EXPLORATIONS - Rio Grande, Part 1

EXPLORATIONS - Rio Grande, Part 1
By Oliver Chanler

Broadcast: Wednesday, June 02, 2004

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VOICE ONE:

This is Shirley Griffith.

VOICE TWO:

And this is Steve Ember with the VOA Special English program, EXPLORATIONS. Today we tell about one of the most famous rivers in North America, the Rio Grande.

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VOICE ONE:

 
In Mexico, the river is known as El Rio Bravo del Norte
The Rio Grande is the fifth longest river on the North American continent. It forms the border between the southwestern state of Texas and Mexico. The Rio Grande been has important in the history and development of the United States and Mexico. However, the river has a different name in Mexico. It is called Rio Bravo del Norte.

The Rio Grande begins its three-thousand kilometer trip to the Gulf¹ of Mexico high in the Rocky Mountains in the state of Colorado. It begins almost four-thousand meters up where the river is fed by melting snow. Soon, other small streams flow into the river, increasing its size as it flows generally south through the state of New Mexico. Its waters flow through deep mountain canyons². Some of them are more than five-hundred meters deep. It continues across great flat plains areas, and deserts, feeding rich agricultural areas along the way.

VOICE TWO:

The Rio Grande flows south to the cities of El Paso, Texas, and Ciudad Juarez in the Mexican state of Chihuahua. Then it turns in a southeast direction. Here it becomes the border line between the United States and Mexico for two-thousand kilometers.

 
The Rio Grande.
From this point in the most western part of Texas, the Rio Grande flows east to where the river empties into the Gulf of Mexico. Along its way, the river flows through or past the cities of Albuquerque and Las Cruces, New Mexico, by El Paso, and Ciudad Juarez. The last cities it touches are Brownsville, Texas on one side of the border and Matamoros, Mexico on the other.

On its long trip to the sea, the Rio Grande expands as a number of rivers flow into it. In the United States, those rivers include the Pecos, Devils, Chama, and Puerco rivers. In Mexico, the Conchos, Salado, and San Juan rivers provide waters to the Rio Grande.

VOICE ONE:

In some places the river is more than ten meters deep. But in many places on the river, there is not much water flowing. This lack of water is a sign that much of the river is used for growing crops and providing water supplies for the expanding population.

This is not a new use for the Rio Grande. There is much evidence that the ancestors of the Pueblo³ Indians in New Mexico used water from the river to grow crops for thousands of years.

The Pueblo ancestors arrived in the southwest of what is now the United States about two-thousand years ago. Although their food mostly came from hunting, they grew some crops for food.

The Pueblo civilization went through a number of changes over time. Some of those changes were caused by invasions by other Indian groups such as the Navajo and Apache Indians. A severe dry period more than six-hundred years ago also affected⁴ the Pueblo civilization. The weather is believed to be one reason some of the great cities of the southwest area were left empty as the Pueblo ancestors moved closer to the Rio Grande. A major change for these people began soon after the first Europeans came to the Rio Grande.

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VOICE TWO:

In the early Fifteen-Hundreds, Spanish ships sailed to the mouth of the Rio Grande. They first were looking for a way to the Pacific Ocean. Soon they were more interested in searching for riches such as those captured by Spanish explorer Hernando Cortes.

In Fifteen-Twenty-One, Cortes conquered the great Aztec Empire in what is modern Mexico. Cortes seized huge amounts of gold and jewels from the Aztecs.

Many Spanish explorers heard the stories about the wealth of the Aztecs. They hoped to find similar wealth among other Indian groups in North America.

Some explorers hoped that the Rio Grande would lead them to Indian nations that also possessed⁵ gold and jewels. The most famous explorer of the Rio Grande territory was Francisco Vazquez de Coronado. He arrived at the Rio Grande in Fifteen-Forty.

VOICE ONE:

Earlier explorers of the Rio Grande area said they had heard of great Indian cities on a river in the north. The stories they heard were about cities that had treasures of costly⁶ stones, such as turquoise⁷ and emeralds.

The Spanish explorers also believed there was gold, silver, iron and copper⁸ in the mountains to the north. Spain had already taken great wealth from the Incas of Peru and the Aztecs of Mexico. Why not also take the riches of the Indians cities north of Mexico?

So, the Spanish viceroy of Mexico gave an order which would change the history of North America. He asked Coronado to lead an army of Spanish soldiers to the north. They were ordered to conquer new land for the king of Spain -- land that the Spaniards called Cibola.

VOICE TWO:

Coronado and his soldiers did not find the cities of gold that they were seeking. Instead they found many Indian towns with tall houses and rich fields full of corn and other plants. The people were peaceful farmers. They did not remain peaceful.

The Spanish soldiers did things to the Pueblo Indians that made them angry. So, the Indians decided⁹ to push the Spaniards out of their land.

The Spanish soldiers won the battles with the Pueblo Indians and destroyed many of their towns. Then the Spanish searched for gold and silver. They found none. They returned to Mexico with nothing to show for their struggles in the areas of the Rio Grande River.

Coronado died in Mexico City in Fifteen-fifty-four. He was forty-four years old.

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VOICE ONE:

After Coronado left the Rio Grande country in Fifteen-Forty-Two, the area again belonged to the Indians. Again the Spanish tried to establish a colony in the area. They tried four times and failed each time.

In Fifteen-Ninety-Eight, a large Spanish army marched north from Mexico. The King of Spain ordered that a colony be established on the river north of Mexico. The name of the new colony was to be New Mexico.

VOICE TWO:

Traveling with this army were many families, Roman Catholic¹⁰ priests¹¹, and thousands of cattle. They established a colony on the river where some Pueblo Indians already lived. The Spanish called it San Juan. The Indians seemed to accept them. But the peace did not last. Suffering and tragedy spread through the land as the Spanish and Indians fought.

The Spanish priests and the settlers in San Juan began to protest against the cruel treatment of the Indians. It would be better, they said, not to have any Spanish colony in New Mexico than to built one on such crimes against the native peoples.

Finally, in Sixteen-Six, the King of Spain ordered the end of the colony at San Juan. The Spanish settlers left but the Indians remained at what is now San Juan Pueblo. The Spanish would be back.

VOICE ONE:

In Sixteen-Ten, a new governor of New Mexico arrived. A new capital was built, called Santa Fe. It still is the capital.

This time the goal of the Spanish government was to spread the Christian¹² religion among the Indians. The Brothers of the Order of Saint¹³ Francis were not like the earlier Spaniards.

At first the Indians resisted them. But, over time, they understood that these men did not want to oppress¹⁴ them. The Franciscans wanted to teach the Indians about Jesus Christ.

The Franciscans helped the Pueblo Indians build many beautiful churches throughout the area. The churches were built with local materials. They did not look like the traditional churches of Europe. Some of these churches still stand today. They are very popular with artists.

VOICE TWO:

The Spanish government and the Franciscans argued about how to treat the Indians. The government wanted to use them as slaves. The Franciscans wanted the Indians to be protected. The Indians were not sure who they should obey.

While this dispute was taking place there was a long dry period that caused people in the area to starve. Then, the disease smallpox¹⁵ began taking the lives of many Indians and Spanish settlers. There was a violent rebellion¹⁶ by the Pueblo Indians and the Spanish were forced to leave the Rio Grande area. Yet, they were not to be pushed out for long.

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VOICE ONE:

This Special English program was written by Oliver Chanler. This is Shirley Griffith.

VOICE TWO:

And this is Steve Ember. Join us again next week for the second part of this EXPLORATIONS program on the Voice of America.

1 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

2 canyons   

n.峡谷( canyon的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This mountain range has many high peaks and deep canyons. 这条山脉有许多高峰和深谷。 来自辞典例句
• Do you use canyons or do we preserve them all? 是使用峡谷呢还是全封闭保存？ 来自互联网

3 pueblo   

n.（美国西南部或墨西哥等）印第安人的村庄

参考例句：

• For over 2,000 years,Pueblo peoples occupied a vast region of the south-western United States.在长达2，000多年的时间里，印第安人统治着现在美国西南部的大片土地。
• The cross memorializes the Spanish victims of the 1680 revolt,when the region's Pueblo Indians rose up in violent protest against their mistreatment and burned the cit

4 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

5 possessed   

adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的

参考例句：

• He flew out of the room like a man possessed.他像着了魔似地猛然冲出房门。
• He behaved like someone possessed.他行为举止像是魔怔了。

6 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

7 turquoise   

n.绿宝石；adj.蓝绿色的

参考例句：

• She wore a string of turquoise round her neck.她脖子上戴着一串绿宝石。
• The women have elaborate necklaces of turquoise.那些女人戴着由绿松石制成的精美项链。

8 copper   

n.铜；铜币；铜器；adj.铜(制)的；(紫)铜色的

参考例句：

• The students are asked to prove the purity of copper.要求学生们检验铜的纯度。
• Copper is a good medium for the conduction of heat and electricity.铜是热和电的良导体。

9 decided   

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。

10 catholic   

adj.天主教的；n.天主教徒

参考例句：

• The Pope is the supreme leader of the Roman Catholic Church.教皇是罗马天主教的最高领袖。
• She was a devoutly Catholic.她是一个虔诚地天主教徒。

11 priests   

n.（基督教和罗马天主教的）神父( priest的名词复数 )；牧师；（非基督教会的）教士；祭司

参考例句：

• the ordination of women priests 女司祭的授职礼
• The clergy remain divided on the issue of women priests. 在女性教士的问题上，牧师们意见不一。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 Christian   

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。

13 saint   

n.圣徒；基督教徒；vt.成为圣徒，把...视为圣徒

参考例句：

• He was made a saint.他被封为圣人。
• The saint had a lowly heart.圣人有谦诚之心。

14 oppress   

v.压迫，压制某人，使（心情等）沉重，使烦恼

参考例句：

• A good ruler will not oppress the poor.好的统治者不会压迫贫民。
• The imperialists exploit and oppress all the peoples of the world.帝国主义者剥削和压迫全世界人民。

15 smallpox   

n.天花

参考例句：

• In 1742 he suffered a fatal attack of smallpox.1742年，他染上了致命的天花。
• Were you vaccinated against smallpox as a child?你小时候打过天花疫苗吗？

16 rebellion   

n.造反，叛乱，反抗

参考例句：

• The next year they rose up in rebellion.第二年他们就揭竿起义了。
• The new government quickly suppressed the rebellion.新政府迅速把叛乱镇压下去。