〜ヒント〜
６月９日出題分
あまりなじみの無い単語・熟語をちょっと解説。
Seven Years in Tibet :
Escape-3At the appointed time, we met in a little hut in the neighborhood of one of the least closely watched wire corridors. Here makeup experts from the camp transformed us in a trice into Indians. Von Have and Magener got English officers' uniforms. We "Indians" had our heads shaved and put on turbans. Serious as the situation was, we could not help laughing when we looked at one another. We looked like masqueraders bound for a carnival. Two of us carried a ladder, which had been convoyed the night before to an unguarded spot in the wire fencing. We had also wangled a long roll of barbed wire and hung it on a post. Our belongings were stowed away under our white robes and in bundles, which did not look odd as Indians always carry things around with them. Our two "British officers" behaved very realistically. They carried rolls of blueprints under their arms and swung their swagger canes. We had already made a breach in the fence through which we now slipped one after another into the unguarded passage that separated the different sections of the camp. From here it was about three hundred yards to the main gate. We attracted no attention and stopped only once, when the sergeant major rode by the main gate on his bicycle. Our "officers" chose that moment to inspect the wire closely. After that we passed out through the gate without causing the guards to bat an eyelid. It was comforting to see them saluting smartly, and obviously suspicious of nobody. Our seventh man, Sattler, who had left his hut rather late, arrived after us. His face was black and he was swinging a tar pot energetically. The sentries let him through, and he caught up with us only outside the gate.
appointed：指定された
hut：小屋
the least closely watched：最も監視が手薄な
wire corridors：鉄条網間の通路（こちらをご覧ください）
transformed：変身させる
in a trice：瞬く間に
Von Have・Magener：人名
got：身に着けた
shave：剃る
put on：被る
masquerader：仮装舞踏会の参加者
bound for 〜：〜に向かう
convoy：運ぶ
wangle：うまく手に入れる
hung：つるしておく
post：柱
belonging：所持品
stowed away：しまっておいた
bundle：包み
carry 〜 with：〜を携えて
them：Indians
behave：ふるまう
realistically：本物そっくりに
blueprint：青写真、設計図
swagger cane：短めのステッキ
breach：突破口
passage：通路
sergeant major：特務曹長
inspect：調べる
passed out：出て行った
causing the guards to bat an eyelid：見張りの注意を引く
comforting：気持ちよい
them：the guardsを指します
smartly：直立不動の姿勢で
Sattler：人名
rather：幾分
tar：タール（顔を黒く塗るためのものだと思います）
energetically：元気良く
caught up with：追いついた
only：やっと、なんとか、という意味だと思います