VOA标准英语2009-The Pony Express Will Ride Again!

Small city of St. Joseph, Missouri, makes preparations for 150th anniversary next year of first mail service to American West

Ted¹ Landphair | St. Joseph, MO 20 November 2009

The small city of St. Joseph, Missouri, lies smack² in the middle of the continental³ United States.  But its colorful history is tied to the American West, which begins just across the Missouri River.  We visited St. Joseph as it prepares to celebrate next year's 150th anniversary of its greatest claim to fame - the legendary⁴ mail service known as the Pony⁵ Express.

 

 
Carol M. Highsmith
Herb Mignery’s bronze statue, “Journey West,” downtown relives the days when St. Joseph was the last significant American settlement between the Missouri River and California. Settlement expeditions left from there throughout the 19th century

Pathfinders Meriwether Lewis and William Clark camped in St. Joseph in 1806 as they returned from their historic voyage of discovery to the Pacific Northwest.  St. Joseph merchants grew rich outfitting⁶ prospectors⁷ for epic⁸ gold rushes to California and Colorado.  The notorious western outlaw⁹ Jesse James was shot and killed in St. Joseph in 1882.

But it was Pony Express riders, who weighed 57 kilos [125 pounds] or less, hurrying at a fast trot¹⁰ day and night to cover the 2700 kilometers [1700 miles] to Sacramento, California and back who became the heroes of Western novels, movies, and the spectacular Buffalo¹¹ Bill's Wild West shows that toured the world.  

Four museums celebrate St. Joseph's biggest claim to fame

Historian Jacqueline Lewin runs four different St. Joseph museums.

 

 
T. Landphair
A map at the Pony Express National Museum shows the long and harrowing route that the young, brave riders traveled in relays on horseback from St. Joseph to Sacramento.

Lewin says St. Joseph was chosen as the eastern terminus of the Pony Express, "because it was the farthest west that the telegraph came, the farthest point west that the railroad came, and it already had a good road going out to California.  [The trail] was established by all the immigrants who had previously¹² traveled the West."

It was 1860, and brash Saint Joseph was sure it was destined¹³ to become the Queen City of the Prairie.  But Kansas City stole that crown because many of Saint Joseph's citizens had come from the South and would align¹⁴ with the losing southern Confederacy, during the American Civil War that began a year later. 

And 1861 would also see the last hurrah¹⁵ of the thrilling Pony Express.

"One Pony Express rider talks about being caught in a tornado," Lewin says.  "So weather would have been a hazard.  Buffalo stampedes.  [But] being a rider wasn't as dangerous as being a station keeper, because the riders were constantly on the move.  Station keepers faced a lot of dangers in the Utah Nevada area from the Indians," Lewin adds.

Pony Bob's long and brave ride to deliver the mail

Across town at the Pony Express National Museum in the Pikes Peak Stable building that once quartered the riders' small and fast horses, Cindy Daffron, the museum's director, describes an encounter between 20-year-old Bob Haslam and a band of Indians on the trail.  "Pony Bob," as he was known, had already taken an arrow in one arm, clear to the bone.

 

 
Carol M. Highsmith
Herman McNeil’s statue of a Pony Express rider and horse has stood in downtown St. Joseph for nearly 70 years. McNeil also carved frescoes¹⁶ in several state capitols, as well as statuary at the U.S. Supreme¹⁷ Court building in Washington, D.C.

"He said, 'I got one gun left.  I'm gonna go through a pass.  I gotta make it,'" Daffron explains.  She continues, "and old Buck¹⁸, his horse, was faster, because the Pony Express fed their horses better than the Indians did.  So he knew he could get through the pass and beat them.  He turns around, and sure enough, there's three more Indians coming.  He pulls out the other gun, fires all its bullets.  About that time, he takes another arrow right in the jaw¹⁹.  Took out part of his jaw and five of his teeth.  But he rode 380 miles [611 kilometers] in 36 hours.  It was the longest and bravest ride known by any Pony Express rider."

A rich history despite a short-lived service

Records were spotty at best in the desolate²⁰ plains, mountains, and deserts crossed by Pony Express riders, but it's thought that as few as two riders died in Indian attacks.  And only one pouch²¹ of mail is known to have been lost in the 18 months that the service was in operation. 

The courageous²² riders rode in never-ending relays, changing horses every 16 kilometers [10 miles] or so before calling it a day, or night, at home stations about 125 kilometers [78 miles] down the trail.  This was often after nine or ten straight hours in the saddle. 

Some relay and home stations were simple dusty cabins, so filthy²³ that riders slept in haystacks out back in the corrals.
   
The Pony Express kept the mail moving even as riders slept

 

 
T. Landphair
One can see an example of a Pony Express mochila at the Patee House Museum in St. Joseph. Lift one, too. These leather satchels²⁴, thrown over the horse’s saddle, were plenty heavy, even before their pouches²⁵ were loaded with mail and then locked.

Meanwhile the mail pouches, called by the Spanish term mochilas, kept right on going atop the next horse on the 10-day relay to or from Sacramento.  The system was planned by the Pony Express owners, William Russell, William Bradford Waddell and Alexander Majors.

"The amazing part to me about the Pony Express was that in January, February and March of 1860, Russell, Majors and Waddell put this thing together," says Gary Chilcote, director of the Patee house museum, which is a former hotel where the Pony Express kept offices.

"They hired hundreds of people, bought hundreds of horses," Chilcote adds.  "They set up stations along the route.  They did all this in three months' time without any modern communications we have today.  They announced in January they were going to start April third, and by gosh, that's when they started, April third."

They didn't have a single horse when they started, Chilcote says.  "They didn't have anything.  Didn't have any money, either," he adds.
   
Telegraph signals sudden end for Pony Express

But less than two years after its launch, the Pony Express service suddenly became obsolete²⁶.  Once telegraph lines reached California, carrying messages in seconds rather than days, there was no further need for the relay riders.

 

 
Carol M. Highsmith
This little St. Joseph Motel is ready-made for the big 150th Anniversary celebration of the Pony Express next year.

Coordinator²⁷ Beth Carmichael says special events during the Pony Express 150th Anniversary celebration next year will include everything from a Buffalo Bill look-alike contest and a full dress Pony Express ball to the annual reenactment of the cross-country ride by more than 500 riders, starting in Sacramento and ending in St. Joseph.

"They ride straight, nine or ten days straight," Carmichael says.  "Seven days a week across all these states.  And some of the riders are actually descendants of the Pony Express riders.  When the do the re-ride, they do bring mail across, actual U.S. mail," she says.

Last year, True West magazine named St. Joseph "America's Number One Most Western Town."  And this year, American Cowboy magazine followed suit, including St. Joseph in its list of "Top 20 Places to Live in the West."  But the city's historic tie to the Wild West will really come to life next year, the sesquicentennial, or 150th anniversary, of the daring, but short-lived, Pony Express.

1 ted   

vt.翻晒，撒，撒开

参考例句：

• The invaders gut ted the village.侵略者把村中财物洗劫一空。
• She often teds the corn when it's sunny.天好的时候她就翻晒玉米。

2 smack   

vt.拍，打，掴；咂嘴；vi.含有…意味；n.拍

参考例句：

• She gave him a smack on the face.她打了他一个嘴巴。
• I gave the fly a smack with the magazine.我用杂志拍了一下苍蝇。

3 continental   

adj.大陆的，大陆性的，欧洲大陆的

参考例句：

• A continental climate is different from an insular one.大陆性气候不同于岛屿气候。
• The most ancient parts of the continental crust are 4000 million years old.大陆地壳最古老的部分有40亿年历史。

4 legendary   

adj.传奇（中）的，闻名遐迩的；n.传奇（文学）

参考例句：

• Legendary stories are passed down from parents to children.传奇故事是由父母传给孩子们的。
• Odysseus was a legendary Greek hero.奥狄修斯是传说中的希腊英雄。

5 pony   

adj.小型的；n.小马

参考例句：

• His father gave him a pony as a Christmas present.他父亲给了他一匹小马驹作为圣诞礼物。
• They made him pony up the money he owed.他们逼他还债。

6 outfitting   

v.装备，配置设备，供给服装( outfit的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The outfitting installation activities carried out on the building berth or dock. 舾装在船台上或船钨内完成。 来自互联网
• There is so much outfitting work. Do you subcontract some of them? 有这么多的舾装工作要做，你们将工程分包出去吗？ 来自互联网

7 prospectors   

n.勘探者，探矿者( prospector的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The prospectors have discovered such minerals as calcite,quartz and asbestos here. 探矿人员在这里发现了方解石、石英、石棉等矿藏。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The prospectors have discovered many minerals here. 探矿人员在这里发现了许多矿藏。 来自辞典例句

8 epic   

n.史诗，叙事诗；adj.史诗般的，壮丽的

参考例句：

• I gave up my epic and wrote this little tale instead.我放弃了写叙事诗，而写了这个小故事。
• They held a banquet of epic proportions.他们举行了盛大的宴会。

9 outlaw   

n.歹徒，亡命之徒；vt.宣布…为不合法

参考例句：

• The outlaw hid out in the hills for several months.逃犯在山里隐藏了几个月。
• The outlaw has been caught.歹徒已被抓住了。

10 trot   

n.疾走，慢跑；n.老太婆；现成译本；(复数）trots:腹泻（与the 连用）；v.小跑，快步走，赶紧

参考例句：

• They passed me at a trot.他们从我身边快步走过。
• The horse broke into a brisk trot.马突然快步小跑起来。

11 buffalo   

n.(北美)野牛；(亚洲)水牛

参考例句：

• Asian buffalo isn't as wild as that of America's. 亚洲水牛比美洲水牛温顺些。
• The boots are made of buffalo hide. 这双靴子是由水牛皮制成的。

12 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。

13 destined   

adj.命中注定的；(for)以…为目的地的

参考例句：

• It was destined that they would marry.他们结婚是缘分。
• The shipment is destined for America.这批货物将运往美国。

14 align   

vt.使成一线，结盟，调节；vi.成一线，结盟

参考例句：

• Align the ruler and the middle of the paper.使尺子与纸张的中部成一条直线。
• There are signs that the prime minister is aligning himself with the liberals.有迹象表明首相正在与自由党人结盟。

15 hurrah   

int.好哇，万岁，乌拉

参考例句：

• We hurrah when we see the soldiers go by.我们看到士兵经过时向他们欢呼。
• The assistants raised a formidable hurrah.助手们发出了一片震天的欢呼声。

16 frescoes   

n.壁画( fresco的名词复数 )；温壁画技法，湿壁画

参考例句：

• The Dunhuang frescoes are gems of ancient Chinese art. 敦煌壁画是我国古代艺术中的瑰宝。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The frescoes in these churches are magnificent. 这些教堂里的壁画富丽堂皇。 来自《简明英汉词典》

17 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

18 buck   

n.雄鹿，雄兔；v.马离地跳跃

参考例句：

• The boy bent curiously to the skeleton of the buck.这个男孩好奇地弯下身去看鹿的骸骨。
• The female deer attracts the buck with high-pitched sounds.雌鹿以尖声吸引雄鹿。

19 jaw   

n.颚，颌，说教，流言蜚语；v.喋喋不休，教训

参考例句：

• He delivered a right hook to his opponent's jaw.他给了对方下巴一记右钩拳。
• A strong square jaw is a sign of firm character.强健的方下巴是刚毅性格的标志。

20 desolate   

adj.荒凉的，荒芜的；孤独的，凄凉的；v.使荒芜，使孤寂

参考例句：

• The city was burned into a desolate waste.那座城市被烧成一片废墟。
• We all felt absolutely desolate when she left.她走后，我们都觉得万分孤寂。

21 pouch   

n.小袋，小包，囊状袋；vt.装...入袋中，用袋运输；vi.用袋送信件

参考例句：

• He was going to make a tobacco pouch out of them. 他要用它们缝制一个烟草袋。
• The old man is always carrying a tobacco pouch with him.这老汉总是随身带着烟袋。

22 courageous   

adj.勇敢的，有胆量的

参考例句：

• We all honour courageous people.我们都尊重勇敢的人。
• He was roused to action by courageous words.豪言壮语促使他奋起行动。

23 filthy   

adj.卑劣的；恶劣的，肮脏的

参考例句：

• The whole river has been fouled up with filthy waste from factories.整条河都被工厂的污秽废物污染了。
• You really should throw out that filthy old sofa and get a new one.你真的应该扔掉那张肮脏的旧沙发，然后再去买张新的。

24 satchels   

n.书包( satchel的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Genuine leather satchels make young ladies fall into temptation. 真皮女用挎包——妙龄女郎的诱惑。 来自互联网
• Scans the front for mines, satchels, IEDs, and other threats. 搜索前方可能存在的地雷、炸药、路边炸弹以及其他的威胁。 来自互联网

25 pouches   

n.（放在衣袋里或连在腰带上的）小袋( pouch的名词复数 )；（袋鼠等的）育儿袋；邮袋；（某些动物贮存食物的）颊袋

参考例句：

• Pouches are a peculiarity of marsupials. 腹袋是有袋动物的特色。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Under my eyes the pouches were heavy. 我眼睛下的眼袋很深。 来自《简明英汉词典》

26 obsolete   

adj.已废弃的，过时的

参考例句：

• These goods are obsolete and will not fetch much on the market.这些货品过时了，在市场上卖不了高价。
• They tried to hammer obsolete ideas into the young people's heads.他们竭力把陈旧思想灌输给青年。

27 coordinator   

n.协调人

参考例句：

• The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, headed by the Emergency Relief Coordinator, coordinates all UN emergency relief. 联合国人道主义事务协调厅在紧急救济协调员领导下，负责协调联合国的所有紧急救济工作。
• How am I supposed to find the client-relations coordinator? 我怎么才能找到客户关系协调员的办公室？