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English Listening Practice Level 4 < Contents > 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33. 34. 35. 36. 37. 38. 39. 40.
Come to the Fair Hiroshima Niagara Falls Cowboys George W. Bush Jr. Handel's "Messiah" Ireland Louisa May Alcott Niagara-On-The-Lake Newspapers Paul Kane, Frontier Artist Plains Indians Pocahontas and John Smith Remember The Alamo! Gribbio Summertime Telephone Systems Texas The Ford Pinto Case The Golden Man ? El Dorado The Grand Canyon The Niagara Park's Commission The Welland Canal Wal-Mart Stores Yellowstone National Park Student Newspapers Canadian Colleges and Universities Coffee and Donuts David Livingstone ? Medical Missionary Favourite Cookies Florence Nightingale Harriet Tubman Hernias Repaired Here Julie Andrews Potato Chips and Corn Chips The Stratford Festival The Two Cultures The War That Both Sides Won North American Death and Burial Anastasia and the Russian Revoluion
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41. 42. 43. 44. 45. 46. 47. 48. 49. 50. 51. 52. 53. 54. 55. 56. 57. 58. 59. 60. 61. 62. 63. 64. 65. 66. 67. 68. 69. 70.
Australian Origins Casa Loma Charlie Brown Conquering Lake Ontario Currier and Ives Death Valley - California Dr. Norman Bethune Ebenezer Scrooge Etiquette Gambling Gilbert and Sullivan Hawaii Henry Ford It Could Be a Whole Lot Better John Chapman : American Pioneer Las Vegas, Nevada Laura Secord Little House on the Prairie Mutiny!! North America's Rainforest Peggy's Cove, Nova Scotia Prince Edward Island Public Transit Red-haired Ann Romance Novels Shopping at the Mall Stephen Foster ? American Songwriter Sunday Morning at Church Thanksgiving Day The Calgary Stampede
======================================================================= Article #1 Come to the Fair Fall fairs have been a feature of North American life since early in the nineteenth century. At the end of the harvest, people from rural areas have come together to celebrate. Usually, these fairs take the form of a competition regarding the best of all farm products of that year. Depending on the part of the country, and its most important crop, fall fairs can begin as early as August or as late as November. They usually last several days. When the United States and Canada were organized, they were divided into small units called counties. Larger units were called states or provinces. Many of the best-known fairs are county fairs or state fairs. There are also smaller local fairs, and larger ones too, like the Canadian National Exhibition in Toronto, Ontario. Since these fairs are usually annual events, many have developed permanent buildings over the years. Most of these are large barn-like structures. These buildings are used to display new products for farm life, such as tractors, home furnishings and water systems. Several barns are usually necessary to house all the horses, cows, pigs, goats, sheep, chickens and other animals in competition. There must also be room to display all the
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vegetables, berries and fruits in competition. Finally, there is space for handicrafts, artwork, baked goods, and jams and jellies. Usually, there is a grandstand, which is a stage with wooden seats around it. Here entertainers perform for an audience during the fair. Country and western singers are usually popular at fairs, but so are comedians, clowns, dancers and musicians. There may also be other contests such as a beauty competition for queen of the fair, tests of strength for the men or pie-eating events. Most fairs also have a racetrack, which is used for horse racing, or, in some cases, auto-racing. Fairs have helped to improve animal breeds, and races encourage the breeding of fast horses. Ploughing contests test the strength and steadiness of horses, and so do pulling contests. This spirit of competition has led to improvements in all areas of farming. Every kind of grain, fruit, vegetable, berry and animal is tested, and only the best win a ribbon. This encourages fairness to improve their products. Farm women compete to produce the best homemade food and crafts. Many kinds of fruit and vegetables are stored in glass jars for the winter. The best of these also receive prizes. Most fairs have a dining area where this good food is served to the public. The goal of improving farming is sponsored by the governments of Canada and the U.S.A. Four-H Clubs are youth organizations that encourage farm children to take an interest in farming. Four-H Clubs aim at improving the heads, hearts, hands and health of their members. There are also women's organizations, such as the Women's Institutes in Canada, which work to make the life of farm families better. Fall fairs have taken over the idea of the midway from the circus. The midway has rides like Ferris wheels, merry-gorounds, and roller coasters. It also has games of chance and skill, such as trying to throw a small hoop over a large bottle. One nice thing about fall fairs is that they are fun for the whole family. Children enjoy the midway and the farm animals. Women like the crafts, food and household exhibits. Men like the machinery, the horse races and the crop exhibits. Everyone likes the grandstand shows. Nowadays, not so many people live on farms. But people from towns and cities still enjoy going to fall fairs. They are part of our North American heritage. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #2 Hiroshima North American children know about Hiroshima. They are taught about the dangers of nuclear war. Sometimes they learn the details of the damage that was done. They learn about what happened at 8:15 am on August 6, 1945. People were eating breakfast; children were going to school and adults going to work. There was a blinding flash of light, a scorching heat, and a mushroom cloud rose up. People close to the explosion were instantly vaporized. Many of those further away would die from burns and radiation. Sixty thousand houses were destroyed immediately. One concrete structure remained standing, although it was damaged. The local government left the Atomic Dome standing as a memorial to the explosion. Even those who were not seriously injured in the explosion later became very ill. They became very sick from radiation poisoning. Many developed leukemia. Sadako Sasaki was two years old when the bomb exploded. She was apparently uninjured and grew up normally until she was twelve. Then she developed leukemia, a disease of the blood and bone marrow. Sadako began to fold paper cranes to protect her from the illness. However, she died in 1955 before she reached 1,000 paper cranes. Her example inspired the
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Children's Monument at Hiroshima. There is a Peace Museum in Hiroshima which has objects left by the explosion. These include bottles, metal, stones and tiles twisted into strange shapes by the heat. There are objects on which people were vaporized, so that their shape appears like a shadow on the material. There are bits of burnt clothing and many photographs. Why was the bomb dropped? World War II was a long and bitter war. The rules of war, which said not to kill civilians, were forgotten. Hitler bombed London, hoping to break the spirit of the English. Then England bombed Germany to destroy the factories and kill the people who worked in them. Americans wanted revenge for the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. The U.S. government had spent six billion dollars developing the A-bomb and wanted to use it. Some say that they also wanted to warn the Russians not to cause trouble for America. When American forces advanced on Japan in 1945, they had to decide what to do. Would Japan surrender, or would they fight to the last soldier? American leaders feared that they might lose many men by an invasion. Dropping the atomic bomb would end the war very quickly. President Truman made the decision to use it. Since then, most people have felt that this decision was wrong. It was such a terrible thing to do to people - children, old people, women, men and babies. Hiroshima inspired many people to try to "ban the bomb." They wanted to ensure that atomic bombs would not be used again. Even some of the scientists and aircrews involved in making and dropping the bomb at Hiroshima wanted it banned. Perhaps if we can all remember what happened that day, there will be no more Hiroshima's. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #3 Niagara Falls Niagara Falls is one of the world's leading tourist attractions. Millions of people around the world visit here each year. Summers at the Falls are especially busy, with traffic jams and parking problems. However, the Falls are beautiful in winter too. Many have asked why people travel so far to see water falling over a cliff. The size and beauty of Niagara Falls help to make it special. While many falls are higher than Niagara, very few are as wide or have such a volume of water. It also helps that Niagara is relatively easy to travel to. When the first Europeans came to Niagara, the Falls were surrounded by forest. The noise of the Falls could be heard miles away, before they were actually seen. The first visitors were filled with horror at the sight. Later, fear ceased to be the main emotion inspired by the Falls. Later, visitors were impressed by the beauty and grandeur of the Falls, which overwhelmed them with wonder. By the 1830s, people were able to come to the Falls by railway. As more and more people came, the tourist industry developed. Early tourism was not well regulated, and there were many complaints about cheats and swindles. Today, there are similar complaints about tourist junk and high prices. The majority of tourists stay on the Canadian side. There are two falls, separated by an island. Since the Niagara River forms the boundary here between Canada and the United States, each country has one of the falls. The Canadian Horseshoe Falls is wider and more impressive than the American Rainbow Falls. About nine times more water goes over the Canadian Falls. Nonetheless, there is much to be seen on the American side.
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The island in the middle, Goat Island, is one of the best places to view the falls and rapids. It is on the American side. Newly married couples began coming to Niagara Falls when it was still a secluded, peaceful and romantic spot. It is still popular with newly-weds as a relatively inexpensive and convenient place to spend their honeymoon. Besides being beautiful, Niagara Falls is also very useful. Their falling water is the power behind several of the largest hydroelectric stations in the world. Much of the electric power used in this part of North America comes from Niagara Falls. In order to harness this power, half of the flow of water is channeled away from the falls during the night, and during the non-tourist season. Probably most visitors don't notice the difference. Niagara has attracted many kinds of people over the years. Businessmen have come to profit from the tourists. Daredevils have come to make a name for themselves. Some have gone over the falls in a barrel, while others have walked above the falls on a tightrope. Poets and artists have visited here to capture its beauty. Lovers have come to gaze on its romantic scenery. All of these, and many others, have helped to make Niagara Falls world famous. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #4 Cowboys The Golden Age of the American cowboy was short lived. It began in the 1860s with the great cattle drives from Texas north to Kansas. By 1890, when railroads had reached remote areas, there was no more need for large-scale cattle drives. Of course, cowboys have a history before 1860. In fact, there were Mexican cowboys long before that. The Spanish conqueror of Mexico, Hernan Cortes, brought cattle with him 1521. Cortes also branded his cattle with a three cross design. The Spanish sharphorned cattle roamed the deserts and prairies freely. Eventually, they found their way to Texas. American settlers in Texas interbred their animals with the Spanish breed - the Texas longhorn cow was the result! It was famous for its bad temper and aggressiveness. The Longhorn was a dangerous animal, with each of its horns measuring up to three and one-half feet long. After the American Civil War ended in 1865, disbanded soldiers, who were former black slaves, and young men seeking adventure headed west. At that time, there were about five million cattle in Texas. Back in the East, there was a big demand for beef. By this time, railways from the east extended as far west as Kansas. It was still more than 600 miles from South Texas to the railway. Between the two places there were rivers to cross, Indian tribes, badlands and other problems. A fur trader named Jesse Chisholm had driven his wagon north in 1865. Cowboys and cattle followed the Chisholm Trail north to Abilene, Kansas. This cattle trail became the most famous route for driving cattle, until it was barred with barbed wire in 1884. In 1867, cattle dealer Joseph G. McCoy built pens for 3,000 cattle in the little town of Abilene. Soon Abilene was the most dangerous town in America. After the long cattle drive, cowboys who had just been paid went wild. Sheriff "Wild Bill" Hickok tamed Abilene in 1871 by forcing cowboys to turn over their guns when they arrived in town. Other towns replaced Abilene as the wildest town in the West - Newton, Wichita, Ellsworth and Dodge City. In Kansas a herd of 3,000 Texas longhorns might sell for $100,000 making the rancher rich. The cowboys might get $200 in wages, which often disappeared on drink, women
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and gambling. Getting cattle to Kansas was far from easy. One of the biggest difficulties was getting the herd across rivers, especially when the river was high. There were no bridges. In 1871, 350 cowboys driving 60,000 cattle waited two weeks for the water level in the Red River to go down. Food for men and animals was also difficult to find at times. An early cattleman developed the chuck wagon, which were both a supply wagon and a portable kitchen. In the 1870s, there were probably 40,000 cowboys in the West. After the prairies were fenced in, there was less work. Large ranches still employ cowboys to round up the cattle for branding or for sale. Even today, about 20,000 cowboys still work in North America. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #5 George W. Bush Jr. George W. Bush Jr. was inaugurated as the 43rd President of the United States on January 20, 2001. Of course, people knew that he was the son of the 41st President, George H. W. Bush. He had also been Governor of Texas since 1994. However, aside from this, he was not very well known outside of Texas. Why then did so many people want him to run for president in 2000? Many republicans thought that the democrats could be defeated in 2000. But they themselves lacked a candidate with strong appeal. As the election approached, leading publicans worried about whom to support. Some of the most powerful republicans were state governors. They began to look around at each other for a possible candidate. Most eyes turned to George W. Bush, the Governor of Texas. In November 1998, Bush was reelected as Governor by an impressive margin. By now, Bush was the leading republican candidate in the polls. Of course, one advantage that Governor Bush had was a familiar name. In fact, when he did well in some early polls, it is likely that some people really voted for his father. They thought that George H. W. Bush was running again. The Bush family was able to swing a lot of support to George W. It also helped that his brother, Jeb, was now Governor of Florida. Parents George and Barbara were both born in eastern United States. But in 1948, George moved to Texas where he made a fortune in the oil business. He went into politics in the 1960s and 70s and served in a number of important positions. He was Ronald Reagan's Vice President from 1981-1989, and President from 1989-1993. George W. was born in 1946, the oldest of the Bush children. Three more brothers and two sisters were also born. The youngest sister died of leukemia as a child. George W. attended the same prestigious eastern colleges as his father. Then he came back to Texas and was a fighter pilot with the Texas Air National Guard. During the early '70s he wandered from place to place, trying different jobs. After attending Harvard Business School from 1972 to 1975, he came back to Texas and started his own oil exploration company. Although it wasn't as profitable as his father's company, he eventually sold his stock shares for a considerable amount of money. In 1978, he ran for the Senate of the United States but was defeated. He became closely involved in his father's campaign for president in 1988. Here he developed a lot of the political skills he was later able to use to run for office himself. In 1989, back in Texas, George W. organized a group that bought the Texas Rangers
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baseball team. He later sold the team in 1998 and made a $14 million dollar profit. In 1994, he surprised the political world by defeating the incumbent Governor of Texas. As Governor, he pushed ahead with an energetic program, which reflected neoconservative values. However, George W. did not appear as an ideologist to people. Even his opponents were willing to work with him. When he ran for president in 2000, Bush described himself as a "compassionate conservative." Only time will tell how successful Bush will be as U.S. President. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #6 Handel's "Messiah" George Frederick Handel was a native of Germany and spoke with a German accent all his life. Most of that life, however, was spent in London, England. As a young musician, Handel's sponsor was the Elector of Hanover. Later on, when the Elector became King George I of England, he continued to sponsor Handel. The young Handel went to Italy to study opera. Opera had become a very fashionable entertainment for the upper classes. Handel traveled to England in 1711 and made an immediate success with his operas. Queen Anne granted him a royal pension for life in 1713. Because of this initial success, Handel tried to start a permanent opera company in London. But this failed and Handel lost money. Since operas used full stage settings with costumes, scenery and props, they were expensive to produce. Handel decided to produce oratorios in which the parts were simply sung without actions. On August 22, 1741, Handel began to work on his oratorio "The Messiah." The text was made up of passages from the Bible relating to the birth, life and death of Jesus. Handel worked on it feverishly, missing meals and going without sleep. He finished it twenty-four days later. When he was asked how he felt on completing it, Handel said, "I thought I saw all Heaven before me, and the great God Himself." In the fall of 1741, Handel received an invitation from the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland to present operas and concerts there. Handel traveled from London to Dublin with his entire luggage and many of his singers. However, in order to rehearse on the way, he had to hire local people to fill in. Once, the composer soundly criticized one local singer who failed to meet his standards. Handel was warmly received in Dublin, where his concerts were sold out. Even his rehearsals were considered newsworthy by the local papers. "The Messiah" was first publicly performed on April 13, 1742. Seven hundred people squeezed into a 600-seat theatre to hear it. A notice had requested that ladies attend in hoopless skirts, and that gentlemen come without their swords. A Dublin paper reported, "Words are wanting to express the exquisite delight it afforded to the admiring crowded audience." All proceeds were donated to charity, as the church choirs had refused to participate except on those conditions. Handel returned to London in August 1742 and prepared the oratorio for the London stage. "The Messiah" made its London debut on March 23, 1743, with King George II in the audience. It was during the Hallelujah Chorus that the King jumped to his feet and so initiated a tradition that has lasted ever since. With such oratories, Handel was able to re-establish his popularity and restore his finances in London. "The Messiah" continued to be performed. After conducting it on April 6, 1759, the old composer collapsed and had to be carried home. He died eight days
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later. "The Messiah" remains Handel's most popular work, combining wonderful music with inspiring religious sentiments. The Biblical text speaks of hope and salvation, and the music allows the text to soar into angelic songs. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #7 Ireland Ireland is an island in the Atlantic Ocean just west of Britain. For much of its history, it has been an advantage to Ireland to be far from the mainland. The Romans or the other early Empires never conquered Ireland. It was the remoteness of Ireland that helped preserve much of Christian and classical culture. After the fall of the Roman Empire, wandering tribes destroyed much of what remained on the continent. Finally, it was Ireland's turn to be invaded. First, the Norsemen or Vikings attacked during the 800s and 900s. Then in the 1100s, the English invaded Ireland. Since that time, there has always been an English presence in Ireland. The conflict between the English and the Irish grew worse in the 1500s. Then the English became Protestant, and the Irish remained Catholic. In the 1600s, Oliver Cromwell tried to make Ireland Protestant by driving out the Catholics and bringing in Protestant settlers. In the centuries following, Irish Catholics had very few rights in their own country. The Catholic Irish were not allowed to vote until 1829. Since Irish Catholics were not allowed to own land, they were poor tenant farmers. They paid rent to the English landlords. The main food crop in the 1840s was potatoes. When these became infected by blight, thousands of Irishmen starved. Many others were evicted from their dwellings because they couldn't pay the rent. Hundreds of thousands of Irish took ship for North America. The Catholic Irish preferred to go to the United States because Canada was under British influence. However, many Protestant Irish went to Canada. The influence of the Irish on North American culture has been very great in many areas. Prominent Irish-Americans include Presidents John F. Kennedy and Ronald Reagan. Meanwhile, in Ireland itself, a strong independence movement developed. A rebellion against England in 1916 began a struggle that resulted in independence for most of Ireland. Some Protestant areas in Northern Ireland preferred to stay with England. Republican groups such as the Irish Republican Army wanted to "liberate" the north from British rule. Nowadays, conflict between Protestants and Catholics is limited to these northern counties. Constant attempts are being made to bring the conflict there to an end. Meanwhile, the Irish Republic, or Eire, has become prosperous again. It can sell its agricultural products to the European Common Market. Irish beer and whisky are sold all over the world. Ireland is also becoming known for its high-tech industries. Because of this relative prosperity, the population is increasing again, after a century and a half of decline. The Irish differ from other people because the vast majority of Irishmen live away from their homeland. However, this exodus from Ireland has helped to spread Irish music, culture and products around the world. On St. Patrick's Day (March 17th), nearly everyone becomes Irish for the day. Then there is a great party with Celtic music, Irish dancing, green beer and the wearing of the green. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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Article #8
Louisa May Alcott
New England in the early and middle years of the nineteenth century had a flourishing culture. People were passionately interested in ideas and education. Most New Englanders were strongly opposed to slavery. They were also concerned about other social issues. New ideas resulted in new kinds of writing. These ideas included the importance of doing what seemed right for them, no matter how different it was from what other people thought. People also believed that nature gave them guidance in our lives and that it was important to live close to nature. These and other ideas were expressed through teaching and writing. Bronson Alcott was one of those who looked at the world in a new way. He looked for work as a teacher so that he could pass on his ideas to others. However, very few parents wanted Mr. Alcott to teach their children. And very few people were interested in hearing his speeches or reading his books. As a result, the Alcott family was very poor Fortunately for Bronson, he married a very capable and energetic woman. Mrs. Abigail Alcott helped to earn money to support the family and did most of the work involved in looking after the four Alcott girls. The oldest daughter, Anna, was quiet and serious. She rarely got into trouble and was a good helper at home. The second daughter was Louisa May Alcott, who became a writer. She was adventurous and cared very little for rules. She was always saying and doing things that got her into trouble. The third daughter, Elizabeth, was very kind and good-natured. All the others loved her. As a young woman, Elizabeth had a severe case of scarlet fever and never fully recovered. She died at age 23. The youngest sister, May, was talented, but she was rather spoiled. Because there was never enough money, the Alcott girls felt pressure to work at an early age. But this did not stop them from having fun. Louisa wrote little plays that she and her sisters performed at home. They all enjoyed the woods and ponds around Concord, Massachusetts, where they live most of these years. When they moved back to Boston in 1848, Anna took a job looking after other people's children, and Louisa looked after the house. Meanwhile, their mother worked outside the home. While working on laundry or sewing, Louisa was thinking up stories. At night she would write them down. When she was eighteen, she began selling poems and stories to magazines. Within ten years, Louisa was earning a substantial income from writing. One day her publisher suggested that she write a story for girls. At first Louisa didn't like the suggestion. But when she started to write, the ideas came rapidly. Her book was based on her own family and her own childhood. "Little Women" was published in 1868 and was an immediate success. The March family was very much like the Alcotts. Mrs. Alcott resembles "Marmee." "Meg" is like Anna, and "Jo" is like Louisa herself. "Beth" is based on Elizabeth and "Amy" on May Alcott. Many of the situations in the book happened to the Alcott family. Nonetheless, many characters and incidents were invented. "Little Women" and its sequel opened up a new kind of writing for children. While these books did have a moral, they were more lively and interesting than earlier children's writing. "Little Women" inspired many writers later to write more realistic accounts of childhood. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #9 Niagara-On-The-Lake
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Niagara-on-the-Lake is a little town at the mouth of the Niagara River. It is only twelve miles north of Niagara Falls. It used to be true that very few tourists would bother to travel from the Falls down to Niagara-on-the-Lake. Nowadays, however, the little town itself is a major tourist attraction. The town has a remarkable history. The area played an important role in both the American Revolutionary War and the War of 1812. As a result, the little town has two forts, Fort George and Fort Mississauga. When Fort George was reconstructed for the public in the 1930s, Niagara-on-the-Lake got its first big tourist attraction. Because Niagara-on-the-Lake was the first capital of Ontario, it has many significant "firsts." There was the first parliament in the province, the first legal society, the first library, the first newspaper, the first museum building, and many more "firsts." Besides its history, the town, which is bordered by Lake Ontario and the Niagara River, has beautiful scenery. On a summer's day, visitors can watch the sailboats going out the river to the lake. On the landside, Niagara is part of the fruit belt of Ontario. Peaches, pears, apples, cherries and strawberries grow here in abundance. There are also long rows of vines, and winemaking has recently become a major industry. The mild humid climate allows plants to flourish. The trees, especially the oaks, grow to remarkable heights. Flowering trees and shrubs perfume the air in the spring. Gardens are often spectacular for much of the year. Because of this, Niagara-on-the-Lake attracts many painters and photographers. Many of the private homes also have a long history, and great care is taken to keep them looking their best. The biggest single attraction is the Shaw Festival Theatre. The Festival was founded in 1962 by a group of Shaw enthusiasts. Early productions were often held in the historic Court House on the main street, and plays still take place there. In 1973, however, a new 861 seat Shaw Theatre was built at the south end of town. Since then, traffic to Niagaraon-the-Lake has been steady all through the long summer season. In 1996, Niagara-on-the-Lake was voted "the prettiest town in Canada." Partly, it is the scale of things that makes the old town so attractive. The old town is only about eight blocks long by eight blocks wide. It has a population of little more than 1,000 people. Nonetheless, there is a lot for people to do and see. There are many interesting shops, old hotels, bookstores, art galleries, museums, a golf course, a marina, historic churches and cemeteries, several parks, three theatres and lots of restaurants. Because it is small, Niagara-on-the-Lake is a good place to walk around or bicycle around. There are also horse and wagon rides. Although the main street can be hectic in tourist season, one doesn't have to go far off the main street to get in touch with an older slower time. Most of the downtown buildings haven't changed much since the days of Queen Victoria, and tourists can still imagine that they are back in the days before computers and television -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #10 Newspapers All the great cities in the world now have newspapers. But newspapers, as we know them today, are not that old. The very first newspapers began long after the invention of printing. They started in Europe in the 1600s, and were usually only a couple of pages long. For a long time, newspapers were not very common. Governments didn't want public discussion of their policies and decisions. Often they closed down papers, or
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taxed them heavily. The "Stamp Tax" on newspapers and pamphlets was one of the causes of the American Revolution. Newspapers began to grow in size when they discovered advertising as a source of income. Nowadays, advertising is the main revenue source for most newspapers. As newspapers became more widely circulated, they could ask for more money for their advertisements. By the late eighteenth century, newspapers were in common use in Europe. The 1800s and early 1900s was the golden age of newspapers. Improvements in transportation, communication and printing processes made it easier to collect news from near and far and to publish papers more quickly and more cheaply. The Weekly Dispatch and the Times, both of London, England, were leading newspapers through much of the 1800s. The Times was one of the first papers to include illustrations. It was the first newspaper to use a steam engine to turn the presses. When the tax on newspapers was reduced in 1836, the Times was able to increase its size considerably. In 1840, it began to use the telegraph to collect news stories. In 1855 the tax on newspapers was finally lifted. The Times made its greatest reputation during the Crimean War between Britain and Russia. British armies, fighting in Russia's Crimean Peninsula, were not only unsuccessful in the war, but were suffering severely from illnesses. The Times sent out the world's first war correspondent, William Howard Russell, in 1854. His reports from the battle lines had a powerful effect on the British public. A War Fund was organized to help the soldiers. Russell forced the government to accept the offer of Florence Nightingale to organize nurses to travel to Crimea. A photographer, Roger Fenton, sent back photos from the war, which were published in the Times. Meanwhile in America, a more popular approach to newspapers had developed. The newspaper had spread west with the pioneers, and nearly every little settlement had its own paper. American newspapers were cheaper and livelier than British ones. They were aimed at the average person, rather than the governing class. Examples of the new style of editing and publishing were Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst. Hearst, especially, employed sensational and emotional writing, which aimed at stirring up the public to action. Hearst is sometimes accused of starting the Spanish-American War of 1898 with his over-heated editorials. Nonetheless, his methods were successful in raising circulation and were widely imitated. The modern newspaper contains more than hard news. In fact, news may be a fairly small part of it. Advertisements, gossip, show business, photos of celebrities, sports, stock market prices, horoscopes, comic strips, weather reports and much more are found in its pages. The modern newspaper is a total entertainment package. A question for the future is whether electronic newspapers will replace paper newspapers. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #11 Paul Kane, Frontier Artist Since Christopher Columbus first met American Indians in 1492, many Europeans had been fascinated by Indian life and culture. As a result, there was a demand in Europe for drawings and paintings of Native Americans. European artists who had never seen an Indian supplied most of this demand. But in the nineteenth century, several painters traveled into Indian Territory to make an authentic record of native life. One of the first artists to do this was the American painter George Catlin. In 1841, Catlin published a
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book of his work. Catlin's work helped inspire another important frontier artist, the Canadian Paul Kane. Paul Kane was born in Ireland in 1810. His family moved to Toronto, Ontario, Canada, when Paul was nine years old. The young boy was not very interested in school. At that time, there were still Indians living in wigwams in the Toronto area. Young Paul liked visiting the Indian village instead of going to school. Since Paul spent little time in school, he was largely a self-taught artist. He also became a surprisingly good writer, considering that he had not spent much time studying spelling or grammar. After working some years making and decorating furniture, Kane was ready to travel. He spent the years from 1836 to 1841 living and traveling in the United States. Then he traveled in Europe from 1841 to 1843, studying the great painters of the past. He was back in the U.S.A. until 1845, and then he returned to Toronto. Immediately upon his return, Kane headed into the wilderness areas around Georgian Bay, Sault Ste. Marie, and Lake Michigan. His plan was to sketch Indian life before it disappeared forever. American Indians were dying so rapidly from European diseases, such as measles and smallpox, that many people believed that they would soon vanish as a race. Their culture was threatened too. As white settlers demanded more land, Indians were being herded into small pieces of land called "reservations." Here they could no longer practice their traditional way of life. Kane wanted to capture Native American life while it still existed. Kane returned to Toronto at the end of 1845. He had received one good piece of advice and that was if he wanted to travel into the wilderness, he would have to go with experienced people. He was able to get the support of the Governor of the Hudson's Bay Company, Sir George Simpson. In May 1846, Kane joined the annual canoe fleet of fur traders going west. Kane would travel all through the wilderness areas of western Canada and northwestern U.S.A. During this time, he made hundreds of sketches of Indian life. Although Kane faced incredible hardships during his travels, he was able to see what he wanted to see. He was able to take part in one of the last great Buffalo hunts and killed two large bison himself. Traveling west with the fur traders he visited many forts and trading posts. He saw and painted a prairie fire. He shot a grizzly bear at close range and killed several wolves that attacked his horses. He learned to travel long distances on snowshoes in winter. Finally, he arrived at the Pacific coast, where he made some fine drawings of the west coast Indians. European diseases had reached there just before Kane. Fifteen hundred Indians had died near Fort Vancouver in the summer of 1848. One wealthy chief had ruled 1,000 warriors and had ten wives, four children and eighteen slaves. Now he had only one wife, one child and two slaves. Kane had not come too soon. However, there were tribes still unaffected by western culture and western diseases. Kane also traveled widely around the Columbia River in northwestern U.S.A. Everywhere he went, he sketched Indian chiefs and scenes of native life. On his return trip, he encountered a large war party of 1,500 braves on the warpath against their traditional enemies. He was able to sketch the leading chief, Big Snake, who was later killed in single combat during the battle. When he arrived back in Toronto, Kane gave an exhibit of his sketches and watercolors. Most of the rest of his life was spent turning these drawings into finished paintings. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #12 Plains Indians
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The best known picture of an American Indian is a warrior in buckskin, riding a horse, wearing a headdress of eagle feathers and carrying a spear, or bow and arrow. This is a picture of a Plains Indian, and it appears in many Hollywood westerns and on the American five-cent piece. There were many tribes of Plains Indians; for the Northern American prairies or plains stretch from the northern forest of western Canada down to the States of Oklahoma and Texas in southern U.S.A. It is interesting that our image of the Plains Indian is only true for the last couple hundred years. It was not until the 1600s that Plains Indians began to ride horses. There were no horses in America until Spanish soldiers brought them in the 1500s and 1600s. Some of these horses escaped and ran wild on the prairies of America. It was these wild horses that the Plains Indians learned to tame. Before they had horses, the Indians hunted buffalo on foot. Buffalo were huge bison, or wild cattle, which traveled in very large herds. A big herd might have millions of buffalo. It was difficult to cross the prairie because these animals blocked your way. The Plains Indians had various ways of killing buffalo. Before they had horses, Indian hunters would quietly creep up close to the herd; then they would fire their arrows together. There was always the danger that the herd would stampede and trample the hunters. Another method was to drive the buffalo over a steep cliff. There are a number of places on the plains where this was done. Once the Plains Indians had horses, they preferred to hunt buffalo on horseback. When the tribes started to use guns, they could kill many buffalo. Artist Paul Kane describes a buffalo hunt in the Red River Valley in 1846. The hunters carried their bullets in their mouths so that they could shoot faster. They would ride right into the herd, shooting at close quarters. They would drop an article of clothes on the slain buffalo to mark it for themselves. Then they would continue the hunt. After the hunt, the Indians would skin the animals, and the women would dry the meat and store it in fat. A single hunt might kill more than 30,000 buffalo. The Plains Indians received nearly everything they needed from the buffalo. Of course, they used buffalo meat for food. They also used the buffalo skins for clothing, blankets, and the covering of their teepees. These teepees were cone-shaped tents, which were easy to put up and take down. Plains Indians were nomadic, and followed the animals they hunted. Since these animals were plentiful, Plains Indians usually led a comfortable life. They developed complex religions and social rituals, as well as specialized societies or clubs. There were also rituals and customs for hunting and warfare. Many Plains Indians fought hard against the settlement of the Great Plains. The American government discouraged the hunting of buffalo, because without the buffalo the Plains Indians would not be able to fight. With the buffalo disappearing, the Plains Indians had to give up fighting and move into government-sponsored reservations. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #13 Pocahontas and John Smith In 1606, King James of England approved the establishment of two colonies along the eastern coast of America. The northern colony in Maine lasted only a year. The southern one at Jamestown in Virginia became England's first permanent settlement in America. In 1607, the Virginia Company sent 104 settlers to Virginia. The settlers lived in tents all summer. By September, more than 60 were dead because they lacked good food or water.
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The leaders of the colony were not energetic and did little to make the settlers find food. One member of the company, Captain John Smith, was determined that the colony would survive. Smith pressured the colonists to build huts, a storehouse, and a church. He made daring trips to Indian villages, demanding that they give the settlers food in return for beads and copper. He threatened settlers who were trying to leave the colony and go back to England. On one of his trips to the interior, Indians attacked John Smith. They killed his two companions but captured him alive. He was taken first to the local chief. This chief was impressed by Smith's compass and spared his life. His captors dragged Smith from village to village. He finally arrived at the town belonging to Powhatan. Powhatan was the great chief for all of the tribes in that region. Powhatan and his advisors talked about what to do with Smith. Suddenly, Smith was dragged forward, and his head was pushed against a stone. The warriors raised their clubs to kill Smith. Then Pocahontas, who was Powhatan's twelve-year-old daughter, begged for his life. Her words had no effect, so Pocahontas ran to Smith. She took his head in her arms and laid her own head against his head. Smith was released and went back to Jamestown. Soon after Smith returned, one hundred new settlers from England arrived. It was a very cold winter, and in January, Jamestown was accidentally set on fire. The settlers suffered from cold and hunger the rest of the winter. Every four or five days, Pocahontas and her attendants came. They brought food for the hungry settlers. Even so, half of them died. In the summer, John Smith explored that part of the coast of America. He made a map that would be very valuable for future sailors and settlers. On his return, Smith was elected leader of the colony at Jamestown. However, some settlers did not like having to follow rules. Some encouraged the Indians to try to kill Smith. Chief Powhatan agreed. He also refused to supply food to the colony, hoping to starve them out. Pocahontas warned Smith about the plot against his life. Smith had to fight off several attempts to kill him. Finally, the colony seemed to be growing, and the Indians became peaceful. But in late 1609, Smith was injured in an explosion and returned to England. Pocahontas remained a friend to the colony. She married John Rolfe, one of the settlers. In 1616, she traveled to England with her husband and son. There she saw John Smith once again. She was so surprised to see him that she was unable to speak for several days. Pocahontas had believed that Smith was dead. The following year she died and was buried in England. Pocahontas' love for Smith, and Smith's determination to fight for the colony, had saved Jamestown and given the English their first colony in America. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #14 Remember The Alamo! The first Europeans in the American Southwest were Spanish explorers and conquerors. They were followed by religious orders that set up missions to Christianize the Indians. One of these missions was San Antonio de Valero; it was founded in 1718 in what is now San Antonio, Texas. Later, the mission structure became known as The Alamo. In 1821, Moses Austin had persuaded the Spanish authorities to give him a charger to settle 200,000 acres in Texas. The elder Austin died shortly after this. Five weeks later, his son Stephen Austin traveled to San Antonio to have this charter confirmed by the Spanish governor. In 1822, Austin led 150 settlers into Texas. When Austin learned
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afterwards that Mexico was now independent of Spain, he journeyed to Mexico City to have his charter reconfirmed. The Mexicans appointed Austin regional administrator for his colony. Texas grew rapidly. Cotton farming and cattle ranching were profitable and attracted American settlers. By 1830, there were 16,000 Americans in Texas--four times the Spanish-Mexican population. Sam Houston had been a successful soldier and politician. He was a friend and supporter of President Andrew Jackson. However, personal problems and political difficulties led him to leave the U.S.A. for Texas. Meanwhile, the struggle for control of Mexico had been won in 1833 by Santa Ana. However, the independent thinking of the Texans infuriated Santa Ana. He had Stephen Austin thrown in jail, and sent an army into Texas. Austin was released from jail in time to organize the defense of Texas. The Mexican army was besieged inside the Alamo, and after fierce fighting, surrendered. The Mexicans were allowed to go home. Sam Houston was now elected the State's supreme commander. Not long after this, Santa Ana approached Texas with an army of 6,000 men. Houston decided not to meet Santa Ana in open battle but to wait for an advantage. He sent frontiersman Jim Bowie to the Alamo. Bowie's orders were to leave San Antonio and destroy the Alamo. When Bowie arrived, however, Texas volunteers were preparing the Alamo for a siege. Bowie and his men pitched in to help. Other volunteers came. The fiery William Travis arrived with 25 men. Then, the famous frontiersman, Davy Crockett, came with a dozen Tennessee sharpshooters. When Santa Ana attacked, there were 183 Americans inside the fort. Santa Ana brought up cannon to bombard the Alamo. As the walls began to crumble, 4,000 Mexicans attacked from all four sides. The Mexicans overcame all resistance because of their large numbers, but they suffered very heavy losses. All the American defenders were killed. While the battle was raging, the Texans back at the colony declared their independence from Mexico. Sam Houston now gathered men to fight the Mexican army. At first, he retreated while waiting for a suitable opportunity. When Santa Ana's rapid advance left the bulk of the Mexican army behind, Houston prepared to fight. Santa Ana's advance troops moved into swampy land by the San Jacinto River. Houston's men attacked while the Mexicans were having their midday siesta. Their battle cry was "Remember the Alamo!" The battle was soon over. Many Mexicans were killed, but only a couple of Texans were killed. Santa Ana was a prisoner. Santa Ana readily agreed now to recognize Texas as an independent republic. Ninety years later, in 1845, Texas became the 28th State of the U.S.A. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #15 Gribbio St. Francis of Assisi, who lived in Italy in the early thirteenth century, was known for his love of animals. He was the first person who celebrated the birth of Jesus by gathering live animals around a manger. He often talked to the birds as he traveled along. Sometimes, the birds would fly down and sit on his head, shoulders, knees and arms. But the best-known animal story concerns St. Francis and the Wolf of Gribbio. St. Francis was known for his humility and his unwillingness to hurt anyone. Once, when one of his
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followers spoke harshly to some bandits, St. Francis told the man to run after the bandits and apologize. In the same way, St. Francis thought of animals as his brothers and sisters. Once when he was warned about some dangerous wolves, he replied that he had never harmed Brother Wolf, and didn't expect the wolf to harm him. While St. Francis was staying the hill town of Gribbio, he heard about a large, fierce wolf. The townspeople were terrified of this wolf that had eaten both domestic animals and humans. St. Francis decided to help the people and went out to talk to the wolf. The people watched in horror as the wolf came running to attack St. Francis. But the saint made the sign of the cross. Then he said to the wolf that, in the name of Jesus, it should stop hurting people. The wolf then lay down at St. Francis' feet. St. Francis addressed a little sermon to the wolf. He recounted all the terrible things that the wolf had done. But he added that he wanted to make peace between the wolf and the townspeople. The wolf nodded its head in approval. In return for the wolf's agreement to keep the peace, St. Francis promised him that he would arrange for the townspeople to feed him. When he asked the wolf never again to harm any person or animal, the wolf nodded again. Then the wolf put out its paw as a sign that it would keep its promise. The wolf walked beside St. Francis back into Gribbio. When a crowd assembled, the saint preached to them about how God had allowed the wolf to terrify them because of their sins. He told them to repent, and God would forgive them. Then he spoke of the promise that the wolf had made and what he had promised the wolf in return. The people agreed to feed the wolf regularly, and the wolf again indicated that it would not hurt anyone. Again, it put its paw in St. Francis' hand. The wolf and the people kept the agreement. Two years later the wolf died. The people remembered how it no longer hurt anyone and that not a single dog ever barked at it. The townspeople of Gribbio lamented its death. Whenever it went through town, it had reminded them of the virtues and holiness of St. Francis. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #16 Summertime In North America, July and August are holiday months. Most schools and colleges are not in session then. Families look for activities to keep the children amused. Although not all workers get a full two months of holidays, most people take a holiday in the summer. The summer begins with a national holiday. In Canada, July 1st is Canada Day. In the U.S.A., July 4th is Independence Day. A lot of families are soon on the road. Some travel to cottages by the lake. Some go sightseeing or camping. In Canada, especially, the summers are short. So people try to make the most of them. In much of Canada, and parts of the northern U.S.A., are woodlands dotted with lakes. These regions of rocks, rivers, pine trees and wild animals are not usually suitable for farming. However, they are ideal places to spend a summer holiday. They are far from the cities. The woods are quiet and peaceful. People fish, go boating or swimming, have barbeques outside, or play outdoor sports. Some people spend their whole summer at the cottage. Others go for a week or two. City people who don't have a cottage like to go to parks and swimming pools in the city. If they are near a lake or ocean, they may go there for the day. Many museums, libraries and art galleries have programs for children in the summer.
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Swimming is probably the favorite summer sport. It feels wonderful on a very hot day to jump into the cool water. Swimming is also excellent exercise. Besides swimming, baseball and football are also popular in the summer. Spending an afternoon or evening at a baseball game is a favorite summer pastime. Summer is also a favorite time to catch up on reading. Stories of adventures and love novels are favorite light reading. But summer is especially a time for traveling across the country. Some people have a camper or trailer that they can live in. Some stay in campgrounds and sleep in tents. Others stay at hotels or motels, while others rent cottages or cabins for a week or two. Most trips are by car. Many people visit national parks and other wildlife areas. Of course, trips along the ocean, and the lakes are favorites. Along the Atlantic Ocean, the coasts of New England and Canada's Maritime Provinces are especially popular. On the Pacific coast, tourists travel from California all the way up to Alaska. Boat cruises along the shores of British Columbia and Alaska are especially popular. Of course, some people find it most relaxing just to stay at home. Others cannot afford to travel. If you have an air-conditioned house, with a television, video player, CD player and computer, then it can be very pleasant to stay at home. A lot of new movies are released at the theatres in the summer. Air-conditioned theatres with new movies and lots of pop and popcorn are favorite summer places. After two months of summer activities, most people are ready to go back to school and work. But they usually have lots of happy memories to take back with them. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #17 Telephone Systems When Alexander Graham Bell developed the telephone in the 1870s, it was fairly simple to use. You talked into the mouthpiece and then held it to your ear to listen. For a century of so, using the telephone meant either contacting the operator to dial a number, or dialing yourself. After that, all you had to do was talk or listen. Nowadays, the telephone has become a very complex instrument; it rivals the computer as to the number of possible uses. Answering machines have been around for several decades, but they are now being replaced by voicemail. Voicemail does away with the need for an answering machine. Messages are stored on the system. That means that it is possible to forward the message to someone else's phone, or transfer the call to a more convenient phone of your own. You can also use "call pickup," so that anyone in your group can answer another's phone. Conference calls have become very common. This is when one person phones first one person, then another, and keeps adding people to the telephone conversation. This can regularly be done with up to six people. It is very useful for business discussions where different people need to talk about the same thing. It also speeds up the process of consensus, and allows everybody to be in on the decision or discussion. The modern phone has many more features. If you don't want the caller to know what is being said in your office, you can push the "mute" button. If you want to hang up without putting the receiver down, press "goodbye." If you don't want to receive calls, just forward them all into your voicemail. Newer phones will indicate when you have voicemail messages. If you have trouble with these features, an automatic voice will tell you your options. This help-system is built into the telephone. For example, the help-voice will tell you how to set up a distribution
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list, so that you can send the same voice message to a number of people. It will also tell you how to send a message directly onto someone's voicemail. You can designate your message to go to the top of the recipient's voicemail list. You can also program it so that the recipient cannot forward it. Some systems have limits on how much space can be used for individual voicemail. There are a number of courtesies that voicemail users should follow. Your greeting on your voicemail should be simple, polite and clear. If you are unable to take calls for any reason, you might want to explain that in your recorded greeting. If you are on vacation, you might want to include that information in your greeting. Don't use voicemail as a way to avoid answering the telephone. Some people use voicemail to screen calls; this can be annoying to someone who can never contact you directly. Check your messages regularly and reply to them promptly. Enjoy the telecommunications revolution! -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #18 Texas The state of Texas is famous for having the biggest and best of everything. Before Alaska became a state, Texas was the largest American state. It was also famous for its huge cattle ranches. Cotton is a major crop, but much of the wealth comes from oil and gas. People think of Texans as being wealthy because there have been lots of cattle and oil millionaires. In the late nineteenth century, Texas cattlemen used to drive their herds north to Kansas. There a train to the east shipped the cows. Eventually, the railroad came to Texas and the great cattle drive stopped. By then, many Texans owned large ranches and were quite wealthy. In the twentieth century, oil has made many Texans wealthy. Oil refining has led to chemical industries and synthetic products. Most Texans now live in cities. Many oil companies have their headquarters in Dallas. Other large manufacturing cities are Houston, Corpus Christi, Fort Worth and Austin, which is the Capital of Texas. Several cities, such as San Antonio and El Paso, have a strong Spanish influence. This dates back to the first Spanish visitors in the sixteenth century. The old mission at San Antonio is famous as the Alamo, where an important battle for Texas independence was fought. Texas is a huge area with mountains, deserts, prairies, rivers and islands. The rugged beauty of its grasslands and deserts attracts many tourists. For a state that is mostly dry, Texas has a remarkable variety of wildflowers in the spring. Its animals and birds differ from other parts of the U.S.A. Texas has the armored insect eater, the Armadillo; the swift running bird, the Roadrunner; prairie dogs, jackrabbits, kangaroo rats, wild pigs, horned lizards, and one hundred species of snakes! As might be expected also, it has many beautiful kinds of cacti and other desert plants. At its largest, Texas is more than 600 miles wide by 600 miles long. Such a large area develops a distinct culture of its own. And Texans are widely recognized by their accent and manner of speaking, their attitudes and interests and their sense of independence and self-reliance. Texas is also known for its beautiful women, who regularly win national beauty contests. Its men have a reputation for being rugged, for not talking more than they have to and for being straightforward and honest.
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Although many people think of cowboys and Indians when they think of Texas, it is a center for high-tech industries. The American space program has its headquarters in Houston, and Mission Control Center is there. Texas is also an important manufacturer of computers and other high tech products. Oil production is still important in Texas, but it ranks third as a source of revenue behind manufacturing and tourism. The colorful history of Texas and its wonderful scenery contribute to a thriving tourist industry. Texas is also an important business and financial area. Yes, even though times have changed, Texans proudly maintain that their state still has the biggest and the best of everything. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #19 The Ford Pinto Case Businessmen often complain that their profits are negatively affected by government regulations. On the other hand, history has proven that it is necessary to regulate business in at least one area--public safety. There is ample evidence that consideration for the safety of the public is not always a priority in business decisions. Back in 1912, the Titanic smashed into an iceberg, killing hundreds of people. It was going too fast through a large collection of icebergs, while attempting to set a speed record. Unfortunately, there were not enough lifeboats to accommodate the passengers. Usually when such a tragedy occurs, the company is not found guilty. Instead, safety regulations are enacted for future cases. In the future, ships were ordered to carry a sufficient supply of lifeboats. In 1978, the Ford Motor Company was indicted on the charge of homicide. This was the first time such a charge had been brought against an American corporation. It related to the deaths of three teenage girls who were burned up when their Ford Pinto was hit from behind. The prosecution charged that the Ford Company knowingly manufactured a dangerous car. Behind this story is the pressure on Ford to produce a small car to compete with imported vehicles. The Pinto was rushed into production in spite of warnings that the gas tank was in a dangerous position. It would have cost Ford an additional $11.00 per car to fix the problem. Ford decided not to. Later, Ford produced a cost-benefit analysis to justify their position. Estimating that the faulty design would cause 180 additional deaths, Ford valued these at $200,000 per person. This cost was far less than equipping 12.5 million vehicles with $11.00 protectors. So Ford felt that they had made the right decision. Ford executives were acquitted on the charge of homicide. Nonetheless, Ford had to pay out millions of dollars in out-of-court settlements. These were paid to families who had lost relatives in Pinto accidents. This case shows how far a company will go to protect its profits. For more than eight years, Ford lobbied the government not to tighten safety standards on cars. As long as the Pinto was profitable, Ford did not want to change the design. Although Ford made a lot of money on the Pinto, their reputation was tarnished. The Fort Pinto case is one of many which point to the need for governments to set safety standards. No business wants to recall its products, or leave them sitting idly in a warehouse, or expend large sums of money for upgrading and repairs. No airplane company wants to have its planes in the hangar when they could be in the air making money for the corporation. As a result, commercial companies are seldom motivated to
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look closely at product or service safety. This is especially true today when the "bottom line" in business is seen as a justification for every decision. For this reason, governments have to oversee issues of public safety. Most businesses are too busy working on profits to have much time or concern for doing so. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #20 The Golden Man ? El Dorado When Christopher Columbus sailed west from Spain in 1492, he was trying to reach the Spice Islands (which today are called Indonesia). Spices were very scarce and valuable in Europe at this time. No one knew that two vast oceans and the American continents lay between Europe and Asia. Columbus did not find spices in America, but he did bring home some gold trinkets. The American Indians wore these as jewellery. Gold, not spices, was to become the biggest motive for exploration. Expeditions into the interior of the Americas were very costly and very risky. Only by promising the authorities huge profits could sailors and soldiers raise money for their expeditions. They also needed to promise rich rewards in order to get followers and crews. If a leader returned to Europe without gold and jewels, he might end up in jail. No wonder the Spanish conquerors were always searching for gold. At first, the Spaniards stayed around the coasts of the Caribbean Sea, but stories of gold in the interior tempted them to explore inland. They asked the Indians where their gold jewellery came from. The Indians would point further inland. They said that a wealthy people lived in the high mountains that traded gold and emeralds for pearls, cotton and shells. The Spanish Emperor had given the rights to exploit present-day Venezuela and Colombia to his German bankers in 1528. So Germans--Dalfinger, Federmann and Hohermuth--led a series of expeditions into the jungles, grasslands and mountains. Meanwhile, Spanish conquerors had found immense riches in gold and silver. Hernando Cortes had captured the Kingdom of the Aztecs in Mexico in 1519. He had sent immense treasures to Europe. Soon after this, Francesco Pizarro began to explore the west coast of South America. In 1531, Pizarro invaded Peru and destroyed the Kingdom of the Incas. Pizarro melted down the gold and silver treasures of the Incas, and sent gold and silver bricks back to Spain. The rush to find more gold became very heated. Rumours came down from the mountains of Colombia about a golden man - el hombre Dorado. There were stories about a king so rich that he wore gold dust instead of a coat. Colombia was the Kingdom of the Chibchas. They were a trading people who traded salt and emeralds for gold, cotton, pearls, and shells. The actual gold did not come from their kingdom. It was found in the mountain rivers, and brought to the Chibchas for refining and metalwork. Several armies converged on Chibcha territory. The first to arrive was the Spaniard Quesada, coming up the Magdalene River from the Caribbean. He found the chief cities of the Chibchas and seized their gold and emeralds. Shortly afterwards, one of Pizarro's captains arrived from Peru and Ecuador. Then the German Federmann arrived from Venezuela. Quesada gave the latecomers some gold and jewels to ease their disappointment. Quesada's men also found out about the Golden Man. High in the mountains was a lake created by a meteorite. The Indians believes that the 'golden god' from the sky now lived at the bottom of the lake. When a new leader of the tribe was elected, he was covered in
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grease, and fine gold dust was blown over his body so that he appeared to be made of gold. He was taken out to the middle of the lake on a raft. He would jump into the lake, and stay in the water till the gold dust was washed off. It was considered an offering to the god. Gold ornaments were also tossed in the lake. Then the king and his followers would return to the shore. This ceremony was stopped several generations before the Europeans arrived. Many people were unwilling to believe that this was the whole story. They began to search for a golden city hidden in the jungle. Many explorers perished in this search. In their search for gold, the Spanish conquerors destroyed the great Indian civilizations of America. Towns and villages had been ruined, thousands of people killed and wonderful pieces of art melted down. Some Indians believed that gold must be a food that Europeans desperately needed to stay alive. In many cases, the Europeans destroyed the trading and social systems that had produced their wealth. When we think about the great achievements of a few conquerors and explorers, we are also sad about how much death and damage they caused. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #21 The Grand Canyon The Grand Canyon is one of the most spectacular sights in nature. It is found in one section of the valley of the Colorado River. The river begins its course high in the Rocky Mountains of the State of Colorado. The river travels a total of 1,400 miles through Colorado, Utah and Arizona and into the Gulf of California. It forms part of Arizona's border with Nevada and California. The Colorado River is a very swift and muddy river. It carries dirt and rocks down from the mountains. The story is told of an old fur trader who was attacked by Indians high up the river. His only escape was down the Colorado River in a small boat. It was a terrifying trip through rapids and around rocks at top speed. The fur trader was found some days later in very rough shape hundreds of miles down the river. No one would believe that he had come so far so fast. The Grand Canyon stretches for about 250 miles in the State of Arizona. The canyon was carved out by the flow of the river itself. In places the canyon is more than a mile deep. It stretches from four to 18 miles wide at the top. The canyon valley contains worn rocks that rise up like a mountain range. The canyon has been worn down through many layers of rock. The river has cut its way down through layers of sandstone, limestone and shape to the granite bedrock. The different layers are of different colours, and the rocks appear very beautiful, especially at sunrise and sunset. Because the canyon is so deep, the climate changes as you go down into the valley. At the top, the climate is typical of a mountain area, with evergreen trees. Next, you have typical forest trees. Third, there are plants like cacti that grow in warm deserts. Finally, there are sub-tropical plants at the valley bottom. Tourists can ride down the narrow trails to the bottom of the valley on mules. On one side is the rock wall of the canyon, and on the other side is a steep drop down to the bottom. Tourists have to trust their guide, and the mule that they are riding, to get them down safely. The trails zigzag back and forth, and the tourist going down travels much more than a mile. Some 1,000 square miles of the area became the Grand Canyon National Park in 1919. Because the Colorado River is very swift and runs through dry country, several dams
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have been built along it. These are designed to harness its power, save its water and provide recreational opportunities. The best-known dam is Hoover Dam, formerly Boulder Dam, on the Arizona-Nevada border. This impressive structure is 727 feet high, and 1,282 feet long. Elevators are used to carry workers up and down inside the dam. The water, which is backed up by the Hoover Dam, forms Lake Mead. Lake Mead is used to irrigate nearby land, as well as for boating and fishing. The dam itself is a major source of electric power for this section of the country. Visitors to the Grand Canyon are often filled with awe by the size and beauty of the canyon. People seem very small in comparison to the immense cliffs, valleys and the mighty river. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #22 The Niagara Park's Commission Niagara Falls, Canada, became a major tourist attraction in the mid-1830s. By this time, roads, canals and railways were able to bring people from urban centers, like New York and Boston. However, the chance for big profits attracted dishonest businessmen. One hotel in the 1860s was popularly known as the "Cave of the Forty Thieves." There were many complaints from tourists about tricks that were used to get their money. Some businessmen tried to put up fences around the Falls, so that all visitors would have to pay them to see the Falls. In time, these complaints reached the ears of important people. In 1873, Lord Dufferin, the Governor-General of Canada, proposed that the government buy all the land around the Falls. On the American side, New York State bought 412 acres around the American Rainbow Falls in 1885. In the same year, land was bought near the Canadian Horseshoe Falls and named Queen Victoria Park. A commission was formed to obtain control of all land along the Niagara River. This was made easier because a narrow strip along the river was already government land. However, the Commission wanted to preserve all the beautiful scenery along the river and near the Falls for the general public. The first commissioner of the parks was Sir Casimir Gzowski, a distinguished engineer of Polish birth. Before the Queen Victoria Park Commission began to buy up land besides the Falls, tourists had to pay for everything. There were no public washrooms, no drinking fountains, and no safety barriers around the Falls. As a result, it was not uncommon for tourists crowding close to the Falls, or hypnotized by the flow of the river, to step too close and fall in. The commission took care of these problems and also set up parks and picnic areas. In 1927, the Commission's name was changed to the Niagara Parks Commission. It now supervises numerous attractions and parks from Niagara-on-theLake on Lake Ontario, down to Fort Erie on Lake Erie. Each section of the 56-kilometer stretch of Niagara Parks has its own places of interest. These are joined by the Niagara Parkway, a road that runs the whole length of the river. Sir Winston Churchill called the parkway, "The prettiest Sunday afternoon drive in the world." The Niagara Parks Commission operates restaurants, parks and gardens, rides, museums and historic houses, golf courses, native sites and gift shops. Near the Falls are restaurants, parks, greenhouses, the "Journey Behind the Falls" and the "Maid of the Mist" boat ride. North of the Falls, at Niagara Gorge, are the Spanish Aero Car Ride and the Great Gorge Adventure. The Commission also operates a School of Horticulture, with large gardens. Queenston Heights is a park commemorating one of Canada's heroes, General Isaac Brock. In nearby Queenston are historic houses connected with two other
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important Canadians, Laura Secord and William Lyon MacKenzie. The Commission also operates two historic forts, dating from the War of 1812 - Fort George and Old Fort Erie. The Niagara Parks Commission has played a major role in making Niagara Falls and the Niagara River one of the leading tourist areas in the world. The Commission shows how governments can work to make visits to natural wonders like Niagara Falls a good experience for the general public. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #23 The Welland Canal Before railways and automobiles became common, transporting goods over long distances was a difficult chore. In early North America, roads were often bad or nonexistent. In the winter, snow and cold weather made travel difficult. Frontier farmers had trouble selling their crops because it was hard to get them to the cities. Often rivers and lakes were the best ways to travel. Fur traders carried their furs and other supplies in canoes. But even large canoes were not big enough to hold a shipment of wheat. Rapids and waterfalls meant that goods had to be taken out of the canoe and carried to the next body of calm water. One way to improve water transportation was to build a canal. In New York State, Governor DeWitt Clinton had constructed the Erie Canal from the Niagara River to the Hudson River, soon after the War of 1812. Because relations between the United States and Canada were still not very friendly, this was another reason to build a canal on the Canadian side. Canals could be used to move supplies and troops during wartime. Sometimes the British government would forbid Canadian farmers to sell food to the U.S.A. Without a canal to move their farm produce, crops were sometimes left to rot. A St. Catharines, Ontario, merchant named William Hamilton Merritt thought about all these things in the 1820s. He also thought that flourmills needed a more reliable source of water to operate. St. Catharines is on Twelve-Mile Creek below the Niagara Escarpment. This creek runs towards Lake Ontario. It rises above the Escarpment, which stands from 150 to 300 feet high, then runs towards Lake Ontario. If Merritt could join the Twelve-Mile Creek to one of the rivers, which ran to Lake Erie, the canal would provide transportation and waterpower. The problem was to find a way to move boats up the escarpment. From 1824 to 1829, Merritt and his friends hired labourers to dig away tons of dirt and rock. Nearly all the work was done with shovels, pickaxes, horses and wagons. In places, the ground was soft and landslides occurred. In other places, the men had to dig through solid granite rock. Merritt's main problem, however, was raising the money to pay for the construction. After sinking all the money that he, his family and friends had into the canal, more was needed. Merritt went to Toronto, New York and finally London, England to get the financial support he needed. The problem of getting the boats to climb the escarpment was solved by a series of 35 wooden locks. These carried a ship 327 feet upwards. The ship would enter a lock with a small amount of water. More water would come into the lock, lifting the boat another ten or fifteen feet. Then the ship would move into the next lock, and be lifted up again. Boats going in the opposite direction were lowered instead of lifted. The Welland Canal has been rebuilt three times since the first canal opened in 1829. Now
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large sea-going and lake vessels cross the Niagara Peninsula from Lake Ontario to Lake Erie. They carry grain, coal, iron ore, oil and many other bulk products. The Welland Canal remains one of the most important commercial waterways in the world. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #24 Wal-Mart Stores Wal-Mart is now the world's largest retail organization. Wal-Mart employs around 1.2 million people worldwide. In 2000, Wal-Mart had sales of more than $191 billion, with profits of $6.3 billion. Profits increased 16% from the previous year. People have come to expect that Wal-Mart's profits will increase substantially every year. Each year more stores are opened, and Wal-Mart expands into new countries. Wal-Mart also enters new areas of business nearly every year. Few people know that Wal-Mart is also a major real estate company. Sam Walton opened his Walton's Five and Dime in Bentonville, Arkansas, in 1950. Twelve years later he opened the first Wal-Mart in Bentonville. His business philosophy was simple-- good prices, great selection and a friendly greeting. Walton was known for the "Ten Foot Attitude." This means that any employee should greet any customer who is within ten feet of them. He emphasized that it is important to speak to people before they speak to you. Walton also believed that good deals from suppliers should be passed along to customers. The combination of low prices and friendly service is basic to WalMart's success. That one store in Bentonville has become 4,203 stores in the U.S.A., plus another 1,000 outside the United States. Walton died in 1992, but his business philosophy continues to be preached at Wal-Marts. Each store has greeters who meet the customers at the door, and deal with any special needs they have. Having greeters gives the effect of having more service clerks than Wal-Mart really has. Compared to some other department stores, Wal-Mart has relatively fewer employees. Wal-Mart also has the Wal-Mart Foundation, which sponsors numerous good causes. Among their programs are high school scholarship, fundraising for local hospitals and sick children, environmental concerns and community "matching grant' outreach. So, what's not to like about Wal-Mart? The main complaint is that their business style is extremely aggressive. Wal-Mart's attitudes towards manufacturers and suppliers are: "You do it our way, or we won't do business with you." This puts Wal-Mart at an advantage over smaller retailers who don't have the same retailing power. Wal-Mart has been known to demand that its suppliers provide products at discount for Wal-Mart store openings; levy fines for shipment errors; tell manufacturers what products, styles and colours to make, etc. Wal-Mart expects product delivery in two days, and expects manufacturers to cooperate with its promotional and retailing strategies. In effect, any company that works with Wal-Mart becomes one of their employees. Any company, which so dominates one area of the market, will have a lot of power. So far, Wal-Mart has been successful in getting what it wants, and providing customers with what they want. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #25 Yellowstone National Park The Rocky Mountains of North America are quite old. Even though they were very
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volcanic millions of years ago, only a couple was still active today. In Yellowstone National Park, however, there is a large area of land, which indicates recent volcanic activity. This area contains hot springs, geysers and mud springs. Hot springs, like geysers, are caused by underground water being heated by hot rocks down in the earth. This hot water is then forced to the surface. When the surface rock is soft or porous, then the hot water bubbles up like a spring. When the surface rock is hard, then the hot water shoots up through any hole in the rock that it can find. These spurts of hot water are called geysers. Yellowstone also contains mud pots or mud springs. These happen when the hot water is turned to steam, and the steam carries mud and clay to the surface. Yellowstone Park is high up in the Rocky Mountains of Wyoming. Very few white people went there until the 1860s. It is said that Indians avoided the area because they thought that evil spirits lived there. In 1869, three men from Montana decided to explore this remote area. They were very impressed with its natural wonders and talked about it to others. Two other exploring expeditions followed in the next two years. These visitors were so enthusiastic about the beauty and majesty of Yellowstone that they asked that it be made a national park. At that time, there was no national park system in America. Nonetheless, in 1872, the American government agreed to set aside these lands as a public park. Why were the early visitors to Yellowstone so impressed? First, the scenery is spectacular. The Yellowstone River has created its own Grand Canyon through years of eroding its rocky banks. It is the yellow colour of these canyon walls that gave Yellowstone its name. The area has many waterfalls, including the 308-foot high Lower Falls in the Yellowstone River. There are many beautiful lakes, and the largest is Yellowstone Lake. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #25 Yellowstone National Park The area is rich in wildlife. Among the mammals are black bears, grizzly bears, elk, moose, mule deer, bison, bighorn sheep, coyotes, pronghorn antelope, beaver and wolves. Birds, especially waterfowl, are common all year. These include the trumpeter swan, blue heron, cormorants, bald eagles, osprey, pelicans, Canada geese and many kinds of ducks. Sport fish are also plentiful. About 80% of the forests consist of lodge pole pine, but there are many other evergreens. Wild flowers are numerous and varied. But the chief attractions are the geysers and hot springs. They occur in what was a very volcanic area a million years or so ago. Here, hot molten lava from the center of the earth has remained close to the surface of the earth. This lava heats the surface rocks, which in turn, heats the underground water. The heated water shoots up to the surface as geysers, or bubbles up as hot springs. The most famous geyser is Old Faithful which shoots its plume of water 150 feet into the air every 65 minutes or so. The eruption lasts up to five minutes. There are 200 geysers in Yellowstone Park and about 50 of them are spectacular. Some shoot their spray over 200 feet high. Visitors from all over the world are delighted that this region has been preserved as a national park!
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-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #26 Student Newspapers In North America, most colleges and universities, as well as many high schools, have a student newspaper. These newspapers focus on happenings at the school. They inform the student population about activities on campus and often include world news, which is relevant to student interests. In addition, there are opinion pieces by the student editors, which reflect their views on the school and the world. Sometimes these editorials oppose the way that the school is being run. Occasionally, school officials will try to shut down or censor student papers, if they find their writing embarrassing or offensive. But usually these disagreements are resolved by discussion. At some colleges, the student newspaper is connected to a professional program in journalism. But, most of the time, the idea behind the paper is to get students to research the facts, debate the issues, and learn how to get their opinions expressed. If these students go on to become professional journalists that is fine, but it is not really expected. You might wonder whether enough things happen at a college to fill out a weekly paper. Yes, indeed! Schools and universities reflect the real world. There are often problems with the budget and cuts to programs. New buildings go up, or are torn down. Policies change; tuition goes up; classrooms become crowded; and personnel come and go. University morale and funding often reflect government policies and social attitudes. These tie the college to the larger world. Editorials often comment on how national and world events affect the university. At the same time, there are many things going on within the university. Construction disturbs classes; offices are broken into; computers are stolen; accidents happen in the parking lot; students die on the roads during the holidays; sports teams win or lose; graduation takes place; students and instructors win awards; plays are put on; distinguished visitors speak; rock bands are in concert. Then there is always the question of student rights and responsibilities. What kinds of student behavior are unacceptable? Should the university pay attention to student activities off-campus? Committees meet, with student representation, to set guidelines for these matters. Another issue is who sets the agenda for the university. Corporate sponsors today are buying exclusive rights to distribute their products on campus. Governments are expecting universities to follow official policies in order to receive funding. Social groups are demanding that university policies reflect their special interests. So there is no shortage of topics for student journalists to address. Of course, they also write about everything that young people are interested in - music, movies, computers, sports, travel and pop culture. Student newspapers are an important training group for democracy. They are also very interesting to read. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #27 Canadian Colleges and Universities Canada has about fifty accredited universities spread across ten provinces. All, except one, are primarily government-funded. This means that there is considerable uniformity regarding programs, administration and policy. Private colleges tend to be smaller and are mostly based on a religious curriculum.
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Most universities offer programs in the Humanities, Social Sciences and pure Sciences. Many have additional faculties such as Education and Physical Education. Many programs that lead directly to a position in the workplace are given at community colleges. Community colleges differ from universities because their programs involve job training and practical experience. For example, they might offer courses in areas such as computer programming, journalism, photography, social work, dentistry and nursing. Their programs are considered to be less abstract and academic than university programs. Many students see university as being more fun than community college. They don't have to worry immediately about getting a job, and the social life is often better at university. However, a university degree may be less likely to lead directly to a job. Nowadays, university programs, which are work-related, such as business administration, education, child studies and psychology, seem especially popular. Universities, however, were founded mainly as liberal arts institutions. This means that their original intent was to prepare people to be well-rounded human beings and knowledgeable citizens. So nearly all universities have programs in literature, languages, philosophy, culture, music, history and politics, as well as studies that are more jobrelated. A pass B.A. or B.Sc. degree in Canada is normally three full years of study after secondary school. A bachelor degree with honours includes one more year of study. A Master's degree is a further one or two years. A doctorate usually requires four or more years. This is similar to the United States, except that their bachelor degree is normally three years, and their master's degree may be up to three years. To gain entrance to university you usually need to graduate from secondary school with a B average. Some programs will require an A average. Tuition costs have gone up in recent years as governments have handed over less money to colleges and universities. More students now have to work during the school year to pay their expenses. Attending college and university is known to be one of the most carefree periods in a person's life. As long as you keep up with your readings and assignments, you should be able to avoid major difficulties. Facilities for athletics, student radio and newspapers, pubs and lounges and generally pleasant surroundings make campus life agreeable. It is a good time to make friends, learn new skills and take calculated risks. Moreover, colleges and universities are a good practical investment, as they help to prepare young people for a changing world. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #28 Coffee and Donuts "Let's go for coffee!" All over North America friends like to meet at the coffee shop. Here people sit and talk about the day's business, news and sports, personal concerns, shop talk, or simply gossip. Coffee shops have an informal atmosphere that encourages conversation. You don't have to dress up either! Students drop in wearing T-shirts and blue jeans, and sit beside businessmen wearing suits and ties. Many coffee shops are open 24 hours a day, including Sundays and holidays. That way, people who work at night or who have trouble sleeping can drop in at any time. Because coffee and donuts are relatively inexpensive, people feel comfortable sitting for a while, knowing that they are not spending a lot of money. Although coffee and donuts are the main items sold at coffee shops, many also serve other beverages and desserts,
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and sometimes a light lunch. Many patrons have a favourite kind of coffee or other drink and will drive past other coffee shops to go to one that serves the flavour they like. Visitors from other countries are often surprised at how roomy these coffee shops can be. Some are as large as regular restaurants. Having a nice bit of space around them encourages people to relax. Some people arrange regular dates and meet every day, or every week, at the same time. For example, retired friends may get together every weekday morning at 10:00 am. Others stop every morning at the drive-in line to get their coffee for work. Even people who have coffee machines at home or at work like to go to coffee shops to get a special kind of coffee or a favourite treat. It might seem that the business owners would not make much money just selling a few items, but in fact, many coffee shops do extremely well, especially if they are located in a busy traffic area. Then business tends to be steady all through the day. Not only do people come in and sit down, but there is usually a lot of take-out business as well. People go to coffee shops not only to socialize with family and friends, but also to discuss business or treat their employees to a snack. Others go there to read the newspaper or a favourite magazine. Some people even go there to do work. This article was written in a coffee shop! Of course, people who come here usually like coffee and donuts. Coffee is the favourite hot drink in North America, but most shops also serve tea, hot chocolate and cappuccino, as well as some other cold beverages. Donuts are usually round, and are small deepfried breads with various toppings. Most donuts have a hole in the middle. Even these "holes," which are punched out of the donut, can be sold separately, as a kind of minidonut. Everywhere you go in North America, you will see coffee shops. So take half an hour to stop in and relax. You'll enjoy the great North American "coffee break!" -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #29 David Livingstone ? Medical Missionary During the reign of Queen Victoria (1837-1901), British people traveled around the whole world. They charted the seas, mapped out distant countries and studied plants, animals and people. They also claimed many lands for England. This kind of international travel was made easier by improved transportation and communication. New inventions such as steamships, trains, telegraphs and telephones made long distances seem smaller. Of course, people had different reasons for going to distant lands. Some were businessmen who saw economic opportunities overseas. Soldiers wanted fame and a chance to enlarge the British Empire. Big-game hunters wanted to be the first to shoot strange animals and bring back trophies to England. Scientists intended to study unknown animals and plants. Missionaries planned to be the first to introduce Christianity to faraway people. In 1836 a young Scotsman called David Livingstone began to study medicine in Glasgow. Livingstone intended to become a medical missionary. This means that he would be a doctor, as well as a preacher and teacher. Livingstone (1813-1873) came from a poor family. From an early age, he had worked 14 hours a day in a clothing factory for very little pay. But he was determined to learn. He took his books with him to the factory and read as he worked. Then, after work, he would go to his teacher to learn more. Livingstone's goal was to teach faraway people about Jesus. However, unlike some
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missionaries, he was also interested in science, geography and exploring. He had planned to go to China in 1839, but because of the Opium Wars no missionaries were being sent there. Instead, he asked to go to South Africa. Europeans had traveled around the coasts of Africa for hundreds of years. But very few white people had traveled inland. A missionary named Robert Moffatt who had begun a mission at Kuruman in the interior inspired Livingstone. Livingstone arrived in Kuruman in 1841. This was the farthest outpost of white settlement, and no one seemed to want to go further inland. Livingstone felt that the missionaries should go to the Africans, rather than waiting for the Africans to come to them. With a fellow missionary he set out. When they came to an African tribe, they would talk to the chief and ask permission to preach to his people. Livingstone would also set up a tent and treat the people who had diseases. After a while, he would move on to the next tribe. Once Livingstone learned the Bantu language he would talk to many Africans. But sometimes he needed interpreters. There were many diseases, including malaria and sleeping sickness. Livingstone suffered much of his life from river fever. He was also so weak that he rode on the back of an ox. Livingstone wanted to stop the slave trade. At this time, the slave trade was the most profitable business in Africa. Livingstone hoped that if other kinds of trade were developed, then slavery could be abolished. In order to open up trade, he wanted to find an easy route into the center of Africa. Livingstone kept going further into the interior. He was probably the first European to cross the Kalahari Desert before reaching Lake Ngami in present-day Botswana. Not long after, he traveled further inland. He explored the sources of the Zambesi and Kasai rivers and eventually reached the west coast of Africa at Luanda, Angola. Livingstone was being criticized for neglecting missionary work in order to explore. Livingstone replied that he was opening up the continent for missionaries. Meanwhile, he was becoming famous as a great explorer. The British government commissioned him to explore the Zambesi River. They hoped that ships could sail up the river into the interior. Unfortunately, the Zambesi had too many rapids. However, Livingstone did find a route up the Shire River to Lake Nyassa. He continued to struggle against the slave trade, which was now being taken over by Arabs. Livingstone died in Africa in 1873. He was the first white man to explore Botswana, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Malawi and surrounding areas. He was not only a great explorer, but also a fine doctor and a good missionary. Nowadays, the countries that Livingstone visited are nearly all Christian--just as he hoped they would be. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #30 Favourite Cookies North Americans are known for their "sweet tooth." This means that they like snacks with lots of sugar. Americans drink a lot of coffee, tea and hot chocolate, and usually they have something sweet with their drink. Cookies are one of America's favourite desserts. The word "cookie" comes from a Dutch word meaning "little cake." People from Europe brought their favourite recipes with them when they came to America. The English brought their custom of having tea in the afternoon. Usually with their tea they would have cakes or biscuits. Biscuits are usually hard wafers like, for example, ginger snaps. In fact, the Italian slang word for Englishman is "cake eater." In the early days, all cookies were homemade. But, in the late nineteenth Century,
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biscuits began to be manufactured in large quantities by machine. In 1912, the National Biscuit Company (Nabisco) in the U.S.A. introduced Oreo cookies. This cookie has a rich cr?e vanilla filling between two crispy chocolate wafers. This product was designed to meet the demand for an English-style biscuit. Oreos were good to dunk in a drink, to eat whole, to eat in parts, or to use in cooking. Oreos have become both America's and the world's favourite commercial cookie. New varieties of Oreos are added regularly to the original product. Although commercial biscuits like Oreos are very popular, many people prefer homebaked ones. In fact, there is a whole line of commercial cookies called "home-style," which try to imitate homemade cookies. The most popular cookie in America can be either bought in a package or baked at home. These are chocolate chip cookies. Ruth and Kenneth Wakefield operated the Toll House Inn in Whitman, Massachusetts. One day in 1930, Mrs. Wakefield ran out of baking chocolate for her baking cookies. She broke up a chocolate bar and added the pieces to her cookie mix. She expected that the chocolate bits would melt into the dough when she baked them. But they didn't. Soon chocolate chip cookies were being made commercially by adding small chunks of chocolate to regular chocolate cookie dough. Lots of people like to make their own by adding commercial chocolate chips to their dough. Now chocolate chip cookies are the most popular kind of cookie in North America. Over seven billion are eaten annually here. Half of all the cookies baked in American homes are chocolate chip cookies. Experiments in baking and packaging have led to new kinds of cookies. Recently, soft cookies have become very popular. Since they are packaged in foil, they can stay fresh and soft for many months. It seems likely that the love of cookies will be around for a long time. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #31 Florence Nightingale It could be said that Florence Nightingale was responsible for inventing modern nursing. Indeed, Nightingale did open up the professions to women generally. Her example and influence during the mid to late nineteenth Century were an important factor in opening doors to women. Nightingale's own life reflects many of these changes. She was born in 1820, and was one of two daughters of a wealthy English family. Her mother was a beautiful society lady who had once turned down a favoured suitor because he was not wealthy enough. She wanted both her daughters to be socially popular and to marry rich and important men. Florence's father ensured that she had a good education. But she was frustrated because girls and women were always under parental supervision. She felt called to a life of action, but her family insisted that she divide her time between being with her family and attending social functions. She was not allowed to do anything on her own. When she was 16, Nightingale said that God spoke to her and called her to do His work. But Florence didn't know what work she was being called to do. Years passed away while she sat with her mother and sister, or attended dances and concerts or travelled to Europe. Nightingale became more angry and rebellious. She offended her family and friends by refusing to marry several prominent men who wanted to marry her. By the time she was 24, she had decided to be a nurse.
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But how did one become a nurse? At that time, the profession didn't seem promising. The only respectable nurses were those women in religious orders that ministered to the patient's spiritual health, but were not trained in medicine. The majority of nurses were poor, untrained women who were suspected of being too fond of men or alcohol, or both. In fact, one hospital preferred to hire unwed mothers as nurses because they had no reputations to lose. Nightingale's family was horrified by her plans. Their opposition delayed her plans but could not stop them. In 1850 she visited a hospital in Germany for the first time. In 1853, she was appointed superintendent of a women's nursing home in London. But, Florence was still waiting for her true calling. In 1855, the Times of London was printing reports from the Crimean War. France and England were fighting Russia in the Crimean Peninsula. After one allied victory, the wounded French soldiers were well taken care of, but the wounded English soldiers were left to die. Back in England there was a public outcry. It was Florence's opportunity. She was soon on her way to Istanbul, Turkey, with 38 nurses. Scutari, Turkey, was the hospital where the British wounded were brought. This so-called hospital was a death pit, where 42 out of every 100 men died. The army was unwilling to listen to Miss Nightingale or to let her tend the wounded. She had to wait until conditions became so bad that the regular medical officers were overwhelmed. As soon as the army turned to her, she immediately went to work. She had the entire hospital cleaned, a new kitchen set up, and a good water supply obtained. The death rate dropped to 22 out of every 1,000. Nightingale became famous overnight. Although her efforts in the Crimean War injured her health, she continued her work back in London. She published a 1,000-page report on medical conditions in the British Army, several books on nursing and her own proposals and suggestions. She also set up a training school for nurses. Long before her death in 1910, she had seen nursing become a well-established profession. Almost single-handedly she had helped to bring about proper treatment of the sick and injured. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #32 Harriet Tubman Before the American Civil War, the economy of the Southern States was based on the use of slave labour. The social and political leaders of the Old South were the plantation owners. Many of these owned hundreds of black slaves. The slaves were mainly used to pick crops like cotton and tobacco. Harriet Tubman was born in 1820 in the State of Maryland. As a girl of seven, she was sent into the fields to work with the adult slaves. The slaves worked from sunrise to sunset picking the crops. Often they sang songs while they worked. Slaves were not taught to read or write. It was feared that reading and writing would help slaves to escape the plantations. Harriet Tubman was illiterate. Later in life, when she was in danger of being captured, she picked up a book and pretended to read it. This fooled the bounty hunters. When she was 15, Harriet helped another slave to escape. The overseer was so angry with her that he hit her over the head with an iron weight. Harriet was knocked unconscious for many days. All the rest of her life she suffered from headaches and sudden sleeping spells. Harriet escaped from the plantation to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Since Pennsylvania
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was not a slave state, Harriet was fairly safe there. She was able to return secretly to the plantation and bring the rest of her family to freedom. There were already people working to bring black slaves up from the South to freedom. These people, both white and black, used the language of the railroad. Escaped slaves were called passengers, safe houses were called stations, and the guides were called conductors. Harriet soon became a conductor in the Underground Railway. In 1850, the American government passed a second Fugitive Slave Act. This put more pressure on Northern States to return escaped slaves to the South. Because of this, the Underground Railway went further north to Canada. In 1793, Upper Canada (Ontario) had passed a law, bringing a gradual stop to slavery. In 1834, slavery was abolished in the whole British Empire. A lot of escaped slaves had come to Canada before 1850, but now nearly all escaped slaves tried to go there. Harriet Tubman rented a house in St. Catharines, Ontario. This provided a shelter for new arrivals. Harriet made about eleven trips from Canada to the U.S.A. during these years. In all, she brought back about 300 people. Escaped slaves had to travel by night and suffered hardships in bad weather. They had to hide during the day wherever they could. Harriet did not allow any passengers to turn back. That might endanger the whole Underground Railway. When the slave owners heard about Harriet, they offered a reward for her capture. But no one caught her, or turned her in. When the Civil War broke out in 1861, she acted as a spy for the Northern States. After the war, she married a black American soldier, Nelson Davis. In 1869, a book was written about Harriet Tubman. Black slaves knew Harriet as "Moses." The Bible tells the store of how Moses led the people of Israel out of slavery in Egypt. He led them north to Palestine. In the same way, Harriet Tubman delivered many of her people from slavery and led them north to freedom. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #33 Hernias Repaired Here A hernia occurs when there is a tear or weakness in the muscle layers of the abdomen. This allows the intestines to push forward into the gap. Usually the person feels some discomfort, and may notice an egg-shaped swelling. In a few cases, the muscle layers may clamp down on the protruding intestine, and cut off its oxygen supply. This can result in death, if medical help is not readily available. Hernias are more common in men than women, and are often related to lifting heavy materials. Although most hernias are not a serious threat to health, they usually get worse over time. The only cure is surgery to repair the cut, tear or weakness. As with any surgery, time in hospital is usually required for recovery. This proved to be a problem in Canada during World War II. Many young men were declared unfit for military service because they had hernias. During the war, there was a shortage of doctors and beds for hernia repair. A Toronto doctor, Dr. Edward Shouldice, decided to address this problem. He personally operated on seventy of these young men, using a technique of his own. This "Shouldice Technique" allowed the patients a quicker recovery time than the usual method. It also had a much lower rate of complications and failures. After the war, Dr. Shouldice opened his own hernia clinic for the public. In 1953, a second hospital was started in Thornhill, just north of Toronto, and today all surgery is done there.
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The Shouldice Hospital is located on a beautiful piece of land with a valley on one side and a golf course on the other. The large grounds have wonderful gardens and flowering trees. There are nature paths for patients to walk on. The building itself is not a regular hospital, but more like a hotel or residence, where patients can play the piano, shoot pool, play shuffleboard, or practice their putting. The hospital now has 89 beds, and an average of 30 hernia operations are performed daily. Since all the surgeons are specialists, their level of skill is very high, and less than 1% of operations need to be corrected. (The worldwide rate of failure is around 20%.) For patients, the good news is that everything at the hospital is directed to repairing their hernia, and aiding their recovery as quickly as possible. The staff encourages its patients to walk and exercise within four or five hours of surgery. Patients usually stay on for several more days, until they are fully recovered and ready to go home. Shouldice's best advertisements are his satisfied customers. Hernia patients come not only from Canada and the United States, but also from many countries of the world to receive the best possible treatment. Shouldice remains the most famous hospital in the world devoted entirely to the repair and treatment of hernias. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #34 Julie Andrews Julie Andrews, born Julia Elizabeth Wells, was born on October 1, 1935. She lived in a small town called Walton-on-the-Thames in England, which is south of London. Her father Ted Wells was a teacher, and mother Barbara was a pianist and piano teacher. She also played piano for her sister's dancing school. Julie learned ballet and tap as a toddler from her Aunt Joan Morris. By the time Julie was three, she could read and write. When Julie was four, her parents divorced, and Barbara married Ted Andrews (a performer during the war and an excellent tenor). He soon began giving Julie singing lessons. At seven years of age, Julie had an unbelievable range of four octaves. She soon changed her last name to "Andrews," the last name of her stepfather. As she grew older, Julie became one of England's most popular performers. In early childhood, Julie loved to play with her two younger half-brothers, but soon went on to stardom. At age twelve, Julie was cast in a London play and stopped the show with her remarkable talent. She starred in many different BBC productions during the forties. Later, she starred in many Broadway plays such as The Boyfriend, My Fair Lady, and Camelot. It was the latter play that Walt Disney made a special trip to New York to see, and he decided then and there that Julie was perfect for the role of Mary Poppins in the film of the same name. Mary Poppins was the high-spirited, magical nanny of Jane and Michael Banks, two small British children. Julie also starred in many other films, such as The Americanization of Emily, Hawaii, Thoroughly Modern Millie, and my personal favourite, The Sound of Music. In this production she plays Maria, the lively governess of Austrian Naval Captain Georg von Trapp's seven children: Liesl, Fredric, Louisa, Kurt, Brigitta, Marta and Gretl. Another of Julie's talents is writing. Two of her best-known books are The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles, and Mandy. Julie also has five children. A daughter, Emma Kate Walton, from her marriage to Tony Walton; four children from her second marriage to Blake Edwards, two of whom were from Blake's previous marriage, Jennifer and Geoffrey; and two who were adopted from Vietnam, Amy and Joanna. In 1998, tragedy struck Julie. She lost her extraordinary talent for singing due to surgery
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on her throat in order to remove a benign tumor. A year later, she made an attempt to sing again; however, her voice will never be the same. Julie has recently been on Britain's Royal Honour List and is now a Dame. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #35 Potato Chips and Corn Chips The story goes that the potato chip was invented in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. in 1853. Multimillionaire Cornelius Vanderbilt complained to the chef that his fried potatoes were sliced too thickly. Chef George Crum responded by slicing the potatoes paper thin and frying them in hot oil. The potato chip became an instant success. Many companies have made large profits on chips. The most successful brands are associated with the Frito-Lay Company. Herman W. Lay of Nashville, Tennessee, was selling potato chips from the back of his car in the early 1930s. He soon became a successful distributor for a brand of potato chips, which were made in Atlanta, Georgia. When that company ran into financial problems, Lay arranged to buy them out. It now became H. W. Lay and Company. Meanwhile in Texas, Elmer Doolin was trying to sell chips made from corn dough. This was an old Mexican recipe, which Doolin had found in San Antonio, Texas. At first, these Fritos corn chips were made in Mr. Doolin's mother's kitchen. It took a few years before they sold very well. Mr. Doolin moved the company to Dallas and began to expand his market. In 1945, he granted the H. W. Lay Co. the rights to make Fritos corn chip for the American southeast. In 1961, the two companies merged to become Frito-Lay Inc. In 1965, Frito-Lay merged with Pepsi to become PepsiCo. Inc., one of the largest snack food and beverage companies in the world. In 2000, Frito-Lay sold 58% of all the snack chips in the U.S.A. In Canada and the United States, Frito-Lay products had sales of $9.9 billion. The most popular brand was Lay's potato chips, followed by Doritos, Ruffles, Tostitos, Cheetos, and Fritos. Internationally, Frito-Lay has 28% of the market worldwide. That amounts to $5.9 billion annually. Why are potato chips and corn chips so popular? Well, they are versatile. You can eat them by themselves or with a sandwich for lunch. They can replace other forms of potatoes and corn. They can also come in various flavours. For example, potato chip flavours include ketchup, salt and vinegar, barbeque, dill pickle and cheddar. Potato chips can be thick or thin, ridged or flat, spicy or bland. Chips can be made from many things besides potatoes. There is corn dough and tortilla dough, of course. But chips can also be made from sweet potatoes, parsnips, taro root, peppers and other vegetables. One caution about potato chips is that they are not a good source of nutrition. Parents who send their children to school with a bag of potato chips for lunch need to remember that these are just a snack. Because snack chips usually contain a lot of fat, they can also lead to weight gain. It is better not to eat snack chips too often, and not to eat them instead of healthier foods. In Canada nearly $2 billion is spent on snack food every year and half of this is spent on chips. People are always looking for new flavours to try. Spicy chips are gaining in popularity. The snack chip industry just keeps on growing. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #36 The Stratford Festival
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The Shakespearean festival in Stratford, Ontario, is one of the greatest theatrical festivals in the world. This is the story how this small town, which was far from any theatrical centers, became so important for drama. For most of its history, Stratford was the county town for the local farming region. It was also a railway center. But it was hardly known for the arts. An Irishman who opened an inn there founded Stratford in 1832. He called his roadhouse "Shakespeare's Inn," after England's great dramatist. Soon the little town became known as Stratford, after the town in England where Shakespeare was born. The local river was likewise called the Avon after the English river. The little town grew gradually and became the local center for government and law. Stratford people seemed to enjoy the association with Shakespeare. Many streets were given Shakespearean names such as Arden Park, Portia Boulevard, Romeo Street and Viola Court. Local schools received names such as Hamlet Public School or Falstaff School. Still, there was no attempt at Shakespearean theatre in Stratford, Ontario. In 1913, the Canadian Pacific Railway threatened to take over the town. They proposed a railway line running through the center of Stratford, which would have taken over much of the town's parkland. The townspeople voted down this proposal. Instead, they expanded the parkland along the Avon River. These parks were enhanced with gardens and, in 1918, a pair of swans was added. These swans were an imitation of the swans on English rivers. In 1950, it appeared that the railway would be closing some of its workshops in Stratford. The town was looking for ideas that might lead to new employment opportunities. This was when one citizen, Tom Patterson, suggested that the town sponsor a drama festival. Patterson was able to get Irish director, Tyrone Guthrie, to come to Stratford in 1952. Guthrie agreed to head up the 1953 season. Everyone in Stratford pitched in to raise the necessary money and prepare the stage. Since there was no time to put up a building, the plays were staged under a huge tent. Two plays were put on during a six-week season, and with great success. In 1957, a permanent theatre was built. The Stratford season in 2001 runs for more than six months, from late April to early November. There are fourteen plays in production at three different theatres. Altogether there are 668 performances, with a total attendance of 580,000 people. About 40% of the audience comes from the United States. Tom Patterson's plan to ease unemployment in Stratford has worked well. The festival has helped to create nearly 6,000 jobs and generate wages and salaries of $110 million annually. In total, the festival brings about $170 million of revenue into the Stratford area. Of course, to the audiences who come back every year, the main attraction is seeing some of the best Shakespearean theatre in the world. The Stratford Festival Company is Canada's leading acting company, and many of its actors have become internationally known. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #37 The Two Cultures In 1956, English writer and scientist C.P.Snow wrote an essay on "The Two Cultures." By this, he meant that in the West there is a scientific culture and a literary culture. Scientists do not talk very much to literary men and vice versa. Neither group seems to know, nor want to know, very much about the other. Snow argues that the scientific people and the literary people are moving further and
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further apart. Few scientists or engineers read literature; very few writers or intellectuals know or care anything about science. This, Snow thinks, is a major problem in the world today. Literary culture seems to be anti-science and anti-technology. This affects Western reluctance to train more scientists and engineers. The standard of living in the West, and throughout the world, depends on having scientists and engineers. Nonetheless, relatively little effort is given to encouraging and developing these areas of education. Westerners, who are part of the literary culture, do not encourage or understand the scientific revolution. As a result, they are insensitive to the desire of Third World peoples to improve their lives through technology. Snow talks about how the standard of living in England has improved since 1800. Snow's grandfather did not go far in school, but did learn to read and write. Living in 1900, he realized that he was better off than his grandfather who lived in the early 1800s. Snow's great-great-grandfather was a farm labourer who didn't know how to read or write. Snow feels that a similar transformation could happen even in very poor countries. It could happen in a short time if the West supplied capital and engineers. Snow believes that it is the industrial revolution that has transformed the West. This is what has allowed the farm labourers to go to school and to learn employable skills. In 1800, only a small proportion of society could expect to live well. Now nearly everyone has access to education and training. The same industrial revolution can happen in Third World countries. It is the only way to improve the lot of the poor. Snow agrees that most scientists and engineers do not read novels or cultivate the arts. However, he doesn't consider this to be as dangerous as when literary people ignore science and technology. Science and technology are too important to our standard of living to be ignored; our education systems have to be changed to reflect our need of them. Snow's article was quite controversial. Not everyone agreed with him that science and technology are being ignored by our educational system. But Snow certainly has a point when he says that scientific people and literary people view the world differently. These two different mindsets often lead to conflict in the workplace. Snow may be right that it is too easy for literary-minded students to ignore science, and scientifically minded students to ignore literature. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #38 The War That Both Sides Won Today, the 3000 mile boundary between Canada and the United States is known as "the longest undefended boundary in the world." But for three years in a row--1812, 1813 and 1814--U.S. armies invaded Canada. When both sides failed to win a clear victory, and the costs of the war kept growing, the two countries decided that peace was the best policy. On June 18, 1812, the United States declared war on Great Britain. The United States had proclaimed their independence from Britain in 1776--36 years earlier. There were still bad feelings between the two countries. Great Britain was not treating the United States as an equal independent country. British ships were stopping American ships from trading with Europe. British sailors went aboard American ships looking for deserters from the British Navy. If an American sailor could not prove that he was an American, he was taken to work for the British.
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At the same time, the population of the United States was expanding. Americans wanted to move west into lands held by various American Indian tribes. Some Americans felt that Britain was encouraging the Indians to fight them and was supplying guns to the Indians. In 1812, Canada was made up of a small number of British colonies just north of the American border. Americans felt that it would be easy to take over Canada; then Canadian land would provide homes for their growing population. Since Americans outnumbered Canadians ten to one, the U.S. government thought that no one in Canada would dare to oppose them. Moreover, Britain was fighting a terrible war in Europe against Napoleon, the Emperor of France, and could not spare any troops to help defend Canada. But, in 1812, Canada had one advantage over the U.S.A.--good leadership. British General Isaac Brock had served in Canada for ten years. He knew how to inspire both his own soldiers and the ordinary people of Canada to fight for their country. He was a bold and energetic leader who moved quickly to attack American positions before they could attack him. Brock found a valuable ally in the American Indian Chief Tecumseh. Tecumseh had been trying to unite the scattered groups of Indians to fight together against American expansion. He convinced the Indians that their best chance for success was to join the British and Canadians against the Americans. Although both Brock and Tecumseh were killed in battles, their example continued to inspire the defenders of Canada to fight against the American invasions. Before the end of 1814, all American forces had been driven out of Canada. By 1814, Britain had defeated the French Emperor Napoleon. Now it was the turn of the United States to be invaded. A large British force attacked the heart of the United States, and burned the government buildings at Washington. Another British force attacked the U.S.A. near the mouth of the Mississippi River, but it was defeated at the Battle of New Orleans. Both sides were tired of fighting by this time, and a peace treaty was signed on December 24, 1814. This agreement restored everything to the way it had been when the war began. Although this really meant that no one had won the war, both sides claimed victory. The Americans felt that they had gained full recognition of their independence. Britain would no longer board their ships, or encourage the Indians to fight them. Canadians felt that they had shown Americans that they wanted to develop their own country in their own way, separate from the United States. But the biggest result of the war was the decision by both countries never to fight each other again. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #39 North American Death and Burial Most people in North American die either in hospital or at home. When someone dies, arrangements are made with a funeral home to get the body and prepare it for burial. Funeral homes are private businesses. They usually handle most or all aspects of a funeral, except for providing the burial plot. That usually has to be purchased separately. Funeral homes may operate in many kinds of buildings. Old roomy private homes and new modern one-level buildings are common types. When the funeral director receives the body, his staff embalms it so it will not decay quickly and will look lifelike at the funeral service. For one or two days before the burial, friends, relatives and acquaintances are invited to visit the funeral home and pay their respects to the dead
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person. The deceased person is usually dressed in their best clothes, and lying on their back in a coffin. A coffin is a large wooden or metal chest designed to hold the body. Members of the dead person's immediate family usually act as hosts for the funeral home visitation. They greet the mourners and talk to them about the deceased. Usually, there are happy photographs of the dead person near the coffin. Gifts of flowers also surround the coffin. Usually the mourners are asked to sign a guest book. The funeral service may take place at a church, if the deceased person wanted that. Frequently, however, the service is held at a chapel at the funeral home. Attending a funeral is considered a sign of respect, and people will often travel a long distance to attend. Usually friends and relatives will take a day off work for the occasion. Notices are put in the newspaper for several days before, so that people will know when to come. A minister or priest usually conducts the funeral service. There will be hymns, prayers, and perhaps a sermon, like a regular church service. Sometimes, the minister will speak at length about the dead person. Sometimes, a member of the family does this. Opportunity is allowed for other people to talk about their memories of the dead person. At the end of the service, the coffin is wheeled out to a waiting car, called a hearse, which drives the dead person to the burial place. The mourners go to their cars and follow the hearse to the cemetery. At the cemetery, a hole has already been dug to receive the coffin. Usually there is a short ceremony at the grave. Sometimes, flowers are put on top of the coffin as it is lowered into the grave. A handful of soil is tossed on the coffin, indicating burial. Usually the mourners leave before the cemetery workers cover the coffin with earth. Then the mourners may all go back to a church hall or restaurant for a meal. A funeral can be quite costly. Even an inexpensive coffin can be several thousand dollars. Sometimes, the deceased will be placed in an expensive rental coffin for the visitation and funeral, but buried in a less expensive coffin. Even so, a full funeral rarely costs less than $5,000, and usually quite a lot more. And this does not include the price of the burial plot or the stone grave marker. Sometimes poor people are buried at government expense. It is traditional in North American to bury the whole body in the ground. However, cremation is becoming more popular. The advantage of cremation is that it is less expensive, uses less land, and it appeals to people who don't want an elaborate funeral. Some people may wonder why so much attention is paid to a dead person. But funerals are really for the living. They are a way of saying goodbye to the dead person and receiving mutual support and encouragement from friends and family. Some funeral homes help to organize grief counselling or support groups to grieving family members. Usually the funeral service is performed in the Christian tradition and refers to the hope of resurrection or rebirth from the dead that Christians believe in. It is now becoming common for people to plan their own funeral service before they die. And usually attempts are made to make the service appropriate to the person who died. This makes it more satisfying and memorable for the family and friends. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #40 Anastasia and the Russian Revoluion The twentieth century brought many changes to traditional cultures around the world. Some of the most radical changes occurred in the Russian Empire, which had one of the
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oldest monarchies in Europe. In 1917-18 the rule of the Tsars was replaced by the world's first communist government led by Vladimir Ilyich Lenin. No one was more affected by these changes than Anastasia, the Tsar's youngest daughter. Between 1895 and 1901, Tsar Nicholas II and his wife Alexandra, became the parents of four beautiful and healthy daughters - Olga, Tatiana, Marie and Anastasia. However, since a girl could not inherit the throne of Russia, it was important for Alexandra to give birth to a son. Finally, in 1904, the Tsar and Tsarina had a son, Aleksei. This event, which should have made the whole family very happy, proved to be a source of great sorrow. Aleksei was soon found to have an incurable disease. This disease, hemophilia, meant that Aleksei regularly suffered from uncontrollable internal and external bleeding which left him very weak. This caused anxiety for all the family, especially his mother and father. The Tsar and Tsarina loved their children. The girls, who didn't have to worry about becoming rulers, led a fairly carefree existence. Anastasia and her sisters lived in a palace with hundreds of servants. They attended many society parties with their parents. The most elaborate parties were the grand balls, where everyone dressed in their finest clothes and danced all through the night. The absolute rule of the Tsar was not popular with everybody. The majority of the population was poor peasant farmers who could barely keep themselves and their families alive. If they moved into the city to get jobs in the factories, they had to work long hours for very low wages, and live in slum conditions. Popular opposition forced the Tsar in 1905 to give up some of his power to an elected parliament. None of the girls married. They all lived a happy life together. They moved from palace to palace, attended by their private tutors, visiting the beach, and sailing on the royal yacht. Anastasia was the clown of the family. She didn't like schoolwork, but she enjoyed painting and photography. Many of her photos of the royal family in happy times survive. Soon the Tsar's problems worsened. The Empress Alexandra worried about her son and became ill. War with Germany broke out in 1914, and the Russians suffered many defeats and losses. In March 1917, there was popular revolution, and the Tsar was deposed. From that time on, the royal family was prisoners. At first, they were treated kindly, but in November, the Bolsheviks or communists gained control of the revolution. Lenin and his followers hated the Tsar. The royal family had been living in Tobolsk in Siberia. Because of fears that they might escape, they were brought back to Ekaterinburg in the Ural region. Here, after midnight on June 19, 1918, the entire royal family was shot by the Bolsheviks. To some, this news was too dreadful to be believed. The thought that the Tsar's lively and beautiful daughters had been killed was too hard to bear. Within a couple of years, a woman who went by the name of Anna Anderson appeared in western Europe. She claimed to be Anastasia. Some believed her story and some did not. With the fall of the Soviet Union, it was possible to investigate the murder of the royal family. It was also possible to prove that Anna Anderson was not the real Anastasia. After a long search, the bodies of Anastasia and Aleksei were found. They had died with the rest of the family. A great mystery was finally solved. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #41 Australian Origins In many countries, leading families proudly trace their ancestors back to some
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significant group of people. In the U..S.A., prominent individuals may boast that their family came over on the Mayflower in 1620. In England, ladies and gentlemen are happy to announce that their ancestors came to Britain with William the Conqueror in 1066. In Australia, however, many leading families are reluctant to talk about their origins. In fact, many years ago, one Australian city burned its early records, so that no one would know who their ancestors were. The reason for this is that Australia began its history as a British penal colony. In eighteenth century England, there was a large gap between the rich and the poor. To make matters worse, many farmers had been forced off their land by powerful landowners. These homeless people wandered to the cities, where employment was often hard to find. Frequent wars gave temporary employment to young men as soldiers and sailors, but when the war was over, they were no better off than before. As a result, theft was extremely common. To protect themselves, the upper classes made theft punishable by hanging. The problem with this was that juries were often reluctant to hang someone for stealing something small, and might declare the person "not guilty." For example, if a man or woman stole a loaf of bread to feed their children, the jury might just let them go. To prevent this, the courts came up with a new category of punishment-exile or "transportation." If the judge or jury was reluctant to sentence the accused to death, they would ship them far away from England across the seas. However, if the person was found back in England again, he or she would be hanged. At first, England sent its convicts to America's Thirteen Colonies. However, when the United States declared its independence in 1776, this was no longer possible. England considered sending criminals to West Africa, but the land and climate were considered unsuitable. So finally Great Britain decided to use the huge, almost uninhabited, country of Australia. At this time, not a single European was living anywhere on the continent. In the fall of 1786, a fleet of English ships began to take convicts on board. This process continued till the sailing date of May 13, 1787. Many British jails had been cleared of both male and female prisoners. Since the convicts were technically under a sentence of death, there was little concern for making them comfortable. At first, the convicts were chained below decks, but later some were released when well out to sea. One man had been sentenced for the theft of a winter coat; another for stealing cucumbers from a garden; a third for carrying off a sheep. Among the women, one was guilty of stealing a large cheese; another of taking several yards of cloth. These ships known as "The First Fleet" carried 1,442 convicts, sailors, marines and officers. The fleet finally arrived at Botany Bay on January 10, 1788. Later that month, they moved down to Sydney Harbour. No preparations whatsoever had been made. The forests came right up to the shore. Soon, the fleet members were cutting down trees and trying to put up tents. It was June 1790 before further supplies arrived from England. Meanwhile, many convicts suffered from sickness, aggravated by lack of good food. In conclusion, Australians need not be ashamed of their origins. In time, great things were achieved, in spite of the almost complete lack of help from the English government. Many ex- convicts became respectable settlers who began prosperous farms and businesses. The members of the First Fleet, whether convicts or not, deserve to be honoured as the founders of Australia. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #42 Casa Loma
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Many people visit Europe and see the old castles left from the days of knighthood. Very few return home with plans to build their own castle. Toronto businessman Henry Pellatt actually built such a castle - Casa Loma. Pellatt was born in Kingston, Ontario in 1859, but the family soon moved to Toronto. His father opened Toronto's first stock broking firm in 1866. Pellatt Sr. became part of Toronto's financial elite. And Henry Pellatt eventually joined his father in business. The young Pellatt was especially attracted by the military and the British armed forces. When Henry was 18, he joined the Queen's Own Rifles, a militia unit. He was soon one of the soldiers sent to suppress a railway strike. At 21, he was made an officer, and gradually moved up through the ranks, eventually becoming brigadier general. Meanwhile, Henry was learning the stock broking business. He soon showed considerable ability at forming new companies. Electricity was a recent invention, and Pellatt hoped to be among the foremost developers. In 1883, he founded the Toronto Electric Light Company, and later was an owner of the Toronto Electric Railway. He also made money as a land speculator in the Canadian West. Unlike many businessmen of the time, however, Pellatt believed in community service. He sponsored many charitable organizations and supported various good causes. In spite of his business dealings, Pellatt found time to tour England and Europe regularly. He brought back ideas for a "castle on the hill." Pellatt's castle, however, would not be a damp, drafty castle of the Middle Ages. It would have all the latest technology. Construction of "Casa Loma" began in 1910 and was completed in 1914. Outwardly, it looked like a mediaeval castle, but inside it was comfortable and luxurious. There were 98 rooms, three bowling alleys, 30 bathrooms, 25 fireplaces and 5,000 electric lights. It had an electric elevator and an indoor swimming pool. There was a library of 100,000 books, a temperature-controlled wine cellar, a shooting gallery, and a large art collection. Pellatt ordered only the most expensive materials and employed the best craftsmen. The cost of all this was $3.5 million, a huge sum in those days. Pellatt and his wife liked to entertain. They often opened up Casa Loma for special events. Sometimes, he would invite all 1,000 men from the Queen's Own Rifles over for the weekend. The Pellatts also held parties for the staff. Pellatt had hoped that Casa Loma would be the center of an extensive subdivision. He hoped that wealthy people would build grand homes nearby, and so he had bought up land near his castle. Unfortunately for Pellatt, most of the people coming to Toronto were poor immigrants who couldn't afford large houses. Pellatt was unable to sell his land holdings, and his income declined. In 1924, Pellatt turned Casa Loma over to the City of Toronto because he could not pay his property tax. All the contents of Casa Loma went on auction soon after. His $1.5 million collection of art and artifacts sold for only $250,000. Now Casa Loma is a leading Toronto tourist attraction. "The castle in the middle of the city" has 400,000 visitors each year. It is the closest thing in North America to a real European castle. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #43 Charlie Brown On October 2, 1950, a new comic strip appeared in American newspapers. The "hero" of the strip was a round-headed kid named Charlie Brown. In the very first cartoon, two young schoolmates watch Charlie Brown walking by, and one comments, "Well! Here
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comes ol' Charlie Brown.Yes, Sir! Good ol' Charlie Brown. How I hate him!" This comic strip was to become one of the most popular in history. Its creator, Charles M. Schultz, drew the strip for 50 years until his death. But reruns of "Peanuts" still appear regularly in the newspaper. What are some of the characteristics of Charlie Brown and his friends that have made the cartoon popular? Charlie Brown is an unlikely hero. Other kids don't like being around him because the things he does never seem to work out properly. Kids want to be with someone who is good-looking, popular and successful, so that they can feel a part of his success. Charlie Brown is always worrying, hardly ever up-beat, afraid of failure, and always making mistakes. His kite gets snagged in a tree, he needs counseling from Lucy, his dog Snoopy is more popular than he is, and the little red-haired girl never notices him. In short, Charlie Brown is a "loser." Charlie Brown illustrates all the insecurities that kids have. Many of these anxieties carry over into adult life. Sometimes, they reflect problems in the life of the comic strip's creator, Charles M. Schulz. Schulz suffered from depression much of his life and had a difficult time in school. He was not very popular with his classmates. Humour and laughter are often a way of dealing with problems. And in the "Peanuts" strip, the world can laugh at all the silly little things that people do. Because of its honest way of dealing with problems, Charlie Brown and his friends are more interesting than the average comic strip characters. The characters represent adult personality types. Charlie Brown is "wishy-washy," and is afraid to do things for fear of failure. Lucy is a pushy overbearing female, who thinks she knows it all. Linus, her younger brother, is intellectual but insecure. He still clings to his baby blanket for security. Schroeder is preoccupied with Beethoven's music to the exclusion of everything else. Sally, Charlie Brown's younger sister, combines both a romantic attachment to Linus and a desire for material things. Peppermint Patty is a tomboy who loves baseball, but nonetheless has a romantic crush on Charlie Brown. Snoopy, the dog, represents a cool detached inventive individual who also relies on basic creature comforts. These characters add up to a "human comedy." In the comic strip, we can see ourselves and the people around us: making mistakes, getting second chances, but tending to do the same things over again. Behind the humour of "Peanuts" there is a serious message. Words can hurt. Relationships are important. Truth is difficult to find. Criticism is too common. Greed can easily overpower us. These messages are both timeless and timely. "Peanuts" has also been turned into television specials and several movies. Snoopy stuffed toys are popular all over the world. A huge industry has grown from a simple comic strip. Perhaps this means that, while we all secretly want to be "winners," we really identify more closely with the Charlie Browns of this world! -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #44 Conquering Lake Ontario In 490 B.C. the Greek runner Phidippides ran the 24 miles from Marathon to Athens to announce an Athenian victory. His endurance was so much admired that runners ever since have attempted to run similar long "Marathon" distances. In the twentieth century, however, long distance swimming has also attracted attention and admiration. To swim the English Channel or Juan de Fuca Strait between Vancouver
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Island and the mainland have become challenges for both male and female swimmers. In September 1954, some Canadian businessman from Toronto offered veteran Californian champion Florence Chadwick $10,000 if she could swim Lake Ontario. They felt sure that such a feat would attract large crowds. Chadwick had swum the English Channel in both directions. However, no one - neither man nor woman - had crossed Lake Ontario. It was a 32-mile swim through cold water and difficult currents. Two other women also decided to take up the challenge. One, Winnie Roach Leuszler, had also swum the English Channel. The other was a 16 year old girl named Marilyn Bell. The swimmers traveled to the mouth of the Niagara River on the south side of Lake Ontario. They would swim from Youngstown, in the U.S.A., and back to Toronto. Bad weather delayed the swim for several days. During the night of September 8th the weather cleared, and the swimmers entered the water before midnight. Guided by her coach's flashlight, Marilyn swam through the dark water and soon passed Chadwick, who was lifted from the water after swimming 12 miles. Leuszler made it further, but she too eventually had to give up. Marilyn not only had to overcome her fears of the dark, but she was attacked during the night by blood-sucking lamprey eels. She was able to knock these off with her fist. As dawn approached, the winds and waves increased, and Marilyn's weariness mounted. Her coach, Gus Ryder, passed her some corn syrup on a stick, and later gave her liniment for her tired legs. He wrote messages on a blackboard to encourage her to keep going. Sometimes, he tricked her into thinking that she was nearer to the shore than she was. Marilyn fell asleep in the water twice and had to be awakened. The second time, a friend of hers jumped into the water beside her, and swam with her for a distance. Because Marilyn's strength was declining, she was being pushed off course by the currents. Although the direct route was 32 miles, Marilyn swam a total of 45 miles. The last few miles were extremely difficult. Marilyn's family and the lifeguards felt that she should be taken out of the water. But her coach threatened to quit as her coach if the swimmer gave up. It was getting dark again, and the swimmer was barely conscious as she approached the shore. Thousands of people lined the shore hoping to touch her or get a picture of her. Marilyn's supporters had to push the crowds back so they wouldn't stop her from touching the shore. Finally, after 21 hours in the water, Marilyn reached land. The exhausted girl was rushed to an ambulance. She had lost about 20 pounds of her 120 pounds weight in the crossing. Finally she was able to sleep. Huge crowds came out to see her the next day, and two days later there was a parade in her honour through the streets of Toronto. Everyone admired the courage and endurance of the 16 year-old girl, who became the first person to swim across Lake Ontario. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #45 Currier and Ives Before the widespread use of photography, there was a large market for artistic depictions of scenes and events. A process for making prints called lithography became popular in North America during the early nineteenth century. One young artist who mastered this technique was Nathaniel Currier (1813-1888). Currier opened his own shop in 1834. Currier's success came when he issued prints of newsworthy events. His "Ruins
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of the Merchant's Exchange" followed a great fire in New York, December 1834. One of Currier's prints of a disastrous fire on a steamboat was published in the New York Sun in 1840. There was also a large market for decorative prints. People who couldn't afford oil paintings would buy colour prints to put on their walls. Some of these prints were copies of paintings. Sometimes, Currier mentioned his source and sometimes not. In 1852, James Merritt Ives (1824-1895) joined Currier's firm. In 1857, he became Currier's partner. After that, the firm was known as Currier and Ives. Altogether the firm produced about 7,000 different subjects. Small prints sold for about 25 cents, and large colour prints for about three dollars. Travelling salesmen went from house to house selling them. Currier and Ives sometimes hired the original painters to make the print. More often, someone from his or her own studio either composed an original subject or copied an existing painting or drawing. Contemporary news remained popular. Currier and Ives prints included "The First Appearance of Jenny Lind in America" (1850), "The Fall of Richmond, Virginia" (1865), and "The Great Fire at Chicago" (1871). A common subject was a patriotic scene from American history. Interesting occupations such as whaling, bird hunting, trapping, fur trading and deep-sea fishing were portrayed. Pioneer and Indian topics were in demand. However, the most popular of all scenes were winter and holiday prints of ordinary people enjoying life. Farm scenes, buggy rides, sleigh rides, market scenes, blacksmith's shops, and town scenes sold well. Favourite prints included "American Forest Scene: Maple Sugaring" (1860), "Home to Thanksgiving" (1863), "Winter in the Country" (1862), "Life in the Country: The Morning Ride" (1859) and "American Winter Sports" (1856). These scenes are still popular. Even today you can buy Christmas cards with Currier and Ives winter scenes. This collection of prints gives a remarkable picture of America between 1834 and 1907. Although the prints are sometimes more romantic than reality, they give a lot of information about everyday life. They depict styles of clothing, trains and boats, buildings and bridges and popular activities. They also tell us what sorts of scenes people at that time liked, and what their artistic tastes were. Eventually, advances in photography made this kind of printmaking obsolete. In 1906, the firm of Currier and Ives closed its doors. For a while, these prints were not considered very valuable. Nowadays, however, there are many collectors, and Currier and Ives prints once again can be found decorating North American homes. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #46 Death Valley - California The steep mountains of southeastern California dip suddenly into a deep valley. Rain is kept out of the valley by the high mountains, which form its western slopes. Although mountains surround the valley, Death Valley itself is very low. In fact, its lowest point is 282 feet below sea level, the lowest point of land in North or South America. Death Valley is about 140 miles long, but only a few miles wide. It got its name in 1849 during the California Gold Rush. Gold seekers attempted to cross Death Valley on the way to California's gold fields, and some died of thirst there. There is hardly any water in the Valley. The average rainfall is only a couple of inches a year. It is also one of the hottest places in North America in the summer. Temperatures of 134튔 have been recorded.
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As a result of this heat and dryness, Death Valley is a desert. These conditions give rise to the Valley's most important products - mineral salts and salt deposits. One of these products is borax, which has many industrial uses. Borax was removed from the desert using 20 mule teams hitched in a long string. Later, a railway was built to help carry out these minerals. In spite of its desert conditions, Death Valley has considerable animal and plant life. Of course, its animals and plants are those typical in desert conditions. Only on the salt flats do plants refuse to grow. With even a small rainfall in the spring, the desert will come alive with wild flowers. Very few places in the world have such a contrast in heights and depths. The mountains near the Valley are among the highest in Continental U.S.A., while the Valley itself is the lowest elevation. Mount Whitney at 14,495 feet is less than 100 miles from Death Valley. The climate in the Valley from October to May is generally pleasant. Since Death Valley is now a national park, many tourists visit during this season. Now roads and hotels provide comfortable access. Death Valley is located close to the Nevada border. Its desert conditions are common throughout the area of the American west just east of coastal mountains. In most cases, heavy rain falls along the coast, but very little in the interior. Because there is no farming and water is hard to obtain, Death Valley and similar desert areas have very few permanent residents. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #47 Dr. Norman Bethune Some people find their vocation early in life; others do not discover their life's work until they are older. Norman Bethune tried many things before he fully realized his true work. Bethune was born in Gravenhurst, Ontario in 1890. He was the son of a Presbyterian clergyman. The family moved frequently, and many of the places they lived were close to lakes, rivers and woods. As a young man, Norman loved the outdoors. He became a good swimmer and skater. He also showed that he had a strong independent streak. He hated rules, but also had a strong sense of justice. The young man studied science at the University of Toronto from 1909-1911. After that, he worked for Frontier College. This was a volunteer organization where instructors did the same jobs as the local workers during the day, and taught them English in the evening. He then returned to Toronto to study medicine. Early in World War I, he joined the Army Medical Corps. He reached France in February 1915, but was wounded in April and eventually returned to Canada. He went back to the war in 1917. At the end of the war, he continued to study medicine in London, England. While he was in England, he married a Scottish woman, Frances Campbell Penney. Although Bethune loved her very much, their marriage ended in divorce in 1927. The couple moved to Detroit, Michigan in 1924 where Bethune opened a medical practice. In the middle of his growing success, he contracted tuberculosis. This was a low point in Bethune's life. Thinking that he was going to die, he considered suicide. One day, however, he read of a new treatment for tuberculosis and insisted that his doctors perform the operation on him. As a result, Bethune recovered. The year was 1927. For some years after, Bethune devoted himself to the treatment of tuberculosis patients. However, he began to notice a pattern. Rich patients who could afford proper medical
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care usually recovered. Poor patients usually died. Bethune became a supporter of government-funded medicinal care. Bethune admired the government-funded health system in communist Russia. He was angry when Canada would not support his idea about Medicare. Bethune wanted to change the world, and communism seemed like the most promising method. In 1936, Bethune went to Spain to help the Republicans fight the Fascists. He was appalled to see the Fascists' allies, Germany and Italy, dropping bombs on women and children. He developed a hated for Fascism. He also decided that doctors should go to the front, rather than wait for the wounded to be brought to them. In Spain, he developed a blood transfusion service, which saved many lives. Returning to North America, Bethune heard about the Japanese attack on China in 1937. Early in 1938, he sailed for China. Bethune had joined the Communist Party. Now he went to join the army of Mao Tse-sung in Northern China. Mao's army was suffering badly from Japanese attacks. They had hardly any doctors or medical supplies. Difficulties only made Bethune work harder. He soon organized a hospital, trained medical workers, and wrote textbooks. He insisted on operating right at the front to give the wounded a better chance of survival. He went for days without sleep and gave his own blood to help the wounded. In November 1939, he died from blood poisoning. But his work lived on. In 1973, the Canadian government bought his house that he was born in and turned it into a museum. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #48 Ebenezer Scrooge In the story "A Christmas Carol," Scrooge is an English businessman who thinks about nothing but money. He has no friends, and spends no time with his family. He lives alone, eats alone, and works alone, except for his underpaid clerk, Bob Cratchit. Scrooge never spends his money, but hoards it all, and prides himself on his frugality. Scrooge hates Christmas. It is all nonsense to him. People spend money on food, and gifts, and parties. Often they can't afford what they spend. Worse than that, they take a whole day off work and so lose a chance to make more money. Scrooge is angry that he has to give his clerk the day off with pay. He feels that he is being robbed. Christmas is also a time when people are asked to give money to help the poor. Scrooge is angry when two men come to his door asking for donations. Scrooge argues that he pays taxes, which support prisons and workhouses. It is not his business to worry about the problems of other people. Scrooge represents businessmen who see the "bottom line" as all that matters. Scrooge's partner Marley had died seven years earlier. He was like Scrooge in all respects. That evening, which is Christmas Eve, Scrooge is visited by Marley's ghost. Marley drags steel chains round about him, which contain keys, cash-boxes, ledgers, purses and deeds. These are the things that Marley cared about when he was alive. Marley is condemned in death to wander the world and tells Scrooge that the same fate is likely to happen to him. However, three spirits will visit Scrooge, and if Scrooge listens to them, he may escape his fate. The first spirit comes and takes Scrooge back to the early scenes of his own life. He sees himself being left behind at school while the other boys went home for the holidays. Then his little sister arrives to tell him he could go home too. Another scene was of a
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cheerful Christmas party, when Scrooge was a young man. A third scene showed him with the girl he was planning to marry. She left him because he no longer cared about anything but money. The second spirit shows Scrooge what people are doing that very Christmas. He shows Scrooge the preparations that people, even poor people, are making to celebrate Christmas. They visit Bob Cratchit's tiny home. There they see the family cooking their little Christmas dinner. Bob's son, Tiny Tim, has been weakened by disease, and has to use a crutch to walk. The family is delighted with its meal, small as it is. They see other scenes of poor people--miners and sailors --celebrating Christmas. Finally, they visit Scrooge's nephew, and view his Christmas party and its games. The third spirit was the spirit of Christmas Yet to Come - the Future. This spirit does not talk but points to scenes connected with Scrooge. They overhear some businessmen joking about someone who has recently died, but no one is going to the funeral. Scrooge sees that he no longer occupies his usual place of business. The spirit then shows him two women who have stolen the bedclothes, curtains, and clothes of the dead man and taken them to a pawnbroker. The spirit takes Scrooge to the room where the dead man died. The only people who are happy about the death are a young couple who owed him money. The spirit then shows Scrooge the Cratchit's house, where they are mourning the death of Tiny Tim. Finally, the spirit takes him to a churchyard, where they stand among the graves. Then the spirit points to the name of the dead man on the tombstone-"Ebenezer Scrooge." Scrooge is going to die, and no one will care. Scrooge finds himself in his own bed on Christmas morning. He is resolved now to avoid the fate that the spirits had shown him. He is delighted that he is getting a second chance. Scrooge decides to surprise all his acquaintances, and he begins by buying a huge goose and sending it to the Cratchits. On his walk, he meets the two men collecting for the poor, and offers them a large sum of money. He goes on to join his nephew at his Christmas party. The next day when Bob Cratchit comes into work, Scrooge gives him a raise in his salary. He also takes care of Tiny Tim, so that Tim's health is recovered. Charles Dickens' story was written at a time when governments did very little to help the poor. Wages were very low, and many businessmen were unwilling to look after their workers properly. Dickens points out that people like Scrooge not only make other people unhappy, but also are usually unhappy themselves. It is possible to be a very rich businessman, and a poor human being at the same time. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #49 Etiquette "Etiquette" is a French word. The original meaning was "little tickets." These tickets were given to people who were attending a public ceremony. Printed on the ticket were instructions about how to behave on this occasion. So etiquette came to mean the way to behave on public occasions. Etiquette today includes how to introduce people; how to eat properly; how to dress for different occasions; how to speak to different people; and what to do on special occasions. Almost every part of social life can have its particular etiquette. Sometimes, etiquette changes or seems to change. There was much behaviour attached to courtship, such as a man holding the door open for a woman. Nowadays, some people find this outdated. But politeness is always a good idea. It is nice to hold the door open for the next person, whoever they are.
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In fact, it sometimes seems like contemporary life encourages bad manners. Etiquette is no longer taught to young people. Moreover, in a youth culture, young people take their examples from other young people. As a result, good manners aren't considered important. The point of etiquette is to help people to get along with each other. If people behave in an accepted manner, there is less chance of misunderstanding. Moreover, it is important for people to think about treating other people well. If everyone does what they feel like doing, it doesn't seem like they respect other people. Etiquette can help things to go a lot smoother. Manners vary from culture to culture, but the intention is the same: to treat people with consideration. This is a way to reduce conflict. Sometimes, we can understand where these customs come from. Originally, shaking hands with your right hand probably meant that you weren't carrying a weapon. Taking off your hat may originally have been taking off your helmet. This meant that you weren't going to fight. Nowadays, there are new areas of social life. For example, a lot of conversation now takes place on the telephone. Perhaps because there is no traditional telephone etiquette, some people feel free to be rude. Try to treat the person on the phone just the way you would treat them if you were actually talking to them. Most people feel it is rude to interrupt a conversation. But many people seem to think that it is okay to interrupt someone talking on the phone. Children especially need to be taught not to interrupt. The Internet also needs its own etiquette or "netiquette." Because you cannot see whom you are talking to, and they may be thousands of miles away, it is easy to misunderstand. Also people cannot hear the tone of your voice over the Internet. For this reason, some people use "smilies" - little faces - to show how they are feeling. If they make a joke they can use a smiling face, or print after their remark. This tips off the recipient that their remark is not to be taken seriously. Using simple words like "please" and "thank you" can make everyday life a lot smoother and happier. Like a lot of other things, we do not realize the importance of etiquette until it starts to disappear. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #50 Gambling Many governments have turned to legalized gambling as a way to increase revenues. Raising taxes has become very unpopular, and gambling can be seen as a "cash cow." Large casinos are often considered good for areas with high unemployment. Most new casinos include a variety of slot machines, table games, such as blackjack, and roulette wheels. Opponents of gambling point to problems associated with it. Crime rates go up, especially with respect to theft and prostitution. People become addicted to gambling and play until they are broke. Stress is put on families when one member gambles, and the grocery and rent money are spent. On the other hand, many people view gambling as an exciting form of entertainment. They look forward to the opportunity to play the lottery or go to the casino. Often they feel that they are getting good value, in terms of entertainment, for what they spend. The truth is probably that some people can control the urge to gamble, while some cannot. People who find gambling really exciting feel that they have to go back for that
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"high," even if it means spending all their money. Many people doubt that governments should promote gambling, since it is certain to produce addicts. There has also been some question whether gambling is good for the local economy. If a casino is built in an area of high unemployment, will local people really benefit? The answer seems to be both yes and no. People may benefit if the gamblers come in large numbers from outside the area and spend their money there. That is, if the casino is a notable tourist attraction. On the other hand, if not many people come from outside the area, there are few benefits. In this case, most of the gamblers are local people who are spending the little money they have. Gambling is especially attractive to older and retired people. Since older people don't have much chance of making a lot of new money, the thought of winning the jackpot is very attractive to them. Casinos regularly run buses from retirement homes so that seniors can come and gamble. Some would see this as taking advantage of lonely people. There are stories in the newspaper about couples leaving their children locked in the car for six or eight hours while they gamble. One man hoped to improve his finances by gambling, but he lost heavily. His wife found out and went gambling herself, hoping to win some of the money back. Before long, they had to sell their house to pay their gambling debts. Gambling has usually been associated with organized crime. Even today, when government agencies supervise gambling, it would appear that there is still a crime connection. This may be because many of the best gamblers and gambling administrators learned their trade outside of the law. Besides this, gambling establishments attract various forms of crime to the area. Since law and government have an important educational function, one doesn't like to see them involved in gambling. Governments should be more than profit-maximizers. They should be concerned chiefly with the public good. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #51 Gilbert and Sullivan Gilbert and Sullivan are the authors of many lively and humorous operettas. These works are the most popular of their kind, and are regularly performed today. But the two authors are known almost as well for their arguments and disagreements. The famous partners were very different people with very different interests. William S. Gilbert wrote the words that Sullivan set to music. Gilbert had a special talent for humourous verse. He loved puns, and had a very quick wit. Personally though, he was very businesslike. He had wanted to enter the military and always had the look of a soldier about him. He was fond of giving orders and disliked criticism of anything he did. Arthur S. Sullivan, on the other hand, was a sensitive, emotional person, whose main interest was music. Sullivan came from a poor family, but his musical talents and good looks had helped him to succeed. Sullivan wanted to write serious classical music. But, as a poor man, he needed a source of income. Sullivan also needed someone to direct him. On his own, he had trouble deciding what to do. Gilbert and Sullivan never became really good friends and, at the end of their lives, they had little contact with each other. But the writer and musician needed each other. Gilbert needed a composer who could enliven his writings for the stage. Sullivan needed someone to write a text for his music. Sullivan, who tended to be lazy, needed someone to push him.
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A theatrical manager named Richard D'Oyly Carte arranged their first collaboration. Gilbert visited Sullivan and read him his satire on the legal system, "Trial by Jury." Sullivan loved the piece and quickly wrote the music. "Trial by Jury" was produced in 1875 and became the first triumph for the partners. D'Oyly Carte decided to form an acting company, which would stage future works by Gilbert and Sullivan. A string of successes follows: "The Sorcerer" in 1877; "H.M.S. Pinafore" in May 1878; "The Pirates of Penzance" in December 1878; "Patience" in 1881; "Iolanthe" in 1882; "The Mikado" in 1885; "The Yeomen of the Guard" in 1888; and "The Gondoliers" in 1889. In spite of these successes, the two partners were not happy. Sullivan did not like the way Gilbert dominated their relationship. Sullivan had to write music for Gilbert's scripts. Why couldn't Gilbert write words for Sullivan's music? Gilbert, on the other hand, thought that Sullivan got most of the credit for the success of their operettas and that he was overlooked. Gilbert was the driving force in the relationship. He was always writing new scripts and taking them to Sullivan. It was Gilbert who rehearsed the actors and supervised the productions. Sullivan had little to do with the actual performance. He usually did conduct the orchestra on opening night. The amazing thing is how these two different people produced such wonderful work. Each separately had difficulty writing something that the public wanted. Together they were unbeatable. Gilbert's sharp and often cutting remarks were made acceptable by Sullivan's beautiful music. Gilbert's satire might have made people angry, but Sullivan's music calmed them down. Even when the English people were the targets of Gilbert's criticisms, the audience went out of the theatre humming these criticisms to Sullivan's music. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #52 Hawaii In the middle of the Pacific Ocean, far from any land, there are the Hawaiian Islands. These islands are the tops of a chain of volcanic mountains. Two volcanoes on the Island of Hawaii are still active. There are five larger islands. Kauai is to the west; Oahu, Molokai and Maui are in the middle; and Hawaii is to the east. There are three smaller islands. Hawaii is the largest island of the group, but Oahu has the largest population. The capital city, Honolulu, is on Oahu. Since the Hawaiian Islands are so far from any land, one might wonder how people arrived there. The answer is that the first Hawaiians were very good sailors. They travelled thousands of miles from other islands in the Pacific in canoes. To keep these canoes stable in the ocean, they attached an "outrigger," or pontoon, to the main canoe. Sometimes, they fastened two canoes together and put a wooden platform on top. Then they could carry lots of people and supplies. The first Hawaiians were Polynesians, and probably came from the Marguesas and Tahiti in the South Pacific. They were a tall good-looking people. Their kings made rules about how their people should live, and priests and advisors called "kahunas" enforced these. Today the phrase "the big kahuna" means someone who is, or thinks he is, very important. Although Hawaii lies within the tropics, it has a very mild climate. Sea breezes keep the
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weather from getting too hot, even in the summer. Many edible plants grow in abundance there. So it was not difficult for the Hawaiians to live very comfortably without working hard. Captain Cook was the first European to reach Hawaii in 1778. Soon European and American ships visited there regularly. The sailors also brought diseases formerly unknown. By 1853, the population had dropped to 73,000 from about 300,000 when Cook visited in 1778. Besides Europeans, people from China, Japan and the Philippines came to live there. Soon large plantations of sugar cane and pineapples developed. As more and more land came under western control, the native monarchy was undermined. American plantation owners were able to arrange for United States' control of the islands. Today, the largest industry is tourism. Since the climate is good all year round, visitors can come at any time. When you arrive, a young Hawaiian woman will greet you. She will put a beautiful flower necklace called a "lei" around your neck. Hula dancers entertain tourists. Hula dancers wear skirts made of long leaves. Each dancer tells a story by moving their arms and hands in a certain way. For meals, the Hawaiians like to dig a pit in the ground, place wood in the pit, and then set the wood on fire. Food wrapped in leaves is then placed on the wood, and the pit is covered with leaves and mats. A feast cooked this way is called a "luau." These traditions nowadays are usually performed for tourists, or on special holidays. Hawaii is the 50th state of the United States, and its people enjoy all the advantages of the modern world. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #53 Henry Ford Some inventions are based on simple ideas or principles. Barometers are based on the idea that air has weight and pushes down on objects. A barometer measures this air pressure. Evangelista Terricelli invented barometers in Italy in 1643. Other inventions have taken longer to develop. The automobile has thousands of parts and it took a long time to make a really useful car. Henry Ford was one of the first people to make a reliable automobile. In 1765, James Watt invented the steam engine. Within a few years, a Frenchman, Nicolas Cugnot, had built a steam-powered vehicle. These steam carriages were used in England in the 1800s. But they were big and slow. They looked like a train without the tracks. Most people preferred to travel by train. In Germany during the 1870s and 1880s, Nikolaus Otto and Gottlieb Daimler developed the internal combustion engine. This ran by burning gasoline. Another German, Karl Benz, built a gasoline-powered car. Around the world, there were many inventors trying to build a car that would be better than the one before. Some people thought that electric cars would become common. In the 1890s, several inventors working in the United States developed a gasoline-powered car that was practical for daily use. Henry Ford was born on a farm in Michigan in 1863. As a boy, he loved to take clocks and watches apart and reassemble them. Eventually, he went to work for the Detroit Edison Company. In his spare time, he worked on a "horseless carriage," as the early cars were called. In 1896, he completed a car that ran smoothly. He later sold it and made another one. Since early cars were made by hand, they were usually quite expensive. Not only that, but when they broke down, there were no repair shops to take them to. One had to know how to repair a car oneself.
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Henry Ford tried to make cars which would be affordable, and which would not break down very easily. His Ford Motor Company was formed in 1903 in Detroit, Michigan. Since many parts had to be brought together to make a car, Ford developed the assembly line. On the line, each worker would do one specific job. When the car reached the end of the assembly line, it was finished. In this way, many cars could be made in a single day. The result was that Ford was able to bring the price of cars down. Ford's "Model T" car was advertised as being "as frisky as a jack rabbit and more durable than a mule." Since it cost hundreds, rather than thousands, of dollars, many ordinary families were now able to buy a car. Once many people had cars, their habits began to change. People didn't have to live next to the factories or offices that they worked in. Going for Sunday drives or travelling to tourist sites became a common thing. In 1905, a car drove across the United States and back again. In 1912, a car went across Canada from coast to coast. Soon there was public pressure for good roads so that cars could travel anywhere in North America. Henry Ford was not the only inventor of the modern car. However, he was able to make a car that everyone could use and afford. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #54 It Could Be a Whole Lot Better As I was sitting in the reading room at the library, a man got up and left, commenting, "It could be a whole lot better." I wasn't sure whether he was referring to the reading room, the world he was reading about, or something else. I replied without thinking, "That's always true, and always false." What I meant was that it is always possible to make little changes to improve things. But it isn't clear ahead of time that these changes will make a big overall improvement in a library, in the world, or in anything else. Years ago, literary critics used to examine great writers very closely to find bad phrasing or ungrammatical sentences. They would look at a play by Shakespeare and identify lines that they didn't think were very good. Sometimes, they would suggest that these lines were added by another writer, or that Shakespeare had written this part quickly without much consideration. Sometimes, they would omit or improve on the lines. It is doubtful that any of Shakespeare's plays were actually improved by these critics. An entire play needs high points and low points, poetry and prose. The whole thing is greater than all its individual parts. And changing a couple of these parts may not improve the whole thing. It is the same in many other areas - music, athletics, scholarship, and probably everyday living. It is not always the singer or musician who is flawless that we admire most. Sometimes, it is the person whose performance is not perfect, but who puts a special energy, feeling, or enthusiasm into their work that we admire. It is true that little things can sometimes add up to a big difference. Changing a bad habit can make a difference in your life, and in the lives of people around you. Giving up smoking, for example, or ceasing to criticize a family member can make an important difference. Sometimes, however, we are only looking at the symptoms of a larger problem. For example, nearly everyone would agree that giving up smoking is a good idea. But if our smoking is related to emotional problems or stress in our lives, then giving up smoking may make us feel even worse. It may be necessary to deal with the root problem. It can happen too that being always on the look-out for ways to improve things may
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become a problem in itself. "Perfectionism" means never being satisfied with things as they are. Especially if we are always criticizing people around us for not being good enough, this can become a bad thing. A popular saying in North America is, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." This is a warning to people who feel that their role or position involves making continuous changes in policies, procedures, products or personnel. Sometimes, the drive for change can be more of a personality problem than a genuine concern to make things better. Real problems are often clearly apparent. Problems like world hunger, personality conflicts, policies that don't work, poor levels of service, bad manners, and all kinds of troubles are hard to ignore. They are also difficult to resolve. Perhaps that's one reason why some people identify things as problems which are of concern to hardly anyone except themselves. Yes, we can make the world, and the reading room, better. But, we can also make them worse. It takes a lot of discernment and usually some experience to know how to make a particular thing better. There are so many things that could use improvement that it is difficult to know where to start. This too requires some thought, not to mention prayer and study. We can start by asking whether the thing we see as a problem is also a problem for other people. If it isn't, then maybe our energy and attention might be better employed elsewhere. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #55 John Chapman : American Pioneer When the first Europeans came to North America, they found dense forests coming down right to the shore. So thick were the forests that it is said that a squirrel could travel from the Atlantic Ocean to the Mississippi River without once touching the ground. Clearing these trees to make room for fields and buildings was a very difficult task for the early settlers. Another difficulty was finding enough food in this new land. Many European crops would not grow in this climate. Carrying and storing seeds over a long period was also risky. Native Indians were often helpful in teaching the settlers how to find food. But sometimes there were no Indians nearby, or they were hostile. John Chapman is famous today because he helped the early settlers grow one important product - apples. Apples could be eaten fresh in the fall, or stored through the winter. They could be made into fresh apple juice or alcoholic cider. They could be dried, or made into applesauce. Apples also could be made into vinegar, which was very useful for keeping vegetables from spoiling. John Chapman was born in Massachusetts in 1774, the year before the American Revolution began. John's father joined George Washington's army to fight for American independence from Great Britain. While the war was going on, John's mother died. In 1780, John's father married again, and soon John had lots of young brothers and sisters. John probably worked on his father's farm as he was growing up. Then he worked on neighbouring farms. It may be at this time that John began to learn about apples. After the Revolutionary War, the population of the U.S.A. was expanding. Many Americans wanted to go west over the mountains to find land in Indian Territory. In the fall of 1797, young John Chapman headed west into Pennsylvania. On his way, he gathered leftover apple seeds from the cider mills that he passed. As usual, John walked barefoot, but as he travelled snow began to fall. He tore strips off his coat and tied them
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around his feet. Then he made snowshoes out of tree branches. When he arrived in the west, he began to clear land and plant apple seeds. This began a pattern that would last Chapman's whole life. He would travel ahead of the settlers, clear land, and then sell his baby apple trees to the settlers when they arrived. When the area became too settled, Chapman would move further west, and start again. Many settlers regarded John Chapman as a strange character. He never bought new clothes, but wore whatever old clothes came his way. But he was always welcome at a settler's cabin. John was good at clearing land, telling stories, and growing apples. He liked children, and children liked him. He was a religious man and would read to the settlers about God and living together peacefully. At this time, there was conflict between the settlers and the Indians about land. John managed to be friendly with both groups. But John did warn the settlers if the Indians were planning to attack them. Every fall, John went east to gather more apple seeds. Then he would go further west and find some empty land to plant his seeds. During the warm weather, he tended all his fields of baby apple trees. Once they were properly grown, he sold the seedlings to settlers. When he had earned enough money, he bought land to grow more apple trees. In his own lifetime, he became known as Johnny Appleseed. Legends grew up about him. It was said that his bare feet could melt snow, and that he could leap across rivers. Johnny Appleseed never built himself a real home. He was a wanderer all his life, travelling west to Indiana and Iowa and back east again. He enjoyed sleeping outdoors, lying on his back, looking up at the stars and thinking about God and his world. He died in Indiana in 1845, and no one knows exactly where he is buried. But all through that region are hundreds of apple trees. These apple trees are the most fitting memorial to John Chapman - the legendary Johnny Appleseed. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #56 Las Vegas, Nevada Nevada is a large state of deserts and mountains. Since most of the land is not suitable for farming, the population grew very slowly. In the 1950s, there were only 267,000 people in the entire state. Today, there are nearly a million people living in the Las Vegas area alone. Las Vegas has become a major tourist center. It used to be a quiet little desert town of the old west. But in the 1950s and 1960s, hotels and gambling casinos were opened. In order to bring tourists to town, these hotels hired well-known entertainers. Soon Las Vegas became known as a major entertainment center. In order to promote the growth of Nevada, some activities were allowed which were against the law in other states. These included gambling and prostitution. It was also easier to get married in Nevada than in some other states. Over time, many other attractions were developed. Much of the activity in Las Vegas goes on at some 30 major hotels. Many of these hotels provide a complete range of services and entertainment. Some of them boast 4,000 or 5,000 rooms. It is common for these large hotels to be organized around a particular theme, such as the Middle Ages, the Arabian Nights, the movies, the circus, Paris, Egypt or the Far East. The hotel, its restaurants, shops, lounges and entertainment reflect this theme. For example, the Paris Las Vegas Hotel has a 50-storey replica of the Eiffel Tower. The Luxor Hotel has a huge image of an Egyptian Sphinx and a replica of the tomb of
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King Tut. Nearly all of the major hotels also contain a casino - sometimes several casinos. Gambling is a major reason why people come to Las Vegas. There are slot machines, blackjack tables, and roulette wheels and much more. Even though Las Vegas is in the desert, there is an extravagant use of water. Large swimming pools, water slides, artificial waterfalls and huge fountains are common. Health spas, beauty salons, fashion boutiques, specialty restaurants and malls abound. Tennis and golf are also popular. The lavish shows at Las Vegas are world famous. The tall dancing showgirls, like the famous Rockettes, wear beautiful but rather skimpy costumes. Some entertainers, like singer Wayne Newton, rarely leave Las Vegas. The pay there is good, and the audiences are appreciative. Near Las Vegas are other tourist sites such as the giant Hoover Dam. Behind the Hoover Dam is the large artificial lake, Lake Mead. Further up the river is the Grand Canyon. All these things are a short trip from the city. Las Vegas is called the city that never sleeps. At nearly any time of the day or night, there are casinos and shows that are open. A monorail connects many of the leading hotels. Many people view Las Vegas as a total entertainment package. One word of caution - set yourself a limit to how much you will spend at the casinos. Gambling can be addictive. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #57 Laura Secord Women have often played an important role in war. They have worked in munitions factories, made clothing and supplies, encouraged and entertained soldiers, nursed the wounded, and acted as spies. It is rare, however, for a woman to have played a key role in determining the course of a war. Many people believe that Laura Secord played such a role in the War of 1812. Laura Secord was born in the United States at the time of the American Revolution. Her father had fought in the U.S. army against the British. But when land in the American States became scarce, the family moved to Ontario, Canada, and so back under British rule. Laura married into a pro-British family, and adopted their political views. So when the War of 1812 broke out between Britain and America, her husband, James Secord, joined the Canadian militia to defend Ontario against the Americans. The American invasion of 1812 was defeated at Queenston Heights, and some of the wounded were brought to Laura's house in nearby Queenston. Laura went out to the battlefield where she found her husband, James, who was severely wounded, and brought him home. In 1813, the U.S. invasion was more successful. Parts of Ontario close to the U.S. border were occupied by American troops. Local families were expected to provide room and board for U.S. officers. It was sometimes possible, therefore, for Canadians to overhear American officers discussing military strategy, either in their homes, or in the local tavern. The situation in Ontario looked desperate in the Spring of 1813. The whole province seemed likely to fall into American hands. In June, Laura overheard talk of an American attack on the British outpost at Beaver Dams. Her husband was still suffering from war injuries, and she had to look after him and their children. Nevertheless, she resolved to go to warn the British commander.
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Possibly, Laura did not intend to walk the whole way herself. She hoped to be able to pass on the news to someone else along the way. First, she would have to make up a story to get past the American sentries. She left Queenston in early morning and walked nineteen miles to the neighbourhood of Beaver Dams by nightfall. She still had to cross a wide stream and climb up the Niagara Escarpment. There she came upon an encampment of Indians who were assisting the British. Their war cries in the moonlight terrified her, but she insisted on being taken to the British commander. Finally, one of the chiefs escorted her to British headquarters, and she was able to tell Fitzgibbon the American plan of attack. When the Americans arrived in the neighbourhood of Beaver Dams, the Indians had prepared an ambush for them. A running fight ensued between the American force of 570 soldiers and 450 Indians supporting the British. At this point, Fitzgibbon arrived with 50 British regulars. Seeing the Americans disorganized and surrounded by the Indians, Fitzgibbon boldly demanded their surrender. By telling the American Commander Boerstler that he was facing huge British and Indian forces, Fitzgibbon induced the American leader to turn over his whole army to the British. Although only small armies were involved at Beaver Dams, the battle had great significance. Afterwards, the Americans stayed behind their walls for the rest of the year. The U.S. government recalled their commander-in-chief. British and Canadian morale increased, and Laura's home in Queenston was restored to British control. Laura Secord's story was little known until 1860. She was an old woman in her eighties when she was presented to the visiting Prince of Wales, later King Edward VII. He awarded a gift of money for her services. Her story then became famous; today her home in Queenston, Ontario, is an historical museum and a popular tourist attraction. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #58 Little House on the Prairie Much of the history of North America is about how Europeans moved westward from the Atlantic coast towards the Pacific. The first settlements began around 1600, and it was a long time before the Europeans settled the interior. By the late eighteenth century, however, good farmland along the east coast was becoming scarce. As the population increased, people began thinking about all the native Indian lands further inland. Families were quite large in pioneer days, and the oldest son usually inherited the family farm. This meant that the other sons and daughters would have to move away when their parents died. Often the sons would want to begin their own farm, and start their own family. But, if there was no farmland available, or if it was too expensive to buy, they were out of luck. One option was to move west where land was free or very cheap. Sometimes the whole family might move if their old farm was no longer productive. Sometimes the old farm was on poor soil, or too much farming had exhausted the soil. Perhaps better land could be had further west. There were other reasons for moving west. Pioneer settlers depended on wild birds, fish and wild animals for food, furs and skins for clothing and trading, and trees for building materials. These things became scarce in old settled areas. Out west there were lots of animals to hunt for food, and animal skins could be traded for supplies. It seemed that it was easier to make a living on the frontier. Of course, there were some problems regarding moving west. Various American Indian tribes who might fight to defend their land occupied the land. Then the land needed to be
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cleared of trees and stumps before it could be planted. A log cabin and other buildings had to be built. A well had to be dug, or a spring of water found. Settlers might also suffer because there were no doctors, or teachers, or stores available. These things, though, often did follow closely behind the first settlers. A series of "Little House" books written by Laura Ingalls Wilder tells the story of her pioneer family. The Ingalls family moved many times while Laura was a little girl. She was born in Wisconsin in 1867; her family moved next year to Missouri; then they moved to Kansas in 1869; the Ingalls moved back to Wisconsin in 1871; they moved to Minnesota in 1874; her family went to Iowa in 1876; then back to Minnesota in 1877. Finally, they moved to De Smet, South Dakota in 1879, and there the family remained. All these moves were typical for a pioneer family - always on the lookout for better land and other opportunities. But all these moves involved very hard work, all of which seemed all lost when the family had to move again. For example, when Laura's parents moved to the Kansas prairie in 1869, they had many hardships. The family put all their belongings in a covered wagon, which measured four feet by ten feet. Two horses pulled it, and the family dog followed along. Laura and her sister Mary were very little girls. The family and their wagon were nearly washed away trying to cross a small river. They travelled through wild tall grass where there were no roads. Laura's father built a house on the open prairie with logs he hauled from the creek bottoms. One of the nearby settlers helped him. They also built a log stable for the horses. That was a good thing, because the next night their little house was surrounded by a pack of fifty large wolves. They formed a large circle around the house and howled all night. One day while Laura's father was away, two Indians visited the house. They wanted Laura's mother to feed them and stood silent while the food was cooking. The Indians wore only fresh skunk skins as clothing. After the Indians had eaten all the food, they left. The following spring, there was a large gathering of Indian tribes. Most of them wanted to fight the settlers. For many nights, the sounds of Indian drums frightened the settlers. One tribe opposed the plan, and finally the gathering broke up and the Indians went away. Many other problems faced the Ingalls family. These included bad weather, prairie grass fires, and malaria. The worst part was having to leave their new homes. The government decided that Laura's family was living on Indian land and would have to move. So the covered wagon was packed again, and the family travelled north. Such experiences were not unusual for pioneers in the nineteenth century. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #59 Mutiny!! Mutiny is a word that has brought fear to the most powerful empires in the world. Mutiny is when soldiers and sailors refuse to obey their commanders, often killing or imprisoning them. Mutiny can spread through whole armies and navies, throwing governments into crisis. No wonder that nations have always taken harsh measures to punish mutinous leaders. The ancient Romans executed every tenth man from an army unit that had mutinied. In the British navy, mutineers were normally hanged. However, one of history's most famous mutinies did not happen to a whole army or navy, it happened on a single small ship, H.M.S. Bounty. H.M.S. Bounty set sail from England in December 1787. It was a small cramped vessel, uncomfortable during a long voyage. Its goal was to sail to the South Pacific and bring
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back Tahitian breadfruit plants. The government hoped that breadfruit would provide a cheap food for black slaves in the British West Indies. The captain of the Bounty was William Bligh, a veteran of many voyages. His crew, however, was largely made up of inexperienced young men. There was no room on the ship for soldiers or marines, so Bligh, as the only commissioned officer, had the difficult task of maintaining order. After a long and difficult trip, the Bounty finally arrived in Tahiti in October 1788. Free from the constraints of life aboard ship, the young men enjoyed life on the tropical island with the friendly natives. Many of the sailors established relationships with island women. Meanwhile, the collection of breadfruit plants for the homeward voyage continued. In April 1789, Captain Bligh decided that it was time to return to England. The breadfruit plants were loaded on the deck, making the ship cramped indeed. The Bounty set sail and would no doubt have reached England again, except for the turmoil in the mind of one of its young officers. Fletcher Christian was 24 years old, of dark complexion, and from a good family. As the Bounty pulled further from Tahiti, Fletcher seemed to have decided that he didn't want to return to England. Tahiti had been an earthly paradise, and now long months of discomfort aboard ship awaited him. He was too far from Tahiti to return by himself. He would need the Bounty. On April 28, 1789, some of Fletcher Christian's friends seized control of the ship. Captain Bligh and eighteen sailors who supported him were put in a small open boat with limited food and water. Meanwhile, Christian and his 24 followers sailed back to Tahiti. Eventually, Fletcher Christian would sail the Bounty to the uninhabited Pitcairn Islands, far to the south of the shipping lanes. Meanwhile, Bligh and his loyal followers sailed in their open boat almost the width of the Pacific Ocean. They suffered from thirst, hunger and sickness, as well as hostile natives. Finally, they reached Timor in Indonesia in June and eventually made their way to the capital, Batavia. When they returned to England, Captain Bligh was first greeted as a hero. Soon, however, public attitudes changed. The legend began that Bligh was a cruel tyrant who had caused the mutiny by harsh treatment of his men. Although Bligh had a temper, and was not very tactful, this does not appear to be the whole story. In fact, it is the controversy over who is to blame for the mutiny - Bligh or Christian - that has kept the story alive for more than 200 years. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #60 North America's Rainforest When people think of rainforests, they usually think of the tropical jungle. But heavy rain can also produce dense forests in temperate areas. Along the northwest coast of North America, there are some of the largest trees in the world. This forest runs along the Pacific Coast from Alaska down to northern California. About half of it is in British Columbia, Canada. Several species of trees grow to an immense size. Some grow up to 95 metres (312 feet) high, and 12 metres (40 feet) in circumference. They may be as much as 1,000 years old. Because the trees are so tall, the forest has various levels of growth. Small plants attach themselves to the tall trees and may form a kind of garden in the air. Further down are the tops of the younger trees. Closer to the ground are shrubs and bushes. Along the
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ground are moss, ferns, berries and other plants. These old forests have developed over several thousand years. The tall trees are at least several hundred years old. This old forest has several special features. Some of the dead tall trees remain standing and become homes for insects, birds and small animals. Trees that fall to the ground can become "nurse logs" for new plants or trees to grow on. Trees that fall across rivers and streams can provide natural dams, which provide quiet water for animals to live in. In recent years, it has become common for logging companies to "clear-cut" this old forest. To clear-cut a forest means to go into a section of forest with heavy machinery and cut down every tree. Sometimes, these "clear-cuts" are as large as some European countries. Logging companies are doing this because it is a cheap method of logging. The problem is that when an old forest is cut, it does not grow back again. Even with replanting, companies produce a tree farm, not an old forest. The complexity of an old forest, which grew over thousands of years, is lost forever. The old forest can shelter many kinds of birds, mammals, fish and plants that a replanted forest cannot. Another issue is that companies are cutting more and more old forests because they haven't done enough replanting. As long as governments have been willing to let companies cut old forests, neither logging companies nor governments have been much motivated to replant the forests. As a result, most of the old forest has been cut down and continues to be cut at a rapid rate. This situation has also worsened because new technology allows more rapid logging. Clear-cut logging results in erosion, which, in turn, damages the quality of rivers and streams. This causes a decline in the salmon fishery. Animals like grizzly bears, elk and deer are harmed by the loss of habitat. Likewise, birds that nest in the old forest, such as bald eagles, owls, woodpeckers and various seabirds are being threatened. Recently, public interest in the old rainforests has resulted in an increase in tourism. People come to see these spectacular trees and the many plants and animals that depend on them. We hope that these unique temperate rainforests will remain for many more generations to enjoy. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #61 Peggy's Cove, Nova Scotia Why do people travel hundreds of miles to look at beautiful scenery? And why does one particular place attract many more visitors than similar places not far away? Peggy's Cove in Nova Scotia, Canada, is one of those special spots that draws people from all over the world. It is hard to explain its special charm, but any one who has been there will know what I am talking about. The southern-eastern shore of Nova Scotia possesses many picturesque fishing villages and many beautiful seascapes. But one doesn't have to go very far from the capital city of Halifax to see this special spot. There are no trees around Peggy's Cove. The dominant feature are huge round granite rocks, many of them the size of houses. They seem to be pushing up and out of the land and sea. Nestled inside the circle of these rocks is a group of fishing huts. Now and then a fishing boat leaves by the little bay or cove, in order to travel out into the great Atlantic Ocean. For nearly two hundred years, there have been fishermen at Peggy's Cove. All around the little harbour there are huts or "fish stores" where the fishermen do their work. Here they bring in the fish, and clean them, wash them and salt them. The salted fish are then
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stored in barrels. Nowadays, however, more fish are sold fresh than salted. Visiting as a tourist, I wandered into one of these huts while the fisherman was busy at his work. He explained to me that, although Peggy's Cove is a tourist destination, it is also a working fishing village. The fishermen get no money from the tourists, but have to take the time to talk to them and explain their work. There are, however, some tourist shops and tea rooms in the vicinity. Part of the charm of Peggy's Cove is that it is so small. The population has been well under 100 people for most of its history. The buildings are mostly small dwellings, with the lighthouse being the most prominent structure. A good variety of fish are caught in the area, including mackerel, herring, haddock, cod and halibut. Lobsters are also trapped nearby. However, because of over-fishing, catches have declined in recent decades. The plants and animals of the area are also of interest. Showy purple lupins grow close to the ocean. They thrive on salty ground, and the closer they grow to the spray of the ocean the better. One of the world's few carnivorous plants - the common pitcher plant also grows around Peggy's Cove. Its leaves trap insects, which are digested to nourish the plant. Common birds are the stately blue heron, which likes to fish in the marshy pools. The heron stands several feet high and spear fish and frogs with its sharp beak. Another bird is the osprey, or fish hawk. The osprey's keen eyes can spot a fish moving beneath the surface of the water. It can dive swiftly, hitting the water with great speed, catch the fish in its claws, and then fly away with its catch. I have also seen pools close to the ocean full of large tadpoles. These tadpoles spend several years in the water before they develop into bullfrogs. Bullfrogs, the largest Canadian frog, have been know to eat baby ducks and small fish. Looking over the little harbour and out toward the great ocean, one notices the contrast between the very small and the very large. If Peggy's Cove were larger, it would be more ordinary. As it is, it represents all the little fishing villages, where men have gone forth in little boats to fish on the wide ocean. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #62 Prince Edward Island Throughout history, people have dreamed about a special place, remote from the day-today business world. Sometimes, they have thought of this place as an enchanted world where the weather is always good, and food is always easy to get. Sometimes, it has been a hidden valley in the mountains, or an island far out at sea. When the Europeans arrived in the South Pacific, they thought that they had found it. Islands such as Tahiti seemed about as perfect as possible. Nowadays, our cities grow larger and larger, and people have to work harder and harder to succeed. Many people would like to escape to a quieter, slower, more peaceful, more attractive environment. When summer holidays come, many people travel to Prince Edward Island in Eastern Canada. It has a mild summer climate, and hardly ever gets too hot or dry. The fields, trees, and crops stay green all summer. In fact, P.E.I. is famous for the many shades of green on the island. Its soil and dirt roads are red because of iron oxide in the soil. And visitors are never far away from the blue waters of the Gulf of St. Lawrence. In late June and early July, the roadsides are covered with large purple flowers called lupins. The vivid colours of P.E.I. help make the province a photographer's paradise.
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Prince Edward Island is almost 100 miles long and about 20 miles wide. It is small enough that a tourist can see much of the Island in a couple of days. But there are enough interesting things to see and do that most people like to stay longer. One of the chief traditional occupations is fishing. At one time, fishing was an important source of food and income for many islanders. Now the fisheries are in decline; boat owners find it more profitable to take tourists out to fish than to fish themselves. Lobsters and shellfish are still important to the Island, which is famous for its "lobster suppers." Tourists can visit many picturesque little fishing villages all around the coastline. Farming is also important. P.E.I. is famous for its potatoes, which are exported all over the world. Dairy farming is also common, and local ice cream is popular with tourists. Apple orchards, grain fields, hay fields, and vegetable gardening are also widely found. During the era of sailing ships, a lot of shipbuilding took place on the Island. But as steel hulls replaced wooden hulls, shipbuilding moved to regions where steel was being produced. The full impact of the industrial revolution has never hit P.E.I. Farming, fishing and tourism have remained the chief industries. There are no large cities on the Island. So, if young people want to go to the big city, they have to leave P.E.I. The majority of Island people prefer to live in small towns and villages, just as their ancestors did. Since there wasn't much industry on the Island, many people did not have a lot of money. As a result, they "made do" with their old houses, old furniture, and old ways of doing things. This is why visitors to P.E.I. sometimes feel like they are going back in time. Things on the Island seem like they are still the way things were in our parents' or grandparents' day. Most of the people who live on the Island are descended from British immigrants in the eighteenth or nineteenth centuries. The majority of these were from Scotland, and the Scottish heritage remains strong. There are also some Micmac Indians and some French Canadians, or Acadians. The Island has generally avoided social and political strife, and this contributes to the peaceful atmosphere. Islanders welcome people "from away" as tourists. However, some say that to be a true Islander, you have to be born on the Island. Nonetheless, some tourists have fallen in love with P.E.I. and have gone there to live. A couple of years ago, a bridge was built to connect the Island with the mainland. Many opposed this "fixed link," saying that it would destroy the special P.E.I. atmosphere. It remains to be seen whether the Island will change, now that tourists can drive directly on to the rich, red soil. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #63 Public Transit Public transportation in North America varies greatly from place to place. Some large cities like New York, Boston, Toronto and Montreal have subway systems. These same cities usually also have train service into the city. But most towns and cities do not have subways or trains. Some do not even have buses. Most big cities have some sort of public bus service. In most North American cities, people who use the buses complain about poor service. This is partly because most people prefer to drive a car. Automobile companies spend billions of dollars on advertising. They want to convince young people that they should drive a car as soon as they are old enough. Even when public transportation is very good,
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most North Americans prefer to drive cars. So mostly students, poor people and seniors use buses. The large car companies have a lot of economic and political power in North America. They can usually convince politicians to limit the money put into public transit. Lobbying by large car companies has been effective in closing down many railway lines. In some cases, large corporations have bought train tracks, and torn them up so that no one could use them again. Because of this, nearly all transportation in North America is by car, bus or truck. The automobile created the modern North American city. Cars allowed families to live outside the city and drive back in to work. Since the 1920s, large numbers of Americans have lived in the suburbs, and used cars to do nearly all their daily activities. People drive to school, to work, to the shopping mall, to the theatre, to church and to doctors, lawyers and dentists. Because the modern city is so spread out, it is difficult to get where you want to go by walking, or even by bicycling. But the automobile also causes problems. Car accidents are a major cause of death and injury. Crowded streets and snarled traffic can lead to road rage. Frustrated drivers sometimes get out of their cars to fight each other. Young people often use cars as super toys. They enjoy driving very fast and take risks while driving. A high proportion of serious accidents concern drivers using alcohol or drugs. More recently, some people have accused cell phones of being a cause of accidents. About half of the air pollution in North American cities is caused by motor vehicles. The exhaust fumes from cars and trucks are part of this. The other part is that vehicles erode the surface of the highways. Small particles are torn loose from the road and thrown into the air as cars whiz by. Heavy trucks are particularly large contributors to particle pollution. Especially in hot weather, a layer of smog covers many cities. Much of this is caused by motor vehicles. Because city roads are often crowded, the result is frequent traffic jams. When cars are moving very slowly, bumper to bumper, it adds to air pollution. Another problem with cars is that not everyone can afford one. The average car costs nearly $20,000 to buy, and about $4,000 a year to operate. So cars are also a status symbol. People with cars tend to move out of the city. As a result, downtown areas are usually where the poorer people live. For a long time, many people have said that governments should try to make downtown areas more attractive to live in. This would include improving public transit, into and inside, the cities. Then some people may move back from the suburbs. And air pollution levels will decline. Right now, the large automobile companies and oil companies oppose these measures. Recently, there have been cuts to public transit in many cities. Whether these cuts continue, or whether they get reversed, is a big political issue in North America today. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #64 Red-haired Ann The story of Anne Shirley, the red-haired orphan, has been popular around the world for almost a century. The opening chapters of "Anne of Green Gables" tell how a brother and sister, living together on a farm, have decided to adopt a boy. Matthew Cuthbert is now 60 years old and needs help working the farm. They have sent away to the orphanage, and the boy will be arriving by train.
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When Matthew goes to the train station with his horse and buggy, there is no boy, only a girl-- Ann Shirley. Anne is no ordinary girl. She has a vivid imagination and loves to talk about things that interest her. Matthew, who is shy and quiet, takes an immediate liking to her. When they arrive home, however, his sister Marilla is very upset. She doesn't see what good a girl would be to them. Matthew says, "We might be some good to her." After a while, Marilla begins to feel sorry for the thin little orphan and decides to keep her. But Marilla finds that teaching Anne how to behave properly is quite a challenge. Anne often does things without thinking first, and Marilla has to be vigilant to keep her out of trouble. As time goes by, Anne becomes accepted in the community and doesn't get into as many difficulties. One characteristic of the little orphan is a love of big words. While she lived a life of hard work, Anne liked to imagine beautiful things that she didn't have. This was her way of dealing with unhappiness when she worked as a servant for unkind people. Living at Green Gables makes her happy, but she doesn't lose her love of special words or beautiful things. Anne is also unhappy because she has red hair and freckles. In Anne's day, beautiful women were thought to have light clear complexions and black hair. Her colouring seemed unromantic. However, red hair and freckles are very common on Prince Edward Island, where many of the people are of Scottish descent. This story tells us a lot about how to be happy. When Matthew and Marilla stop worry about needing a boy, and start taking care of Anne, they find that they enjoy having her around. Their lives become much more interesting now that they have someone who needs them. So happiness involves looking after others, and being needed by them. There were many stories about orphans when "Anne of Green Gables" was written. Before modern medicine, many parents died before their children were grown up. A lot of mothers died in childbirth. Since fathers didn't usually try to raise young children in those days, someone else had to take the responsibility. This is what happened to Lucy Maud Montgomery, the author of "Anne." Her mother died when she was a baby, and her father left her with her mother's parents. Montgomery's grandparents provided a good home for her, but they were very strict and stern and didn't have a lot of sympathy with the little girl. In her story, Montgomery is imagining how she would have liked her own life to have happened. What if her grandparents had been more like Matthew and Marilla? What if they had allowed her to do more of the things she wanted to do? Wouldn't she have been happier then? The story shows how young children are hurt by bad treatment from the adults looking after them. Even if the adults don't mean to be unkind, sometimes they say or do things that make children very unhappy. "Anne" teaches parents and grandparents to encourage their children and help them to be happy and successful. Anne Shirley is one little person who changes a whole community and makes it better. We all have special gifts and talents, and if we are allowed to use those abilities, they will benefit everyone around us. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #65 Romance Novels Novels are imaginary stories about people and events. They are written to entertain and amuse. Two thousand years ago, Greek writers told tales of young lovers. Usually the
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lovers were separated by terrible events and were reunited only after much hardship and suffering. This plot idea is still in use today. The most popular books for women today in North America are romance novels. Many millions are sold every year. This means that romance publishing is big business and very competitive. Companies survey their readers to determine the kinds of stories they like. One survey asked readers whether or not they would like more references to sex in their novels. Usually, romances are about love, not sex. But in today's market, publishers are ready to give their readers what they want. The essence of the romance is to create suspense by putting obstacles in the way of the lovers. One simple obstacle is to make the hero and the heroine as different as possible. For example, an Eastern schoolteacher meets a Western cowboy. Of course, at first they don't like each other at all; but in time, they fall in love. Or a female social worker might meet an aggressive businessman. Quite often the heroine is a spinster who has sworn never to marry. Or perhaps she has a special dislike for the hero and his family. The romance writer must come up with a plausible way to bring the two together. There are a number of popular plots that lead to marriage. Sometimes, the heroine - out of a sense of duty - will move in with the hero to help him raise his children. Or she may be a professional nanny who moves in with a widower. A favourite plot is the marriage of convenience. Two people who don't like each other get married for financial or political reasons, or for the sake of the children. Later, of course, they fall in love. In most cases, there is some particular obstacle to marriage. Often either the hero or the heroine already has children, and he or she doesn't expect that anyone will want to take on their ready-made family. Sometimes, one or the other has a physical disability, or is of a different race, class, or background. For example, the heroine may come from a very strict and proper family, while the hero may have a dubious reputation, or even be a criminal. The interest of the story lies in how these very different people come together. Usually, the hero is a very masculine type - a cowboy, engineer, military man, pirate, gambler, etc. The heroine is usually very female, but may have tomboy or spinster traits. She frequently has a strong personality and a temper and is described as feisty or fiery. A good example of the two types is Rhett Butler and Scarlett O'Hara in "Gone With the Wind." Nearly every romance novel will contain some promotional offer to encourage readers to order more books. Romances can be addictive, and some women read them almost nonstop. Some romances are very well written, but the majority follows a set formula. That way, the reader always knows what to expect. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #66 Shopping at the Mall At one time in North America, most people shopped downtown on Main Street. Most businesses were at the center of town. When people started using automobiles, however, they moved away from downtown. In time, most people lived in the suburbs. Eventually, stores and small shopping plazas were built in suburban areas. Still, most of the big stores were downtown. But as more and more cars were on the roads, driving and parking downtown became a problem. There wasn't room for a lot of cars to park downtown. People also didn't want to
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fight downtown traffic just to go shopping. So in the 1950s and 1960s, there was the beginning of large suburban shopping malls and plazas. Plazas were a row of stores attached to one another. Malls were usually a double row of stores with a roof connecting both rows. This means that shoppers did all their shopping inside. Large department stores and grocery stores were usually part of the mall, but there were many smaller stores as well. When you came to the mall and went inside, many people would get a shopping cart. You can walk along the aisles, putting your purchases in the cart. When you are finished shopping, you can push your shopping buggy out to the car. Many malls also have buggies or strollers for pushing small children along. There can be a lot of walking in a trip to the mall. In fact, some people go to the mall just to exercise. A half dozen laps around the mall every morning amount to a pretty good workout. However, there are always places to sit down when you get tired. Most malls have a food court. This is an open area with a lot of tables and chairs. Usually there are a dozen or more small restaurants circled around the food court. The department stores often have full-size restaurants. Malls have large parking lots. Unlike downtown, you don't pay to park at the mall. On a busy day, finding a space close to the store can be a challenge. Many people go to the malls when the weather is bad. During wintry weather, the malls are busy. Likewise, in really hot summer weather, people go to the malls to get cool. The climate there is always the same. People don't go to the malls just to shop. They also go to meet people. Usually, you bump into friends and neighbours there. Old people, as well as teenagers, go there to see friends. Usually the malls sponsor special events. With lots to see and do, malls are a popular place to "hang out." -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #67 Stephen Foster ? American Songwriter Before radio and television, movies and recordings, entertainment was often a family or community matter. Someone in the family could play a musical instrument, or a neighbourhood musician would play for small gatherings. In addition, there would be travelling groups of musicians, actors and clowns who would go from town to town. In nineteenth century United States, one of the most popular forms of entertainment was the minstrel show. Black slavery was still permitted in the southern states until 1865. Even after that date, the lives of many blacks working on large farms or plantations did not change much. They did hard physical labour in the fields, had little control over their lives, and very little time to relax with their friends. Foster, who was born in 1826, made this situation the background for many of his songs. White musicians would try to imagine the feelings of black men and women working on the plantations. They would write songs in the dialect or speech patterns that they thought black slaves used. In these songs, the black people would be talking about their hardships, falling in love, playing music and dancing, and finally growing old and dying. White performers would blacken their faces and sing these songs to white audiences. They would play musical instruments, like the banjo, a small four-stringed guitar, which black people played often. As a small boy, Stephen Foster had sometimes been taken to a black church by his family's black servant, Olivia Pise. Here he first heard the melodies that inspired his own
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songs. Only a couple of Foster's songs are based directly on "Negro spirituals;" but many of his songs have the natural simplicity and emotional power of folk songs. The youngest member of a large family, Foster showed his musical talent at an early age. He played the flute, violin, and piano. Growing up in an energetic business family, Stephen was expected to become a businessman. And, for a while, he worked as a bookkeeper. All his spare time, however, was spent writing songs. Foster attended minstrel shows and tried to get the performers to sing his songs. Sometimes the performers would steal his songs and publish them under their own names. Copyright laws were weak and rarely enforced, so some music publishers would just go ahead and publish a song without paying the songwriter. Since Foster hoped to make a living as a songwriter, this was a problem. Foster's first hit song was "Oh! Susanna" published in 1848. It became popular with the thousands of men from all over the United States who were heading west to the Californian gold-rush of 1849. Unfortunately, as an unknown song writer, Foster received no money from his early songs. He seems to have given them outright to the music publishers, just to establish his reputation. Foster's name, however, was soon widely known, and in 1849 he was able to afford to give up bookkeeping, and marry the daughter of a Pittsburgh physician. During the next five years, he earned a moderately good income from songwriting. In 1851, a daughter Marion was born. Foster wrote many of his best-known songs at this time - "Old Folks at Home" in 1851; "My Old Kentucky Home" in 1853, and "Jeanie With the Light Brown Hair" in 1854. Difficulties in Foster's marriage began fairly soon. These may have been partly due to his strange work habits. He spent days locked in his room working on his songs. Then he would rush out with his materials to the local music store, presumably to test out the songs on his friends. He also became more and more addicted to alcohol. Eventually, his wife and daughter left him. Foster died alone in a rooming house in 1864. Immigrants to the United States brought their traditional folk songs with them. However, there were very few typically American songs. Foster provided many songs that expressed the life of nineteenth century U.S.A. His songs were easy to sing, and were popular with nearly everyone. In a sense, Foster helped to create roots for American popular music. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #68 Sunday Morning at Church Every Sunday is a holiday, or half-holiday, in North America. Some stores may be open, but banks, offices, and government services are usually closed. Sunday closing has a Christian origin. Christians believe that Jesus Christ rose from the dead on a Sunday morning. So Sunday is known as the "Lord's Day." About 30 or 35% of North Americans attend church regularly on Sunday mornings. About the same percentage attend church occasionally. At Christmas and Easter the churches are very full, as people celebrate these two important holy days. Nearly everybody goes to church at least three times. They are baptized or dedicated as a child. Most people are married in a church, and many people are buried after a church service. Church services are usually held Sunday mornings, often at 11:00 am, although there may also be evening services provided. Most services last an hour. Their purpose is to worship God and to help people focus on religious and moral beliefs.
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The service is led by a pastor, minister or priest who usually also looks after the people and the business of the church. It is the pastor who delivers the sermon, a twenty-minute talk on a religious or moral matter. Usually members take part in the service. They may lead the singing, read from the Bible, offer prayers for the congregation, take up the collection, or act as ushers. Most churches also have a choir, a group of singers who lead in singing the hymns. There are many cultural traditions connected to going to church. People normally wear their best clothing, and try to be on their best behaviour. Talking or making noise in church is usually considered bad. This is why children often have a separate "children's church" or Sunday school, where they can be more like children. The Sunday service is the main weekly event at many churches. But nowadays there are a growing number of large "super-churches" which organize all kinds of activities for their members. These churches usually have large buildings and a large staff to plan and lead various activities. These might include prayer group, counseling and social work, youth programs, social action, fund-raising events, etc. Many large churches have gymnasiums for regular sports activities. At the same time, "house churches" are also becoming very popular. These are small groups of people who meet at private homes. Sometimes a group will meet in a house until they have the money to buy a church. But many people say they prefer to meet in small groups. That way, they get to know one another better. Then they feel comfortable sharing their problems and successes, and praying for each other. Some say that large churches can interfere with getting close to God and other Christians. There are many different "brands" of Christianity. The largest single denomination in North America is Roman Catholicism. Other large Christian "brands" are Episcopalian, Methodist, Baptist, Pentecostal, Lutheran and Presbyterian. All have slightly different traditions and beliefs. Although in the past, these groups have often been in conflict with one another, today they usually cooperate in working together for their members and the community. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #69 Thanksgiving Day Thanksgiving Day has a special meaning for Americans. Many holidays were brought along from Europe by the early settlers, and didn't change very much. But Thanksgiving takes on a special shape in North America. That is because of the Thanksgiving celebrated by the early pilgrim settlers in Massachusetts in 1621. These early settlers were from England and they were known as Puritans. This is because they wanted to purify the state religion of England. They felt that the churches were more concerned with politics and customs than God and worship. They were also called Pilgrims, because they were willing to travel to other countries in order to worship God the way they wanted to. When the English government put some of the Pilgrims in jail, the rest left England and went to the Netherlands. In the Netherlands, they could have their own churches. However, it was hard to earn a living there, and at first they didn't know the language. In time, the English king learned where they were and tried to have them arrested. So they thought of another plan. Pilgrim leaders like William Brewster attempted to raise money to start a colony in North America. They would have to borrow money and pay it back later. Thirty members of the
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Pilgrim church in the Netherlands voted to sail to America with their families. They returned to England and set sail on two ships, the Speedwell and the Mayflower. When the Speedwell appeared unable to cross the ocean, both ships returned to England. All who still wanted to sail crowded into the Mayflower and set sail on September 6, 1620. Many of the passengers became sick during the long voyage, and some died. They encountered fierce storms because they were sailing late in the season. After sixty-six days, they sighted the sandy shoreline of Cape Cod, in present-day Massachusetts. There was disagreement between the Pilgrims and others on board ship about what to do. So first they had to agree to a common form of government and elect a governor. Since winter was coming, they decided to stay on the ship till spring. About half of the remaining settlers died during that first winter. When the Mayflower sailed back to England, only about fifty settlers were left. Nearly half of these were children. There were Indians in Massachusetts, but at first they were not friendly. They shot arrows at the settlers. But one day a friendly Indian named Samoset came to visit them. He spoke English and could tell them many things. He brought another Indian named Squanto, who showed the Pilgrims how to plant corn. Eventually, their chief Massosoit came, and he promised to keep peaceful relations with the settlers. All spring and summer of 1621, the Pilgrims worked hard in the fields. They also finished building houses and barns. In the fall, they were delighted to see that the corn and vegetables had grown well. They decided to have a thanksgiving feast and invited their Indian friends. On the day of the feast, Chief Massosoit came with ninety Indians. There were turkeys, deer meat and fish to eat. The feast lasted three days. When the food ran low, the Indians went out to shoot more birds and animals. The Pilgrims and Indians competed in races, wrestling, shooting and other games. The Pilgrims addressed prayers and thanks to God for providing food, shelter, freedom of religion and friendly Indians in this new land. Ever since 1621, Thanksgiving celebrations include memories of that special occasion. Today, turkeys, cranberries, corn and squash are usually part of the Thanksgiving meal. In the United States, Thanksgiving Day is a national holiday. It is celebrated every year on the fourth Thursday in November. In Canada, where the harvest is earlier, Thanksgiving is celebrated on the second Monday of October. The celebration always includes giving thanks for the good things that people have received, especially for food and families. Along with this goes the Thanksgiving meal, when so many good things are eaten. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Article #70 The Calgary Stampede The "Wild West," as we know it from Hollywood westerns, did not last a long time. Its height was from about 1865 to 1885, or only twenty years. By 1885, there were railways across the plains, fences had been built around farms and ranches and lawmen were on the lookout for any troublemakers. Not only that, but by 1885 nearly all the buffalo had been killed, and most of the Indians were on reservations. Still the "Wild West' had captured the imagination of the reading public. A former buffalo hunter and Indian scout, Buffalo Bill Cody, decided to take advantage of his fame as a cowboy. In 1883, he organized "Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show," and toured North America
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and Europe. Alberta, Canada had been the last part of the old west to be settled. But by 1912, ranching was being replaced by farming. The city of Calgary was itself becoming a commercial and industrial center. Old-timers looked back fondly to the old days of cowboys and Indians. In 1908, the Miller Brothers' Wild West Show visited Calgary. One of the cowboys, Guy Weadick, talked to local businessmen about putting on a rodeo and the Wild West Show. Eventually, four Calgary businessmen put up $25,000 each to finance the event. Weadick was a good organizer. He advertised all over the U.S. and the Canadian west for cowboys and rodeo-riders to come. And with $25,000 in prize money, people came from as far away as Mexico. Weadick was able to persuade the Canadian government to let large numbers of Indians leave their reservations to attend. In fact, the Indians were a big part of the program. The main rodeo events were bronco riding, bareback riding, women's bronco riding, steer roping and bulldogging. These events were based on things that working cowboys actually did. But to make them harder, special bucking horses were brought in. One horse named Cyclone had never been ridden long by anyone. He had thrown 127 riders in a row. Most of the rodeo cowboys came from the United States - from Wyoming, Oregon, Oklahoma, Colorado and Arizona. But there were also Canadian cowboys and some Canadian Indians competing. Queen Victoria's son, the Duke of Connaught, was the grand marshal. Many cowboys rode well, but no one could stay on Cyclone. On the sixth and final day, the grounds were muddy from rain, and the horses kept slipping. Cyclone escaped from his handlers and ran around the track. For this last bronco-riding contest, Cyclone's rider would be Tom Three Persons. Three Persons was a Blood Indian from Southern Alberta. When Three Persons got on Cyclone, the horse would rear up, then plunge its head down to throw the rider. Cyclone acted as though it would topple over backwards, but Three Persons hung on. Then it hurled itself forward with its head almost touching the ground. After a wild ride of several minutes, Cyclone began to tire. The judges declared Tom Three Persons the winner of the bucking bronco event. Three Persons was the only Canadian to win a major event at that first Calgary Stampede in 1912. Today, the Calgary Stampede continues to be the largest rodeo and Wild West show in North America. It has many new events and attractions and still attracts the best rodeo riders from all over North America.
