2021年经济学人 反全球化当思《谷物法》(1)

Finance & economics

财经板块

Corn Laws scythed¹, 175 years on

《谷物法》被收割后，175年过去了

The appeal of Peel and repeal²

皮尔的上诉和废除

What the end of Britain's Corn Laws in 1846 says about free trade today

1846年英国《谷物法》的废除对今天的自由贸易有什么启发

About half of most British people's income in the 1830s and 1840s was spent on food.

在19世纪30年代和40年代，大多数英国人大约有一半的收入花在食物上。

Hunger was commonplace, occasionally sparking riots.

饥饿是家常便饭，偶尔还会引发骚乱。

Contributing to the high cost were tariffs³ on imported grain, called the Corn Laws, which soared as high as 80%.

对进口谷物征收的关税，也就是所谓的《谷物法》，导致了高昂的成本，关税飙升了80%。

The system enriched aristocratic landowners when most Britons were not allowed to serve in Parliament or vote.

当大多数英国人不被允许在议会任职或投票时，这种制度使贵族地主们富裕起来。

Facing public anger, a famine in Ireland and fears of starvation in Britain, the prime minister, Robert Peel, introduced legislation to end the tariffs.

面对公众的愤怒、爱尔兰的饥荒和英国对饥饿的恐惧，总理罗伯特·皮尔提出了终止关税的立法。

On June 25th 1846 the House of Lords repealed⁴ the Corn Laws, following a House of Commons vote a month earlier.

1846年6月25日上议院废除了《谷物法》，此前一个月下议院进行了投票。

It marked a major moment in the history of open economies. How it was achieved offers lessons to those defending the global trading system today.

这是开放经济体历史上的一个重要时刻，它的实现方式为今天捍卫全球贸易体系的人提供了教训。

The first lesson is to organise⁵ a broad coalition⁶ and creatively use the media.

第一个教训是，组织广泛的联盟，创造性地利用媒体。

It was not simply the poor who had an interest in lower grain prices. A new generation of prosperous manufacturers and moralminded aristocrats⁷ joined forces.

不仅是穷人对较低的粮食价格感兴趣，新一代繁荣的制造商和有道德的贵族也联合到了一起。

They established what might be one of the first lobbying groups, the Anti-Corn Law League, which hosted rallies, financed research and supported political candidates. Books and pamphlets sprang up to make the case.

他们建立了反谷物法联盟，这可能是最早的游说团体之一。该联盟主办集会，资助研究，并支持政治候选人，书籍和小册子也纷纷涌现。

The Economist⁸ itself was founded in 1843 to campaign for the abolition⁹ of the Corn Laws and for free trade.

《经济学人》本身成立于1843年，其宗旨是为废除《谷物法》和自由贸易而战。

1 scythed   

v.（长柄）大镰刀( scythe的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• the scent of newly scythed grass 新割下的草散发的清香
• He's scythed half the orchard. 他已经将半个果园的草割除。 来自辞典例句

2 repeal   

n.废止，撤消；v.废止，撤消

参考例句：

• He plans to repeal a number of current policies.他计划废除一些当前的政策。
• He has made out a strong case for the repeal of the law.他提出强有力的理由，赞成废除该法令。

3 tariffs   

关税制度； 关税( tariff的名词复数 )； 关税表； （旅馆或饭店等的）收费表； 量刑标准

参考例句：

• British industry was sheltered from foreign competition by protective tariffs. 保护性关税使英国工业免受国际竞争影响。
• The new tariffs have put a stranglehold on trade. 新的关税制对开展贸易极为不利。

4 repealed   

撤销，废除( repeal的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The Labour Party repealed the Act. 工党废除了那项法令。
• The legislature repealed the unpopular Rent Act. 立法机关废除了不得人心的租借法案。

5 organise   

vt.组织，安排，筹办

参考例句：

• He has the ability to organise.他很有组织才能。
• It's my job to organise all the ceremonial events.由我来组织所有的仪式。

6 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

7 aristocrats   

n.贵族( aristocrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Many aristocrats were killed in the French Revolution. 许多贵族在法国大革命中被处死。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• To the Guillotine all aristocrats! 把全部贵族都送上断头台！ 来自英汉文学 - 双城记

8 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

9 abolition   

n.废除，取消

参考例句：

• They declared for the abolition of slavery.他们声明赞成废除奴隶制度。
• The abolition of the monarchy was part of their price.废除君主制是他们的其中一部分条件。