第 1 课 · A Puma at Large

A puma at large

一只逃遁在外的美洲狮

Pumas are large, cat-like animals which are found in America.

美洲狮是体型很大、形似猫的动物，分布在美洲。

When reports came into London Zoo that a wild puma had been spotted forty-five miles south of London, they were not taken seriously.

伦敦动物园接到报告说，在伦敦以南45英里处发现了一只野生美洲狮，可这些报告并没有受到认真对待。

However, as the evidence began to accumulate, experts from the Zoo felt obliged to investigate, for the descriptions given by people who claimed to have seen the puma were extraordinarily similar.

然而，随着证据开始增多，动物园的专家们感到有必要调查一番，因为凡是自称见过美洲狮的人，对它的描述都出奇地相似。

The hunt for the puma began in a small village where a woman picking blackberries saw 'a large cat'only five yards away from her.

对美洲狮的搜寻始于一个小村庄：一位正在采摘黑莓的妇女看见「一只大猫」离她只有五码远。

It immediately ran away when she saw it, and experts confirmed that a puma will not attack a human being unless it is cornered.

她刚一看见它，它立刻就跑开了；专家们证实：美洲狮除非被逼入绝境，否则是不会攻击人的。

The search proved difficult, for the puma was often observed at one place in the morning and at another place twenty miles away in the evening.

事实证明搜寻非常困难：人们常常早上在一处地方观察到这只美洲狮，晚上又在二十英里外的另一处看到它。

Wherever it went, it left behind it a trail of dead deer and small animals like rabbits.

无论它走到哪里，身后都会留下一串死鹿和兔子之类的小动物。

Paw prints were seen in a number of places and puma fur was found clinging to bushes.

人们在好些地方发现了爪印，还发现美洲狮的毛粘在灌木丛上。

Several people complained of 'cat-like noises' at night and a businessman on a fishing trip saw the puma up a tree.

好几个人抱怨夜里听到「猫一样的叫声」；一位外出垂钓的商人还看见那只美洲狮待在一棵树上。

The experts were now fully convinced that the animal was a puma, but where had it come from?

至此，专家们已完全确信这只动物就是美洲狮；可它究竟是从哪儿来的呢？

As no pumas had been reported missing from any zoo in the country, this one must have been in the possession of a private collector and somehow managed to escape.

由于全国没有任何一家动物园报告过美洲狮失踪，这只一定是被某位私人收藏者拥有的，而且不知怎么设法逃了出来。

The hunt went on for several weeks, but the puma was not caught.

搜捕行动持续了好几个星期，但那只美洲狮始终没有被捕获。

It is disturbing to think that a dangerous wild animal is still at large in the quiet countryside.

想到在宁静的乡村里仍有一只危险的野兽在逃未获，实在令人不安。