【原】United States Secret Service（July 5：美国历史上的今天）

内容提要：美国特勤局特工的工作内容介绍。

The United States Secret Service was formed on July 5, 1865. It is a part of the U.S. government. People who work for the Secret Service are called Special Agents特工. They have two kinds of duties: protection and investigation侦察. 

Protecting the President of the United States is the most important job of the Secret Service. Special Agents go wherever he goes. They must keep a sharp lookout警戒 for any kind of danger. They must be willing to risk their own lives to save the life of the President. Special Agents also protect the President's family, the Vice President and his family, and other important government officials. 

The Secret Service also investigates crimes involving money. This includes counterfeiting伪造 money, credit card fraud (欺诈）, false checks, and banking crimes. 

To become a Special Agent, persons must be U.S. citizens. They must be between 21 and 37 when hired. They have to have a four-Year college degree or three years' experience in law enforcement (执法）. Agents must have 20/20 vision and be in excellent health and physical condition. Before being hired, they must pass a polygraph (测谎）test, medical exam, and drug screening筛查. They must also pass written exams and a personal interview. 

Special Agents do not keep the same job forever. From time to time, they switch调班 between the protection and investigation duties. Agents may be sent to duty stations anywhere in the United States. They may have to travel a lot. 

Agents do not talk about their work with outsiders. It is, after all, secret service.

本文内容选自上海外语教育出版社引进出版的《听读美国小故事》第7册（7月）。如需购买，可到当当、亚马逊、京东等网上书城去看看。