经济学人:农场里的失窃案 与羊有关

 　　Rural thefts

　　农场里的失窃案

　　On the lamb

　　与羊有关

　　The revival¹ of an old crime

　　旧罪新犯

　　CRIME has been falling in Britain since the mid-1990s, with very few exceptions. Police fret² about rising online fraud and phishing scams perpetuated³ by sophisticated global criminal networks. And then there's sheep rustling⁴.

　　自上世纪九十年代中期起，英国的犯罪率不断下降，只有极少数个案。但警方担心，全球的精密犯罪网络影响下带来的的网络诈骗和网络钓鱼犯罪数量会上升。然后就有了顺手牵羊。

　　Between 2010 and 2011 the cost of thefts of farm animals shot up by 170%, according to NFU Mutual⁵, which insures three-quarters of Britain's farmers. They were up again last year, by a more modest 4%, when about 69,000 sheep were stolen. The rise continues, says the insurer. Over the past three years ￡413,530 ($676,000) worth of livestock⁶, mostly sheep, has been stolen in Cumbria. In November police in the north Pennines held a kind of reverse identification parade, asking farmers if any sheep recovered from thieves had been pilfered⁷ from their fields.

　　全国农场主联合会保障了全国四分之三的农场主，根据这个联合会的数据，2010年至2011年间，农场畜牧的被窃成本飙升170%。去年，将近6万9千头羊被顺走，被窃成本再次上升了4%。保险公司说，被窃成本还将继续上升。在过去的3年间，坎布里亚郡有将近价值413，530英镑（约合67.6万美元）的牲畜被偷走，而且大部分都是羊。十一月，奔宁山北部的警察举办了一个类似反向识别的游行，问农场主是否有羊从他们的农场被偷走。

　　August is a particularly bad time for thefts, says Steve Marsh⁸ of Dorset Police. Lambs are fat and ready for slaughter⁹. Thieves rarely have land on which to graze large herds¹⁰ so they need animals ready to eat. Most are slaughtered¹¹ quickly, he reckons, either in makeshift abattoirs¹² or in slaughterhouses willing to overlook the animals' lack of paperwork. The meat is then sold illegally. Unlike other easily nickable items, such as DVD players, the price of lamb has risen, making it an appetising option. In the legal market, prices have gone up from ￡6.77 a kilo in 2009 to ￡7.86, according to Kantar Worldpanel, a research firm.

　　多赛特郡警察局的马什说，八月份是偷窃案极其猖獗的月份。羊羔们都长得肥肥壮壮等着被宰。小偷们没有地方饲养大群牲畜，所以他们需要直接就可以吃的牲口。大部分被偷的牲畜很快就会被宰杀，马什认为，要么是临时屠宰场，要么是非法屠宰厂会接受没有相关证件的牲畜。然后肉也会被非法的卖掉。不像其他容易被偷的东西，比如DVD播放器，羊肉价格上涨了，使偷羊成为了一个极有诱惑力的选项。根据消费者指数研究所的数据，在合法的农贸市场，羊肉价格从2009年的6.77英镑涨到了7.86英镑。

　　The nature of modern farming makes livestock rustling fairly easy. Sheep are often grazed in isolated¹³ fields far from the farmstead, or on common land where they are vulnerable to raiders. Farmers can no longer keep constant watch over their flocks. At least 160 sheep were stolen in the village of Wool in Dorset in early November. Police say they were nabbed between 8am on one Saturday and 2.30pm on the following Monday; they can narrow down the time no further.

　　现代化放牧的特性使得偷窃牲畜相当容易。羊群常常在远离农场的一小片单独地域吃草，或聚在易被小偷得手公共草地。农场主已不再频繁看管他们的牧群。11月初，多赛特郡羊毛村至少有160头羊失窃。警方说，盗贼在一周六上午8点到下周一下午两点半之间得手的；而且不能再进一步的准确界定时间范围了。

　　Meanwhile other rural thefts decline. Thieves used to winch tractors onto lorries before taking them to sell in eastern Europe, says Tim Price of NFU Mutual. But security on tractors has improved. Until recently the same key could be used to start vehicles on different farms. Manufacturers have fixed¹⁴ this and also added engine immobilisers. Insurance claims are declining. Stealing scrap¹⁵ metal is harder, too: dealers¹⁶ must now verify sellers' identities and are no longer allowed to pay them in cash. Sheep rustling looms¹⁷ larger as a result.

　　同时，其他的农村失窃数量下降了。全国农场主联合会的普莱斯说，盗贼们过去会用绞车将拖拉机拉上卡车，然后卖往东欧地区，但是拖拉机的安全系数有所提高，失窃率也降低了，直到最近同一把钥匙可以开两个不同农场的机动车。生产商已经解决了这个问题，并且还加上了发动机防盗系统。保险申诉变少了。偷金属废料也变得更困难：现在经销商必须要卖家的身份验证，而且不再允许用现金支付。这样顺手牵羊事件就凸现出来了。

　　The thieves know what they are doing, says Rory Stewart, MP for Penrith and the Border, an area with a rich history of sheep theft (Wat Scott of Harden, a legendary¹⁸ Renaissance¹⁹ rustler²⁰, is said to have roared at a haystack: “By my soul, had ye but four feet ye shouldna stand long there”). They understand how to handle the animals and probably use quad²¹ bikes to round them up and shepherd them into lorries. They target sheep because unlike cattle, which have electronic ID tags and passports, sheep simply have ear tags which are easy to remove. The shear²² audacity²³.

　　边界线附近彭里斯郡在历史上就常常出现羊失窃的事件，下院议员斯图尔特说，小偷知道自己在干什么， 他们知道对付牲口的方法：用四轮车把他们将羊群集合起来，然后再赶进卡车，他们总偷羊，是因为羊不像牛一样有电子身份标签和护照，羊只有简单的耳签，而且还很容易去掉。所以偷羊贼们胆子愈发大了。

　　1.according to 根据，按照

　　例句:They both played the game according to the rules.

　　他们俩都依章行事。

　　2.ready to 准备

　　例句:The FBI's renowned²⁴ hostage rescue team was suited up and ready to go.

　　美国联邦调查局威名远扬的人质救援小组整装待命。

　　3.lack of 缺乏

　　例句:You can't fault them for lack of invention.

　　你不能因为他们缺乏创新就指责他们。

　　4.no longer 不再

　　例句:It will remain as a pressure group, but no longer has any pretension²⁵ to be a

　　political party.

　　它仍然是一个压力集团，但不再自称是一个政党。

1 revival   

n.复兴，复苏，（精力、活力等的）重振

参考例句：

• The period saw a great revival in the wine trade.这一时期葡萄酒业出现了很大的复苏。
• He claimed the housing market was showing signs of a revival.他指出房地产市场正出现复苏的迹象。

2 fret   

v.(使)烦恼；(使)焦急；(使)腐蚀，(使)磨损

参考例句：

• Don't fret.We'll get there on time.别着急，我们能准时到那里。
• She'll fret herself to death one of these days.她总有一天会愁死的.

3 perpetuated   

vt.使永存（perpetuate的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• This system perpetuated itself for several centuries. 这一制度维持了几个世纪。
• I never before saw smile caught like that, and perpetuated. 我从来没有看见过谁的笑容陷入这样的窘况，而且持续不变。 来自辞典例句

4 rustling   

n. 瑟瑟声，沙沙声 adj. 发沙沙声的

参考例句：

• the sound of the trees rustling in the breeze 树木在微风中发出的沙沙声
• the soft rustling of leaves 树叶柔和的沙沙声

5 mutual   

adj.相互的，彼此的；共同的，共有的

参考例句：

• We must pull together for mutual interest.我们必须为相互的利益而通力合作。
• Mutual interests tied us together.相互的利害关系把我们联系在一起。

6 livestock   

n.家畜，牲畜

参考例句：

• Both men and livestock are flourishing.人畜两旺。
• The heavy rains and flooding killed scores of livestock.暴雨和大水淹死了许多牲口。

7 pilfered   

v.偷窃（小东西），小偷( pilfer的过去式和过去分词 )；偷窃（一般指小偷小摸）

参考例句：

• Oh, I remember. Lost, pilfered, short-shipped or something. 噢，我想起来了，是有关遗失、被盗、短缺之类的事。 来自商贸英语会话
• The pilfered was let off with some good advice. 小偷经教育后释放。 来自互联网

8 marsh   

n.沼泽，湿地

参考例句：

• There are a lot of frogs in the marsh.沼泽里有许多青蛙。
• I made my way slowly out of the marsh.我缓慢地走出这片沼泽地。

9 slaughter   

n.屠杀，屠宰；vt.屠杀，宰杀

参考例句：

• I couldn't stand to watch them slaughter the cattle.我不忍看他们宰牛。
• Wholesale slaughter was carried out in the name of progress.大规模的屠杀在维护进步的名义下进行。

10 herds   

兽群( herd的名词复数 )； 牧群； 人群； 群众

参考例句：

• Regularly at daybreak they drive their herds to the pasture. 每天天一亮他们就把牲畜赶到草场上去。
• There we saw herds of cows grazing on the pasture. 我们在那里看到一群群的牛在草地上吃草。

11 slaughtered   

v.屠杀，杀戮，屠宰( slaughter的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The invading army slaughtered a lot of people. 侵略军杀了许多人。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Hundreds of innocent civilians were cruelly slaughtered. 数百名无辜平民遭残杀。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 abattoirs   

n.屠场( abattoir的名词复数 )；（拳击、摔跤、斗牛等的）角斗场

参考例句：

• All that talk about abattoirs turned me right off! 关于屠宰场的那些话让我十分恶心。 来自互联网
• They take more care and have a greater number of staff than more intensive abattoirs. 他们更注意生产，比那些更密集的屠宰场拥有更多的雇员。 来自互联网

13 isolated   

adj.与世隔绝的

参考例句：

• His bad behaviour was just an isolated incident. 他的不良行为只是个别事件。
• Patients with the disease should be isolated. 这种病的患者应予以隔离。

14 fixed   

adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的

参考例句：

• Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗？
• Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定，我们就不应该随意改变。

15 scrap   

n.碎片；废料；v.废弃，报废

参考例句：

• A man comes round regularly collecting scrap.有个男人定时来收废品。
• Sell that car for scrap.把那辆汽车当残品卖了吧。

16 dealers   

n.商人( dealer的名词复数 )；贩毒者；毒品贩子；发牌者

参考例句：

• There was fast bidding between private collectors and dealers. 私人收藏家和交易商急速竞相喊价。
• The police were corrupt and were operating in collusion with the drug dealers. 警察腐败，与那伙毒品贩子内外勾结。

17 looms   

n.织布机( loom的名词复数 )v.隐约出现，阴森地逼近( loom的第三人称单数 )；隐约出现，阴森地逼近

参考例句：

• All were busily engaged,men at their ploughs,women at their looms. 大家都很忙，男的耕田，女的织布。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The factory has twenty-five looms. 那家工厂有25台织布机。 来自《简明英汉词典》

18 legendary   

adj.传奇（中）的，闻名遐迩的；n.传奇（文学）

参考例句：

• Legendary stories are passed down from parents to children.传奇故事是由父母传给孩子们的。
• Odysseus was a legendary Greek hero.奥狄修斯是传说中的希腊英雄。

19 renaissance   

n.复活，复兴，文艺复兴

参考例句：

• The Renaissance was an epoch of unparalleled cultural achievement.文艺复兴是一个文化上取得空前成就的时代。
• The theme of the conference is renaissance Europe.大会的主题是文艺复兴时期的欧洲。

20 rustler   

n.[美口]偷牛贼

参考例句：

• The ants have cornered the rustler and are attacking it. 蚂蚁把大虫围困起来并展开进攻。
• Roffman is a cattle-rustler, and he'sgot some stuff for sale. 罗夫曼是个盗肉贼，他又有赃可销了。

21 quad   

n.四方院；四胞胎之一；v.在…填补空铅

参考例句：

• His rooms were on the left-hand side of the quad.他的房间位于四方院的左侧。
• She is a 34-year-old mother of quads.她是个生了四胞胎的34岁的母亲。

22 shear   

n.修剪，剪下的东西，羊的一岁；vt.剪掉，割，剥夺；vi.修剪，切割，剥夺，穿越

参考例句：

• Every spring they shear off the sheep's wool and sell it.每年春天他们都要剪下羊毛去卖。
• In the Hebrides they shear their sheep later than anywhere else.在赫伯里兹，剪羊毛的时间比其他任何地方都要晚。

23 audacity   

n.大胆，卤莽，无礼

参考例句：

• He had the audacity to ask for an increase in salary.他竟然厚着脸皮要求增加薪水。
• He had the audacity to pick pockets in broad daylight.他竟敢在光天化日之下掏包。

24 renowned   

adj.著名的，有名望的，声誉鹊起的

参考例句：

• He is one of the world's renowned writers.他是世界上知名的作家之一。
• She is renowned for her advocacy of human rights.她以提倡人权而闻名。

25 pretension   

n.要求；自命，自称；自负

参考例句：

• I make no pretension to skill as an artist,but I enjoy painting.我并不自命有画家的技巧，但我喜欢绘画。
• His action is a satire on his boastful pretension.他的行动是对他自我卖弄的一个讽刺。