英国语文第三册 第18期:没有锁的门

 　　LESSON 18 The gate without a latch¹ 第十八课 没有锁的门

　　There was a farmer, who had a little gate, which opened from his yard into a field. 有一个农夫，他有一个小小的门，打开可以从他的院子到田地里。

　　This little gate wanted a latch, and therefore could not be fastened. 这个小小的门因此无法固定想要上个栓。

　　When he passed through the gate, he was very careful to pull it after him; but other people were not always so mindful. 当他穿过大门，他把它在他非常小心；但其他人并不总是如此在意。

　　Even with all his care, the wind would often blow it open again after he had closed it. 即使他所有的关怀，风经常吹他又闭开。

　　The result was, that the gate was generally either flapping backwards² and forwards in the wind, or standing³ wide open. 结果是，那门通常都是扑在风中向后和向前，或大开着。

　　In this way the poultry⁴ were always getting out; and the sheep and lambs were always getting in. 这样的家禽总是出去；和绵羊和羊羔总是站在。

　　It took up half the children's time to run after the chickens and drive them back into the yard, and to send the sheep and the lambs back into the field. 它占据了一半的孩子的时间去追鸡赶回到院子里，并把绵羊和羊羔回场。

　　The farmer's wife was always telling him that he ought to get the latch mended; 农夫的妻子总是告诉他，他应该获得锁存器修补；

　　but he used to say that it would cost sixpence, and that it was not worth while. 但他曾经说要花六便士，那是不值得的。

　　He said that the children might as well be driving the sheep and the poultry in and out of the yard and the field as be doing nothing. 他说，孩子们可以驾驶羊和家禽进出院子和场做什么。

　　So the gate remained without the latch. 因此，门没有锁。

　　One day a fat pig got out of its sty, and, pushing open the gate, ran into the field, and thence wandered into a thick wood. 一天，一只胖猪走出猪圈，推开门，跑到现场，然后走进一片茂密的树林。

　　The pig was soon missed and a hue-and-cry was raised after it. 猪很快就错过了和大声疾呼之后。

　　The farmer was in the act of tying up a horse in the stable; but he left it, to run after the pig. 农民在拴马的稳定的行为；但他离开它，运行后的猪。

　　His wife was ironing some clothes in the kitchen; and she left her work, to follow her husband. 他的妻子是熨烫衣服在厨房里；她离开了她的工作，跟随丈夫。

　　The daughter was stirring some broth⁵ over the fire; and she left it, to run after her mother. 女儿在火上搅拌一些肉汤；她离开了，去追她的妈妈。

　　The farmer's sons and his man joined in the chase after the pig; and away they all went, men and women, pellmell, to the wood. 农夫的儿子和他的人加入了追猪；他们都去了，男人和女人，杂乱，对木。

　　But the man, making more haste than good speed, sprained⁶ his ankle in jumping over a fence. 但男人，比速度更快，扭伤了脚踝，跳过篱笆。

　　The farmer and his sons were obliged to give up chasing the pig, to carry the man back to the house. 农夫和他的儿子被迫放弃追逐猪，带人回到家里。

　　The good woman and her daughter also returned to assist the poor man who was hurt. 好女人和她的女儿也回到了帮助穷人的人受伤。

　　When they got back to the house, they found that the broth had boiled over,—that the dinner was spoiled; 他们回到家的时候，他们发现在肉汤煮过了，那晚餐被毁了；

　　and that two shirts, which had been hanging before the fire, were scorched⁷ and utterly⁸ ruined. 这两件衬衫，一直挂在火中，被彻底毁了。

　　The farmer scolded his wife and the girl, for being so careless as not to take the shirts and the broth from the fire before they left the kitchen. 农民骂他的妻子和女儿，是不是把衬衫从汤的火在他们离开厨房这么粗心。

　　He then went to his stable, where he found that the horse, which he had left loose, had kicked a fine colt and broken its leg. 然后他去稳定，在那里他发现马，他离开松，踢了一个小马和断了腿。

　　The servant was kept in the house for a fortnight, by the hurt to his ankle. 仆人被关在屋子里呆了两个星期，由脚踝受伤。

　　Thus, besides the injury done to the farmer's man, the farmer lost two weeks' work from his servant, 因此，除了伤害了农民的人，农民从他的仆人两周的工作丢了，

　　a fine colt, a fat pig, and his two best shirts, to say nothing of the loss of his dinner—all for the want of a sixpenny latch! 一个小马，一个胖猪，和他的两个最好的衬衫，说，对于想要一个便宜的锁他的晚餐都损失什么！

　　In this way were two good old proverbs verified:(— 这样，两个老谚语验证了：—

　　For want of a nail the wheel comes off. 想要一个钉车轮脱落。

　　Safe bind⁹, safe find. 安全绑定，安全找到。

1 latch   

n.门闩，窗闩；弹簧锁

参考例句：

• She laid her hand on the latch of the door.她把手放在门闩上。
• The repairman installed an iron latch on the door.修理工在门上安了铁门闩。

2 backwards   

adv.往回地，向原处，倒，相反，前后倒置地

参考例句：

• He turned on the light and began to pace backwards and forwards.他打开电灯并开始走来走去。
• All the girls fell over backwards to get the party ready.姑娘们迫不及待地为聚会做准备。

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 poultry   

n.家禽，禽肉

参考例句：

• There is not much poultry in the shops. 商店里禽肉不太多。
• What do you feed the poultry on? 你们用什么饲料喂养家禽?

5 broth   

n.原(汁)汤(鱼汤、肉汤、菜汤等)

参考例句：

• Every cook praises his own broth.厨子总是称赞自己做的汤。
• Just a bit of a mouse's dropping will spoil a whole saucepan of broth.一粒老鼠屎败坏一锅汤。

6 sprained   

v.&n. 扭伤

参考例句：

• I stumbled and sprained my ankle. 我摔了一跤，把脚脖子扭了。
• When Mary sprained her ankles, John carried her piggyback to the doctors. 玛丽扭伤了足踝，约翰驮她去看医生。

7 scorched   

烧焦，烤焦( scorch的过去式和过去分词 )； 使（植物）枯萎，把…晒枯； 高速行驶； 枯焦

参考例句：

• I scorched my dress when I was ironing it. 我把自己的连衣裙熨焦了。
• The hot iron scorched the tablecloth. 热熨斗把桌布烫焦了。

8 utterly   

adv.完全地，绝对地

参考例句：

• Utterly devoted to the people,he gave his life in saving his patients.他忠于人民，把毕生精力用于挽救患者的生命。
• I was utterly ravished by the way she smiled.她的微笑使我完全陶醉了。

9 bind   

vt.捆，包扎；装订；约束；使凝固；vi.变硬

参考例句：

• I will let the waiter bind up the parcel for you.我让服务生帮你把包裹包起来。
• He wants a shirt that does not bind him.他要一件不使他觉得过紧的衬衫。