(单词翻译:单击)
听力文本
Welcome to THE MAKING OF A NATION – American history in VOA Special English. In our last program, we told you how the flow of immigration to the United States began to change in the eighteen eighties. Before then, most of the immigrants came from central and northern Europe. From Britain, Ireland, Germany and the Scandinavian countries. The largest number came from Britain. They found it easy to settle in a country that, until seventeen seventy-six, was a collection of British colonies. The newcomers from Britain shared the same language with the Americans and many of the same traditions. Some of these early immigrants were skilled workers who found good jobs in American industry. Others were farmers who came to America for free land. This week in our series, Robert Bostic and Jack Weitzel continue the story of immigration in the United States.
After eighteen eighty, the flood of immigration from northern and central Europe began to fall. Now, most immigrants were coming from eastern and southern Europe. From Russia, Poland, Romania, Italy, Greece. These new immigrants were different from those who came earlier. Most did not speak English. Most were poor farmers who had few special skills. Most had little or no education. They were, however, good workers. They did not protest working long hours for low pay. They did not demand better working conditions. They usually refused to join labor unions or take part in strikes. American factory owners were pleased with the new immigrants. They gave them jobs formerly held by higher-paid American workers. The owners asked the new workers to write letters to friends still in the old country, urging them to come to America. And they came by the hundreds of thousands to take jobs in steel factories in Pennsylvania and the coal mines of West Virginia. They worked in the lumber camps of Michigan and in the stockyards and the meat-packing plants of Chicago.
American workers then began to protest, as their jobs were filled by immigrants who were happy to work for less money. The protests were especially bitter on the pacific coast where thousands of Chinese immigrants were settling in California. The Chinese arrived there after eighteen fifty to help build western railroads. After the railroads were completed, these Chinese new-comers turned to other jobs. More came every year. By the eighteen seventies, California's political leaders were demanding an end to further immigration from China. In eighteen eighty-two, Congress passed a law that barred Chinese immigration for ten years. The law was extended for another ten years then made permanent. The immigration law of eighteen eighty-two put other limits on immigration. It closed the country to criminals, the mentally ill, and persons who could not support themselves. Later, others were added to this list. Persons with diseases, anarchists and alcoholics. This, however, did not greatly reduce immigration from eastern and southern Europe. And opponents of immigration demanded stronger action. Some proposed a literacy test. Immigrants would have to show that they could read and write. An immigrant who could not, would not be permitted to enter the country.
Senator Henry Cabot Lodge of Massachusetts urged Congress to pass such a law. In a Senate speech, lodge said: "If we care for the welfare, the wages, or the standard of life of American workingmen, we should take immediate steps to limit foreign immigration. There is no danger to our working men from the coming of skilled workers or of trained and educated men. But there is a serious danger from the flood of unskilled, ignorant foreign labor. "This labor not only takes lower wages, but accepts a standard of living so low that the American working man cannot compete with it." Senator Lodge continued. "A literacy test will bear very lightly, if at all, upon English-speaking immigrants or Germans, Scandinavians and French. The races which would suffer most under a literacy test would be those with which the English-speaking people have never united, and who are most different from the great majority of the people of the United States."
Congress passed the proposal. President Cleveland, however, vetoed it. He said the nation had nothing to fear from immigrants who could not read or write. He said there was greater danger from some of the educated immigrants who urged violence and anarchy. It took a number of years before Congress was able to pass a law demanding a literacy test for immigrants. Another problem troubled President Cleveland. High tariffs -- taxes on imports. Soon after his election, Cleveland decided to learn what he could about the tariff. "I'm sorry to say," said Cleveland, "but the truth is, I know nothing about the tariff." Cleveland studied all the information he could find about the tariff. He found that the tariff was used not only to get money for the government, but to protect American industry from foreign competition. The tariffs had been raised so high that they were producing more money than the government needed. Cleveland decided that high tariffs were wrong. He told other democratic leaders that he would try to get them reduced. The politicians warned him not to try. They said he would only lose the support of businessmen. They said he would need campaign money from business if he expected to be elected president again. But Cleveland rejected their advice. He said, "What is the use of being elected or re-elected, if you don't stand for something." So, late in eighteen eighty-seven, Cleveland sent a tariff message to Congress.
He said it was wrong to raise more tax money than the government needed. When this happens, he said, money is withdrawn from the people's use and kept in the public treasury, where it does no good. It threatens the economy and invites dishonest attempts to use the money for private interests. The government, he said, received most of this unnecessary tax money from tariffs. He said the present tariff laws were vicious, unfair, and illogical. He said they raised the prices of all imported goods which could be taxed. They also led American manufacturers to raise their prices as high as those charged for imported goods. Cleveland said some men had become rich, because protective tariffs let them charge high prices. He noted that American businessmen like to talk about the strength and success of American industry. But he said that when the question of the tariff is raised, businessmen claim that industry is weak. They say they cannot compete with low-priced foreign products. Cleveland said he did not propose that all tariffs be ended. He said some were needed to raise money for the government. And he said some industries could not exist unless they were protected by tariffs. But he said tariffs should not let some industries make huge profits.
Cleveland warned that it would be far better to make safe, careful, and intelligent changes in the tariff laws now. Otherwise, he said, there might come a time when an angry public would demand radical and sweeping changes. The House of Representatives moved quickly to pass a moderate bill that would reduce many of the tariffs. The legislation -- called the Mills Bill -- was exactly what Cleveland wanted. But the bill ran into trouble in the Senate, where Republicans had control. Senator William Allison, a Republican from Iowa, proposed a different tariff bill. It was one that would increase tariffs...not reduce them. The Senate debated the tariff question for months. And since it was eighteen eighty-eight -- a presidential election year -- the tariff became an important election issue. The Democrats promised low tariffs that would mean lower prices for the people. The Republicans defended high tariffs, which they said were necessary to protect American industry and labor. The Democrats nominated Grover Cleveland for another four-year term. The Republicans held their nominating convention two weeks later. That will be our story next week.
重点解析
1.extend for 延续
This means that the current industrial adjustment will extend for some time into the future.
这表明目前的产业调整今后仍会持续一段时间。
2.be permitted to 被允许做
You might be permitted to profit from the transaction, but not from the conflict.
你可以从交易中获利，但不能从冲突中获利。
3.care for 照顾；关心
They hired a nurse to care for her.
他们雇了个护士来照顾她。
4.soon after 不久之后；很快
He and Liz became lovers soon after they first met.
他和莉兹初次见面后不久就成了情侣。
参考译文
欢迎收听VOA慢速英语之建国史话节目。在上期节目中，我们讲述了流入美国的移民在18世纪80年代开始发生了怎样的变化。在此之前，大多数移民来自中欧和北欧，主要是英国、爱尔兰、德国和斯堪的纳维亚国家。人数最多的是来自英国的移民。他们发现，在一个直到1776年仍然是英国殖民地的国家定居是件容易的事情。新从英国到来的移民和美国人讲着相同的语言，并且共享许多一样的传统。其中一些早期移民是在美国工业界找到很好工作的熟练工人。其他人则是为了这片自由的土地而来到美国的农民。在本周的系列节目中，罗伯特·博斯蒂克和杰克·韦策尔将继续讲述美国移民的故事。
1880年后，来自北欧和中欧的移民潮开始减少。现在，大多数移民来自东欧和南欧，主要是俄罗斯、波兰、罗马尼亚、意大利和希腊。这些新移民与先前来的人不同。大多数人不说英语，他们都是贫穷的农民，几乎没有什么特殊技能。大多数人几乎都没有受过教育。然而，他们是好工人，他们没有因为长时间工作又工资低而抗议。他们并不要求改善工作条件，也通常拒绝加入工会或参加罢工。美国工厂主对新移民很满意，给他们以前由高薪美国工人担任的工作。工厂主们要求新工人写信给仍在原有国家的朋友，力劝他们来美国。几十万人来到宾夕法尼亚州的钢铁厂、西弗吉尼亚州的煤矿、密歇根州的木材营地和芝加哥的畜牧场，以及肉类包装厂工作。
美国工人随后开始抗议，因为他们的工作都由那些愿意为更少的薪水而工作的移民填补了。抗议活动在太平洋沿岸尤为激烈，数千名中国移民正移居到加州定居。中国人在1850年后来到美国，他们帮助修建西部的铁路。铁路建成后，这些新来的中国人转而从事其他工作。每年都有更多的人来到美国。到了18世纪70年代，加州的政治领导人要求停止让中国移居到美国。在1882年，国会通过了一项禁止在十年内让中国移民移居美国的法律。这项法律又延长了十年，然后永久生效。1882年的移民法还对移民提出了其他限制条件，不让罪犯、精神病患者和不能自力更生者移居美国。后来，又加入了其它条件，比如患有疾病的人、无政府主义者和酗酒者。然而，这并没有大幅度减少来自东欧和南欧的移民。反对移民者要求采取更有力的行动。有人提议进行识字测试，移民必须证明他们能够读写。不能读写者，也不能移居美国。
马萨诸塞州参议员亨利·卡博特·洛奇敦促国会通过这样一项法律。洛奇在参议院的一次演讲中表示：“如果我们关心美国工人的福利、工资或生活水平，我们应该立即采取措施限制外国移民的涌入。熟练工人或受过培训和教育的人来到美国，对我们的工人没有威胁。但是，大量无技能、愚昧的外国劳工却带来了严重的危险。“这种劳动力不仅工资较低，而且接受的生活水平也很低，美国工人无法与他们竞争。”洛奇参议员继续说。“将对说英语的移民或德国人、斯堪的纳维亚人和法国人进行一项识字测试。在读写能力测试中，受到影响最大的人来自那些从未团结起来的说英语的种族，他们与美国绝大多数人的差异最大。”
国会通过了这项提案。然而，总统克利夫兰否决它。他说，对于那些不能读写的移民来说，美国人民没有什么好害怕的。他说，一些受过教育的移民鼓吹暴力和无政府状态，这将带来更大的危险。国会花了好几年时间才通过了一项法律，要求对移民进行识字测试。另一个困扰着克利夫兰总统的问题是，高关税，即进口税。他当选后不久，克利夫兰决定了解关税的情况。克利夫兰说：“我很抱歉，但事实是，我对关税一无所知。”克利夫兰研究了他能找到的关于关税的所有信息。他发现，关税不仅可用来为政府筹集资金，还能保护美国工业免受来自国外的竞争。关税提高到如此之高的水平，以至于他们生产的产品价值超过了政府的需要。克利夫兰认为，高关税是错误的。他告诉其他民主党领导人，他会设法让他们减少开支。政客们警告他不要尝试这么做。他们说，他只会失去商界人士的支持。如果他希望再次当选总统，他将需要来自商界的竞选资金。但克利夫兰拒绝了他们的建议。他说：“如果不支持某件事，当选或连任又有什么用呢？”因此，在1887年末，克利夫兰向国会发出了有关关税的信息。
他说，筹集的税收超过政府所需是错误的。当这种情况发生时，钱款就是取自人民，而将其存到国库，款项存在那里没有任何好处。它会威胁经济，并让那些不诚实的人为私人利益使用这笔钱款。他说，政府从关税中获得了大部分不必要税收，现行的关税法是恶性的、不公平、不合逻辑。他们提高了所有可以征税的进口商品的价格，这还导致美国制造商将自己商品的价格提高到与进口商品一样高的水平。克利夫兰说，一些人已经变得富有，因为保护性关税让他们收取了高昂的价格。他指出，美国商人喜欢谈论美国工业的实力和成功。但他说，当提出关税问题时，商人们声称美国工业很薄弱，不能与低价的外国产品竞争。克利夫兰说，他并没有提议取消所有关税。他说，需要一些资金来为政府筹集资金，除非关税受到保护，否则一些产业将不可能存在。但他表示，关税不应让一些行业获得巨额利润。
克利夫兰警告说，现在最好安全、谨慎、明智地对关税法进行修改。否则，他说有一天，愤怒的公众会要求进行彻底性变革。众议院迅速采取行动，通过了一项观点上并不激进的法案，这项法案将降低许多关税。该立法称作《米尔斯法案》，这正是克利夫兰想要的。但是，该法案在共和党控制的参议院遇到了麻烦。来自爱荷华州的共和党参议员威廉·艾利森提出了一项不同的关税法案，这将提高而不是降低关税。参议院就关税问题辩论了数月，自1888年总统选举年开始，关税就成为了一个重要的选举议题。民主党承诺降低关税，这将意味着降低人们支付的物价。共和党人为高关税辩护，他们说这是保护美国工业和劳工所必需的。民主党提名格罗弗·克利夫兰连任四年。两周后，共和党举行了提名大会。这将是我们下周要讲述的故事。
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