美国学生人类历史 第76期:罗马和迦太基(4)
时间：2019-02-21 作者：英语课 分类：美国学生人类历史
英语课
Rome began as a thousand American cities have done, by being a convenient place for barter 1 and horse-trading. It lay in the heart of the plains of central Italy The Tiber provided direct access to the sea. The land-road from north to south found here a convenient ford 2 which could be used all the year around. And seven little hills along the banks of the river offered the inhabitants a safe shelter against their enemies who lived in the mountains and those who lived beyond the horizon of the nearby sea.
罗马的起源就像1000座美国城市的起源，其发迹首先是由于地处要津，交 通便利，四乡八野的人们纷纷来此交 易货物、买卖马匹。罗马位于意大利中部平原的中心，台伯河为它提供了直接的出海口。一条贯通半岛南北的大道经过这里，一年四季都能使用，劳顿的旅人正好于此驻足稍憩。沿台伯河岸有7座小山，可为居民们用作抵御外敌的避难所。这些凶险的敌人有些来自周围的山地，有些来自地平线外的滨海地区。
The mountaineers were called the Sabines. They were a rough crowd with an unholy desire for easy plunder 3. But they were very backward. They used stone axes and wooden shields and were no match for the Romans with their steel swords. The sea-people on the other hand were dangerous foes 4. They were called the Etruscans and they were (and still are) one of the great mysteries of history. Nobody knew (or knows) whence they came; who they were; what had driven them away from their original homes. We have found the remains 5 of their cities and their cemeteries 6 and their waterworks all along the Italian coast. We are familiar with their inscriptions 7. But as no one has ever been able to decipher the Etruscan alphabet, these written messages are, so far, merely annoying and not at all useful.
住在山地的敌人叫作萨宾人，他们行为粗野，心怀恶意，总希望通过劫掠来维持生活。不过他们很落后，所使用的武器仍然是石斧和木制盾牌，难以匹敌罗马人手中的钢剑。比较而言，滨海地区的人们才是真正危险的敌人。他们被称为伊特拉斯坎人，其来历至今依旧是历史学上的一个不解之谜，无人知晓他们何时定居于意大利西部滨海地区，属于哪个种族，以及是什么原因迫使他们离开了原来的家园？我们发现了他们城市的遗迹，他们的坟墓遗迹在意大利海岸上他们的水上建筑。他们留下的碑文随处可见，可由于无人通晓伊特拉斯坎文字，这些书写信息至今不过是些令人大伤脑筋的神秘图形。
n.物物交换，以货易货，实物交易
- Chickens,goats and rabbits were offered for barter at the bazaar.在集市上，鸡、山羊和兔子被摆出来作物物交换之用。
- They have arranged food imports on a barter basis.他们以易货贸易的方式安排食品进口。
n.浅滩，水浅可涉处；v.涉水，涉过
- They were guarding the bridge,so we forded the river.他们驻守在那座桥上，所以我们只能涉水过河。
- If you decide to ford a stream,be extremely careful.如果已决定要涉过小溪，必须极度小心。
vt.劫掠财物，掠夺；n.劫掠物，赃物；劫掠
- The thieves hid their plunder in the cave.贼把赃物藏在山洞里。
- Trade should not serve as a means of economic plunder.贸易不应当成为经济掠夺的手段。
敌人，仇敌( foe的名词复数 )
- They steadily pushed their foes before them. 他们不停地追击敌人。
- She had fought many battles, vanquished many foes. 她身经百战，挫败过很多对手。
n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹
- He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
- The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。
n.（非教堂的）墓地，公墓( cemetery的名词复数 )
- It's morbid to dwell on cemeteries and such like. 不厌其烦地谈论墓地以及诸如此类的事是一种病态。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- In other districts the proximity of cemeteries seemed to aggravate the disease. 在其它地区里，邻近墓地的地方，时疫大概都要严重些。 来自辞典例句
（作者）题词( inscription的名词复数 )； 献词； 碑文； 证劵持有人的登记
- Centuries of wind and rain had worn away the inscriptions on the gravestones. 几个世纪的风雨已磨损了墓碑上的碑文。
- The inscriptions on the stone tablet have become blurred with the passage of time. 年代久了，石碑上的字迹已经模糊了。