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THE SPANISH BOOTBLACK Caroline Mabry
西班牙擦鞋童 卡罗琳·马布里
When you studied the history of America, you read a great deal about Spain and the Spaniards.
你在学习美国历史时，要读很多关于西班牙和西班牙人的书。
You remember those great explorers—De Soto, de Leon, and Coronado.
你记得那些伟大的探险家—德索托、德莱昂和科罗纳多。
Perhaps you remember also that when we won our freedom, Spain owned nearly all the land from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean.
也许你也记得，当我们赢得自由时，西班牙几乎拥有从密西西比河到太平洋的所有土地。
Even today there are thousands of Spanish-speaking people in our country.
就连到了今天，我国仍有成千上万讲西班牙语的人。
The story you will now read tells something of life in Spain today.
你现在要读到的故事讲述了西班牙今天的生活。
In the company of Pepin, the bootblack, you will travel to Seville and Granada, two of the most famous cities in the world.
在擦鞋童佩平的陪伴下，你将前往塞维利亚和格拉纳达这两个世界上最著名的城市。
NO WORK IN RONDA
隆达没生意
Pepin was a bootblack in Spain. He lived in Ronda near the great bridge which stretches across a chasm so deep
佩平是西班牙的一个擦鞋童。他住在隆达的一座大桥附近，大桥横跨一个很深的峡谷，
that on one side four hundred steps are carved in the rock leading down to the valley.
深到在峡谷的一侧，有四百级台阶刻在岩石上，一直通向峡谷。
They are old steps, cut in an early day when the Romans had besieged Ronda,
这些台阶年头很久了，是罗马人在早期包围隆达时凿成的，
and they were made so that the water carriers could slip down them secretly and bring water from the stream to the thirsty town.
以便让运水的人偷偷地从台阶上滑下来，把水从小溪带到缺水的城镇。
Now Ronda lay peacefully in the sunshine, and boys played on the steps, hiding in the caves along the way.
现在隆达安静地躺在阳光下，孩子们在台阶上玩耍，躲在路边的洞穴里。
Pepin, usually the joiliest of them all, had not joined the boys today.
佩平通常是他们当中最快乐的一个，今天却没有和孩子们在一起。
His heart was heavy.
他的心情很沉重。
He stood leaning over the high bridge looking out across the valley where the river turned the wheels of the grist mills.
他站在高高的桥上，俯下身子，望着山谷，河水使磨粉机的轮子转动了起来。
In his pocket was only one little dog, which is a small coin with a lion on it.
他的口袋里只有一只“小狗”了，那是一枚小硬币，上面印有狮子图案。
It was the last one Pepin had, for there had not been many boots to black lately in Ronda.
这是佩平剩下的最后一枚硬币了，因为最近隆达没有多少擦鞋的生意可做。
They needed blacking just as they had before, for the paths of Spain are dusty and rough with pebbles.
西班牙的道路尘土飞扬，布满卵石，所以人们还像以前一样需要擦鞋。
But the crops had not been good this summer, and everyone was poor, too poor even to pay Pepin a few pennies to shine dusty shoes
但是今年夏天庄稼不太好，每个人都很穷，穷得连擦鞋的钱都付不起了。
