365个英语简短小故事-143. Tiger Kills Two Men (2)

Only minutes later, another zoo visitor happened by. Spotting the two dead men, he called 911. By the time police arrived, zoo officials were already scouring¹ the area with their dart² guns. They had told the police not to shoot the animal unless it was a life or death situation. Not only did Winnie belong to an endangered species, but she was also pregnant. Unfortunately, a police officer panicked when he saw the tiger only ten yards from him, and fired. It was a perfect shot.

The father of the two brothers immediately hired a lawyer. The zoo would probably have to offer him at least a million dollars just to avoid a jury trial. The local humane³ association also promised to sue the zoo for not building a higher wall, which would have kept the animal in its pit and thus saved its life. Zoo officials said that lawsuits⁴ might result in closing the zoo permanently⁵. City residents were divided in their opinions about the event. “They both deserved to die,” said one resident. “Boys shouldn’t lose their lives just for acting⁶ like boys,” said another.

 

1 scouring   

擦[洗]净，冲刷，洗涤

参考例句：

• The police are scouring the countryside for the escaped prisoners. 警察正在搜索整个乡村以捉拿逃犯。
• This is called the scouring train in wool processing. 这被称为羊毛加工中的洗涤系列。

2 dart   

v.猛冲，投掷；n.飞镖，猛冲

参考例句：

• The child made a sudden dart across the road.那小孩突然冲过马路。
• Markov died after being struck by a poison dart.马尔科夫身中毒镖而亡。

3 humane   

adj.人道的，富有同情心的

参考例句：

• Is it humane to kill animals for food?宰杀牲畜来吃合乎人道吗？
• Their aim is for a more just and humane society.他们的目标是建立一个更加公正、博爱的社会。

4 lawsuits   

n.诉讼( lawsuit的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Lawsuits involving property rights and farming and grazing rights increased markedly. 涉及财产权，耕作与放牧权的诉讼案件显著地增加。 来自辞典例句
• I've lost and won more lawsuits than any man in England. 全英国的人算我官司打得最多，赢的也多，输的也多。 来自辞典例句

5 permanently   

adv.永恒地，永久地，固定不变地

参考例句：

• The accident left him permanently scarred.那次事故给他留下了永久的伤疤。
• The ship is now permanently moored on the Thames in London.该船现在永久地停泊在伦敦泰晤士河边。

6 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。