课文原文

Lesson 49 The Jonker Diamond
第49课杨克钻石
Jacobus Jonker was a diamond prospector in South Africa. He never really had much luck, and the longer he prospected, the less he believed in ever making his fortune. Imagine his feelings, then, when he found one of the biggest diamonds in the world - right in his own back yard! There had been a heavy rainstorm, and the rains had washed away part of a hillside behind his house. And in the middle of the mud sat a huge diamond. Jonker sold the stone to a diamond dealer for a pretty penny - over three hundred thousand dollars! In New York, the diamond was resold - this time for almost eight hundred thousand dollars!
雅克布·杨克是南非的一位钻石勘探家。他的运气一直都不好。勘探的时间越长，他越不相信自己有一天会发财。试想一下当他就在自家后院发现世界上最大的钻石之一时的感受！一场暴风雨冲走了他屋后的一部分山坡。一颗硕大的钻石就出现在泥土中。杨克把钻石卖给了一位钻石商人，他卖了个好价钱，30多万美元！这颗钻石在纽约被再次出售，售价几乎达到了80万美元！
The true value of a diamond is never known until it has been cut. Once cut successfully, its value can increase a thousand times. It's easy to understand why the owner of the Jonker diamond went to the best diamond cutter he knew. Kaplan, the cutter, studied the diamond for twelve whole months. When he felt he was ready to start work, he discovered a flaw. He had to begin his calculations all over again - otherwise he might have destroyed the stone. Kaplan continued to study the stone; six more months passed. Finally, Kaplan said to the owner, "I'm ready to start my work. There will be one exquisite diamond that will be comparable to any in the world, and eleven small diamonds of first-class quality."
一颗钻石在切割前是无法知道其真正价值的。一旦切割成功，钻石的价值就会增加一千倍。这就不难理解为什么这块杨克钻石的主人要去找他所知的最好的钻石切割师。切割师名叫卡普兰，他花了整整12个月来仔细研究这颗钻石。正当他感到可以开始工作的时候，他发现了一个瑕疵。他不得不重新开始计算，否则可能会毁掉钻石。卡普兰继续研究这块钻石。又过了6个月。卡普兰终于对钻石的主人说：“我可以开始工作了，完成之后你会看到一颗堪与世界上任何钻石相媲美的精美钻石和十一颗质量上乘的小钻石。”
Kaplan waited a few more days until he felt he was in the best physical and mental condition possible. One mistake could lead to the total destruction of the stone. He picked up his tools and held his breath as he made the first blow. The diamond split exactly as he had promised.
卡普兰又等了几天，直到他感觉自己处于最好的身体和精神状态。稍有差池就将完全毁掉这颗钻石。他操起工具，屏住呼吸，敲下了第一锤。钻石裂开了，正像他承诺的那样。

课后单词

1.prospector 探勘者；采矿者

A prospector is someone who explore and find out where mineral resources exist.

勘探者就是那些寻找矿产资源的人。

2.exquisite 精致的；优美的

In conventional Chinese way, the exquisite dress belongs to the rich.

在传统观念中，中国的富人都是衣着考究的。