁸ Express rider carrying the mail from the East on the second relay west. 是“快马邮递”的骑手在第二次向西接力赛时，扛着邮件从东边过来了。

　　Five miles ahead lay a remount corral; 在前面五英里处，有一所新马畜栏；

　　ten miles beyond it was the relay station where the pouch⁹ would be turned over to the man who would ride the third stretch. 再过十英里就是中继站，在那里邮袋将被交给第三段路程的那个人。

　　“There's snow a-coming,” said Big Jim Bartigan, leader of the wagon train, sniffing¹⁰ the air. “快要下雪了，” 货车首领比格·吉姆·巴提干看着天空说道。

　　“We'll try to make the relay station before night.” “我们将设法在天黑前到达中继站。”

　　When they arrived, the wagons were parked in a circle for the best protection, the mules and saddle animals were put in the corral, sentinels were selected, and the others set about getting supper. 当他们到达的时候，为了得到最好的保护，货车被停成一圈，骡子和马鞍上的动物被放在畜栏里，挑选好哨兵，其他人开始吃晚饭。

　　Half an hour later one of the sentinels cried out that a horse and rider were coming down the trail. 半小时后，一个哨兵喊道，有一匹马和骑马的人正沿着小路走来。

　　The man slumped¹¹ heavily forward upon the neck of the beast, clutching at the pommel of his saddle. 那人重重地靠在马的脖子上，紧抓着马鞍。

　　The animal shuffled¹² slowly along staggering from side to side, and as he came up to the wagons, stumbled, fell, and did not rise again. 那马摇摇晃晃地慢慢地走着，走到马车跟前，踉踉跄跄地跌跌撞撞，跌倒在地，再也站不起来了。

　　Wearily the rider dragged himself from beneath the animal, picked up his saddl ebags, staggered into the ring of wagons, and sank beside a fire. 疲倦的骑手挣扎着从马的下面爬了出来，拿起他的鞍囊，踉踉跄跄地走到马车圈里，在火旁坐下。

1 lone   

adj.孤寂的，单独的；唯一的

参考例句：

• A lone sea gull flew across the sky.一只孤独的海鸥在空中飞过。
• She could see a lone figure on the deserted beach.她在空旷的海滩上能看到一个孤独的身影。

2 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。

3 wagon   

n.四轮马车，手推车，面包车；无盖运货列车

参考例句：

• We have to fork the hay into the wagon.我们得把干草用叉子挑进马车里去。
• The muddy road bemired the wagon.马车陷入了泥泞的道路。

4 wagons   

n.四轮的运货马车( wagon的名词复数 )；铁路货车；小手推车

参考例句：

• The wagons were hauled by horses. 那些货车是马拉的。
• They drew their wagons into a laager and set up camp. 他们把马车围成一圈扎起营地。

5 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

6 mules   

骡( mule的名词复数 )； 拖鞋； 顽固的人； 越境运毒者

参考例句：

• The cart was pulled by two mules. 两匹骡子拉这辆大车。
• She wore tight trousers and high-heeled mules. 她穿紧身裤和拖鞋式高跟鞋。

7 gallop   

v./n.(马或骑马等)飞奔；飞速发展

参考例句：

• They are coming at a gallop towards us.他们正朝着我们飞跑过来。
• The horse slowed to a walk after its long gallop.那匹马跑了一大阵后慢下来缓步而行。

8 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。

9 pouch   

n.小袋，小包，囊状袋；vt.装...入袋中，用袋运输；vi.用袋送信件

参考例句：

• He was going to make a tobacco pouch out of them. 他要用它们缝制一个烟草袋。
• The old man is always carrying a tobacco pouch with him.这老汉总是随身带着烟袋。

10 sniffing   

n.探查法v.以鼻吸气，嗅，闻( sniff的现在分词 )；抽鼻子（尤指哭泣、患感冒等时出声地用鼻子吸气）；抱怨，不以为然地说

参考例句：

• We all had colds and couldn't stop sniffing and sneezing. 我们都感冒了，一个劲地抽鼻子，打喷嚏。
• They all had colds and were sniffing and sneezing. 他们都伤风了，呼呼喘气而且打喷嚏。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

11 slumped   

大幅度下降，暴跌( slump的过去式和过去分词 )； 沉重或突然地落下[倒下]

参考例句：

• Sales have slumped this year. 今年销售量锐减。
• The driver was slumped exhausted over the wheel. 司机伏在方向盘上，疲惫得睡着了。

12 shuffled   

v.洗（纸牌）( shuffle的过去式和过去分词 )；拖着脚步走；粗心地做；摆脱尘世的烦恼

参考例句：

• He shuffled across the room to the window. 他拖着脚走到房间那头的窗户跟前。
• Simon shuffled awkwardly towards them. 西蒙笨拙地拖着脚朝他们走去。 来自《简明英汉词典》