【双语有声阅读】孩子们的志愿(3)

And whenever his boat was laid up he would come home and swell¹ around the town in his blackest and greasiest² clothes, so that nobody could help remembering that he was a steamboatman; and he used all sorts of steamboat technicalities in his talk, as if he were so used to them that he forgot common people could not understand them.

如果一旦那艘船停得久一些，他就会回家看看。在镇上的每个角落，都可以看到他穿着那套油腻，肮脏的外套到处招摇，恨不得告诉每个人他是一名轮船水手。他一开口，便全是术语，好像习以为常似的，却忘记了普通人根本听不懂。

Two or three of the boys had long been persons of consideration among us because they had been to St.Louis once and had a vague general knowledge of its wonders, but the day of their glory was over now.

我们那些伙伴中又两三个一直受到大家的羡慕，因为他们过去去过一次圣路易斯，对那儿的新鲜事略知一二，但是如今他们的光辉岁月已经结束了。

They lapsed³ into a humble⁴ silence, and learned to disappear when the ruthless 'cub'-engineer approached.

他们很有自知之明，从此不再声张；而且一旦那个冷酷无情的机械师小崽子来到身边，就赶紧溜走。

This fellow had money, too, and hair oil.

这个家伙还有很多钱，头上抹得亮亮的发油。

If ever a youth was cordially admired and hated by his comrades, this one was.

假如有个年轻人既能让他的伙伴羡慕不已，又能让伙伴对他恨之入骨，那么这个人就非他莫属。

No girl could withstand his charms. He 'cut out' every boy in the village.

任何一个女孩都抵抗不了他的魅力，他是镇上风头最胜的男孩。

When his boat blew up at last, it diffused⁵ a tranquil⁶ contentment among us such as we had not known for months.

后来，传来他那条船爆炸的消息。私下里，我们所有人都对他的灾难感到高兴，而且好几个月都没这么开心了。

But when he came home the next week, alive, renowned⁷, and appeared in church all battered⁸ up and bandaged, a shining hero, stared at and wondered over by everybody, it seemed to us that the partiality of Providence⁹ for an undeserving reptile¹⁰ had reached a point where it was open to criticism.

然而，出乎意料的是，一个星期以后，这个家伙居然又活生生地回来了，并且还因此成了名人。他满身伤痕，绑着厚厚的绑带来到教堂，他成了名声显赫的大英雄。所有人都注视着他，每个人都对他吃惊不已。在我们看来，老天是如此偏袒一个一文不值的卑鄙小人，这简直令人无法忍受。

1 swell   

vi.膨胀，肿胀；增长，增强

参考例句：

• The waves had taken on a deep swell.海浪汹涌。
• His injured wrist began to swell.他那受伤的手腕开始肿了。

2 greasiest   

adj.脂肪的( greasy的最高级 )；（人或其行为）圆滑的；油腻的；（指人、举止）谄媚的

参考例句：

3 lapsed   

adj.流失的，堕落的v.退步( lapse的过去式和过去分词 )；陷入；倒退；丧失

参考例句：

• He had lapsed into unconsciousness. 他陷入了昏迷状态。
• He soon lapsed into his previous bad habits. 他很快陷入以前的恶习中去。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 humble   

adj.谦卑的，恭顺的；地位低下的；v.降低，贬低

参考例句：

• In my humble opinion,he will win the election.依我拙见，他将在选举中获胜。
• Defeat and failure make people humble.挫折与失败会使人谦卑。

5 diffused   

散布的，普及的，扩散的

参考例句：

• A drop of milk diffused in the water. 一滴牛奶在水中扩散开来。
• Gases and liquids diffused. 气体和液体慢慢混合了。

6 tranquil   

adj. 安静的, 宁静的, 稳定的, 不变的

参考例句：

• The boy disturbed the tranquil surface of the pond with a stick. 那男孩用棍子打破了平静的池面。
• The tranquil beauty of the village scenery is unique. 这乡村景色的宁静是绝无仅有的。

7 renowned   

adj.著名的，有名望的，声誉鹊起的

参考例句：

• He is one of the world's renowned writers.他是世界上知名的作家之一。
• She is renowned for her advocacy of human rights.她以提倡人权而闻名。

8 battered   

adj.磨损的；v.连续猛击；磨损

参考例句：

• He drove up in a battered old car.他开着一辆又老又破的旧车。
• The world was brutally battered but it survived.这个世界遭受了惨重的创伤,但它还是生存下来了。

9 providence   

n.深谋远虑，天道，天意；远见；节约；上帝

参考例句：

• It is tempting Providence to go in that old boat.乘那艘旧船前往是冒大险。
• To act as you have done is to fly in the face of Providence.照你的所作所为那样去行事，是违背上帝的意志的。

10 reptile   

n.爬行动物；两栖动物

参考例句：

• The frog is not a true reptile.青蛙并非真正的爬行动物。
• So you should not be surprised to see someone keep a reptile as a pet.所以，你不必惊奇有人养了一只爬行动物作为宠物。