02 Signs of Life

Chapter 2 Signs of Life Jack opened his eyes. He was wearing pants with suspenders and a shirt with the sleeves rolled up. In place of his backpack was a leather bag. Annie was wearing a long dress and a sun bonnet. I like my hat, she said. It'll keep the sun off my face. Yeah, except the sun's not shining, said Jack.

第二章 生命的迹象 杰克睁开了眼睛。他穿着背带裤，还有一件袖子挽起来的衬衫。 他的背包不见了，取而代之的是一个皮包。 安妮穿着一条长裙，戴着一顶遮阳帽。 我喜欢我的帽子，她说，它能帮我挡住太阳，不晒我的脸。 是啊，可惜现在没太阳呀，杰克说。

He and Annie looked out the window. The sky was cloudy. The treehouse had landed in a small grove of trees near a creek. Beyond the trees was a wide open prairie. Green grass and wildflowers swayed in a chilly wind. In the distance a train puffed across the prairie. Sparks of fire came out of its smokestack. Huge clouds of black smoke billowed into the gray sky. Wow, said Jack. He looked at the picture of the train in their book and read. After the Civil War, the U .S. government built railroads to link the eastern and western parts of the country. By the 1870s, steam engines carried people across the Kansas prairie.

他和安妮望向窗外。 天空阴沉沉的，布满了云朵。 树屋落在了小溪边的一小片树林里。 树林的另一边是广阔无边的大草原。 青草和野花在凉飕飕的风里轻轻摇晃。 远处有一列火车噗噗地开过草原。 火星从它的烟囱里冒出来。 大团大团的黑烟滚滚涌进灰蒙蒙的天空里。 哇哦，杰克惊叹道。 他看着书里火车的图片，读了起来。 南北战争结束后，美国政府修建了铁路 用来连接国家的东部和西部地区。 到19世纪70年代，蒸汽火车就能载着人们穿过堪萨斯草原了。

Jack pulled out his notebook and wrote, 1870s, trains across Kansas. Let's get going, said Annie. We have to find that special riding from Oregon. She started down the ladder. Jack packed his things in his leather bag and climbed down after her. When he stepped onto the ground, Jack looked toward the west. The train was gone. Only a thin trail of smoke floated across the sky. That train was cool, said Jack. Yeah, and so is that, said Annie. She pointed in the other direction. Far away, in the distance, a line of covered wagons rolled through the rippling grass. Their white coverings billowed in the breeze.

杰克掏出他的笔记本，写道： 19世纪70年代，火车通行堪萨斯。 我们走吧，安妮说。 我们得找到那份来自俄勒冈的特殊文字。 她开始顺着梯子往下爬。 杰克把东西都塞进皮包里，跟在她后面爬了下去。 杰克双脚刚落地，就朝西边望过去。 火车已经不见了。 只剩一道细细的烟痕飘在天空中。 那列火车好酷啊，杰克说。 是啊，那个也很酷哦，安妮说。 她指向了另一个方向。 远远的，在天际那头， 一列带篷的马车正慢慢驶过起伏的草浪。 它们白色的篷布在微风里鼓鼓地飘动着。

Jack pulled out the research book. He found a picture of the wagon train. He read aloud. Wagons were the most common way for families to travel west. They could carry clothes, tools, food, and water. A line of wagons was called a wagon train. The white cloth coverings over the wagons also made them look like sailing ships or schooners. For this reason, covered wagons were sometimes called prairie schooners.

杰克掏出了那本资料书。 他找到了一张马车队的图片。 他大声读了出来。 马车是当时举家往西迁徙最常用的出行方式。 马车能装衣服、工具、食物还有水。 一长串连在一起的马车就叫做马车队。 马车上盖着的白色篷布 让它们看起来就像航行的纵帆船。 因为这个原因，带篷的马车有时候 会被叫做草原纵帆船。

Jack looked at the wagons again. They did look like ships sailing across a rippling green sea.

杰克又看了看那些马车，它们真的很像航行在起伏绿海上的船只呀。

He wrote in his notebook, covered wagons equal prairie schooners. Let's get a closer look, said Annie. She took off across the grass. Jack put away his things and ran after her. As they ran, the wind began to blow harder. The clouds overhead grew darker. Wait, wait, Jack finally called to Annie. We'll never catch up to it. They both stopped running. Panting, they watched the wagon train vanish over the horizon. Jack took a deep breath. What now? He said. They looked around. All Jack could see was the distant grove of trees with the treehouse.

他在笔记本里写道：带篷马车=草原纵帆船。 我们凑近点看看吧，安妮说。 她撒开腿就往草地上跑。 杰克把东西收好，跟在她后面追了过去。 他们跑着跑着，风刮得越来越大了。 头顶的云也变得越来越黑了。 等等，等一下！杰克终于冲安妮大喊道。 我们肯定追不上它的。 他俩都停下了脚步。 他们喘着粗气，看着马车队消失在了地平线的那头。 杰克深吸了一口气。 现在怎么办？ 他开口问道。 他们环顾四周。 杰克能看见的只有远处那片长着树屋的小树林。