1705006910 ● noting my activity：见到我在画图了。adjoining desk：隔壁那张桌子。his eyebrows high in hope：教授满怀希望，眉毛抬得老高。

1705006911

1705006912 ● a hint of squeal：声音里有点尖声惨叫的味道。you didn’t：似为you didn’t see that之略。squinted：眯着眼睛往里看。

1705006913

1705006914 ● snapped up：头猛地一抬。

1705006915

1705006916 ● lens：透镜。reflects：反射，这里用作不及物动词。笨学生所看见的，原来是自己眼睛的反影！

1705006917

1705006918 Another course that I didn’t like, but somehow managed to pass, was economics. I went to that class straight from the botany class, which didn’t help me any in understanding either subject. I used to get them mixed up. But not as mixed up as another student in my economics class who came there direct from a physics laboratory. He was a tackle on the football team, named Bolenciecwcz. At that time Ohio State University had one of the best football teams in the country, and Bolenciecwcz was one of its outstanding stars. In order to be eligible to play it was necessary for him to keep up in his studies, a very difficult matter, for while he was not dumber than an ox he was not any smarter. Most of his professors were lenient and helped him along. None gave him more hints, in answering questions, or asked him simpler ones than the economics professor, a thin, timid man named Bassum.

1705006919

1705006920 ● another course：生物学之外，经济学他也不喜欢；但是他总是不知怎么想法子“弄”（managed）及格的。

1705006921

1705006922 ● straight：直接地。一上完生物学，就去上经济学。which：这两门课，连着上（这点事实）。either：两样东西之任何一样。

1705006923

1705006924 ● get them mixed up：把两门功课混淆起来。

1705006925

1705006926 ● But not…：此句不完全，仅是补充前句的mixed up。direct：这个字同前面的straight一样，用作副词。

1705006927

1705006928 ● tackle：截球员（美国式足球球员中之一角色）。Bolenciecwcz：此人恐怕是波兰裔；名字的读音很难，读者可不必深究。

1705006929

1705006930 ● eligible：有入选资格。to keep up in his studies：各门都及格；有一门不及格，就不可以参加比赛。dumber：较笨。smarter：较聪明。

1705006931

1705006932 ● lenient：宽；特别客气。helped him along：帮他及格。注意：along有“前进”之意。

1705006933

1705006934 ● thin, timid man：这样一个“瘦怯怯”的教授，同这个其笨如牛的学生，正好成一滑稽的对照。教授要帮学生及格，发问的时候，大多给他暗示（give him hints），免得他多费脑筋思索，或者问些很容易的题目（simpler ones=simpler questions）；但是讲到暗示之多，题目之容易，没有一位教授比得上这位经济学教授的。

1705006935

1705006936 One day when we were on the subject of transportation and distribution, it came Bolenciecwcz’s turn to answer a question. “Name one means of transportation,” the professor said to him. No light came into the big tackle’s eyes. “Just any means of transportation,” said the professor, “any medium, agency, or method of going from one place to another.” Bolenciecwcz had the look of a man who is being led into a trap. “You may choose among steam, horse-drawn, or electrically propelled vehicles,“said the instructor, “I might suggest the one which we commonly take in making long journeys across land.”

1705006937

1705006938 ● transportation and distribution：运输与分配（经济学的一个题目）。

1705006939

1705006940 ● it came Bolenciecwcz’s turn：这里的it用语法家Jespersen的术语，应该是preparatory “it”的一种。it就是turn，不过这个字先出来，为名词turn作一准备。句法结构大致同下句相仿：

1705006941

1705006942 It’s no use crying over spilt milk.

1705006943

1705006944 ● 教授的用字太深，为笨学生所不能理解：means of transportation（交通工具）。教授看见学生瞠目不知所对（眼睛里没有光）就换一种说法：any medium, agency, or method of going from one place to another，那时学生更觉糊涂，脸上的表情就像一个被人家设圈套愚弄的人一样。

1705006945

1705006946 ● 教授叫学生任意举一种交通工具，后来缩小范围，叫他任意举一种“车辆”（vehicles）：在蒸汽推动，马力拖曳，电力推动各种车辆中任举一种。

1705006947

1705006948 ● the one：这种车辆。take：乘坐。在陆地上长距离旅行乘坐的车辆，应该是火车。

1705006949

1705006950 There was a profound silence in which everybody stirred uneasily, including Bolenciecwcz and Mr. Bassum. Mr. Bassum abruptly broke this silence in an amazing manner. “Choo-choochoo,” he said, in a low voice, and turned instantly scarlet. He glanced appealingly around the room. All of us, of course, shared Mr. Bassum’s desire that Bolcnciecwcz should stay abreast of the class in economics, for the Illinois game, one of the hardest and most important of the season, was only a week off. “Toot, toot, too—tooooooot!” some student with a deep voice moaned, and we all looked encouragingly at Bolenciecwcz. Somebody else gave a fine imitation of a locomotive letting off steam. Mr. Bassum himself rounded off the little show. “Ding, dong, ding, dong,” he said, hopefully. Bolenciecwcz was staring at the floor now, trying to think, his great brow furrowed, his huge hands rubbing together, his face red.

1705006951

1705006952 ● 题目问得如此之浅，而学生仍旧答不出来。班上虽然大家不开口，但是人人都有点不安的骚动。

1705006953

1705006954 ● Choo-choo-choo：火车的声音。教授模仿了这种声音，自己觉得不好意思，脸上立刻绯红。

1705006955

1705006956 ● appealingly：请求（帮助）地。教授没有办法了，且看同学中有没有人能够打开这个僵局。

1705006957

1705006958 ● shared Mr. Bassum’s desire：同具此感。教授的尊称用Mr.在美国大学里是很普通的。通常美国各大学的概况里课程名称与内容一章，对于授课教员一律称之为Mr.，不管他的身份是教授或副教授。stayed abreast of：跟得上；不留级。

1705006959

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