每日英语听力

当前播放

03 A trial in London--1780

Chapter 3 A trial in London1780 <br>

Tellson's Bank in the City of London was an old, dark, and ugly building. It smelt of dust and old papers, and the people who worked there all seemed old and dusty, too.

Outside the building sat Jerry Cruncher, who carried messages for people in the bank. One morning in March 1780, Jerry had to go to the Old Bailey to collect an important message from Mr Lorry.

Trials at the Old Bailey were usually for very dangerous criminals, and the prisoner that morning was a young man of about twentyfive, well dressed and quite calm. 'What's he done? ' Jerry asked the doorman quietly.

'He's a spy! A French spy! ' the doorman told him. 'He travels from England to France and tells the French King secret information about our English army.'

'What'll happen if he's guilty? ' asked Jerry. 'Oh, he'll have to die, no question of that, ' replied the doorman enthusiastically. 'They'll hang him.'

'What's his name? ' 'Darnay, Charles Darnay. Not an English name, is it? '

While Jerry waited, he looked around at the crowd inside the Old Bailey and noticed a young lady of about twenty years, and her father, a gentleman with very white hair. The young lady seemed very sad when she looked at the prisoner, and held herself close to her father.

Then the trial began, and the first person who spoke against Charles Darnay was called John Barsad. He was an honest man, he said, and proud to be an Englishman.

Yes, he was, or had been, a friend of the prisoner's. And in the prisoner's pockets he had seen important plans and lists about the English armies.

下载全新《每日英语听力》客户端,查看完整内容
点击播放