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.'
5 x4 ~5 T% m2 e  H2 t, R* @        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'。
) X' y, l/ O/ H/ i. t- c227. If the money was not paid promptly, the gangsters would quickly put a man out of business by destroying his shop.
2 V% u( e- p$ U% U) {* h+ 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.
% g- ?+ x) j: x) T0 i228. Obtaining 'protection money' is not a modern crime.
: ?' E9 m5 [' a5 g# ^9 e. {        榨取'保护金'并不是一种现代的罪恶行径.
2 N; @' U, b6 |1 O229. As long ago as the fourteenth century, an Englishman, Sir John Hawkwood, made the remarkable discovery
5 N0 ]2 H: L0 f' w4 T1 x        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.
        '人们情愿拿出大笔的钱,也不愿毕生的心血毁于歹徒之手.
+ e7 c5 V5 P- S5 U! p231. Six hundred years ago, Sir John Hawkwood arrived in Italy with a band of soldiers and settled near Florence.
) Z% r6 y# \. C* R7 [        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,
& d7 N6 B5 C( r6 ]5 d. b* u4 J232. 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.
1 S& H9 L1 r! D  i: k8 L233. Whenever the Italian city-states were at war with each other,
* g" H0 Z0 k) v# M9 O* ~6 ~! d        每次意大利各城邦之间打伏,
, i1 w/ l" \: `* b- L( z234. Hawkwood used to hire his soldiers to princes who were willing to pay the high price he demanded.
        霍克伍德把他的士兵雇佣给愿给他出高价的君主。
9 y: V+ y$ F: f2 s7 |, ]# l  |235. In times of peace, when business was bad, Hawkwood and his men would march into a city-state and,
6 x" u( `. _7 T, E" f& {        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,
$ G( v( b# ~8 a236. 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。
) R9 W) X' G* O3 o" C237. Hawkwood made large sums of money in this way.
        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.
4 ]& v) U6 t& @, {& w& O        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,
240. and had a picture painted which was dedicated to the memory of 'the most valiant soldier and most notable leader, Signor Giovanni Haukodue.'
4 i% W0 t4 q9 N& Z        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.'