文章原文：
Editorsof newspapers and magazines often go to extremes to provide their readers withunimportant facts and statistics. Last year a journalist had been instructed bya well-known magazine to write an article on the president's palace in a newAfrican republic. When the article arrived, the editor read the first sentenceand then refused to publish it. The article began: 'Hundreds of steps lead tothe high wall which surrounds the president's palace.' The editor at once sentthe journalist a telegram instructing him to find out the exact number of stepsand the height of the wall.
Thejournalist immediately set out to obtain these important facts, but he took along time to send them. Meanwhile, the editor was getting impatient, for themagazine would soon go to press. He sent the journalist two more faxes, butreceived no reply. He sent yet another fax informing the journalist that if hedid not reply soon he would be fired. When the journalist again failed toreply, the editor reluctantly published the article as it had originally beenwritten. A week later, the editor at last received a telegram from thejournalist. Not only had the poor man been arrested, but he had been sent toprison as well. However, he had at last been allowed to send a fax in which heinformed the editor that he had been arrested while counting the 1,084 stepsleading to the fifteen-foot wall which surrounded the president's palace.
精读笔记：
1.Editorsof newspapers and magazines often go to extremes to provide their readers withunimportant facts and statistics.
(1)Editor:aperson who corrects or changes pieces of text or films before they are printedor shown, or a person who is in charge of a newspaper or magazine.
(2)goto extremes:to do something much more than is usual or reasonable.
(3)unimportant:not
important，是由否定前缀un-加上important构成。
例句：There'sno point in arguing over something so unimportant.
(4)statistics:thenumerical facts or data themselves.
(5)provide
sb with sth: 向某人提供某物
例句：Customers,suppliers, and contractors will be provided with the specialist training theyneed to work on the project.
2.Lastyear a journalist had been instructed by a well-known magazine to write anarticle on the president's palace in a new African republic.
(1)journalist:aperson who writes news stories or articles for a newspaper or magazine orbroadcasts them on radio or television.
(2)instruct:to order or tell someone to do
something, especially in a formalway.
例句：The police have
been instructed not to let anyone leave the area.
(3)president:(thetitle given to) the person who has the highest political position in a countrythat is a republic and who, in some of these countries, is the leader of thegovernment.
例句：Severalpeople are considering running for president, but none have announced theircandidacy yet.
此外，还有a
person who has the highest position in a company or organization的含义。
例句：Thecompany’s board of directors will name a new president at its next meeting.
(4)republic:A state in which supreme power is held by the peopleand their elected representatives, and which has an elected or nominatedpresident rather than a monarch.
(5)writeon (someone or something):To create a narrative about or a detailed descriptionof someone or something in a piece of writing.
例句：Myeditor asked me to write on a local politician for my next article.
3.Hundredsof steps lead to the high wall which surrounds the president's palace.
(1)leadto:be a route or means of
access to a particular place or in a particular direction，此外还有to cause something to happen or cause someone to do something的含义，例如：A degree in English could lead to a career injournalism.
(2)surround:to be aroundsomething on all sides.
例句：Snow-cappedmountains surround the city.
(3)palace:alarge house that is the official home of a king, queen, or other person of highsocial rank.
4.Theeditor at once sent the journalist a telegram instructing him to find out theexact number of steps and the height of the wall.
(1)telegram:(especiallyin the past) a piece of paper with a message sent by telegraph.
(2)height:thedistance from the bottom to the top of someone or something standing upright.
5.Thejournalist immediately set out to obtain these important facts, but he took along time to send them.
setout:to start an activity with
a particular aim.
例句：They setouttodiscover a cure for cancer.
6.Meanwhile,the editor was getting impatient, for the magazine would soon go to press.
impatient:easily
annoyed by someone's mistakes or because you have to wait，是否定前缀im-加上patient构成的。
7.Hesent yet another fax informing the journalist that if he did not reply soon hewould be fired.
fire:这个词通常的含义是”火、火苗”（a
state, process, or instance of combustion in which fuel or other material is
ignited and combined with oxygen, giving off light, heat, and flame），但是在这儿的意思是to order someone
to give up his or her job，例句：She was fired for stealing from
her employer.
此外，这个词还有the
act of shooting bullets or other explosives from a weapon的意思，例句：The soldiers beganfiring.
8.When the journalist again failed toreply, the editor reluctantly published the article as it had originally beenwritten.
(1)failedto:to not succeed in what you are trying to achieve or are expected to do.
(2)reluctantly:ina way that shows that you are not willing to do something and are thereforeslow to do it.
例句：Shereluctantly agreed to step down as managing director.
(3)originally:inthe earliest form of something, or in the form that existed at the beginning.
9.Not only had the poor man beenarrested, but he had been sent to prison as well.
Not
only …, but also/but…as well：不仅…而且…
例句：Thecar not only is economical but also feels good to drive.