英语晨读：徒步旅行

 　　Travel on Foot

　　The past ages of man have all been carefully labelled by anthropologists. Descriptions like "Palaeolithic Man". "Neolithic¹ Man", etc., neatly² sum up whole periods. When the time comes for anthropologists to turn their attention to the twentieth century, they will surely choose the label "Legless Man". Histories of the time will go something like this:" In the twentieth century, people forgot how to use their legs. Men and women moved about in cars, buses and trains from a very early age. There were lifts and escalators in all large building to prevent people from walking. This situation was forced upon earth-dwellers of that time because of their extraordinary way of life. In those days,people thought nothing of travelling hundreds of miles each day.But the surprising thing is that they didn't use their legs even when they went on holiday.They built cable³ railways, ski-lifts and roads to the top of every huge mountain.All the beauty spots on earth were marred⁴ by the presence⁵ of large car parks."

　　When you travel at high speeds, the present means nothing: you live mainly in the future because you spend most of your time lookiong forward to arriving at some other place. But actual arrival,when it is achieved, is meaningless. You want to move on again. By travelling like this, you suspend⁶ all experience; the present ceased⁷ to be a reality: you might just as well be dead.

1 neolithic   

adj.新石器时代的

参考例句：

• Cattle were first domesticated in Neolithic times.新石器时代有人开始驯养牛。
• The monument was Stone Age or Neolithic.该纪念碑是属于石器时代或新石器时代的。

2 neatly   

adv.整洁地，干净地，灵巧地，熟练地

参考例句：

• Sailors know how to wind up a long rope neatly.水手们知道怎样把一条大绳利落地缠好。
• The child's dress is neatly gathered at the neck.那孩子的衣服在领口处打着整齐的皱褶。

3 cable   

n.缆绳，索；电缆；电报；vt.电汇，打电报

参考例句：

• Don't forget to cable us as soon as you arrive.别忘了一到就给我发个电报。
• The worker attached a cable.工人连接电缆。

4 marred   

adj. 被损毁, 污损的

参考例句：

• The game was marred by the behaviour of drunken fans. 喝醉了的球迷行为不轨，把比赛给搅了。
• Bad diction marred the effectiveness of his speech. 措词不当影响了他演说的效果。

5 presence   

n.出席；到场；存在

参考例句：

• Her presence lent an air of respectability to the occasion.她的到场使那种场合增添了崇高的气氛。
• His presence is indicative of his willingness to help.他的出席表示他愿意帮忙。

6 suspend   

vt. 推迟, 悬挂, 暂停, 取消; vi. 悬挂, 中止, 停止偿付债务

参考例句：

• Balloons suspend easily in the air. 气球容易浮在空中。
• I request them to suspend their decision until they have read my narrative. 我请求他们没看完我写的故事之前,别轻率地先下断语。

7 ceased   

adj. 停止的, 终了的 动词cease的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He ceased to write at the age of sixty. 他60岁停止了写作。
• Never for a moment has the fire of war ceased. 战火一刻也没有间断过。