9 A Good Idea

9 A GOOD IDEA "Ben, wait for us!" yelled Annie. Jack and Annie hurried into the woods after Ben Franklin. They found him huddled beneath a tree. "That was an airplane," said Jack. "It won't hurt you. And it won't fall out of the sky." "But why not?" said Ben. Jack only half remembered how planes flew. "Well, it has an engine that pushes it forward," he said. "Then air under the wings helps lift it up." "It all works together. Somehow," said Annie. "Oh, my," said Ben. "Does your world

9好主意“本，等着我们！”安妮喊道。 杰克和安妮跟着本·富兰克林匆匆走进树林。 他们发现他蜷缩在一棵树下。 “那是一架飞机，”杰克说。 “它不会伤害你的。而且它不会从天上掉下来。” “为什么不呢？”本说。杰克对飞机的飞行情况只记得一半。 “嗯，它有一个推动它前进的引擎，”他说。 “然后翅膀下的空气帮助它上升。” “这一切都在一起工作。不知怎么的，”安妮说。 “哦，天哪，”本说。“你的世界

have many airplanes?" "Thousands," said Annie. "Huge ones called jets." "And rockets," said Jack. "Some rockets can go all the way to the moon." "Impossible!" said Ben. "I can see why that might seem impossible, but these are everyday things to us," said Annie. "We don't even think about them," said Jack. "Your world does not seem real to me!" said Ben. "The trees and grass and squirrels are real, but not lines that carry electricity and rockets that go to the moon!" He wiped his face with his handkerchief. "I fear there is no place for me here. I am a plain and simple man." "No, you're not! You're a genius!" said Annie. "Not here, my dear," Ben said. "My little inventions and experiments are nothing

有很多飞机吗？”“成千上万，”安妮说。 “巨大的，叫做喷气机。”“还有火箭。”杰克说。 “有些火箭可以一直飞到月球。” “不可能！”本说。“我明白为什么这看起来不可能，但这些对我们来说都是日常生活中的事情，”安妮说。 “我们甚至不去想他们，”杰克说。 “你的世界在我看来不真实！”本说。 “树、草和松鼠都是真的，但输电线路和飞往月球的火箭却不是真的！”他用手帕擦了擦脸。 “恐怕这里没有我的容身之地。 我是个朴实无华的人。” “不，你不是！”你真是个天才！”安妮说。 “这里不行，亲爱的，”本说。 “我的小发明和实验什么都不是

compared to carriages that roar and machines that fly. I believe it is time for me to go home." "Wait—uh—have you made a decision about what you're going to do?" said Jack. "I mean about signing the Constitution?" "No. But it doesn't matter if I sign or not," said Ben. "We delegates think our ideas are so very important. But now I see they matter little in your world." "That's not true at all!" said Annie. "They matter a lot." Ben smiled sadly. "Children, please. Lead me to the tree house," he said. "But—" said Annie. "Please," said Ben. "I want to go home." Jack looked at Annie. She nodded. "Okay," said Jack. "Follow us," Annie said gently. She and Jack started leading Ben back through the Frog Creek woods.

和轰鸣的车厢和会飞的机器相比。 我想我该回家了。” “等等，你决定要做什么了吗？”杰克说。 “我是说签署宪法？”“没有。 但我签不签并不重要，”本说。 “我们代表认为我们的想法非常重要。 但现在我明白了，在你的世界里，它们已经无关紧要了。” “根本不是这样的！”安妮说。 “他们很重要。”本伤心地笑了。 “孩子们,请。带我去树屋，”他说。 “可是——”安妮说。“请，”本说。 “我想回家。”杰克看着安妮。 她点了点头。“好吧，”杰克说。 “跟我们来，”安妮温柔地说。 她和杰克开始带着本穿过青蛙溪的树林。

"Morgan was wrong," Annie whispered to Jack. "She said our everyday wonders would show Ben the way." "I know. They only confuse him," said Jack. He felt terrible. Not only had they failed to change Ben's mind about signing the Constitution, they'd also upset one of the world's greatest heroes. By the time they reached the tree house, Ben looked pale and weary. "I apologize for being such a bad guest," he said. "You don't have to apologize," said Jack. "We apologize." "No, no. You have only been kind," said Ben. "Wait, Ben!" said Annie. "Before you go, there's something you really, really have to see." "What?" Jack whispered to her. "Trust me!" Annie whispered. Then she turned to Ben. "I promise you'll like this—it's really great!"

“摩根错了，”安妮低声对杰克说。 “她说我们每天的奇迹会给本指明方向。” “我知道。它们只会把他弄糊涂。”杰克说。 他感觉糟透了。他们不仅没能改变本关于签署宪法的想法，还惹恼了世界上最伟大的英雄之一。 当他们到达树屋时，本看起来苍白而疲惫。 他说：“我为自己是个糟糕的客人道歉。” “你不必道歉，”杰克说。 “我们道歉。”“不,不。你真是太好了。”本说。 “等等，本！”安妮说。“在你走之前，有些东西你一定要去看看。” “什么?”杰克低声对她说。 “相信我!”安妮小声说。 然后她转向本。“我保证你会喜欢的——它真的很棒！”

Ben sighed. "All right. Lead me there," he said. "This way," said Annie. Jack and Annie followed Ben through the woods to the sidewalk. As they headed up the street, the air felt hotter and more humid than ever. "Is this place far away?" Ben asked. "No, it's just ahead," said Annie. "See that building?" She pointed to a brick building with tall paned windows. "Oh, man," whispered Jack. "Brilliant." Annie was taking Ben to the Frog Creek Library! "Don't worry if people stare at you," Annie said to Ben. "We'll tell them you're in rehearsals for a play and you're still wearing your costume." Ben looked puzzled, but he nodded and followed Annie and Jack up the library steps.

本叹了口气。“好吧。领我到那里去。”他说。 “这边走，”安妮说。杰克和安妮跟着本穿过树林来到人行道上。 他们沿着街道往前走，感觉空气比以前更热、更潮湿。 “这地方远吗？”本问。 “不，就在前面，”安妮说。 “看到那栋楼了吗？”她指着一座砖房，里面有高高的玻璃窗。 “哦，天哪，”杰克低声说。 “辉煌”。安妮要带本去青蛙溪图书馆！“如果有人盯着你看，别担心，”安妮对本说。 “我们会告诉他们你在排练一出戏，你还穿着你的戏服。” 本看起来很困惑，但他点点头，跟着安妮和杰克走上了图书馆的台阶。

Jack opened the front door, and they all stepped inside. Ben took a deep breath. "Ah, the cool air in this room is delightful," he said. "Another invention?" "It is," said Jack. He usually didn't think much about air-conditioning, but today it was definitely delightful. "And what a wonderful room!" said Ben. The library walls were lined with bookshelves. People of all ages and colors sat in armchairs, reading books, magazines, and newspapers. Some were working at computers. "See what you started in Philadelphia?" Annie said. "Now we have free public libraries all over America. Thousands of them. They make a difference to all kinds of people." The librarian looked up from her desk. "Jack and Annie!" she said. "Hi!" "Hi, Sandy!" they said.

杰克打开前门，他们都走了进去。 本深吸了一口气。“啊，这房间里的凉风真令人愉快，”他说。 “另一个发明?”“是的，”杰克说。 他通常不怎么想空调，但今天绝对是令人愉快的。 “多么美妙的房间啊！”本说。 图书馆的墙上排列着书架。 所有年龄和肤色的人都坐在扶手椅上，阅读书籍、杂志和报纸。 有些人在电脑旁工作。 “看看你在费城开创了什么？”安妮说。 “现在我们在美国各地都有免费的公共图书馆。 成千上万。他们对各种各样的人都有影响。” 图书管理员从她的书桌上抬起头来。 “杰克和安妮！”她说。 “嗨!”“嗨，桑迪！”他们说。