英国语文第三册 第37期:鸵鸟(下)

 　　When taken, it will turn round upon the hunters, and attack them furiously, till it is brought down. 被抓住时，鸵鸟会掉头愤怒地攻击猎人，直到猎人将其杀死。

　　Dr. Moffat, in his book called Missionary¹ Labours in South Africa, describes the method of the wild Bushmen in hunting the ostrich²: 莫法特博士有一部名为《南非的传教士》的著作，书中描述了布希曼人捕杀鸵鸟的方法：

　　A native is dressed with the skin and feathers of one of these birds; and, thus disguised, he goes near to a flock of ostriches³. 一个人穿上和鸵鸟肤色和羽毛一样的衣服，伪装起来，靠近鸵鸟群。

　　He mimics⁴ the real bird, by pecking on the ground, and shaking his feathers. 他会模仿其它鸵鸟叮地面，抖羽毛。

　　He trots⁶ and walks along, until he gets within bow-shot. 他一路小跑，跟着鸟群走，直到在鸟群中有了一矢之地。

　　Then he shoots a poisoned arrow at one of the flock, and generally succeeds in taking his prey⁷. 随后他会向其中一只鸟射一只毒箭，然后成功获取猎物。

　　A traveller relates that, at a French factory on the River Niger,he once saw a young ostrich so tame, that it let a little black boy mount on its back. 据一个游客叙述，他曾在尼日尔河边上的一座法国工厂看见过一只很温顺的鸵鸟，任由一个黑人小男孩骑到它的背上玩耍。

　　No sooner did it feel the weight of the boy than it set off. 它很快就感觉到了男孩的重量，并开始走动起来。

　　At first it moved at a sharp trot⁵, and then it stretched out its wings, and ran with the fleetness of a race-horse round the village! 起初是快速的小跑，随后张开翅膀飞奔起来，村子里任何一匹赛马都比不上它的速度！

　　The ostrich is chiefly valued for the beautiful white feathers of its wings and tail.  鸵鸟主要是因其翅膀和尾巴上美丽的白色羽毛而受到珍惜。

　　The young reader may not know that the crest⁸ of the Prince of Wales is formed of three ostrich feathers,  年轻的读者可能不了解，《威尔士王子》里的王冠就是由鸵鸟的三根羽毛做成的，

　　with a motto meaning "I serve." The origin of this is said to have been as follows: 上面有一句格言为“我为人人。”据说，这一说法的起源是这样的：

　　The King of Bohemia, who was slain⁹ at the battle of Crecy in the year 1346, wore this crest and motto.  1346年，波西米亚国王命丧克雷西战役战场，他当时带着王冠和这句格言。

　　These were assumed by his conqueror¹⁰, Edward, Prince of Wales, known as the Black Prince, and have been worn ever since by the heir to the British crown. 这都是战胜方人称黑太子的威尔士王子爱德华所虚构，并延续了下来，英国国王的的王冠上还有这样的装饰。

1 missionary   

adj.教会的，传教(士)的；n.传教士

参考例句：

• She taught in a missionary school for a couple of years.她在一所教会学校教了两年书。
• I hope every member understands the value of missionary work. 我希望教友都了解传教工作的价值。

2 ostrich   

n.鸵鸟

参考例句：

• Ostrich is the fastest animal on two legs.驼鸟是双腿跑得最快的动物。
• The ostrich indeed inhabits continents.鸵鸟确实是生活在大陆上的。

3 ostriches   

n.鸵鸟( ostrich的名词复数 )；逃避现实的人，不愿正视现实者

参考例句：

• They are the silliest lot of old ostriches I ever heard of. 他们真是我闻所未闻的一群最傻的老鸵鸟。 来自辞典例句
• How ostriches could bear to run so hard in this heat I never succeed in understanding. 驼鸟在这样干燥炎热的地带为什么能疾速长跑，我永远也理解不了。 来自辞典例句

4 mimics   

n.模仿名人言行的娱乐演员，滑稽剧演员( mimic的名词复数 )；善于模仿的人或物v.（尤指为了逗乐而）模仿( mimic的第三人称单数 )；酷似

参考例句：

• Methods:Models were generate by CT scan,Mimics software and Abaqus software. 方法：采用CT扫描，Mimics软件和Abaqus软件的CAD进行三维有限元模型的创建。 来自互联网
• Relaxing the mind and body mimics the effect that some blood-pressure pills would have. 放松身心会产生某些降压药才能产生的效果。 来自辞典例句

5 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。

6 trots   

小跑，急走( trot的名词复数 )； 匆匆忙忙地走

参考例句：

• A horse that trots, especially one trained for harness racing. 训练用于快跑特别是套轭具赛跑的马。
• He always trots out the same old excuses for being late. 他每次迟到总是重复那一套藉口。

7 prey   

n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨

参考例句：

• Stronger animals prey on weaker ones.弱肉强食。
• The lion was hunting for its prey.狮子在寻找猎物。

8 crest   

n.顶点；饰章；羽冠；vt.达到顶点；vi.形成浪尖

参考例句：

• The rooster bristled his crest.公鸡竖起了鸡冠。
• He reached the crest of the hill before dawn.他于黎明前到达山顶。

9 slain   

杀死，宰杀，杀戮( slay的过去分词 )； (slay的过去分词)

参考例句：

• The soldiers slain in the battle were burried that night. 在那天夜晚埋葬了在战斗中牺牲了的战士。
• His boy was dead, slain by the hand of the false Amulius. 他的儿子被奸诈的阿缪利乌斯杀死了。

10 conqueror   

n.征服者，胜利者

参考例句：

• We shall never yield to a conqueror.我们永远不会向征服者低头。
• They abandoned the city to the conqueror.他们把那个城市丢弃给征服者。