大学体验英语第二册Unit4-Passage B

　In the Nick of Time
　As Katie Pritchard unloaded bags of groceries from the trunk of her car on May 1, 1989, her sons Todd and Scott played happily in the driveway. The family lived at the end of a dead-end street in Ramsey, New Jersey¹. So Katie was not worried about her kids wandering out to the street and getting hit by a car. But she often warned three-year-old Todd not to go near the railroad tracks. The tracks were less than 300 feet from the house, just beyond a cluster of trees. 　
　After putting away her first load of groceries, Katie returned to her car to get more bags. She saw the boys still at play. Katie also heard the roar of a passenger express train as it rolled by. Then she went back into the house with another load of grocery bags.　

　Despite their mother's warnings, Todd and his 18-month-old brother were attracted by the sound of the speeding train. They walked through the trees and knelt down on the tracks. What the little boys didn't know was that a second train was heading straight for them. 　

　Just over a slight rise to the west, a 19-car freight train slowly made its way up the incline. Rich Campana, the engineer, saw the overhead lights give the "all-clear." The passenger express train was far down the tracks. So Campana pulled the throttle² to resume full speed. Standing³ next to him in the cab was conductor Anthony Falzo. Falzo, a 17-year veteran of the railroad, was sharing some small talk with Campana. But, as the train reached the top of the rise, the two men noticed something on the tracks about 800 yards ahead. What was it? It appeared to be two bundles or boxes--one yellow and one red. " Then the yellow one moved," said Falzo, "and we realized it was two kids." 　

?Campana slammed on the train's brake and blasted his air horn. Falzo knew right away that the train was going too fast to stop in time. Immediately he rushed out the engine's cab door and out onto its narrow running board. He quickly made his way to the front of the engine, and then climbed down a steel ladder to the last rung. There he hung, at the front of the train, about two feet above the roadbed. Frantically⁴ he waved and shouted at the kids, telling them to get off the tracks. They didn't move. Falzo later said that they just looked up, " as if we could steer⁵ around them." 　
　Meanwhile Katie heard the air horn and the screech⁶ of the train's brakes. Her heart pounded as she raced outside. Just one look around told her the truth. Todd and Scott were gone! She knew that they must be on the tracks.　

? Falzo thought about jumping off the train and trying to run ahead of it to save the little boys. But even as the train slowed down, Falzo knew he couldn't outrun it. So this 35-year-old former gymnast formed another plan. He decided⁷ to leap off the train just as it neared the children. That way he might be able to scoop⁸ up the boys and get them off the track in time. Falzo would have to time his jump exactly. If he leaped too soon, the train would beat him to the kids. If he jumped too late, the train would crush the boys beneath its wheels. 　

?Luckily, Falzo had a very good sense of timing⁹. At the last possible instant, he leaped from the train. He took two giant strides and grabbed the children. With one child tucked under each arm, he pressed Todd and Scott down into the roadbed gravel¹⁰. The outer edge of the train passed just inches over their heads. 　
?When the train finally stopped, the third car was perched just a couple of inches over their heads. But the boys were safe. Luckily, Scott's cut wasn't serious. After 13 stitches, he was as good as new. "There's no word in Webster's," said Katie Pritchard, "that can express our deepest, everlasting¹¹ appreciation¹² to Tony [Falzo] for what he did." 　

1 jersey   

n.运动衫

参考例句：

• He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
• They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。

2 throttle   

n.节流阀，节气阀，喉咙；v.扼喉咙，使窒息，压

参考例句：

• These government restrictions are going to throttle our trade.这些政府的限制将要扼杀我们的贸易。
• High tariffs throttle trade between countries.高的关税抑制了国与国之间的贸易。

3 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

4 frantically   

ad.发狂地, 发疯地

参考例句：

• He dashed frantically across the road. 他疯狂地跑过马路。
• She bid frantically for the old chair. 她发狂地喊出高价要买那把古老的椅子。

5 steer   

vt.驾驶，为…操舵；引导；vi.驾驶

参考例句：

• If you push the car, I'll steer it.如果你来推车，我就来驾车。
• It's no use trying to steer the boy into a course of action that suits you.想说服这孩子按你的方式行事是徒劳的。

6 screech   

n./v.尖叫；(发出)刺耳的声音

参考例句：

• He heard a screech of brakes and then fell down. 他听到汽车刹车发出的尖锐的声音,然后就摔倒了。
• The screech of jet planes violated the peace of the afternoon. 喷射机的尖啸声侵犯了下午的平静。

7 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

8 scoop   

n.铲子，舀取，独家新闻；v.汲取，舀取，抢先登出

参考例句：

• In the morning he must get his boy to scoop it out.早上一定得叫佣人把它剜出来。
• Uh,one scoop of coffee and one scoop of chocolate for me.我要一勺咖啡的和一勺巧克力的。

9 timing   

n.时间安排，时间选择

参考例句：

• The timing of the meeting is not convenient.会议的时间安排不合适。
• The timing of our statement is very opportune.我们发表声明选择的时机很恰当。

10 gravel   

n.砂跞；砂砾层；结石

参考例句：

• We bought six bags of gravel for the garden path.我们购买了六袋碎石用来铺花园的小路。
• More gravel is needed to fill the hollow in the drive.需要更多的砾石来填平车道上的坑洼。

11 everlasting   

adj.永恒的，持久的，无止境的

参考例句：

• These tyres are advertised as being everlasting.广告上说轮胎持久耐用。
• He believes in everlasting life after death.他相信死后有不朽的生命。

12 appreciation   

n.评价；欣赏；感谢；领会，理解；价格上涨

参考例句：

• I would like to express my appreciation and thanks to you all.我想对你们所有人表达我的感激和谢意。
• I'll be sending them a donation in appreciation of their help.我将送给他们一笔捐款以感谢他们的帮助。