Lesson 60 Too early and too late 太早和太晚
Listen to the tape then answer the question below.
听录音，然后回答以下问题。
Why did the young girl miss the train?
    Punctuality is a necessary habit in all public affairs in civilized society. Without it, nothing could ever be brought to a conclusion; everything would be in state of chaos. Only in a sparsely-populated rural community is it possible to disregard it. In ordinary living, there can be some tolerance of unpunctuality. The intellectual, who is working on some abstruse problem, has everything coordinated and organized for the matter in hand. He is therefore forgiven if late for a dinner party. But people are often reproached for unpunctuality when their only fault is cutting things fine. It is hard for energetic, quick-minded people to waste time, so they are often tempted to finish a job before setting out to keep an appointment. If no accidents occur on the way, like punctured tires, diversions of traffic, sudden descent of fog, they will be on time. They are often more industrious, useful citizens than those who ar
e never late. The over-punctual can be as much a trial to others as the unpunctual. The guest who arrives half an hour too soon is the greatest nuisance. Some friends of my family had this irritating habit. The only thing to do was ask them to come half an hour later than the other guests. Then they arrived just when we wanted them.
    If you are citing a train, it is always better to be comfortably early than even a fraction of a minted too late. Although being early may mean wasting a little time, this will be less than if you miss the train and have to wait an hour or more for the next one; and you avoid the frustration of arriving at the very moment when the train is drawing out of the station and being unable to get on it. An even harder situation is to be on the platform in good time for a train and still to see it go off without you. Such an experience befell a certain young girl the first time she was traveling alone.
    She entered the station twenty minutes before the train was due, since her parents had impressed upon her that it would be unforgivable to miss it and cause the friends with whom she was going to stay to make two journeys to meet her. She gave her luggage to a porter and showed him her ticket. To her horror he said that she was two hours too soo
n. She felt inhere handbag for the piece of paper on which her father had written down al the details of the journey and gave it to the porter. He agreed that a train did come into the station at the time on the paper and that it did stop, but only to take on mail, not passengers. The girl asked to see a timetable, feeling sure that her father could not have made such a mistake. The porter went to fetch one and arrive back with the station master, who produced it with a flourish and pointed out a microscopic 'o' beside the time of the arrival of the train at his station; this little 'o' indicated that the train only stopped for mail. Just as that moment the train came into the station. The girl, tears streaming down her face, begged to be allowed to slip into the guard's van. But the station master was adamant: rules could not be broken and she had to watch that train disappear towards her destination while she was left behind.
New words and expressions 生词和短语
    punctuality
n.  准时
    rural
adv. 农村的
    disregard
v.  不顾，无视
    intellectual
n.  知识分子
    abstruse
adj. 深奥的
    coordinate
v.  协调
    reproach
v.  责备
    puncture
v.  刺破（轮胎）
    diversion
n.  改道，绕道
    trial
n.  讨厌的事，人
    fraction
n.  很小一点儿
      flourish
n.    挥舞（打手劳）
    microscopic
adj. 微小的
    adamant
adj. 坚定的，不动摇的
   
参考译文
    准时是文明社会中进行一切社交活动时必须养成的习惯。不准时将一事无成，事事都会陷入混乱不堪的境地。只有在人口稀少的农村，才可以忽视准时的习惯。在日常生活中人们可以容忍一定程度的不准时。一个专心钻研某个复杂问题的知识分子，为了搞好手头的研究，要把一切都协调一致，组织周密。因此，他要是赴宴迟到了会得到谅解。但有些人不准时常常因为掐钟点所致，他们常常受到责备，精力充沛、头脑敏捷的人极不愿意浪费时间，因此他们常想做完一件事后再去赴约。要是路上没有发生如爆胎、改道、突然起雾等意外事故，他们决不会迟到。他们与那些从不迟到的人相比，常常是更勤奋有用的公民。早到的人同迟到的人一样令人讨厌。客人提前半小时到达是令人讨厌的。我家有几个朋友就有这有令人恼火的习惯。唯一的办法就是请他们比别的客人晚来半小时。这样，他们可以恰好在我们要求的时间到达。
    如果赶火车，早到总比晚到好，哪怕早到一会儿也好。虽然早到可能意味着浪费一点时
间，但这比误了火车等上一个多小时坐下班车浪费的时间要少，而且可以避免那种正好在火车驶出站时赶到车站，因上不去车而感到的沮丧。更难堪的情况是虽然及时赶到站台上，却眼睁睁地看着那趟火车启动，把你抛下。一个小姑娘第一次单独出门就碰到了这种情况。
    在火车进站20分钟前她就进了车站。因为她的父母再三跟她说，如果误了这趟车，她的东道主朋友就得接她两趟，这是不应该的。她把行李交给搬运工并给他看了车票。搬运工说她早到了两个小时，她听后大吃一惊。她从钱包里摸出一张纸条，那上面有她父亲对这次旅行详细说明，她把这张纸条交给了搬运工。搬运工说，正如纸条所说，确有一趟火车在那个时刻到站，但它只停站装邮件，不载旅客。姑娘要求看到时刻表，因为她相信父亲不能把这么大的事弄错。搬运工跑回去取时刻表，同时请来了站长。站长拿着时刻表一挥手，指着那趟列车到站时刻旁边一个很小的圆圈标记。这个标记表示列车是为装邮件而停车。正在这时，火车进站了。女孩泪流满面，央求让她不声不响地到押车员车厢里去算了。但站长态度坚决，规章制度不能破坏，姑娘只得眼看那趟火车消逝在她要去的方向而撇下了她。
New words and expression 生词和短语
punctuality  n. 准时
punctual  adj. 守时  Whatever we do we must be punctual.无论我们做什么都应该守时。
be punctual to the minute 非常守时
He is a person who is punctual to the minute.他是一个非常守时的人
 
rural  adv. 农村的
urban:城市的  rural life 乡村生活  urban life 城市生活
 
disregard  v. 不顾，无视
disregard sth  disregard= ignore
 pay no attention to    take no notice of
in disregard of
treat sb with disregard:怠慢某人
 
intellectual    n.  知识分子
 
abstruse        adj. 深奥的
abstract:抽象的
I am not good at mathematics because the subject is not only abstract but also abstruse.我不擅长数学因为它不仅抽象而且深奥。
ignore和miss的区别
 
coordinate      v.  协调
Our efforts need to be further coordinated for higher efficiency.为了更好的提高效率我们需要更进一步的协调我们各方的努力。
efficiency=be efficient  效率
If you want to complete an ideal job with your classmates as quickly as possible,I  think you must coordiate everthing as much as you can.如果你想和你的同学们更快的完成一项艰难的工作你们需要协调每一件事情。
coordinate work:协调工作
arrange:安排
Who will arrange the party?谁来安排这次聚会？
How can I arrange the paragraph?我该怎么安排这个自然段？
organize:组织
It's your duty to organize our meeting.组织我们的会议是你的责任。
harmonize  vt.&vi.协调，使调和，配和音
The music is harmonized.这音乐已经给配上了和音。
We have to harmonize our work.我们不得不协调我们的工作。
 
reproach        v.  责备
语气强于blame/scold弱于reprehend
Don't reproach/blame him for such a little thing.不要因为这么一件小事而去责备他。
blame sb for sth
reproach n.
beyond reproach:无可指责
beyond doubt：毫无疑问
beyond understanding:无法理解
beyond description:无法描述
The problem is beyond/above me.这个问题难倒了我。
 
puncture  v. 刺破（轮胎）
 
diversion  n. 改道，绕道
 
trial  n.  讨厌的事，人
nuisance：讨厌的人，事  trial:审讯，审判，尝试，实验
After his trial,he set out with his new plane.试飞之后，他开着他的新飞机出发了。
 
fraction  n.  很小一点儿  a fraction of=a bit of
 
flourish  n.  挥舞（打手势）  gesticulate v. 打手势
 
microscopic  adj. 微小的
microphone:麦克风  microfilm:微型胶片  microwave oven:微波炉
 
adamant  adj. 坚定的，不动摇的 
steady：稳定的  He is living a steady life.他生活的很稳定。
strong-minded/firm/stable
贬义同义词：obstinate/stubborn
stable:(人)坚定的
If you are adamant,nothing is difficute for you to study English.如果你很坚定，那么学好英语那是一定的。
give up=yield=surrender:放弃，投降
unyielding=unsurrendering=adamant
He is(so)adamant(as)to stick to his stupid idea.他是如此地坚定以至于坚持自己这个愚蠢的想法。
All the students here are adamant enough to study English hard.
Text 课文
Punctuality is a necessary habit in all public affairs of a civilized society.
准时是文明社会各项公共事务中一个必不可少的习惯。
in civilized society=in modern society
necessary=essential
Mania is a habit we develop for a long time .癖好是长时间形成的一种习惯。
 
Without it ,nothing could ever be brought to a conclusion.
没有它，则一事无成。
bring sth to conclusion:作出结论
everything would be in a state of chaos.