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THE MAKING OF A NATION 175 - Election of 1928

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THE MAKING OF A NATION - January 10, 2002: Election of 1928

By David Jarmul
VOICE 1:

THE MAKING OF A NATION -- a program in Special English by the Voice of America.

(Theme)

The presidential election of nineteen-twenty-eight gave American voters a clear choice between two different
kinds of candidates and political parties. The Democratic Party nominated Al Smith, the popular governor of the
state of New York. The Republican Party chose Herbert Hoover, an engineer and businessman who served as
secretary of commerce for presidents Warren Harding and Calvin Coolidge.

VOICE 2:

Governor Alfred Smith of New York had campaigned for the Democratic presidential nomination2 in nineteen-
twenty-four. But he was defeated at the party convention by a compromise candidate, John Davis.

Four years later, however, Smith could not be stopped. He had a strong record as governor
of the nation's most heavily-populated state. He campaigned for the presidency3 on a policy
of building new electric power stations under public control.

Smith knew that many conservative Americans might be worried by his new ideas and his
belief in strong government. So he chose as his campaign manager a Republican industrial
leader who had worked with General Motors, DuPont, and other major companies.

Smith hoped this would prove his faith in the American private business system.

VOICE 1:

Al Smith was a strong political leader and an effective governor. But he frightened many Americans, especially
conservative citizens living in rural areas.

They lived on farms or in small towns. Al Smith was from the city. And not just from any city, but New York
City, a place that seemed big and dirty and filled with foreign people and strange traditions. Al Smith's parents
came from Ireland. He grew up in New York and worked as a salesman at the Fulton Fish Market.

Smith was an honest man. But many rural Americans simply did not trust people from big cities. Al Smith
seemed to them to represent everything that was new, different, and dangerous about American life.

But being from New York City was not Al Smith's only problem. He also opposed the new national laws that
made it illegal to buy or produce alcoholic4 drinks. And he had political ties to the New York political machine.
But worst of all, in the eyes of many Americans, Al Smith was a Roman Catholic.

VOICE 2:

From George Washington through Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, and up to Calvin Coolidge, every
American president had been male, white, and a Protestant Christian5. Of course, there was no law requiring a
candidate to be Protestant. But millions of traditional Americans just were not ready to give their vote to a
Roman Catholic.

Opponents of the Smith campaign generally did not speak openly about his religion. But many of them were
afraid that Smith would take his orders from the Vatican in Rome, instead of working with the Congress in
Washington.

As captured by artist
Miguel Covarrubias

Al Smith fought back. He told the country, "I am unable to understand how anything I was taught to believe as a
Catholic could possibly be in conflict with what is good citizenship6. My faith," he said, "is built upon the laws of
God. There can be no conflict between them. "

VOICE 1:

But many Protestant Americans thought there was a conflict. And they looked to the Republican Party to supply a
strong candidate to oppose Smith and the Democrats7.

The Republicans did just that. They nominated former secretary of commerce Herbert Hoover, one of the
country's most popular men. Hoover was well-known to Americans. People trusted him. And they liked the way
he had gained great personal success from poor beginnings.


In fact, Hoover's life story would have pleased Abraham Lincoln, another American who rose
from a poor family to fame.

Hoover was born in the farm state of Iowa in eighteen-seventy-four. His father was a poor
metal worker who kept moving his family from state to state.

Herbert Hoover's father died when the boy was just six years old. His mother died four years

later. Young Herbert had to move to the western state of Oregon to live with his mother's
brother.

Herbert's uncle was luckier in life than Herbert's parents. He had made money in the land business. And he
helped the boy gain admission to Stanford University in California. At the university, Herbert showed great skill
in mathematics. And he decided8 to go into business as a geologist9 studying the science of the earth.

VOICE 2:

After college, Herbert Hoover got a job as a mine worker. During the next several years, Hoover spent most of
his time working as an engineer in foreign countries. And he succeeded beyond his greatest dreams. By the time
he was forty years old, he had earned more than one-million dollars.

After World War One, he organized the effort to provide food for starving people in Europe. He did an excellent
job, winning praise from people in Europe and the United States alike. Next, Hoover joined the administration of
President Warren Harding, serving as the secretary of commerce. Again, he did a very good job.

Hoover left the cabinet in nineteen-twenty-five. But two years later, he organized efforts to provide relief for
victims of a flood in the southern state of Mississippi. And again, Americans all around the country took note of
this quiet, serious man who did such effective work in so many different kinds of situations.

Some Americans, however, did not like Hoover, including some people who usually supported Republicans.

For example, many professional Republican politicians did not trust him, because he had spent most of his life in
business, not politics. Some stock market traders thought Hoover might change the rules on the New York Stock
Exchange. And many farmers believed hoover had no new ideas about how to solve their growing economic
problems.

VOICE 1:

This, then, was the choice Americans faced in nineteen-twenty-eight. On the one hand, Al Smith. A Democrat1. A
Roman Catholic. A politician from the city. A man wanting some social change. And on the other hand, Herbert
Hoover. A Republican. A businessman who had proven the dream that even a poor boy could become great in
America. A man who seemed to succeed with every effort he touched.

The main issue in the campaign was not economics or religion, but the new national laws banning alcoholic
drinks. Hoover was for the laws; Smith against them. The two candidates also argued about how to provide aid to
struggling farmers, and how to increase electricity and water supplies.

VOICE 2:


Herbert Hoover won the election of nineteen-twenty-eight. It was one of the greatest victories in presidential
history. Hoover won fifty-eight percent of the votes. Smith got just forty percent. And Hoover captured four-
hundred forty-four electoral votes to Smith's eighty-seven.

And so it was that the engineer and businessman Herbert Hoover entered the White House in nineteen-twentynine.
There was some trouble the day he moved in. Outgoing President Coolidge was a man who watched every
dollar he owned. And he accused some White House workers of stealing his shoes on the day of the inauguration10.
But -- finally -- safe, conservative, business-like Herbert Hoover was leading the country.

VOICE 1:

The nation's stock market reacted by pushing stock prices to record high levels. Everyone expected that economic
growth would continue and expand. But the happy times were just a dream. Within one year, the stock market
collapsed11. Millions of people lost their jobs. The nation fell into the worst economic crisis it had ever faced.

Herbert Hoover was not personally responsible for the crisis. In many ways, it was his own bad luck to be elected
just before the disaster struck. But it was his job to guide the nation through its troubled waters. And he would
prove to be the wrong person to give such leadership.

His four years in office would be one of the most difficult periods in the nation's history. We will look at
President Hoover's administration in our next program.

(Theme)

VOICE 2:

You have been listening to THE MAKING OF A NATION, a program in Special English on the Voice of
America. Your narrators have been Harry12 Monroe and Rich Kleinfeldt. Our program was written by David
Jarmul.


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点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 democrat Xmkzf     
n.民主主义者,民主人士;民主党党员
参考例句:
  • The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
  • About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后,他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。
2 nomination BHMxw     
n.提名,任命,提名权
参考例句:
  • John is favourite to get the nomination for club president.约翰最有希望被提名为俱乐部主席。
  • Few people pronounced for his nomination.很少人表示赞成他的提名。
3 presidency J1HzD     
n.总统(校长,总经理)的职位(任期)
参考例句:
  • Roosevelt was elected four times to the presidency of the United States.罗斯福连续当选四届美国总统。
  • Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency.两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。
4 alcoholic rx7zC     
adj.(含)酒精的,由酒精引起的;n.酗酒者
参考例句:
  • The alcoholic strength of brandy far exceeds that of wine.白兰地的酒精浓度远远超过葡萄酒。
  • Alcoholic drinks act as a poison to a child.酒精饮料对小孩犹如毒药。
5 Christian KVByl     
adj.基督教徒的;n.基督教徒
参考例句:
  • They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
  • His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。
6 citizenship AV3yA     
n.市民权,公民权,国民的义务(身份)
参考例句:
  • He was born in Sweden,but he doesn't have Swedish citizenship.他在瑞典出生,但没有瑞典公民身分。
  • Ten years later,she chose to take Australian citizenship.十年后,她选择了澳大利亚国籍。
7 democrats 655beefefdcaf76097d489a3ff245f76     
n.民主主义者,民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
  • The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》
8 decided lvqzZd     
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。
9 geologist ygIx7     
n.地质学家
参考例句:
  • The geologist found many uncovered fossils in the valley.在那山谷里,地质学家发现了许多裸露的化石。
  • He was a geologist,rated by his cronies as the best in the business.他是一位地质学家,被他的老朋友们看做是这门行当中最好的一位。
10 inauguration 3cQzR     
n.开幕、就职典礼
参考例句:
  • The inauguration of a President of the United States takes place on January 20.美国总统的就职典礼于一月二十日举行。
  • Three celebrated tenors sang at the president's inauguration.3位著名的男高音歌手在总统就职仪式上演唱。
11 collapsed cwWzSG     
adj.倒塌的
参考例句:
  • Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
  • The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。
12 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。

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