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EXPLORATIONS - The Lewis and Clark Exploration: One of the Most Important Events in American History
By Paul Thompson

Broadcast: Wednesday, November 30, 2005

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

This is Steve Ember.

VOICE TWO:

And this is Shirley Griffith, with the VOA Special English program Explorations. Today we finish the story of Lewis and Clark and the land they explored in the American Northwest. We also tell about plans to celebrate the two hundredth anniversary1 of their exploration.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

We have told how Meriwether Lewis and William Clark led a group of men and one woman across the American Northwest. The group was known as the Corps2 of Discovery. They began their trip on May fourteenth, eighteen-oh-four, in Saint3 Louis, near the central part of the country. It was more than one year before they reached the Pacific coast near the Columbia River. They had traveled by river, horse and foot more than six thousand six hundred kilometers.


 
William Clark
VOICE TWO:

President Thomas Jefferson asked Lewis to lead an exploration of the northwestern part of the country. He wanted Lewis to learn as much about the land, people, animals and plants as he could. Jefferson asked that Lewis write about the progress of his group each day. Lewis and Clark kept very careful records. Often, Lewis would use more than one thousand words to tell about an animal or a bird. Both men drew maps and pictures of what they saw.

VOICE ONE:

The Corps of Discovery reached the Pacific Ocean near the present city of Astoria, Oregon. The group suffered a lot during that winter. It was not very cold, but it was always wet. It rained almost every day during the winter months between eighteen-oh-five and eighteen-oh-six. Lewis wrote that everything got wet and stayed wet. Many of the men became sick. The men had little to do except hunt for food. They also made new clothing from animal skins for the return home.

VOICE TWO:

William Clark organized most of the hunting during the long winter months. At the same time, he worked on his second map. The map showed where the group had been since it left the area that now is the north central state of North Dakota. It showed their travels all the way from there to Fort4 Clatsop on the West Coast. Clark drew a correct picture of the American West for the first time.

VOICE ONE:


 
Meriwether Lewis
Meriwether Lewis stayed inside Fort Clatsop and wrote, day after day, of the things they found. He wrote information about one hundred different animals they had seen. Of these, eleven birds, two fish, and eleven mammals had not been recorded before.

He also wrote about plants and trees. He had never seen many of these before. Neither had modern science known about them. He tried to make his reports scientific.

Modern scientists say his information is still good. They say he was extremely careful and provided5 valuable information for the time. Experts say Lewis wrote more like a scientist of today than one of his own century.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

On March twenty-third, eighteen-oh-six, the explorers left Fort Clatsop and started back up the Columbia River. Progress was slow as the Corps of Discovery climbed higher toward6 the mountains. They traded with Indians for horses. In the month of May they stayed with a tribe7 called the Nez Perce.

The Nez Perce said it would not be possible for the explorers to cross the mountains then. The snow was still too deep. Lewis did not agree. The group went forward. They found the Nez Perce were right. The snow was several meters deep. They were forced to stop and return down the mountain.

The Nez Perce agreed to provide guides to take them through the mountains. The Corps of Discovery finally crossed the mountains in the last days of June.

VOICE ONE:

Lewis divided the Corps of Discovery when they left the mountains. He wanted three different groups to go three different ways to learn more about the land. Lewis and his group soon found Indians. They were members of the Piegan tribe, part of the Blackfeet, a war-like group.

At first the Indians were friendly. Then, one tried to take a gun from one of the men. A fight began. Two Indians were killed. It was the only time during the trip that any fighting took place between native Americans and the Corps of Discovery. The fight forced Lewis's group to leave the area very quickly.

VOICE TWO:

The three groups met again in August of eighteen-oh-six. Traveling on the rivers was easier that in the beginning of their trip. The explorers now were going in the same direction as the current. They were in a hurry to get home. They had been away for two years and five months.

Each minute they traveled brought them closer to their homes, their families and friends. On September third, they saw several men traveling on the river. They learned8 that President Jefferson had been re-elected and was still president of the United States.

VOICE ONE:

A few days later, one member of the group asked Lewis and Clark if he could remain behind. He wanted to go with a group of fur traders that was returning to the area of the Yellowstone River. His name was John Colter. Colter returned up the river and into the wild land. Later Colter became the first American to see the Yellowstone Valley, which became the first national park, Yellowstone. He also became famous as one of the first mountain men in American history to open the way to the Rocky Mountains.

VOICE ONE:

The Corps of Discovery reached Saint Louis on September twenty-third, eighteen-oh-six. They had very little food or supplies left, but they were back. Large celebrations were held in the small town. Lewis and Clark learned that most people believed they were dead. Lewis immediately wrote a long report to President Jefferson and placed it in the mail. A few days later President Jefferson knew they had arrived home safely and their trip had been a great success.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Experts today say the Lewis and Clark trip was one of the most important events in American history. They also agree that no two men could have done a better job or been more successful. Meriwether Lewis and William Clark added greatly to the knowledge of the American Northwest.

Clark's maps provided information about huge areas that had been unknown. Lewis discovered and told about one hundred seventy-eight new plants, most of them from the far West. He also found one hundred twenty-two different kinds of animals that had been recorded. There was also one great failure, however. Lewis and Clark were not able to find a way to reach the Pacific Ocean using rivers. There was no northwest passage that could be used by boats.

VOICE ONE:

The Lewis and Clark expedition was also a political success. It helped the United States make a legal claim to a huge amount of land that had been bought by President Jefferson from France. The United States bought the land just as the Corps of Discovery began its trip. This land is now the middle part of the United States. It was called the Louisiana Territory. President Jefferson wanted the future United States to include this land, and all other land between the Atlantic and the Pacific Oceans.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Now it is two hundred years since the Corps of Discovery made its historic9 trip. The United States has many plans to celebrate. Some celebrations will continue until the year two thousand six. Committees in the cities, towns and states that Lewis and Clark passed through are planning the anniversary celebrations.

The National Park Service is also preparing special events. New books have been published, newspaper stories written and television programs produced about Lewis and Clark. And the public is once again discovering the writings of the two men who led the Corps of Discovery. Critics say the word pictures that Lewis created are as clear today as when they were written.

VOICE ONE:

Meriwether Lewis and William Clark were the first educated white Americans to travel across the land that would become the United States. They wrote about things the American public had never seen before. They saw Native Americans before the Indians were influenced by other cultures. Their success had a lasting10 influence.

They showed Americans it was possible to travel across the country and settle in the far West. Lewis and Clark's exploration was the beginning of the American campaign to settle that far away, wild land.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

This program was written and produced by Paul Thompson. This is Shirley Griffith.

VOICE ONE:

And this is Steve Ember. Join us again next week at this time for another Explorations program, in Special English, here on the Voice of America.

(THEME)


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1 anniversary Cw0zD     
n.周年(纪念日)
参考例句:
  • They celebrate their wedding anniversary annually.他们每年庆祝一番结婚纪念日。
  • Today is my parents'30th wedding anniversary.今天是我父母结婚30周年纪念日。
2 corps pzzxv     
n.(通信等兵种的)部队;(同类作的)一组
参考例句:
  • The medical corps were cited for bravery in combat.医疗队由于在战场上的英勇表现而受嘉奖。
  • When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时,他自愿参加了海军陆战队。
3 saint yYcxf     
n.圣徒;基督教徒;vt.成为圣徒,把...视为圣徒
参考例句:
  • He was made a saint.他被封为圣人。
  • The saint had a lowly heart.圣人有谦诚之心。
4 fort pi3x4     
n.要塞,堡垒,碉堡
参考例句:
  • The fort can not be defended against an air attack.这座要塞遭到空袭时无法防御。
  • No one can get into the fort without a pass.没有通行证,任何人不得进入要塞。
5 provided PkNzng     
conj.假如,若是;adj.预备好的,由...供给的
参考例句:
  • Provided it's fine we will have a pleasant holiday.如果天气良好,我们的假日将过得非常愉快。
  • I will come provided that it's not raining tomorrow.如果明天不下雨,我就来。
6 toward on6we     
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。
7 tribe XJ2zS     
n.部落,种族,一伙人
参考例句:
  • This is a subject tribe.这是个受他人统治的部落。
  • Many of the tribe's customs and rituals are as old as the hills.这部落的许多风俗、仪式都极其古老。
8 learned m1oxn     
adj.有学问的,博学的;learn的过去式和过去分词
参考例句:
  • He went into a rage when he learned about it.他听到这事后勃然大怒。
  • In this little village,he passed for a learned man.在这个小村子里,他被视为有学问的人。
9 historic AcNxw     
adj.历史上著名的,具有历史意义的
参考例句:
  • This is a historic occasion.这是具有重大历史意义的时刻。
  • We are living in a great historic era.我们正处在一个伟大的历史时代。
10 lasting IpCz02     
adj.永久的,永恒的;vbl.持续,维持
参考例句:
  • The lasting war debased the value of the dollar.持久的战争使美元贬值。
  • We hope for a lasting settlement of all these troubles.我们希望这些纠纷能获得永久的解决。

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