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Lesson 1 A private conversation
私人谈话
Last
week I went to the theatre. I had a very good
seat.
The play was very
interesting.
I
did
not
enjoy
it.
A
young
man
and
a
young
woman
were
sitting
behind
me.
They
were
talking
loudly.
I
got
very
angry.
I
could
not
hear
the
actors.
I
turned
round. I looked at
the man and the woman angrily. They did not pay
any attention.
In
the
end,
I
could
not
bear
it.
I
turned
round
again.
'I
can't
hear
a
word!'
I
said
angrily.
' It's none of your
business,' the young man said rudely. 'This is a
private conversation!'.
Lesson 2 Breakfast or
lunch?
早餐还是午餐？
It was Sunday. I never get up early on Sundays. I
sometimes stay in bed until
lunch time.
Last Sunday I got up very late. I
looked out of the window. It was dark outside.
'What a day!' I thought. 'It's raining
again.' Just then, the telephone rang. It
was my aunt Lucy.' I've just arrived by
train,' she said. 'I'm coming to see you.'
'But I'm still having breakfast,' I
said.
'What are you doing ?' she asked.
' I'm having breakfast,' I repeated.
'Dear me,' she said. 'Do you always get
up so late ? It's one o'clock!
Lesson 3 Please send me a card
请给我寄一张明信片
Postcards always spoil my holidays. Last summer, I
went to Italy. I visited
museums
and
sat
in
public
gardens.
A
friendly
waiter
taught
me
a
few
words
of
Italian.
'Then
he
lent
me
a
book.
I
read
a
few
lines,
but
I
did
not
understand
a word. Every day
I thought about postcards. My holidays passed
quickly, but I did
not send any cards
to my friends. On the last day I made a big
decision. I got up
early and bought
thirty-seven cards. I spent the whole day in my
room, but I did
not write a single card
!
Lesson 4 An
exciting trip
激动人心的旅行
I have just received a letter from
my brother, Tim. He is in Australia. He has
been there for six months. Tim is an
engineer. He is working for a big firm and he
has already visited a great number of
different places in Australia. He has just
bought an Australian car and has gone
to Alice Springs, a small town in the centre
of Australia. He will soon visit
Darwin. From there, he will fly to Perth.
My
brother
has
never
been
abroad
before,
so
he
is
finding
this
trip
very
exciting.
Lesson 5 No wrong numbers
无错号之虞
Mr
James
Scott
has
a
garage
in
Silbury
and
now
he
has
just
bought
another
garage
in Pinhurst. Pinhurst
is only five miles from Silbury, but Mr Scott
cannot get a
telephone for his new
garage, so he has just bought twelve pigeons.
Yesterday, a
pigeon carried the first
message from Pinhurst to Silbury. The bird covered
the
distance in three minutes. Up to
now, Mr Scott has sent a great many requests for
spare parts and other urgent messages
from one garage to the other. In this way,
he has begun his own private telephone
service.
Lesson
6 Percy Buttons
珀西·巴顿斯
I
have
just
moved
to
a
house
in
Bridge
Street.
Yesterday
a
beggar
knocked
at
my
door.
He asked me for a meal and a glass of
beer. In return for this, the beggar stood
on his head and sang songs. I gave him
a meal. He ate the food and drank the beer.
Then he put a piece of cheese in his
pocket and went away. Later a neighbour told
me
about
him.
Everybody
knows
him.
His
name
is
Percy
Buttons.
He
calls
at
every
house
in
the street once a month and always asks for a meal
and a glass of beer.
Lesson
7 Too late
为时太晚
The
plane
was
late
and
detectives
were
waiting
at
the
airport
all
morning.
They
were
expecting a valuable
parcel of diamond from South Africa. A few hours
earlier,
someone had told the police
that thieves would try to steal the diamonds. When
the
plane arrived, some of the
detectives were waiting inside the main building
while
others
were
waiting
on
the
airfield.
Two
men
took
the
parcel
off
the
plane
and
carried
it
into
the
Customs
House.
While
two
detectives
were
keeping
guard
at
the
door,
two
others opened
the parcel. To their surprise, the
precious parcel was full of
stones and
sand!
Lesson 8 The best and
the worst
最好的和最差的
Joe Sanders
has the most
beautiful garden in our town. Nearly everybody
enters
for
'The
Nicest Garden Competition' each year, but Joe wins
every time. Bill Frith's
garden is
larger than Joe's. Bill works harder than Joe and
grows more flowers and
vegetables, but
Joe's garden is more interesting. He has made neat
paths and has
built a wooden bridge
over a
pool. I
like gardens
too, but I
do not like hard work.
Every year I enter for the garden
competition too, and I always win a little prize
for the worst garden in the town!
Lesson 9 A cold welcome
冷遇
On Wednesday
evening, we went to
the
Town Hall.
It was the last
day of the year and
a
large
crowd
of
people
had
gathered
under
the
Town
Hall
clock.
It
would
strike
twelve
in twenty minutes'
time. Fifteen minutes passed and then, at five to
twelve, the
clock stopped. The big
minute hand did not move. We waited and waited,
but nothing
happened. Suddenly someone
shouted, 'It's two minutes past twelve! The clock
has
stopped!' I looked at my watch. It
was true. The big clock refused to welcome the
New Year. At that moment everybody
began to laugh and sing.
Lesson 10 Not for jazz
不适于演奏爵士乐
We have
an old musical instrument. It is called a
clavichord(
翼琴
). It was made
in
Germany in 1681. Our clavichord is
kept in the living-room. It has belong to our
family
for
a
long
time.
The
instrument
was
bought
by
my
grandfather
many
years
ago.
Recently it was damaged by a visitor.
She tried to play jazz on it! She struck the
keys
too
hard
and
two
of
the
strings
were
broken.
My
father
was
shocked.
Now
we
are
not
allowed to touch it. It is being repaired by a
friend of my father's.
Lesson 11 One good turn deserves
another
礼尚往来
I
was having dinner at a restaurant when Harry
Steele came in. Harry worked in a
lawyer's office years ago, but he is
now working at a bank. He gets a good salary,
but he always borrows money from his
friends and never pays it back. Harry saw me
and came and sat at the same table. He
has never borrowed money from me. While he
was
eating,
I
asked
him
to
lend
me
&2.
To
my
surprise,
he
gave
me
the
money
immediately.
'I have never
borrowed any money from you,' Harry said, 'so now
you can pay for my
dinner!'
Lesson 12
Goodbye and good luck
再见，一路顺风
Our
ncighbour,
Captain
Charles
Alison,
will
sail
from
Portsmouth
tomorrow.
We
shall
meet him at the
harbour early in the morning. He will be in his
small boat, is a
famous little boat.
It has sailed across the Atlantic many times.
Captain Alison
will
set
out
at
eight
o'clock
so
we
shall
have
plenty
of
time.
We
shall
see
his
boat
and then we shall say
good-bye to him. He will be away for two months.
We are very
proud of him. He will take
part in an important race across the Atlantic.
Lesson 13 The Greenwood Boys
绿林少年
The Greenwood Boys are a group of
popular singers. At present, they are visiting
all parts of the country. They will be
arriving here tomorrow. They will be coming
by train and most of the young
people in the town will be
meeting them at the station. Tomorrow evening they
will
be singing at the Workers' Club.
The Greenwood Boys will be staying for five days.
During
this
time,
they will give five performances. As usual, the
police will have
a
difficult
time.
They
will
be
trying
to
keep
order.
It
is
always
the
same
on
these
occasions.
Lesson 14 Do you speak
English?
你会讲英语吗？
I had an amusing experience last year.
After I had left a small
village in the
south of France, I drove
on to the next town. On the way, a young man waved
to me.
I stopped and he asked me for a
lift. As soon as he had got into the car, I said
good
morning
to
him
in
French
and
he
replied
in
the
same
language.
Apart
from
a
few
words, I do not know any French at all.
Neither of us spoke during the journey. I
had
nearly
reached
the
town,
when
the
young
man
suddenly
said,
very
slowly,
'Do
you
speak English?' As I soon learnt, he
was English himself!
Lesson 15 Good news
佳音
The secretary told me that Mr.
Harmsworth would see me. I felt very nervous when.
I went into his office. He did not look
up from his desk when I entered. After I
had sat down, he said that business was
very bad. He told me that the firm could
not afford to pay such large salaries.
Twenty people had already left. I knew that
my turn had come. 'Mr. Harmsworth,' I
said in a weak voice. 'Don't interrupt,' he
Said. Then he smiled and told me I
would receive an extra &100 a year!
Lesson 16 A
polite request
彬彬有礼的要求
If
you
park
your
car
in
the
wrong
place,
a
traffic
policeman
will
soon
find
it.
You
will
be
very
lucky
if
he
lets
you
go
without
a
ticket.
However,
this
does
not
always
happen.
Traffic
police
are
sometimes
very
polite.
During
a
holiday
in
Sweden,
I
found
this
note
on
my car:' Sir, we welcome you to
our city. This is a
Parking
You will
enjoy your stay here if you pay attention to our
street signs. This note
is only a
reminder.' If you receive a request like this, you
cannot fail to obey
it!
Lesson 17
Always young
青年常驻
My
aunt
Jennifer
is
an
actress.
She
must
be
at
least
thirty-five
years
old.
In
spite
of
this,
she
often
appears
on
the
stage
as
a
young
girl.
Jennifer
will
have
to
take
part in a new play soon. This time, she
will be a girl of seventeen. In the play,
she
must
appear
in
a
bright
red
dress
and
long
black
stockings.
Last
year
in
another
play, she had to wear short socks and a
bright, orange-coloured dress. If anyone
ever asked her how old she is, she
always answers, 'My dear, it must be terrible
to be grown up!'
lesson18 He
often does this!
他经常干这种事！
After
I
had
had
lunch
at
a
village
inn,
I
looked
for
my
bag.
I
had
left
it
on
a
chair
beside the door and
now it wasn't there ! As I was looking for it, the
inn-keeper
came in. 'Did you have a
good meal ?' he asked. 'Yes, thank you,' I
answered, 'but
I can't pay the bill. I
haven't got my bag.' The inn-keeper smiled and
immediately
went
out.
In
a
few
minutes
he
returned
with
my
bag
and
gave
it
back
to
me.
'I'm
very
sorry,' he said ' My dog had taken it
into the garden. He often does this.'
Lesson19 Sold
out
票已售完
'The play may begin at any moment,' I
said.
'It may have begun already,' Susan
answered.
'I hurried to the
ticket-office. 'May I have two tickets please ?' I
asked.
'I'm sorry, we've
sold out,' the girl said.
'What a pity!' Susan exclaimed.
Just then, a man hurried to
the ticket-office.
'Can I
return these two tickets?' he asked.
'Certainly,' the girl said.
'Could I have those two tickets please
?' I asked.
'Certainly,
'the girl said, 'but they are for next Wednesday's
performance.
'I might as
well have them,' I said sadly.
Lesson20 One
man in a boat
独坐孤舟
Fishing is my favourite
sport. I often fish for hours without catching
anything.
But this does not worry me.
Some fishermen are unlucky. Instead of catching
fish,
they catch old boots and rubbish.
I am even less lucky. I never catch anything-not
even old boots. After having spent
whole mornings on the river, I always go home
with
an
empty
bag.
'You
must
give
up
fishing!'
my
friends
say.'
It's
a
waste
of
time.'
But
they don't realize one important thing. I'm not
really interested in fishing.
I am only
interested in sitting in a boat and doing nothing
at all !
Lesson21 Mad or not?
是不是疯了？
Aeroplanes
are
slowly
driving
me
mad.
I
live
near
an
airport
and
passing
planes
can
be
heard night and day. The airport was built during
the war, but for some reason
it
could
not
be
used
then.
Last
year,
however,
it
came
into
use.
Over
a
hundred
people
must
have
been
driven
away
from
their
homes
by
the
noise.
I
am
one
of
the
few
people
left. Sometimes I
think this house will be knocked down by a passing
plane. I have
been offered a large sum
of money to go away, but I am determined to stay
here.
Everybody says I must be mad and
they are probably right.
Lesson22 A glass envelope
玻璃信封
My daughter, Jane, never dreamed of
receiving a letter from a girl of her own age
in Holland. Last year, we were
travelling across the Channel and Jane put a piece
of paper with her name and address on
it into a bottle. She threw the bottle into
the
sea.
She
never
thought
of
it
again,
but
ten
months
later,
she
received
a
letter
from
a
girl
in
Holland.
Both
girls
write
to
each
other
regularly
now.
However,
they
have
decided
to
use
the
post-
office.
Letters
will
cost
a
litt1e
more,
but
they
will
certainly travel
faster.
Lesson23 A new house
新居
I
had a letter from my sister yesterday. She lives
in Nigeria. In her letter, she
said
that
she
would
come
to
England
next
year.
If
she
comes,
she
will
get
a
surprise.
We are now
living in a beautiful new
house in the country. Work on it had begun
before
my
sister
left.
The
house
was
completed
five
months
ago.
In
my
letter,
I
told
her
that
she
could
stay
with
us.
The
house
has
many
large
rooms
and
there
is
a
lovely
garden.
It is a very modern house, so it looks strange to
some people. It must be
the only modern
house in the district.
Lesson24 It could be worse
不幸中之万幸
I entered the hotel manager's office
and sat down. I had just lost &50 and I felt
very upset.' I left the money in my
room,' I said, 'and it's not there now.' The
manager was sympathetic, but he could
do nothing. 'Everyone's losing money these
days,'
he said. He started
to complain about this wicked world but was
interrupted
by
a
knock
at
the
door.
A
girl
came
in
and
put
an
envelope
on
his
desk.
It
contained
&5o.
'I found this outside this gentleman's room' she
said. 'Well,' I said to the
manager,
'there is still some honesty in this world !'
lesson25 Do the English speak English?
英国人讲的是英语吗？
I
arrived
in
London
at
last.
The
railway
station
was
big,
black
and
dark.
I
did
not
know
the
way
to
my
hotel,
so
I
asked
a
porter.
I
not
only
spoke
English
very
carefully,
but very clearly
as well. The porter, however, could not
understand me;
I repeated
my
question several times and at last he understood.
He answered me, but he spoke
neither
slowly nor clearly. 'I am a foreigner,' I said.
Then he spoke slowly, but
I could not
understand him. My teacher never spoke English
like that! The porter
and I looked at
each other and smiled. Then he said something and
I understood it.
'You'll soon learn
English!' he said. I wonder. In England, each man
speaks a
different
language.
The
English
understand
each
other,
but
I
don't
understand
them
!
Do they
speak English ?
lesson26 The best art
critics
最佳美术评论家
I am an art student and I paint a lot
of pictures. Many people pretend that they
understand modern art. They always tell
you what a picture is 'about'. Of course,
many
pictures
arc
not
'about'
anything.
They
are
just
pretty
patterns.
We
like
them
in the same way that we
like pretty curtain material. I think that young
children
often
appreciate
modern
pictures
better
than
anyone
else.
They
notice
more.
My
sister
is
only
seven,
but
she
always
tells
me
whether
my
pictures
are
good
or
not.
She
came
into
my
room
yesterday.
'
What
are
you
doing
?'
she
asked.
'
I'm
hanging
this
picture
on
the
wall,'
I
answered.
'It's
a
new
one.
Do
you
like
it
?'
She
looked
at
it
critically
for a moment.' It's all right,' she
said, 'but isn't it upside-down ?' I looked at
it again. She was right! It was!
Lesson27 A wet night
雨夜
Late
in the afternoon, the
boys put up their
tent in
the
middle of a
field. As soon
as this was
done, they cooked a meal over an open fire. They
were all hungry and
the food smelt
good. After a wonderful meal, they told stories
and sang songs by
the camp fire. But
some time later it began to rain. The boys felt
tired so they
pet out the fire and
crept into their tent. Their sleeping-bags were
warm and
comfortable, so they all slept
soundly. In the middle of the night, two boys woke
up and began shouting. The tent was
full of water! They all leapt out of their
sleeping-bags and hurried outside. It
was raining heavily and they found that a
stream had formed in the field. The
stream wound its way across the field and then
flowed right under their tent!
Lesson28 No parking
禁止停车
Jasper
White
is
one
of
those
rare
people
who
believes
in
ancient
myths.
He
has
just
bought a
new
house in the city, but
ever
since he moved in, he has had
trouble with
motorists. when he returns
home at night, he always finds that someone has
parked
a car outside his gate. Because
of this, he has not been able to get his own car
into his garage even once. Jasper has
put up' No Parking' signs outside his gate,
but these have not had any effect. Now
he has put an
ugly stone head
over the gate.
It
is
one
of
the
ugliest
faces
I
have
ever
seen.
I
asked
him
what
it
was
and
he
told
me
that
it
was
Medusa,
the
Gorgon.
Jasper
hopes
that
she
will
turn
motorists
to
stone.
But none of them has
been turned to stone yet!
Lesson29 Taxi!
出租汽车！
Captain
Ben
Fawcett
has
bought
an
unusual
taxi
and
has
begun
a
new
service.
The
'taxi'
is
a
small
Swiss
aeroplane
called
a
'Pilatus
Porter'.
This
wonderful
plane
can
carry
seven
passengers. The most surprising thing about it,
however, is
that
it can land
anywhere: on snow, water, or even on a
ploughed field. Captain Fawcett's first
passenger was a doctor who flew from
Birmingham to a lonely village in the Welsh
mountains.
Since
then,
Captain
Fawcett
has
flown
passengers
to
many
unusual
places.
Once he landed on
the roof of a block of flats and on another
occasion, he landed
in a deserted car
park. Captain Fawcett has just refused a strange
request from a
businessman.
The
man
wanted
to
fly
to
Rockall,
a
lonely
island
in
the
Atlantic
Ocean,
but Captain Fawcett did not take him
because the trip was too dangerous.
Lesson30
Football or polo?
足球还是水球？
The Wayle is a small river that cuts
across the park near my home. I like sitting
by the Wayle on fine afternoons. It was
warm last Sunday, so I went and sat on the
river bank as usual. Some children were
playing games on the bank and there were
some people rowing on the river.
Suddenly, one of the children kicked a ball very
hard and it went towards a passing
boat. Some people on the bank called out to the
man
in
the
boat,
but
he
did
not
hear
them.
The
ball
struck
him
so
hard
that
he
nearly
fell
into
the
water.
I
turned
to
look
at
the
children,
but
there
weren't
any
in
sight:
they
had
all
run
away!
The
man
laughed
when
he
realized
what
had
happened.
He
called
out to the children
and threw the ball back to the bank.
Lesson31
Success story
成功者的故事
Yesterday afternoon Frank
Hawkins was telling me about his experiences as a
young
man. Frank is now the head of a
very large business company, but as a boy he used
to work in a small shop. It was his job
to repair bicycles and at that time he used
to
work
fourteen
hours
a
day.
He
saved
money
for
years
and
in
1938
he
bought
a
small
work-shop
of
his
own.
During
the
war
Frank
used
to
make
spare
parts
for
aeroplanes.
At
that
time
he
had
two
helpers.
By
the
end
of
the
war,
the
small
work-
shop
had
become
a
large
factory
which
employed
seven
hundred
and
twenty-eight
people.
Frank
smiled
when
he remembered his hard early years and the long
road to success. He was still
smiling
when the door opened and his wife came in. She
wanted him to repair their
son's
bicycle!
Lesson32 Shopping made easy
购物变得很方便
People
are
not
so
honest
as
they
once
were.
The
temptation
to
steal
is
greater
than
ever
before
--especially
in
large
shops.
A
detective
recently
watched
a
well-
dressed
woman
who
always
went
into
a
large
store
on
Monday
mornings.
One
Monday,
there
were
fewer people in the
shop than usual when the woman came in, so it was
easier for
the detective to watch her.
The woman first bought a few small articles. After
a
little time, she chose one of the
most expensive dresses in the shop and handed it
to an assistant who wrapped it up for
her as quickly as possible. Then the woman
simply took the parcel and walked out
of the shop without paying. When she was
arrested,
the
detective
found
out
that
the
shop-assistant
was
her
daughter.
The
girl'
gave' her mother a
free dress once a week !
lesson33 Out of the
darkness
冲出黑暗
Nearly a week passed before the girl
was able to explain what had happened to her.
One afternoon she set out from the
coast
in a small boat
and
was
caught
in a
storm.
Towards evening, the
boat struck a rock and the girl jumped into the
sea. Then she
swam
to
the
shore
after
spending
the
whole
night
in
the
water.
During
that
time
she
covered a distance of eight miles.
Early next morning, she saw a light ahead. She
knew
she
was
near
the
shore
because
the
light
was
high
up
on
the
cliffs.
On
arriving
at
the shore, the girl struggled up the cliff towards
the light she had seen. That
was
all
she
remembered.
When
she
woke
up
a
day
later,
she
found
herself
in
hospital.
Lesson34 Quick
work
破案“神速”
Ted
Robinson
has
been
worried
all
the
week.
Last
Tuesday
he
received
a
letter
from
the
local
police.
In
the
letter
he
was
asked
to
call
at
the
station.
Ted
wondered
why he
was wanted by the police, but he went to the
station yesterday
and
now
he
is
not
worried
any
more.
At
the
station,
he
was
told
by
a
smiling
policeman
that
his
bicycle
had
been
found.
Five
days
ago,
the
policeman
told
him,
the
bicycle
was picked up in a small village four
hundred miles away. It is now being sent to
his home by train. Ted was most
surprised when he heard the news. He was
amused
too,
because he never expected the bicycle to be found.
It was stolen twenty years
ago when Ted
was a boy of fifteen !
Lesson35
Stop thief!
捉贼！
Rov
Trenton
used
to
drive
a
taxi.
A
short
while
ago,
however,
he
became
a
bus-
driver
and he was not regretted it. He
is finding his new work far more exciting. When he
was driving along Catford Street
recently, he saw two thieves rush out of a shop
and run towards a waiting car. One of
them was carrying a bag full of money. Roy
acted
quickly
and
drove
the
bus
straight
at
the
thieves.
The
one
with
the
money
got
such a fright that he
dropped the bag. As the thieves were trying to get
away in
their
car,
Roy
drove
his
bus
into
the
back
of
it.
While
the
battered
car
was
moving
away, Roy stopped his
bus and telephoned the police. The thieves' car
was badly
damaged and easy to
recognize. Shortly afterwards, the police stopped
the car and
both men were arrested.
Lesson36 Across the Channel
横渡海峡
Erna
Hart
is
going
to
swim
across
the
English
Channel
tomorrow.
She
is
going
to
set
out
from
the
French
coast
at
five
o'clock
in
the
morning.
Erna
is
only
fourteen
years
old and she hopes lo
set up a new world record. She is a strong swimmer
and many
people feel that she is sure
to succeed. Erna's father will set out with her in
a
small
boat.
Mr
Hart
has
trained
his
daughter
for
years.
Tomorrow
he
will
be
watching
her
anxiously
as
she
swims
the
long
distance
to
England.
Erna
intends
to
take
short
rests every two hours.
She will have something to drink but she will not
eat any
solid food. Most of Erna's
school friends will be waiting for her on the
English
coast. Among them will be
Erna's mother, who swam the Channel herself when
she was
a girl.
Lesson37 The Olympic Games
奥林匹克运动会
The Olympic Games will be held in our
country in four years' time. As a great many
people will be visiting the country,
the government will be building new hotels,
an immense stadium, and a fine new
swimming pool. 'They will also be building new
roads and a special railway-line. The
Games will be held just outside the capital
and the whole area will be called
'Olympic City'. Workers will have completed the
new roads by
the
end
of
this
year. By the end of next year, they
will have finished
work
on
the
new
stadium.
The
fine
modern
buildings
have
been
designed
by
Kurt
Gunter.
Everybody will be
watching anxiously as the new buildings go up. We
are all very
excited and are looking
forward to the Olympic Games because they have
never been
held before in this country.
Lesson38 Everything except the weather
惟独没有考虑到天气
My old friend, Harrison, had lived in
the Mediterranean for many years before he
returned to England. He had often
dreamed of retiring in England and had planned
to
settle
down
in
the
country.
He
had
no
sooner
returned
than
he
bought
a
fine
house
and went to live there.
Almost
immediately he began
to complain about
the weather,
for
even
though
it
was
still
summer,
it
rained
continually
and
it
was
often
bitterly
cold. After so many
years of sunshine, Harrison got a shock. He acted
as if he had
never lived in England
before. In the end, it was more than he could
bear. He had
hardly
had
time
to
settle
down
when
he
sold
the
house
and
left
the
country.
The
dream
he
had
had
for
so
many
years
ended
there.
Harrison
had
thought
of
everything
except
the weather.
Lesson39 Am I all right?
我是否痊愈？
While John Gilbert was in hospital, he
asked his doctor to tell him whether his
operation had been successful,
but the doctor
refused to do
so. The following day,
the
patient
asked
for
a
bedside
telephone.
When
he
was
alone,
he
telephoned
the
hospital
exchange
and
asked
for
Doctor
Millington.
When
the
doctor
answered
the
phone,
Mr
Gilbert
said
he
was
inquiring
about
a
certain
patient,
a
Mr
John
Gilbert.
He
asked
if Mr Gilbert's operation had been
successful and the doctor told him that it had
been.
He
then
asked
when
Mr
Gilbert
would
be
allowed
to
go
home
and
the
doctor
told
him
that
he
would
have
to
stay
in
hospital
for
another
two
weeks.
Then
Dr
Millington
asked the caller
if he was a relative of the patient.' No,' the
patient answered,'
I am Mr John
Gilbert.'
Lesson40 Food
and talk
进餐与交谈
Last week at a dinner-party, the
hostess asked me to sit next to Mrs Rumbold. Mrs
Rumbold was a large, unsmiling lady in
a tight black dress. She did not even look
up when I took my seat beside her. Her
eyes were fixed on her plate and in a short
time, she was busy eating. I tried to
make conversation.
' A new play is coming
to
No,'
she
answered.
'Will
you
be
spending
your
holidays
abroad
this
year
?'
I
asked.
' No,' she answered.
' Will you be staying in England?' I
asked. ' No,' she answered.
In despair, I asked her whether she was
enjoying her dinner.
'
Young man,' she answered,' if you ate more and
talked less, we would both enjoy
our
dinner !'
lesson41 Do you call that a hat?
你把那个叫帽子吗？
'Do you call that a hat ?' I said to my
wife. 'You needn't be so rude about it,'
my wife answered
as she
looked at herself in
the
mirror.
I sat down on one of those
modern chairs with holes in it and
waited. We had been in the hat shop for half an
hour and my wife was still in front of
the mirror.
' We mustn't
buy things we don't need,' I remarked suddenly. I
regretted saying it
almost at once.
'You needn't have said
that,' my wife answered.' I need not remind you of
that
terrible tie you bought
yesterday.'
' I find it
beautiful,' I said. 'A man can never have too many
ties.'
'And a woman can't
have too many hats,' she answered.
Ten
minutes
later
we
walked
out
of
the
shop
together.
My
wife
was
wearing
a
hat
that
looked
like a lighthouse !
Lesson42 Not very musical
并非很懂音乐
As we had had a long walk through one
of the markets of Old Delhi, we stopped at
a square to have a rest. After a time,
we noticed a snake-charmer with two large
baskets at the other side of the
square, so we went to have a look at him. As soon
as he saw us, he picked up a long pipe
which was covered with coins and opened one
of
the
baskets.
When
he
began
to
play
a
tune,
we
had
our
first
glimpse
of
the
snake.
It rose out of the basket and began to
follow the movements of the pipe. We were
very much surprised when the snake
charmer suddenly began to play jazz tunes and
modern
pop
songs.
The
snake,
however,
continued
to
'dance'
slowly.
It
obviously
could
not tell the difference between Indian
music and jazz!
Lesson43 Over the South
Pole
飞越南极
In 1929, three years after his flight
over the North Pole, the American explorer,
R. E. Byrd, successfully flew over the
South Pole for the first time. Though, at
first,
Byrd
and
his
men
were
able
to
take
a
great
many
photographs
of
the
mountains
that
lay
below,
they
soon
ran
into
serious
trouble.
At
one
point,
it
seemed
certain
that their plane
would crash. It could only get over the mountains
if it rose to
10,000 feet. Byrd at once
ordered his men to throw out two heavy food sacks.
The
plane
was
then
able
to
rise
and
it
cleared
the
mountains
by
400
feet.
Byrd
now
knew
that he would be able
to reach the South Pole which was 300 miles away,
for there
were
no
more
mountains
in
sight.
The
aircraft
was
able
to
fly
over
the
endless
white
plains without difficulty.
Lesson44 Through the forest
穿过森林
Mrs Anne Sterling did not think of the
risk she was taking when she ran through a
forest after two men. They had rushed
up to her while she was having a picnic at
the
edge
of
a
forest
with
her
children
and
tried
to
steal
her
handbag.
In
the
struggle,
the
strap broke and, with the bag in their possession,
both men started running
through the
trees. Mrs Sterling got so angry that she ran
after them. She was soon
out
of
breath,
but
she
continued
to
run.
When
she
caught
up
with
them,
she
saw
that
they
had
sat
down
and
were
going
through
the
contents
of
the
bag,
so
she
ran
straight
at
them.
The
men
got
such
a
fright
that
they
dropped
the
bag
and
ran
away.
'The
strap
needs
mending,' said Mrs Sterling
later, 'but they did not steal anything.'
Lesson45 A clear conscience
问心无愧
The whole village soon learnt that a
large sum of money had been lost. Sam Benton,
the
local
butcher,
had
lost
his
wallet
while
taking
his
savings
to
the
post-office.
Sam was sure
that the wallet must have been found by one of the
villagers, but it
was not returned to
him. Three months passed, and then one morning,
Sam found his
wallet
outside
his
front
door.
It
had
been
wrapped
up
in
newspaper
and
it
contained
half the money he
had lost, together with a note which said: 'A
thief, yes, 'but
only 5o per cent a
thief!' Two months later, some more money was sent
to Sam with
another
note:'
Only
25
per
cent
a
thief
now!'
In
time,
all
Sam's
money
was
paid
back
in this way. The last note said:' I am
100 per cent honest now!'
lesson46 Expensive and
uncomfortable
既昂贵又受罪
When
a
plane
from
London
arrived
at
Sydney
airport,
workers
began
to
unload
a
number
of
wooden boxes which contained clothing. No one
could account for the fact that
one of
the boxes was extremely heavy. It suddenly
occurred to one of the workers
to open
up the box. He was astonished at what he found. A
man was lying in the box
on top of a
pile of woollen goods. He was so surprised at
being discovered that he
did
not
even
try
to
run
away.
After
he
was
arrested,
the
man
admitted
hiding
in
the
box before
the plane left London. He had had a long and
uncomfortable trip, for he
had been
confined to the wooden box for over ten hours. The
man was ordered to pay
&345 for the
cost of the trip. The normal price of a ticket is
&230 !
Lesson47 A thirsty ghost
嗜酒的鬼魂
A
public
house
which
was
recently
bought
by
Mr
Ian
Thompson
is
up
for
sale.
Mr
Thompson
is going to sell it
because it is haunted. He told me that he could
not go to sleep
one night because he
heard a strange noise coming from the bar. The
next morning,
he
found
that
the
doors
had
been
blocked
by
chairs
and
the
furniture
had
been
moved.
Though Mr Thompson had turned the
lights off before he went to bed, they were on
in the morning. He also said that he
had found five empty whisky bottles which the
ghost must have drunk the night before.
When I suggested that some villagers must
have come in for a free drink, Mr
Thompson shook his head. The villagers have told
him that they will not accept the inn
even if he gives it away.
Lesson48 Did you want to
tell me something?
你想对我说什么吗？
Dentists always ask
questions when it is impossible for you to answer.
My dentist
had just pulled out one of
my teeth and had told me to rest for a while. I
tried
to say something, but my mouth
was full of cotton-wool. He knew I collected
birds'
eggs
and
asked
me
whether
my
collection
was
growing.
He
then
asked
me
how
my
brother
was
and
whether
I
liked
my
new
job
in
London.
In
answer
to
these
questions
I
either
nodded
or
made
strange
noises.
Meanwhile,
my
tongue
was
busy
searching
out
the
hole
where
the
tooth
had
been.
I
suddenly
felt
very
worried,
but
could
not
say
anything.
When the dentist
at last removed the cotton-wool from my mouth, I
was able to tell
him that he had pulled
out the wrong tooth.
Lesson49 The end of a dream
美梦告终
Tired of sleeping on the floor, a young
man in Teheran saved up for years to buy
a
real
bed.
For
the
first
time
in
his
life,
he
became
the
proud
owner
of
a
bed
which
had springs and a
mattress. Because the weather was very hot, he
carried the bed
on to the roof of his
house. He slept very well for the first two
nights, but on
the
third
night,
a
storm
blew
up.
A
gust
of
wind
swept
the
bed
off
the
roof
and
sent
it
crashing into the courtyard below. The young man
did not wake up until the bed
had
struck
the
ground.
Although
the
bed
was
smashed
to
pieces,
the
man
was
miraculously
unhurt.
When
he
woke
up,
he
was
still
on
the
mattress.
Glancing
at
the
bits of wood and metal that lay around
him, the man sadly picked up the mattress
and
carried
it
into
his
house.
After
he
had
put
it
on
the
floor,
he
promptly
went
to sleep again.
Lesson50 Taken for a ride
乘车兜风
I love travelling in the country, but I
don't like losing my way. I went on an
excursion recently, but my trip took me
longer than I expected.
'
I'm going to
Woodford
Green,'
I
said
to
the
conductor
as
I
got
on
the
bus,'
but
I
don't
know
where
it
is.' ' I'll tell you where to get off,' answered
the conductor.
I
sat
in
the
front
of
the
bus
to
get
a
good
view
of
the
countryside.
After
some
time,
the
bus
stopped.
Looking
round,
I
realized
with
a
shock
that
I
was
the
only
passenger
left on the bus.
' You'll have to get off
here,' the conductor said. 'This is as far as we
go.' '
Is
this
Woodford
Green
?'
I
asked.
'Oh
dear,'
said
the
conductor
suddenly.'
I
forgot
to put
you off.' 'It doesn't matter,' I said. 'I'll get
off here.' 'We are going
back now,'
said the conductor. 'Well, in that case, I prefer
to stay on the bus,'
I answered.
Lesson51 Reward for virtue
对美德的奖赏
My friend, Herbert, has always been
fat, but things got so bad recently that he
decided to go on a diet. He began his
diet a week ago. First of all, he wrote out
a long list of all the foods which were
forbidden. The list included most of the
things Herbert loves: butter, potatoes,
rice, beer, milk, chocolate, and sweets.
Yesterday
I
paid
him
a
visit.
I
rang
the
bell
and
was
not
surprised
to
see
that
Herbert
was still as fat as ever. He led me
into his room and hurriedly hid a large parcel
under his desk. It was obvious that he
was very embarrassed. When I asked him what
he was doing, he smiled guiltily and
then put the parcel on the desk. He explained
that
his
diet
was
so
strict
that
he
had
to
reward
himself
occasionally.
Then
he
showed
me the
contents of the parcel. It contained five large
bars of chocolate and three
bags of
sweets!
Lesson52 A pretty carpet
漂亮的地毯
We
have
just
moved
into
a
new
house
and
I
have
been
working
hard
all
morning.
I
have
been trying to get my new room in
order. This has not been easy because I own over
a thousand books. To make matters
worse, the room is rather small, so I have
temporarily
put
my
books
on
the
floor.
At
the
moment,
they
cover
every
inch
of
floor
space
and
I
actually
have
to
walk
on
them
to
get
in
or
out
of
the
room.
A
short
while
ago, my sister helped
me to carry one of my old bookcases up the stairs.
She went
into
my
room
and
got
a
big
surprise
when
she
saw
all
those
books
on
the
floor.
'This
is the prettiest
carpet I have ever seen,' she said. She gazed at
it for some time
then added, 'You don't
need bookcases at all. You can sit here in your
spare time
and read the carpet!'
Lesson53 Hot snake
触电的蛇
At
last
firemen
have
put
out
a
big
forest
fire
in
California.
Since
then,
they
have
been trying to find out how the fire
began. Forest fire are often caused by broken
glass
or
by
cigarette
ends
which
people
carelessly
throw
away.
Yesterday
the
firemen
examined
the
ground
carefully,
but
were
not
able
to
find
any
broken
glass.
They
were
also
quite
sure
that
a
cigarette
end
did
not
start
the
fire.
This
morning,
however,
a
fireman
accidentally
discovered
the
cause.
He
noticed
the
remains
of
a
snake
which
was
wound
round
the
electric
wires
of
a
16,000-volt
power
line.
In
this
way,
he
was
able to solve the
mystery. The explanation was simple but very
unusual. A bird had
snatched
up
the
snake
from
the
ground
and
then
dropped
it
on
to
the
wires.
The
snake
then
wound
itself
round
the
wires.
When
it
did
so,
it
sent
sparks
down
to
the
ground
and these immediately started a fire.
Lesson54 Sticky fingers
粘糊的手指
After breakfast, I sent the children to
school and then I went to market. It was
still early when I returned home. The
children were at school, my husband was at
work and the house was quiet. So I
decided to make some tarts for tea. In a short
time I was busy mixing butter and flour
and my hands were soon covered with sticky
pastry. At exactly that moment, the
telephone rang. Nothing could have been more
annoying.
I
picked
up
the
receiver
between
two
sticky
fingers
and
was
dismayed
when
I
recognized
the
voice
of
Mrs
Bates.
It
took
me
ten
minutes
to
persuade
her
to
ring
back
later.
At
last
I
hung
up
the
receiver.
What
a
mess!
There
was
pastry
on
my
fingers,
on the telephone, and on the door-
knobs. I had no sooner got back to the kitchen
than the door-bell rang loud enough to
wake the dead. This time it was the postman
and he wanted me to sign for a
registered letter !
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