美国学生历史 第147期:民主党与辉格党(7)

 　　The success of wheat growing depended upon the ability quickly to harvest the crop.  小麦种植的成功依赖于人们迅速收割小麦的能力。

　　Wheat must be allowed to stand until it is fully¹ ripened².  小麦在成熟之前不能倒伏，

　　Then it must be quickly reaped and stored away out of the reach of the rain and wet.  而且，在小麦成熟后要迅速收割并储藏起来，不能被雨淋湿。

　　For a few weeks in each year there was a great demand for labor³ on the wheat farms.  每年有好几周的时间麦场上都需要大量的劳动力，

　　And there was little labor to be had. 但能够找到的劳动力很少。

　　Cyrus H. McCormick solved this problem for the wheat growers by inventing a horse reaper⁴.  塞勒斯·H·麦考密克通过发明马拉收割机为小麦种植者解决了这个问题。

　　The invention was made in 1831, but it was not until 1845 that the reaper came into general use.  他于1831年发明收割机，但是直到1845年这种收割机才正式投入大规模的使用。

　　By 1855 the use of the horse reaper was adding every year fifty-five million dollars to the wealth of the country.  到了1855年，马拉收割机每年可以为这个国家带来5500万美元的财富，

　　Each year its use moved the fringe of civilization fifty miles farther west.  每年它的使用都将文明向西推进50英里。

　　Without harvesting machinery⁵ the rapid settlement of the West would have been impossible.  如果没有收割机就不可能在西部迅速建立聚居地，

　　And had not the West been rapidly settled by free whites, the whole history of the country between 1845 and 1865 would have been very different from what it has been. 如果西部没有白种自由民定居，1845~1865年美国的历史将完全改写。

　　The influence of the horse reaper on our political history, therefore, is as important as the influence of the steam locomotive or of the cotton gin.  因此，马拉收割机与蒸汽机车或者轧棉机一样对美国政治历史产生了重要影响。

1 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

2 ripened   

v.成熟，使熟( ripen的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• They're collecting the ripened reddish berries. 他们正采集熟了的淡红草莓。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The branches bent low with ripened fruits. 成熟的果实压弯了树枝。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

3 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

4 reaper   

n.收割者，收割机

参考例句：

• The painting is organized about a young reaper enjoying his noonday rest.这幅画的画面设计成一个年轻的割禾人在午间休息。
• A rabbit got caught in the blades of the reaper.一只兔子被卷到收割机的刀刃中去了。

5 machinery   

n.(总称)机械，机器；机构

参考例句：

• Has the machinery been put up ready for the broadcast?广播器材安装完毕了吗？
• Machinery ought to be well maintained all the time.机器应该随时注意维护。