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Punctuality is a necessary habit in all public affairs in civilized society.
准时是文明社会中进行一切社交活动时必须养成的习惯
Without it, nothing could ever be brought to a conclusion;
不准时将一事无成
everything would be in a state of chaos.
事事都会陷入混乱不堪的境地
Only in a sparsely-populated rural community
只有在人口稀少的农村
is it possible to disregard it.
才可以忽视准时的习惯
In ordinary living, there can be some tolerance of unpunctuality.
在日常生活中人们可以容忍一定程度的不准时
The intellectual, who is working on some abstruse problem,
一个专心钻研某个复杂问题的知识分子
has everything coordinated and organized for the matter in hand.
为了搞好手头的研究 要把一切都协调一致 组织周密
He is therefore forgiven if late for a dinner party.
因此 他要是赴宴迟到了会得到谅解
But people are often reproached for unpunctuality
但有些人不准时
when their only fault is cutting things fine.
常常因为掐钟点所致 他们常常受到责备
It is hard for energetic, quick-minded people to waste time,
精力充沛 头脑敏捷的人极不愿意浪费时间
so they are often tempted to finish a job before setting out to keep an appointment.
因此他们常想做完一件事后再去赴约
If no accidents occur on the way,
要是路上没有发生
like punctured tyres, diversions of traffic, sudden descent of fog,
如爆胎 改道 突然起雾等意外事故
they will be on time.
他们决不会迟到
They are often more industrious,
他们常常是更勤奋有用的公民
useful citizens than those who are never late.
与那些从不迟到的人相比
The over-punctual can be as much a trial to others as the unpunctual.
早到的人同迟到的人一样令人讨厌
The guest who arrives half an hour too soon is the greatest nuisance.
客人提前半小时到达是令人讨厌的
Some friends of my family had this irritating habit.
我家有几个朋友就有这令人恼火的习惯
The only thing to do was ask them to come half an hour later than the other guests.
唯一的办法就是请他们比别的客人晚来半小时
Then they arrived just when we wanted them.
这样 他们可以恰好在我们要求的时间到达
If you are catching a train,
如果赶火车
it is always better to be comfortably early
早到总比晚到好
than even a fraction of a minute too late.
哪怕早到一会儿也好
Although being early may mean wasting a little time,
虽然早到可能意味着浪费一点时间
this will be less than if you miss the train
但这比误了火车
and have to wait an hour or more for the next one;
等上一个多小时坐下班车浪费的时间要少
and you avoid the frustration of arriving at the very moment
而且可以避免那种正好在火车驶出站时赶到车站
when the train is drawing out of the station and being unable to get on it.
因上不去车而感到的沮丧
And even a harder situation is to be on the platform in good time for a train
更难堪的情况是虽然及时赶到站台上
and still to see it go off without you.
却眼睁睁地看着那趟火车启动 把你抛下
Such an experience befell a certain young girl
一个小姑娘第一次单独出门
the first time she was travelling alone.
就碰到了这种情况
She entered the station 20 minutes before the train was due,
在火车进站20分钟前她就进了车站
since her parents had impressed upon her
因为她的父母再三跟她说
that it would be unforgivable to miss it
如果误了这趟车
and cause the friends with whom she was going to stay to make two journeys to meet her.
她的东道主朋友就得接她两趟 这是不应该的
She gave her luggage to a porter and showed him her ticket.
她把行李交给搬运工并给他看了车票
To her horror he said that she was two hours too soon.
搬运工说她早到了两个小时 她听后大吃一惊
She felt in her handbag for the piece of paper
她从钱包里摸出一张纸条
on which her father had written down all the details of the journey
那上面有她父亲对这次旅行的详细说明
and gave it to the porter.
她把这张纸条交给了搬运工
He agreed that a train did come into the station at the time on the paper
搬运工说 正如纸条所说 确有一趟火车在那个时刻到站
and that it did stop, but only to take on mail, not passengers.
但它只停站装邮件 不载旅客
The girl asked to see a timetable,
姑娘要求看时刻表
feeling sure that her father could not have made such a mistake.
因为她相信父亲不会把这么大的事弄错
The porter went to fetch one and arrived back with the station master,
搬运工跑回去取时刻表 同时请来了站长
who produced it with a flourish and pointed out a microscopic 'o'
站长拿着时刻表一挥手 指着那趟列车到站时刻
beside the time of the arrival of the train at his station;
旁边一个很小的圆圈标记
this little 'o' indicated that the train only stopped for mail.
这个标记表示列车是为装邮件而停车
Just as that moment the train came into the station.
正在这时 火车进站了
The girl, tears streaming down her face,
女孩泪流满面
begged to be allowed to slip into the guard's van.
央求让她不声不响地到押车员车厢里去算了
But the station master was adamant: rules could not be broken.
但站长态度坚决 规章制度不能破坏
And she had to watch that train disappear towards her destination
姑娘只得眼看那趟火车消逝在她要去的方向
while she was left behind.
而撇下了她
