新概念英语3--（一天学一篇）---课14

ltlong52010

课文14  贵族歹徒
! H+ {$ K/ W4 `0 u226. 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.'
3 n! u- I0 q4 e. t7 K( I) s2 K        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'。
( Z, b; ~/ r$ X; R  e" n/ x227. If the money was not paid promptly, the gangsters would quickly put a man out of business by destroying his shop.
1 j' }3 m' @9 x6 O5 i        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.
+ z2 f( p$ i* y0 b* b: E% q( T: p7 |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:
$ L5 g' C# n" y, W/ O230. that people would rather pay large sums of money than have their life work destroyed by gangsters.
% p' n4 f, B* d% w+ C        '人们情愿拿出大笔的钱,也不愿毕生的心血毁于歹徒之手.
3 Q# U2 ]2 X. A5 I1 C231. Six hundred years ago, Sir John Hawkwood arrived in Italy with a band of soldiers and settled near Florence.
$ T% o/ P: L/ L) r        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,
( _1 |7 [" z+ b! _232. He soon made a name for himself and came to be known to the Italians as Giovanni Acuto.
# z* [; O* @" M( b6 J        很快就出了名.意大利人叫他乔凡尼.阿库托.
. x8 i* y! F: h' Q* m233. Whenever the Italian city-states were at war with each other,
  R5 b. j0 @- H  E  Q+ g        每次意大利各城邦之间打伏,
7 D4 v; \, c4 T" b. m0 H234. Hawkwood used to hire his soldiers to princes who were willing to pay the high price he demanded.
) v5 r2 L, u1 u* n! F2 Y        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,
: \& n% _( Y3 N( X4 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,
  `. i6 D) [8 v5 O/ G1 N236. after burning down a few farms, would offer to go away if protection money was paid to them.
        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。
237. Hawkwood made large sums of money in this way.
; [; M% M+ Z& Z, r; Q! p. J6 h5 h5 o        霍克伍德用这种方法挣了大笔钱.
8 _+ g1 X. `. }" s- q4 r& X238. In spite of this, the Italians regarded him as a sort of hero.
7 M1 T' Z2 E1 V. m/ K        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
0 @) \8 N. k4 s3 z        他80岁那年死去时,佛罗伦萨人为他举行了国葬,
  {6 {/ ^7 J, h9 G" J240. 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.'