新概念英语3--（一天学一篇）---课14

ltlong52010

课文14  贵族歹徒
5 b0 C5 V4 I6 u" j226. There was a time when the owners of shops and businesses in Chicago had to pay large sums of money to gangsters in return for 'protection.'
# _7 `+ x; e$ ]0 [        曾经有一个时期,芝加哥的店主和商行的老板们不得不拿出大笔的钱给歹徒以换取'保护'。
227. If the money was not paid promptly, the gangsters would quickly put a man out of business by destroying his shop.
        如果交款不及时,歹徒们就会很快捣毁他的商店,让他破产.
7 i8 @1 G- {+ q' `8 ]( }228. Obtaining 'protection money' is not a modern crime.
% Y+ u$ a$ y& w  M8 O        榨取'保护金'并不是一种现代的罪恶行径.
229. As long ago as the fourteenth century, an Englishman, Sir John Hawkwood, made the remarkable discovery
        早在14世纪,英国人约翰.霍克伍德就有过非凡的发现:
; @8 f; E- b4 Y# I6 b6 Y  H7 ~! u230. that people would rather pay large sums of money than have their life work destroyed by gangsters.
0 g5 G/ Z0 l' a7 a& M* `! {4 L        '人们情愿拿出大笔的钱,也不愿毕生的心血毁于歹徒之手.
: Z$ V# D  [1 o4 R231. Six hundred years ago, Sir John Hawkwood arrived in Italy with a band of soldiers and settled near Florence.
        600年前,约翰.霍克伍德爵士带着一队士兵来到意大利,在佛罗伦萨附近驻扎下来,
232. He soon made a name for himself and came to be known to the Italians as Giovanni Acuto.
        很快就出了名.意大利人叫他乔凡尼.阿库托.
233. Whenever the Italian city-states were at war with each other,
8 E( h3 j# m4 x  d& d        每次意大利各城邦之间打伏,
234. Hawkwood used to hire his soldiers to princes who were willing to pay the high price he demanded.
+ u- _; v) a3 y) X7 h        霍克伍德把他的士兵雇佣给愿给他出高价的君主。
235. In times of peace, when business was bad, Hawkwood and his men would march into a city-state and,
        和平时期,当生意萧条时,霍克伍德便带领士兵进入某个城邦,
* R* S, o  m4 S) ?: w236. after burning down a few farms, would offer to go away if protection money was paid to them.
" ^' l7 m. V3 T, ^/ w/ i3 s+ f& n: ?        纵火烧毁一两个农场,然后提出,如向他们缴纳保护金,他们便主动撤离。
; W+ t, E3 L8 J! Y+ o/ l237. Hawkwood made large sums of money in this way.
: p. V6 _) S5 E* n' a8 k* x        霍克伍德用这种方法挣了大笔钱.
& c! J" L- }8 ?- p/ P$ P238. In spite of this, the Italians regarded him as a sort of hero.
        尽管如此,意大利人还是把他视作某种英雄。
239. When he died at the age of eighty, the Florentines gave him a state funeral
        他80岁那年死去时,佛罗伦萨人为他举行了国葬,
240. and had a picture painted which was dedicated to the memory of 'the most valiant soldier and most notable leader, Signor Giovanni Haukodue.'
        并为他画像以纪念这位'骁勇无比的战士、杰出的领袖乔凡尼.阿库托先生.'