2月6日
The Unknown Lincoln《林肯传》 by 戴尔卡耐基
There was a woman in Harrodsburg--it was called Ford Harrod in those days--named Ann McGinty. The old histories record that Ann and her husband brought the first hogs into Kentucky, the first ducks and the first spinning-wheel; and they also declare that she was the first woman ever to make butter out there in the dark and bloody wilderness. But her real claim to fame rests upon the fact that she performed an economic and textile miracle. Cotton could be neither grown nor purchased there in the mysterious Indian country, and timberwolves slaughtered the sheep. So it was well-nigh impossible to find any substance from which clothes could be made. Then the ingenious Ann McGinty found a way of spinning thread and making “McGinty cloth” form two substances that were both plentiful and cheap--nettle lint and baffalo wool.
这一章讲述的是林肯祖母的故事，她的祖母、他的母亲，直到他的幼年时期，一家人都是生活在野外的“棚屋”里，生活条件十分艰苦，可以说他们都是真正的“拓荒者”，林肯实在是个“贫民总统”。后面的内容等以后再说，先讲讲本段的内容：
1、祖母的名字，Ann McGinty,音译过来就是“安•麦金蒂”，这是个爱尔兰姓氏，含义是white+snow。
2、Harrodsburg, Kentucky:哈罗兹堡，（位于）美国肯塔基州
3、The old histories recordthat Ann and her husband brought the first hogs into Kentucky, the first ducks and the first spinning-wheel;根据历史记载，安和她的丈夫（林肯的祖父）将第一头肉猪，第一头鸭子，以及第一台（手动）纺车带入了肯塔基州。
4、she was the first woman ever to make butter out there in the dark and bloody wilderness.他们也声称，她是第一个在黑暗而又血腥的野外做出了黄油的妇女。
5、But her real claim to fame rests upon the fact that she performed an economic and textile miracle.但最让她声名鹊起的，还是她在经济和纺织业创造的奇迹
6、Cotton could be neither grown nor purchased there in the mysterious Indian country, and timberwolves slaughtered the sheep.在神秘的印第安部落里，棉花是不能被种植也不能被买卖的，更严重的是，森林狼还会猎杀绵羊。
Timberwolves：这也是一个NBA篮球队的名称，属于西北赛区，全称是“明尼苏达森林狼队”。
7、So it was well-nigh impossible to find any substance from which clothes could be made.所以，当时要想找到制造一件衣服所需的材料几乎是不可能的。
Well-nigh [wɛl naɪ]:(formal) almost;常与impossible连用：
Defence was well-nigh impossible against such oppoents.遇到这样的对手几乎防不胜防。Finding a rug that's just the colour, size and price you want can be well-nigh impossible. 找到一块颜色、尺寸和价格都符合你要求的毛毯几乎是不可能的。
8、Then the ingenious Ann McGinty found a way of spinning thread and making“McGinty cloth” form two substances that were both plentiful and cheap--nettle lint and baffalo wool. 但是，天才的安•麦金蒂还是找到了一种纺线和制作“麦金蒂布”的方法，而且是从两种非常容易获得而且便宜的原材料中得来的：一种是荨麻皮棉绒，另一种则是八法罗羊毛。
It was a tremendous discovery, and housewives traveled as far as a hundred and fifty miles to sit in her cabin and learn the new art. And as they spun and wove they talked. And they didn’t always talk about nettle lint and baffalo wool. Frequently the conversation degenerated into gossip, and Ann McGinty’s cabin soon bacame the community’s acknowledged clearing-house for scandal.
这是一项伟大的发明，而许多家庭妇女都会穿过150英里的距离来她的小屋坐坐，目的就是想要学到她这项新技能。她们的话题常常都不会固定在荨麻皮棉绒，或者八法罗羊毛上，而是常常降格为家长里短和闲言碎语。而安•麦金蒂的小屋很快就变成了乡里乡亲公认的传播“流言和绯闻”的林中小屋。
A degenerates into B（一般现在时）
A degenerated into B (一般过去时）
A has degenerated into B (现在完成时）
Degenerate into sth: to become worse, for example by becoming lower in quality or weaker
Her health degenerated quickly。 她的健康恶化很快。
Will too much freedom make them degenerate?太多的自由会令他们堕落吗？
He didn’t let riches and luxury make him degenerate.他不因财富和奢华而自甘堕落。
Homework:
1、用well-nigh impossible造句(= almost impossible)，含义上只要想着“什么什么几乎不可能”就好了。
2、用A degenerates into B造句（任何时态）