新概念英语3--（一天学一篇）---课14

ltlong52010

课文14  贵族歹徒
1 l- G9 w% l5 B0 g/ {- ^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.'
        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'。
) T5 L( n6 K* a& |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.
228. Obtaining 'protection money' is not a modern crime.
        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:
230. that people would rather pay large sums of money than have their life work destroyed by gangsters.
, O' A6 ~3 j& e7 y$ l" O+ x  t        '人们情愿拿出大笔的钱,也不愿毕生的心血毁于歹徒之手.
. \: C8 g# C7 K) ?1 q& \2 R231. Six hundred years ago, Sir John Hawkwood arrived in Italy with a band of soldiers and settled near Florence.
- U2 P. J5 p" d& \$ U$ ^# a: t        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.
- `7 f$ I) _5 O' N, t        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,
        每次意大利各城邦之间打伏,
  U/ ^' z8 Z  x* L' H( J234. Hawkwood used to hire his soldiers to princes who were willing to pay the high price he demanded.
! `3 ?8 Q7 `7 _+ `# l/ T9 T' @        霍克伍德把他的士兵雇佣给愿给他出高价的君主。
7 u" C- W5 s4 v* D% Q& O' m3 p' h  ~235. In times of peace, when business was bad, Hawkwood and his men would march into a city-state and,
6 \7 \9 b3 y# R/ {* m5 h5 Y6 ]3 b        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,
3 h! k, U8 e9 [2 v236. after burning down a few farms, would offer to go away if protection money was paid to them.
5 j( k( |  P7 L: j3 {        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。
: X* N7 z; A( [% l* T237. Hawkwood made large sums of money in this way.
' n% F$ x% ^' S. c        霍克伍德用这种方法挣了大笔钱.
- n: m9 v) n; F+ s+ ~0 J238. In spite of this, the Italians regarded him as a sort of hero.
+ I( p  i/ d* d$ U        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,
- W3 p: s: _7 S* u2 F0 k240. and had a picture painted which was dedicated to the memory of 'the most valiant soldier and most notable leader, Signor Giovanni Haukodue.'
' l( l1 x3 ?( s, ^- D. t6 b8 L        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.'