新概念入门第四册 41 PART A
[audio]http://sound.yywz123.com/tingbbs/xgnrm/xgnrmdsic/41a.mp3[/audio]Lesson 41 Training elephants
Two main techniques have been used for training elephants, which we may call respectively the tough and the gentle. The former method simply consists of setting an elephant to work and beating him until he does what is expected of him. (1)_______________________. The gentle method requires more patience in the early stages, but produces a cheerful, good-tempered elephant who will give many years of loyal service. The first essential in elephant training is to assign to the animal a single mahout who will be entirely responsible for the job. Elephants like to have one master just as dogs do, and are capable of a considerable degree of personal affection. There are even stories of half-trained elephant calves who have refused to feed and pined to death when by some unavoidable circumstance they have been deprived of their own trainer. (2)_______________________. The most economical age to capture an elephant for training is between fifteen and twenty years, for it is then almost ready to undertake heavy work and can begin to earn its keep straight away. But animals of this age do not easily become subservient to man, and a very firm hand must be employed in the early stages. The captive elephant, still roped to a tree,plunges and screams every time a man approaches, and for several days will probably refuse all food through anger and fear.
**** Hidden Message ***** Apart from any moral considerations, this is a stupid method of training. For it produces a resentful animal who at the later stage may well turn man-killer.
Such extreme cases must probably be taken with the grain of salt, but they do underline the general principle that the relationship between elephant and mahout is the key to successful training. 1 apart from many considerations, this is a stupid method of training, for it produces the recentful animal who at later states may well turn men-killer
2 such extreme ... must probably be taken with grain sort .but they do underline the general principle that the relationship between elephant and mahout is the key to successful training
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