美国语文第五册 第197期:癫狂的火车司机(7)

 　　This was spoken to the poor fireman, who at that moment attempted to rise, and the frightened man sank back again. 此刻，那可怜的锅炉工正想立身站起，听见克罗尔的疯狂吼叫，吓得连忙匍匐在地，不敢动弹。

　　“Here's Little Oscue just before us,” cried out one of the guard.  “我们前方就是小奥斯卡。”一名警卫情急中喊道，

　　But even as he spoke¹, the buildings were at hand.  说时迟，那时快，那些建筑群已扑面而来。

　　A sickening sensation settled upon my heart, for I supposed that we were now gone.  我心里泛起一阵恶心，我清楚或许我们已踏上了不归路，

　　The houses flew by like lightning.  房舍箭一般飞快掠过。

　　I knew if the officers here had turned the switch as usual, we should be hurled² into eternity³ in one fearful crash.  我知道，此处站台的执勤官如果像往常那样转动手柄，火车势必引起可怕碰撞，我们一车人就将彻底完蛋。

　　I saw a flash, it was another engine, I closed my eyes; but still we thundered on!  我看见一道闪光，那是另一列火车，我不由得闭上了双眼，可火车仍在闪电般奔驰。

　　The officers had seen our speed, and knowing that we would not be able to stop, in that distance,  站台执勤官觉察到我们这列火车速度不同寻常，知道我们无法停止，

　　they had changed the switch, so that we went forward.  隔着老远，他们便变换了岔道，整节列车才得以继续冲向前方。

　　But there was sure death ahead, if we did not stop.  如果列车不停止的话，前方仍然遭遇死亡。

　　Only fifteen miles from us was the town of Schwetz, on the Vistula;  此时，我们距离位于维斯的希维切镇只有15英里了。

　　and at the rate we were going we should be there in a few minutes, for each minute carried us over a mile.  以目前速度计算，几分钟内我们即可到达，因为此刻列车速度已达到每分钟一英里以上。

　　The shrieks⁴ of the passengers now rose above the crash of the rails,  铁轨剧烈的碰撞声激起旅客们的尖叫，

　　and more terrific than all else arose the demoniac yells of the mad engineer.  远远比那位着魔般疯狂、不停嘶喊的司机更为恐怖。

　　"Merciful heavens!" gasped⁵ the guardsman, there's not a moment to lose; Schwetz is close.  “仁慈的上帝！”警卫气喘吁吁地说，“几乎没有时间了，希维切快到了，

　　But hold, he added; “let's shoot him.”  抓牢点。”他接着说，“我来枪击他！”

1 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

2 hurled   

v.猛投，用力掷( hurl的过去式和过去分词 )；大声叫骂

参考例句：

• He hurled a brick through the window. 他往窗户里扔了块砖。
• The strong wind hurled down bits of the roof. 大风把屋顶的瓦片刮了下来。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 eternity   

n.不朽，来世；永恒，无穷

参考例句：

• The dull play seemed to last an eternity.这场乏味的剧似乎演个没完没了。
• Finally,Ying Tai and Shan Bo could be together for all of eternity.英台和山伯终能双宿双飞，永世相随。

4 shrieks   

n.尖叫声( shriek的名词复数 )v.尖叫( shriek的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• shrieks of fiendish laughter 恶魔般的尖笑声
• For years, from newspapers, broadcasts, the stages and at meetings, we had heard nothing but grandiloquent rhetoric delivered with shouts and shrieks that deafened the ears. 多少年来， 报纸上， 广播里， 舞台上， 会场上的声嘶力竭，装腔做态的高调搞得我们震耳欲聋。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

5 gasped   

v.喘气( gasp的过去式和过去分词 )；喘息；倒抽气；很想要

参考例句：

• She gasped at the wonderful view. 如此美景使她惊讶得屏住了呼吸。
• People gasped with admiration at the superb skill of the gymnasts. 体操运动员的高超技艺令人赞叹。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》