英国语文第三册 第48期:忙碌的小拉普兰人(下)

 But he is very happy and contented¹. If he has a herd² of reindeer³, he thinks he is a rich man.  但是他们很快乐也很满足。如果有一群驯鹿，那就是富人了。

He has very little to eat besides its flesh and its milk. 除了驯鹿肉和鹿奶外，他们几乎没有别的东西可吃。

When winter comes, and the wild-fowl have flown away, and the sea is frozen too hard to let him catch fish,  冬季降临，鸟儿们都飞走了，海水结冰，他们很难捕鱼，

he goes to his herd of reindeer and kills one of them. Its flesh is as good to him as beef or mutton is to us. 这时他们就会杀一只驯鹿食用。对他们来说，驯鹿肉就像我们的牛肉和羊肉那样美味。

Every morning and every night the reindeer are fetched up to be milked.  每天早上和晚上他们都会挤鹿奶，

The milk they give is thicker and nicer than that of the cow. The Lapp wife makes cheese of it;  鹿奶要比牛奶浓而且更美味。女拉普人用鹿奶做成奶酪；

but she does not use butter. 但是她们并不使用黄油。

The Laplanders ride in sledges⁵ drawn⁶ by reindeer instead of horses.  拉普兰人乘坐的雪橇是由驯鹿而不是马拉着。

The deer is fastened to the sledge⁴ by a strap⁷, and his master ties a cord round his horns by way of a bridle⁸. 他们用皮带把雪橇绑在鹿身上，在鹿角套上缰绳，就能驾驭。

When the reindeer dies, or is killed, his warm skin makes a coat or rug, or whatever garment the Lapp chooses to have;  驯鹿老死或被杀死后，它们温暖毛皮被用来制作大衣或毯子，或其他任何他们想要的衣物；

so that he may be said to clothe, as well as to feed, his master. 所以，驯鹿既能当拉普人的食物，也能用作做衣服。

This animal lives upon nothing but moss⁹, which grows under the snow, and seems to have been put there on purpose for him.  驯鹿只吃苔藓。苔藓长在雪下面，就好像是专门为它们而长的。

In winter, when it freezes so hard that you could not stand in the air a minute,  冬天冷到结冰时，人难以在外头站上一分钟，

the reindeer wanders about looking for moss. He has no stable or shelter of any kind.  但驯鹿却到处跑去寻找苔藓。驯鹿没有固定的处所，

But he turns up the frozen snow, and gets at the moss, and is quite content.  但是它们会往有雪的地方去，那样能吃到苔藓，它们是很满足的。

A horse or a cow would die, if turned out in such a frost. But this is the home of the reindeer.  在这么冷的环境下，马或牛会丧命，然而这却是驯鹿额家园。

He does not die, for God has placed him there to be a comfort to the little Lapp. 驯鹿不会死于寒冷，因为它是上帝派给小拉普兰人的礼物。

1 contented   

adj.满意的，安心的，知足的

参考例句：

• He won't be contented until he's upset everyone in the office.不把办公室里的每个人弄得心烦意乱他就不会满足。
• The people are making a good living and are contented,each in his station.人民安居乐业。

2 herd   

n.兽群，牧群；vt.使集中，把…赶在一起

参考例句：

• She drove the herd of cattle through the wilderness.她赶着牛群穿过荒野。
• He had no opinions of his own but simply follow the herd.他从无主见，只是人云亦云。

3 reindeer   

n.驯鹿

参考例句：

• The herd of reindeer was being trailed by a pack of wolves.那群驯鹿被一只狼群寻踪追赶上来。
• The life of the Reindeer men was a frontier life.驯鹿时代人的生活是一种边区生活。

4 sledge   

n.雪橇，大锤；v.用雪橇搬运，坐雪橇往

参考例句：

• The sledge gained momentum as it ran down the hill.雪橇从山上下冲时的动力越来越大。
• The sledge slid across the snow as lightly as a boat on the water.雪橇在雪原上轻巧地滑行，就象船在水上行驶一样。

5 sledges   

n.雪橇，雪车( sledge的名词复数 )v.乘雪橇( sledge的第三人称单数 )；用雪橇运载

参考例句：

• Sledges run well over frozen snow. 雪橇在冻硬了的雪上顺利滑行。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They used picks and sledges to break the rocks. 他们用[镐和撬]来打碎这些岩石。 来自互联网

6 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

7 strap   

n.皮带，带子；v.用带扣住，束牢；用绷带包扎

参考例句：

• She held onto a strap to steady herself.她抓住拉手吊带以便站稳。
• The nurse will strap up your wound.护士会绑扎你的伤口。

8 bridle   

n.笼头，束缚；vt.抑制，约束；动怒

参考例句：

• He learned to bridle his temper.他学会了控制脾气。
• I told my wife to put a bridle on her tongue.我告诉妻子说话要谨慎。

9 moss   

n.苔，藓，地衣

参考例句：

• Moss grows on a rock.苔藓生在石头上。
• He was found asleep on a pillow of leaves and moss.有人看见他枕着树叶和苔藓睡着了。