Future historians will be in a unique position when they come to record the history of our own times.
未来的历史学家在写我们这一段历史的时候会别具一格。
They will hardly know which facts to select from the great mass of evidence that steadily accumulates.
对于逐渐积累起来的庞大材料，他们几乎不知道选取哪些好，
What is more, they will not have to rely solely on the written word.
而且，也不必完全依赖文字材料。
Films, videos, CDs and CD-ROMS are just some of the bewildering amount of information they will have.
电影、录像、光盘和光盘驱动器只是能为他们提供令人眼花缭乱的大量信息的几种手段 。
They will be able, as it were, to see and hear us in action.
他们能够身临其境般地观看我们做事，倾听我们讲话。
But the historian attempting to reconstruct the distant past is always faced with a difficult task.
但是，历史学家企图重现遥远的过去可是一项艰巨的任务，
He has to deduce what he can from the few scanty clues available.
他们必须根据现有的不充分的线索进行推理。
Even seemingly insignificant remains can shed interesting light on the history of early man.
即使看起来微不足道的遗物，也可能揭示人类早期历史的一些有趣的内容。
Up to now, historians have assumed that calendars came into being with the advent of agriculture,
历史学家迄今认为日历是随农业的问世而出现的，
for then man was faced with a real need to understand something about the seasons.
因为当时人们面临着了解四季的实际需要，
Recent scientific evidence seems to indicate that this assumption is incorrect.
但近期科学研究发现，好像这种假设是不正确的。
Historians have long been puzzled by dots, lines and symbols which have been engraved on walls, bones, and the ivory tusks of mammoths.
长期以来，历史学家一直对雕刻在墙壁上、骨头上、古代长毛象的象牙上的点、线和形形色色的符号感到困惑不解。
The nomads who made these markings lived by hunting and fishing during the last Ice Age which began about 35,000 B.C. and ended about 10,000 B.C.
这些痕迹是游牧人留下的，他们生活在从公元前约35，000年到公元前10，000年的冰川期的末期，以狩猎、捕鱼为生。
By correlating markings made in various parts of the world, historians have been able to read this difficult code.
历史学家通过把世界各地留下的这种痕迹放在一起研究，终于弄懂了这种费解的代码。
They have found that it is connected with the passage of days and the phases of the moon.
他们发现代码与昼夜更迭和月亮圆缺有关，
It is, in fact, a primitive type of calendar.
事实上是一种最原始的日历。
It has long been known that the hunting scenes depicted on walls were not simply a form of artistic expression.
大家早就知道，画在墙上的狩猎图景并不是单纯的艺术表现形式，
They had a definite meaning, for they were as near as early man could get to writing.
它们有着一定的含义，因为它们已接近古代人的文字形式。
It is possible that there is a definite relation between these paintings and the markings that sometimes accompany them.
有时，这种图画与墙壁上的刻痕共存，它们之间可能有一定的联系。
It seems that man was making a real effort to understand the seasons 20,000 years earlier than has been supposed.
看来人类早就致力于探索四季变迁了，比人们想像的要早20,000年。
The rough across the plain soon became so bad that we tried to get Bruce to drive back to the village we had come from.
穿越平原的道路高低不平，开车走了不远，路面愈加崎岖。我们想劝说布鲁斯把车开回我们出发的那个村庄去。
Even though the road was littered with boulders and pitted with holes, Bruce was not in the least perturbed.
尽管路面布满石头，坑坑洼洼，但布鲁斯却一点儿不慌乱。
Glancing at his map, he informed us that the next village was a mere twenty miles away.
他瞥了一眼地图，告诉我们前面再走不到20英里就是一个村庄。
It was not that Bruce always underestimated difficulties.
这并不是说布鲁斯总是低估困难，
He simply had no sense of danger at all.
而是他压根儿没有一点儿危险感。
No matter what the conditions were, he believed that a car should be driven as fast as it could possibly go.
他认为不管路面情况如何，车必须以最高速度前进。
As we bumped over the dusty track, we swerved to avoid large boulders.
我们在尘士飞扬的道路上颠簸，车子东拐西弯，以躲开那些大圆石。
The wheels scooped up stones which hammered ominously under the car.
车轮搅起的石块锤击车身，发出不祥的锤击声。
We felt sure that sooner or later a stone would rip a hole in our petrol tank or damage the engine.
我们想念迟早会飞起一个石块把油箱砸开一个窟窿，或者把发动机砸坏。
Because of this, we kept looking back, wondering if we were leaving a trail of oil and petrol behind us.
因此，我们不时地掉过头，怀疑车后是否留下了机油和汽油的痕迹。
What a relief it was when the boulders suddenly disappeared,
突然大石块不见了，
giving way to a stretch of plain where the only obstacles were clumps of bushes.
前面是一片平地，唯一的障碍只有一簇簇灌木丛。这使我们长长地松了口气。
But there was worse to come.
但是更糟糕的事情在等着我们，
Just ahead of us there was a huge fissure.
离我们不远处，出现一个大裂缝。
In response to renewed pleadings, Bruce stopped.
我们再次央求布鲁斯小心，他这才把车停了下来。
Though we all got out to examine the fissure, he remained in the car.
我们纷纷下车察看那个大裂缝，他却呆在车上。
We informed him that the fissure extended for fifty yards and was tow feet wide and four feet deep.
我们告诉他那个大裂缝长50码，宽2英尺，深4英尺。
Even this had no effect.
这也没有对他产生任何影响。
Bruce went into a low gear and drove at a terrifying speed, keeping the front wheels astride the crack as he followed its zigzag course.
布鲁斯挂上慢档，把两只前轮分别搁在裂缝的两边，顺着弯弯曲曲的裂缝，以发疯的速度向前开去。
Before we had time to worry about what might happen, we were back on the plain again.
我们还未来得及担心后果，车已重新开上了平地。
Bruce consulted the map once more and told us that the village was now only fifteen miles away.
布鲁斯又看了一眼地图，告诉我们那座村庄离我们只有15英里了。
Our next obstacle was a shallow pool of water about half a mile across.
下一个障碍是一片约半英里宽的浅水塘。
Bruce charged at it, but in the middle, the car came to a grinding half.
布鲁斯向水塘冲去，但车开到水塘当中，嘎吱一声停住了。
A yellow light on the dashboard flashed angrily and Bruce cheerfully announced that there was no oil in the engine!
仪表盘一盏黄灯闪着刺眼的光芒，布鲁斯兴致勃勃地宣布发动机里没油了！
It has never been explained why university students seem to enjoy practical jokes more than anyone else.
谁也弄不清为什么大学生好像比任何人都更喜欢恶作剧。
Students specialize in a particular type of practical joke: the hoax.
大学生擅长一种特殊的恶作剧--戏弄人。
Inviting the fire brigade to put out a nonexistent fire is a crude form of deception which no self-respecting student would ever indulge in.
请消防队来扑灭一场根本没有的大火是一种低级骗局，有自尊心的大学生决不会去做。
Students often create amusing situations which are funny to everyone except the victims.
大学生们常常做的是制造一种可笑的局面，使大家笑上一场，当然受害者是笑不出来的。
When a student recently saw two workmen using a pneumatic drill outside his university,
最近有个学生看见两个工人在学校门外用风钻干活，
he immediately telephoned the police and informed them that two students dressed up as workmen were tearing up the road with a pneumatic drill.
马上打电话报告警察，说有两个学生装扮成工人，正在用风钻破坏路面。
As soon as he had hung up, he went over to the workmen and told them that if a policeman ordered them to go away, they were not to take him seriously.
挂上电话后，他又马上来到工人那儿，告诉他们若有个警察来让他们走开，不要把他当回事，
He added that a student had dressed up as a policeman and was playing all sorts of silly jokes on people.
还对工人说，有个学生常装扮成警察无聊地同别人开玩笑。
Both the police and the workmen were grateful to the student for this piece of advance information.
警察与工人都对那个学生事先通报情况表示感谢。
The student hid in an archway nearby where he could watch and hear everything that went on.
那个学生躲在附近一拱形的门廊里，在那儿可以看见、听到现场发生的一切。
Sure enough, a policeman arrived on the scene and politely asked the workmen to go away.
果然，警察来了，不礼貌地请工人离开此地；
When he received a very rude reply from one of the workmen.
但其中一个工人粗鲁地回了几句。
He threatened to remove them by force.
于是警察威胁要强行使他们离开。
The workmen told him to do as he pleased and the policeman telephoned for help.
工人说，悉听尊便。警察去打电话叫人。
Shortly afterwards, four more policemen arrived and remonstrated with the workmen.
一会儿工夫，又来了4个警察，规劝工人离开。
As the men refused to stop working, the police attempted to seize the pneumatic drill.
由于工人拒绝停下手中的活，警察想夺风钻。
The workmen struggled fiercely and one of them lost his temper.
两个工人奋力抗争，其中一个发了火，
He threatened to call the police.
威胁说要去叫警察。
At this, the police pointed out ironically that this would hardly be necessary as the men were already under arrest.
警察听后讥讽地说，这大可不必，因为他俩已被逮捕了。
Pretending to speak seriously, one of the workmen asked if he might make a telephone call before being taken to the station.
其中一个工人装模作样地问道，在被带往警察局之前，是否可以打一个电话。
Permission was granted and a policeman accompanied him to a pay phone.
警察同意了，陪他来到一个投币地电话前，
Only when he saw that the man was actually telephoning the police did he realize that they had all been the victims of a hoax.
当他看到那个工人真的是给警察挂电话，才恍然大悟，原来他们都成一场骗局的受害者。
The quiet life of the country has never appealed to me.
宁静的乡村生活从来没有吸引过我。
City born and city bred,
我生在城市，长在城市，
I have always regarded the country as something you look at through a train window, or something you occasionally visit during the weekend.
总认为乡村是透过火车车窗看到的那个样了，或偶尔周末去游玩一下景象。
Most of my friends live in the city, yet they always go into raptures at the mere mention of the country.
我的许多朋友都住在城市，但他们只要一提起乡村，马上就会变得欣喜若狂。
Though they extol the virtues of the peaceful life,
尽管他们都交口称赞宁静的乡村生活的种种优点，
only one of them has ever gone to live in the country and he was back in town within six months.
但其中只有一个人真去农村住过，而且不足6个月就回来了。
Even he still lives under the illusion that country life is somehow superior to town life.
即使他也仍存有幻觉，好像乡村生活就是比城市生活优越。
He is forever talking about the friendly people, the clean atmosphere, the closeness to nature and the gentle pace of living.
他滔滔不绝地大谈友好的农民，洁净的空气，贴近大自然的环境和悠闲的生活节奏。
Nothing can be compared, he maintains, with the first cockcrow, the twittering of birds at dawn, the sight of the rising sun glinting on the trees and pastures.
他坚持认为，凌晨雄鸡第一声啼叫，黎明时分小鸟吱喳欢叫，冉冉升起的朝阳染红树木、牧场，此番美景无与伦比。
This idyllic pastoral scene is only part of the picture.
但这种田园诗般的乡村风光仅仅是一个侧面。
My friend fails to mention the long and friendless winter evenings in front of the TV -- virtually the only form of entertainment.
我的朋友没有提到在电视机前度过的漫长寂寞的冬夜--电视是唯一的娱乐形式。
He says nothing about the poor selection of goods in the shops, or about those unfortunate people who have to travel from the country to the city every day to get to work.
他也不说商店货物品种单调，以及那些每天不得不从乡下赶到城里工作的不幸的人们。
Why people are prepared to tolerate a four-hour journey each day for the dubious privilege of living in the country is beyond me.
人们为什么情愿每天在路上奔波4个小时去换取值得怀疑的乡间的优点，我是无法理解的。
They could be saved so much misery and expense if they chose to live in the city where they rightly belong.
要是他们愿意住在本来属于他们的城市，则可以让他们省去诸多不便与节约大量开支。
If you can do without the few pastoral pleasures of the country,
如果你愿舍弃乡下生活那一点点乐趣的话，
you will find the city can provide you with the best that life can offer.
那么你会发出城市可以为你提供生活最美好的东西。
You never have to travel miles to see your friends.
你去看朋友根本不用跋涉好几英里，
They invariably live nearby and are always available for an informal chat or an evening\'s entertainment.
因为他们都住在附近，你随时可以同他们聊天或在晚上一起娱乐。
Some of my acquaintances in the country come up to town once or twice a year to visit the theatre as a special treat.
我在乡村有一些熟人，他们每年进城来看一回或几回戏，并把此看作一种特殊的享受。
For them this is a major operation which involves considerable planning.
看戏在他们是件大事，需要精心计划。
As the play draws to its close, they wonder whether they will ever catch that last train home.
当戏快演完时，他们又为是否能赶上末班火车回家而犯愁。
The city dweller never experiences anxieties of this sort.
这种焦虑，城里人是从未体验过的。
The latest exhibitions, films, or plays are only a short bus ride away.
坐公共汽车几站路，就可看到最新的展览、电影、戏剧。
Shopping, too, is always a pleasure.
买东西也是一种乐趣。
There is so much variety that you never have to make do with second best.
物品种繁多，从来不必用二等品来凑合。
Country people run wild when they go shopping in the city and stagger home loaded with as many of the exotic items as they can carry.
乡里人进城采购欣喜若狂，每次回家时都买足了外来商品，直到拿不动方才罢休，连走路都摇摇晃晃的。
Nor is the city without its moments of beauty.
城市也并非没有良辰美景。
There is something comforting about the warm glow shed by advertisements on cold wet winter nights.
寒冷潮湿的冬夜里，广告灯箱发出的暖光，会给人某种安慰。
Few things could be more impressive than the peace that descends on deserted city streets at weekends
周末，空旷的街市笼罩着一种宁静气氛，没有什么能比此时的宁静更令人难忘了。
when the thousands that travel to work every day are tucked away in their homes in the country.
当成千上万进城上班的人回到他们的乡间寓所之后，
It has always been a mystery to me why city dwellers, who appreciate all these things,
城里人对这一切心里很明白，
obstinately pretend that they would prefer to live in the country.
却偏要执拗地装出他们喜欢住在乡村的样子，这对我来说一直是个谜。
Cave exploration, or pot-holing, as it has come to be known, is a relatively new sport.
洞穴勘查--或洞穴勘探--是一项比较新的体育活动。
Perhaps it is the desire for solitude or the chance of making an unexpected discovery that lures people down to the depths of the earth.
寻求独处的愿望或寻求意外发现的机会的欲望吸引人们来到地下深处。
It is impossible to give a satisfactory explanation for a pot-holer\'s motives.
要想对洞穴探险者的动机作出满意的解释是不可能的。
For him, caves have the same peculiar fascination which high mountains have for the climber.
对洞穴探险者来说，洞穴有一种特殊的魅力，就像高山对登山者有特殊魅力一样。
They arouse instincts which can only be dimly understood.
为什么洞空能引发人的那种探险本能，人们对此只能有一种模模糊糊的理解。
Exploring really deep caves is not a task for the Sunday afternoon rambler.
探测非常深的洞穴不是那些在星期日下午漫步的人所能胜任的。
Such undertakings require the precise planning and foresight of military operations.
这种活动需要有军事行动般的周密布署和预见能力。
It can take as long as eight days to rig up rope ladders and to establish supply bases before a descent can be made into a very deep cave.
有时需要花费整整8天时间来搭起绳梯，建立供应基地，然后才能到一个很深的洞穴里。
Precautions of this sort are necessary,
作出这样的准备是必要的，
for it is impossible to foretell the exact nature of the difficulties which will confront the pot-holer.
因为无法预见到洞穴探险者究竟会遇到什么性质的困难。
The deepest known cave in the world is the Gouffre Berger near Grenoble.
世界上最深的洞穴是格里诺布尔附近的高弗.伯杰洞，
It extends to a depth of 3,723 feet.
深达3,723英尺。
This immense chasm has been formed by an underground stream which has tunnelled a course through a flaw in the rocks.
这个深邃的洞穴是由一条地下暗泉冲刷岩石中的缝隙并使之慢慢变大而形成的。
The entrance to the cave is on a plateau in the Dauphine Alps.
此洞的洞口在丹芬阿尔卑斯山的高原上，
As it is only six feet across, it is barely noticeable.
仅6英尺宽，很难被发现。
The cave might never have been discovered has not the entrance been spotted by the distinguished French pot-holer, Berger.
若不是法国著名洞穴探险家伯杰由于偶然的机会发现了这个洞口的话，这个洞也许不会为人所知。
Since its discovery, it has become a sort of potholers\' Everest.
自从被发现以后，这个洞成了洞穴探险者的珠穆朗玛峰，
Though a number of descents have been made, much of it still remains to be explored.
人们多次进入洞内探险，但至今尚有不少东西有待勘探。
A team of pot-holers recently went down the Gouffre Berger.
最近，一队洞穴探险者下到了高弗.伯杰洞里。
After entering the narrow gap on the plateau, they climbed down the steep sides of the cave until they came to narrow corridor.
他们从高原上的窄缝进去，顺着笔直陡峭的洞壁往下爬。
They had to edge their way along this, sometimes wading across shallow streams, or swimming across deep pools.
来到一条狭窄的走廊上。他们不得不侧着身子往前走，有时过浅溪，有时游过深潭。
Suddenly they came to a waterfall which dropped into an underground lake at the bottom of the cave.
突然，他们来到一道瀑布前，那瀑布奔泻而下，注入洞底一处地下湖里。
They plunged into the lake, and after loading their gear on an inflatable rubber dinghy, let the current carry them to the other side.
他们跳入湖中，把各种器具装上一只充气的橡皮艇，听任水流将他们带往对岸。
To protect themselves from the icy water, they had to wear special rubber suits.
湖水冰冷刺骨，他们必须穿上一种特制的橡皮服以保护自己。
At the far end of the lake, they came to huge piles of rubble which had been washed up by the water.
在湖的尽头，他们见到一大堆一大堆由湖水冲刷上岸的碎石。
In this part of the cave, they could hear an insistent booming sound
在这儿，他们可以听见一种连续不断的轰鸣声。
which they found was caused by a small waterspout shooting down into a pool from the roof of the cave.
后来他们发现这是由山洞顶部的一个小孔里喷出的水柱跌落到水潭中发出的声音。
Squeezing through a cleft in the rocks, the pot-holers arrived at an enormous cavern, the size of a huge concert hall.
洞穴探险者从岩石缝里挤身过去，来到一个巨大的洞里，其大小相当于一个音乐厅。
After switching on powerful arc lights, they saw great stalagmites -- some of them over forty feet high -- rising up like tree-trunks to meet the stalactites suspended from the roof.
他们打开强力弧光灯，看见一株株巨大的石笋，有的高达40英尺，象树干似的向上长着，与洞顶悬挂下来的钟乳石相接。
Round about, piles of limestone glistened in all the colours of the rainbow.
周围是一堆堆石灰石，像彩虹一样闪闪发光。
In the eerie silence of the cavern,
洞里有一种可怕的寂静，
the only sound that could be heard was made by water which dripped continuously from the high dome above them.
唯一的可以听见的声响是高高的圆顶上不间断地滴水的嘀嗒声。
Insurance companies are normally willing to insure anything.
保险公司一般说来愿意承保一切东西。
Insuring public or private property is a standard practice in most countries in the world.
承办公共财产或私人财产保险是世界上大部分国家的正常业务。
If, however, you were holding an open air garden party or a fete it would be equally possible to insure yourself in the event of bad weather.
如果你要举办一次露天游园会或盛宴，为避免碰上不好的天气而遭受损失也同样可以保险，
Needless to say, the bigger the risk an insurance company takes, the higher the premium you will have to pay.
不用说，保险公司承担风险越大，你付的保险费也就越高。
It is not uncommon to hear that a shipping company has made a claim for the cost of salvaging a sunken ship.
航运公司为打捞沉船而提出索赔，这是常有的事，
But the claim made by a local authority to recover the cost of salvaging a sunken pie dish must surely be unique.
但某地当局为打捞一只焙制馅饼的盘子提出索赔，倒是件新鲜的事儿。
Admittedly it was an unusual pie dish, for it was eighteen feet long and six feet wide.
这个馅饼盘子确实少见，有18英尺长，6英尺宽。
It had been purchased by a local authority so that an enormous pie could be baked for an annual fair.
某地方当局买下它用来焙制一个巨大的馅饼为一年一度交易会助兴。
The pie committee decided that the best way to transport the dish would be by canal, so they insured it for the trip.
馅饼委员会确认运输这只盘子的最佳方案是通过运河水运。于是，他们对这只盘子的运输安全投了保。
Shortly after it was launched, the pie committee went to a local inn to celebrate.
盘子下水后不久，馅饼委员会成员们来到当地一家小酒店庆贺。
At the same time, a number of teenagers climbed on to the dish and held a little party of their own.
就在这个时候，许多十几岁的孩子爬盘子举行他们自己的集会。
Dancing proved to be more than the dish could bear, for during the party it capsized and sank in seven feet of water.
他们跳起了舞，盘子难以承受。舞会进行过程中，盘子倾覆，沉入了7英尺深的水中。
The pie committee telephoned a local garage owner who arrived in a recovery truck to salvage the pie dish.
馅饼委员会给当地汽车修理库老板打电话，他闻讯后开着一辆急修车前来打捞盘子。
Shivering in their wet clothes, the teenagers looked on while three men dived repeatedly into the water to locate the dish.
那些孩子们穿着湿衣服哆嗦，看着3个工人轮潜入水中以确定盘子的位置。
They had little difficulty in finding it, but hauling it out of the water proved to be a serious problem.
他们没费多大事儿就找到了盘子。可是把盘子捞出却是一个很大的难题。
The sides of the dish were so smooth that it was almost impossible to attach hawsers and chains to the rim without damaging it.
盘子四边十分光滑，要在盘边拴上绳索或链条而同时又不损坏它是很难办到的。
Eventually chains were fixed to one end of the dish and a powerful winch was put into operation.
不过，他们终于将链条固定在盘子的一端，一台大功率的绞车开动起来。
The dish rose to the surface and was gently drawn towards the canal bank.
盘子慢慢浮出水面，被轻轻地拽向运河岸边。
For one agonizing moment, the dish was perched precariously on the bank of the canal,
在令人忐忑不安的瞬间，盘子晃晃悠悠地上了岸，
but it suddenly overbalanced and slid back into the water.
但它突然失去了平衡，又跌回水中。
The men were now obliged to try once more.
工人们只得再来一次。
This time they fixed heavy metal clamps to both sides of the dish so that they could fasten the chains.
这次，他们用沉重的金属夹子把盘子夹住，以便往盘子上安装铁链。
The dish now had to be lifted vertically because one edge was resting against the side of the canal.
这次，盘子必须垂直吊出水面，因为盘子的一边紧靠着运河河岸。
The winch was again put into operation and one of the men started up the truck.
绞盘机再次启动，一位工人发动了急修车的引擎。
Several minutes later, the dish was successfully hauled above the surface of the water.
几分钟后，盘子被成功地拽出了水面。
Water streamed in torrents over its sides with such force that it set up a huge wave in the canal.
波浪从盘子两侧急涌而出，在运河里掀起一股大浪。
There was danger that the wave would rebound off the other side of the bank and send the dish plunging into the water again.
但是当波浪从河对岸折回来时，就有再次把盘子拖进水里的危险。
By working at tremendous speed, the men managed to get the dish on to dry land before the wave returned.
工人们动作迅速，终于赶在那股大浪返回之前把盘子拽到了岸上。
People travelling long distances frequently have to decide whether they would prefer to go by land, sea, or air.
出远门的人常常需要决定是走旱路、水路，还是坐飞机。
Hardly anyone can positively enjoy sitting in a train for more than a few hours.
很少有人能够真正喜欢坐几个小时以上的火车。
Train compartments soon get cramped and stuffy.
车厢很快就变得拥挤、闷热，
It is almost impossible to take your mind off the journey.
想摆脱开旅途的困扰是很难的。
Reading is only a partial solution, for the monotonous rhythm of the wheels clicking on the rails soon lulls you to sleep.
看书只能解决部分问题。车轮与铁轨间单调的嘎喳声很快就会送你进入梦乡。
During the day, sleep comes in snatches.
白天是忽睡忽醒，
At night, when you really wish to go to sleep, you rarely manage to do so.
到了夜晚，你真想睡了，却很难入睡。
If you are lucky enough to get a sleeper, you spend half the night staring at the small blue light in the ceiling,
即使你走运弄到一个卧铺，夜间有一半时间你会盯着车顶那盏小蓝灯而睡不着觉；
or fumbling to find you ticket for inspection.
要不然就为查票摸索你的车票。
Inevitably you arrive at your destination almost exhausted.
一旦抵达目的地，你总是疲惫不堪。
Long car journeys are even less pleasant, for it is quite impossible even to read.
乘汽车作长途旅行则更加不舒服，因为连看书都几乎不可能。
On motorways you can, at least, travel fairly safely at high speeds,
在公路上还好，你至少能以相当快的速度安全地向前行。
but more often than not, the greater part of the journey is spent on roads with few service stations and too much traffic.
但旅行的大部分时间都花在路上，而且只有很少的服务设施，交通也很拥挤。
By comparison, ferry trips or cruises offer a great variety of civilized comforts.
相比之下，坐船旅行或环游可以得到文明世界的各种享受。
You can stretch your legs on the spacious decks, play games, meet interesting people and enjoy good food -- always assuming,of course, that the sea is calm.
你可以在甲板上伸展四肢、做游戏，还能也很见到各种有趣的人，能享用各种美味佳肴-当然，这一切只有在大海风平浪静的情况下才有可能。
If it is not, and you are likely to get seasick, no form of transport could be worse.
如果大海肆虐起来，你就可能晕船，那种难受劲儿是任何一种别的旅行的方式都不会带来的。
Even if you travel in ideal weather, sea journeys take a long time.
即使风平浪静，坐船旅行也要占用很长时间。
Relatively few people are prepared to sacrifice holiday time for the pleasure of travlling by sea.
没有多少人会为享受坐船旅行的乐趣而牺牲假期的时间。
Aeroplanes have the reputation of being dangerous and even hardened travellers are intimidated by them.
飞机以危险而著称，连老资格的旅行者也怕飞机。
They also have the disadvantage of being an expensive form of transport.
飞机另一个缺点是昂贵。
But nothing can match them for speed and comfort.
但就速度与舒适而言，飞机是无与伦比的。
Travelling at a height of 30,000 feet, far above the clouds, and at over 500 miles an hour is an exhilarating experience.
腾云驾雾，在30，000 英尺高空以500英里的时速旅行，这种经历令人心旷神怡。
You do not have to devise ways of taking your mind off the journey, for an aeroplane gets you to your destination rapidly.
你不必想办法去摆脱旅途的困扰，因为飞机会迅速地把你送到目的地。
For a few hours, you settle back in a deep armchair to enjoy the flight.
几小时之内，你躺在扶手椅上，享受着旅途的欢乐。
The real escapist can watch a film and sip champagne on some services.
真正会享受的人还可以在某些航班上看一场电影和喝香槟。
But even when such refinements are not available, there is plenty to keep you occupied.
即使没有这些消遣条件，也总是有事可做。
An aeroplane offers you an unusual and breathtaking view of the world.
飞机上，你可以观察世界上非同寻常的奇妙的美景。
You soar effortlessly over high mountains and deep valleys.
你毫不费劲地飞越高山幽谷，
You really see the shape of the land.
你确能饱览大地的风貌。
If the landscape is hidden from view,
如果这种景色被遮住了，
you can enjoy the extraordinary sight of unbroken cloud plains that stretch out for miles before you, while the sun shines brilliantly in a clear sky.
你可以观赏一下展现在你面前的、一望数英里的、连绵不断的云海，同时阳光灿烂，天空清澈明朗。
The journey is so smooth that there is nothing to prevent you from reading or sleeping.
旅途平稳，丝毫不妨碍你阅读或睡眠。
However you decide to spend your time, one thing is certain: you will arrive at your destination fresh and uncrumpled.
不管你打算如何消磨时间，有件事是可以肯定的，即当你抵达目的地时，你感到精神焕发，毫无倦意，
You will not have to spend the next few days recovering from a long and arduous journey.
用不着因为漫长的旅途的辛苦而花几天时间休息来恢复精神。
In democratic countries any efforts to restrict the freedom of the press are rightly condemned.
在民主国家里，任何限制新闻自由的企图都理所当然地受到谴责。
However, this freedom can easily be abused.
然而，这种自由很容易被滥用。
Stories about people often attract far more public attention than political events.
常人轶事往往比政治事件更能引起公众注意。
Though we may enjoy reading about the lives of others, it is extremely doubtful whether we would equally enjoy reading about ourselves.
我们都喜欢看关于别人生活的报道，但是否同样喜欢看关于自己生活的报道，就很难说了。
Acting on the contention that facts are sacred,
记者按事实至上的论点行事，
reporters can cause untold suffering to individuals by publishing details about their private lives.
发表有关别人生活的细节，有时会给当事人造成极大的痛苦。
Newspapers exert such tremendous influence that they can not only bring about major changes to the lives of ordinary people
新闻具有巨大的威力。它们不仅可以给寻常人家的生活带来重大的变化，
but can even overthrow a government.
甚至还能推翻一个政府。
The story of a poor family that acquired fame and fortune overnight, dramatically illustrates the power of the press.
下面这户穷人一夜之间出名发财的故事戏剧性地说明了新闻报道威力。
The family lived in Aberdeen, a small town of 23,000 inhabitants in South Dakota.
这户人家住在南达科他州一个人口为23，000 的小镇上，镇名为阿拜丁。
As the parents had five children, life was a perpetual struggle against poverty.
家里已有5个孩子，全家人常年在贫困中挣扎。
They were expecting their sixth child and were faced with even more pressing economic problems.
第6个孩子即将问世，他们面临着更为严峻的经济问题。
If they had only had one more child, the fact would have passed unnoticed.
如果他们只添了1个孩子，这件事本来就不会引起任何人的注意。
They would have continued to struggle against economic odds and would have lived in obscurity.
这家人会继续为克服经济上的拮据而奋斗，并默默无闻地活下去。
But they suddenly became the parents of quintuplets, four girl and a boy, an event which radically changed their lives.
但是他们出人意料生了个五胞胎，4女1男。这事使他们的生活发生了根本的变化。
The day after the birth of the five children, an aeroplane arrived in Aberdeen bringing sixty reporters and photographers.
五胞胎降生第二天，一架飞机飞抵阿拜丁，随机带来60名记者与摄影师。
The rise to fame was swift.
这一家迅速出了名。
Television cameras and newspapers carried the news to everyone in the country.
电视摄像机和报纸把消息传送到全国。
Newspapers and magazines offered the family huge sums for the exclusive rights to publish stories and photographs.
报纸、杂志出高价向他们购买文字、图片的独家报道权。
Gifts poured in not only from unknown people, but from baby food and soap manufacturers who wished to advertise their products.
不但素昧平生的人寄来了大量的礼物，而且婴儿食品、婴儿肥皂制造厂商为了替自己产品做广告也寄来了大量的礼物。
The old farmhouse the family lived in was to be replaced by a new $500,000 home.
这家人住的旧家舍将由一座价值50万美元的新住宅所取代。
Reporters kept pressing for interviews so lawyers had to be employed to act as spokesmen for the family at press conferences.
由于记者纷纷要求会见，他们不得不请了律师充当他们家的发言人举行记者招待会。
While the five babies were still quietly sleeping in oxygen tents in a hospital nursery,
眼下，五胞胎还静静地躺在医院婴儿室的氧气帐里，
their parents were paying the price for fame.
他们的父母却为这名声付出了代价，
It would never again be possible for them to lead normal lives.
他们再也无法过正常的生活。
They had become the victims of commercialization, for their names had acquired a market value.
他们成了商业化的受害者，因为他们的名字具有了市场价值。
Instead of being five new family members, these children had immediately become a commodity.
这些孩子立即成了商品，而不是5个新的家庭成员。
So great is our passion for doing things for ourselves, that we are becoming increasingly less dependent on specialized labour.
现在我们自己动手做事的热情很高，结果对于专业工人的依赖越来越少了。
No one can plead ignorance of a subject any longer, for there are countless do-it-yourself publications.
由于出版了不计其数的教人自己动手做事的书报杂志，没有人再能说对某事一无所知。
Armed with the right tools and materials, newlyweds gaily embark on the task of decorating their own homes.
新婚夫妇找来合适的工具和材料，喜气洋洋地开始布置新房。
Men, particularly, spend hours of their leisure time installing their own fireplaces, laying out their own gardens;
特别是男人，常利用空闲时间安装壁炉、布置花园、建造车库、制作家具。
building garages and making furniture. Some really keen enthusiasts go so far as to build their own computers.
有些热衷于自己动手的人甚至自己组装电脑。
Shops cater for the do-it-yourself craze not only by running special advisory services for novices,
为了满足自己动手热的需要，商店不仅为初学者提供专门的咨询服务，
but by offering consumers bits and pieces which they can assemble at home.
而且为顾客准备了各种零件，供他们买回家去安装。
Such things provide an excellent outlet for pent up creative energy, but unfortunately not all of us are born handymen.
这些东西为人们潜在的创造力提供了一个绝妙的用武之地。但不幸的是，我们并非人人都是能工巧匠。
Some wives tend to believe that their husbands are infinitely resourceful and can fix anything.
妻子常常认为她们的丈夫无比聪明能干。
Even men who can hardly drive a nail in straight are supposed to be born electricians, carpenters, plumbers and mechanics.
甚至那些连一枚钉子都钉不直的男人都被认为是天生的电工、木匠、水管工和机械师。
When lights fuse, furniture gets rickety, pipes get clogged, or vacuum cleaners fail to operate,
每当电灯保险丝烧断、家具榫头松动、管道堵塞、吸尘器不动时，
some woman assume that their husbands will somehow put things right.
有些妻子认为丈夫总有办法。
The worst thing about the do-it-yourself game is that sometimes even men live under the delusion that they can do anything, even when they have repeatedly been proved wrong.
自己动手的例子中最糟糕的是，有时甚至是男人尽管接连失败却还误以为自己什么都行，
It is a question of pride as much as anything else.
原因就是要面子。
Last spring my wife suggested that I call in a man to look at our lawn mower.
今年春天，妻子让我请人检查一下我家的割草机。
It had broken down the previous summer, and though I promised to repair it, I had never got round to it.
那台割草机去年夏天就坏了，尽管我答应修，但一直没抽出时间，
I would not hear of the suggestion and said that I would fix it myself.
我不愿听妻子的建议，说我自己会修。
One Saturday afternoon, I hauled the machine into the garden and had a close look at it.
一个星期六的下午，我把割草机拉到了花园里，仔细检查了一番。
As far as I could see, it needed only a minor adjustment:
在我看来，只需稍加调整即可。
a turn of a screw here, a little tightening up there, a drop of oil and it would be as good as new.
这儿紧紧螺丝，那儿固定一下，再加几滴油，就会像新的一样了。
Inevitably the repair job was not quite so simple.
事实上，修理工作远不是那么简单。
The mower firmly refused to mow, so I decided to dismantle it.
修完后割草机还是纹丝不动。于是，我决定把它拆开。
The garden was soon littered with chunks of metal which had once made up a lawn mower.
一会儿工夫，割草机便被拆成一个个金属零件，乱七八糟地堆在花园里。
But I was extremely pleased with myself.
但我却非常高兴，
I had traced the cause of the trouble.
因为我找到了毛病所在。
One of the links in the chain that drives the wheels had snapped.
驱动轮子的链条断了一节。
After buying a new chain I was faced with the insurmountable task of putting the confusing jigsaw puzzle together again.
我买来一根新链条后，面临的就是如何把这些令人眼花缭乱的拼板重新组装起来。
I was not surprised to find that the machine still refused to work after I had reassembled it,
等我装完后，那台割草机仍然一动不动，对此我倒并不感到吃惊。
for the simple reason that I was left with several curiously shaped bits of metal which did not seem to fit anywhere.
原因很简单，因为还剩下几个形状奇特的零件似乎哪里也装不上去。
I gave up in despair.
我无可奈何，只好罢休。
The weeks passed and the grass grew.
几个星期过去了，草长了起来。
When my wife nagged me to do something about it, I told her that either I would have to buy a new mower or let the grass grow.
妻子喋喋不休让我想点办法。我告诉她，要么买一台新割草机，要么让草长下去。
Needless to say our house is now surrounded by a jungle.
不用说，我家现在已被丛林包围。
Buried somewhere in deep grass there is a rusting lawn mower which I have promised to repair one day.
深草丛中的某个地方有一台正在生锈的割草机，那就是我曾答应某日要修理的割草机。
Pollution is the price we pay for an overpopulated, over industrialized planet.
污染就是我们为这个人口过密，过度工业化的星球所付出的代价。
When you come to think about it, there are only four ways you can deal with rubbish:
当我们开始考虑垃圾问题时，我们只有4种对付垃圾的方法：
dump it, burn it, turn it into something you can use again, attempt to produce less of it.
倾倒、焚烧、把垃圾变成再生材料或试图少产生一些垃圾。
We keep trying all four methods, but he sheer volume of rubbish we produce worldwide threatens to overwhelm us.
我们一直在试这4种方式，但是，我们在世界范围内仅产生的垃圾的量就有把我们覆盖的危险。
Rubbish, however, is only part of the problem of polluting our planet.
然而，垃圾只是我们这个星球的污染问题的一个方面。
The need to produce ever-increasing quantities of cheap food leads to a different kind of pollution.
日益增长的对廉价食物的需求导致了另一种形式的污染。
Industrialized farming methods produce cheap meat products: beef, pork and chicken.
工业化的农作方式生产出廉价的肉类制品--牛肉、猪肉和鸡肉。
The use of pesticides and fertilizers produces cheap grain and vegetables.
使用杀虫剂和化肥生产出廉价的谷物和蔬菜。
The price we pay for cheap food may be already too high:
为了廉价食物我们付出代价已经太高了：
Mad Cow Disease (BSE) in cattle, salmonella in chicken and eggs, and listeria in dairy products.
牛肉中的疯牛病，鸡肉和鸡蛋中的沙门氏菌，奶制品中的利斯特杆菌。
And if you think you\'ll abandon meat and become a vegetarian,
如果你想放弃肉类而变成一位素食者，
you have the choice of very expensive organically-grown vegetables
那么你可以两者择一：或是选用价格昂贵、有机培植的蔬菜，
or a steady diet of pesticides every time you think you\'re eating fresh salads and vegetables, or just having an innocent glass of water!
或是当你认为在享用新鲜色拉和新鲜蔬菜或饮用一杯无害的水的时候，实际上每次都不断吃进杀虫剂。
However, there is an even more insidious kind of pollution that particularly affects urban areas and invades our daily lives, and that is noise.
但是，还有一种更加隐蔽有害的污染，它专门影响城镇地区，侵袭我们的日常生活，那就是噪音。
Burglar alarms going off at any time of the day or night serve only to annoy passers-by and actually assist burglars to burgle.
防盗警报器在白天和黑夜的任何时候都会响起来，它的作用只是骚扰过路行人，而实际上却帮助窃贼入室行窃。
Car alarms constantly scream at us in the street and are a source of profound irritation.
在街上，汽车的防盗警报不断对我们吼叫，这是人们极度烦燥的一个原因，
A recent survey of the effects of noise revealed (surprisingly?) that dogs barking incessantly in the night rated the highest form of noise pollution on a scale ranging from 1 to 7.
最近一个有关噪音的作用的调查（令人吃惊地）指出，夜间连续不断的狗叫声，在一个从1级至7级刻度表上应列为最严重的噪间污染。
The survey revealed a large number of sources of noise that we really dislike. Lawn mowers whining on a summer\'s day,
这个调查揭示了我们所不喜欢的大量的噪间的来源：夏天呜呜作响的割草机，公寓楼里深夜聚会的喧哗声，
late-night parties in apartment blocks, noisy neighbours, vehicles of all kinds,especially large container trucks thundering through quiet villages, planes and helicopters flying overhead,
大声吵闹的邻居，各式各样的车辆，特别是穿越寂静的村庄的集装箱卡车，从头顶飞过的飞机和直升机，被带到公共场所、
large radios carried round in public places and played at maximum volume.
音量开到最大的大功率收音机。
New technology has also made its own contribution to noise.
新技术也为噪音作了它的贡献。
A lot of people object to mobile phones, especially when they are used in public places like restaurants or on public transport.
许多人都反对移动式电话，特别是在如饭店，公共交通车等公共场所使用移动电话。
Loud conversations on mobile phones invade our thoughts or interrupt the pleasure of meeting friends for a quiet chat.
用移动电话大声交谈干扰我们的思路，破坏我们和朋友在一起轻声聊天所得到的乐趣。
The noise pollution survey revealed a rather surprising and possibly amusing old fashioned source of noise.
这个有关噪音的污染调查还揭示了一种出人意外而同时可能会引人意外而同时可能会引人发笑的老式噪音源。
It turned out to be snoring!
它竟然是鼾声。
Men were found to be the worst offenders.
人类是这方面的罪魁祸首。
It was revealed that 20% of men in their mid-thirties snore.
调查指出，20%的35岁左右的男人打鼾；
This figure rises to a staggering 60% of men in their sixties.
而到60岁这个年龄段，这个数字上升到令人惊愕的60%。
Against these figures, it was found that only 5% of women snore regularly,
与这些数字相比，只有5% 的女性经常打鼾；
while the rest are constantly woken or kept awake by their trumpeting partners.
而其余则经常被与她们同睡、像吹号似地打着呼噜的男人吵醒或弄得睡不着。
Whatever the source of noise, one thing is certain: silence, it seems, has become a golden memory.
不管噪声来自何方，有一点是肯定的：看来寂静已变成一种珍贵的回忆。
楼主