Ulysses S. Grant: Well-Meaning

尤利西斯·辛普森·格兰特：善意好心

VOA Learning English presents America’s Presidents.
美国之音慢速英语介绍美国总统栏目。

Today we are talking about Ulysses S. Grant. He took office in 1869.
今天，我们来谈论下尤利西斯·S·格兰特。他于1869年就任美国总统。

But his presidency is not what made him famous. Grant is best remembered for being the commander of Union forces at the end of the Civil War. He led the United States to victory over the Confederate States of America.
但是，他的总统生涯并不出名。格兰特最为人知的是在内战后期作为联邦军的总指挥官。他领导联邦赢得了对南部邦联的胜利。

Many Americans also remember Grant because of the unusual story about his middle initial.
许多美国人记得格兰特也是因为他中间名首字母的不寻常故事。

When the future 18^th president was born, his parents named him Hiram Ulysses Grant. But the boy was known as Ulysses.
这位未来18届总统出生时，他的父母给他取名为海勒姆·尤利西斯·格兰特，但是大家都称呼他为尤利西斯。

When Grant was a young man, a member of Congress appointed him to a top college: the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York.
格兰特青年时期，一名国会议员任命他进入一所高等学府：位于纽约西点的美国军事学院。

The congressman did not know Grant personally. He thought Grant used his mother’s family name, Simpson, as his middle name. So the congressman called him Ulysses S. Grant.
国会议员本人并不认识格兰特，他以为格兰特用的是他母亲家族的姓氏辛普森来作为他的中间名。所以国会议员称呼他为尤利西斯·S·格兰特。

The middle initial “S” became official. Years later, Grant joked that it did not mean anything.
中间名的首字母“S”就这样变正式了。数年之后，格兰特开玩笑说这并没有任何意义。

During the Civil War, however, Grant’s middle name did come to have a popular meaning. In a famous battle in the state of Tennessee, Grant’s army overpowered their opponents.
然而在内战时期，格兰特的中间名确实有一个流行的意思。在田纳西的一场著名战役中，格兰特的军队压制了他的对手。

The Confederate general sent a note asking for the terms of surrender -- in other words, what would the Union army require of them if they withdrew from the battle?
邦联将军送来便条，要求投降条款 —— 也就是说，联邦军撤退的条件是什么？

General Grant replied: “No terms except unconditional and immediate surrender.”
格兰特将军回复说：“无条件快速投降，没有任何余地。”

The answer did not please the Confederate general, but he agreed.
该回复使邦联将军不悦，但他还是同意了。

In the North, people celebrated the victory. They began saying Grant’s first two initials stood for “Unconditional Surrender.”
北方人民开始庆祝胜利，他们开始说着格兰特名字的头两个首字母，以此来代表“无条件投降。”（Ulysses S stands for Unconditional Surrender）

Early life 早年生活

Grant was born in the state of Ohio. He was the oldest of six children.
格兰特出生于俄亥俄州，他是6个孩子中最大的。

Grant’s father worked as a tanner – a person who makes leather from animal skin.
格兰特的父亲是一名制革工人，用动物皮毛制作皮革。

As a boy, Grant helped his father. But he did not like the work. He said he would not do it when he was an adult.
格兰特小的时候帮助父亲，但是他不喜欢这份工作。他说成年后他不想再做这样的工作了。

So, when Grant was a young man, his father asked West Point officials to admit his son as a student. The Grants had little money to pay for the boy’s college education. But they knew he was intelligent and skilled, and West Point was free. In exchange for their education, West Point graduates serve in the military.
所以，当格兰特成年后，他父亲请求西点军校的官员收他儿子为学生。因为家里无法承担格兰特的大学费用，但是知道他既聪明又熟练，并且西点军校免费。作为交换，西点军校毕业生需要参军。

Grant probably did not seem like a soldier. He was quiet and sensitive. He hated seeing men die in battle, and he questioned the value of war.
格兰特似乎并不像个士兵，他既安静又敏感。他讨厌看到战友死在战场，并且他对于战争的价值持怀疑态度。

But he turned out to be an excellent military leader. After he graduated from West Point, he fought in the Mexican War and earned medals for bravery. He was given more power and added responsibilities.
但事实证明他是一位杰出的军事领袖。从西点军校毕业后，他参加了墨西哥战争，并且赢得了勇气勋章。他被赋予了更多的权利及责任。

However, Grant was lonely. Early in his career, he married Julia Dent, the sister of a college friend. He was devoted to Julia and their four children.
然而，格兰特很孤独。军事生涯早期，他和大学同学的姐姐茱莉亚·登特结婚。他很爱茱莉亚和他们的四个孩子。

But his family could not come with Grant on all his deployments for the military. They were separated for years at a time.
但是他的家人不能随同格兰特一起服役，因此他们分开了很多年。

Without his family nearby, Grant began having problems with money. Some people said he also drank too much alcohol.
没有家人在身边，格兰特开始陷入了财务麻烦，一些人说他酗酒。

One day, Grant resigned from the army.
一天，格兰特从军队辞职。

He returned home to his family. At first, he tried to farm, but he could not make enough money. Then he tried other jobs.
他回归了家庭。起初，他尝试去务农，但并不能赚很多钱，后来又尝试了其他工作。

Finally, he asked his father for help. His father gave him a job, but it was the one the young Grant swore he never wanted: working in a leather shop.
最终，他请求了父亲帮忙。父亲给了他一份工作，但是是年轻时的格兰特发誓再也不想做的：在皮革厂工作。

Civil War 内战

Then things took a surprising turn. The Civil War began. The Union needed experienced military leaders.
后来，事情发生了戏剧性的转变。内战开始了，联邦需要有经验的军事指挥官。

Grant accepted a position leading a difficult group of troops. He was able to train them and earn their respect.
格兰特临危受命领导一支军队，他能够训练他们并赢取尊重。

Quickly, Grant’s public image as a military leader grew. He won major victories for the Union in battles at Fort Donelson, Tennessee, and Vicksburg, Mississippi.
很快，格兰特军事领袖的公众形象不断增强。他在田纳西的多纳尔森堡战役以及密西西比的维克斯堡战役中为联邦赢得了一些重要的胜利。

The president at the time, Abraham Lincoln, liked the way Grant planned the battles. He also liked that Grant did everything he could to win. Grant permitted so many of his soldiers to die that his critics gave him a nickname: The Butcher.
当时的总统亚伯拉罕·林肯，喜欢格兰特制定战役计划的方式。他也很喜欢格兰特为了获胜所做的一切。格兰特准许自己的许多士兵死亡，因此他的批评者给他起了一个绰号：屠夫。

Grant’s methods were harsh, but effective. The Civil War effectively ended when the famous Confederate general Robert E. Lee surrendered to Grant at Appomattox Court House, Virginia.
格兰特的方法很严酷，但也很奏效。当著名的邦联将军罗伯特·E·李在弗吉尼亚州的阿波马托克斯县府向格兰特投降时，内战实际上就已经结束了。

The following year, Grant was named general of the U.S. armies. The only other person to hold that position was the military leader during the Revolutionary War, George Washington.
第二年，格兰特被授予美国陆军上将军衔。另外唯一一位拥有该职位的人是美国独立战争时期的军事领袖乔治·华盛顿。

Presidency 总统任期

Like George Washington, Grant became president although he did not really seek the position.
就像乔治·华盛顿一样，格兰特并没有真正想要寻求总统职位，但却成为了总统。

But Republican Party leaders realized that the former general was very popular. And they knew that Grant opposed the policies of the president at the time, Andrew Johnson.
共和党领导人意识到这位前将军很受欢迎，并且知道格兰特是反对当时的总统安德鲁·约翰逊的政策的。

So the Republicans nominated Grant as their candidate in 1868. He won easily.
所以，1868年共和党提名格兰特作为该党的总统候选人。他很轻易地就赢了。

But Grant’s popularity and ability as a military leader did not make him a successful president.
但是，格兰特作为军事领袖的名气和能力并没有使他成为一位成功的总统。

Grant tried to work for the political and civil rights of African-Americans, many of whom had been enslaved. One of Grant’s most important acts was to support the 15^th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The measure gave African-American men the right to vote.
格兰特尝试为黑人的政治和公民权利努力，其中许多黑人都是被奴役的。格兰特最重要的一项举动之一是支持美国宪法第十五修正案，该修正案赋予黑人投票权。

At the same time, Grant tried to give states control over their own laws. So, sometimes he used the power of the federal government to protect the rights of African-Americans. And he sometimes let states use violence to prevent African-Americans from exercising their rights.
同时，格兰特试图让各州控制自己的法律。所以，有时他会使用联邦政府的权力来保护黑人的权利；有时允许各州使用暴力来阻止黑人行使他们的权利。

Grant also spoke about treating Native Americans with greater respect. He used government resources to help native people become farmers.
格兰特也说过要给予印第安人更多的尊重。他动用政府资源来帮助印第安人成为农民。

But other government policies helped white settlers continue to push tribes off their lands.
但是其他一些政府政策助长了白人定居者继续将部落从他们的土地赶走。

Few Native Americans saw their lives really improve under Grant.
格兰特总统时期，很少有印第安人看到他们的生活改善了。

Finally, his administration suffered because of corrupt government officials. Grant himself did not get rich from their actions. But he remained loyal to people who worked for him, even when they profited from their position.
最终，格兰特政府因政府官员的贪污腐化而遭受损害。格兰特自己并没有从这些贪污腐败中捞取财富。但他依然对为他工作的人保持忠诚，即使他们通过职位便利捞取财富。

As a result of all this, many Americans lost interest in Reconstruction and lost faith in the federal government.
所有这些事情的结果就是，许多美国人失去了重建的兴趣，失去了对联邦政府的信任。

But Grant himself remained popular. He won a second term more easily than the first.
但是格兰特本人依然受欢迎。他比第一次更轻松地赢得了连任。

Shortly after, the country entered a bad economic depression. Grant tried to improve the situation by supporting the gold standard. But many Americans – of all backgrounds – continued to suffer.
不久之后，国家进入了糟糕的经济萧条。格兰特试图通过支持金本位制来改善现状，但许多不同背景下的美国人，仍然遭受经济萧条的损害。

Legacy 遗产

Because of the problems in his government, Grant is not remembered as one of the country’s best presidents.
由于总统任期内政府的诸多问题，格兰特并没有因最伟大的总统之一而被人们记住。

But he is remembered as a war hero and as a kind-hearted man with an interesting life.
但他因战争英雄及心地善良、生活有趣而被人铭记。

In his last months, Grant worked nearly nonstop on writing his memoirs. Final images show him, covered in a blanket and with a pen in his hand, diligently working.
格兰特生命的最后几个月，几乎不停歇地撰写他的回忆录。生命最后的影像展示了他披着毛毯，手里握着笔在勤奋地工作着。

Grant died in 1885, a few days after the book was finished. It was a major success. It earned enough money to provide for his family for the rest of their lives.
格兰特于1885年逝世，即在回忆录完成的几天后。回忆录很成功，为他的家人赚取了足够的稿费来度过余生。

People across the country mourned the loss of Grant. More than a million and a half watched his funeral parade in New York City. He is buried there, along with his beloved wife, in a well-known memorial popularly called Grant’s Tomb.
全国人民都为格兰特的去世而哀悼，超过一百五十万人在纽约市为他送行。格兰特和他挚爱的妻子一起葬于纽约市著名的格兰特之墓纪念堂。

I'm Kelly Jean Kelly.

Kelly Jean Kelly wrote this story for Learning English. George Grow was the editor.

Words in this story

initial - n. a first letter of a name - 名字的首字母

graduate - n. a person who has earned a degree or diploma from a school, college, or university - 研究生；毕业生

devoted - adj. having strong love or loyalty for something or someone - 忠诚的；献身的

shop - n. a building or room where goods and services are sold - 商店

resources - n. a supply of something (such as money) that someone has and can use when it is needed - 资源

gold standard - n. a system in which a unit of money (such as the dollar) is equal to a particular amount of gold - 金本位制（即以黄金为本位币的货币制度）

diligently - adv. working carefully and continuously - 勤勤恳恳地；勤奋地