世界小史 第141期:宽阔的公路

 　　He was that rare thing: a man who made war like a chess-player, carefully considering each move before he made it.

　　他是个不寻常的人：他是一个在战争中像一个棋手在下每一步棋前都深思熟虑的人。

　　But above all he was a good Carthaginian. He already hated the Romans for trying to subdue¹ his native city, and their meddling² in Spain was the last straw.

　　此外他还是一个好迦太基人。他憎恨罗马人征服他的故乡。现在罗马人居然也想插手西班牙，他忍无可忍了。

　　He left Spain immediately for Italy, equipped with war elephants and a large army – a truly formidable force.

　　他就立即率领战象群和一支庞大的军队离开西班牙——这是一件令人可怖的武器。

　　To reach Italy he had to take his army and all his elephants across the whole of southern France, across rivers and over mountains and right up over the Alps.

　　为了到达意大利，他不得不带着他的全部战象越过整个法国南部，跋山涉水并终于越过阿尔卑斯山。

　　He may have taken the pass that goes over the shoulder of Mount Cenis, as it is known today.

　　他大概越过了今天叫塞尼山的隘口，

　　I've been there myself, following a wide, winding³ road.

　　我本人曾从那里走过，今天一条宽阔的公路从那里蜿蜒延伸。

　　But how they found their way over those wild mountains in those days, with no roads to follow, is impossible to imagine.

　　但是当初人们是怎样穿越过这荒芜的、没有道路可走的崇山峻岭的，这简直令人不可思议。

　　Surrounded by deep ravines, sheer precipices⁴ and slippery grass ledges⁵ – I wouldn't want to be up there with one elephant, let alone 40,

　　那里有险峻的山谷、陡峭的悬崖和滑溜的草坡——带着一头战象在那里行走我都不敢，更何况带着40头战象，

　　and by then it was already September and there was snow on the mountain tops.

　　况且已经是9月，山顶上已经有积雪。

1 subdue   

vt.制服，使顺从，征服；抑制，克制

参考例句：

• She tried to subdue her anger.她尽力压制自己的怒火。
• He forced himself to subdue and overcome his fears.他强迫自己克制并战胜恐惧心理。

2 meddling   

v.干涉，干预（他人事务）( meddle的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• He denounced all "meddling" attempts to promote a negotiation. 他斥责了一切“干预”促成谈判的企图。 来自辞典例句
• They liked this field because it was never visited by meddling strangers. 她们喜欢这块田野，因为好事的陌生人从来不到那里去。 来自辞典例句

3 winding   

n.绕，缠，绕组，线圈

参考例句：

• A winding lane led down towards the river.一条弯弯曲曲的小路通向河边。
• The winding trail caused us to lose our orientation.迂回曲折的小道使我们迷失了方向。

4 precipices   

n.悬崖，峭壁( precipice的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Sheer above us rose the Spy-glass, here dotted with single pines, there black with precipices. 我们的头顶上方耸立着陡峭的望远镜山，上面长着几棵孤零零的松树，其他地方则是黑黝黝的悬崖绝壁。 来自英汉文学 - 金银岛
• Few people can climb up to the sheer precipices and overhanging rocks. 悬崖绝壁很少有人能登上去。 来自互联网

5 ledges   

n.（墙壁，悬崖等）突出的狭长部分( ledge的名词复数 )；（平窄的）壁架；横档；（尤指）窗台

参考例句：

• seabirds nesting on rocky ledges 海鸟在岩架上筑巢
• A rusty ironrod projected mournfully from one of the window ledges. 一个窗架上突出一根生锈的铁棒，真是满目凄凉。 来自辞典例句