万物简史 第138期:基本物质(10)
Things might have been worse had it not been for a splendidly improbable character named Count von Rumford, who, despite the grandeur 1 of his title, began life in Woburn, Massachusetts, in 1753 as plain Benjamin Thompson.Thompson was dashing and ambitious,“handsome in feature and figure,” occasionally courageous 2 and exceedinglybright, but untroubled by anything so inconveniencing as a scruple 3. At nineteen he married a rich widow fourteen years his senior, but at the outbreak of revolution in the colonies he unwisely sided with the loyalists, for a time spying on their behalf. In the fateful year of 1776, facing arrest“for lukewarmness in the cause ofliberty,” he abandoned his wife and child and fled just ahead of a mob of anti-Royalists armed with buckets of hot tar 4, bags of feathers, and an earnest desire to adorn 5 him with both.
要不是出了个名叫伦福德伯爵的杰出人物，情况或许还要糟糕。尽管有个高贵的头衔，他本是普普通通的本杰明·汤普森，1753年生于美国马萨诸塞州的沃本。汤普森英俊漂亮，精力充沛，雄心勃勃，偶尔还非常勇敢，聪明过人，而又毫无顾忌。19岁那年，他娶了一位比他大14岁的有钱寡妇。但是，当殖民地爆发革命的时候，他愚蠢地站在保皇派一边，一度还为他们做间谍工作。在灾难性的1776年，他面临以"对自由事业不够热心"的罪名而被捕的危险，抢在一伙手提几桶热柏油和几袋鸡毛，打算用那两样东西把他打扮一下的反保皇派分子前面，他抛弃了老婆孩子仓皇出逃。
英国花园
He decamped first to England and then to Germany, where he served as a military advisor 6 to the government ofBavaria, so impressing the authorities that in 1791 he was named Count von Rumford of the Holy Roman Empire.While in Munich, he also designed and laid out the famous park known as the English Garden.
他先逃到英国，然后来到德国，在那里担任巴伐利亚政府的军事顾问。他深深打动了当局，1791年被授予"神圣罗马帝国伦福德伯爵"的称号。在慕尼黑期间，他还设计和筹建了那个名叫英国花园的著名公园。
- The grandeur of the Great Wall is unmatched.长城的壮观是独一无二的。
- These ruins sufficiently attest the former grandeur of the place.这些遗迹充分证明此处昔日的宏伟。
- We all honour courageous people.我们都尊重勇敢的人。
- He was roused to action by courageous words.豪言壮语促使他奋起行动。
- It'seemed to her now that she could marry him without the remnant of a scruple.她觉得现在她可以跟他成婚而不需要有任何顾忌。
- He makes no scruple to tell a lie.他说起谎来无所顾忌。
- The roof was covered with tar.屋顶涂抹了一层沥青。
- We use tar to make roads.我们用沥青铺路。
- She loved to adorn herself with finery.她喜欢穿戴华丽的服饰。
- His watercolour designs adorn a wide range of books.他的水彩设计使许多图书大为生色。