The 132 -room mansion is furnished with antiques, portraits of the presidents, and other art work. The President’s Oval Office7 and staff offices are on the ground floor. The state reception rooms are on the first floor. The second and third floors are where the president and his family live.

　　The job of President is very demanding. Every minute of every day is planned. The President may start with a breakfast meeting with his Cabinet, move on to the East Room for a press conference, meet with a foreign ambassador in the Blue Room, then end the day at a dinner in the State Dining Room.

　　The President and his family share their home with the public every morning. Long lines stretch for blocks. They wait for a chance to see the nation’s most popular house, and possibly a glimpse of the President.

　　閱讀自測

　　Ⅰ. Fill in the blanks with proper prepositions:

　　1. He was known_______ a great novelist.

　　2. My mother is known_______ her cooking.

　　3. He’s known_______ everyone as a good actor.

　　Ⅱ. Answer the following questions:

　　1. What happened to the White House during the War of 1812 ?

　　2. How is the White House furnished?

　　參考答案

　　Ⅰ. 1. as 2 . for 3. to

　　Ⅱ. 1. It was burned by the British. 2. It’s furnished with antiques, portraits of the presidents, and other artwork.

　　參考譯文

　　美國歷史的見證———白宮

　　除 喬治· 華盛頓以外, 白宮是歷任美國總統的家。阿比蓋爾· 亞當斯是第一位搬進這 幢位于賓夕法尼亞林蔭道的官邸的美國“ 第一夫人”。住進白宮以后, 她常常將家人洗好 的衣物掛在當時還未建好的東廳里。白宮在1812 年英美戰爭期間曾被英軍燒毀。其后不 久, 這所房子得以重建, 而且漆成了白色, 從此被冠以雅號“ 白宮”

　　白宮既是公眾場所, 又是總統自己的家。隨著美國總統的交替更迭, 白宮的特點也隨 之改變。1848 年, 白宮安裝了煤氣照明系統, 但是30 年后, 白宮才有了自己的浴室。到 1950 年的時候, 白宮已不適于居住, 成為危樓。在白宮進行修葺的時候, 杜魯門總統一家 只好搬了出去。杰奎琳· 肯尼迪想出了裝修白宮的方案, 如今白宮仍然保留著那時的樣 子。

　　白宮有132 個房間, 房間里配有古董、歷屆總統的肖像以及其他藝術品。總統的橢圓 形辦公室和工作人員的辦公室在一樓, 國家會客室在二樓, 而三樓和四樓則是總統和他的 家人住的地方。

　　總統的工作非常具有挑戰性, 工作表每天都排得滿滿的。總統每天早上會先同內閣開 個早餐會, 然后到東廳參加記者招待會, 在藍廳接見一位外國大使, 最后到國宴廳吃晚飯, 結束一整天的工作。

　　總統及家人每天上午同美國公眾共同享有他們的家。白宮外長長的隊伍排了好幾個 街區。他們等著一睹美國最受歡迎的房子, 很可能還能有幸看到美國總統。