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VOA慢速英语2010-THE MAKING OF A NATION - American History

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BOB DOUGHTY1: Welcome to THE MAKING OF A NATION -- American history in VOA Special English.

During the eighteen hundreds, the federal government forced American Indians to live on lands called reservations. No longer could the Indians move freely over the Great Plains to hunt buffalo2. White people were settling there. The situation resulted in violence.

This week in our series, Kay Gallant3 and Harry4 Monroe continue the story of the western wars.

KAY GALLANT: The government sent soldiers to force the Indians to move to reservations. But the soldiers could not keep them there. Groups of Indians would leave the reservations in the spring. They followed the buffalo across the plains.

Some raided the homes of white settlers. They stole horses and cattle. At the end of the summer, the Indians would return to the reservations. And the government would give them food for the winter.

HARRY MONROE: As years passed, fewer Indians left the reservations to live the old life on the plains. It became difficult to find buffalo. The plains were becoming empty.

General George George Custer at the Battle of Little Bighorn

Only a few years before, millions of buffalo lived on the Great Plains. Then railroads were built across the country. White men came to claim the grasslands5. They put up fences. Cowboys came up from Texas with huge groups of cattle. They forced the buffalo away or killed them.

The Indians tried to prevent this killing6. Angry groups of Indians often attacked white buffalo hunters. But the army was too strong. Soldiers killed or captured many Indians. Finally, most Indians gave up the struggle. They surrendered their guns and horses. They went back to the reservations and became farmers.

KAY GALLANT: All this was taking place in what is now the south-central part of the United States. Far to the north, another struggle was taking place involving the great Sioux Indian tribe.

The Sioux had signed a treaty with the government in eighteen sixty-eight. The treaty gave them a large reservation in what is now Nebraska, South Dakota and Wyoming.

The Black Hills in Dakota were part of the reservation. These hills were important to the Sioux. In their religion, the Black Hills were a holy place. They were the center of their world, where the gods lived. They were the place where Indian fighters went to speak with the Great Spirit.

HARRY MONROE: In eighteen seventy-three, the Black Hills suddenly became important to white men, too. Gold was discovered there. Treaties and religion meant nothing to the white miners who rushed to the Black Hills to search for gold. At first, the Indians killed some of the miners. They chased others away. But more miners came.

The Sioux tribe asked the government to enforce the treaty. Tribal7 leaders asked the government to keep white men away from the reservation.

The army sent soldiers to remove the miners. The soldiers ordered the miners to leave. But they made no effort to enforce the order. Again the Indians protested. This time, the government sent officials to negotiate a new treaty. It asked the Sioux Indians to give up the Black Hills.

Sitting Bull

Some of the Indian leaders refused to negotiate. One who rejected the invitation was Sitting Bull. "I do not want to sell any land to the government," Chief Sitting Bull said. He held a little dust between his fingers. "Not even this much."

KAY GALLANT: This resistance did not stop government efforts to get the Black Hills for the miners. The War Department sent General George Crook8 to punish the Indians and force them back to their reservation. Crook led a large force into Sioux country. He surprised an Indian village, capturing hundreds of horses.

There was another clash a few months later. This time, the result was very different. The Indians gave the army its worst defeat in almost a century.

HARRY MONROE: The battle took place near the Little Bighorn River. General George Custer led two hundred twelve soldiers in search of the Indian leader, Crazy Horse. As General Custer moved through the river valley, he sent men ahead to explore the area. His men returned with reports that thousands of Indians were waiting to attack. Custer refused to listen. He pushed forward.

Soon, his forces were surrounded by Indians. In less than an hour, the Indians killed the general and every one of his men. The white soldiers lay dead at Little Bighorn. And Custer's name would go down in history as a symbol of foolish pride in battle.

The battle at Little Bighorn was a serious defeat for the United States Army. But the Indians' victory did not last long. Within a year, the army forced most of the Sioux to surrender. It took the Black Hills for the miners. It moved the Indians to a new reservation.

KAY GALLANT: In the next few years, the same thing happened to other Indian tribes throughout the West. Under great pressure from white settlers, the government took land from the Indians and opened it to settlement. The size of Indian reservations was reduced again and again.

One by one, the Indian tribes of the West changed. Their fierce fighters became farmers who needed government help. They were weak and broken in spirit.

One Indian leader named Black Elk9 described the situation best. He was a survivor10 of a battle at a place called Wounded Knee. Many Indian women and children had died there. Years later, Black Elk said:

"I did not know then how much was ended. When I look back now from this high hill of my old age, I can still see the dead lying all over the ground. And I can see that something else died there in the bloody11 mud, and was buried. A people's dream died there."

HARRY MONROE: Some Indians turned to religion during this difficult time. An Indian religious leader named Wavoka gained influence.

Wavoka declared that the Great Spirit had chosen him to prepare the Indians for a new world. He said the new world would arrive soon. And it would be a wonderful world. There would be no white men, he said. And all dead Indians would come back to life.

Wavoka warned that new soil would rise up and cover the world like a flood. He said Indians could escape destruction by dancing a special dance. It was called the Ghost Dance. Wavoka said the Ghost Dance would make Indians powerful. He said it would even protect them from bullets fired by the white men's guns.

KAY GALLANT: Thousands of Indians in the American west listened to Wavoka's message. They believed him. And they began to dance for long hours every day. On the Sioux reservations, all other activities stopped. Children no longer went to school. No one did anything but dance.

All this frightened white officials. They tried to arrest some Indian leaders to stop the dancing. The arrests led to fighting. And the fighting led to a final battle in which the army defeated the Indians completely. The Indian wars were over.

Wavoka himself told his followers12: "Our trails are covered with grass and sand. We cannot find them. Today I call upon you to travel a new trail. It is the only trail now open -- the White man's road."

(MUSIC)

BOB DOUGHTY: Our program was written by Frank Beardsley. The narrators were Kay Gallant and Harry Monroe. You can find our series online with transcripts13, MP3s, podcasts and images at voaspecialenglish.com. You can also get our programs on Twitter and at our new fan page on Facebook. Find us at VOA Learning English (Special English). Join us again next week for THE MAKING OF A NATION -- an American history series in VOA Special English.

 


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点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 doughty Jk5zg     
adj.勇猛的,坚强的
参考例句:
  • Most of successful men have the characteristics of contumacy and doughty.绝大多数成功人士都有共同的特质:脾气倔强,性格刚强。
  • The doughty old man battled his illness with fierce determination.坚强的老人用巨大毅力与疾病作斗争。
2 buffalo 1Sby4     
n.(北美)野牛;(亚洲)水牛
参考例句:
  • Asian buffalo isn't as wild as that of America's. 亚洲水牛比美洲水牛温顺些。
  • The boots are made of buffalo hide. 这双靴子是由水牛皮制成的。
3 gallant 66Myb     
adj.英勇的,豪侠的;(向女人)献殷勤的
参考例句:
  • Huang Jiguang's gallant deed is known by all men. 黄继光的英勇事迹尽人皆知。
  • These gallant soldiers will protect our country.这些勇敢的士兵会保卫我们的国家的。
4 harry heBxS     
vt.掠夺,蹂躏,使苦恼
参考例句:
  • Today,people feel more hurried and harried.今天,人们感到更加忙碌和苦恼。
  • Obama harried business by Healthcare Reform plan.奥巴马用医改掠夺了商界。
5 grasslands 72179cad53224d2f605476ff67a1d94c     
n.草原,牧场( grassland的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • Songs were heard ringing loud and clear over the grasslands. 草原上扬起清亮激越的歌声。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • Grasslands have been broken and planted to wheat. 草原已经开垦出来,种上了小麦。 来自《简明英汉词典》
6 killing kpBziQ     
n.巨额利润;突然赚大钱,发大财
参考例句:
  • Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
  • Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。
7 tribal ifwzzw     
adj.部族的,种族的
参考例句:
  • He became skilled in several tribal lingoes.他精通几种部族的语言。
  • The country was torn apart by fierce tribal hostilities.那个国家被部落间的激烈冲突弄得四分五裂。
8 crook NnuyV     
v.使弯曲;n.小偷,骗子,贼;弯曲(处)
参考例句:
  • He demanded an apology from me for calling him a crook.我骂他骗子,他要我向他认错。
  • She was cradling a small parcel in the crook of her elbow.她用手臂挎着一个小包裹。
9 elk 2ZVzA     
n.麋鹿
参考例句:
  • I was close enough to the elk to hear its labored breathing.我离那头麋鹿非常近,能听见它吃力的呼吸声。
  • The refuge contains the largest wintering population of elk in the world.这座庇护所有着世界上数量最大的冬季麋鹿群。
10 survivor hrIw8     
n.生存者,残存者,幸存者
参考例句:
  • The sole survivor of the crash was an infant.这次撞车的惟一幸存者是一个婴儿。
  • There was only one survivor of the plane crash.这次飞机失事中只有一名幸存者。
11 bloody kWHza     
adj.非常的的;流血的;残忍的;adv.很;vt.血染
参考例句:
  • He got a bloody nose in the fight.他在打斗中被打得鼻子流血。
  • He is a bloody fool.他是一个十足的笨蛋。
12 followers 5c342ee9ce1bf07932a1f66af2be7652     
追随者( follower的名词复数 ); 用户; 契据的附面; 从动件
参考例句:
  • the followers of Mahatma Gandhi 圣雄甘地的拥护者
  • The reformer soon gathered a band of followers round him. 改革者很快就获得一群追随者支持他。
13 transcripts 525c0b10bb61e5ddfdd47d7faa92db26     
n.抄本( transcript的名词复数 );转写本;文字本;副本
参考例句:
  • Like mRNA, both tRNA and rRNA are transcripts of chromosomal DNA. tRNA及rRNA同mRNA一样,都是染色体DNA的转录产物。 来自辞典例句
  • You can't take the transfer students'exam without your transcripts. 没有成绩证明书,你就不能参加转学考试。 来自辞典例句

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