6.Vile and hardened as the men were，this sight of innocence almost melted them.But the thought of the reward which they were to receive hardened them a gain.With ha sty and violent movements they rolled the bed-clothes over the mouths of the sleeping boys，and heaped the pillows on the top，pressing them down with all their might to stop the breath of their poorTHE PRINCES IN THE TOWER.
little victims.At first there were some struggles；but the strength of two men soon overpowered the weak and slender limbs，which grew still as murder did its dreadful work.
7.Tyrrel then came in to see and touch the bodies，which were still warm.Having stripped the dead boys naked，the murderers dug a deep hole at the foot of the staircase，flung them in，and piled over them a great heap of stones.
8.Thus runs the story of a crime which，if ever committed，blackens one of the darkest pages in the history of England.But we cannot be certain that this account is true.It was written by a statesman and historian named Sir Thomas More，who rose to greatness under the first and second Tudor Kings，and who would probably take the view of Richard’s crimes most pleasing to them.
中文阅读
1.在伦敦塔的内院里有一道宽大但略微低矮的拱门，拱门上面有一个方形的小窗户，外面安装着栅栏，中间一根石柱将窗户分成左右两部分。里面是一间小屋，一件改变英国历史的重大血案就发生在这间屋里。这件血案的影响巨大而深远，从此也让伦敦塔背上了“血塔”的污名。
2.据说理查德三世在巡游全国的过程中来到格罗斯特城后，他让心腹约翰·格林给当时伦敦塔的主管人罗伯特·布拉肯伯里带去了一封信，在信中以圣旨的名义要求布拉肯伯里立即除掉正关押在塔中的两位小王子：一个是年幼的爱德华五世国王，一个是他弟弟约克公爵理查德。
3.布拉肯伯里害怕执行如此伤天害理的命令，于是拒绝了这项罪恶行径，让格林打道回府，并把这个消息告知理查德。当时理查德已经巡游至沃里克，得知布拉肯伯里居然如此胆小怕事，于是再次派出铁石心肠的骑兵总长詹姆士·泰尼尔，让他向布拉肯伯里传达书面命令，让其将塔楼的钥匙交给泰尼尔，并对塔楼实施24小时全程看守。
4.这样的邪恶手段意味着什么，布拉肯伯里当然心知肚明，但他别无选择，只得照办。但是狡猾的泰尼尔也不想自己亲自动手，于是雇佣了两个人参与实施，一个是职业杀手迈尔斯·弗雷斯特，另一个是位粗暴的大个子马夫约翰·戴顿。泰尼尔要求二人在晚上进入小王子们睡觉的卧室实施计划。
5.到了半夜，他俩偷偷摸摸地爬上石梯进入了房间，看见这两个男孩--“雪白的小手臂相互搂着；嘴唇就像花枝上的四朵红玫瑰，在如此美妙宁静的夏夜相互亲吻着，枕头旁边还放着一本祷告书。”
6.这样楚楚动人的画面并没有打动这两个恶毒而残忍的人，而下手之后可以邀功请赏的念头却让他们激动不已。他俩立即粗暴地将被子蒙在熟睡中的小王子们的嘴上，然后再把枕头放在上面，用尽他们全身力气让这两个可怜而无辜的孩子无法呼吸。起初王子们也奋力挣扎，但这两个恶棍的力量很快就战胜了他们。不一会儿小王子们便停止了呼吸，罪恶告成。
7.泰尼尔走进房间看了看，摸了一下王子们的身体，体温尚存。接下来他们剥光这两个小男孩的衣服，在石梯下面挖了两个深坑，把小王子们放进去，然后再上面放上石块，堆成了大石堆。
8.以上就是这个罪恶的故事的全部过程，这是英格兰历史上最为黑暗的一页。不过我们还不能确定这一定是真实的，因为记载这个事件的是一位名叫托马斯·莫尔的政治家与史学家，他在都铎王朝前两个国王执政期间名声权势炙手可热，享尽荣华富贵，因此也有可能对理查德的罪恶添油加醋，以此取悦国王。
82
THE BATTLE OF BOSWORTH FIELD
博斯沃思原野之战
branded，marked，in a bad sense.
champion，hero.
chivalry，knighthood.cunningly，artfully；craftily.deformity，defect；twist.encounter，combat；struggle.
exile，a banished person.favourite，best liked.generally，commonly.indicate，show.intervening，lying between.mountaineers，highlanders.
1.The battle which brought to a close the famous War of the Roses，was fought on Redmore Plain，about a mile to the south of Market-Bosworth，in Leicestershire.From this town it received the name by which it is most generally called-the Battle of Bosworth Field.
2.The leaders of the war were Richard Plantagenet，a little，sharp-facedman，with one shoulder somewhat higher than the other，from which slight deformity he was branded by his enemies with the name of Crookback；and Henry Tudor，a grayeyed，cautious man，with long yellow hair.The former represented the House of York；the latter，the House of Lancaster.
3.Sailing from France to Milford Haven，in Wales，Henry，Earl of Richmond，who had long been an exile from England，brought with him about 2，000men.For the purpose of pleasing the Welsh，he took as his banner the Red Dragon，which formed their ancient standard.Marching in a north-easterly direction through Wales，Richmond was gladdened by seeing the mountaineers gatheringaround him，as he moved on with swift and stealthy step.Richard gathered a faithless army in Nottinghamshire，but he soon took up his final position on the hill-encircled plain near Bosworth.
4.Richard‘s heart did not utterly fail him until，mounted on “White Surrey，”
his favourite charger，he was passing in front of his army，and saw the well-known banner of Lord Stanley joining the ranks of Richmond with 3，000men.He knew then that all chance of winning the game，which he had been playing so long and so cunningly，was lost，and he at once resolved to sell his life as dearly as he could.He wore a golden crown on his helmet；and every soldier inboth armies knew who it was that went galloping on a white horse across the intervening space，screaming “Treason！”and levelling his lance at the band of captains who stood around Henry Tudor.
5.The combat was brief and brilliant.Richard drove the point of his lance through the standardbearer of the Lancastrian champion，cut down another knight with a sudden blow of his sword，and was almost within reach of his hated rival，when he was pulled from his horse and pierced with many blades.His crown，which was found in a hawthorn bush close to the scene of this encounter，was picked up by Lord Stanley，who placed it on the head of Henry.
6.The Battle of Bosworth Field is a remarkable turning-point in English history，not only because on that bloody plain fell the last of the line of French Kings which came over with the Conqueror from Normandy，but more especially because it marks the end of what may be called the Period of Chivalry m our national story.We have as yet seen nothing to indicate thatthe time was coming when Britain would become the mistress of the ocean，gathering cargoes into her ships on every shore，and scattering the navies of her enemies in every sea.
中文阅读
1.玫瑰战争的最后一场战役发生在雷德莫尔平原，距离莱斯特郡的博斯沃思市区南部仅一英里之遥。就是因为这个城镇的名字，所以这样战役又被人们称为博斯沃思原野之战。
2.交战双方头领之一是金雀花的王族理查德，他个子较小，下颌微尖，两个肩膀一边高一边低，因此被他的敌军轻蔑地称为“驼背王”；另一方的头领则是亨利·都铎，此人长着一双灰色的眼眸，性格稳重，留着一头长长的黄发。前者代表约克家族，后者代表兰开斯特家族。