新概念英语3--（一天学一篇）---课14

ltlong52010

课文14  贵族歹徒
226. 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.'
# U0 u; M" B; r& t0 x, I/ G* f        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.
* v4 E- c7 i$ B0 ^0 z228. Obtaining 'protection money' is not a modern crime.
2 O3 {* g* I4 Q- [  D        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:
, ~0 C+ ?: I- d5 ?% |* }' `2 B230. that people would rather pay large sums of money than have their life work destroyed by gangsters.
        '人们情愿拿出大笔的钱,也不愿毕生的心血毁于歹徒之手.
% W( {# ?: v: S# N$ c" U231. Six hundred years ago, Sir John Hawkwood arrived in Italy with a band of soldiers and settled near Florence.
' ]5 D% q7 C3 A, a; z        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,
2 c: Z# X) H& D+ v0 D0 }# u- t' f! S232. 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,
2 d$ O* U. h2 T8 B8 ?        每次意大利各城邦之间打伏,
: u2 u" k: O3 a- ~% \234. Hawkwood used to hire his soldiers to princes who were willing to pay the high price he demanded.
9 j- J6 T: \$ r3 y# k7 C& H        霍克伍德把他的士兵雇佣给愿给他出高价的君主。
  k) Z" K9 r: A9 y) e3 w7 _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,
236. after burning down a few farms, would offer to go away if protection money was paid to them.
; E5 g+ G- H3 \# D; ^        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。
2 U; G: D, r' x( W( H) f% P237. Hawkwood made large sums of money in this way.
6 s8 U. u& w& W9 u4 ~+ k0 H/ f        霍克伍德用这种方法挣了大笔钱.
238. In spite of this, the Italians regarded him as a sort of hero.
* W! L8 z( Q7 B9 ^& @$ z1 H        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.'
" |, V( w& Z2 r* b! X) t        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.'