美国小学英语教材6:第157课 亚伯拉罕·林肯成长历程(3)

He was more than a tough, long, rawboned boy. He amazed men with his man's lifting power.

他不仅仅是一个身体健壮，身高臂长，身体消瘦的男孩，他举重物的能力惊人。

He put his shoulders under a new-built corn crib one day and walked away with it to where the farmer wanted it.

一天，他将肩膀放在新堆好的玉米垛下面，并可以将它移动到农民想要让它待的地方。

Four men, ready with poles to put under it and carry it, didn't need their poles.

四名准备好用杆子放在底部扛着玉米垛的男子无需杆子了。

He played the same trick with a chicken house; at the new, growing town of Gentryville near his home,

在他家附近的金特里维尔镇，这是一座欣欣向荣的新城，他在搬运鸡舍时也是如此搬运，

they said that the chicken house weighed six hundred pounds, and only a big boy with a hard backbone¹ could get under it and walk away with it.

他们说鸡舍有600磅重，只有一名身材魁梧的男孩可以将它扛在身下并使其移动。

So he grew, living in that Pigeon Creek² cabin for a home, sleeping in the loft³,

他住在位于鸽子溪的一处木棚屋中，他睡在阁楼里。

climbing up at night to a bed just under the roof, where sometimes the snow and the rain drove through the cracks,

晚上会爬进紧贴屋檐的床中，有时雨雪会从缝隙中漏进屋内，

eating sometimes at a table where the family had only one thing to eat potatoes.

有时一家人的口粮就只有土豆。

Once at the table, when there were only potatoes, his father spoke⁴ a blessing⁵ to the Lord，for potatoes;

一次餐桌上只有土豆，他的父亲感谢上帝赐予土豆；

the boy murmured, Those are mighty⁶ poor blessings⁷. And Abe made jokes once when company came,

男孩嘴里嘟囔着，这些祝福虽然看起来简单，但却很有力量，艾比会对同伴开玩笑，

and Sally Bush Lincoln brought out raw potatoes, gave the visitors a knife apiece,

赛丽·布什·林肯带来了生土豆，并给客人每人一把小刀，

and they all peeled raw potatoes and talked about the crops, politics, and religion.

他们将生土豆去皮，并谈论葡萄、政治和宗教。

Days when they had only potatoes to eat didn't come often. Other days in the year they had yaller-legged chicken with gravy⁸,

只有土豆的日子不是特别普遍，其它日子他们有带肉汁的黄色鸡腿，

and corn dodgers⁹ with shortening, and berries and honey. They tasted of bear meat, deer, coon, quail¹⁰, grouse¹¹,

起酥油做的玉米饼，浆果和蜂蜜，他们尝过熊肉、鹿肉、浣熊肉、鹌鹑肉、松鸡肉、

prairie turkey, catfish¹², bass¹³, perch¹⁴. Abe knew the sleep that comes after long hours of work out of doors.

草原火鸡、鲶鱼、昌鱼、鲈鱼，艾比知道在外工作几小时后就要休息。

He worked in those young years clearing timber land for pasture and corn crops, cutting loose the brush,

年轻时林肯为牧场和玉米地开发林地，清除灌木丛，

piling it and burning it, splitting rails, pulling the crosscut saw and whipsaw, driving the shovel¹⁵ plow¹⁶,

将它们堆积起来焚烧，建立围栏，使用横切锯和双人横切锯，使用培土犁。

harrowing, planting, hoeing, pulling fodder¹⁷, milking cows, churning butter, helping¹⁸ neighbors at house-raisings, log-rollings, corn-huskings.

耙地、种植、锄地、喂饲料、挤牛奶、搅奶酪，帮助邻居盖房子，滚木头以及将玉米去皮。

1 backbone   

n.脊骨，脊柱，骨干；刚毅，骨气

参考例句：

• The Chinese people have backbone.中国人民有骨气。
• The backbone is an articulate structure.脊椎骨是一种关节相连的结构。

2 creek   

n.小溪，小河，小湾

参考例句：

• He sprang through the creek.他跳过小河。
• People sunbathe in the nude on the rocks above the creek.人们在露出小溪的岩石上裸体晒日光浴。

3 loft   

n.阁楼，顶楼

参考例句：

• We could see up into the loft from bottom of the stairs.我们能从楼梯脚边望到阁楼的内部。
• By converting the loft,they were able to have two extra bedrooms.把阁楼改造一下，他们就可以多出两间卧室。

4 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

5 blessing   

n.祈神赐福；祷告；祝福，祝愿

参考例句：

• The blessing was said in Hebrew.祷告用了希伯来语。
• A double blessing has descended upon the house.双喜临门。

6 mighty   

adj.强有力的；巨大的

参考例句：

• A mighty force was about to break loose.一股巨大的力量即将迸发而出。
• The mighty iceberg came into view.巨大的冰山出现在眼前。

7 blessings   

n.（上帝的）祝福( blessing的名词复数 )；好事；福分；因祸得福

参考例句：

• Afflictions are sometimes blessings in disguise. 塞翁失马，焉知非福。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• We don't rely on blessings from Heaven. 我们不靠老天保佑。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

8 gravy   

n.肉汁；轻易得来的钱，外快

参考例句：

• You have spilled gravy on the tablecloth.你把肉汁泼到台布上了。
• The meat was swimming in gravy.肉泡在浓汁之中。

9 dodgers   

n.躲闪者，欺瞒者( dodger的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a crackdown on fare dodgers on trains 对火车逃票者的严厉打击
• But Twain, Howells, and James were jeeringly described by Mencken as "draft-dodgers". 不过吐温、豪威尔斯和詹姆斯都是被门肯讥诮地叫做“逃避兵役的人。” 来自辞典例句

10 quail   

n.鹌鹑；vi.畏惧，颤抖

参考例句：

• Cowards always quail before the enemy.在敌人面前，胆小鬼们总是畏缩不前的。
• Quail eggs are very high in cholesterol.鹌鹑蛋胆固醇含量高。

11 grouse   

n.松鸡；v.牢骚，诉苦

参考例句：

• They're shooting grouse up on the moors.他们在荒野射猎松鸡。
• If you don't agree with me,please forget my grouse.如果你的看法不同，请不必介意我的牢骚之言。

12 catfish   

n.鲶鱼

参考例句：

• Huge catfish are skinned and dressed by hand.用手剥去巨鲇的皮并剖洗干净。
• We gigged for catfish off the pier.我们在码头以鱼叉叉鲶鱼。

13 bass   

n.男低音(歌手)；低音乐器；低音大提琴

参考例句：

• He answered my question in a surprisingly deep bass.他用一种低得出奇的声音回答我的问题。
• The bass was to give a concert in the park.那位男低音歌唱家将在公园中举行音乐会。

14 perch   

n.栖木，高位，杆；v.栖息，就位，位于

参考例句：

• The bird took its perch.鸟停歇在栖木上。
• Little birds perch themselves on the branches.小鸟儿栖歇在树枝上。

15 shovel   

n.铁锨，铲子，一铲之量；v.铲，铲出

参考例句：

• He was working with a pick and shovel.他在用镐和铲干活。
• He seized a shovel and set to.他拿起一把铲就干上了。

16 plow   

n.犁，耕地，犁过的地；v.犁，费力地前进[英]plough

参考例句：

• At this time of the year farmers plow their fields.每年这个时候农民们都在耕地。
• We will plow the field soon after the last frost.最后一场霜过后，我们将马上耕田。

17 fodder   

n.草料；炮灰

参考例句：

• Grass mowed and cured for use as fodder.割下来晒干用作饲料的草。
• Guaranteed salt intake, no matter which normal fodder.不管是那一种正常的草料，保证盐的摄取。

18 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。