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.'
        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'。
; ^% D( F! d- V, ]) L6 l: t227. If the money was not paid promptly, the gangsters would quickly put a man out of business by destroying his shop.
0 M4 X2 _4 `- M, r" F        如果交款不及时,歹徒们就会很快捣毁他的商店,让他破产.
' t6 t4 e  r4 K$ {8 A228. Obtaining 'protection money' is not a modern crime.
0 `) P- ~+ h  |# m4 m; W5 o" Q        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
7 S$ e2 m6 C! K( d0 d- b) J        早在14世纪,英国人约翰.霍克伍德就有过非凡的发现:
9 A- p7 n( y4 p  _  K7 |. P230. 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.
' K- P6 {7 F3 K7 Q) K& m9 |0 K# ^231. 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.
: n: B/ g7 O6 H' N: c        很快就出了名.意大利人叫他乔凡尼.阿库托.
7 v. v) Q  b6 S9 ^7 ^233. Whenever the Italian city-states were at war with each other,
        每次意大利各城邦之间打伏,
- h" j! U# d+ H( N0 h! q9 H6 Z) n234. Hawkwood used to hire his soldiers to princes who were willing to pay the high price he demanded.
$ I/ ^! g( f7 G$ O) I        霍克伍德把他的士兵雇佣给愿给他出高价的君主。
7 m# M. R: f2 K! a$ t( ]6 D235. In times of peace, when business was bad, Hawkwood and his men would march into a city-state and,
: N3 M: U6 X7 r! i! |. @        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,
9 B, x) d1 _" e236. after burning down a few farms, would offer to go away if protection money was paid to them.
5 n& W5 c. ]" f. }8 B! W9 B  j        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。
8 P+ B0 c5 `# q2 ]9 j1 e237. Hawkwood made large sums of money in this way.
: J2 \$ |  t' @9 w! F5 i: Q! P( p        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.
        尽管如此,意大利人还是把他视作某种英雄。
" m: \& Y$ t0 F2 ?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.'