新概念英语第三册 Lessonl A puma at large Pumas are large, cat-like ani mals which are found in America. When reports came into London Zoo that a wild puma had bee n spotted forty-five miles south of London, they were not take n seriously. However, as the evide nee bega n to accumulate, experts from the Zoo felt obliged to investigate, for the descriptions given by people who claimed to have seen the puma were extraord inarily similar. The hunt for the puma bega n in a small village where a woma n picki ng blackberries saw 'a large cat' only five yards away from her. It immediately ran away whe n she saw it, and experts con firmed that a puma will n ot attack a huma n being uni ess it is corn ered （）.The search proved difficult, for the puma was ofte n observed at one place in the morning and at ano ther place twenty miles away in the evening. Wherever it wen t, it left beh ind it a trail of dead deer and small ani mals like rabbits. Paw prints were see n in a nu mber of places and puma fur was found cli nging to bushes. Several people compla ined of 'cat-like no ises' at ni ght and a bus in essma n on a fish ing trip saw the puma up a tree. The experts were now fully convinced that the animal was a puma, but where had it come from ? As no pumas had been reported missing from any zoo in the country, this one must have been in the possession of a private collector and somehow man aged to escape. The hunt went on for several weeks, but the puma was not caught. It is disturb ing to think that a dan gerous wild ani mal is still at large in the quiet coun tryside. 美洲狮是一种体形似猫的大动物，产于美洲。当伦敦动物园接到报告说，在伦敦以南 45英里处发现一只美洲狮时，这些报告并没 有受到重视。可是，随着证据越来越多，动物园的专家们感到有必要进行一番调查，因为凡是声称见到过美洲狮的人们所描述的情 况竟是出奇地相似。 搜寻美洲狮的工作是从一座小村庄开始的。那里的一位妇女在采摘黑莓时的看见 一只大猫”，离她仅5码远，她刚看见它，它就立 刻逃走了。专家证实，美洲狮非被逼得走投无路，是决不会伤人的。事实上搜寻工作很困难，因为常常是早晨在甲地发现那只美洲 狮，晚上却在20英里外的乙地发现它的踪迹。无论它走哪儿，一路上总会留下一串死鹿及死兔子之类的小动物，在许多地方看见 爪印，灌木丛中发现了粘在上面的美洲狮毛。有人抱怨说夜里听见 像猫一样的叫声”；一位商人去钓鱼，看见那只美洲狮在树上。 专家们如今已经完全肯定那只动物就是美洲狮， 但它是从哪儿来的呢？由于全国动物园没有一
