A Century of Memories (1910-1919)

A Century of Memories (1910-1919)

 

Roosevelt's design included linking the Pacific and Atlantic oceans by building a canal through the ¹⁾Isthmus¹ of Panama in northern Columbia, construction of the era's ²⁾engineering wonder began in 1904. Alfred Bingham visited the canal site as a child.

"I can remember riding along in this car on the bottom of the canal, a lot of big machinery² and a lot of trains going up and down taking the ³⁾diggings out. And there were marvelous big structures that were to be the locks."

"The building of the canal itself was the greatest engineering feat⁴ that had ever been done up to that time. It's all of the great power and technology and energy of this age ⁴⁾harnessed there."

Across the Atlantic in a Belfast ⁵⁾shipyard, another technological^{5 6)}marvel³ of the age was being completed -- the largest moving object ever made by man. The Titanic⁶ was said to be the fastest, most ⁷⁾luxurious⁷ and safest ocean liner the world had ever seen. On April 10, 1912, with more than 2,200 people on board, the ship left Southampton in England on its maiden⁸ voyage.

"My mother wanted to see the ⁸⁾purser before we went to our ⁹⁾cabin. Mother said to the purser, 'I am not one bit happy about going on the Titanic to New York City.' And the purser said, 'Why?' She said, 'Because the Titanic is new, it's never crossed an ocean,' and she said, 'I'm afraid something might happen.' And he said, 'Madam, nothing was going to happen, but if it does,' he said, 'the Titanic has ¹⁰⁾watertight ¹¹⁾compartments that'll keep it up.'"

On its fifth day at sea, the Titanic received a series of radio warnings about icebergs¹⁰ ahead. The captain, Edward Smith, under pressure to make record time from his employer, the White Star Lines, ignored the messages and ¹²⁾proceeded at full speed. Shortly before midnight, Ruth Vecker and her mother were awakened¹¹ by a cabin ¹³⁾steward¹².

"He said, 'The Titanic has struck an iceberg,' and he said, 'I want you to go back in your room, get your family ready and go on up to the boat deck and get in the lifeboats.' And mother says, 'Do we have time to dress?' And he says, 'No, madam, you have time for nothing.'"

The ship sank within 3 hours. In an era that had put such faith in technology, the Titanic would become a ¹⁴⁾stark^{13 15)}reminder¹⁴ of man's limitations.

In mid-August of 1914, Americans celebrated¹⁵ the opening of the Panama Canal, a triumph of both technology and man's will over nature. An engineering feat as impressive as the pyramids, the canal would also become the symbol of America's entrance into the international ¹⁶⁾arena¹⁶ at a time when the world was becoming more dangerous. The tensions fed by an arms race and ¹⁷⁾rivalry¹⁷ among the major European powers finally came to a head in June of 1914 when ¹⁸⁾Archduke Francis Ferdinand, the heir to the Austro-Hungarian Empire, was ¹⁹⁾assassinated by a Serbian nationalist in Sarajevo.

"There was no reason why the assassination¹⁹ of Francis Ferdinand would signal the ²⁰⁾collision of fundamental interests. It was a matter of choice, and that choice was made in Vienna and in Berlin to make it more than an assassination."

In late July with Germany's support, the Austro-Hungarian Empire declared war on Serbia. And within days, all the great powers of Europe bound by their various ²¹⁾alliances were at war with each other.

"I was at a camp, a boys camp, in New Hampshire in 1914 when war was declared, and it was a shock to a very peaceful world, but nobody took it too seriously. It was bad, of course, but it was also something that would be temporary and would not have a far-reaching effect."

But this war would be more catastrophic than any which had gone before, one in which technology, the engine of progress, would be used in the ²²⁾slaughter²⁰ of millions. A war that would sow greater hatred²¹ and result in far greater consequences than anyone could imagine in that summer of 1914.

 

光阴的故事（1910-1919年）

在罗斯福的设计下，经过哥伦比亚北部的巴拿马地峡修建起一条连接太平洋与大西洋的运河--建造始于1904年，是那个时代的工程奇观。阿尔弗雷德·宾汉姆在童年时期参观了巴拿马运河。

“我还记得当年开着这辆车沿着运河底走。有许多大机器还有很多火车在上上下下地搬运挖出来的泥。还有一些大得惊人的建筑做封锁用。”

“运河本身是到当时为止最了不起的一个工程壮举。一切最好的人力、科技和当时代的能量都被集中调用在这上面。”

在大西洋另一边的贝尔法斯特造船所，完成了另一个当时代的科技奇迹--一艘最大的人造移动船只。据说，铁达尼号是全球最快、最豪华、最安全的远洋客轮。1912年4月10日，铁达尼号搭载2,200多人驶离英国南安普顿，开始了首航。

“我们进船舱之前，妈妈去找事务长。妈妈对事务长说：‘乘铁达尼号去纽约，我一点也高兴不起来。’事务长问：‘为什么？’她说：‘因为铁达尼号是新船，它从没有越洋航行过，’她还说，‘我担心有什么意外。”他就说：“夫人，不会有事的，就算有事，’他说，‘铁达尼号上有严密的隔水设施，船不会沉。”

航行到第五天，铁达尼号接连收到无线电警告，说前方有冰山。船长爱德华·史密斯在他的雇主--白星航线公司--迫切希望打破行船记录的压力下，不顾警告而仍然全速行驶。午夜过后不久，露丝·威克和她母亲被一名船上服务生摇醒。

“他说：‘铁达尼号撞到冰山，’他说，‘我希望你们回房间去，让家人做好准备，然后到甲板上救生船。’妈妈问：‘我们还有时间穿衣服吗？’他说：‘不，夫人，你们什么时间也没有。’”

三小时后船沉没了。在对科技抱有极度信心的那个年代，铁达尼号为人类的局限性敲响了一道警钟。

1914年8月中，美国人为巴拿马运河开通而庆贺，该运河既是一个科技成功，也证明了人能胜天。巴拿马运河的工程壮举可与金字塔媲美，它也成为美国登上国际舞台的象征，当时全球局势危机四伏，愈演愈烈。1914年6月，奥匈帝国王储弗朗茨·斐迪南德大公在萨拉热窝被一名塞尔维亚民族主义者暗杀，终于使各欧洲大国之间因军事竞赛导致的紧张关系及敌对状态到达了极限。

“弗朗茨·斐迪南德被暗杀，毫无理由地成为根本利益冲突的导火线。那只是被选中的借口，地点被选在维也纳和柏林进行，事态被扩大得超出了暗杀范畴。”

七月底，在德国的支持下，奥匈帝国对塞尔维亚宣战。不出几日，所有的欧洲列强各自结盟开战。

“当时我在营地上--新汉普郡的童子营，那是1914年，战争开始了，扰乱了原本平静的世界，可并没人把此事看得很严重。人们觉得战争当然是坏事，可那不过是暂时性的，不会有什么长远影响。”

可这场战事远比过去的所有战争更惨烈，科技--人类进步的推动器--被利用来屠杀数以百万的人民。1914年夏季的这一场战争播下更多的仇恨，产生出人们想象不到的更严重的后果。

 

注释:

1) isthmus [5ismEs] n. 地峡

2) engineering [7endVi5niEriN] n. 工程

3) digging [5di^iN] n. 挖掘物

4) harness [5hB:nis] v. 利用

5) shipyard [5FipjB:d] n. 造船所

6) marvel [5mB:vEl] n. 奇迹

7) luxurious [lQ^5zjuEriEs] a. 奢华的

8) purser [5pE:sE] n. 事务长

9) cabin [5kAbin] n. 船舱

10) watertight [5wC:tEtait] a. 不透水的，防水的

11) compartment⁹ [kEm5pB:tmEnt] n. 间隔间，车厢

12) proceed [prE5si:d] v. 进行

13) steward [5stjuEd] n. 乘务员

14) stark [stB:k] a. 十足的

15) reminder [ri5maindE] n. 提醒，暗示

16) arena [E5ri:nE] n. 舞台

17) rivalry [5raivElri] n. 竞争，敌对状态

18) archduke [5B:tF5dju:k] n. 大公

19) assassinate¹⁸ [E5sAsineit] v. 暗杀

20) collision [kE5liVEn] n. 碰撞，冲突

21) alliance [E5laiEns] n. 联盟，联合

22) slaughter [5slC:tE] n. 屠杀

1 isthmus   

n.地峡

参考例句：

• North America is connected with South America by the Isthmus of Panama.巴拿马海峡把北美同南美连接起来。
• The north and south of the island are linked by a narrow isthmus.岛的北部和南部由一条狭窄的地峡相连。

2 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。

3 marvel   

vi.(at)惊叹vt.感到惊异；n.令人惊异的事

参考例句：

• The robot is a marvel of modern engineering.机器人是现代工程技术的奇迹。
• The operation was a marvel of medical skill.这次手术是医术上的一个奇迹。

4 feat   

n.功绩；武艺，技艺；adj.灵巧的，漂亮的，合适的

参考例句：

• Man's first landing on the moon was a feat of great daring.人类首次登月是一个勇敢的壮举。
• He received a medal for his heroic feat.他因其英雄业绩而获得一枚勋章。

5 technological   

adj.技术的；工艺的

参考例句：

• A successful company must keep up with the pace of technological change.一家成功的公司必须得跟上技术变革的步伐。
• Today,the pace of life is increasing with technological advancements.当今， 随着科技进步，生活节奏不断增快。

6 titanic   

adj.巨人的，庞大的，强大的

参考例句：

• We have been making titanic effort to achieve our purpose.我们一直在作极大的努力，以达到我们的目的。
• The island was created by titanic powers and they are still at work today.台湾岛是由一个至今仍然在运作的巨大力量塑造出来的。

7 luxurious   

adj.精美而昂贵的；豪华的

参考例句：

• This is a luxurious car complete with air conditioning and telephone.这是一辆附有空调设备和电话的豪华轿车。
• The rich man lives in luxurious surroundings.这位富人生活在奢侈的环境中。

8 maiden   

n.少女，处女；adj.未婚的，纯洁的，无经验的

参考例句：

• The prince fell in love with a fair young maiden.王子爱上了一位年轻美丽的少女。
• The aircraft makes its maiden flight tomorrow.这架飞机明天首航。

9 compartment   

n.卧车包房，隔间；分隔的空间

参考例句：

• We were glad to have the whole compartment to ourselves.真高兴，整个客车隔间由我们独享。
• The batteries are safely enclosed in a watertight compartment.电池被安全地置于一个防水的隔间里。

10 icebergs   

n.冰山，流冰( iceberg的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The drift of the icebergs in the sea endangers the ships. 海上冰山的漂流危及船只的安全。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The icebergs towered above them. 冰山高耸于他们上方。 来自辞典例句

11 awakened   

v.（使）醒( awaken的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）觉醒；弄醒；（使）意识到

参考例句：

• She awakened to the sound of birds singing. 她醒来听到鸟的叫声。
• The public has been awakened to the full horror of the situation. 公众完全意识到了这一状况的可怕程度。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 steward   

n.乘务员，服务员；看管人；膳食管理员

参考例句：

• He's the steward of the club.他是这家俱乐部的管理员。
• He went around the world as a ship's steward.他当客船服务员，到过世界各地。

13 stark   

adj.荒凉的；严酷的；完全的；adv.完全地

参考例句：

• The young man is faced with a stark choice.这位年轻人面临严峻的抉择。
• He gave a stark denial to the rumor.他对谣言加以完全的否认。

14 reminder   

n.提醒物，纪念品；暗示，提示

参考例句：

• I have had another reminder from the library.我又收到图书馆的催还单。
• It always took a final reminder to get her to pay her share of the rent.总是得发给她一份最后催缴通知，她才付应该交的房租。

15 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

16 arena   

n.竞技场，运动场所；竞争场所，舞台

参考例句：

• She entered the political arena at the age of 25. 她25岁进入政界。
• He had not an adequate arena for the exercise of his talents.他没有充分发挥其才能的场所。

17 rivalry   

n.竞争，竞赛，对抗

参考例句：

• The quarrel originated in rivalry between the two families.这次争吵是两家不和引起的。
• He had a lot of rivalry with his brothers and sisters.他和兄弟姐妹间经常较劲。

18 assassinate   

vt.暗杀，行刺，中伤

参考例句：

• The police exposed a criminal plot to assassinate the president.警方侦破了一个行刺总统的阴谋。
• A plot to assassinate the banker has been uncovered by the police.暗杀银行家的密谋被警方侦破了。

19 assassination   

n.暗杀；暗杀事件

参考例句：

• The assassination of the president brought matters to a head.总统遭暗杀使事态到了严重关头。
• Lincoln's assassination in 1865 shocked the whole nation.1865年，林肯遇刺事件震惊全美国。

20 slaughter   

n.屠杀，屠宰；vt.屠杀，宰杀

参考例句：

• I couldn't stand to watch them slaughter the cattle.我不忍看他们宰牛。
• Wholesale slaughter was carried out in the name of progress.大规模的屠杀在维护进步的名义下进行。

21 hatred   

n.憎恶，憎恨，仇恨

参考例句：

• He looked at me with hatred in his eyes.他以憎恨的眼光望着我。
• The old man was seized with burning hatred for the fascists.老人对法西斯主义者充满了仇恨。