7. Showdown at the Alamo

7 Showdown at the Alamo As Eduardo followed the speed limit toward San Antonio and the Alamo, Stanley and his friends counted down the minutes until they were due to meet Mrs. Lambchop. There was grim silence as the alarm on Arthur's watch went off: It was noon. They were late. Stanley hoped his mother wouldn't be too angry.

在阿拉莫的决战爱德华多沿着限速驶向圣安东尼奥和阿拉莫时，斯坦利和他的朋友们数着时间，等待着和兰姆切普太太见面。 阿瑟手表上的闹钟响了，四周一片可怕的寂静:已经是中午了。 他们迟到了。斯坦利希望妈妈不要太生气。

"Didn't something bad happen at the Alamo?" said Arthur. "Because I feel like we're about to be grounded forever." Eduardo cleared his throat. "It was eighteen thirty-six. Texas had been ruled by France and then by Spain. Then it was a colony of Mexico. There was a terrible dictator, and the Texans decided to fight for their independence. More than one thousand five hundred Mexican soldiers, against just a few hundred Texans, tried to take the Alamo. It was a long and terrible fight. The Texans lost—but they vowed to win after that. 'Remember the Alamo!' they said. Soon after, they

“在阿拉莫不是发生了什么坏事吗?”阿瑟问。 “因为我觉得我们要永远被禁足了。” 爱德华多清了清喉咙。 那是1836年。 德克萨斯曾先后被法国和西班牙统治。 当时它是墨西哥的殖民地。 有一个可怕的独裁者，德克萨斯人决定为他们的独立而战。 1500多名墨西哥士兵试图占领阿拉莫，而德克萨斯人只有几百人。 这是一场漫长而可怕的战斗。 德州人输了，但他们发誓要赢。 “别忘了阿拉莫!”他们说。 不久之后，他们

beat the Mexican army and won their independence. That's why they call Texas the Lone Star State—because the spirit of independence here has always been so strong." They arrived at last. The chapel of the Alamo had a roof that curved up in the center like a rising sun. The building looked like it had been standing for centuries and would stand for many more. The boys climbed out of the car. In the distance, across the empty parking lot, Stanley's mother was waiting. Her feet were apart and her hands were on her hips. A dark frown hung on her face. "Whatever happens," Arthur said, gulping, "we stick together."

打败了墨西哥军队，赢得了独立。 这就是为什么人们称德克萨斯为‘孤星之州’——因为这里的独立精神一直很强烈。” 他们终于到了。阿拉莫教堂的屋顶在中心呈弧形，就像初升的太阳。 这座建筑看起来已经矗立了几个世纪，而且还会矗立更长的时间。 男孩们爬出了汽车。 在远处，空荡荡的停车场对面，斯坦利的母亲正在等着。 她两脚分开，双手叉腰。 她脸上阴沉地皱着眉头。 “不管发生什么事，”阿瑟说，咽着气，“我们要团结在一起。”

Stanley and the other boys linked arms. The sun was high and sharp. A buzzard circled overhead. Mrs. Lambchop took a slow step toward them. "I gave you three rules!" she called in a cold, stony voice. The gang of boys stepped forward. "And one of them was to show up on time," she continued and took another step forward. "It was my fault!" Stanley, Arthur, Carlos, and Eduardo all said. "I don't care whose fault it was," Mrs. Lambchop said. "A rule is a rule! Have you been using proper grammar?"

斯坦利和其他男孩手挽着手。 太阳又高又亮。 一只秃鹰在头顶盘旋。 兰彻太太慢慢地朝他们走了一步。 “我给你定了三条规矩!”她用冷冰冰的声音喊道。 那群男孩走上前去。 “其中之一就是准时出现，”她继续说，又向前迈了一步。 “是我的错!”斯坦利，亚瑟，卡洛斯和爱德华多都说。 “我不管这是谁的错，”兰切普太太说。 “规则就是规则!”你的语法正确吗?”

The boys hesitated. A lone tumbleweed rolled through. "Mostly," answered Arthur. Mrs. Lambchop squinted and shook her head slowly. Then a truck pulled into the parking lot and screeched to a halt. "That's the truck that was chasing us!" said Carlos. The truck's doors swung open. In the glaring sun, Stanley could just make out the giant silhouette of a towering man in a cowboy hat. His boots ground the dusty asphalt. Uh-oh, thought Stanley. "We meet at last!" the giant cowboy said. "They're mine!" called Mrs. Lambchop, moving closer to the boys. Suddenly Stanley heard another voice as someone stepped from the passenger side of the truck. "Gol-durned fools!" It was a girl. She tugged her leather vest and straightened her cowboy hat. She glared at Stanley and his friends.

男孩们犹豫了。一棵孤零零的风滚草滚了过来。 “大部分。”阿瑟回答。 兰彻太太眯起眼睛，慢慢地摇了摇头。 然后一辆卡车开进停车场，尖叫着停了下来。 “那是追我们的卡车!”卡洛斯说。 卡车的车门打开了。 在耀眼的阳光下，斯坦利只能辨认出一个戴着牛仔帽的高大男子的巨大剪影。 他的靴子踩在尘土飞扬的柏油路上。 哦哦，斯坦利想。“我们终于见面了!”大牛仔说。 “它们是我的!”兰彻太太叫道，向两个男孩靠近了一些。 突然，斯坦利听到另一个声音，有人从卡车的副驾驶座走了出来。 “Gol-durned傻瓜!”是个女孩。 她拉了拉皮背心，整理了一下牛仔帽。 她怒视着斯坦利和他的朋友们。

Stanley's mouth fell open. "Calamity Jasper! What are you doing here?" "CHASING YOU!" she bellowed, charging toward them. "Ever since you sent me a postcard saying you'd be in Texas, I said, 'I just have to go

斯坦利张大了嘴。 “灾难碧玉!你在这里做什么?”“追你们!”她吼道，朝他们冲去。 “自从你寄给我一张明信片说你要去德克萨斯州，我就说，‘我得走了