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　　IN THIS ARTICLE: A pet donkey was a good way to make money and have a lot of fun back in the'20s.-Editor
　　My older brother,Floyd,was always trying to find ways to earn money.
　　[2] We lived in East Denver,Colorado in the 1920s. When I was 8,Floyd somehow became the owner of a donkey whose name was"Babe".
　　[3] Babe never moved too fast.Floyd built a two-wheeled cart for his * lawn mower（注：割草机）and Babe pulled the cart around town as Floyd looked for lawns to mow. Floyd made a little money and used the grass to feed Babe.
　　[4] Babe was kept in our backyard,but we had no lawn,only dirt.In fact,my younger sister,Ellender,and I used to * play house（注：模仿大人做家务（一种儿童游戏），俗称“过家家”）out there every day by watering the dirt down,then * marking off（注：划线标示）"rooms".
　　 A Big Jackrabbit（注：（北美西部的）长耳大兔）?
　　[5] Our father even made us furniture out of apple boxes and scrap lumber.We "baked" mud pies in the sun and the neighbors kids also came to play.But one morning,all that changed.
　　[6] Mother was cooking breakfast when Ellender looked out the kitchen window."Mama! Mama!"she yelled."There's a big jackrabbit in our yard!"
　　[7] Mother came to the window."Oh,* my gosh（注：（表示惊奇）我的天啊）,"Mother exclaimed.That "jackrabbit"was Babe's baby donkey!
　　[8] Floyd immediately named him "Curly" for his curly hair,and when we finally got close enough to touch him-he became our friend.
　　[9] Curly loved kids...and attention. He was a fast learner,and we taught him to play hide-and-seek.Curly would come searching and braying（注：bray（驴）叫）to find us.
　　[10] We also played a game out on the sidewalk（注：=pavement人行道）by running as fast as we could,with Curly chasing us.Before Curly could catch up,we'd run behind a tree.(He couldn't stop fast and we didn't want him running into us.)
　　[11] That game ended when Curly came running down the block and * knocked down（注：knock down 把……撞倒在地）old Mrs.Schmultz,who just happened to be coming out of her house.
　　[12] One time,we put on a show starring Curly and charged the neighbor kids a penny each.They all got to greet Curly and pet（注：爱抚；抚弄）him,then I ran through the yard to"get him started".He bucked（注：buck 突然跃起）and put on a show like you've never seen.
　　[13] The kids loved it and screamed and hollered（注：holler（俚）（为了引起对方注意或遇到痛苦时）叫喊）.The more noise they made,the more Curly acted up.
　　[14] Curly liked to play.Every morning he'd come and bray at our bedroom window to get us to come out.
　　[15] One time,he tried to play with Dad,who was on his knees putting a tire on a rim.Curly * backed up（注：back up 往后退）to Dad and kicked him with both feet,sending Dad flying over the tire.
　　[16] Curly would follow Floyd and Babe all over town when they went out to cut lawns,and he performed for anyone he saw along the way.
　　[17] Floyd also found another way to make money,selling somc of Babe's milk to two families whose children had * whooping cough（注：百日咳）.At the time,donkey milk was believed to help cure the childhood disease.
　　Dressed for Success
　　[18] Babe and Curly earned quite a reputation around town and there were some offers to buy them.Floyd wouldn't sell,but that didn't stopa couple of scofflaws（注：无视法律的人）.One rainy night,Dad heard Babe braying.He called Floyd,grabbed his gun and they ran out to the alley（注：小巷；小径）,still in their long johns（注：长睡裤和睡衣）.
　　[19] Two men were leading Babe down the muddy alley,with Curly following.Dad fired into the air.One man slipped and fell in the mud,then both men dropped the rope and started running.
　　[20] Dad and Floyd chased them but quit when the men disappeared through some yards.Of course,they still had to walk back home.Picture two men in long johns walking down the street at 1 a.m.,covered in mud,and one carrying a gun!
　　[21] Just as they passed under a streetlight,a young man and his date（注：男女间约会对象，此处指女友）drove by in a Model T.As soon as he saw them,the man * stepped on the gas（注：step on the gas 踩油门）and sped up the street!
　　[22] The next night at the corner store,where the young men used to gather and visit,one of them related the story about seeing two crazy guys in their underwear,covered with mud and carrying a gun.Floyd had a good laugh,then explained what it was all about.
　　[23] When summer came to an end,Curly was getting pretty big.Floyd had gotten a job at a grocery store,so it was decided that Babe and Curly needed a new home.
　　[24] The American Legion ran an ad in the paper wanting to buy donkeys.So,Babe and Curly were tied to the back of our Chevy and taken across town,where we bid them good-bye.They were gone,but never forgotten.
　　本文简介：20世纪20年代，一只宠物驴可以很好地用来赚钱，而且带给人们许多乐趣。　　　　　　　　　　—编者
　　我哥哥弗洛伊德总是千方百计地想路子赚钱。
　　[2]20世纪20年代，我们住在科罗拉多州的东丹佛。我8岁时，弗洛伊德不知怎的有了一头驴，并取名为“宝贝”。
　　[3]宝贝行动不是很敏捷。弗洛伊德做了一辆双轮车，用来装割草机。他让宝贝拖着那车在市镇里转悠，寻找要修整草坪的人家。弗洛伊德赚了一点钱，并用割下来的草喂养宝贝。
　　[4]我们将宝贝养在后院，但我们没有草坪，只有烂泥地。其实，我和妹妹埃伦德每天都在那里玩“过家家”的游戏，我们用水把烂泥冲掉，然后划线标出“房间”。
　　一只大野兔？
　　[5]我们的父亲甚至还用装苹果的盒子和小块木头为我们做了家具。我们用烂泥做馅饼并放在太阳下“烤”，邻家的孩子们也来玩耍。但是，一天早上，一切全变了样。
　　[6]妈妈正在做早饭的时候，埃伦德从厨房的窗口向外瞧。她喊叫着：“妈妈！妈妈！咱们的院子里有一只很大的野兔！”
　　[7]妈妈来到窗户边上，惊叫道：“啊，我的天啊！”那只“大野兔”原来是宝贝产下的小驴！
　　[8]弗洛伊德马上给小驴取了个名字叫“卷毛”，因为它的毛发都卷曲着。当我们最终走近它能够抚摸到它时，它就成了我们的朋友。
　　[9]卷毛喜欢小孩……也喜欢人们关心它。它学东西很快，我们就教它玩捉迷藏的游戏。卷毛会来寻找我们，一边叫着一边把我们找到。
　　[10]我们还玩一种室外游戏，就是我们在人行道上尽可能地快跑，让卷毛来追我们。在卷毛追上我们之前，我们就在一棵树的后面跑。（它不能很快地停下来，我们又不想让它撞到我们身上。）
　　[11]有一次，当卷毛跑过这个街区，撞倒了刚刚从屋子里走出来的斯玛尔兹老太太，我们这个游戏才告结束。
　　[12]有一段时间，我们让卷毛表演节目并向邻家的孩子们收费，每人1美分。他们都来向卷毛打招呼，抚摸它；然后，我穿过院子，“要它开始表演”。它会猛然弓背跃起，进行你从来没有见过的表演。
　　[13]孩子们很喜欢这种表演，他们喊着，尖叫着。孩子们闹得越凶，卷毛就表演得越起劲。
　　[14]卷毛喜欢玩耍。每天早上它都会来到我们卧室的窗外叫着，要我们出来。
　　[15]有一次，它想和我爸玩，当时我爸正跪着在轮圈上装轮胎。卷毛朝我爸倒退过去，用两只蹄子踢他，结果使我爸从轮胎上翻了过去。
　　[16]弗洛伊德和宝贝到镇上去修剪草坪时，卷毛就跟着去。一路上，它看见谁就给谁表演。
　　[17]弗洛伊德又发现了另一种赚钱的方法，那就是将宝贝的乳汁卖一些给孩子患了百日咳的两个家庭。那年月，人们相信驴奶可以治疗儿童的疾病。
　　如此装束是为了捉拿窃贼
　　[18]宝贝和卷毛在我们市镇一带颇有名气，有些人提出要买它们。弗洛伊德不肯卖，但他制止不了三两个不守法律的人来偷。一个雨夜，我爸听见宝贝在叫。他唤醒弗洛伊德，抓起枪，和弗洛伊德跑到小巷里，两人还穿着长长的睡裤和睡衣。
　　[19]有两个人正牵着宝贝走在泥泞的小巷里，卷毛在后面跟着。我爸朝天空放了一枪。有个人滑倒在泥里，然后，那两个人扔掉了绳子开始逃跑。
　　[20]我爸和弗洛伊德追赶了一阵，到他们跑出几码远看不见人影就不追了。父子俩当然还得走回家。当时的情景是：两个穿着长睡衣和睡裤的人凌晨1点钟在街上走，浑身是泥，其中一个还扛着一杆枪！
　　[21]正当他们在一盏街灯下走过时，有个小伙子和他的女朋友开着一辆T型车经过那里。小伙子一见到他们，就踩着油门，加速驶过了那条街。
　　[22]第二天晚上，在年轻人常来聚会的街角小店里，有个人在讲故事，说是看见两个穿着内衣的狂人，浑身是泥，还扛着一杆枪。弗洛伊德不禁好一阵大笑，然后解释了那到底是怎么一回事。
　　[23]夏天快要过去时，卷毛已经长得相当大了。弗洛伊德在一家杂货店里谋到了一个差事，于是，决定要为宝贝和卷毛寻找一个新家。
　　[24]美国兵团在报纸上刊登广告，说他们要买驴。所以，我们就把宝贝和卷毛绑在我们的雪弗莱牌汽车后面，把它们送到市镇的另一边去，在那里告别了它们。它们虽然走了，但永远不会被我们忘记。
英语世界京G381中学外语教与学埃斯特·波特20022002黄席群谢琼Curly:An Unforgettable FriendBy Esther Porter 作者：英语世界京G381中学外语教与学埃斯特·波特20022002黄席群

网载 2013-09-10 21:42:26

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