美国小学英语教材6:第10课 摄像机猎象记(8)

 　　Boculy found so many elephants for us that we gradually became accustomed to the big beasts 鲍克里为我们找到了许多头大象，我们逐渐适应了大型动物，

　　and set our cameras many times for them without fear. 多次在准备摄像机时也不感到害怕了。

　　On one such occasion, when we were in our blind at night, a long file of elephants came down for water. 有一次在黑天，伸手不见五指，一大群大象来这里找寻水源。

　　As they approached our flashlight apparatus¹, they stopped. For several minutes they hesitated, 当它们靠近我们的闪光灯设备时，它们停住了，它们犹豫了几分钟，

　　their trunks waving in the air. Then one elephant left the herd². 它们挥舞着长鼻，随后一头大象离开了象群。

　　As he moved away, he would stop every fifteen or twenty feet to wave his trunk. 当它走开后，每走15或20英尺时就会挥舞长鼻。

　　He seemed greatly puzzled and finally went back to the herd. 它似乎很是困惑，之后又回到了象群。

　　The elephants held a conference at which there was not a sound. 大象们举行了一个会议，没有一点声音。

　　Finally they went to the water by another route. We got no pictures that night. 最后，它们通过另一条道走向水边，那天晚上我们没有拍照。

　　One old female got the habit of breaking into our vegetable garden. 一头年迈的母象已习惯闯入我们的菜园。

　　She particularly liked sweet potatoes and was quite orderly about securing them. 她特别喜欢甜土豆，寻觅食物时显得很规矩。

　　Every night she would pick over a space about ten square feet, 每晚，她都会找一块大约十尺见方的地方，

　　eating everything in that area and going away without damaging anything else. 食用那里所有的食物，离开时不会损坏其他东西。

　　We found that this old lady was entering the garden at a hole which she had made in the hedge beside a great yellow-wood tree. 我们发现这头母象是通过一个小洞进入菜园的，这个小洞是它在靠近一颗黄桑树的树篱间凿出的。

　　Here we rigged³ up our wires and camera with everything so set that the elephant would spring the flash light herself. 我们在这里连接好线路和照相机，一切万事俱备，这头大象会自己按下闪光灯。

1 apparatus   

n.装置，器械；器具，设备

参考例句：

• The school's audio apparatus includes films and records.学校的视听设备包括放映机和录音机。
• They had a very refined apparatus.他们有一套非常精良的设备。

2 herd   

n.兽群，牧群；vt.使集中，把…赶在一起

参考例句：

• She drove the herd of cattle through the wilderness.她赶着牛群穿过荒野。
• He had no opinions of his own but simply follow the herd.他从无主见，只是人云亦云。

3 rigged   

adj.作弊的，非法操纵的v.给（船、桅杆）装配帆及索具( rig的过去式和过去分词 )；用临时替代材料迅速搭起；（用不正当手段）操纵；垄断

参考例句：

• He said the election had been rigged. 他说选举被人操纵了。
• They complained that the election had been rigged. 他们投诉这次选举被人操纵。 来自《简明英汉词典》