每天一课英语口语 UNIT 347-356

[00:00.00]347 A Forgotten Conference

[00:05.22]I had to go to Amsterdam last week for a conference. I ar-rived at the airport in plenty of time and checked in.

[00:13.17]But I only had one small case, so I decided 1 to take in on the plane as hand-luggage.

[00:18.83]As the flight was not due to board for 45 minutes, I went to a cafe, sat down and ordered a cup of coffee.

[00:26.46]While I was sitting there, drinking my coffee and reading the paper,

[00:30.38]I was vaguely 2 aware of a woman and her child coming to sit at the next table.

[00:35.16]I did not pay much attention to them though.

[00:38.35]And when my flight was called, I reached for my case and left.

[00:42.08]An hour later,

[00:43.89]the plane was in the air and I decided to look at the conference program to see what I wanted to attend.

[00:49.76]Imagine my horror when I opened the case and found it was full of picture books and children's toys.

[00:56.45]And imagine what the women must have thought about a case full of men's clothes and scientific pa-pers.

[01:03.66]348 The Famous Forgers

[01:08.57]Robert Spring, a 19th century forger 3, was so good at his profession that he was able to make his living

[01:16.12]for 15 years by selling false signatures of famous Americans.

[01:20.77]Spring was burn in England in 1813 and arrived in Philadelphia in 1858 to open a bookstore.

[01:29.50]At first he became rich by selling his small but gen-uine collection of early U.S. autographs.

[01:36.47]Discovering his ability at copying handwriting,

[01:40.55]he began imitating signatures of George Washington and Ben Franklin and writing them on the title pages of old books.

[01:48.72]To lessen 4 the chance of detection, he sent his forg-eries to England and Canada for sale and circulation 5.

[01:57.08]Forgers have a hard time selling their products.

[02:00.32]A forger can't approach a respectable 6 buyer but must deal with people who don't have much knowledge in the field.

[02:07.50]Forgers have many ways to make their work look real.

[02:11.03]For example, they buy old books to use the aged 7 paper of the title page,

[02:15.99]and they can treat paper and ink with chemicals.

[02:19.39]In Spring's time, right after the Civil War,

[02:22.37]Britain was still fond of the southern states,

[02:24.95]so Spring invented a respectable maiden 8 lady known as Miss Fanny Jackson,

[02:30.62]the only daughter of General "Stonewall" Jackson.

[02:33.89]For several years Miss Fanny's fi-nancial problems forced her to sell a great number of letters

[02:39.82]and manuscripts 9 belonging to her famous father.

[02:43.27]Spring had to work very hard to satisfy the demand.

[02:47.00]All this activity did not prevent Spring from dying in poverty,

[02:51.89]leaving sharp-eyed experts the dif-ficult task of separating his forgeries 10 from the originals.

[03:00.32]349 The American President

[03:04.79]Thomas Jefferson was inaugurated 11 on March 4, 1801.

[03:10.04]He was the first president to take the oath 12 of office in the nation's permanent capital, Washington, D.C.

[03:16.31]Although Washington was a new city, it was already familiar to President Jefferson.

[03:22.06]In fact, Jefferson had helped plan the capital's streets and public buildings.

[03:27.28]Besides being a city planner and architect,

[03:30.36]the new president was a writer, a scientist, and the inventor of several gadgets 13 and tools.

[03:35.93]After his inauguration 14, Jefferson moved into the Presidential Palace.

[03:41.02]The Palace was more than a home; it contained offices for the president and some of his staff and advisors 15.

[03:48.28]It also in-cluded dining and reception rooms, where the president could

entertain congressmen.

[03:53.56]However, President Jefferson did not give many formal parties.

[03:57.98]This was partly because there was no First Lady: Jefferson's wife had died in 1782.

[04:04.14]But it was also because Jefferson liked to live in a simple fashion.

[04:08.63]Once, he showed up for an important meeting wearing old clothes and down-at-the-heels slippers 16!

[04:14.48]Neither Washington nor Adams would ever have dressed so casually 17.

[04:18.82]Jefferson was different from the first two presidents in other ways, too.

[04:23.52]He disagreed with them about how the country should be run,

[04:26.68]and about what part a president should play in running it.

[04:30.89]350 The Great Man

[04:35.77]Robert Owen was born in Wales in 1771.

[04:40.42]At the age of ten he went to work.

[04:43.01]His employer had a large private library, so Owen was able to educate himself.

[04:48.42]He read a lot in his spare time and at nineteen he was given the job of superintendent 18 at a Manchester cotton mill.

[04:56.72]He was so successful there that he per-suaded his employer to buy the New Lanark mills in Scotland.

[05:03.78]When he arrived at New Lanark it was a dirty little town with a population of 2,000 people.

[05:10.57]Nobody paid any attention to the workers' houses or their children's education.

[05:15.82]The condi-tions in the factories were very bad.

[05:19.11]There was a lot of crime and the men spent most of their wages on alcoholic 19 drinks.

[05:24.96]Owen improved the houses.

[05:27.18]He encouraged people to be clean and save moray.

[05:30.37]He opened a shop and sold the workers cheap, well-made goods to help them.

[05:35.02]He limited the sale of al-coholic drinks.

[05:38.05]Above all, he was concerned with the children's education.

[05:42.20]In 1816 he opened the first free primary school in Britain.

[05:46.93]People came from all over the country to visit Owen's fac-tory.

[05:51.53]They saw that the workers were healthier and more efficient than in other towns.

[05:56.31]Their children were better fed and better ed-ucated.

[06:00.02]Owen tried the "same experiment in the United States.

[06:03.62]He bought some land there in 1825, but the community was too

far away.

[06:09.24]He could not keep it under control and lost most of his money.

[06:13.55]Owen never stopped fighting for his ideas.

[06:16.92]Above all, he believed that people are not bum 20 good or bad. He was a practi-cal man and his ideas were practical.

[06:25.75]"If you give people good working conditions," he thought, "they will work well

[06:30.87]and, the most important thing of all, if you give them the chance to learn, they will be better people."

[06:38.37]351 A Piece of Bread

[06:43.67]Three friends decided to sail around the world in a small yacht 21.

[06:48.71]They loaded it with food and water and set off.

[06:51.92]They traveled to many beautiful places, and were having a wonderful time.

[06:56.31]Until one day, when they had been at sea for about a month, a fierce storm blew up.

[07:01.98]Great waves crashed down on their little yacht.

[07:05.09]The mast 22 bloke and the yacht was soon thrown against some rocks near a deserted 23 island.

[07:10.34]The three friends were able to struggle to the island, taking with them as much food as they could carry.

[07:16.40]Not a tree, not a bush, not a flower, grew on the island.

[07:20.92]There was not an animal of any kind, not even a bird or an insect.

[07:26.04]For a few weeks the three men were able to live on the food they had saved,

[07:30.46]but at last it was gone-Except for one piece of bread.

[07:34.87]They decided that whoever had the best dream the next night, could have the bread.

[07:40.41]The next morning they took turns describing their dreams.

[07:44.64]The first man said that he had dreamed he was in the world's most wonderful restaurant.

[07:50.23]He had eaten the finest meal of his life and drunk some of the finest wines.

[07:55.48]He said it was one of the best dreams he had ever had.

[07:59.29]The second man described how he had dreamed about a magic carpet.

[08:04.99]Sitting on this carpet,

[08:06.48]he had traveled to all the wonderful places in the world and been the guest of great kings and queens.

[08:12.93]It had been a truly exciting dream.

[08:15.83]The men who had described their dreams then turned to the third man.

[08:20.40]"Tell us your dream," they said.

[08:22.91]"My dream was every simple," he said, "I dreamed that the bread was going bad and would soon be moldy 24.

[08:29.81]I didn't want to waste the bread, so as soon as I woke up I ate it."

[08:34.87]352 The Foolish Man

[08:39.76]Cyril Prout was a very vain man and spent a great deal of time looking at himself in the mirror.

[08:46.86]He even went to the barber's shop every week to have his hair dyed.

[08:51.17]Although he was nearly fifty, he didn't want people to know his age, so he did not want to have any grey hair.

[08:58.36]He also spent most of his money on clothes.

[09:01.39]He always wore the latest fashions, and bought his clothes from the most expensive shops.

[09:07.40]Cyril believed that every woman thought he was handsome.

[09:11.00]He did not have any woman friends but he had an explanation for this.

[09:15.99]"Women think they will have too much competition," he told himself.

[09:20.51]"They do not want to risk losing me.

[09:23.15]That's why they will not go out with me."

[09:25.66]But then something happened that even Cyril could not ex-plain.

[09:30.17]One day he bought a new shirt from a high-fashion men's shop.

[09:34.98]It was very expensive and made of brightly colored materi-al.

[09:39.03]It was the kind of shirt Cyril loved.

[09:41.85]When he got home and took it out of the box, he found a note pinned to it.

[09:46.55]The note said, "Please write to me and send me a photograph of yourself."

[09:51.96]The note was signed "Marilyn Armstrong" and there was an address to write to.

[09:56.87]Cyril immediately wrote to Marilyn, telling her all about himself.

[10:01.60]Then he put a photograph of himself in the envelop--a very old one--and sent it off.

[10:08.00]A week passed and then he received a reply.

[10:11.97]He opened it quickly,

[10:13.72]hoping there would be a photograph of a beautiful woman inside and that she would agree to meet him.

[10:19.78]However, although the letter was from Marilyn Armstrong, it was very disappointing to Cyril.

[10:26.49]"Dear Cyril," be read, "Thank you for writing to me.

[10:30.70]I work in the factory that made the shirt you bought.

[10:33.70]Everyone here just wanted to find out what kind of fool would buy such an awful shirt."

[10:39.66]353 The Lost Receipt

[10:46.24]As my train wasn't due to leave for another hour, I had plenty of time to spare.

[10:52.30]After buying some newspapers to read on the journey,

[10:55.49]I made my way to the luggage office to collect the heavy suitcase I had left there three days before.

[11:01.19]There were only a few people waiting, and I took out my wallet to find the re-ceipt for my case.

[11:07.35]The receipt didn't seem to be where I had left it.

[11:11.01]I emptied the contents of the wallets, and railway-tickets, money, scraps 25 of paper, and photographs fell out of it;

[11:17.96]but no matter how hard I searched, the receipt was nowhere to be found.

[11:22.84]When my turn came, I explained the situation sorrowfully to the assistant.

[11:28.51]The man looked at me suspiciously 26 as if to say that he had heard this type of story many times

[11:34.80]and asked me to de-scribe the case.

[11:37.21]I told him that it was an old,

[11:39.35]brown-looking ob-ject no different from the many cases I could see on the shelves.

[11:44.13]The assistant then gave me a form and told me to make a list of the chief contents of the case.

[11:50.06]If they were correct, he said, I could take the case away.

[11:53.80]I tried to remember all the articles I had hurriedly packed and wrote them down as they came to me.

[11:59.65]After I had done this, I went to look among the shelves.

[12:03.96]There were hundreds of cases there and for one dreadful 27 mo-ment,

[12:08.19]it occurred to me that if someone had picked the receipt up, he could have easily claimed the case already.

[12:13.88]This hadn't happen fortunately, for after a time I found the case lying on its side high up in a corner.

[12:20.91]After examining the articles inside,

[12:23.68]the assistant was soon satisfied that it was mine and told me I could take the case away.

[12:28.93]Again I took out my wallet; this time to pay.

[12:32.77]I pulled out a ten-shilling note and the "lost" receipt slipped out with it.

[12:37.73]I couldn't help blushing 28 and looked up at the assis-tant.

[12:41.26]He was nodding his head knowingly, as if to say that he had often seen this happen before too!

[12:48.47]354 Generation Gap

[12:53.85]M: Young people are given too much freedom nowadays,

[12:57.22]and as a result they have lost respect for their parents and their elders generally.

[13:02.08]W: I don't think so.

[13:03.78]My parents never interfered 29 with my plans too much.

[13:07.33]They advised me but never forced me to do any-thing I didn't want to do.

[13:12.16]I think I respect and love them for this.

[13:15.22]M: Are you quite independent of them now?

[13:17.91]W: Oh, Yes. As soon as I left school and started my studies as a nurse I became independent financially.

[13:25.51]I have a government grant which is enough for me.

[13:28.57]But I still stay with them a lot, you know.

[13:31.28]M: You seem very close to your parents.

[13:33.92]W: I am. I know that many young people today say they have nothing in common with their parents.

[13:39.77]But I'm very lucky because I get along very well with them. What about you?

[13:45.52]M: WelI, we value family life very much in my country. I'm al-so very fond of my family.

[13:51.66]But I don't always get along very well with my parents. They try to control me too much.

[13:57.22]W: But they allow you to come to study in England on your own.

[14:00.86]M: Yes, but only after a lot of persuasion 30!

[14:03.81]W: My parents treat me as an adult, and your parents treat you as a child. As I said I' m lucky.

[14:11.12]Some English parents inter-fere too much.

[14:15.82]355 China's Joining WTO

[14:21.44]Nowadays people are talking more and more about the ad-vantages and disadvantages of China's joining WTO.

[14:29.90]Opinions differ greatly.

[14:32.10]Some hold that China will definitely gain more by paying a great deal less taxes on her imports.

[14:39.02]Others think that China will certainly lose more since many of her domestic 31 prod-ucts

[14:44.95]cannot compete with foreign imports either in quality or in price.

[14:50.80]In my opinion, China's joining WTO is a matter of great significance.

[14:56.42]Politically, when China enters WTO, her position, as a big socialist 32 power,

[15:03.21]in international economic affairs will be acknowledged 33,

[15:06.71]and her influence on the development of world economy and trade will become increasingly greater.

[15:13.37]Economi-cally, though foreign foods, with their better quality and cheaper price,

[15:19.61]may occupy a large part of her domestic market,

[15:23.12]China can make more profits by considerably 34 increasing the amount of goods exported to foreign countries.

[15:30.32]Moreover, the broad masses of Chinese consumers will benefit a great deal from purchasing foreign products.

[15:38.24]Finally, China's joining WTO will certainly have a positive effect on her future economic development.

[15:45.92]Taking all things into consideration, there will be more ad-vantages for China when she joins WTO.

[15:54.15]356 The Young and the Old Sometimes Agree

[16:01.93]Young people and older people do not always agree.

[16:06.03]They sometimes have different ideas about living, working and play-ing.

[16:10.34]But in one special program in New York state, adults and teenagers live together in peace.

[16:17.03]Each summer 200 teenagers and 50 adults live together for eight weeks as members of a special work group.

[16:24.56]Every one works several hours each day.

[16:27.38]The aim is not just to keep busy.

[16:30.07]It is to find meaning and enjoyment 35 in work.

[16:32.91]Some teenagers work in the woods or on the farms near the village.

[16:37.49]Some learn to make furniture and to build houses.

[16:40.57]The adults teach them these skills.

[16:43.36]There are several free hours each day.

[16:46.45]Weekends are free, too.

[16:48.43]During the free hours some of the teenagers learn photogra-phy or painting.

[16:52.77]Others sit around and talk or sing.

[16:55.75]Each teenag-er chooses his own way to spend his free time.

[16:59.66]When people live together, rules are always necessary.

[17:04.16]In this program the teenagers and the adults make the rules together.

[17:08.96]If someone breaks a rule, the problem goes before the whole group.

[17:13.53]The group discusses the problem.

[17:16.09]They ask, "Why did it happen, what should we do about it?"

[17:21.03]One of the teenagers has this to say about the experience: You stop thinking only about yourself.

[17:26.96]You learn how to think about the group.