美国语文第五册 第20期:请别多管闲事(6)

 　　"Come, come," said the old gentleman, one snake is quite enough to have in the house at a time; “得了，得了，”老人说道，有时，家里有条蛇还是不错的，

　　therefore, the sooner you are gone the better. 这样的话，还是快走为好！

　　With that he dismissed him, without waiting a moment for his reply. 说话间，老人即刻令人将艾尔伯特送走，容不得他半点解释。

　　William Smith next entered the room, and being left alone soon began to amuse himself in looking at the curiosities around him. 接下来，威廉姆.史密斯走进房间，周围一旦没人，他马上开始东张西望，到处巡睃周围好玩的物件。

　　William was not only curious and prying¹, but dishonest, too, and observing that the key was left in the drawer of a bookcase, 威廉姆好奇心忒重，喜欢包打听，人还不够诚实。他留意到书柜抽屉上留下的钥匙，

　　he stepped on tiptoe in that direction. 于是踮起脚尖走过去。

　　The key had a wire fastened to it, which communicated with an electrical machine, and William received such a shock as he was not likely to forget. 钥匙上拴有一根金属线，线那头连接一台电机，那种电击可能让他终生难忘。威廉姆从电击中缓过神，

　　No sooner did he sufficiently² recover himself to walk, than he was told to leave the house, and let other people lock and unlock their own drawers. 刚能挪步，就被告知即刻回家，至于那些抽屉是否打开还是关闭，已与他全然无关。

　　The other boy was Harry³ Gordon, and though he was left in the room full twenty minutes, he never during that time stirred from his chair. 接下来的哈利.戈登也被单独留在屋里长达二十分钟，他没有离开座椅到处走动。

　　Harry had eyes in his head as well as the others, but he had more integrity in his heart; 哈利眼力不错，他与其他少年一样，但他更具有别人没有的诚实。

　　neither the dish cover, the cherries, the drawer knob, the closet door, the round box, nor the key tempted⁴ him to rise from his seat; 盘盖也好，莓果也罢，或是抽屉把手，或是壁橱柜门，或是圆盒，或是钥匙，没有东西可以诱惑哈利。

　　and the consequence was that, in half an hour after, he was engaged in the service of the old gentleman at Elm Tree Hall. 半小时后，哈利最终被留在榆树山庄。哈利忠心耿耿地为老人服务，为他养老送终。

　　He followed his good old master to his grave, and received a large legacy⁵ for his upright conduct in his service. 由于哈利为人正派，举止端庄，最终继承了老人的财产。

1 prying   

adj.爱打听的v.打听，刺探（他人的私事）( pry的现在分词 )；撬开

参考例句：

• I'm sick of you prying into my personal life! 我讨厌你刺探我的私生活！
• She is always prying into other people's affairs. 她总是打听别人的私事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 sufficiently   

adv.足够地，充分地

参考例句：

• It turned out he had not insured the house sufficiently.原来他没有给房屋投足保险。
• The new policy was sufficiently elastic to accommodate both views.新政策充分灵活地适用两种观点。

3 harry   

vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼

参考例句：

• Today,people feel more hurried and harried.今天，人们感到更加忙碌和苦恼。
• Obama harried business by Healthcare Reform plan.奥巴马用医改掠夺了商界。

4 tempted   

v.怂恿（某人）干不正当的事；冒…的险（tempt的过去分词）

参考例句：

• I was sorely tempted to complain, but I didn't. 我极想发牢骚，但还是没开口。
• I was tempted by the dessert menu. 甜食菜单馋得我垂涎欲滴。

5 legacy   

n.遗产，遗赠；先人(或过去)留下的东西

参考例句：

• They are the most precious cultural legacy our forefathers left.它们是我们祖先留下来的最宝贵的文化遗产。
• He thinks the legacy is a gift from the Gods.他认为这笔遗产是天赐之物。