吹小号的天鹅 第57期:救援(8)

 　　Mr. Brickle did as he promised.

　　布里克先生信守了他的诺言。

　　He wrote a letter. A few days later, a man arrived from Washington with the Lifesaving Medal,

　　他写了那封信。几天后，一个男人带着那枚救生奖章从华盛顿来了，

　　and while all the campers watched, he hung the medal around Louis's neck,

　　他当着全体营员的面，把奖章挂到了路易斯的脖子上，

　　alongside the trumpet¹, the slate², and the chalk pencil.

　　和小号，石板，石笔挂在一起。

　　It was a beautiful medal.

　　这是一枚精美的奖章。

　　Engraved³ on it were the words:

　　它的上面刻着这样的字句：

　　TO LOUIS THE SWAN,

　　授予天鹅路易斯，

　　WHO, WITH OUTSTANDING COURAGE AND COMPLETE DISREGARD FOR HIS OWN SAFETY,

　　因为他以非凡的勇气和奋不顾身的精神，

　　SAVED THE LIFE OF APPLEGATE SKINNER.

　　救了阿普尔盖特·斯金纳的生命。

　　Louis took off his slate and wrote,

　　路易斯摘下他的石板写道：

　　"Thank you for this medal. It is a great honor."

　　“谢谢你授予我的奖章。这是一个极大的荣誉。”

　　But he thought to himself, "I'm beginning to get overloaded⁴ with stuff around my neck.

　　可他心里想的却是：“我的脖子要超载了。

　　I've got a trumpet, I've got a slate, I've got a chalk pencil; now I've got a medal.

　　我有了一把小号，一块石板，还有一支石笔；现在我又有了一枚奖章。

　　I'm beginning to look like a hippie.

　　我开始变得像一个嬉皮士了。

　　I hope I'll still be able to fly when my flight feathers grow in again."

　　我希望我的飞羽再长出来后还能飞得起来。”

　　That night when darkness came, Louis blew the most beautiful taps he had ever blown.

　　那天晚上，天黑以后，路易斯吹出了以前从未吹出过的最完美的熄灯号。

　　The man who had brought the medal was listening and watching.

　　那个带来了奖章的男人在一旁听着，观望着。

　　He could hardly believe his ears and his eyes.

　　他几乎不能相信他的耳朵和眼睛了。

　　When he returned to the city, he told people what he had seen and heard.

　　回到华盛顿后，他把他所看到的和听到的都告诉了别人。

　　Louis's fame was growing. His name was known.

　　路易斯的名声越来越大。他的名字已经人尽皆知了。

　　People all over were beginning to talk about the swan that could play a trumpet.

　　人们开始到处议论这只会吹小号的天鹅。

1 trumpet   

n.喇叭，喇叭声；v.吹喇叭，吹嘘

参考例句：

• He plays the violin, but I play the trumpet.他拉提琴，我吹喇叭。
• The trumpet sounded for battle.战斗的号角吹响了。

2 slate   

n.板岩，石板，石片，石板色，候选人名单；adj.暗蓝灰色的，含板岩的；vt.用石板覆盖，痛打，提名，预订

参考例句：

• The nominating committee laid its slate before the board.提名委员会把候选人名单提交全体委员会讨论。
• What kind of job uses stained wood and slate? 什么工作会接触木头污浊和石板呢？

3 engraved   

v.在（硬物）上雕刻（字，画等）( engrave的过去式和过去分词 )；将某事物深深印在（记忆或头脑中）

参考例句：

• The silver cup was engraved with his name. 银杯上刻有他的名字。
• It was prettily engraved with flowers on the back. 此件雕刻精美，背面有花饰图案。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 overloaded   

a.超载的，超负荷的

参考例句：

• He's overloaded with responsibilities. 他担负的责任过多。
• She has overloaded her schedule with work, study, and family responsibilities. 她的日程表上排满了工作、学习、家务等，使自己负担过重。