VOA慢速英语2014 谢尔曼大行军点燃亚特兰大

 

Sherman Burns Atlanta in March to the Sea 谢尔曼大行军点燃亚特兰大

From VOA Learning¹ English, this is The Making of a Nation. I’m Kelly Jean Kelly.

And I’m Jonathan Evans.

By the autumn of 1864, it appeared the North would defeat the South in the American Civil War. The southern army needed men and supplies. There was little hope of getting enough of either to win.

The northern army was stronger and better-equipped. But it, too, had suffered. Hundreds of thousands of soldiers on both sides had been killed or wounded in more than three years of fighting.

Still, the war continued. In the East, Union armies slowly pushed toward² their main target -- the Confederate capital at Richmond, Virginia. In the West, Union armies slowly pushed deeper into Confederate territory.

Sherman had two goals. One was to capture³ Atlanta, Georgia. Atlanta was one of the few remaining industrial cities of the Confederacy. The other goal was to destroy the Confederate army led by General Joseph Johnston.

Sherman's army was stronger than Johnston's army. But Confederate forces usually had better defensive⁴ positions. Sherman refused to attack in such situations. Again and again, he simply ordered Union soldiers to march around the Confederates and forced them to withdraw⁵.

Confederate President Jefferson Davis began to believe that General Johnston was afraid to fight. He replaced Johnston with another general.

Within two days, that general attacked the Union Army. The attack began without enough planning. It was based on false information. It was a disaster.

In 11 days of fighting, one-third of the Confederate Army in Georgia was destroyed. The remaining force was too weak to defend Atlanta. The city fell.

After capturing⁶ Atlanta, General Sherman decided⁷ to march to Savannah, Georgia, a city on the Atlantic coast.

Before leaving, his men set fire to Atlanta. Almost the entire city was destroyed.

Sherman's army continued to burn towns all the way to Savannah, 350 kilometers away. The army cut a path of destruction⁸ more than 100 kilometers wide.

This campaign became known as Sherman's March to the Sea.

Sherman did not depend on Union supply lines to feed his troops. Instead, Union soldiers stopped at farms and villages. They took food and clothing. They took horses, cows and other animals.

They set fire to houses and burned crops. They destroyed stores and factories. They burned bridges and pulled up railroad⁹ tracks.

The army faced little opposition¹⁰. Small groups of Confederate horse soldiers struck at the edges of the army. But they did not do much damage.

On December 22, 1864, Sherman reached Savannah. He sent a message to President Abraham Lincoln in Washington, DC. Sherman said: "I beg to present you, as a Christmas holiday gift, the city of Savannah."

Sherman's campaign cut a great wound in the heart of the Confederacy. All that remained were the states of South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia.

His March to the Sea was a strategic¹¹ victory because it severely¹² reduced the South’s economic and transportation abilities. But -- just as important -- it damaged the spirit of the South.

Words in This Story

defensive – adj. defending or protecting someone or something from attack

disaster – n. something that has a very bad effect or result

supply lines – n. routes used to deliver food and equipment to soldiers during a war

present – v. to give something to someone in a formal way

1 learning   

n.学问，学识，学习；动词learn的现在分词

参考例句：

• When you are learning to ride a bicycle,you often fall off.初学骑自行车时，常会从车上掉下来。
• Learning languages isn't just a matter of remembering words.学习语言不仅仅是记些单词的事。

2 toward   

prep.对于，关于，接近，将近，向，朝

参考例句：

• Suddenly I saw a tall figure approaching toward the policeman.突然间我看到一个高大的身影朝警察靠近。
• Upon seeing her,I smiled and ran toward her. 看到她我笑了，并跑了过去。

3 capture   

vt.捕获，俘获；占领，夺得；n.抓住，捕获

参考例句：

• The company is out to capture the European market.这家公司希望占据欧洲市场。
• With the capture of the escaped tiger,everyone felt relieved.逃出来的老虎被捕获后，大家都松了一口气。

4 defensive   

adj.防御的；防卫的；防守的

参考例句：

• Their questions about the money put her on the defensive.他们问到钱的问题，使她警觉起来。
• The Government hastily organized defensive measures against the raids.政府急忙布置了防卫措施抵御空袭。

5 withdraw   

vt.收回，撤消，撤退；vi.缩回，退出，撤退

参考例句：

• I want to withdraw a statement I made earlier.我想收回我早些时候发表的一项声明。
• The general decided to withdraw his soldiers.那位将军决定撤军。

6 capturing   

俘获( capture的现在分词 )； 夺取； 夺得； 引起（注意、想像、兴趣）

参考例句：

• Since when is capturing a felon considered interference? 从何时起抓住重案犯被认为是妨碍组员行动？
• Capturing the enemy-held towns is the pivot of our plans. 夺取敌人控制的城镇，是我们计画的轴心。

7 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

8 destruction   

n.破坏，毁灭，消灭

参考例句：

• The enemy bombs caused widespread destruction.敌人的炸弹造成大面积的破坏。
• Overconfidence was his destruction.自负是他垮台的原因。

9 railroad   

n.铁路；vi.由铁路运输

参考例句：

• The railroad connects two cities,namely,New York and Chicago.这条铁路连接两个城市，即纽约与芝加哥。
• My brother is working on the railroad.我兄弟在铁路系统工作。

10 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

11 strategic   

adj.战略（上）的，战略上重要的

参考例句：

• The army moved for strategic reasons.军队作了战略转移。
• The bridge is of strategic importance to us.这座桥对我们至关重要。

12 severely   

adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地

参考例句：

• He was severely criticized and removed from his post.他受到了严厉的批评并且被撤了职。
• He is severely put down for his careless work.他因工作上的粗心大意而受到了严厉的批评。