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LESSON 19
第19課
wires
電線
trade
貿易
bargain
討價還價
sadness
悲傷
prisoners
囚犯
war
戰爭
French
法國
apiece
每人
number
數量
resolved
解決
THE BIRDS SET FREE
小鳥自由了
A man was walking one day through a large city.
有一天，一位紳士在一座大城市里穿行。
On a street corner he saw a boy with a number of small birds forsale, in a cage.
走到一個街角，他看到一個小男孩在兜售籠子里的小鳥。
He looked with sadness upon the little prisoners flying about the cage, peeping through the wires, beating them with their wings, and trying to get out.
他憂郁地看著那些囚犯似的小鳥在籠子里飛來飛去，透過網格傳出了唧唧喳喳地叫聲，它們不停地拍打著翅膀，努力想飛出去。
He stood for some time looking at the birds.
他在那里站了一會兒，一直看著這些小鳥。
At last he said to the boy,"How much do you ask for your birds?"
最后，他對小男孩說：“這些鳥，你賣多少錢？”
"Fifty cents a piece, sir," said the boy.
“五毛錢一只，先生，”小男孩說。
"I do not mean how much a piece," said the man, "but how much for all of them? I want to buy them all."
“我沒問你多少錢一只，”這個男人說，“我想知道這一籠鳥賣多少錢？我想買下所有的鳥。”
The boy began to count, and found they came to five dollars.
小男孩開始計數，最后發現這些鳥能賣五美元。
"There is your money," said the man.
“這是給你的錢，”這個男人說。
The boy took it,well pleased with his morning's trade.
男孩接過了錢，很高興能在早上有這樣一樁買賣。
No sooner was the bargain settled than the man opened the cage door, and let all the birds fly away.
就在交易成功的一剎那，這個男人立刻打開了鳥籠的門，所有的鳥兒立刻傾巢而出。
The boy, in great surprise, cried, "What did you do that for, sir? You have lost all your birds."
男孩驚訝極了，大喊道：“先生，您在做什么呀？您失去了所有的鳥。”
"I will tell you why I did it," said the man.
這個男人說：“我會告訴你這樣做的原因。”
I was shut up three years in a French prison, as a prisoner of war, and I am resolved never to see anything in prison which I can make free.
作為一個戰犯，我在一所法國監獄里被囚禁了三年，而且我下定決心，只要我能做到，絕不會再看到任何一個人被關進監獄。
