By Emily/陳傳光（譯）

語篇導(dǎo)讀

在人類文明史上，郵件占有重要的位置。郵件的存在極大地方便了人與人之間的溝通與交流，促進(jìn)了社會的發(fā)展。那么你知道早期的郵件歷史嗎？讓我們一起來了解一下吧！

Now it is very easy for you to get in touch with your friends or relatives.But in early days，no one could be sure when or where the mail would arrive.

There was once a post office under a rock at the southern tip of Africa.In the old days，if people wanted to go to India from England，they had to be around the Cape of Good Hope.The journey was very stormy and dangerous.It took six long months.Sailors often wished to send letters home，but they seldom met the ship going back to England.So at the cape the sailors would go ashore.They went to a special large stone.On the stone was scratched the words “Look here under for letters”.They would leave their letters there，they knew the next homeward ship would stop and pick them up.

There was another special post office in the state of Washington.It was a stump of a huge tree.Settlers needed a place for the mail carrier to leave their letters.Their houses were so widely scattered that the mail carrier couldn't reach all of them.The mail carrier could leave letters there for everyone for miles around.

For the first few years after the English colonists came to America，there was no regular postal service.People gave their letters to any traveler who happened to the right direction.When the traveler reached the town where the letter was going，he stopped at an inn.He would leave the letters there.Until the person the letters were addressed to happened to stop at the inn，they could receive the letters.

After many years，regular mail carrier appeared.They went from one big town to another on horseback.They traveled only by day.So it still took many weeks for a letter to reach the person the letter would be sent to.

◆詞語積淀

stormy/'st??mi/adj.暴風(fēng)雨般的；有暴風(fēng)雨的

cape/ke?p/n.海角；岬

scratch/skr?t?/v.擦破；刮壞

homeward/'h??mw?d/adj.回國的；回家的

stump/st?mp/n.樹樁；殘余部分

scatter/'sk?t?（r）/v.（使）分散；散開

colonist/'k?l?n?st/n.殖民地定居者

regular/'regj?l?（r）/adj.有規(guī)律的；規(guī)則的

◆典句賞析

1.Now it is very easy for you to get in touch with your friends or relatives.現(xiàn)在你和你的親朋好友聯(lián)系起來非常容易。

這是一個簡單句子，“It is+adj.+for sb.to do sth.”是一個常見的句型，意為“對于某人來說做某事……”。

【即時嘗試】對于我們來說，學(xué)好英語很重要。

2.Their houses were so widely scattered that the mail carrier couldn't reach all of them.他們居住得過于分散，郵遞員無法把信件送到每一戶人家。

這是一個復(fù)合句，so...that...引導(dǎo)的是結(jié)果狀語從句，意為“如此……以至于……”。此時，so后接形容詞或副詞。

【即時嘗試】他跑得如此快，以至于我趕不上他。

3.So it still took many weeks for a letter to reach the person the letter would be sent to.所以信還得好幾個星期才能送到收信人手中。

“It takes/took+sb.+some time+to do sth.”是固定句型，意為“做某事花費(fèi)某人多少時間?！?/p>

【即時嘗試】踢足球花了我大約一個小時。

（答案見第63頁）

譯文助讀

現(xiàn)在你和你的親朋好友聯(lián)系起來非常容易。但是在早些時候，沒人知道他們寄出的信何時何地才能到收信人手里。

在非洲南端的一塊巖石下曾有一家郵局。在古時候，如果人們要想從英國到印度去的話，他們必須繞道好望角。旅程多風(fēng)暴，很危險，路上要花長達(dá)六個月的時間。水手們經(jīng)常想寄封信回家，但他們很少碰到回英國的輪船。于是，船到好望角他們就上岸，他們到一個特殊的大石頭那兒去。在這塊石頭上刻著這樣的字：在下面找信。他們就把信放在那兒，他們知道下一趟回家的船會停靠這兒，然后取走信。

在華盛頓還有一個特殊的郵局，它是一棵大樹的樁。那兒的居民需要一個讓郵遞員投放信件的地方。他們居住得過于分散，郵遞員無法把信件送到每一戶人家。這樣郵遞員就把方圓好幾英里的居民的信投放到那兒。

在英國殖民者到美國去的最初幾年，那兒沒有定期的郵政服務(wù)。人們把信給碰巧要去他們寄信的地方的旅行者。當(dāng)旅行者到了那地方的時候，他們就在一家小旅館停下，然后把信留在那兒。只有當(dāng)收信人碰巧經(jīng)過這家小旅館，他們才能收到信。

許多年以后，正規(guī)的郵遞員出現(xiàn)了，他們騎馬從一個大城鎮(zhèn)到另一個大城鎮(zhèn)送信。他們只在白天趕路，所以信還得好幾個星期才能送到收信人手中。