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When-I-was-a-boy I thought the Capital was the most beautiful building in the World.Since then I have seen nearly all of the most beautiful buildings in the World, and I have changed my mind.I have even seen a building fit to be in Heaven.I used to make a copy of the Capital as nearly as I could in my sand-pile.I would fill a shoe-box with wet sand, then turn it carefully upside down so as to empty it out without breaking, and I made the dome on top in the same way with a tea-cup.
小時候，我以為國會大廈就是世界上最美的建筑。后來我見到了世界上幾乎所有最美的建筑，我改變了想法。我甚至還見過一個適合放在天堂里的地方。小時候玩沙，我都要在沙堆里盡可能造一個國會大廈。我先用鞋盒裝滿潮濕的沙子，然后小心 翼翼地把它扣在地上，這樣沙子倒出來不會散開，然后用茶杯以同樣的方法在上面加個圓屋頂。
I thought all capitols of other countries must have domes, too.I didn't learn until later that not capitols but churches were the first buildings to have domes, and that many capitols have no domes.As a boy I used to climb to the top of the dome—for there was no elevator—to see the view of the city, and to look down on the inside at the floor far below where people walking seemed like ants crawling.
我原以為其他國家的國會大廈也一定有圓屋頂的。直到后來我才知道國會大廈不是最早有圓屋頂的建筑，最早的是教堂， 而且許多國會大廈并沒有圓屋頂。小時候我常爬到圓屋頂上面去一因為當時還沒有電梯一觀看城市風景，并朝下看大廈里 地板上的人像螞蟻爬行似的在走動。
On one side of the capital is a large room called the Senate, and on the other side is a still larger room called the House of Representatives.In both the Senate and the House of Representatives men sit at desks like boys in school.These men are the ones who make our laws, which are rules that everybody in the United States must obey.The men in the Senate are called Senators.The men in the House are called Representatives.When I say "men", I mean women too, for some of the Senators and Representatives are women.
國會大度的一側有個大房間，叫參議院，另一側有個更大的房間，叫做眾議院。在參議院和眾議院里，人們就像孩子上課 那樣坐在桌子旁。正是這些人制定了美國的法律，法律就是所有美國人都要遵守的規則。參議院里的人叫做參議員，眾議院里 的人叫做眾議員。我說“人”的時候，當然也包括那些女參議員和女眾議員。
Each State chooses two Senators to go to the capital in Washington.No matter whether the State is big like Texas or whether it is little like Rhode Island, it sends only two Senators.And each State also sends to the capital in Washington other men or women called Representatives, but the number of Representatives each State sends depends on the number of people in the State; New York has the most people, so it sends the most Representatives.
每個州選兩名參議員到華盛頓的國會大廈。不管是像德克薩斯這樣的大州，還是像羅德島這樣的小州，都只能選送兩名參議員。每個州還選眾議員到國會大廈，不過每州選送的眾議員人數取決于這個州的總人口數；紐約人口最多，所以它選送的眾議員也最多。
