Carolyn S. Bailey 卡罗琳·贝利

　　When our country was young, Benjamin Franklin was one of its greatest and busiest men. 美国刚成立的时候，本杰明·富兰克林是最伟大、最忙碌的人之一。

　　He ran a newspaper and a printing business, but they were not enough to keep him busy. 他经营报纸和印刷业务，但这些还不足以让他忙忙碌碌。

　　So he started the first public library, the first fire-department, and the first hospital in America. 他创办了美国第一家公共图书馆、第一家消防部门和第一家医院。

　　These are just a few of the things he did. 这只是他做的事情之中的几件。

　　The story you will now read tells of another famous thing Franklin did, and how he happened to do it. 以下故事讲述了富兰克林做的另一件著名的事情，以及他是怎么做的。

　　THE ARNOLDS' COLD HOME 阿诺德冰冷的家

　　Beth Arnold emptied the basket that her brother William had brought in. 贝丝·阿诺德把哥哥威廉带来的篮子倾倒一空。

　　She stood in the light of a small open fire, a little Quaker girl of old Philadelphia. 贝丝·阿诺德是贵格会教徒，站在微弱的火光下。

　　Her yellow curls were tucked inside a close-fitting gray cap, 贝丝有着一头黄色卷发，紧戴着一顶灰色帽子，

　　and her straight gray frock reached almost to the heels of her heavy shoes. 她那件灰色连衣裙几乎到了鞋跟。

　　There was not a great deal in the basket — 篮子里没有多少东西——

　　a little flour, some tea, a very tiny package of sugar, and some potatoes. 一点面粉，一些茶，一小袋糖，

　　Beth arranged them on the shelves in the kitchen, shivering a little as she moved about the cold room. 贝丝把它们放在厨房的架子上，在冰冷的房间里走动着，瑟瑟发抖。

　　Philadelphia was a new city at that time, 那时，费城刚建立不久，

　　and the Arnolds had brought little with them from across the sea to make their lives cheerful. 而阿诺德一家带来的东西寥寥无几，不足以让他们生活惬意。

　　Out-side, huge piles of snow were banked on the low stone doorsteps of the houses, and a chill wind blew up from the wharves. 屋外，低矮的石阶上堆着厚厚的积雪，码头上刮起阵阵寒风。

　　The Quakers who were out of doors hurried along with heads bent against the wind and their long cloaks wrapped closely around them. 门外的贵格会教徒人头攒动，迎着风弯着头，长斗篷紧紧地裹在身上。