對照課文聽錄音
The Pony Express
驛馬快信
Long ago, there were no telephones or radios. There were no televisions or computers. There were no airplanes or cars. It was hard to get news all the way to California.
很久以前沒有電話和收音機，更沒有電視機和電腦。當時的人們也沒有飛機或者汽車。加利福尼亞想得到外界的資訊很困難。
People who lived in California needed a quick way to get mail and news from the East. People wanted news about their friends and families. They also wanted to know what was happening in other places in the country.
住在加利福尼亞的人們需要一種方法，一種能夠快速收到郵件和美國東部資訊的方法。人們想得到朋友和家人的資訊，也想知道美國其他各地發生的事件。
Three people started a company called the Pony Express. The Pony Express carried mail and news throughout the West. On April 3, 1860, one Pony Express rider rode west from St. Joseph, Missouri. St. Joseph was the last stop for trains coming from the East. On the same day, another rider rode east from Sacramento, California. Both young men carried four bags of mail. The Pony Express was much faster than the stagecoach. A stagecoach took one month to deliver mail. A Pony Express rider could do it in ten days.
當時有三個人組建了一個名叫“驛馬快信”的公司，負責在美國西部運送郵件和新聞。1860年4月3日，驛馬快信公司的一個騎士從密蘇里州的聖約瑟向西駛去。聖約瑟是從美國東部駛來的火車的最後一站。同一天，另一個騎士從加利福尼亞的薩克拉曼向東急速駛來。兩個年輕人各自攜帶四袋信件。驛馬快信要比當時的公共馬車快多了。公共馬車送信歷時一月之久，而驛馬快信則能在十日之內送到。
The Pony Express hired young men. They were often younger than 18 years old. They were skinny, too. No rider could weigh more than 120 pounds. That helped their ponies run longer and faster.
驛馬快信公司僱傭的都是年輕人，他們通常都在18歲以下，且身材極瘦。所有的騎士均不得超過120英磅。這樣有助於他們的馬匹跑得距離更長，時速更快。
The Pony Express ponies were mustangs. These were small, wild horses. The horses were less than five feet tall. They galloped almost twelve miles an hour. The horses were smart. They learned their routes fast.
驛馬快公司的馬匹都是體形小的野馬，它們身高不過五英尺，奔跑時時速可達12英里。這些馬很聰明，它們很快就能識途。
Besides riders, other people helped run the Pony Express. Some people worked at stations. One of their jobs was to take care of the company's horses. Riders picked up fresh horses when they stopped at stations.
除了騎士，經營驛馬快信公司還需要其他的人手。一些人在驛站工作。他們的工作之一就是照料公司的馬匹，以便騎士們趕到驛站時有精力充沛的馬匹可騎。
The riders and the people who worked at the stations faced many dangers. One was the weather. Snowstorms slowed riders crossing the high mountains. Sandstorms slowed riders crossing the long, dry deserts. Wild animals like wolves were another danger. The riders also had to protect themselves from bandits. Bandits tried to steal horses. They also took whatever money the riders were carrying.
騎士和驛站工作人員都面臨許多危險，惡劣天氣就是其中之一。暴風雪會減慢騎士越過高山的速度。沙塵暴也會減慢騎士們穿越漫長乾旱的沙漠的`速度。狼等野生動物也是一大危險。此外，騎士們還得保護自己以防強盜的襲擊。強盜們不僅企圖偷馬，還會搶劫騎士們身上的錢財。
Still, there were young men willing to ride for the Pony Express. Together, they covered 2,000 miles of land. A rider would leave one station and gallop to another. At his first stop, he slipped the mail cover off the saddle. He threw it on the saddle of a new horse. Then he was off again. This took about two minutes. Each rider rode 60 to 80 miles. He stopped every 15 to 25 miles to get a fresh horse. At the end of his trip, a fresh rider on a fresh horse took his place. The first rider stayed at his last station until it was time for his next job.
儘管如此，仍然有年輕男士願意在驛馬快信公司當差。他們的足跡遍佈2000英里的土地。騎士離開一個驛站快馬飛奔駛向下一個。在第一站時，他會把把郵袋從馬鞍上卸下，繼而把它扔到一匹新馬的馬鞍上繼續前行，中間的停頓僅有兩分鐘。每個騎士要騎60英里到80英里不等。每15到20英里會在驛站上做短暫地停留以換取新馬。當一個騎士旅程結束後，會有一個新的騎士和一匹新的馬來接替他。第一個騎手則在他最終到達的驛站上等待下一次出征。
The Pony Express was successful. It delivered the mail faster than stagecoaches. But it only lasted about one and one-half years. It stopped running when telegraph wires reached California. By October 1861, the Pony Express closed its doors. Its riders and horses were no longer needed.
驛馬快信當時很成功。它送信的速度比公共馬車快。然而它只維持了大約一年到一年半的光景。當電報線在加利福尼亞設立後，驛馬快信就停止了營運。1861年10月，驛馬快信公司徹底停業。至此，騎士和馬匹就再也不需要了。
