英漢幽默故事選讀【43】

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The Shepherd and the Bureaucrat

　　A bureaucrat was hiking when he came upon a shepherd tending a large flock. The bureaucrat took a fancy to the sheep and asked the shepherd, "If I can guess how many there are, may I have one?" The shepherd thought it unlikely the man would guess the exact number, so he agreed.

　　The bureaucrat guessed, "You have 287 sheep." The shepherd was astonished, since this was exactly right.

　　"Can I pick out my sheep now?" asked the bureaucrat. The shepherd grudgingly gave his permission. Selecting one, the bureaucrat slung it over his shoulders to carry home.

　　The shepherd got an idea." If I guess your occupation'," he said, "may I have my sheep back?" The bureaucrat was surprised, but figured there was little chance of the shepherd guessing correctly, so he went along. "You're a bureaucrat, "announced the shepherd. Amazed, the bureaucrat asked.

　　"How did you know?"

　　The shepherd replied, "Put the dog down and we'll talk about it.

　　Notes:

　　（1） bureaucrat n.官僚
　　（2） come upon偶然遇到
　　（3） shepherd n.牧羊人
　　（4） take a fancy to sth 喜愛
　　（5） astonish v.使驚駭
　　（6） pick out挑選
　　（7） grudgingly adv.不情愿地
　　（8） sling v.用力投擲
　　（9） occupation n.職業(yè)；工作
　　（10） figure v.料想；推斷

　　Exercises:

　　根據(jù)短文選擇正確答案：

　　① What was the bureaucrat doing when he saw the shepherd?
　　A. He was driving in the countryside.
　　B. He was fishing in the countryside.
　　C. He was having a walk in the countryside.
　　D. He was hunting in the countryside.

　　② How many sheep did the shepherd have?
　　A. one hundred and eighty seven
　　B. two hundred and eighty seven
　　C. three hundred and eighty seven
　　D. eight hundred and seventy two

　　③ How did the shepherd feel when the bureaucrat guessed right?
　　A. He was very delighted.
　　B. He was puzzled.
　　C. He was very sad
　　D. He was greatly surprised.

　　④ How many sheep did the bureaucrat choose?
　　A. one
　　B. two
　　C. three
　　D. four

　　⑤ How could the shepherd guess the man's occupation as a bureaucrat?
　　A. The bureaucrat's wearing told him.
　　B. The bureaucrat's words told what his occupation was.
　　C. The bureaucrat had mistaken a dog for a sheep -
　　D. The shepherd overheard that the man was a bureaucrat.

牧羊人與官僚

　　一位官僚在徒步旅行，這時(shí)他看到一個(gè)牧羊人在看護(hù)一大群羊。這個(gè)官僚特別喜歡羊，就問牧羊人：“如果我能猜出有多少只，我能領(lǐng)走一只羊嗎？”牧羊人想他不可能猜中準(zhǔn)確的數(shù)目，就同意了。

　　官僚猜道：“你有二百八十七只羊。”牧羊人驚呆了，因?yàn)檫@確是準(zhǔn)確的數(shù)目。

　　“我可以挑一只羊了吧？”官僚問道。牧羊人勉強(qiáng)地答應(yīng)了。官僚挑了一只羊，把它甩在肩上就往家里扛。

　　牧羊人來(lái)了主意。“如果我猜中你的身份，”他說(shuō)，“我可以收回我的羊嗎？”官僚甚感驚奇，但考慮到牧羊人猜中的機(jī)會(huì)很小，就同意了。“你是個(gè)官員，”牧羊人猜道。

　　官僚一愣，問道：“你怎么知道的？”

　　牧羊人回答：“先把我的狗放下，然后我們?cè)僬f(shuō)話。”

　　練習(xí)參考答案：

　　①C②B③D④A⑤C

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