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.'
" u* W: S# y! `9 Z        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.
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:
: Y2 A* E9 f+ |& k5 l+ z230. 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.
4 _; o# u$ V, C: s231. 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.
        很快就出了名.意大利人叫他乔凡尼.阿库托.
5 |0 |# D2 ?/ H2 B/ B" P9 }/ o. |1 m233. Whenever the Italian city-states were at war with each other,
        每次意大利各城邦之间打伏,
6 v+ M6 z3 F+ o: w234. Hawkwood used to hire his soldiers to princes who were willing to pay the high price he demanded.
1 h8 Z7 H" g6 {/ d0 h        霍克伍德把他的士兵雇佣给愿给他出高价的君主。
  n* W% ?" M. t/ e& w& T235. In times of peace, when business was bad, Hawkwood and his men would march into a city-state and,
6 |% P; z2 f6 X  k, ]        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,
$ z7 v% O/ a; n/ L. W+ l236. after burning down a few farms, would offer to go away if protection money was paid to them.
- }, R' I0 U9 |6 I6 L4 K- d0 q( C/ x        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.
, Y$ W6 P( n. S, w. b4 L( |! O        霍克伍德用这种方法挣了大笔钱.
! v* f0 }& ~7 j' o! L9 s" v# x) b238. 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。
4 l  s* ]3 H( f: z% ^: l239. 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,
* r7 n# q* v  W, q" `5 u. {! |240. and had a picture painted which was dedicated to the memory of 'the most valiant soldier and most notable leader, Signor Giovanni Haukodue.'
) E" u8 _2 n! w, O8 w        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.'