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2021年1月22日发(作者：重峦叠嶂)

新概念英语第三册课文

Lesson1


A puma at large

Pumas are large, cat-like animals which are found in America. When reports came into
London Zoo that a wild puma had been spotted forty-five miles south of London, they were not
taken seriously. However, as the evidence began to accumulate, experts from the Zoo felt obliged
to investigate, for the descriptions given by people who claimed to have seen the puma were
extraordinarily similar.


The hunt for the puma began in a small village where a woman picking blackberries saw 'a
large cat' only five yards away from her. It immediately ran away when she saw it, and experts
confirmed that a puma will not attack a human being unless it is cornered
（
adj.
被困得走投无路
的）
. The search proved difficult, for the puma was often observed at one place in the morning and
at another place twenty miles away in the evening. Wherever it went, it left behind it a trail of
dead deer and small animals like rabbits. Paw prints were seen in a number of places and puma fur
was found clinging to bushes. Several people complained of 'cat-like noises' at night and a
businessman on a fishing trip saw the puma up a tree. The experts were now fully convinced that
the animal was a puma, but where had it come from ? As no pumas had been reported missing
from any zoo in the country, this one must have been in the possession of a private collector and
somehow managed to escape. The hunt went on for several weeks, but the puma was not caught. It
is disturbing to think that a dangerous wild animal is still at large in the quiet countryside.
Lesson 2

Thirteen equals one

Our vicar is always raising money for one cause or another, but he has never managed to get
enough money to have the church clock repaired. The big clock which used to strike the hours day
and night was damaged many years ago and has been silent ever since. One night, however, our
vicar woke up with a start: the clock was striking the hours! Looking at his watch, he saw that it
was one o'clock, but the bell struck thirteen times before it stopped. Armed with a torch, the vicar
went up into the clock tower to see what was going on. In the torchlight, he caught sight of a
figure whom he immediately recognized as Bill Wilkins, our local grocer.

'Whatever are you
doing up here Bill ?' asked the vicar in surprise.' I'm trying to repair the bell,' answered Bill.' I've
been coming up here night after night for weeks now. You see, I was hoping to give you a
surprise.''You certainly did give me a surprise!' said the vicar. 'You've probably woken up
everyone in the village as well. Still, I'm glad the bell is working again.''That's the trouble, vicar,'
answered Bill. 'It's working all right, but I'm afraid that at one o'clock it will strike thirteen times
and there's nothing I can do about it.''We'll get used to that Bill,' said the vicar. 'Thirteen is not as
good as one but it's better than nothing. Now let's go downstairs and have a cup of tea.'
Lesson 3 An unknown goddess

Some time ago
，
an interesting discovery was made by archaeologists on the Aegean
（
a dj.
爱
琴海的；
n.
）
island of Kea
．
An American team explored a temple which stands in an ancient city
on the promontory of Ayia Irini
．
The city at one time must have been prosperous
，
for it enjoyed a


high level of civilization
．
Houses--often three storeys high--were built of stone
．
They had large
rooms with beautifully decorated walls
．
The city was even equipped with a drainage system
，
for a
great many clay pipes were found beneath the narrow streets
．

The temple which the archaeologists explored was used as a place of worship from the
fifteenth century B.C. until Roman times. In the most sacred room of the temple, clay fragments of
fifteen statues were found. Each of these represented

a goddess and had, at one time, been
painted. The body of one statue was found among remains dating from the fifteenth century B.C.
Its missing head happened to be among remains of the fifth century B.C. This head must have
been found in Classical times and carefully preserved. It was very old and precious even then.
When the archaeologists reconstructed the fragments, they were amazed to find that the goddess
turned out to be a very modern-looking woman. She stood three feet high and her hands rested on
her hip. She was wearing a full-length skirt which swept the ground. Despite her great age, she
was very graceful indeed, but, so far, the archaeologists have been unable to discover her identity.
Lesson4 The double life of Alfred Bloggs

These days, people who do manual work often receive far more money than clerks who work
in offices. People who work in offices are frequently referred to as' white collar workers' for the
simple reason that they usually wear a collar and tie to go to work. Such is human nature, that a
great many people are often willing to sacrifice higher pay for the privilege of becoming white
collar workers. This can give rise to curious situations, as it did in the case of Alfred Bloggs who
worked as a dustman for the Ellesmere Corporation. When he got married, Alf was too
embarrassed to say anything to his wife about his job. He simply told her that he worked for the
Corporation. Every morning, he left home dressed in a smart black suit. He then changed into
overalls(n.
工作服
) and spent the next eight hours as a dustman. Before returning home at night, he
took a shower and changed back into his suit.

Alf did this for over two years and his fellow
dustmen kept his secret. Alf's wife has never discovered that she married a dustman and she

never will, for Alf has just found another job. He will soon be working in an office as a junior
clerk. He will be earning only half as much as he used to, but he feels that his rise in status is well
worth the loss of money. From now on, he will wear a suit all day and others will call him 'Mr.
Bloggs', not 'Alf'.
Lesson 5 The facts

Editors of newspapers and magazines often go to extremes to provide their readers with
unimportant facts and statistics. Last year a journalist had been instructed by a well-known
magazine to write an article on the president's palace in a new African republic. When the article
arrived, the editor read the first sentence and then refused to publish it. The article began:
'Hundreds of steps lead to the high wall which surrounds the president's palace.' The editor at once
sent the journalist a fax instructing him to find out the exact number of steps and the height of the
wall.

The journalist immediately set out to obtain these important facts, but he took a long time
to send them. Meanwhile, the editor was getting impatient, for the magazine would soon go to
press. He sent the journalist two urgent telegrams, but received no reply. He sent yet another
telegram informing the journalist that if he did not reply soon he would be fired. When the


journalist again failed to reply, the editor reluctantly published the article as it had originally been
written. A week later, the editor at last received a telegram from the journalist. Not only had the
poor man been arrested, but he had been sent to prison as well. However, he had at last been
allowed to send a cable in which he informed the editor that he had been arrested while counting
the 1084 steps leading to the 15-foot wall which surrounded the president's palace.
Lesson 6

Smash-and-grab

The expensive shops in a famous arcade near Piccadilly were just opening. At this time of the
morning, the arcade was almost empty. Mr Taylor, the owner of a jewellery shop was admiring a
new window display. Two of his assistants had been working busily since 8 o'clock and had only
just finished. Diamond necklaces and rings had been beautifully arranged on a background of
black velvet. After gazing at the display for several minutes, Mr Taylor went back into his shop.
The silence was suddenly broken when a large car, with its headlights on and its horn
blaring, roared down the arcade. It came to a stop outside the jeweler's. One man stayed at the
wheel while two others with black stockings over their faces jumped out and smashed the window
of the shop with iron bars. While this was going on, Mr Taylor was upstairs. He and his staff
began throwing furniture out of the window. Chairs and tables went flying into the arcade. One of
the thieves was struck by a heavy statue, but he was too busy helping himself to diamonds to
notice any pain. The raid was all over in three minutes, for the men scrambled back into the car
and it moved off at a fantastic speed. Just as it was leaving, Mr Taylor rushed out and ran after it
throwing ashtrays and vases, but it was impossible to stop the thieves. They had got away with
thousands of pounds worth of diamonds.
Lesson 7 Mutilated ladies

Children often have far more sense than their elders. This simple truth was demonstrated
rather dramatically during a civil defence exercise in a small town in Canada. Most of the
inhabitants were asked to take part in the exercise during which they had to pretend that their city
had been bombed. Air- raid warnings were sounded and thousands of people went into special
air-raid shelters. Doctors and nurses remained above ground while Police patrolled the streets in
case anyone tried to leave the shelters too soon.
The police did not have much to do because the citizens took the exercise seriously. They
stayed underground for twenty minutes and waited for the siren to sound again. On leaving the
air-raid shelters, they saw that doctors and nurses were busy. A great many people had
volunteered to act as casualties. Theatrical make-up and artificial blood had been used to make the
injuries look realistic. A lot of People were lying 'dead' in the streets. The living helped to carry
the dead and wounded to special stations. A Child of six was brought in by two adults. The child
was supposed to be dead. With theatrical make- up on his face, he looked as if he had died of
shock. Some people were so moved by the sight that they began to cry. However, the child
suddenly sat up and a doctor asked him to comment on his death. The child looked around for a
moment and said, 'I think they're all crazy!'


Lesson8

A famous monastery

The Great St Bernard Pass connects Switzerland to Italy. At 2470 metres, it is the highest
mountain pass in Europe. The famous monastery of St Bernard, which was founded in the
eleventh century, lies about a mile away. For hundreds of years, St Bernard dogs have saved the
lives of travellers crossing the dangerous Pass. These friendly dogs, which were first brought from
Asia, were used as watch- dogs even in Roman times. Now that a tunnel has been built through the
mountains, the Pass is less dangerous, but each year, the dogs are still sent out into the snow
whenever a traveller is in difficulty. Despite the new tunnel, there are still a few people who rashly

attempt to cross the Pass on foot.

During the summer months, the monastery is very busy, for it is visited by thousands of
people who cross the Pass in cars, As there are so many people about, the dogs have to be kept in
a special enclosure. In winter, however, life at the monastery is quite different. The temperature
drops to -30 and very few people attempt to cross the Pass. The monks Prefer winter to summer
for they have more privacy. The dogs have greater freedom, too, for they are allowed to wander
outside their enclosure. The only regular visitors to the monastery in winter are parties of skiers
who go there at Christmas and Easter. These young people, who love the peace of the mountains,
always receive a warm.
Welcome at St Bernard's monastery.
Lesson9

By now, a rocket will have set off on its 35 million mile trip to Mars and scientists must be
waiting anxiously for the results. The rocket will be travelling for six months before it reaches the
planet.
It contains a number of scientific instruments, including a television camera. Any pictures
that are taken will have to travel for three minutes before they reach the earth. If the pictures are
successful, they may solve a number of problems about Mars and provide information about the
markings on its surface which, nearly 100 years ago, the astronomer, Schiaparelli, thought to be
canals.
It will be a long time before any landing on Mars can be attempted. This will only be possible
when scientists have learnt a lot more about the atmosphere that surrounds the planet. If a satellite
can one day be put into orbit round Mars, scientists will be able to find out a great deal. An
interesting suggestion for measuring the atmosphere around Mars has been put forward. A rubber
ball containing a radio transmitter could be dropped from a satellite so that it would fall towards
the surface of the planet. The radio would signal the rate which the ball was slowed down and
scientists would be able to calculate how dense the atmosphere is. It may even be possible to drop
a capsule containing scientific instruments on to the planet's surface. Only when a great deal more
information has been obtained, will it be possible to plan a manned trip to Mars.
Les son10 The loss of Titanic



The great ship, Titanic, sailed for New York from Southampton on April 10th, 1912. She was
carrying 1316 passengers and a crew of 89l. Even by modern standards, the 46,000 ton Titanic
was a colossal ship. At that time, however, she was not only the largest ship that had ever been
built, but was regarded as unsinkable, for she had sixteen water- tight compartments. Even if two
of these were flooded, she would still be able to float. The tragic sinking of this great liner will
always be remembered, for she went down on her first voyage with heavy loss of life.
Four days after setting out, while the Titanic was sailing across the icy waters of the North
Atlantic, a huge iceberg was suddenly spotted by a look-out. After the alarm had been given, the
great ship turned sharply to avoid a direct collision. The Titanic turned just in time, narrowly
missing the immense wall of ice which rose over 100 feet out of the water beside her. Suddenly,
there was a slight trembling sound from below, and the captain went down to see what had
happened. The noise had been so faint that no one thought that the ship had been damaged. Below,
the captain realized to his horror that the Titanic was sinking rapidly, for five of her sixteen
water-tight compartments had already been flooded ! The order to abandon ship was given and
hundreds of people plunged into the icy water. As there were not enough life- boats for everybody,
1500 lives were lost.
Lesson11 Not guilty

Going through the Customs is a tiresome business. The strangest thing about it is that really honest
people are often made to feel guilty. The hardened professional smuggler, on the other hand, is
never troubled by such feelings, even if he has five hundred gold watches hidden in his suitcase.
When I returned from abroad recently, a particularly officious young Customs Officer clearly
regarded me as a smuggler.'Have you anything to declare?' he asked, looking me in the eye.'No,' I
answered confidently.'Would you mind unlocking this suitcase please ?''Not at all,' I
Officer went through the case with great care. All the things I had packed so carefully were soon
in a dreadful mess. I felt sure I would never be able to close the case again. Suddenly, I saw the
Officer's face light up. He had spotted a tiny bottle at the bottom of my case and he pounced on it
with delight.'Perfume, eh?' he asked sarcastically. 'You should have declared that.' Perfume is not
exempt from import duty.''But it isn't perfume,' I said.' It's hair-oil.' Then I added with a smile,' It's
a strange mixture I make myself.' As I expected, he did not believe me.'Try it!' I said
Officer unscrewed the cap and put the bottle to his nostrils. He was greeted by
an unpleasant smell which convinced him that I was telling the truth. A few minutes later, I was
able to hurry away with precious chalk- marks on my baggage.
Lesson12 Life on a desert island

Most of us have formed an unrealistic picture of life on a desert island. We sometimes imagine a
desert island to be a sort of paradise where the sun always shines. Life there is simple and good.
Ripe fruit falls from the trees and you never have to work. The other side of the picture is quite the
opposite. Life on a desert island is wretched. You either starve to death or live like Robinson
Crusoe, waiting for a boat which never comes. Perhaps there is an element of truth in both these
pictures, but few of us have had the opportunity to find out.


Two men who recently spent five days on a coral island wished they had stayed there longer. They
were taking a badly damaged boat from the Virgin Islands to Miami to have it repaired. During the
journey, their boat began to sink. They quickly loaded a small rubber dinghy with food, matches,
and tins of beer and rowed for a few miles across the Caribbean until they arrived at a tiny coral
island. There were hardly any trees on the island and there was no water, but this did not prove to
be a problem. The men collected rain- water in the rubber dinghy. As they had brought a spear gun
with them, they had plenty to eat. They caught lobster and fish every day, and, as one of them put
it 'ate like kings'. When a passing tanker rescued them five days later, both men were genuinely
sorry that they had to leave.
Lesson13 It’s only me

After her husband had gone to work, Mrs Richards sent her children to school and went
upstairs to her bedroom. She was too excited to do any housework that morning, for in the evening
she would be going to a fancy dress party with her husband. She intended to dress up as a ghost
and as she had made her costume the night before, she was impatient to try it on. Though the
costume consisted only of a sheet, it was very effective. After putting it on, Mrs Richards went
downstairs. She wanted to find out whether it would be comfortable to wear.
Just as Mrs Richards was entering the dining-room, there was a knock on the front door. She
knew that it must be the baker. She had told him to come straight in if ever she failed to open the
door and to leave the bread on the kitchen table. Not wanting to frighten the poor man, Mrs
Richards quickly hid in the small store-room under the stairs. She heard the front door open and
heavy footsteps in the hall. Suddenly the door of the store-room was opened and a man entered.
Mrs Richards realized that it must be the man from the Electricity Board who had come to read the
meter. She tried to explain the situation, saying' It's only me', but it was too late. The man let out a
cry and jumped back several paces. When Mrs Richards walked towards him, he fled, slamming
the door behind him.
Lesson14 A noble gangster

There was a time when the owners of shop and businesses in Chicago had to pay large sums
of money to gangsters in return for' protection' If the money was not paid promptly, the gangsters
would quickly put a man out of business by destroying his shop. Obtaining 'protechon money' is
not a modern crime. As long ago as the fourteenth century, an Englishman, Sir John Hawkwood,
made the remarkable discovery that people would rather pay large sums of money than have their
life work destroyed by gangsters.
Six hundred years ago, Sir John Hawkwood arrived in Italy with a band of soldiers and
settled near Florence. He soon made a name for himself and came to be known to the Italians as
Giovanni Acuto. Whenever the Italian city- states were at war with each other, Hawkwood used to
hire his soldiers to princes who were willing to pay the high price he demanded. In times of peace,
when business was bad, Hawkwood and his men would march into a city-state and, after burning
down a few farms, would offer to go away if protection money was paid to them. Hawkwood
made large sums of money in this way. In spite of this, the Italians regarded him as a sort of hero.


When he died at the age of eighty, the Florentines gave him a state funeral and had a picture
painted which was dedicated to the memory of 'the most valiant soldier and most notable leader,
Signor Giovanni Haukodue'
。

Lesson15 Fifty pence worth of trouble

Children always appreciate small gifts of money. Father, of course, provides a regular supply
of pocket- money, but uncles and aunts are always a source of extra income. With some children,
small sums go a long way. If sixpences are not exchanged for sweets, they rattle for months inside
money- boxes. Only very thrifty children manage to fill up a money-box. For most of them,
sixpence is a small price to pay for a satisfying bar of chocolate.
My nephew, George, has a money-box but it is always empty. Very few of the sixpences I
have given him have found their way there. I gave him sixpence yesterday and advised him to
save it. Instead, he bought himself sixpence worth of trouble. On his way to the sweet shop, he
dropped his sixpence and it rolled along the pavement and then disappeared down a drain. George
took off
his jacket, rolled up his sleeves and pushed his right arm through the drain cover. He could not
find his sixpence anywhere, and what is more, he could not get his arm out. A crowd of people
gathered round him and a lady rubbed his arm with soap and butter, but George was firmly stuck.
The fire-brigade was called and two firemen freed George using a special type of grease. George
was not too upset by his experience because the lady who owns the sweet shop heard about his
troubles and rewarded him with a large box of chocolates.
Lesson16 Mary had a little lamb

Mary and her husband Dimitri lived in the tiny village of Perachora in southern Greece. One
of Mary's prize possessions was a little white lamb which her husband had given her. She kept it
tied to a tree in a field during the day and went to fetch it every evening. One evening, however,
the lamb was missing. The rope had been cut, so it was obvious that the lamb had been stolen.
When Dimitri came in from the fields, his wife told him what had happened. Dimitri at once set
out to find the thief.
He knew it would not prove difficult in such a small village. After telling several of his
friends about the theft, Dimitri found out that his neighbour, Aleko, had suddenly acquired a new
lamb. Dimitri immediately went to Aleko's house and angrily accused him of stealing the lamb.
He told him he had better return it or he would call the police. Aleko denied taking it and led
Dimitri into his back-yard. It was true that he had just bought a lamb, he explained, but his lamb
was black. Ashamed of having acted so rashly, Dimitri apologized to Aleko for having accused
him. While they were talking it began to rain and Dimitri stayed in Aleko's house until the rain
stopped. When he went outside half an hour later, he was astonished to find that the little black
lamb was almost white. Its wool, which had been dyed black, had been washed clean by the rain !
Lesson17 The longest suspension bridge in the world



Verrazano, an Italian about whom little is known, sailed into New York Harbour in 1524 and
named it Angouleme. He described it as 'a very agreeable situation located within two small hills
in the midst of which flowed a great river.' Though Verrazano is by no means considered to be a
great explorer, his name will probably remain immortal, for on November 21st, 1964, the greatest
bridge in the world was named after him.
The Verrazano Bridge, which was designed by Othmar Ammann, joins Brooklyn to Staten
Island. It has a span of 4260 feet. The bridge is so long that the shape of the earth had to be taken
into account by its designer. Two great towers support four huge cables. The towers are built on
immense underwater platforms made of steel and concrete. The platforms extend to a depth of
over 100 feet under the sea. These alone took sixteen months to build. Above the surface of the
water, the towers rise to a height of nearly 700 feet. They support the cables from which the bridge
has been suspended. Each of the four cables contains 26,108 lengths of wire. It has been estimated
that if the bridge were packed with cars, it would still only be carrying a third of its total capacity.
However, size and strength are not the only important things about this bridge. Despite its
immensity, it is both simple and elegant, fulfilling its designer's dream to create 'an enormous
object drawn as faintly as possible'.
Lesson18 Electric currents in modern art

Modern sculpture rarely surprises us any more. The idea that modern art can only be seen in
museums is mistaken. Even people who take no interest in art cannot have failed to notice
examples of modern sculpture on display in public places. Strange forms stand in gardens, and
outside buildings and shops. We have got quite used to them. Some so-called 'modern' pieces have
been on display for nearly fifty years.
In spite of this, some people--including myself--were surprised by a recent exhibition of
modern sculpture. The first thing I saw when I entered the art gallery was a notice which said: 'Do
not touch the exhibits. Some of them are dangerous!' The objects on display were pieces of
moving sculpture. Oddly shaped forms that are suspended from the ceiling and move in response
to a gust of wind are quite familiar to everybody. These objects, however, were different. Lined up
against the wall, there were long thin wires attached to metal spheres. The spheres had been
magnetized and attracted or repelled each other all the time. In the centre of the hall, there were a
number of tall structures which contained coloured lights. These lights flickered continuously like
traffic lights which have gone mad. Sparks were emitted from small black boxes and red lamps
flashed on and off angrily. It was rather like an exhibition of prehistoric electronic equipment.
These Peculiar forms not only seemed designed to shock people emotionally, but to give them
electric shocks as well !
Lesson19 A very dear cat

Kidnappers are rarely interested in Animals, but they recently took considerable interest in
Mrs Eleanor Ramsay's cat. Mrs Eleanor Ramsay, a very wealthy old lady, has shared a flat with
her cat, Rastus, for a great many years. Rastus leads an orderly life. He usually takes a short walk


in the evenings and is always home by seven o'clock. One evening, however, he failed to arrive.
Mrs Ramsay got very worried. She looked everywhere for him but could not find him.
Three day after Rastus' disappearance, Mrs Ramsay received an anonymous letter. The writer
stated that Rastus was in safe hands and would be returned immediately if Mrs Ramsay paid a
ransom of &1000. Mrs Ramsay was instructed to place the money in a cardboard box and to leave
it outside her door. At first, she decided to go to the police, but fearing that she would never see
Rastus again --the letter had made that quite clear--she changed her mind. She drew &1000 from
her bank and followed the kidnapper's instructions. The next morning, the box had disappeared
but Mrs Ramsay was sure that the kidnapper would keep his word. Sure enough, Rastus arrived
punctually at seven o'clock that evening. He looked very well, though he was rather thirsty, for he
drank half a bottle of milk. The police were astounded when Mrs Ramsay told them what she had
done. She explained that Rastus was very dear to her. Considering the amount she paid, he was
dear in more ways than one!
Lesson20 Pioneer pilots

In 1908 Lord Northcliffe offered a prize of &1000 to the first man who would fly across the
English Channel. Over a year passed before the first attempt was made. On July 19th, 1909, in the
early morning, Hubert Latham took off from the French coast in his plane the 'Antoinette IV'. He
had travelled only seven miles across the Channel when his engine failed and he was forced to
land on the sea. The 'Antoinette' floated on the water until Latham was picked up by a ship.
Two days later, Louis Bleriot arrived near Calais with a plane called 'No. XI'. Bleriot had
been making planes since 1905 and this was his latest model. A week before, he had completed a
successful overland flight during which he covered twenty-six miles. Latham, however did not
give up easily. He, too, arrived near Calais on the same day with a new 'Antonette'. It looks as if
there would be an exciting race across the Channel. Both planes were going to take off on July
25th, but Latham failed to get up early enough. After making a short test flight at 4.15 a.m.,
Bleriot set off half an hour later. His great flight lasted thirty seven minutes. When he landed near
Dover, the first person to greet him was a local policeman. Latham made another attempt a week
later and got within half a mile of Dover, but he was unlucky again. His engine failed and he
landed on the sea for the second time.
Lesson21 Daniel Mendoza

Boxing matches were very popular in England two hundred years ago. In those days, boxers
fought with bare fists for Prize money. Because of this, they were known as 'prize-fighters'.
However, boxing was very crude, for there were no rules and a prize-fighter could be seriously
injured or even killed during a match.
One of the most colourful figures in boxing history was Daniel Mendoza who was born in
1764. The use of gloves was not introduced until 1860 when the Marquis of Queensberry drew up
the first set Of rules. Though he was technically a prize- fighter, Mendoza did much to change
crude prize-fighting into a sport, for he brought science to the game. In his day, Mendoza enjoyed


tremendous popularity. He was adored by rich and poor alike. Mendoza rose to fame swiftly after
a boxing-match when he was only fourteen years old. This attracted the attention of Richard
Humphries who was then the most eminent boxer in England. He offered to train Mendoza and his
young pupil was quick to learn. In fact, Mendoza soon became so successful that Humphries
turned against him. The two men quarrelled bitterly and it was clear that the argument could only
be settled by a fight. A match was held at Stilton where both men fought for an hour. The public
bet a great deal of money on Mendoza, but he was defeated. Mendoza met Humphries in the ring
on a later occasion and he lost for a second time. It was not until his third match in 1790 that he
finally beat Humphries and became Champion of England. Meanwhile, he founded a highly
successful Academy and even Lord Byron became one of his pupils. He earned enormous sums of
money and was paid as much as &100 for a single appearance. Despite this, he was so extravagant
that he was always in debt. After he was defeated by a boxer called Gentleman Jackson, he was
quickly forgotten. He was sent to prison for failing to pay his debts and died in poverty in 1836.
Lesson22 By heart

Some plays are so successful that they run for years on end. In many ways, this is unfortunate
for the poor actors who are required to go on repeating the same lines night after night. One would
expect them to know their parts by heart and never have cause to falter. Yet this is not always the
case.
A famous actor in a highly successful play was once cast in the role of an aristocrat who had
been imprisoned in the Bastille for twenty years. In the last act, a gaoler would always come on to
the stage with a letter which he would hand to the prisoner. Even though the noble was expected
to read the letter at each performance, he always insisted that it should be written out in full. One
night, the gaoler decided to play a joke on his colleague to find out if, after so many performances,
he had managed to learn the contents of the letter by heart. The curtain went up on the final act of
the play and revealed the aristocrat sitting alone behind bars in his dark cell. Just then, the gaoler
appeared with the precious letter in his hands. He entered the cell and presented the letter to the
aristocrat. But the copy he gave him had not been written out in full as usual. It was simply a
blank sheet of paper. The gaoler looked on eagerly, anxious to see if his fellow-actor had at last
learnt his lines. The noble stared at the blank sheet of paper for a few seconds. Then, squinting his
eyes, he said: 'The light is dim. Read the letter to me.' And he promptly handed the sheet of paper
to the gaoler. Finding that he could not remember a word of the letter either, the gaoler replied:
'The light is indeed dim, sire. I must get my glasses.' With this, he hurried off the stage. Much to
the aristocrat's amusement, the gaoler returned a few moments later with a pair of glasses and the
usual copy of the letter which he proceeded to read to the prisoner.
Lesson23 One man’s meat is another man’s poison

People become quite illogical when they try to decide what can be eaten and what cannot be
eaten. If you lived in the Mediterranean, for instance, you would consider octopus a great delicacy.
You would not be able to understand why some people find it repulsive. On the other hand, your
stomach would turn at the idea of frying potatoes in animal fat-- the normally accepted practice in


many northern countries. The sad truth is that most of us have been brought up to eat certain foods
and we stick to them all our lives.
No creature has received more praise and abuse than the common garden snail. Cooked in
wine, snails are a great luxury in various parts of the world. There are countless people who, ever
since their early years, have learned to associate snails with food. My friend, Robert, lives in a
country where snails are despised. As his flat is in a large town, he has no garden of his own. For
years he has been asking me to collect snails from my garden and take them to him. The idea
never appealed to me very much, but one day, after a heavy shower, I happened to be walking in
my garden when I noticed a huge number of snails taking a stroll on some of my prize plants.
Acting on a sudden impulse, I collected several dozen, put them in a paper bag, and took them to
Robert. Robert was delighted to see me and equally pleased with my little gift. I left the bag in the
hall and Robert and

I went into the living-room where we talked for a couple of hours. I had
forgotten all about the snails when Robert suddenly said that I must stay to dinner. Snails would,
of course, be the main dish. I did not fancy the idea and I reluctantly followed Robert out of the
room. To our dismay, we saw that there were snails everywhere: they had escaped from the paper
bag and had taken complete possession of the hall! I have never been able to look at a snail since
then.
Lesson24 A skeleton in the cupboard

We often read in novels how a seemingly respectable person or family has some terrible
secret which has been concealed from strangers for years. The English language possesses a vivid
saying to describe this sort of situation. The terrible secret is called 'a skeleton in the cup board '.
At some dramatic moment in the story the terrible secret becomes known and a reputation is
ruined. The reader's hair stands on end when he reads in the final pages of the novel that the
heroine, a dear old lady who had always been so kind to everybody, had, in her youth, poisoned
every one of her five husbands.
It is all very well for such things to occur in fiction. To varying degrees, we all have secrets
which we do not want even our closest friends to learn, but few of us have skeletons in the
cupboard. The only person I know who has a skeleton in the cupboard is George Carlton, and he is
very proud of the fact. George studied medicine in his youth. Instead of becoming a doctor,
however, he became a successful writer of detective stories. I once spent an uncomfortable
week-end which I shall never forget at his house. George showed me to the guestroom which, he
said, was rarely used. He told me to unpack my things and then come down to dinner. After I had
stacked my shirts and underclothes in two empty drawers, I decided to hang in the cupboard one
of the two suits I had brought with me. I opened the cupboard door and then stood in front of it
petrified. A skeleton was dangling before my eyes. The sudden movement of the door made it
sway slightly and it gave me the impression that it was about to leap out at me. Dropping my suit,
I dashed downstairs to tell George. This was worse than 'a terrible secret'; this was a real skeleton !
But George was unsympathetic. 'Oh, that,' he said with a smile as if he were talking about an old
friend. 'That's Sebastian. You forget that I was a medical student once upon a time.'


Lesson25 The Cutty Sark

One of the most famous sailing ships of the nineteenth century, the Cutty Sark, can still be
seen at Greenwich. She stands on dry land and is visited by thousands of people each year. She
serves as an impressive reminder of the great ships of the past. Before they were replaced by
steam- ships, sailing vessels like the Cutty Sark were used to carry tea from China and wool from
Australia.

The Cutty Sark was one of the fastest sailing ships that has ever been built. The only
other ship to match her was the Thermopylae. Both these ships set out from Shanghai on June 18th,
1872 on an exciting race to England. This race, which went on for exactly four months, was the
last of its kind. It marked the end of the great tradition of ships with sails and the beginning of a
new era. The first of the two ships to reach Java after the race had begun was the Thermopylae,
but on the Indian Ocean, the Cutty Sark took the lead. It seemed certain that she would be the first
ship home, but during the race she had a lot of bad luck. In August, she was struck by a very
heavy storm during which her rudder was torn away. The Cutty Sark rolled from side to side and it
became impossible to steer her. A temporary rudder was made on board from spare planks and it
was fitted with great difficulty. This greatly reduced the speed of the ship, for there was danger
that if she travelled too quickly, this rudder would be torn away as well. Because of this, the Cutty
Sark lost her lead. After crossing the equator , the captain called in at a port to have a new rudder
fitted, but by now the Thermopylae was over five hundred miles ahead. Though the new rudder
was fitted at tremendous speed, it was impossible for the Cutty Sark to win. She arrived in
England a week after the Thermopylae. Even this was remarkable, considering that she had had so
many delays. There is no doubt that if she had not lost her rudder she would have won the race
easily
。

Lesson26 Wanted: a large biscuit tin

No one can avoid being influenced by advertisements. Much as we may pride ourselves on
our good taste, we are no longer free to choose the things we want, for advertising exerts a subtle
influence on us. In their efforts to persuade us to buy this or that product, advertisers have made a
close study of human nature and have classified all our little weaknesses. Advertisers discovered
years ago that all of us love to get something for nothing. An advertisement which begins with the
magic word FREE can rarely go wrong. These days, advertisers not only offer free samples but
free cars, free houses, and free trips round the world as well. They devise hundreds of
competitions which will enable us to win huge sums of money. Radio and television have made it
possible for advertisers to capture the attention of millions of people in this way. During a radio
programme, a company of biscuit manufacturers once asked listeners to bake biscuits and send
them to their factory. They offered to pay $$2 a pound for the biggest biscuit baked by a listener.
The response to this competition was tremendous. Before long, biscuits of all shapes and sizes
began arriving at the factory. One lady brought in a biscuit on a wheelbarrow. It weighed nearly
500 pounds. A little later, a man came along with a biscuit which occupied the whole boot of his
car. All the biscuits that were sent were carefully weighed. The largest was 713 pounds. It seemed
certain that this would win the prize. But just before the competition closed, a lorry arrived at the
factory with a truly colossal biscuit which weighed 2400 pounds. It had been baked by a college
student who had used over 1000 pounds of flour, 800 pounds of sugar, 200 pounds of fat, and 400
pounds of various other ingredients. It was so heavy that a crane had to be used to remove it from


the lorry. The manufacturers had to pay more money than they had anticipated, for they bought the
biscuit from the student for $$4800.
Lesson27 Nothing to sell

and nothing to buy

It has been said that everyone lives by selling something. In the light of this statement, teachers
live by selling knowledge, philosophers by selling wisdom and priests by selling spiritual
it may be possible to measure the value of material goods in terms of money, it is
extremely difficult to estimate the true value of the services which people perform for us. There
are times when we would willingly give everything we possess to save our lives, yet we might
grudge paying a surgeon a high fee for offering us precisely this service. The conditions of society
are such that skills have to be paid for in the same way that goods are paid for at a shop. Everyone
has something to sell. Tramps seem to be the only exception to this general rule. Beggars almost
sell themselves as human beings to arouse the pity of passers-by. But real tramps are not beggars.
They have nothing to sell and require nothing from others. In seeking independence, they do not
sacrifice their human dignity. A tramp may ask you for money, but he will never ask you to feel
sorry for him. He has deliberately chosen to lead the life he leads and is fully aware of the
consequences He, may never be sure where the next meal is coming from, but he is free from the
thousands of anxieties which afflict other people. His few material possession make it possible for
him to move from place to place with ease- By having to sleep in the open, he gets far closer to the
world of nature than most of us ever do. He may hunt, beg, or steal occasionally to keep himself
alive; he may even in times of real need, do a little work; but he will never sacrifice his freedom.
We often speak of tramps with contempt and put them in the same class as beggars, but how many
of us can honestly say that we have not felt a little envious of their simple way of life and their
freedom from care?
Lesson28 Five pounds too dear

Small boats loaded with wares sped to the great liner as she was entering the harbour. Before she
had anchored, the men from the boats had climbed on board and the decks were soon covered with
colourful rugs from Persia, silks from India, copper coffee pots, and beautiful hand-made
silver-ware. It was difficult not to be tempted. Many of the tourists on board had begun bargaining
with the tradesmen, but I decided not to buy anything until I had disembarked. I had no sooner got
off the ship than I was assailed by a man who wanted to sell me a diamond ring. I had no intention
of buying one, but I could not conceal the fact that I was impressed by the size of the diamonds.
Some of them were as big as marbles. The man went to great lengths to prove that the diamonds
were real. As we were walking past a shop, he held a diamond firmly against the window and
made a deep impression in the glass. It took me over half an hour to get rid of him.
The next man to approach me was selling expensive pens and watches. I examined one of the pens
closely. It certainly looked genuine. At the base of the gold cap, the words 'made in the U.S.A.'
had been neatly inscribed. The man said that the pen was worth &10, but as a special favour, he
would let me have it for &8. I shook my head and held up a finger indicating that I was willing to
pay a pound. Gesticulating wildly, the man acted as if he found my offer outrageous, but he
eventually reduced the price to &3. Shrugging my shoulders, I began to walk away when, a


moment later, he ran after me and thrust the pen into my hands. Though he kept throwing up his
arms in despair, he readily accepted the pound I gave him. I felt especially pleased with my
wonderful bargain--until I got back to the ship. No matter how hard I tried, it was impossible to
fill this beautiful pen with ink and to this day it has never written a single word !
lesson29 Funny or not?

Whether we find a joke funny or not largely depends on where we have been brought up. The
sense of humour is mysteriously bound up with national characteristics. A Frenchman, for
instance, might find it hard to laugh at a Russian joke. In the same way, a Russian might fail to see
anything amusing in a joke which would make an Englishman laugh to tears.
Most funny stories are based on comic situations. In spite of national differences, certain funny
situations have a universal appeal. No matter where you live, you would find it difficult not to
laugh at, say, Charlie Chaplin's early films. However, a new type of humour, which stems largely
from America, has recently come into fashion. It is cal1ed' sick humour '. Comedians base their
jokes on tragic situations like violent death or serious accidents. Many people find this sort of joke
distasteful. The following example of 'sick humour' will enable you to judge for yourself.
A man who had broken his right leg was taken to hospital a few weeks before Christmas. From the
moment he arrived there, he kept on pestering his doctor to tell him when he would be able to go
home. He dreaded having to spend Christmas in hospital. Though the doctor did his best, the
patient's recovery was slow. On Christmas day, the man still had his right leg in plaster. He spent a
miserable day in bed thinking of all the fun he was missing. The following day, however, the
doctor consoled him by telling him that his chances of being able to leave hospital in time for New
Year celebrations were good. The man took heart and, sure enough, on New Year's Eve he was
able to hobble along to a party. To compensate for his unpleasant experiences in hospital, the man
drank a little more than was good for him. In the process, he enjoyed himself thoroughly and kept
telling everybody how much he hated hospitals. He was still mumbling something about hospitals
at the end of the party when he slipped on a piece of ice and broke his left leg.
Lesson30 The death of a ghost

For years villagers believed that Endley farm was haunted. The farm was owned by two brothers,
Joe and Bert Cox. They employed a few farm hands, but no one was willing to work there long.
Every time a worker gave up his job, he told the same story. Farm labourers said that they always
woke up to find the work had been done overnight. Hay had been cut and cow sheds had been
cleaned. A farm worker, who stayed up all night, claimed to have seen a figure cutting corn in the
moonlight. In time, it became an accepted fact that the Cox brothers employed a conscientious
ghost that did most of their work for them.
No one suspected that there might be someone else on the farm who had never been seen. This
was indeed the case. A short time ago, villagers were astonished to learn that the ghost of Endley
had died. Everyone went to the funeral, for the 'ghost' was none other than Eric Cox, a third
brother who was supposed to have died as a young man. After the funeral, Joe and Bert revealed a


secret which they had kept for over forty years. Eric had been the eldest son of the family. He had
been obliged to join the army during the first World War. As he hated army life he decided to
desert his regiment. When he learnt that he would be sent abroad, he returned to the farm and his
farther hid him until the end of the war. Fearing the authorities, Eric remained in hiding after the
war as well. His father told everybody that Eric had been killed in action. The only other people
who knew the secret were Joe and Bert. They did not even tell their wives. When their father died,
they thought it their duty to keep Eric in hiding. All these years, Eric had lived as a recluse
（隐遁
者
,
寂寞者）
. He used to sleep during the day and work at night, quite unaware of the fact that he
had become the ghost of Endley. When he died, however, his brothers found it impossible to keep
the secret any longer.
Lesson31 A lovable eccentric

True eccentrics never deliberately set out to draw attention to themselves. They disregard
social conventions without being conscious that they are doing anything extraordinary. This
invariably wins them the love and respect of others, for they add colour to the dull routine of
everyday life.
Up to the time of his death, Richard Colson was one of the most notable figures in our town.
He was a shrewd and wealthy business-man, but the ordinary town-folk hardly knew anything
about this side of his life. He was known to us all as Dickie and his eccentricity had become
legendary long before he died. Dickie disliked snobs(
势利小人
) intensely. Though he owned a
large car, he hardly ever used it, preferring always to go on foot. Even when it was raining heavily,
he refused to carry an umbrella. One day, he walked into an expensive shop after having been
caught in a particularly

heavy shower. He wanted to buy a &300 fur coat for his wife, but he was
in such a bedraggled condition that an assistant refused to serve him. Dickie left the shop without
a word and returned carrying a large cloth bag. As it was extremely heavy, he dumped it on the
counter. The assistant asked him to leave, but Dickie paid no attention to him and requested to see
the manager. Recognizing who the customer was, the manager was most apologetic and
'reprimanded the assistant severely. When Dickie was given the fur coat, he presented the assistant
with the cloth bag. It contained &300 in pennies. He insisted on the assistant's counting the money
before he left 72,000 pennies in all! On another occasion, he invited a number of important critics
to see his private collection of modern paintings. This exhibition received a great deal of attention
in the press, for though the pictures were supposed to be the work of famous artists, they had in
fact been painted by Dickie. It took him four years to stage this elaborate joke simply to prove that
critics do not always know what they are talking about.
Lesson32 A lost ship

The salvage operation had been a complete failure. The small ship, Elkor, which had been
searching the Barents Sea for weeks, was on its way home. A radio message from the mainland
had been received by the ship's captain instructing him to give up the search. The captain knew
that another attempt would be made later, for the sunken ship he was trying to find had been
carrying a precious cargo of gold bullion.


Despite the message, the captain of the Elkor decided to try once more. The sea-bed was scoured
with powerful nets and there was tremendous excitement on board when a chest was raised from
the bottom. Though the crew were at first under the impression that the lost ship had been found,
the contents of the sea-chest proved them wrong. What they had in fact found was a ship which
had been sunk many years before. The chest contained the personal belongings of a seaman, Alan
Fielding. There were books, clothing and photographs, together with letters which the seaman had
once received from his wife. The captain of the Elkor ordered his men to salvage as much as
possible from the wreck. Nothing of value was found, but the numerous items which were brought
to the surface proved to be of great interest. From a heavy gun that was raised, the captain realized
that the ship must have been a cruiser. In another sea-chest, which contained the belongings of a
ship's officer, there was an unfinished letter which had been written on March 14th, 1943. The
captain learnt from the letter that the name of the lost ship was the Karen. The most valuable find
of all was the ship's log book, parts of which it was still possible to read. From this the captain was
able to piece together all the information that had come to light. The Karen had been sailing in a
convoy to Russia when she was torpedoed by an enemy submarine. This was later confirmed by a
naval official at the Ministry of Defence after the Elkor had returned home. All the items that were
found were sent to the War Museum.
Lesson33 A day to remember

We have all experienced days when everything goes wrong. A day may begin well enough,
but suddenly everything seems to get out of control. What invariably happens is that a great
number of things choose to go wrong at precisely the same moment. It is as if a single unimportant
event set up a chain of reactions. Let us suppose that you are preparing a meal and keeping an eye
on the baby at the same time. The telephone rings and this marks the prelude to an unforeseen
series of catastrophes. While you are on the phone, the baby pulls the table-cloth off the table
smashing half your best crockery and cutting himself in the process. You hang up hurriedly and
attend to baby, crockery, etc. Meanwhile, the meal gets burnt. As if this were not enough to reduce
you to tears, your husband arrives, unexpectedly bringing three guests to dinner.
Things can go wrong on a big scale as a number of people recently discovered in Parramatta,
a suburb of Sydney. During the rush hour one evening two cars collided and both drivers began to
argue. The woman immediately behind the two cars happened to be a learner. She suddenly got
into a panic and stopped her car. This made the driver following her brake hard. His wife was
sitting beside him holding a large cake. As she was thrown forward, the cake went right through
the windscreen and landed on the road. Seeing a cake flying through the air, a lorry- driver who
was drawing up alongside the car, pulled up all of a sudden. The lorry was loaded with empty beer
bottles and hundreds of them slid off the back of the vehicle and on to the road. This led to yet
another angry argument. Meanwhile, the traffic piled up behind. It took the police nearly an hour
to get the traffic on the move again. In the meantime, the lorry- driver had to sweep up hundreds
of broken bottles. Only two stray dogs benefited from all this confusion, for they greedily
devoured what was left of the cake. It was just one of those days!
Lesson34 A happy discovery



Antique shops exert a peculiar fascination on a great many people. The more expensive kind of
antique shop where rare objects are beautifully displayed in glass cases to keep them free from
dust is usually a forbidding place. But no one has to muster up courage to enter a less pretentious
antique shop. There is always hope that in its labyrinth of musty, dark, disordered rooms a real
rarity will be found amongst the piles of assorted junk that litter the floors.
No one discovers a rarity by chance. A truly dedicated searcher for art treasures must have
patience, and above all, the ability to recognize the worth of something when he sees it. To do this,
he must be at least as knowledgeable as the dealer. Like a scientist bent on making a discovery, he
must cherish the hope that one day he will be amply rewarded.
My old friend, Frank Halliday, is just such a person. He has often described to me how he picked
up a masterpiece for a mere &5. One Saturday morning, Frank visited an antique shop in my
neighbourhood. As he had never been there before, he found a great deal to interest him. The
morning passed rapidly and Frank was about to leave when he noticed a large packing- case lying
on the floor. The dealer told him that it had just come in, but that he could not be bothered to open
it. Frank begged him to do so and the dealer reluctantly prised it open. The contents were
disappointing. Apart from an interesting-looking carved dagger, the box was full of crockery,
much of it broken. Frank gently lifted the crockery out of the box and suddenly noticed a
miniature Painting at the bottom of the packing-case. As its composition and line reminded him of
an Italian painting he knew well, he decided to buy it. Glancing at it briefly, the dealer told him
that it was worth &5. Frank could hardly conceal his excitement, for he knew that he had made a
real discovery. The tiny painting proved to be an unknown masterpiece by Correggio and was
worth thousands of pounds.
Lesson35 Justice was done

The word justice is usually associated with courts of law. We might say that justice has been done
when a man's innocence or guilt has been proved beyond doubt. Justice is part of the complex
machinery of the law. Those who seek it, undertake an arduous journey and can never be sure that
they will find it. Judges, however wise or eminent, are human and can make mistakes.

There are rare instances when justice almost ceases to be an abstract conception. Reward or
punishment are out quite independent of human interference. At such times, justice acts like a
living force. When we use a phrase like it serves him right, we are, in part, admitting that a certain
set of circumstances has enabled justice to act of its own accord.

When a thief was caught on the
premises of a large fur store one morning, the shop assistants must have found it impossible to
resist the temptation to say 'it serves him right'. The shop was an old-fashioned one with many
large, disused fireplaces and tall, narrow chimneys. Towards midday, a girl heard a muffled cry
coming from behind one of the walls. As the cry was repeated several times, she ran to tell the
manager who promptly rang up the fire- brigade. The cry had certainly come from one of the
chimneys, but as there were so many of them, the firemen could not be certain which one it was.
They located the right chimney by tapping at the walls and listening for the man's cries. After
chipping through a wall which was eighteen inches thick, they found that a man had been trapped
in the chimney. As it was extremely narrow, the man was unable to move, but the firemen were


eventually able to free him by cutting a huge hole in the wall. The sorry-looking, blackened figure
that emerged, at once admitted that he had tried to break into the shop during the night but had got
stuck in the chimney. He had been there for nearly ten hours. Justice had been done even before
the man was handed over to the police.
Lesson36 A chance in a million

We are less credulous than we used to be In the nineteenth century, a novelist would bring his
story to a conclusion by presenting his readers with a series of coincidences --most of them wildly
improbable. Readers happily accepted the fact that an obscure maid-servant was really the hero's
mother. A long-lost brother, who was presumed dead, was really alive all the time and wickedly
plotting to bring about the hero's down- fall. And so on. Modern readers would find such naive
solutions totally unacceptable. Yet, in real life, circumstances do sometimes conspire to bring
about coincidences which anyone but a nineteenth century novelist would find incredible.
A German taxi-driver, Franz Bussman, recently found a brother who was thought to have been
killed twenty years before. While on a walking tour with his wife, he stopped to talk to a workman.
After they had gone on, Mrs Bussman commented on the workman's close resemblance to her
husband and even suggested that he might be his brother. Franz poured scorn on the idea, pointing
out that his brother had been killed in action during the war. Though Mrs Bussman was fully
acquainted with this story, she thought that there was a chance in a million that she might be right.
A few days later, she sent a boy to the workman to ask him if his name was Hans Bussman,
Needless to say, the man's name was Hans Bussman and he really was Franz's long-lost brother.
When the brothers were re-united, Hans explained how it was that he was still alive. After having
been wounded towards the end of the war, he had been sent to hospital and was separated from his
unit. The hospital had been bombed and Hans had made his way back into Western Germany on
foot. Meanwhile, his unit was lost and all records of him had been destroyed. Hans returned to his
family home, but the house had been bombed and no one in the neighbourhood knew what had
become of the inhabitants. Assuming that his family had been killed during an air- raid, Hans
settled down in a Village fifty miles away where he had remained ever since.
Lesson37 The Westhaven Express

We have learnt to expect that trains will be punctual. After years of pre-conditioning, most of us
have developed an unshakable faith in railway time-tables. Ships may be delayed by storms; air
flights may be cancelled because of bad weather; but trains must be on time. Only an
exceptionally heavy snow fall might temporarily dislocate railway services. It is all too easy to
blame the railway authorities when something does go wrong. The truth is that when mistakes
occur, they are more likely to be ours than theirs.
After consulting my railway time-table, I noted with satisfaction that there was an express train to
Westhaven. It went direct from my local station and the journey lasted a mere hour and seventeen
minutes. When I boarded the train, I could not help noticing that a great many local people got on

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