VOA慢速英语2014 马纳萨斯结束对短暂的战争期待

 

Manassas Ends Hope for a Short War 马纳萨斯结束对短暂的战争期待

From VOA Learning English, this is The Making of a Nation.

I’m Kelly Jean Kelly.

And I’m Christopher Cruise.

Within the first few weeks of the Civil War, the Confederate Congress decided¹ to move the capital from Montgomery, Alabama to Richmond, Virginia. The lawmakers believed Virginia would be an important battlefield in the war.

Many northerners wanted Union forces to seize the new Confederate capital and quickly end the rebellion. Pro-union newspapers took up the cry, "On to Richmond!"  Most Union soldiers were not yet trained to fight. They were volunteers who knew little about war. But public pressure forced the Union army to act.

On the afternoon of July 16, 1861, about 35,000 Union troops marched out of Washington, DC. General Irvin McDowell led them toward a Virginia town where two railroad lines crossed.

The crossing was called Manassas Junction². If the Union forces could seize Manassas, they could move over land to the city of Richmond.  

It was a hot day, and the road was dusty. The march was not well organized, and the men traveled slowly. They stopped at every stream to drink and wash the dust from their faces. Some of the soldiers left the road to pick fruits and berries from bushes along the way.

It took the Union soldiers four days to travel the 45 kilometers to the town of Centreville, Virginia. A stream called Bull Run lay beyond the town. The Confederate Army was waiting there.

The forces of General Pierre Beauregard had only 22,000 soldiers. But Confederate spies had warned him that McDowell would attack. So he asked that another nearby Confederate force, led by General Joe Johnston, help him defend the territory.

The First Battle of Bull Run, also called First Manassas, started the next morning -- Sunday, July 21.

In the first few hours of the battle, Union forces were winning. They attacked with artillery³ and pushed the Confederate forces back. Some of the southern soldiers began to run.

One Confederate officer, trying to prevent his troops from moving back, pointed⁴ to a group led by General T. J. Jackson of Virginia. "Look!" he shouted. "There is Jackson, standing⁵ like a stone wall! Rally behind the Virginians!"

The fighting was fierce. The air was full of flying bullets. A newspaper reporter wrote the whole valley was boiling with dust and smoke. A Confederate soldier told his friend, "Them Yankees are just marching up and being shot to hell.”

Neither side would give up. Then, a large group of additional Confederate soldiers — General Johnston’s men — arrived by train and joined the fight.

Suddenly, Union soldiers stopped fighting and began pulling back. General McDowell and his officers tried to stop the retreat but failed. Their men wanted no more fighting.

The fleeing Union soldiers threw down their guns and equipment, thinking only of escape. Many kept running until they reached Washington.

It was a bitter defeat. But it made the North recognize the need for a real army -- one trained and equipped for a long war.

1 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。

2 junction   

n.连接，接合；交叉点，接合处，枢纽站

参考例句：

• There's a bridge at the junction of the two rivers.两河的汇合处有座桥。
• You must give way when you come to this junction.你到了这个路口必须让路。

3 artillery   

n.(军)火炮，大炮；炮兵(部队)

参考例句：

• This is a heavy artillery piece.这是一门重炮。
• The artillery has more firepower than the infantry.炮兵火力比步兵大。

4 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

5 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。