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《经济学家》读译参考(60):城里人闻不惯那味儿—美国牛仔走投

[日期:2008-07-24]   [字体: ]
TEXT 60

Newcomers don't like the smells

城里人闻不惯那味儿(陈继龙 编译)
Aug 10th 2006 | GILBERT, PRESCOTT AND SCOTTSDALE
From The Economist print edition


GEORGE WILLIAMS, one of Scottsdale's last remaining cowboys, has beenr_______①horses and cattle on his 120 acres for 20 years. (1)The cattle go to the slaughterhouse, the horses to rodeos[1]. But Mr Williams is stomping[2] mad.

乔治•威廉斯是斯科特斯德(注:亚利桑那州中南部城市)仅存的牛仔之一,20年来他一直在他那120亩地里饲养牛马。牛儿进了屠宰场,马儿上了竞技场,而威廉斯却疯也似的跺着脚。
His problems began last year when dishonest neighbours started to steal his cattle. Then other neighbours, most of them newcomers, took offence at his horses roaming on their properties. Arizona is anopen-range[3]state:l_______②have the right of way and there is no fine fortrespassing[4].This has been on the law books since 1913. (2)Mr Williams, who is elderly and in poor health, is angry that he has to spend so much of his time fielding[5] complaints and retrieving stolen cattle.
去年,有些不厚道的邻居开始偷他的牛,之后他的麻烦便接踵而至。有的邻居(大多数都是刚刚迁来的人)还攻击他那些跑到他们地里的马。亚利桑那是一个开阔的“草原之州”,家畜在公路上享有优先通行权,对家畜侵入他人土地也不予罚款。(译注:“the right of way”可指“优先通行权”和“允许在别人的土地上穿行”,根据上下文,这里是指前者,因为后面的trespass有“进入别人的私人土地”的意思。)自1913年以来,这就一直有法律明文规定。威廉斯很生气,因为年老体弱的他不得不花很多的时间来回应别人的怨言和找回被偷的牛。


Such grumbles are common in Arizona. The most recent Department of Agriculture census shows that 1,213 of Arizona's 8,507 farms closed down between 1997 and 2002. Many cattlemen are moving out to more remote parts of the state.Arable[6]farmers are struggling, too. Norman Knox, a respected grain farmer in Gilbert, recently learned that the owner of his rented land wants to build condos. Mr Knox is 72 and has to move. Her_______③that 50-70% of the farmland in Gilbert has been sold for development in the past two years.
这样的怨言在亚利桑那到处都可以听到。农业部最近一次人口普查结果显示,1997年至2002年间,亚利桑那8507家农场中有1213家已经关闭。许多牧民正在朝该州一些偏远的地区迁徙。种地农民也是苦不堪言。诺曼•诺克斯是吉尔伯特一位德高望重的粮农,他最近得知,他租种的那块地的主人打算在那儿修建公寓楼。今年72岁的诺克斯只好搬走。据他估算,两年来,吉尔伯特的农田已经有50%~70%被出售用于开发。


This affects not only cowboys and farmers, but small businessmen too. (3)For 20 years, Gary Young, owner of Gilbert's Higley Feed, sold range blocks and cubes to cattlemen who fed them to cattle during the droughts.But 18 months ago he switched to selling pet food and baby chicks to new home-owners.
这不但影响了牛仔和农民,也影响到了小商业者。吉尔伯特Higley饲料公司老板盖瑞•扬二十年来一直向牧民销售固体块状浓缩牧用汤料(译注:range此处是指“草原”,与前文的“open-range”一致;block指块状物体,cube指立方体,这里应该代指块状饲料或“浓缩草料”等,即可能是将牲畜所需饲料进行固化、压缩并切割成块状。是不是类似于“压缩饼干”?另,在英语中stock cube是指“固体浓缩汤料”,加上后面提到的“干旱时饲喂”,因此准确的译文可能为“固体块状浓缩牧用汤料”),干旱时牧民们就用这些汤料来喂牛。可是,一年半前他已经转行向新来的住户售卖宠物食品和小鸡了。


Doc Lane is an executive at the Arizona Cattlemen's Association, a trade group. He says Arizona's larger ranch owners are makingd_______④profits from selling. It is the smaller players who are the victims of rising landvalues, higher mortgages and stiffer city council rules. (4)What happens all too often is that people move in next to a farm because they think the land pretty.But soon they start complaining to the council. In Mr Williams's case it was the horses that annoyed them. Other newcomers don't like the noise, the pesticides and the smell of manure.
道克•莱恩是商业性组织、亚利桑那州牧民协会的一位业务主管。他说,亚利桑那较大的牧场场主经营收入还算过得去,而那些小牧主却成为地价上涨、房贷抵押金增高、政府规定日趋严格的牺牲品。人们搬迁到农场附近居住,因为他们觉得那一带的风景优美。这种情况屡见不鲜。不过他们不久就开始向市议会诉苦。就威廉斯一事而言,他们是抱怨他的马打扰了他们,而其他新来的住户则是讨厌这里的噪音、杀虫剂和肥料的气味。


Locals worry about the precious, dwindling cowboy culture. Arizona's tourism boards like to promote a steady interest in all things cowboy andwestern[7].Last year more British and German tourists came than usual, and many of them were lookingp_______⑤for that. (5)Arizona's Dude[8] Ranch Association fills its $350-a-night luxury ranches most of the year; roughly a third of the guests are European.
当地人对宝贵的牛仔文化日渐萎缩感到担忧。亚利桑那州旅游管理人士希望这里一切与牛仔和西部电影有关的东西都能产生经久不衰的吸引力。去年,来此地的英、德两国旅行者要多于往年,而且他们当中许多人恰恰就是为了寻找牛仔和西部电影而来。亚利桑那农场度假协会拥有的农场全年大部分时间都客满,其中约有三分之一的客人是欧洲人,而每晚的住宿费高达350美金。


(6)Many of the ranchers themselves see all this tourism as a cheeky[9] attempt to commercialise a real and vanishing culture.In Prescott, estate agents promote “American Ranch-style” homes with posters ofbacklit[10]horse riders. On the other side of the street is Whiskey Row, a famous strip of historic cowboy bars. But in Matt's Saloon on Saturday night, real cattlemen could not be found.
在很多农场主看来,这种旅游完全是一种厚颜无耻的行径,它试图让一个行将消失的、真正意义上的文化成为商品。在普雷斯科特,房地产经纪人推销具有“美国农场风格”、贴着光芒骑士海报的房屋。街道的另一边是著名的牛仔酒吧区——威士忌街。不过,星期六晚上在马特酒吧却见不到一个真正的牛仔。


Farm folk like Mr Knox and Mr Williams are weighing up their options. Many will migrate to remoter places where land is cheaper and not crowded with city people. (7)Younger ones take on side-jobs as contractors and are cattlehands part-time.Older cowboys aren't sure what to do.
像诺克斯和威廉斯这样的牧农们正在认真考虑着出路。许多人将迁往较为偏远的地方,那里土地比较便宜,城市人也不多。年轻的牛仔承包了牧场干起副业,并兼职做驯牛师。年纪较大的牛仔还不知道该干什么。


The Arizona Cowboy College in Scottsdale, which trains cattlehands, conducts the school for profit but also form________⑥the cowboy culture. The six-day courses include cattle-herding, rustling[11] and ranch-survival skills. The owner, herself a rancher, says the courses are popular, especially with retired businessmen.
位于斯科特斯德的亚利桑那牛仔学院专门培训驯牛师,其办学宗旨不但是为了赚钱,也是为了维护牛仔文化。课程为期六天,内容包括放牧、窃取牲口以及农场生存技能培训。院长本人也是一名农场主,她说,这些课程很受欢迎,特别是受到退休商人的欢迎。

[QUIZ]
1. 根据上下文和英文释义,补全单词:
①r_______(v.to look after animals or grow plants so that they can be sold or used as food)
②l_______(n.animals such as cows and sheep that are kept on a farm)
③r________(v.to guess a number or amount, without calculating it exactly)
④d________(adj.of a good enough standard or quality)
⑤p________(adv.exactly the right thing)
⑥m________(v.to make something continue in the same way or at the same standard as before)
2. 英译汉(将划线部分英文翻译成中文):

[NOTES](LONGMAN)
1. rodeo n.牛仔驯马、用绳索捕捉牲畜、骑马赛跑等娱乐活动;牧马技术表演
2. stomp v. 踩踏;跺脚
3. open range开放牧场;开旷草原
4. trespass v.(未经允许)进入别人的私人土地
5. field v.to answer questions, telephone calls etc, especially when there are a lot of them or the questions are difficult回答(问题、电话访问,尤指较多或较难回答时)
6. arable adj.与种植或耕种有关的(arable land可耕地)
7. western n.西部电影(尤指反映19世纪美国西部牛仔生活的电影)
8. dude n.在西部牧场度假的城里人;纨绔子弟
9. cheeky adj.无礼的;厚颜无耻的
10. backlight v.从后面照亮
11. rustle v.偷(牛、马等牲畜)

[KEY TO QUIZ]
1. ①raising 饲养
②livestock 家畜
③reckons 估算
④decent 尚可的,不错的
与good有关的词汇:
表示“very good”:excellent极好的, fantastic绝妙的,极好的, wonderful惊人的,极好的, GREat美妙的,好极了的, terrific非常棒的,妙极了的, neat极好的,极佳的 , superb极好的,一流的, amazing惊人的,了不起的, outstanding杰出的,出色的, brilliant超群的,才华横溢的, impressive给人留下深刻印象的, fine, first-class一流的, out of this world超级的,超一流的
表示“of good quality”high quality, top quality, superior, deluxe精品的, classy上等的,优等的
表示“morally good”: decent大方的,得体的, virtuous善良的,有道德的, respectable可敬的, honorable可敬的,光荣的, upright正直的,诚实的, beyond reproach无可指摘的
⑤precisely 正好
⑥maintaining 保持,维持;保养(continue/carry on • perpetuate使永存,使不朽 • keep up维持,继续 • preserve维持,维护,保存)
2.(见译文,仅供参考,欢迎指正)
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