美国学生历史 第3期:欧洲人发现美洲(3)

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　　While Columbus explored the West Indies, another Italian sailed across the Sea of Darkness farther north. 在哥伦布到印度西部探险的同时，另一个意大利人穿过黑海北上，

　　His name was John Cabot, and he sailed with a license¹ from Henry VII of England, the first of the Tudor kings. 他的名字叫约翰·卡伯特，此人带着英国都锋王朝第一个国王亨利七世签发的通行证航海，

　　Setting boldly forth² from Bristol, England, he crossed the North Atlantic and reached the coast of America north of Nova Scotia. 他大胆地从英国西部的布里斯托尔海港出发，穿过北大西洋，到达诺瓦斯科夏北部美洲海岸。

　　Like Columbus, he thought that he had found the country of the Grand Khan. 如哥伦布一样，约翰·卡伯特认为他发现的是忽必烈的国家，

　　Upon his discovery English kings based their claim to the right to colonize³ North America. 根据约翰·卡伯特的发现，英国国王宣称自己对北美洲的殖民统治权。

　　8. The Naming of America. 8．美洲的命名

　　Many other explorers also visited the new-found lands. Among these was an Italian named Americus Vespucius. 还有许多探险者也到过新发现的这些大陆，其中就有意大利人阿美利哥·维斯普奇。

　　Precisely⁴ where he went is not clear. But it is clear that he wrote accounts of his voyages, which were printed and read by many persons. 他到了哪里并不十分清楚，但是，很显然他写了一些关于航海的日志，日志被印刷出来后，有许多人读过。

　　In these accounts he said that what we call South America was not a part of Asia. So he named it the New World. 在这些日志中，阿美利哥·维斯普奇认为人们所谓的南美洲不是亚洲的一部分，他因此把这个地方命名为“新世界”。

　　Columbus all the time was declaring that the lands he had found were a part of Asia. 哥伦布一直认为自己发现的那些陆地是亚洲的一部分。

　　It was natural, therefore, that people in thinking of the New World should think of Americus Vespucius. 因此，自然人们在想起“新世界”时应该想到阿美利哥·维斯普奇。

　　Before long some one even suggested that the New World should be named America in his honor. 之后不久，甚至有人建议应该把这个“新世界”叫做美洲以纪念他。

　　This was done, and when it became certain that the other lands were not parts of Asia, 人们接受了这个建议，并且，当确切知道另外一些陆地不是亚洲的构成部分时，

　　the name America was given to them also until the whole continent came to be called America. 人们用美洲来命名这些陆地，这样一直延续到整个大陆被叫做美洲。

　　9. Balboa and Magellan, 1513, 1520. 9．巴波亚和麦哲伦（1513年，1520年）

　　Balboa was a Spaniard who came to San Domingo to seek his fortune. He became a pauper⁵ and fled away from those to whom he owed money. 巴波亚是一个到圣多明各淘金的西班牙人，他变成一个穷人，并且在债主的催逼下离开了圣多明各，

　　After long wanderings he found himself on a high mountain in the center of the Isthmus⁶ of Panama. 在长途跋涉之后，巴波亚发现自己在巴拿马海峡当中的一座高山上，

　　To the southward sparkled the waters of a new sea. He called it the South Sea. 往南看是一片波涛汹涌的新海洋，他把它叫做南海，

　　Wading⁷ into it waist deep, he waved his sword in the air and took possession of it for his royal master, the King of Spain. This was in 1513. 并向纵深处跋涉，他向空中挥舞他的宝剑，为他效忠的西班牙国王获得这片新领地。这一年是1513年。

　　Seven years later, in 1520, Magellan, a Portuguese⁸ seaman⁹ in the service of the Spanish king, 7年后，在1520年，葡萄牙水手麦哲伦在西班牙国王的支持下

　　sailed through the Straits of Magellan and entered the same great ocean, which he called the Pacific. 穿过麦哲伦海峡进入这一片海洋，他把它叫做太平洋。

　　Thence northward¹⁰ and westward¹¹ he sailed day after day, week after week, and month after month, until he reached the Philippine Islands. 麦哲伦转而向西、向北航行，日复一日，累周不息，经过数月航行他最终到达菲律宾群岛，

　　The natives killed Magellan. But one of his vessels¹² found her way back to Spain around the Cape¹³ of Good Hope. 岛上的人杀死了麦哲伦，但是，他的一条船绕过好望角逃回了西班牙。

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