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听力文本
People in America -- a program in Special English on the VOICE of America.Every week at this time, we tell the story of a person was important in the history of the United States. Today Steve Ember and Frank Oliver begin the story of industrialist Henry Ford.
Many people believe Henry Ford invented the automobile. But Henry Ford did not start to build his first car until eighteen ninety-six. That was eleven years after two Germans -- Gottlieb Daimler and Karl Benz -- developed the first gasoline-powered automobile.
Many people believe Henry Ford invented the factory system that moved a car's parts to the worker, instead of making the worker move to the parts. That is not true, either. Many manufacturers used this system before Ford.
What Henry Ford did was to use other people's ideas and make them better.Others made cars. Henry Ford made better cars. And he sold them for less money. Others built car factories. Henry Ford built the biggest factory of its time. And he made the whole factory a moving production line.
Henry Ford had great skills in making machines work. He also had great skills as an organizer. His efforts produced a huge manufacturing company. But those same efforts almost ruined the company he built.
Henry Ford was born on a farm in the state of Michigan on July thirtieth, eighteen sixty-three. The farm was near the city of Detroit.Henry was always interested in machines. He was always experimenting with them. He enjoyed fixing clocks. And he helped repair farm equipment. When Henry was sixteen years old, he left the family farm. He went to Detroit to learn more about machines.
In eighteen seventy-nine, when Henry began work in Detroit, the city was a center of industrial development. Travelers could tell they were near Detroit by the cloud of smoke that hung over the city. Detroit was a center of iron and steel making. Nearby mines of lead and salt brought chemical companies to the city. And Detroit's copper and brass business was the largest in the world.
One thing Henry Ford learned in Detroit was to have the right tool to do the job. It was something he would never forget. After three years in Detroit, Henry returned to his family farm. He remained on the farm until he was thirty years old. But he was not a real farmer. He was a machine man. A nearby farmer, for example, had bought a small steam engine to be used in farming. The machine did not work correctly. Henry agreed to try to fix it. At the end of just one day, Henry knew everything about the machine. And he made it work again.
Henry remembered that time as the happiest in his life. He said: "I was paid three dollars a day, and had eighty-three days of steady work. I have never been better satisfied with myself. "Another thing that made those days happy was meeting a young woman. Her name was Clara Jane Bryant. Years later Henry said: "I knew in half an hour she was the one for me." They were married in eighteen eighty-eight, on Clara's twenty-second birthday.
Henry and Clara lived on a farm near Detroit. But, still, Henry was not a real farmer. He grew some food in a small garden. And he kept a few animals. But he made money mostly by selling trees from his farm. And he continued to fix farm equipment. It was really machines that he loved.
In eighteen ninety-one, Henry visited Detroit. There he saw a machine called the "silent otto. " It was a device powered by gasoline. It had been developed by a German, Nikolaus August Otto. He was one of the men who had worked with Gottlieb Daimler, who developed the first gasoline-powered automobile.
The silent otto did not move. But Henry saw immediately that if the machine could be put on wheels, it would move by itself. He returned home to Clara with an idea to build such a machine. He was sure he could do it. But the machine would need electricity to make the engine work. And Henry had not learned enough about electricity. So he took a job with an electric power company in Detroit. Henry, his wife Clara, and his young son Edsel moved to the city.
While Henry worked for the power company, he and a few other men developed a small engine. In June, eighteen ninety-six, Henry had his first automobile. He called it a "quadricycle." It looked like two bicycles, side by side. It had thin tires like a bicycle. And it had a bicycle seat. In eighteen ninety-nine, Henry resigned from the power company to work on his automobile. He won the support of a small group of rich men who formed the Detroit automobile company. By the start of nineteen-oh-one, however, the company had failed.
Another man might have decided that the automobile business was not the best business for him. He might have stopped. Henry Ford was just getting started.
In the early days of the automobile, almost every car-maker raced his cars. It was the best way of gaining public notice. Henry Ford decided to build a racing car.
Ford's most famous race was his first. It also was the last race in which he drove the car himself.
The race was in nineteen-oh-one, at a field near Detroit. All of the most famous cars had entered. And all withdrew, except two. The Winton. And Ford's. The Winton was famous for its speed. Most people thought the race was over before it began.
The Winton took an early lead. But halfway through the race, it began to lose power. Ford started to gain. And near the end of the race, he took the lead. Ford won the race and defeated the champion. His name appeared in newspapers. His fame began to spread.
Within weeks of the race, Henry Ford formed a new automobile company. He left soon after, however, because he could not agree with the investors. He had no trouble finding new ones.
Henry continued to build racing cars. His most famous cars of the time were the "Arrow" and the "Nine Ninety-Nine. " Both won races. And they helped make the name Henry Ford more famous.
Henry used what he learned from racing to develop a better engine. In nineteen-oh-three, he was ready to start building cars for the public. On July fifteenth, nineteen-oh-three, a man named Doctor Pfenning bought the first car from the Ford Motor Company.
The sale to Doctor Pfenning was the beginning of a huge number of requests for Ford cars. By the end of March, nineteen-oh-four, almost six hundred Ford cars had been sold. The company had earned almost one hundred thousand dollars. Sales were so great that a new factory had to be found.
At the start of nineteen-oh-five, the Ford Motor Company was producing twenty-five cars each day. It employed three hundred men. The company produced several kinds of cars. First there was the "Model A. " Then there were the "Model B," "Model C" and "Model F. " They were just a little different from the "Model A" -- one of Ford's most famous cars.
Ford's "Model K" car was for wealthy buyers. One of the company's investors was sure the future of the automobile industry was in this costly car. Henry Ford did not agree. He was sure the future of the automobile industry was in a low-priced car for the general public. He said then, and many times after, "I want to make a car that anybody can buy."
These conflicting beliefs led to a battle for control of the company. In the end, Henry bought the stock of the investors who wanted to make costly cars. He was then free to make the low-cost car he believed in.
The story shows the way Henry's mind worked. When he thought he was correct, he was willing to invest his efforts and his money. Earlier, he had walked away from the business of making cars when he could not control the business. Now he had the money to buy the stock of those who disagreed with him.
In nineteen-oh-seven, Henry Ford said: "I will build a motor car for the great mass of people. It will be large enough for the family, but small enough for one person to operate and care for. It will be built of the best materials. It will be built by the best men to be employed. And it will be built with the simplest plans that modern engineering can produce. It will be so low in price that no man making good money will be unable to own one. "That was what Henry Ford wanted. To reach his goal, his life took many interesting turns. That will be our story next week.
重点解析
1.industrialist 实业家；工业家
He is generally rated Italy's No. 3 industrialist
他被公认为意大利第三大实业家。
2.manufacturer 制造商
Faulty goods should be returned to the manufacturers.
有问题的产品应退还生产厂家。
3.production line 生产线
He became an adjustor on the production line.
他成了一名生产线上的调试员。
4.He had no trouble finding new ones.
have trouble doing 做...有麻烦
Because I can't stretch my arms, I have trouble doing housework.
由于我不能伸展手臂，做家务有困难。
5.These conflicting beliefs led to a battle for control of the company.
lead to 导致
The new system may be more economic but will lead to a decline in programme quality.
新系统可能更合算，但是会降低程序质量。
6.Earlier, he had walked away from the business of making cars when he could not control the business.
walk away from 离开
You should have learned to walk away from things that don't concern you.
你早就应该学会不去多管闲事。
参考译文
《美国人物志》—VOA慢速英语栏目。每周这个时候，我们就会讲述美国历史上的一名重要人物。今天史蒂夫·恩贝尔和弗兰克·奥利弗将为大家讲述实业家亨利·福特的故事。很多人都认为亨利·福特发明了汽车。但是亨利·福特直到1896年才开始建造他的第一辆汽车的。十一年前，两名德国人—戈特利布·戴姆勒和卡尔·本茨—就研制出了第一辆汽油发动机汽车。很多人认为亨利·福特发明了将汽车部件传送至工人，而非将工人移动装载零部件的工业体系。这也不是真的。很多厂家在福特之前就使用这种体系了。亨利·福特所做的是利用别人的想法并使这些想法更完善。其他人制造了汽车，亨利·福特就把汽车做得更好，且售价更低。其他人建造了汽车工厂，亨利·福特就建造了那时最大的工厂。并且他还把整个工厂变成了一个移动的生产线。亨利·福特在制造机械加工方面技艺高超，他还是一名出色的组织者。他的努力创建了一个巨大的制造公司，但也是那些同样的努力几乎毁掉了他所建立的公司。
1863年7月30日，亨利·福特出生于密歇根州的一个农场里。农场位于底特律附近。亨利一直对机械很感兴趣，他还拿机械做实验。他喜欢修理闹钟并帮助修理农场机器。亨利16岁时离开了家庭农场。他来到底特律学习更多机械知识。1879年，当亨利开始在底特律工作时，这座城市还是工业发展的中心。游客们可以通过笼罩着城市的浓烟来辨别他们是否到了底特律附近。底特律是钢铁制造中心。附近的铅矿和盐矿为这座城市引入了一些化学公司。底特律的铜和铜合金生意是世界最大的。亨利·福特在底特律所学到的一件事是，工作需要用正确的工具。这一点他永远都不会忘。
在底特律待了三年后，亨利回到了他的家庭农场。直到三十岁他才再次离开。但是他并不是一个真正的农民，他是一名机械工。例如，附近的一个农民买了一个小型农用蒸汽机。蒸汽机出了问题，亨利同意试着修理。一天下来，亨利就了解机械的所有知识，他把机器也给修好了。亨利回忆起那是他最快乐的时光。他说：“那时候我一天挣三美元，有83天的稳定工作日。我从未如此满足过。”另一件开心的事是和一名年轻女士的约会。她的名字叫克拉拉·简·福特。多年后，亨利说道：“半个小时之后我就知道，克拉拉就是我的那个她。”他们于1888年结婚，那天是克拉拉22岁的生日。亨利和克拉拉生活在底特律附近的农场里，但此时的亨利仍不算是一个真正的农民。他在小花园里种一些食物，还养了一些动物，但是他的收入主要来源于卖农场里的树木。并且他继续修理农场设备，他是真的很热爱机械。
1891年，亨利参观底特律，在那里他看到一台名为‘无声奥托’的机器。这台机器靠汽油发力，由一名德国人尼古拉斯·奥古斯特·奥托所研制。他曾和戈特利布·戴姆勒共事，戈特利布·戴姆勒是发明汽油发动机汽车的第一人。‘无声奥托’无法移动，但是亨利立刻发现，如果这台机器能被放在轮子上的话，就能自己移动了。他回到家中，想要制造一个这样的机器，他确信自己可以做到。但是机器需要电才能让发动机工作，而亨利对电力还不是很了解。因此他在底特律的一家电力公司里找了一份工作。亨利和妻子克拉拉以及儿子艾德赛尔搬到了这座城市。亨利在电力公司工作时，他和一个其他人开发一款小型发动机。1896年6月，亨利拥有了第一台汽车，他称之为“脚踏四轮车”。这辆车看上去像是两辆并排自行车，车胎像自行车的一样薄，车座也是自行车车座。
1899年，亨利从电力公司辞职专心他的汽车。他获得了一些富人的支持，正是这些富人组建了底特律汽车公司。但是公司在1901年初倒闭了。另一个人觉得汽车事业对他来说并不是最好的生意。他也许放弃了，但是亨利·福特却刚刚开始。
汽车刚出现的时候，几乎每位汽车制造商都拿自己的车相互比赛。这是获得公众注意的最好方法。亨利·福特决定制造一辆赛车。福特最著名的比赛是他的第一场比赛，这也是他最后一场自己开车的比赛。这场比赛是1901年在底特律附近的一个区域举办。所有最著名的汽车都参加了比赛，所有车辆都退出了，除了两个—温顿和福特的。温顿汽车以其速度出名。多数人都觉得这个比赛不用比，胜负就已定了。温顿汽车开始领先，但是比赛进行到一半后，汽车开始没功率了。福特开始追上来。比赛快结束时，福特领先。福特赢得了比赛击败了冠军。他的名字出现在报纸上，他的名声开始远扬。比赛几周内，亨利·福特就组建了一个新的汽车公司。但很快他就离开了公司，因为他和投资方无法达成一致，他不愁找不到新的投资方。亨利继续制造赛车，那时他制造的最著名的车分别是“Arrow”和“Nine Ninety-Nine”两辆车都赢得比赛，并帮助打响亨利·福特的名声。亨利运用他在比赛中所学开发更好的发动机。1903年，他准备为公众制造汽车。1903年7月15日，一个名叫普芬宁医生的人从福特汽车公司买走了第一辆车。这是福特汽车巨大销量的开端。1904年3月底，将近卖出600辆福特汽车。
公司赚了将近十万美元。优异的销量需要寻找一个新的工厂。1905年初，福特汽车公司每天生产25辆汽车。公司雇佣三百名员工。公司也生产不同类型的车。第一款是Model A。然后还有Model B、Model C和Model F。它们和福特最出名的汽车之一Model A，有着细微的差别。福特Model K系列是为有钱人制造的。公司的投资人之一确定汽车公司的未来依赖这种昂贵的汽车，但是亨利并不同意。他认为汽车行业的未来是适合普通大众的经济型汽车。此后他不止一次说过，“我想制造那种人人都可以买的车。”这些矛盾的信仰导致了公司控制权的战争。最终，亨利买下了那些想制造昂贵汽车的投资者的股权。之后，他可以自由制造那些他所信仰的经济型汽车了。故事展示了亨利的思维方式。当他认为自己是对的时候，他愿意投资自己的精力和金钱。早期，当他无法掌权公司时，他选择离开汽车制造业。现在他有钱买下这些和他意见不一者的股权了。
1907年，亨利·福特说：“我要为大部分人制造汽车。汽车空间足够一家人使用，但是一个人也能操作和养护。汽车零件要用最好的材料。要雇佣最好的员工制造汽车。也要用现代工程能规划出的最简单的方案制造。汽车价格较低，人人都能买得起。”这就是亨利·福特想要的。为了实现这个目标，他的命运碰到了很多有趣的转折。这将是我们下周要讲的故事。
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