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And now the weekly VOA Special English program of American Stories. Our story today is called A Municipal1 Report. It was written by O. Henry and first published in 1904. Here is Shep O'Neal with the story.

It was raining as I got off the train in Nashville Tennessee, a slow grey rain. I was tired, so I went straight to my hotel. A big heavy man was walking up and down in the hotel lobby2. Something about the way he moved made me think of a hungry dog looking for a bone. He had a big fat red face and a sleepy expression in his eyes. He introduced himself as Wentworth Caswell - Major Wentworth Caswell from a fine southern family. Caswell pulled me into the hotel's bar room and yelled3 for a waiter. We ordered drinks.

While we drank, he talked continually4 about himself, his family, his wife and her family. He said his wife was rich. He showed me a handful5 of silver coins that he pulled from his coat pocket. By this time I had decided6 that I wanted no more of him. I said goodnight.

I went up to my room and looked out of the window. It was ten o'clock but the town was silent7. "A nice quiet place," I said to myself as I got ready for bed, "just an ordinary sleepy southern town."

I was born in the south myself, but I live in New York now. I write for a large magazine. My boss had asked me to go to Nashville. The magazine had received some stories and poems from a writer in Nashville named Azalea Adair. The editor liked her work very much. The publisher asked me to get her to sign an agreement to write only for his magazine.

I left the hotel at nine o'clock the next morning to find Ms. Adair. It was still raining. As soon as I stepped outside, I met Uncle Caesar. He was a big old black man with fuzzy grey hair. Uncle Caesar was wearing the strangest coat I had ever seen. It must have been a military8 officer's coat. It was very long and when it was new it had been grey. But now rain, sun and age had made it the rainbow of colors.Only one of the buttons was left. It was yellow and as big as a 50-cent coin.

Uncle Caesar stood near a horse and carriage. He opened the carriage door and said softly9, "Step right in, Sir, I'll take you anywhere in the city."

"I want to go to 861 Jessamine Street", I said. And I started to climb into the carriage. But the old man stopped me, "Why do you want to go there, Sir?"
"What business is it of yours?" I said angrily.
Uncle Caesar relaxed and smiled, "Nothing, Sir, but it's a lonely part of town. Just step in and I'll take you there right away.”

861 Jessamine Street had been a fine house once, but now it was old and dying10. I got out of the carriage.
"That will be two dollar, Sir." Uncle Caesar said.
I gave him two one-dollar bills. As I handed them to him, I noticed that one had been torn in half and fixed11 with a piece of blue paper. Also the upper right hand corner was missing12.

Azalea Adair herself opened the door when I knocked. She was about fifty years old. Her white hair was pulled back from her small tired face. She wore a pale yellow dress. It was old but very clean. Azalea Adair led me into her living room: a damaged table, three chairs, and an old red sofa were in the center of the floor.

Azalea Adair and I sat down at the table and began to talk. I told her about the magazine's offer. She told me about herself. She was from an old southern family. Her father had been a judge. Azalea Adair told me she had never traveled or even attended school. Her parents taught her at home with private teachers.

We finished our meeting. I promised to return with the agreement the next day and rose to leave. At that moment, someone knocked at the back door. Azalea Adair whispered13 a soft apology and went to answer the caller14. She came back a minute later with bright eyes and pink cheeks. She looked ten years younger.

"You must have a cup of tea before you go," she said. She shook a little bell on the table and a small black girl about twelve years old ran into the room.

Azalea Adair opened a tiny old purse and took out a dollar bill. It had been fixed with a piece of blue paper and the upper-right hand corner was missing. It was the dollar I had given to Uncle Caesar.

"Go to Mr. Baker15's store, Impy," she said, "and get me 25 cents worth of tea and 10 cents worth of sugar cakes, and please hurry." The child ran out of the room. We heard the back door close. Then the girl screamed. Her cry mixed with a man's angry voice. Azalea Adair stood up. Her face showed no emotion as she left the room. I heard the man's rough16 voice and her gentle one. Then a door slammed17, and she came back into the room. " I am sorry, but I won't be able to offer you any tea after all." she said, "It seems that Mr. Baker has no more tea, perhaps he will find some for our visit tomorrow." We said goodbye. I went back to my hotel.

Just before dinner, Major Wentworth Caswell found me. It was impossible to avoid him. He insisted on buying me a drink and pulled two one-dollar bills from his pocket. Again, I saw a torn dollar fixed with blue paper with a corner missing. It was the one I gave Uncle Caesar. " How strange!" I thought. I wondered how Caswell got it.

Uncle Caesar was waiting outside the hotel the next afternoon. He took me to Ms. Adair's house and agreed to wait there until we had finished our business. Azalea Adair did not look well. I explained the agreement to her. She signed it. Then as she started to rise from the table, Azalea Adair fainted18 and fell to the floor. I picked her up and carried her to the old red sofa. I ran to the door and yelled to Uncle Caesar for help. He ran down the street. Five minutes later, he was back with a doctor. The doctor examined Ms. Adair and turned to the old black driver.

"Uncle Caesar," he said, “run to my house, and ask my wife for some milk and some eggs. Hurry!"

Then the doctor turned to me, “She does not get enough to eat", he said. "She has many friends who want to help her, but she is proud. Mrs. Caswell will accept help only from that old black man. He was once her family's slave19."

"Mrs. Caswell?" I said in surprise, "I thought she was Azalea Adair."

"She was," The doctor answered, "until she married Wentworth Caswell twenty years ago. But he is a hopeless drunk20. He takes even the small amount of money that Uncle Caesar gives her."

After the doctor left, I heard Caesar's voice in the other room. "Did he take all the money I gave you yesterday, Ms. Azalea?" "Yes, Caesar." I heard her answer softly, "He took both dollars." I went into the room and gave Azalea Adair fifty dollars. I told her it was from the magazine. Then Uncle Caesar drove21 me back to the hotel.

A few hours later, I went out for a walk before dinner. A crowd of people was talking excitedly in front of a store. I pushed my way into the store. Major Caswell was lying on the floor. He was dead. Someone had found his body on the street. He had been killed in a fight. In fact, his hands were still closed into tight22 fists. But as I stood near his body, Caswell's right hand opened, something fell from it and rolled near my feet. I put my foot on it, then picked it up and put it in my pocket. People said they believed a thief had killed him. They said Caswell had been showing everyone that he had fifty dollars, but when he was found he had no money on him.

I left Nashville the next morning. As the train crossed a river, I took out of my pocket the object that had dropped from Caswell's dead hand. I threw it into the river below. It was a button, a yellow button, the one from Uncle Caesar's coat.

You have just heard the story "A Municipal Report". It was written by O. Henry and adapted for Special English by Dona de Sanctis. Your storyteller was Shep O'Neal. This is Susan Clark. Join us again next week at this time for another American story on the Voice of America.

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点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 municipal vjAyD     
adj.市的,市政的;n.政府证券
参考例句:
  • The municipal authorities have kept the roads up well.市政当局把道路保养得不错。
  • The city is planning to build a municipal library.该市正计划建一座市立图书馆。
2 lobby lobby     
n.前厅,(剧院的)门廊
参考例句:
  • As he walked through the lobby,he skirted a group of ladies.他穿过门厅时,绕过了一群女士。
  • The delegates entered the assembly hall by way of the lobby.代表们通过大厅进入会场。
3 yelled aeee2b86b284e7fbd44f45779d6073c1     
v.叫喊,号叫,叫着说( yell的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • He yelled at the other driver. 他冲着另一位司机大叫。
  • The lost man yelled, hoping someone in the woods would hear him. 迷路的人大声喊着,希望林子里的人会听见。 来自《简明英汉词典》
4 continually qvlznv     
adv.不间断地,不停地;多次重复地
参考例句:
  • The other kids continually taunted him about his size.其他孩子不断地耻笑他的个头儿。
  • The US is continually building up its armed forces.美军正持续加强它的三军。
5 handful 0eGx2     
n.一把;少量,少数,一小撮
参考例句:
  • We invited 30 people, but only a handful came.我们邀请了30人,但是只到了几个人。
  • He pulled out a handful of coins from his pocket.他从口袋里掏出一把硬币。
6 decided lvqzZd     
adj.决定了的,坚决的;明显的,明确的
参考例句:
  • This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
  • There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。
7 silent eEVz8     
adj.安静的,不吵闹的,沉默的,无言的;n.(复数)默剧
参考例句:
  • Immediately on his beginning to speak,everyone was silent.他一讲话,大家顿时安静下来。
  • The boys looked at the conjuror in silent wonder. 孩子们目瞪口呆地看着那魔术师。
8 military RDbxh     
n.军队;adj.军事的,军人的,好战的
参考例句:
  • The area has been declared a closed military zone.这个地区已宣布为军事禁区。
  • The king was just the tool of the military government.国王只是军政府的一个傀儡。
9 softly HiIzR4     
adv.柔和地,静静地,温柔地
参考例句:
  • He speaks too softly for her to hear.他讲话声音太轻,她听不见。
  • She breathed her advice softly.她低声劝告。
10 dying 1rGx0     
adj.垂死的,临终的
参考例句:
  • He was put in charge of the group by the dying leader.他被临终的领导人任命为集团负责人。
  • She was shown into a small room,where there was a dying man.她被领进了一间小屋子,那里有一个垂死的人。
11 fixed JsKzzj     
adj.固定的,不变的,准备好的;(计算机)固定的
参考例句:
  • Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗?
  • Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定,我们就不应该随意改变。
12 missing 3nTzx7     
adj.遗失的,缺少的,失踪的
参考例句:
  • Check the tools and see if anything is missing.检点一下工具,看有无丢失。
  • All the others are here;he's the only one missing.别人都来了,就短他一个。
13 whispered ac3eda029cd72fefda0d32abc42aa001     
adj.耳语的,低语的v.低声说( whisper的过去式和过去分词 );私语;小声说;私下说
参考例句:
  • She sidled up to me and whispered something in my ear. 她悄悄走上前来,对我耳语了几句。
  • His ill luck has been whispered about the neighborhood. 他的不幸遭遇已在邻居中传开。 来自《简明英汉词典》
14 caller 5xKzNU     
n.打电话者,来访者,呼叫者
参考例句:
  • The operator told the caller that the line is busy.接线员告诉打电话的人对方电话占线。
  • The caller is on hold.那个打电话的人正等着通话。
15 baker wyTz62     
n.面包师
参考例句:
  • The baker bakes his bread in the bakery.面包师在面包房内烤面包。
  • The baker frosted the cake with a mixture of sugar and whites of eggs.面包师在蛋糕上撒了一层白糖和蛋清的混合料。
16 rough BXRxI     
adj.粗糙的;粗略的,大致的;粗野的,粗暴的
参考例句:
  • It's just a very rough translation.这只是一篇非常粗糙的译稿。
  • His reply was a bit rough.他的答复过于粗鲁了一点。
17 slammed 84b5bc3c8d817ee0d99387e3bc3042be     
v.砰地关上(门或窗)( slam的过去式和过去分词 );用力一放;使劲一推;猛劲一摔
参考例句:
  • He slammed on the brakes and the car juddered to a halt. 他猛踩刹车,汽车在剧烈震动中停下来。
  • He walked out of the room and slammed the door. 他走出房间,猛地关上了房门。
18 fainted c2eab448cbba2182061cafe25a5e3c1d     
v.晕倒,昏倒( faint的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • Facer has fainted; this bucket of water should fetch him round. 费塞昏过去了,这桶水可以使他苏醒过来。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • She all but fainted when she heard the news. 听到那消息,她差点晕过去。 来自《简明英汉词典》
19 slave vxpwa     
n.奴隶,附件,卑鄙的人;vi.拼命工作
参考例句:
  • Don't be a slave to custom.不要做风俗习惯的奴隶。
  • Why should I slave away all my life!我为什么要辛辛苦苦地干一辈子呀!
20 drunk LuozL6     
adj.醉酒的;(喻)陶醉的;n.酗酒者,醉汉
参考例句:
  • People who drives when they are drunk should be heavily penalised.醉酒驾车的人应受重罚。
  • She found him drunk when she came home at night.她晚上回家时,经常发现他醉醺醺的。
21 drove brAxi     
vbl.驾驶,drive的过去式;n.畜群
参考例句:
  • He drove at a speed of sixty miles per hour.他以每小时60英里的速度开车。
  • They drove foreign goods out of the market.他们把外国货驱逐出市场。
22 tight toCwI     
adj.紧的;难解的;紧密的
参考例句:
  • Time is going to be tight,so you'd better hurry.时间很紧,你最好抓紧一点。
  • The box is so tight that I can't open it.这个盒子太紧,我打不开。

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