美國歷任總統逸聞趣事
Some amazing facts about the nation chief executives1.
When electing Presidents of the United States, Americans haven"t been partial to one type of man.2 Commanders in Chief of all kinds, tall and short, handsome and homely, well-educated and barely schooled, scoundrel3 and saint ?were sent to Washington to serve. Even the most obscure of the bunch(does anyone really know anything about Franklin Pierce4?)has left his mark.
The following questions delve behind the formal portraits of the nation"s Presidents to reveal their idiosyncrasies, oddities and ironies.5 The answers may challenge your perceptions of the men and the highest office in land they held.
Q: Which President was also a King?
A: Gerald Ford6. Giving birth to him in 1913 by the name of Leslie L. King, Jr., his mother divorced and remarried. His stepfather informally adopted him, renaming him Gerald R. Ford.
Q: Which President"s son was personally affected by three Presidential assassinations7?
A: Abraham Lincoln"s8 oldest son, Robert Todd, was at his father"s side after the 16th President was assassinated at Ford"s Theatre in 1865. Sixteen years
later he was at the Washington rail depot9 where the 20th President, James Garfield10, was shot killed in 1881. In 1901 Lincoln was in Buffalo at the Pan-American Exposition11, where 25th President William McKinley12 was assassinated. Thereafter Lincoln avoided functions where a President was present.13
Q: Which President, while living in the White House, regularly skinny-dipped in the Potomac River14?
A: Between 1825 and 1829 there was a "moon" on the Potomac around 5 a.m., when John Q. Adams stripped down and took his morning constitutional.15
Q: Who were the largest, smallest and tallest Presidents?
A: Elected in 1909, the six-foot William Howard Taft16 weighed in at 335 pounds. Once, Chauncey Depew, a renowned turn-of-the-century orator,17 pointed to Taft"s massive stomach and asked, "What are you going to name the baby?" Taft replied: "If it"s a boy, he will be a junior18. If it"s a girl, I"ll name her Helen. But if, as I expect, it is only gas, I"ll name it Chaucey Depew. "
James Madison19 was the smallest leader: 5 feet, 4 inches, 100 pounds. Abraham Lincoln, 6 feet, 4 inches, was the tallest.
Q: Which President is credited with20 saving 77 lives?
A: Ronald Reagan, as lifeguard in his hometown of Dixon, Ill.21 But some of the rescues may have been young women faking it simply to get the handsome Reagan"s attention.22
Q: Which two Presidents died on the Fourth of July, 1826?
A: Thomas Jefferson and John Adams,23 50 years the day after The Declaration
of Independence.
Q: Which President was taught by his wife to read and write?
A: In 1827, in Greeneville, Tenn., Eliza McCardle, 16, married Andrew Johnson24, 18. He was a tailor who could barely read or write. Yet he was extremely ambitious. In the evening his wife taught him to read and write. And from there his political career took off, from mayor of his town to governor to Vice President and finally President.
Q: Who was the first President to play Little League25 baseball?
A: George W. Bush, for the Midland, Texas Cubs26 from 1954 to 1958. His coach, Frank Ittner, now 94 years old, recalls Bush as a fine defensive catcher who needed work on his hitting27.-
1. chief executive: 最高行政長官。美國總統同時也是美國最高行政長官及三軍總司令(即下文的commander in chief)。
2. 美國人在選舉總統時，並不偏好某一類人。
3. scoundrel: 無賴的，卑鄙的。
4. Franklin Pierce: 富蘭克林·皮爾斯, 美國第14任總統，1853-1857年在任，他在政治上沒有什麼建樹，也不像別的有些總統那樣富有個人魅力，故作者有括號中這一問。
5. delve: 探索，鑽研;idiosyncrasy/;!d!2#s!9kr2s!/：習性，癖好;oddity: 怪癖;irony: 具有諷刺意味的事，令人啼笑皆非的局面。
6. Gerald Ford: 傑拉爾德·福特,美國第38任總統，1974-1976年在任。
7. assassination: 暗殺，行刺。
8. Abraham Lincoln: 亞伯拉罕·林肯，美國第16任總統，1861-1865年在任。
9. depot:(美)火車站。
10. James Garfield: 詹姆斯·加菲爾德，美國第20任總統,就任總統僅4個月即在華盛頓車站遇刺。
11. Pan-American Exposition: 泛美博覽會。
12. William McKinley: 威廉·麥金萊，美國第25任總統，1897-1901年在任。
13. 此後林肯就避免在有總統在場的社會活動中出現。 function: 重大聚會，宴會。
14. skinny-dip: 裸泳; Potomac River: 波託馬克河，白宮就建在這條河邊上。
15. moon除了「月亮」之意外，俚語中還可以表示「光腚」，此處謔指裸泳者;John Q. Adams: 約翰·Q·亞當斯，美國第6任總統，1825-1829年在任;strip down: 脫去衣服;take a constitutional:(謔)進行健身散步，這裡指遊泳。
16. William Howard Taft：威廉·霍華德·塔夫脫，美國第27任總統，1909-1913年在任。
17. renowned: 著名的;orator: 演說家。
18. junior: 父子同名時，用於兒子姓名之後;本文中可理解為小威廉。
19. James Madison：詹姆斯·麥迪遜，美國第4任總統，1809-1817年在任。
20. credit sb. with: 把……歸功於某人。
21. Ronald Reagan：隆納·雷根，美國第40任總統，1981-1988年在任;lifeguard: 救生員;Dixon, Ill：伊利諾斯州的迪克森，裡根的故鄉。
22. 但是他救的人當中也許有一些年輕女性是佯裝落水以引起英俊瀟灑的裡根的注意。fake: 假裝，佯裝。
23. Thomas Jefferson：託馬斯·傑斐遜，美國第3任總統，1801-1809年在任;John Adams：約翰·亞當斯，美國第2任總統，1797-1801年在任。
24. Greeneville, Tenn: 田納西州的格林維爾;Andrew Johnson: 安德魯·詹森，美
國第17任總統，1865-1869年在任。
25. Little League: 少年棒球聯賽。
26. Cubs: 幼童軍。
27. 防守接球不錯，但擊球技術有待加強。
(實習編輯：夏根建)