Voa English Reading_01

To Catch On to Phrasal Verbs, It Helps to Hook Up With an English Teacher 23 March 2009

AA: I'm Avi Arditti with Rosanne Skirble, and this week on Wordmaster -- English teacher Lida Baker joins us from Los Angeles to talk about phrasal verbs. RS: The first word is a verb. The second word, sometimes even a third, is usually a preposition. AA: Phrasal verbs, also known as two-word verbs, have a reputation for being tough for English learners. So what does Lida Baker think? LB: "I think that is a myth." RS: "Really." LB: "Phrasal verbs are not hard to learn, as long as you learn them in a context. I think what has given phrasal verbs a reputation for being difficult is the way they are traditionally taught, which is that students are given long lists of verbs -- you know, for instance every phrasal verb connected with the word 'go.' So 'go on,' 'go up,' 'go out,' 'go in,' 'go away,' 'go through,' OK? That's a very tedious way of learning anything." RS: "Well, give us some of your strategies." LB: "All right. Well, one thing we should keep in mind about phrasal verbs is that they are used a lot more in conversational English than they are in formal English. So you are going to find a lot of phrasal verbs in conversational settings such as ... " RS: "Come on [laughter]." LB: " ... television programs, radio interviews, and pop music is a wonderful, wonderful source for phrasal verbs. I think the best way to learn, or one of the best ways of learning phrasal verbs is to learn them in everyday contexts. One good one is people's daily routine. We 'get up' in the morning, we 'wake up,' we 'put on' our clothes in the morning, we 'take off' our clothes at the end of the day, we 'turn on' the coffee maker or the television set, and of course we 'turn it off' also. After we eat we 'clean up.' If we're concerned about our health and our weight, we go to the gym and we ... " RS: "Work out." LB: "There you go. You see, so as far as our daily routine is concerned, there are lots and lots of phrasal verbs. Another wonderful context for phrasal verbs is traveling. What does an airplane do?" AA: "It 'takes off.'" LB: "It 'takes off,' that's right. And lots of phrasal verbs connected with hotels. So when we get to the hotel we 'check in,' and you can save a lot of money if you ... "

RS: "Stay -- " LB: "'Stay over,' right." AA: "And you just have to make sure you don't get 'ripped off.'" LB: "That's right! I'm glad that you mentioned 'ripped off,' because a lot of phrasal verbs are slang, such as ripped off. And most of them do have sort of a formal English equivalent. So to get ripped off means to be treated unfairly ... " AA: "To be cheated." LB: "To be cheated, yeah. And there are lot of other two-word or phrasal verbs that you might find, for instance, in rap music. For example, to 'get down' means to, uh -- what does it mean?" RS: "It means to party, doesn't it?" LB: "To go to parties." AA: "Have a good time." LB: "Right. Another wonderful context is dating and romance. For example, when a relationship ends two people 'break up.' But when they decide that they've made a mistake and they really are in love and want to be together, they 'call each other up' ... " RS: "And they 'make up.'" LB: "And they make up. Now, if your boyfriend 'breaks up' with you and it's really, really over, then it might take you a few months to 'get over it.' But, you know, sooner or later you're going to find someone else ... " AA: "To 'hook up' with -- " LB: "To hook up with." AA: " -- to use a current idiom." LB: "Right. Or you might meet someone nice at work to 'go out with.'" RS: "So what would you recommend for a teacher to do, to build these contexts, so that the students can learn from them?" LB: "I think the best thing for a teacher to do, or for a person learning alone, is to learn the idioms in context. And there are vocabulary books and idiom books that will cluster the phrasal verbs for the student. There are also so many wonderful Web sites. I mean, if you go to a search engine and you just type in 'ESL + phrasal verbs,' you're going to run across -- and there's another one, 'run across' -- you're going to find lots of Web sites that present phrasal verbs in these contexts that I've been talking about. And also grammar sites which explain the grammar of phrasal verbs, which I haven't gotten into because we

just don't have the time to discuss it here. But in doing my research for this segment I found lots of Web sites that do a really great job of explaining the grammar of phrasal verbs." AA: Lida Baker writes and edits textbooks for English learners. RS: And you can find other segments with Lida Baker at voanews.com/wordmaster. AA: And that's WORDMASTER for this week. With Rosanne Skirble, I'm Avi Arditti.

Recession Spawns an Expanding Lexicon for a Shrinking Economy 11 March 2009

AA: I'm Avi Arditti with Rosanne Skirble, and this week on WORDMASTER: terms from the recession. Dictionary editor Ben Zimmer is back with us. And it sounds like he's going to start with a popular term these days, "shovel-ready." (Sound of shoveling) BEN ZIMMER: "Well, shovel-ready is a term that's been used to describe infrastructure projects that are ready to go when stimulus money is available. The new stimulus package has passed the Congress and they are prioritizing those projects that are already planned out. And all they need is the money to get started and people can start digging in and getting to work right away." AA: "And we know that some of these projects are not in the traditional sense of building roads or rebuilding bridges, they're more health care investments, educational investments. Is there a term to describe those, or are those in danger of being left out because they can't claim they're shovel-ready because they don't involve shovels -- " RS: "Or don't involve digging?" BEN ZIMMER: "I think that there are metaphorical shovels at work in those other types of projects. Even though it starts with construction projects, things that are obviously related to digging in with shovels, it's definitely been extended to other things. So you can be shovel-ready even if you don't have a shovel." RS: "What other terms have come about in recent months because of our economic situation?" BEN ZIMMER: "Well, we've heard a lot of terms coming out of the banking sector. The Treasury Department has said that it's going to evaluate banks by using a 'stress test.' In the medical sense, you can undergo a stress test to see, for instance, how strong your heart is. So that's used as a diagnostic method in medicine. "Stress tests are also used, for instance, in information technology to test software, to see how robust the software is given different situations. In the financial sense, it's to determine how robust a bank or other

financial institution is to withstand further economic conditions that could increasingly get worse in the future." RS: "And now we have words like 'good bank' and 'bad bank' and 'zombie bank.' What are those?" BEN ZIMMER: "Well, the zombie bank is a term that's been used to refer to a bank that really should have gone bust but it's being kept alive by government guarantees in the form of bailout money, for instance. So there are banks that people are saying 'Well, it's really just surviving because it's being propped up by the government.' So it's a zombie -- it's really already dead, but the government is somehow trying to keep alive a bank that's already dead because its stock is almost worthless, its value has really gone under. And so people are talking about zombie banks in this way. "But there are a lot of banks that are in a kind of a gray area right now, where it's unclear what their future is going to be. And what happens with them will really be contingent on what happens with the government taking over their bad debt, what's often called 'toxic debt' or 'toxic assets.' And so the proposal is to have a government-run bank, which has been labeled a bad bank, that would allow these private banks to unload all of their bad debt. "There are people in the government who don't like that term. They would prefer to call it an 'aggregator bank' because it aggregates all of this toxic debt from the private banks and allows the government to deal with it without the government completely taking over the bank." RS: "With the term bad bank, you really know what you've got, though." BEN ZIMMER: "And oftentimes we need some distance on a particular event before we really know what the terminology is that we're using to describe it. For instance, we don't really even know what to call this current economic downturn. There have been lots of suggestions about calling it the Great Recession or the Great Credit Crunch or various other terms. But like the Great Depression in the nineteen thirties, we probably need some distance before we really have a label that will stick." AA: Ben Zimmer is executive producer of the Visual Thesaurus, an online thesaurus and dictionary. So what would you call the economic situation right now? Give us your suggestions and comments at our Web site, voanews.com/wordmaster where you can also find a whole list of recession-related terms that Ben has put together. And that's WORDMASTER for this week. With Rosanne Skirble, I'm Avi Arditti. ___

Words of the Recession Ben Zimmer, executive producer, visualthesaurus.com The Banking Meltdown bad bank: proposed government-run bank that would allow private banks to unload their toxic assets (some suggest a more benign term: aggregator bank).

zombie bank: a bank that should have gone bust, kept alive by government guarantees. bankster: combination of "bank" and "gangster" (revival of term from the '30s). stress test: Treasury Department test for the nation's largest banks, to evaluate whether they have adequate capital to withstand further downturns (metaphor borrowed from cardiac stress tests). clawback: system by which a financial company can take back bonus payments paid to employees in previous years to make up for losses in the current year. malus: like a "clawback," allows executive bonuses to be held in escrow over an extended period and returned based on failed performance. (Union Bank of Switzerland introduced a "bonus/malus" system.) cramdown: involuntary imposition by a court of a reorganization plan over the objection of creditors. (President Barack Obama supports legislation to allow federal bankruptcy judges to "cram down" mortgage loan balances on the primary residences of people who file for bankruptcy protection.)

Stimulating Terms shovel-ready: used to describe infrastructure projects that are ready to go when stimulus money is available. Winner of the Most Likely to Succeed category in the American Dialect Society's 2008 Word of the Year voting, with "bailout" the overall winner. (Word Routes column) stim package: journalistic shorthand for "stimulus package" (officially known as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, or ARRA) -- shortened even further to stim pack. TIGER: Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (a contrived acronym from the Department of Transportation); new transportation projects will be stamped with the TIGER logo. three-legged stool: Obama's metaphor for a multi-pronged approach to economic recovery (restoring jobs, restoring credit, regulatory reform). porkulus: epithet used by conservative opponents of the stimulus package, who see it as more "pork" than "stimulus."

Hard Times crecession: a suggested term for the current crisis, mixing "credit crisis" and "recession" (It hasn't caught on. There have been many other suggestions, from "The Credit Crunch" to "The Great Recession." We might not settle on a name until after the fact (much like we haven't settled on a name for the current decade). depression: a dangerous word, as British Prime Minister Gordon Brown recently learned. He dared to use the D-word to describe the global economic picture, but then he issued a correction saying that he meant

"recession." Ironically, "depression" was originally used by Herbert Hoover as a more benign term for what had previously been called a (financial) "panic." hard times: an old phrase that makes an appearance whenever the economy suffers, going back to the financial panic of 1837. doing more with less: a management cliche used to justify downsizing and belt-tightening. The expression goes back to the 19th century but became a catchphrase during the austerity measures of World War II.

The Home Front homedulgence / homedulging: the tendency for consumers in a recession to socialize at home, indulging on a smaller scale (similar to last summer's staycation). chiconomic: style-conscious on a budget (similar to frugalista, recessionista and recession chic). bleisure: the blurring of business and leisure, as more people work from home or for less strictly defined hours. (The last three are buzzwords promoted by The Future Laboratory, a British trend forecasting and consulting business.)

Energy Chief Says Green Homes Need White Roofs Music from the Jonas Brothers' new album. And a question from Yemen about the private security company formerly called Blackwater. Transcript of radio broadcast: 18 June 2009

Welcome to American Mosaic in VOA Special English. (MUSIC) I'm Doug Johnson. Today we listen to music from a popular band of brothers ... Answer a question about Blackwater … And talk about white roofs and green roads. (MUSIC) Green News HOST: Green collar jobs, eco-tourism, organic foods, sustainable industry, environmentally friendly businesses, the list goes on. People are trying to find simple ways to decrease their effect on the planet. Faith Lapidus considers some recent suggestions for protecting Mother Earth.

FAITH LAPIDUS: American Energy Secretary Steven Chu recently spoke to a group of Nobel laureate scientists. He told them that people could slow global warming by changing the color of the rooftops of buildings. Mister Chu said sunlight, and its heat, will bounce off a white colored roof. Dark roof tops hold in more than eighty percent of the energy from sunlight. A white roof top reflects almost as much. This is why there are white and light colored buildings in many warm areas of the world.

A new roof in Bermuda is completed with a roof-wetting ceremony. Many roofs on the island are painted white.

Mister Chu said researchers at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in California estimated the effects that white roofs could have on the planet. Their study considers painting sixty-three percent of rooftops white in one hundred large cities in warm areas around the world. The scientists estimate this would have the same climate effect as taking all cars in the world off the road for ten years. It would also save money on indoor air cooling costs. However, some scientists question the numbers behind the science of white roofing.

Many American families are planning their summer vacations. A writer of environmentally friendly parenting books has some ideas for vacationing by car. Jenn Savedge's blog appears on the Mother Nature Network. She writes that the most important thing on a road trip is planning. Try to find new and fun things to do as close to home as possible. Reduce waste by bringing food and drinks for the trip in re-usable containers. She also suggests staying at environmentally friendly places. Also, when visiting other places, buy locally produced arts and crafts which support the community. In the future car travelers may see signs of the Green Roadway Project. Inventors Gene Fein of California and Ed Merritt of Massachusetts came up with the idea. They designed a system of solar panels, wind turbines and other power gathering devices. These would be placed along roads, highways and railways throughout the United States. The power gathered would be used to create energy for homes and businesses nearby. The roads would even have power stations for charging electric cars. A spokeswoman for the Green Roadway Project says it would be a sign of hope for young people. She said children would "look out the window of their family car and see that clean energy is part of their lives." The project will be proposed to individual American states beginning in late July. Blackwater HOST: Our listener question this week comes from Yemen. Sameer Taher Mahdi heard the phrase "Blackwater in Iraq" on a news report. He asks what it meant.

Blackwater was the name of a private security and military training company. Erik Prince established the company in the American state of North Carolina in nineteen ninety-seven. Mister Prince is a former officer of the United States Navy's special forces known as SEALS. The company has a huge training center in North Carolina that is used by the American military and other American security forces. Erik Prince has said that business really grew for the company after the attacks on the United States in two thousand one.

Erik Prince established Blackwater (now Xe) in 1997

After that, the United States government employed Blackwater to work in Afghanistan and Iraq. Blackwater did not have to compete with any other security companies for the work.

Blackwater private forces guarded American officials and also trained Iraqis and Afghans for security work. But, the company suffered public image problems in Iraq. Over the years several Blackwater employees were charged with crimes in Iraq, including murder. The worst incident happened in September, two thousand seven. Blackwater guards were accused of firing into a public square in Baghdad and killing at least fourteen civilians. The United States charged the guards involved. In January, Iraq ended the right of Blackwater to work in the country. In February, Blackwater changed its name to Xe to help improve its image with the public. Just this week, an investigation found that the State Department overpaid the company by tens of millions of dollars. The report said the company failed to supply enough people to protect American diplomats in Iraq. Jonas Brothers (MUSIC) HOST: That is the Mills Brothers singing "Glow Worm." The Mills were one of the early bands of brothers to become a big hit in the music industry. The Everly Brothers, the Beach Boys, the Allman Brothers the Jackson Five and others came later. Another very popular band of brothers released its fourth album this week. Shirley Griffith tells about the Jonas Brothers and plays some of their music --- old and new. (MUSIC) SHIRLEY GRIFFITH: That was "Mandy" from the first album by the Jonas Brothers, "It's about Time." It was written a few years ago by the youngest brother, Nick Jonas. He is sixteen now.

In most families, the little brother follows the bigger ones around. But in the Jonas Brothers band, Nick is the leader. In fact his brothers call him "Mister President." Kevin, twenty-one, and Joe, nineteen, say they respect Nick's organizational skills and work ethic. Nick formed the band in two thousand five, but he had performed in Broadway musicals since the age of seven. The Jonas Brothers started with Columbia records but were dropped from the label after their first album. Disney-owned Hollywood Records then signed the brothers. Here the young men sing "When You Look Me in the Eyes," from "Jonas Brothers," their first album with Hollywood. (MUSIC) All the brothers play guitar, although Kevin leads. Nick and Joe are lead singers. Joe also plays keyboard. Nick is the lead songwriter. Their concerts are extremely popular, especially among young girls. The band does not write Christian songs but the brothers are influenced by their religion. The band and other family members say a group prayer of thanks before each Jonas Brothers performance. And each brother wears a ring on the third finger of his left hand. It is a symbol of their belief in waiting until marriage to have sex. Hollywood Records made a good move in signing the Jonas Brothers. Their second album with the company went to number one on Billboard Magazine popular music charts. One of the songs deals with the disease diabetes. Nick Jonas was found to have type one diabetes in two thousand five. Here is "A Little Bit Longer." (MUSIC) On Tuesday, the Jonas Brothers came out with their fourth record. Critics say "Lines, Vines and Trying Times" is an attempt by the band to move into the adult market without dismissing younger fans. Some reviewers say the record succeeds. Others disagree. You can decide for yourself. We leave you with "Black Keys" from "Lines, Vines and Trying Times." (MUSIC) HOST: I'm Doug Johnson. I hope you enjoyed our program today. It was written and produced by Caty Weaver. Join us again next week for AMERICAN MOSAIC, VOA's radio magazine in Special English.

Studying in the US: A Lesson in Personal Finance How much spending money should students budget for? Part 35 of our Foreign Student Series. Transcript of radio broadcast: 20 May 2009

This is the VOA Special English Education Report.

A question from the teacher. Susanna Wesson writes: "I teach English to French students of engineering who benefit very much from your Foreign Student Series. Could you do a program on money, banking and shopping for students in the U.S.?" Many colleges and universities in the United States have guidelines for what they consider reasonable budgets for personal spending. Senem Bakar is the assistant director of International Student Services at American University in Washington, D.C. She suggests that students budget at least one thousand three hundred dollars for a ninemonth school year. This will help pay for things like transportation, telephone bills, supplies and entertainment. Paul Butler is the financial manager in the Office of International Services at Indiana University Bloomington. He says the advice there is to have at least two thousand four hundred dollars for twelve months in the United States. Indiana and many other schools also offer advice on ways to manage spending and save money. For example, for entertainment, look for free concerts or museums. Want to go to a movie? Prices are usually lower in the daytime than at night. American University advises students to check newspaper advertisements for sales and to use money-saving coupons. If a product is "on sale," that means it is being offered for a limited time at a reduced price. Senem Bakar says students learn that in the United States you can find almost everything on sale somewhere. Also, many banks offer special services for students, like free checking accounts, including a debit card. Debit cards can be used almost anywhere credit cards are accepted. Millions of Americans now use a debit card or credit card, instead of paper money or checks, to make most of their purchases. With a credit card, you are borrowing money every time you use it. Debit cards are different. They are linked directly to a checking account so you are paying with your own money. Debit cards, also known as check cards, do not have interest charges. But users are charged if they try to spend more than the amount available in their account. These fees can be costly even if you overspend by just a few cents. And that's the VOA Special English Education Report, written by June Simms. Earlier reports in our Foreign Student Series are at voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Steve Ember.

Studying in the US: A Lesson in Personal Finance, Part 2 A law that goes into effect in February will place new restrictions on credit cards for people under 21. Transcript of radio broadcast: 27 May 2009

This is the VOA Special English Education Report.

We continue now with our discussion of personal finance for students. A study in the United States found that eighty-four percent of undergraduates last year had at least one credit card. Half had four or more. Borrowers who do not pay their card debt in full each month have to pay interest on whatever balance remains. Student loan company Sallie Mae did the study. In a time of economic downturn, it says, college students are depending on credit cards more than ever. It says many seem to use them to live beyond their means -- to spend more than they have. More than three-fourths had to pay finance charges last year because they carried a balance. The average balance was more than three thousand dollars.

Brea Thompson, a student at Washington State University, with a credit card in 2005

Last Friday, President Obama signed into law a credit card reform bill. It includes protections for people under the age of twenty-one. To get a credit card, they will need a parent or other adult over twenty-one to accept joint responsibility. Or they will need to show they can repay their debts independently. Colleges will have to make public any agreements with credit card marketers. And credit card companies may not offer gifts on or near a campus to persuade students. Also, schools are urged to consider limiting the number of places on campus where companies can market credit cards. And they are urged to offer credit card and debt education and counseling sessions to all new students. The new measures from Congress take effect in February. Getting a credit card can already be difficult for international students. College advisers say those who want one might consider arriving with one from home. Debit cards withdraw money directly from a bank account. But advisers say these can also be difficult sometimes for foreign students to get. A good source of advice about local banking is a school's international student office. At Penn State, for example, adviser Pat Coleman says they have worked with local banks to make banking easier for international students. Students are generally advised to budget around one to two thousand dollars for expenses for a school year in the United States. And that's the VOA Special English Education Report, written by Nancy Steinbach. Our Foreign Student Series is online at voaspecialenglish.com. A correction: George Mason University is advising the American University of Ras Al-Khaimah, not in Dubai as we said recently. I'm Steve Ember.

Studying in the US: Getting a Military Education

Each of the Defense Department academies can have up to 60 international students. Part 37 of our Foreign Student Series. Transcript of radio broadcast: 03 June 2009

This is the VOA Special English Education Report. This week in our Foreign Student Series, we talk about military education programs in the United States. There are public and private colleges and universities that offer military educations. But international students can also attend the nation's five service academies. Three of these come under the Defense Department. The United States Military Academy at West Point, New York, prepares officers for the Army. The Air Force Academy is located at Colorado Springs, Colorado. And the Naval Academy is in Annapolis, Maryland; it prepares officers for the Navy and the Marine Corps.

Cadets at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point celebrate graduation as Army officers on May 23

Nominees for these academies must be seventeen to twenty-three years old, unmarried and with no children. Candidates are usually nominated by members of Congress. International candidates are nominated by their home governments, which pay for their education.

Each government has its own requirements for military service after students graduate. Americans who attend these four-year colleges must serve at least five years of active duty. The Defense Department chooses more than one hundred countries every year and invites them to nominate students to the academies. As many as sixty foreign students may attend each school at any one time. For example, the next class at the Naval Academy will include eighteen foreign students, four of them female. This will bring the total number of foreign students at the Naval Academy to fifty- three. Tim Disher, head of international programs, says those interested should contact the agency that includes their own naval department. Plus, all of the academies have admissions information on their Web sites. International students can also attend the Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut, and the Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point, New York. The Coast Guard Academy can have thirty-five international students at any one time; the Merchant Marine Academy, thirty. These schools have their own entrance requirements. The Coast Guard Academy says interested students should contact the defense attache at their local United States embassy. Foreign students interested in the Merchant Marine Academy must request application forms directly from the admissions office. And that's the VOA Special English Education Report, written by Nancy Steinbach. Our Foreign Student Series is online at voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Steve Ember.

Studying at an American University, Just Not in the US Foreign campuses are the subject of part 34 in our Foreign Student Series. Transcript of radio broadcast: 13 May 2009

Correction attached This is the VOA Special English Education Report. This week in our series on American higher education, we discuss programs that are available in the Middle East. We talked last week about Michigan State University which opened a campus in August in the United Arab Emirates. MSU Dubai offers undergraduate degrees in areas including business, engineering, education and telecommunications. It also offers some graduate programs. This October, Michigan State plans to open a pre-college program -- the MSU Dubai Academy. The aim is to help foreign students prepare to attend an American school. Other American universities with campuses in the Middle East include Carnegie Mellon, Cornell, Georgetown, Northwestern, Texas A&M and Virginia Commonwealth. They have campuses in Qatar. New York University plans to open a campus in Abu Dhabi in two thousand ten. But the worldwide economic downturn is affecting the plans of some schools. For example, earlier this year Bryn Mawr College in Pennsylvania suspended its plans to open a campus in Abu Dhabi. And George Mason University in Virginia is closing its campus in Ras Al Khaimah, another of the United Arab Emirates. One reason is the recession. But the campus Web site says that several issues made it impossible for the university to offer the same quality education as in the United States.

A lecture hall at Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar

University Provost Peter Stearns tells us that the effort failed largely because of a dispute with their local partner in the campus. The disagreement involved the operating budget and academic control. The George Mason campus opened in two thousand six. But student numbers have been disappointing. Peter Stearns says the campus had between two hundred fifty and three hundred students this year. He says more than fifty of them hope to attend the home campus in Fairfax, Virginia, in September. And he says George Mason will remain involved in education in the Middle East as an adviser to the American University in Dubai. The Harvard Medical School Dubai Center was launched in two thousand four. It offers professional development and postgraduate training but no degree programs. Harvard says it has no plans for a campus, but wants to help Dubai develop its Academic Medical Center. And that's the VOA Special English Education Report, written by Nancy Steinbach. Earlier reports in our Foreign Student Series are at voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Steve Ember. ___

Correction: George Mason University will remain an adviser to the American University of Ras Al-Khaimah, not the American University in Dubai as incorrectly reported.

Studying in the US: How to Avoid Being Accused of Plagiarism We explain this intellectual offense in week 30 of our Foreign Student Series. Transcript of radio broadcast: 15 April 2009

This is the VOA Special English Education Report. Plagiarism is the act of representing another person's words or ideas as your own. The offense may be as small as a sentence copied from a book. Or it may be as extensive as a whole paper copied -- or bought -from somebody else. Intellectual dishonesty is nothing new. The only difference now is that the Internet has made it much simpler to steal other people's work. Yet the same technology that makes it easy to find information to copy also makes it easier to identify plagiarism.

Journalism students at the University of Maryland discuss ethics and plagiarism in a class in October 2003

Teachers can use online services that compare papers to thousands of others to search for copied work. The teacher gets a report on any passages that are similar enough to suspect plagiarism. These services are widely used. Turnitin.com, for example, says it is used in more than one hundred countries and examines more than one hundred thirty thousand papers a day.

Professional writers who plagiarize can be taken to civil court and ordered to pay damages. In schools, the punishment for cheating could be a failing grade on the paper or in the course. Some schools expel plagiarists for a term; others, for a full academic year. Some degrees have even been withdrawn after a school later found that a student had plagiarized. Accidental plagiarism can sometimes result from cultural differences. At Indiana University in Bloomington, sixty percent of students who use the Office of Writing Tutorial Services are non-native English speakers. The director, Joanne Vogt, says some have no idea that copying from published works is considered wrong. She says students from China, for example, may think they are insulting readers if they credit other sources. They believe that educated readers should already know where the information came from. The more you give credit, the less you risk accusations of plagiarism. Any sentences taken directly from a source should appear inside quotation marks. And even if you put those sentences into your own words, you should still give credit to where you got the information. And that's the VOA Special English Education Report, written by Nancy Steinbach. More about plagiarism next week. We will also discuss other rules for academic writing in the United States. Earlier reports in our Foreign Student Series are at voaspecialenglish.com -- along with links to some writing resources at American universities. I'm Steve Ember.

Students Learn About Sustainable Agriculture A few colleges in the United States provide hands-on experience in traditional farming. Transcript of radio broadcast: 13 April 2009 Correction attached

This is the VOA Special English Agriculture Report. Many colleges and universities in the United States provide education in agriculture. But only a few schools offer experience in traditional hands-on field work in addition to classes. Sustainable agriculture is a major goal at these colleges. They teach the need for farming to improve the environment and make good use of natural resources. Students grow organic food and use as little fossil fuels and chemicals as possible.

Agroecology students from Goshen College

gasoline.

Sterling College in Craftsbury Common, Vermont, is one of the colleges that supports sustainable agriculture. Students produce some of their own food. They prepare the soil for planting with their hands or simple tools. They do not use much big machinery that uses

This month, students are making their own sugar and maple syrup. After liquid sap is taken from sugar maple trees, it goes to a sugarhouse where the sap is boiled. Students built the sugarhouse. The college farm has solar-powered barns, gardens, fruit trees, greenhouses and animals. Sterling College President Will Wootton says the school's Sustainable Agriculture Program includes pay for farm jobs. The money reduces the cost of the students' education. The students care for steers, oxen, chickens, a turkey, goats and sheep. A pig and a guard llama also live on the farm. Goshen College in Wolf Lake, Indiana, is another college teaching sustainable agriculture. In June, students at the Agroecology Summer Intensive Program begin taking courses like Introduction to Soils. Agroecology examines the connection between agricultural crops and the environment. At the same time, Goshen students start nine weeks of work on the college's farm. They will plant crops like collard greens, kale, tomatoes, lettuce and eggplant. They will mix leaves, animal waste and food waste from the college's kitchens to make compost. The students use the mixture to fertilize the soil instead of buying chemical fertilizers that could harm the environment. Professor Dale Hess directs Goshen College's Environmental Education Collegiate Program. Professor Hess says a major value of sustainable agriculture is making good use of what you have. He says knowing how to do this may be especially valuable if fossil fuel should become unavailable. Professor Hess says food security is national security. And that's the VOA Special English Agriculture Report, written by Jerilyn Watson. I'm Bob Doughty.

Studying in the US: Foreign Graduates and Jobs

An employment offer is needed to get an H-1B visa, but economic conditions may limit opportunities. Part 41 of our Foreign Student Series. Transcript of radio broadcast: 01 July 2009

This is the VOA Special English Education Report. We answered a question last week about how American college students find jobs after they graduate. Now, we discuss foreign graduates. The process for employing foreign workers in the United States is long. It involves different government agencies. It also involves a hot political issue. For example, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act that President Obama signed into law in February dealt with this issue. It included conditions against foreign workers displacing qualified Americans at companies that receive federal stimulus money. Job cuts have slowed in some industries. But the economic downturn has cost millions of jobs and recovery will take some time.

President Obama signing the $787 billion federal stimulus bill into law on February 17

Foreign graduates need a job offer to get an H-1B visa. This is a non-immigrant visa for work in the person's area of specialty. The employer is the one who applies for it. The visa is good for three years and may be extended for another three years. Cheryl Gilman directs visa services at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles. She noted that H-1B visas were still available for next year. This tells her that the recession is preventing employers from sponsoring as many foreign nationals as they have in the past. Sixty-five thousand H-1Bs are awarded each year to graduates with a bachelor's degree. Bill Wright at the Department of Homeland Security says fewer than forty-five thousand applications for these visas had been received as of this week. There was more demand for twenty thousand other H-1Bs for those with advanced degrees. In addition, thousands of the visas are awarded to other groups, such as university researchers. Amy Ramirez is an administrator at Johns Hopkins University in Maryland. She says foreign students who work for their school or at an internship probably have the best chance for a job after graduation. She points out that many foreign graduates ask to stay for what is called optional practical training. This lets them accept temporary employment in their area of study for twelve months after graduation.

Many times, the employer will then apply for an H-1B. But Amy Ramirez and Cheryl Gilman both say foreign students should understand that visa rules change often. That can make it difficult to plan ahead for what to do after graduation. And that's the VOA Special English Education Report, written by Nancy Steinbach. Earlier reports in our Foreign Student Series are at voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Steve Ember.

Studying in the US: Growing Interest in Agriculture? Area of study with the fewest international students had a big increase during the last school year. Part 33 of our Foreign Student Series. Transcript of radio broadcast: 06 May 2009

This is the VOA Special English Education Report. In the United States, the area of study with the fewest international students is agriculture. The number was about nine thousand during the last school year. More than ten times as many studied business or engineering. But the crop of foreign students in agriculture and natural resources was twenty percent bigger than the year before. The Institute of International Education in New York says that was the biggest increase of any area of study. So this week in our Foreign Student Series we look at agriculture programs in the United States.

Gitek Schoene, a graduate student at the University of Florida, measures the growth of landscape plants in 2004

About one hundred colleges and universities began as public agricultural schools and continue to teach agriculture. These are known as land-grant schools. In eighteen sixty-two, Congress passed legislation that gave thousands of hectares to each state. States were to sell the land and use the money to establish colleges to teach agriculture, engineering and military science. A congressman from Vermont, Justin Smith Morrill, wrote the legislation. The state of Michigan already had an agricultural college. But that college was the first to officially agree to receive support under the Morrill Act. It grew into what is now Michigan State University in East Lansing. Today, Michigan State has more than forty thousand students. More than four thousand of them are international students. They come from one hundred twenty-five countries. The College of Agriculture and Natural Resources at Michigan State University offers sixty programs of study. Richard Brandenburg is the associate dean for graduate programs. He says foreign agriculture students this year are from countries including Japan, the Netherlands, Rwanda, El Salvador, Turkey, Sri Lanka and India. In all, the college has four hundred thirty-three foreign students in East Lansing. It also has eleven students at a campus in Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates. The only agriculture program currently offered in Dubai is construction management.

Michigan State opened its Dubai campus in August. It has only about fifty students now, but the university says it has received about ninety applications for admission this fall. We'll talk more about foreign campuses of American universities next week. And that's the VOA Special English Education Report, written by Nancy Steinbach. Our series is online at voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Bob Doughty.

Studying in the US: Coming to Terms With Academic Titles A guide to teaching positions in week 29 of our Foreign Student Series. Transcript of radio broadcast: 08 April 2009

This is the VOA Special English Education Report. Not all college teachers are full professors. Many are assistant or adjunct professors. This week in our Foreign Student Series, we discuss academic titles in American higher education. Professors usually have doctorate degrees. But college students may be taught by instructors who have not completed their doctorate degrees. After that, the instructor could become an assistant professor. Assistant professors do not have tenure. Adjunct professor Charles Varani at Western Oregon University in Monmouth in 2005

A professor with tenure cannot be easily dismissed. Such appointments are permanent. Those hired with the understanding they will seek tenure are said to be "on the tenure track." Assistant professor is the first job on this path.

Assistant professors have five to seven years to get tenure. They must teach, carry out research and publish their findings. Other professors then study the work. If tenure is denied, the person usually has a year to find another job. An assistant professor who receives tenure becomes an associate professor and may later be appointed a full professor. Professors on the tenure track teach classes, advise students and carry out research. They also serve on committees and take part in community activities. Other teachers are not expected to do all this. They are not on a tenure track. They are called adjuncts. An adjunct professor is hired to teach for a limited time, usually one semester. Adjunct professors may have a doctorate. But they receive lower pay than those on the tenure track and have no job security. The American Association of University Professors says sixty-eight percent of all teacher appointments at American colleges today are adjuncts. College officials say one reason is low budgets. Another is having the freedom to change teachers as courses become more or less popular. They also say part-time adjuncts can provide real world experience for their students. But the AAUP and other college officials say too many adjuncts mean lower educational quality. They say adjuncts do not have the time or support to help students outside class. And they say fewer tenure track positions mean fewer people to work with students, create new courses and serve on committees.

And that's the VOA Special English Education Report, written by Nancy Steinbach. Transcripts, MP3s and podcasts of our programs are at voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Shirley Griffith

Studying in the US: Writing College Papers Academic writing in America means getting to the point quickly, stating ideas clearly and supporting them with evidence. Transcript of radio broadcast: 29 April 2009

This is the VOA Special English Education Report. Today in our Foreign Student Series we discuss writing college papers. Writing a term paper, research paper or essay for a college class is a kind of academic writing. Academic writing among professionals is a way to create new knowledge. A professor assigns students to write a paper. The students examine an issue, review what is already known, think about what they have learned and come to some conclusion. This means that each student-writer must present information and also take a position. The student might support an idea, question it or even disprove it. Or the writer could show how the subject may be understood better or in a different way than it has been. And the student must support the position with evidence.

A student-writer must present information and also take a position

Cultural differences may interfere when international students try to write this way. Writing teachers say students in many countries have learned to write beautiful descriptions about something without ever stating the main idea. American college students are expected to state their main idea at the beginning of the paper.

In other cultures, paragraphs may be organized to build toward the main idea, which is revealed at the end. But in the United States, the main idea of each paragraph should be in the first sentence. Another difference is about writing style. Other cultures may use lots of descriptive words. But American English values short, strong sentences. Teachers at the writing center at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana work with students to improve their writing. Graduate tutor Lars Soderlund says non-native English speakers generally have some trouble with English grammar. He says their sentences may be too long. Or they incorrectly use articles such as "a", "an" and "the." He also says non-native speakers generally use too much emotional language and give too many details before getting to the main idea. The associate director of the writing center, Tammi Conard-Salvo, says international students should look online for materials that explain the kind of writing they will be required to do. They should ask their professors for help. Most colleges have a writing center where they can get free individual help with their work.

Links to writing center materials can be found on our Web site, voaspecialenglish.com. And that's the VOA Special English Education Report, written by Nancy Steinbach. I'm Jim Tedder.

Studying in the US: Beware of Essay Mills We continue our discussion of plagiarism. Transcript of radio broadcast: 22 April 2009

This is the VOA Special English Education Report. We continue our discussion of plagiarism. Last week, we said colleges and universities in the United States define plagiarism as representing another person's work as your own. It is considered a kind of cheating. Professors at American colleges have tried many ways to stop student plagiarism. Some use online detection services. They also may discuss plagiarism with their students at the start of every term. Some require their students to turn in early versions of term papers, research papers and essays they are writing. This makes it more difficult for students to buy papers from companies that some call "plagiarism mills" or "essay mills." A recent report in The Chronicle of Higher Education described such businesses. Many can be found on the Internet. They sell newly written papers on many subjects. The cost depends on the difficulty of the subject and how soon the paper is needed. The cost could be from twenty to forty dollars a page. Such companies say their writers have advanced degrees, and will target the papers to any educational level. Investigators say the writers may be working in countries like India, Nigeria or Indonesia and are poorly paid. Most of these companies say their work should only be used as models and should not be turned in as a finished work. But students do it anyway. Some students claim that they order such papers as a way to organize their research. But many also say they do not have enough time to do the work themselves and are under great pressure to do well in school. University of Notre Dame anthropology professor Susan Blum wrote about this in a new book, "My Word! Plagiarism and College Culture." She writes that academic cheating is a result of communication failure between students and professors. And she says international students must be sure they know the rules of the college they are attending. Plagiarism may also be a problem in other countries. A recent e-mail to us from Iran described an incident in an English class. Students were supposed to research tourist places in Iran. But one student copied information from a book. The student changed "China" to "Iran" but forgot to change the names of the places. When the teacher asked about his research, he said: "One of the most beautiful tourist places in Iran is Shanghai." And that's the VOA Special English Education Report, written by Nancy Steinbach. I'm Barbara Klein.

Celebrating July Fourth at the Statue of Liberty The crown re-opens to the public as the nation celebrates its 233rd birthday. Transcript of radio broadcast: 27 June 2009

VOICE ONE: Welcome to THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English. I'm Steve Ember. VOICE TWO: And I'm Barbara Klein. Later this week, Americans will celebrate the nation's Independence Day. On July fourth, seventeen seventy-six, colonial leaders approved the final Declaration of Independence for the United States. This year, the city of New York will also celebrate the opening of part of an important symbol of America that has been closed to the public for the past eight years. (MUSIC) VOICE ONE: The Statue of Liberty has stood in New York Harbor for more than one hundred years. It was a gift from the people of France in eighteen eighty-four. Its full name is "Liberty Enlightening the World". The Statue of Liberty is forty-six meters tall from its base. It is made mostly of copper. Throughout history, images of liberty have been represented as a woman. The statue is sometimes called "Lady Liberty." The Statue of Liberty's face was created to look like the sculptor's mother. Her right arm holds a torch with a flame high in the air. Her left arm holds a tablet with the date of the Declaration of Independence -July fourth, seventeen seventy-six. On her head she wears a crown of seven points. Each is meant to represent the light of freedom as it shines on the seven seas and seven continents of the world. Twentyfive windows in the crown represent gemstones found on Earth. A chain that represents oppression lies broken at her feet. VOICE TWO: In nineteen oh three, a bronze plaque was placed on the inner wall of the statue's support structure or pedestal. On it are words from the poem "The New Colossus" written by Emma Lazarus in eighteen eightythree. The plaque represents the statue's message of hope for people seeking freedom. These are some of its best known words: READER: Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,

I lift my lamp beside the golden door! (MUSIC) VOICE ONE: The United States and France have been friends and allies since the time of the American Revolution. France helped the American colonial armies defeat the British. The war officially ended in seventeen eightythree. A few years later, the French rebelled against their king. A French historian and political leader, Edouard-Rene Lefebvre de Laboulaye, had the idea for the statue. In eighteen sixty-five, he suggested that the French and the Americans build a monument together to celebrate freedom. Artist Frederic-Auguste Bartholdi immediately agreed to design it. VOICE TWO: In eighteen seventy-five, the French established an organization to raise money for Bartholdi's creation. Two years later, an American group was formed to raise money to pay for a pedestal to support the statue. American architect Richard Morris Hunt was chosen to design this support structure. It would stand forty-seven meters high. In France, Bartholdi designed a very small statue. Then he built a series of larger copies. Workers created a wooden form covered with plaster for each part. Then they placed three hundred pieces of copper on the forms. This copper skin was less than three centimeters thick. The statue also needed a structure that could hold its weight of more than two hundred tons. French engineer Alexandre Gustave Eiffel created this new technology. Later, he would build the famous Eiffel Tower in Paris.

Frederic-Auguste Bartholdi

Eiffel and others worked in Paris to produce a strong iron support system for the statue. The design also needed to permit the statue to move a little in strong winds. VOICE ONE: France had wanted to give the statue to the United States on the one hundredth anniversary of the Declaration of Independence -- July fourth, eighteen seventy-six. But technical problems and lack of money delayed the project. France finally presented the statue to the United States in Paris in eighteen eightyfour. But the pedestal, being built in New York, was not finished. Not enough money had been given to complete the project. The publisher of the New York World newspaper came to the rescue. Joseph Pulitzer used his newspaper to urge Americans to give more money to finish the pedestal. His efforts brought in another one hundred thousand dollars. And the pedestal was finished. VOICE TWO:

In France, workers separated the statue into three hundred fifty pieces, put them on a ship and sent them across the ocean. The statue arrived in New York in more than two hundred wooden boxes. It took workers four months to put together the statue on the new pedestal. President Grover Cleveland officially accepted the statue in a ceremony on October twenty-eighth, eighteen eighty-six. He said: "We will not forget that Liberty has here made her home; nor shall her chosen altar be neglected." (MUSIC) VOICE ONE: The Statue of Liberty became a symbol of hope for immigrants coming to the United States by ship from Europe. More than twelve million people passed the statue between eighteen ninety-two and nineteen fiftyfour on their way to the immigration center on nearby Ellis Island. More than forty percent of Americans have an ancestor who passed through Ellis Island. Through the years, millions of people continued to visit the Statue of Liberty. A trip to New York City did not seem complete without it. Still, the statue was old and becoming dangerous for visitors. In nineteen eighty-two, President Ronald Reagan asked businessman Lee Iacocca to lead a campaign to repair it. The Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation raised about one hundred million dollars in private money to do the work. The repairs included replacing the torch and covering it with twenty-four carat gold. On July fourth, nineteen eighty-six, New York City celebrated a restored and re-opened Statue of Liberty. VOICE TWO: Officials closed the Statue of Liberty following the terrorist attacks in New York on September eleventh, two thousand one. It remained closed until August, two thousand four. When it re-opened, visitors could only go onto the statue's pedestal. But the Statue continued to attract visitors—more than three million a year.

After the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. smoke rises from the ruins of the World Trade Center

This year, on July fourth, visitors once again will be able to climb inside the statue all the way to the top. It is not an easy thing to do. More than three hundred fifty steps lead to Lady Liberty's crown. The National Park Service says it will limit the number of climbers to about two hundred a day. No more than ten people will be able to go up at one time. At that rate, officials estimate that more than one hundred thousand people will be able to climb to the top each year.

But if you want to visit the newly opened Statue of Liberty, you must do it within the next two years. That is because the National Park Service plans to close it again for more repairs. Officials say the improvements could take as long as two years. But they say the work will make it possible to safely double the number of visitors permitted inside. (MUSIC) VOICE ONE:

The Statue of Liberty National Monument and Ellis Island is one of America's national parks. It includes both Liberty Island, where the statue stands, and nearby Ellis Island, the former federal immigration processing center. Officials at the center examined many of the immigrants who arrived by ship before they were permitted to enter the United States. The main building was restored and opened as a museum in nineteen ninety. The museum includes pictures, videos, interactive displays and recordings of immigrants who went through Ellis Island until it was closed in nineteen fifty-four. One popular exhibit is the Immigrant Wall of Honor outside the main building. It honors all immigrants to the United States no matter where they entered the country. It now lists the names of more than seven hundred thousand people. A new area of wall is being prepared for more names to be added. An immigration history center on the island contains the ship records of passengers who entered through New York from eighteen ninety-two through nineteen twenty-four. Those were the years of the great wave of European immigration, before the United States passed restrictive immigration laws. One recent visitor said the Ellis Island immigration hall feels alive with the stories of people who left their native lands long ago to start a new life in a new country. (MUSIC) VOICE TWO: This program was written by Nancy Steinbach and produced by Caty Weaver. I'm Barbara Klein. VOICE ONE: And I'm Steve Ember. You can find transcripts, MP3s and podcasts of our programs at voaspecialenglish.com. Join us again next week for THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English.

American History Series: The Story of the Lincoln-Douglas Debates of 1858 Democrat Stephen Douglas was seeking re-election as a U.S. senator from Illinois. His opponent was a lawyer from the new Republican Party, Abraham Lincoln. Transcript of radio broadcast: 11 June 2009

Welcome to the MAKING OF A NATION – American history in VOA Special English. In the summer of eighteen fifty-eight, two candidates campaigned across the state of Illinois for a seat in the United States Senate. That seat belonged to Stephen Douglas from the Democratic Party. He was seeking re-election. His opponent was a lawyer from the newly established Republican Party. His name was Abraham Lincoln. This week in our series, Frank Oliver and Larry West tell us about this campaign of statewide but also national importance. VOICE ONE:

Abraham Lincoln proposed that he and Stephen Douglas hold several debates. The rules for each debate would be the same. One man would speak for an hour. His opponent would speak for an hour and a half. Then the first man would speak for half an hour to close the debate. Douglas agreed. There were seven debates in all. They were held in towns throughout Illinois. In some places, there was great interest in what the two candidates had to say. Thousands of people attended.

Abraham Lincoln

Douglas was a short, heavy man. One reporter said he looked like a fierce bulldog. Douglas's friends and supporters called him "the little giant." Lincoln was just the opposite. He was very tall and thin, with long arms and legs. His clothes did not fit well. And he had a plain face, one which many thought was ugly. He looked more like a simple farmer than a candidate for the United States Senate. VOICE TWO: The Lincoln-Douglas debates covered party politics and the future of the nation. But everything the two men discussed was tied to one issue: slavery. Douglas spoke first at the first debate. He questioned a statement made in one of Lincoln's campaign speeches. Lincoln had said that the United States could not continue to permit slavery in some areas, while banning it in others. He said the Union could not stand so divided. It must either permit slavery everywhere -- or nowhere. Douglas did not agree. He noted that the country had been half-slave and half-free for seventy years. Why then, he asked, should it not continue to exist that way. The United States was a big country. What was best for one part might not be best for another. VOICE ONE: Then Douglas questioned Lincoln's statement on the Supreme Court's Dred Scott decision. Lincoln had said he opposed the decision, because it did not permit Negroes to enjoy the rights of citizenship. Douglas said he believed the decision was correct. He said it was clear that the government had been made by white men, for white men. He said he opposed Negro citizenship.

Stephen Douglas

"I do not accept the Negro as my equal," Douglas said. "And I deny that he is my brother. However," he said, "this does not mean I believe that Negroes should be slaves. Negroes should enjoy every possible right that does not threaten the safety of the society in which they live."

"Every state and territory must decide for itself what these rights will be. Illinois decided that Negroes will not be citizens, but that it will protect their life, property, and civil rights. It keeps from Negroes only

political rights, and refuses to make Negroes equal to white men. That policy satisfies me," Douglas said. "And, it satisfies the Democratic Party." VOICE TWO: Then Lincoln spoke. First, he denied that the Republican Party was an Abolitionist party." I have no purpose," he said, "either directly or indirectly, to interfere with slavery where it exists. I believe I have no legal right to do so. Nor do I wish to do so. I do not," Lincoln said, "wish to propose political and social equality between the white and black races." "But," he went on, "there is no reason in the world why Negroes should not have all the natural rights listed in the Declaration of Independence. The right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

Detail of a painting by Robert Marshall of the Lincoln-Douglas debate at Charleston, Illinois

"I agree with Judge Douglas," Lincoln said, "that the Negro is not my equal in many ways -- certainly not in color, perhaps not mentally or morally. But in the right to eat the bread that his own hand earns, he is my equal and the equal of Judge Douglas, and the equal of every living man."

VOICE ONE: Lincoln then defended his statement that the United States could not continue half slave and half free. He said he did not mean that customs or institutions must be the same in every state. He said it was healthy and necessary for differences to exist in a country so large. He said different customs and institutions helped unite the country, not divide it. But Lincoln questioned if slavery was such an institution. He said slavery had not tied the states of the Union together, but had always been an issue that divided them. How had the country existed half-slave and half-free for so many years, Lincoln asked. Because, he said, the men who created the government believed that slavery was only temporary. Once people understood that slavery was not permanent, the crisis would pass. Slavery could be left alone in the South until it slowly died. That way, Lincoln said, would be best for both the white and black races. (MUSIC) VOICE TWO: Stephen Douglas and Abraham Lincoln were campaigning for a Senate seat from the state of Illinois. But their debates had national importance, too.

Douglas expected to be the Democratic candidate for president in eighteen sixty. His statements could win or lose him support for that contest. Whenever possible, he tried to show that he was a man of the people, like Lincoln. He tried to show that his Democratic Party was a national party, while the Republican Party was a party only of the North. And he tried to show that Lincoln's policies would lead to civil war. VOICE ONE: Lincoln, for his part, may have looked like a simple farmer. But he was a very smart lawyer and politician. He asked questions which he knew would cause trouble for Douglas. He wanted to create a split between Douglas and his supporters in the South. Lincoln also wanted to keep alive the debate over slavery. "That," he said, "is the real issue. That is the issue that will continue in this country when these poor tongues of Judge Douglas and myself are silent. It is the eternal struggle between right and wrong." (MUSIC) VOICE TWO: In Illinois in eighteen fifty-eight, the state legislature chose the men who would represent the state in the national Senate. So Stephen Douglas and Abraham Lincoln had to depend on legislative support to get to Washington. On election day, the legislative candidates supporting Lincoln won four thousand more popular votes than the candidates supporting Douglas. But because of the way election areas had been organized, the Douglas Democrats won a majority of seats. The newly elected legislature chose him to be senator. VOICE ONE: Lincoln was sad that he had not won. But he said he was glad to have tried. The campaign, he said, "gave me a hearing on the great question of the age, which I could have had in no other way. And though I now sink out of view and shall be forgotten, I believe I have made some marks which will tell for the cause of civil liberty long after I have gone." Many people, however, did not think Abraham Lincoln would be forgotten. His campaign speeches had been published everywhere in the East. His name was becoming widely known. People began to speak of him as a presidential candidate. To win the presidential election of eighteen sixty, the Republican Party had decided it needed a man of the people. He must be a good politician and leader. He must be opposed to slavery, but not too extreme. Many people thought Lincoln could be that man. VOICE TWO: After the election in Illinois, Lincoln made several speaking trips in the western states. In none of his speeches did he say he might be a candidate for president in eighteen sixty.

If anyone said anything about "Lincoln for president," he would answer that he did not have the ability. Or he would say there were better men in the party than himself. Lincoln said: "Only events can make a president." He would wait for those events. (MUSIC) ANNOUNCER: Our program was written by Frank Beardsley. The narrators were Frank Oliver and Larry West. Transcripts, MP3s and podcasts of our programs are online, along with historical images, at voaspecialenglish.com. Join us again next week for THE MAKING OF A NATION -- an American history series in VOA Special English

American History Series: Hopes, Fears and the Election of 1860 Americans worried that even a new president could not hold the nation together. The states of the South were very close to leaving the Union over the issue of slavery. Transcript of radio broadcast: 08 July 2009

Welcome to the MAKING OF A NATION – American history in VOA Special English. Eighteen sixty was a year of mixed feelings of hope and fear. Americans had hope for the future, because they would be electing a new president. But they had fear that even a new president could not hold the nation together. The states of the South were very close to leaving the Union over the issue of slavery. This week in our series, Tony Riggs and Frank Oliver talk about the candidates and the issues in the election of eighteen sixty. VOICE ONE: After four years as president, James Buchanan decided not to run again. Buchanan was a Democrat. His party, like the nation, was split over slavery. Southern Democrats wanted the party to support slavery. Northern Democrats refused. The opposition Republican Party expected to gain votes from dissatisfied Democrats. Republicans had become stronger since the last presidential election in eighteen fifty-six. They felt their candidate would win in eighteen sixty. VOICE TWO: The Democratic nominating convention opened in April in Charleston, South Carolina. Senator Stephen Douglas of Illinois was the leading candidate. He had the support of a majority of convention delegates. But he did not have the two-thirds majority needed to win the nomination.

Stephen Douglas

Many Southern Democrats did not like Stephen Douglas. Some did not trust him. Others did not accept his policies on slavery. Douglas did not oppose slavery or the spread of slavery. However, he said no federal law could make slavery legal in a territory where the people did not want it. This was his policy of "popular sovereignty." VOICE ONE: The Southern Democrats who opposed Stephen Douglas were led by William Yancey of Alabama. Yancey wanted to get a pro-slavery statement into the party's platform. He was sure Douglas would not accept the nomination based on such a platform. If Yancey failed to get the statement he wanted, he would take Southern Democrats out of the convention. And out of the party. The committee on resolutions considered three platforms. One platform declared that the people of a territory had the right to decide if slavery would be legal or illegal. The second declared that the Supreme Court had that right. And the third declared that no one did -- that slavery was legal everywhere. (MUSIC) VOICE TWO: William Yancey spoke to the convention in support of the pro-slavery platform. He said pro-slavery Democrats did not want to destroy the union. But he said someone had to make clear to anti-slavery Democrats that the union would be dissolved if the constitutional rights of slave owners were not honored. Yancey spoke of the danger of a great slave rebellion. He described it as a sleeping volcano that threatened the lives, property, and honor of the people of the South. He said the actions of the North might cause that volcano to explode. William Yancey

Another convention delegate answered Yancey's speech. He said Northern Democrats were tired of defending the interests of the South. "Now," he said, "Yancey tells us we must agree that slavery is right. He orders us to hide our faces and eat dirt. Gentlemen of the South," he said, "you mistake us. We will not do it!" VOICE ONE: In this atmosphere of tension, it was clear that a pro-slavery platform would not be approved. The Alabama delegation announced that, therefore, it must withdraw. The delegations from the other six states of the Deep South -- Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas -- did the same. Those fifty men organized their own convention. They approved a pro-slavery platform, but did not nominate anyone for president. They agreed to meet again a few weeks later in Richmond, Virginia. The Northern Democrats postponed their nomination, too. They agreed to meet again in Baltimore, Maryland.

(MUSIC) VOICE TWO: The Republican Party held its presidential nominating convention in Chicago, Illinois. There was no question who was the leading candidate. He was the best-known Republican in the country at that time: Senator William Seward of New York. The Republican platform seemed to contain something for everyone. William Seward

For those opposed to slavery, the platform rejected the idea that slave owners had a constitutional right to take slaves into new territories. For foreign-born Americans, it supported their right to full citizenship. For manufacturers, it proposed a new tax on imports to protect American industry. And for those in the northwest, it called for free land for settlers, and federal aid to build roads and canals. Delegates approved the platform with loud cheers. They would return the next day to nominate their candidate for president. VOICE ONE: William Seward was sure he would win the nomination. If not on the first vote, he thought, then on the second. But there was some opposition to Seward. And his campaign organization failed to see its strength. The candidate of the opposition was Abraham Lincoln. The Republican convention voted three times. Lincoln gained support on each ballot. But neither he nor Seward received enough votes for the nomination. Then, before a fourth vote could be taken, a delegate from Ohio asked to speak. The big room became silent. "Mister chairman," he said, "I rise to announce the change of four votes of Ohio to Mister Lincoln." That was enough to give Abraham Lincoln the Republican nomination for president. Abraham Lincoln

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO: One month later, the Democrats re-opened their nominating convention. Most of the Southern Democrats who walked out of the first meeting came back. Many of their seats at the convention had been given to new delegates. So a new dispute arose over which delegates had the right to be there. A compromise plan split the seats between old and new delegates. But most of the Southerners rejected it. One by one, a majority of each Southern delegation walked out. The remaining Democrats then voted for a candidate. They chose Stephen Douglas.

Southern Democrats nominated their own candidate, John Breckinridge of Kentucky. And a group called the Constitutional Union Party nominated John Bell. VOICE ONE: The election campaign opened in the summer of eighteen sixty. Lincoln was not well-known. So the Republican Party published many books and pamphlets about him. They told the story of a poor farm boy who educated himself and, through hard work and honesty, had become a candidate for president. Lincoln's supporters organized a loud and colorful campaign, complete John Breckinridge with marching bands and signs. Lincoln himself was silent. He said, "It has been my decision since becoming a candidate to make no speeches. I am here only to see you and to let you see me. " In fact, it was Lincoln's assistants who had advised him to say nothing. They believed he had said enough in the past to make clear his position on the important issues. VOICE TWO: Stephen Douglas, on the other hand, campaigned very hard. His health was poor. And he had trouble getting money. But that did not stop him from speaking in almost every state. Within a few weeks, however, Douglas recognized that he had no real hope of winning. His position on slavery had cost him all support in the South. Douglas believed that, of the other candidates, Abraham Lincoln had the best chance of winning the presidential election. He also believed pro-slavery extremists would use Lincoln's election as an excuse to take Southern states out of the union. So he turned his efforts to a campaign for the union itself. He said, "The election of a man to the presidency by the American people, under the Constitution, is no reason for any attempt to dissolve this glorious nation." VOICE ONE: Election day was November sixth. The popular vote was close between Lincoln and Douglas. But the electoral vote was not. Lincoln received one hundred eighty. Breckinridge received seventy-two. Bell received thirtynine. And Douglas received just twelve. Abraham Lincoln would be the new president of the United States. He would enter office facing the most serious crisis in American history. For, before his inauguration, southern states finally acted on their threats. They began to leave the union. That will be our story next week. (MUSIC)

ANNOUNCER: Our program was written by Frank Beardsley. The narrators were Tony Riggs and Frank Oliver. Transcripts, MP3s and podcasts of our programs are online, along with historical images, at voaspecialenglish.com. Join us again next week for THE MAKING OF A NATION - an American history series in VOA Special English

American History Series: Debating the Powerful Bank of the US Congress voted to renew the charter of the Bank of the United States, but President Andrew Jackson vetoed the measure. Transcript of radio broadcast: 19 November 2008

Welcome to the MAKING OF A NATION – American history in VOA Special English. The question of continuing the Bank of the United States became a serious political issue in the national election of eighteen thirty-two. The head of the bank, Nicholas Biddle, had become very powerful. Biddle refused to recognize that the government had the right to interfere in any way with the bank's business. The bank was privately operated but could make loans with taxpayers' money. President Andrew Jackson understood the power of the Bank of the United States. He opposed giving the bank a new charter. Jackson said the Bank of the United States was dangerous to the liberty of Americans. The bank, he said, could build up or pull down political parties through loans to politicians. The bank, he said, would always support those who supported the bank. He proposed to form a new national bank, as part of the Treasury Department.

Andrew Jackson

This week in our series, Stewart Spencer and Maurice Joyce continue the story of the Bank of the United States.

VOICE ONE: In the election year of eighteen thirty-two, the bank still had four years left to continue. Its charter would not end until eighteen thirty-six. Jackson had been urging Congress to act early, so that the bank could -- if its charter were rejected -- close its business slowly over several years. This would prevent serious economic problems for the country. Many of Jackson's advisers believed he should say nothing about the bank until after the election. They feared he might lose the votes of some supporters of the bank. Biddle felt that this might be the best time to get a charter. Henry Clay, the presidential candidate of the National Republicans, helped Biddle to make this decision. Senator Clay, however, was not thinking of the bank when he gave his advice. Clay needed an issue to campaign on. Most of the people of the country approved of Jackson's programs. Clay could not get votes by opposing successful programs. But, he was sure that the issue of the bank could get him some votes.

Henry Clay

VOICE TWO: The campaign for a new charter was led by the most powerful men in each house of Congress. In the Senate, the bank's supporters included Senator Clay and Daniel Webster. Former President John Quincy Adams -now a congressman -- led the bank's struggle in the house. The chief opponent to the bank was Senator Thomas Hart Benton of Missouri. "I object to the renewal of the charter," he told the Senate, "because the bank is too great and powerful to be permitted in a government of free and equal laws. I also object because the bank makes the rich richer, and the poor poorer." VOICE ONE: In the House, Representative Augustin Clayton of Georgia proposed an investigation of the bank. In a speech written by Senator Benton, Clayton charged that the bank had violated its charter a number of times. The bank's supporters were afraid to vote down the proposed investigation. It would be almost the same thing as saying that the charges were true. The investigation was approved. And a special committee was given six weeks to study the charges against the bank. Four members of the seven-man committee were opponents of the bank. Three, including John Quincy Adams, were friendly. As expected, opponents of the bank found the charges to be true. And the bank's supporters found them all to be false. The majority report told of easy loans made to congressmen and newspapermen. It said a New York newspaper that had opposed the bank began supporting it after receiving a secret fifteen-thousanddollar loan. (MUSIC) VOICE TWO: The investigation did not really change the votes of any of the congressmen. Many votes had been bought by the bank. Roger Taney Attorney General Roger Taney told of one example of this. Taney opposed the bank. And he rode to work one morning with a congressman who also opposed it. The congressman asked Taney for help on a speech he planned to make against the bank.

Taney was surprised later to find that this same congressman had voted to give the bank its new charter. The congressman told Taney that the bank had made him a loan of twenty-thousand dollars. VOICE ONE: The Senate finally voted on the bank's new charter. The vote was twenty-eight for and twenty against. The House voted three weeks later. It approved the charter, one hundred seven to eighty-five.

The bill was sent to the White House. President Jackson called a cabinet meeting. Two cabinet members, McLane and Livingston, agreed that the bill should be vetoed. But they urged Jackson to reject the bank charter in such a way that a compromise might be worked out later. Attorney General Taney, however, believed that the veto should be in the strongest possible language. He opposed any compromise that would continue the bank beyond eighteen thirty-six. Jackson agreed with Taney. He asked the attorney general and two White House advisers to help him write the veto message. They worked on the message for three days. (MUSIC) VOICE TWO: On July tenth, the veto was announced. And the message explaining it was sent to Congress. Jackson said he did not believe the bank's charter was constitutional. He said it was true that the Supreme Court had ruled that Congress had the right to charter a national bank. But he said he did not agree with the high court. And Jackson said the president -- in taking his oath of office -- swears to support the Constitution as he understands it, not as it is understood by others. He said the president and the Congress had the same duty as the court to decide if a bill was constitutional. Jackson also spoke of the way the bank moved money from West to East. He said the bank was owned by a small group of rich men, mostly in the East. Some of the owners, he said, were foreigners. Much of the bank's business was done in the West. The money paid by westerners for loans went into the pockets of the eastern bankers. Jackson said this was wrong. Then the president spoke of his firm belief in the rights of the common man. VOICE ONE: "It is to be regretted," he said, "that the rich and powerful bend the acts of the government to their own purposes. Differences among men will always exist under every just government. "Equality of ability, or education, or of wealth cannot be produced by human institutions. Every man has the equal right of protection under the laws. But when these laws are used to make the rich richer, and the powerful more powerful, then the more humble members of our society have a right to complain of injustice." Jackson said he could not understand how the present owners of the bank could have any claim of special treatment from the government. He said the government should shower its favors -- as heaven does its rain -- on the high and low alike, on the rich and the poor equally. (MUSIC) VOICE TWO: Henry Clay had made the bank bill the chief issue of the eighteen thirty-two presidential election campaign. Andrew Jackson chose the words of his veto message for the same purpose -- to win votes in the coming election. His veto of the bank bill cost him the votes of men of money. But it brought him the votes of the common man: the farmer, the laborer, and industrial worker.

After his first two years as president, Andrew Jackson was not sure he wished to serve a second term. Jackson was not sure his health would permit him to complete a full eight years in the White House. But he wished to be a candidate again in eighteen thirty-two to give the people a chance to show they approved of his programs. Jackson decided that he would campaign again for president. But if he won, he would resign after the first or second year, and leave the job to his vice president. (MUSIC) ANNOUNCER: Our program was written by Frank Beardsley. The narrators were Stewart Spencer and Maurice Joyce. Transcripts, MP3s and podcasts of our programs are online, along with historical images, at voaspecialenglish.com. Join us again next week for THE MAKING OF A NATION - an American history series in VOA Special English

American History Series: Jackson's Victory Over the Bank of the US ''A glorious triumph,'' President Andrew Jackson declares after the power of the privately owned bank was broken. Transcript of radio broadcast: 03 December 2008

Welcome to the MAKING OF A NATION – American history in VOA Special English. The national election of eighteen thirty-two put Andrew Jackson in the White House for a second term as president. One of the major events of his second term was the fight against the Bank of the United States. Jackson believed that the bank had grown too powerful. He urged Congress not to renew the bank's charter to do business. He also stopped putting federal money into the Bank of the United States. Instead, he put the money into state banks. The head of the Bank of the United States was Nicholas Biddle. Biddle fought with all his power to keep the bank open. He created a financial panic and blamed it on President Jackson. Biddle did this by demanding immediate repayment of loans. Businesses struggled without the bank's financial assistance. Workers lost their jobs. President Jackson was warned that a mob could march on Washington. But nothing happened. Most of the battle against the Bank of the United States was fought in Congress.

Andrew Jackson

Now, in this week's program in our series, we continue the story with Bob Doughty and Sarah Long. VOICE ONE: Senator Henry Clay of Kentucky led the support for the bank. Clay was head of the opposition political party, the National Republicans. Clay argued his case on the floor of the Senate for three days. He strongly urged the Senate to re-new the bank's charter. He said:

"The country is in the middle of a revolution ... not yet a bloody revolution. But things are happening that point to a total change of the pure republican character of our government. Power is being centered in the hands of one man." He meant President Jackson. Clay added: "If Congress does not act, the government will fail. And we will all die as slaves." Clay then asked the Senate to condemn Jackson for violating the constitution and the nation's laws. The Senate approved the resolution. VOICE TWO: Things went better for Jackson in the House of Representatives. James Polk defended Jackson's opposition to the bank. Polk said: "The bank set itself up as a great, irresponsible, competing power of the government. If the bank wins this fight, no man afterwards can expect to be elected to high office in this country without first surrendering to the bank. The question is," Polk said, "if we shall have the republic without the bank or the bank without the republic." (MUSIC) VOICE ONE: As time passed, businessmen began to see that the Bank of the United States was being much tighter in its money policy than was necessary. They began to feel that it was Biddle -- not Jackson -- who was responsible for the serious economic situation in the country. Biddle took no responsibility for the financial crisis. He said: "The relief must come from Congress, and Congress alone. The bank feels no need to right the wrongs caused by these miserable people. This president thinks he is to have his way with the bank. He is mistaken." VOICE TWO: Biddle then made a serious mistake. He asked the governor of Pennsylvania to make a speech to the state legislature--a speech supporting the bank.

Nicholas Biddle

At the same time, Biddle refused to lend the state of Pennsylvania three hundred-thousand dollars. The governor was furious. Instead of making a speech supporting the bank, he made one that sharply criticized it. The upper house of the Pennsylvania legislature agreed with the governor. Although Nicholas Biddle threatened all sorts of action, the upper house passed a resolution that Congress should not give the bank a new charter. VOICE ONE: Two days later, the governor of New York proposed that the state sell four or five million dollars of stock for loans to help state banks. The New York legislature approved selling even more.

This action would strengthen the state banks and help to break the power of the Bank of the United States. Nicholas Biddle began to see that the battle was lost. He started making more loans to businesses. The economic panic he had started slowly ended. VOICE TWO: Jackson's victory over the Bank of the United States was clear. Biddle started to lose the support of many members of Congress. In the House of Representatives, James Polk proposed four resolutions on the bank. One said the bank should not get a new charter. The second resolution said government money should not be deposited in the bank. The third said the government should continue to put its A Bank of the United States building in money in state banks. And the fourth proposed an investigation of the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania bank and the reasons for the economic panic in the country. All four of these anti-bank resolutions were approved. VOICE ONE: One of Biddle's assistants described the feelings of bank officials. "This day," he said, "should be ripped from the history of our republic. The president of the United States has seized the public treasury in violation of the law of the land. And the representatives of the people have approved his action." Jackson's words were shorter: "I have won a glorious triumph." (MUSIC) VOICE TWO: The other major event of Andrew Jackson's second term as president was the situation in Texas. In an agreement with Spain in eighteen nineteen, the United States had given up its claim to Texas. In exchange, Spain gave the United States all of Florida. After Mexico won its independence from Spain in eighteen twenty-one, the United States tried to buy Texas. Mexico did not want to sell. When Andrew Jackson became president he, too, tried to buy Texas. Mexico still refused to sell. VOICE ONE: Texas was a rich land. But it was empty. Mexico decided to permit Americans to build colonies in Texas. Stephen Austin formed the first colony in eighteen twenty-two. Each farming family in his colony could have about eighty hectares of land. Each family that wished to raise cattle could have about two thousand hectares. The settlers in Texas were able to buy the land for almost

Stephen Austin

nothing. But they had to promise to join the Roman Catholic Church. They also had to promise to obey the laws of Mexico. Most of the settlers came from the states of Tennessee, Mississippi and Louisiana. Many owned slaves and brought the slaves with them to Texas. During the eighteen twenties, Americans poured into Texas for the low-priced land. VOICE TWO: The leader of one American colony got into trouble with the Mexican government. He was ordered to leave, but refused. With the help of a few supporters, he seized the town of Nacogdoches. He declared Texas to be an independent republic. He called it Fredonia. This man expected the other American colonists to join him against Mexico. He was wrong. Most of the colonists did not support him. In fact, some even joined the Mexican force that put down his rebellion. The man fled back across the border into the United States. VOICE ONE: The rebellion failed. But it made Mexican leaders see the danger of continuing to permit Americans to settle in Texas. The Mexican government sent an official to inspect conditions along the border with the United States. The official reported that as he traveled north through Texas, he saw less and less that was Mexican and more and more that was American. He said there were very few Mexicans in some towns. And these Mexicans, he said, were extremely poor. He said the American settlers were not becoming true Mexicans. They were not speaking Spanish. They were not becoming Roman Catholics. And they were not accepting Mexican traditions. The official said the situation in Texas could throw the whole Mexican nation into revolution. He urged Mexico to send troops to occupy Texas. That will be our story next week. (MUSIC) ANNOUNCER: Our program was written by Frank Beardsley. The narrators were Bob Doughty and Sarah Long. Transcripts, MP3s and podcasts of our programs are online, along with historical images, at voaspecialenglish.com. Join us again next week for THE MAKING OF A NATION - an American history series in VOA Special English

US History: As Jackson Aims to Shut Bank, an Economic Crisis Results The powerful head of the Bank of the United States told people to blame President Andrew Jackson for the problems. Transcript of radio broadcast: 27 November 2008

Welcome to THE MAKING OF A NATION -- American history in VOA Special English.

Andrew Jackson was elected president in eighteen twenty-eight. He was popular with voters. But he was not sure he wanted to run for re-election in eighteen thirty-two. He was getting old. He suffered from health problems. Yet he wanted to give voters a chance to show their approval of his programs. So Jackson made a decision. He would run again. If he won, however, he would resign after the first or second year. He would leave the job to his vice president. Now, this week in our series, Rich Kleinfeldt and Sarah Long continue the story of Andrew Jackson and his presidency. VOICE ONE: President Jackson spoke of this plan to the man he wanted as his vice president, Martin Van Buren. He made the offer in eighteen thirty, when Van Buren was still his secretary of state. Van Buren thanked Jackson for the offer. However, he rejected it. Van Buren said it would be politically dangerous. He did not want anyone to say that he had been brought into the presidency in secret. Jackson did not give up his idea. For more than a year, he continued to urge Van Buren to accept the offer. Van Buren continued to say no. He Andrew Jackson agreed to be Jackson's vice presidential candidate in eighteen thirtytwo. But he said he did not want to become president without being elected by the people. VOICE TWO: As the election got closer, Jackson's health began to improve. He began to think about serving a second full term. One thing that helped was an operation to remove a bullet from his arm. He had received the wound during a gun fight with another man about twenty years earlier. It troubled him so badly that sometimes he could not use the arm. Doctors were afraid to remove the bullet. They thought it might cause a terrible shock to his heart. VOICE ONE: Early in the election year, a doctor said he believed the bullet could be removed easily. He told the president that it was poisoning his whole body. Jackson asked the doctor to cut out the bullet at once. The operation was over in a few minutes. Jackson's health quickly became much better. A funny little story was told about that bullet. Someone reportedly said Jackson should give it to the family of the man who shot him. One family member rejected the offer. He said Jackson had possessed the bullet for twenty years. So, he said, under the law, Jackson had clear ownership to it. "Only nineteen years," someone noted. "Oh," the man said, "that is all right. Since Jackson took good care of it, I will forget the extra year." (MUSIC)

VOICE TWO: The presidential election campaign of eighteen thirty-two was bitter. President Jackson was, once again, the candidate of the Democratic Party. Henry Clay was the candidate of the National Republican Party. Clay had the support of Nicholas Biddle, who was head of the Bank of the United States. He also had the support of about two-thirds of the nation's newspapers. This was because most of them owed money to the bank. Most wealthy people supported Clay, too.

Henry Clay

Farmers and laborers supported Jackson. They showed their support by marching in parades and holding big, noisy public meetings.

VOICE ONE: On election day, the people showed that Jackson was still their president. There was a much bigger difference in popular votes between Jackson and Clay than between Jackson and John Quincy Adams four years earlier. As the votes were counted, one of Clay's supporters said: "The news blows over us like a great cold storm." Jackson received about six hundred eighty-eight thousand popular votes. Clay received about four hundred seventy-three thousand votes. In the electoral college, Jackson got more than four times the number of votes than Clay got. Jackson's vice president would be Martin Van Buren. VOICE TWO: Andrew Jackson saw his re-election as proof that the American people approved of his policies. This included his policy to close the Bank of the United States when its charter ended in eighteen thirty-six. During his second term, Jackson decided on a plan to reduce the bank's economic power. He would stop putting federal money into the bank. Instead, he would put it into state banks. This would greatly reduce the amount of money the Bank of the United States could use. VOICE ONE: The plan was not as easy as it seemed. The charter for the bank said federal money had to be kept there unless the secretary of the treasury ordered it put someplace else. President Jackson's treasury secretary was friendly to the bank. He would not give the order. Jackson would have to dismiss the man and appoint someone who supported his plan. But the treasury secretary was a powerful politician. Jackson could not push him out of the job. He had to find another way. So he decided to reorganize his whole cabinet. (MUSIC) VOICE TWO:

Jackson named his secretary of state to be minister to France. He named his treasury secretary to be secretary of state. Then he brought in someone new as secretary of the treasury. That turned out to be a mistake. The new treasury secretary refused to put federal money anywhere but in the Bank of the United States. He also refused to resign when Jackson asked him to resign. So Jackson dismissed him and named yet another new treasury secretary.

VOICE ONE: This man immediately ordered that after October first, eighteen thirty-three, all federal money was to be put into twenty-three state banks. He did not withdraw the government money already in the Bank of the United States. He said this money could be used to make payments until it was all gone.

Nicholas Biddle

Nicholas Biddle, the head of the bank, fought back. He ordered the immediate repayment of all bank loans. He also withdrew from public use large numbers of bank notes. People had been using the notes as money. VOICE TWO: These actions caused serious economic difficulties throughout the country. Many businesses failed. They could not pay back their loans or borrow the money they needed. As businesses failed, workers lost their jobs. Nicholas Biddle said the Jackson administration was responsible for all the trouble. He said the bank was forced to take firm measures, because it was losing government money. He told people to protest to the administration. Critics of President Jackson's bank policy called him "King Andrew the First." VOICE ONE: Groups of businessmen called on the president at the White House. They urged him to put government money back into the bank. Jackson told one group: "I will never restore the money. I will never renew the charter of the Bank of the United States. If you want help, go to Nicholas Biddle. " VOICE TWO: The president's actions worried even some of his supporters. There could be serious long-term effects of closing the Bank of the United States. Some of his supporters in Congress went to see him. They warned him of reports that a mob was forming to march on Washington. They told him that the mob planned to seize the Capitol building until Congress returned government money to the bank. "Gentlemen," Jackson said, "I will be glad to see this mob on Capitol Hill. I will hang its leaders high. That should stop forever all attempts to control Congress by force."

We will continue our story of Andrew Jackson's second term as president next week. (MUSIC) ANNOUNCER: Our program was written by Frank Beardsley. The narrators were Rich Kleinfeldt and Sarah Long. Transcripts, MP3s and podcasts of our programs can be found along with historical images at voaspecialenglish.com. Join us again next week for THE MAKING OF A NATION, an American history series in VOA Special English. (MUSIC) A half-hour of VOA Special English can be found every day, on radio or online. We start with the latest world news, followed by a short feature and then a fifteen-minute program. On Friday it's our magazine show AMERICAN MOSAIC. Then, on Saturday we present a different short story every week on our program AMERICAN STORIES. And on Sunday we bring you the life stories of famous and not-so-famous Americans on PEOPLE IN AMERICA.

American History Series: Bank of the United States Worries Jackson Chartered by Congress in 1816, the bank was privately run but could lend public money. President Andrew Jackson warned of a risk of political corruption. Transcript of radio broadcast: 13 November 2008 MP3 - Download (MP3) MP3 - Listen to (MP3)

Welcome to the MAKING OF A NATION – American history in VOA Special English. Andrew Jackson served as president of the United States from eighteen twenty-nine to eighteen thirtyseven. His first term seemed to be mostly a political battle with Vice President John C. Calhoun. Calhoun wanted to be the next president. Jackson believed his secretary of state, Martin Van Buren, would be a better president. And Van Buren wanted the job. He won the president's support partly because of his help in settling a serious political dispute. This week in our series, Harry Monroe and Kay Gallant continue the story of Andrew Jackson and his presidency. VOICE ONE: President Jackson's cabinet was in great disorder. Vice President Calhoun was trying to force out Secretary of War John Eaton. Eaton would not resign, and the president would not dismiss him. Van Buren designed a plan to gain Eaton's resignation. One morning, as Jackson discussed his cabinet problems, Van Buren said: "There is only one thing, general, that will bring you peace -- my resignation." Andrew Jackson

"Never," said Jackson. Van Buren explained how his resignation would solve a number of Jackson's political problems. Jackson did not want to let Van Buren go. But the next day, he told Van Buren that he would never stop any man who wished to leave. VOICE TWO: The president wanted to discuss the resignation with his other advisers. Van Buren agreed. He also said it might be best if Secretary of War Eaton were at the meeting. The advisers accepted Van Buren's resignation. Then they went to Van Buren's house for dinner. On the way, Eaton said: "Gentlemen, this is all wrong. I am the one who should resign!" Van Buren said Eaton must be sure of such a move. Eaton was sure. VOICE ONE: President Jackson accepted Eaton's decision as he had accepted Van Buren's. But he was unwilling to give up completely the services of his two friends. He named Van Buren to be minister to Britain. And he told Eaton that he would help him get elected again to the Senate. Jackson then dismissed the remaining members of his cabinet. He was free to organize a new cabinet that would be loyal to him and not to Vice President Calhoun. Even with a new cabinet, Jackson still faced the problem of nullification. South Carolina politicians, led by Calhoun, continued to claim that states had the right to reject -- nullify -- a federal law which they believed was bad. (MUSIC) VOICE TWO: Jackson asked a congressman from South Carolina to give a message to the nullifiers in his state. "Tell them," Jackson said, "that they can talk and write resolutions and print threats to their hearts' content. But if one drop of blood is shed there in opposition to the laws of the United States, I will hang the first man I can get my hands on to the first tree I can find." Someone questioned if Jackson would go so far as to hang someone. A man answered: "When Jackson begins to talk about hanging, they can begin to look for the ropes." VOICE ONE: The nullifiers held a majority of seats in South Carolina's legislature at that time. They called a special convention. Within five days, convention delegates approved a declaration of nullification. They declared that the federal import tax laws of eighteen twenty-eight and eighteen thirty-two were unconstitutional, and therefore, cancelled. They said citizens of South Carolina need not pay the tax.

The nullifiers also declared that if the federal government tried to use force against South Carolina, then the state would withdraw from the union and form its own independent government. VOICE TWO: President Jackson answered with a declaration of his own. Jackson said America's constitution formed a government, not just an association of sovereign states. South Carolina had no right to cancel a federal law or to withdraw from the union. Disunion by force was treason. Jackson said: "The laws of the United States must be enforced. This is my duty under the Constitution. I have no other choice." VOICE ONE: Jackson did more. He asked Congress to give him the power to use the Army and Navy to enforce the laws of the land. Congress did so. Jackson sent eight warships to the port of Charleston, South Carolina, and soldiers to federal military bases in the state. While preparing to use force, Jackson offered hope for a peaceful settlement. In his yearly message to Congress, he spoke of reducing the federal import tax which hurt the sale of southern cotton overseas. He said the import tax could be reduced, because the national debt would soon be paid. VOICE TWO: Congress passed a compromise bill to end the import tax by eighteen forty-two. South Carolina's congressmen accepted the compromise. And the state's legislature called another convention. This time, the delegates voted to end the nullification act they had approved earlier. They did not, however, give up their belief in the idea of nullification. The idea continued to be a threat to the American union until the issue was settled in the Civil War which began in eighteen sixty-one. (MUSIC) VOICE ONE: While President Jackson battled the nullifiers, another struggle began. This time, it was Jackson against the Bank of the United States. Congress provided money to establish the Bank of the United States in eighteen sixteen. It gave the bank a charter to do business for twenty years. The bank was permitted to use the government's money to make loans. For this, the bank paid the government one and one-half million dollars a year. The bank was run by private citizens. VOICE TWO: The Bank of the United States was strong, because of the great amount of government money invested in it. The bank's paper notes were almost as good as gold. They came close to being a national money system. The bank opened offices in many parts of the country. As it grew, it became more powerful. By making it easy or difficult for businesses to borrow money, the bank could control the economy of almost any part of the United States.

VOICE ONE: During Jackson's presidency, the Bank of the United States was headed by Nicholas Biddle. Biddle was an extremely intelligent man. He had completed studies at the University of Pennsylvania when he was only thirteen years old. When he was eighteen, he was sent to Paris as secretary to the American minister. Biddle worked on financial details of the purchase of the Louisiana Nicholas Biddle territory from France. After America's war against Britain in eighteen twelve, Biddle helped establish the Bank of the United States. He became its president when he was only thirty-seven years old. VOICE TWO: Biddle clearly understood his power as president of the Bank of the United States. In his mind, the government had no right to interfere in any way with the bank's business. President Jackson did not agree. Nor was he very friendly toward the bank. Not many westerners were. They did not trust the bank's paper money. They wanted to deal in gold and silver. Jackson criticized the bank in each of his yearly messages to Congress. He said the Bank of the United States was dangerous to the liberty of the people. He said the bank could build up or pull down political parties through loans to politicians. Jackson opposed giving the bank a new charter. He proposed that a new bank be formed as part of the Treasury Department. VOICE ONE: The president urged Congress to consider the future of the bank long before the bank's charter was to end. Then, if the charter was rejected, the bank could close its business slowly over several years. This would prevent serious economic problems for the country.

A political drawing from 1832 about the Bank of the United States. President Jackson is shown as a cat defending the United States from rats that steal.

Many of President Jackson's advisers believed he should say nothing about the bank until after the presidential election of eighteen thirtytwo. They feared he might lose the votes of those who supported the bank. Jackson accepted their advice. He agreed not to act on the issue, if bank president Biddle would not request renewal of the charter before the election.

Biddle agreed. Then he changed his mind. He asked Congress for a new charter in January eighteen thirtytwo. The request became a hot political issue in the presidential campaign. (MUSIC) ANNOUNCER: Our program was written by Frank Beardsley. Your narrators were Harry Monroe and Kay Gallant. Transcripts, MP3s and podcasts of our programs can be found, along with historical images, at

voaspecialenglish.com. Join us again next week for THE MAKING OF A NATION - an American history series in VOA Special English

American History Series: A National Anthem Is Born From the War of 1812 Francis Scott Key wrote "The Star-Spangled Banner" in honor of an American flag that survived a night of British shelling of Fort McHenry in Maryland. Transcript of radio broadcast: 20 August 2008 MP3 - Download (MP3) MP3 - Listen to (MP3) RealAudio - Download

Welcome to THE MAKING OF A NATION – American history in VOA Special English. As we described last week, British forces attacked Washington in the summer of eighteen fourteen. They burned the Capitol building, the White House and other public buildings before withdrawing to their ships in the Chesapeake Bay. Today, Harry Monroe and Maurice Joyce tell the story of how a British attack on Fort McHenry in the port of Baltimore led to "The Star-Spangled Banner," America's national anthem. (MUSIC) VOICE ONE: British General Robert Ross and Admiral Sir George Cockburn led the attack on Washington. They planned next to attack Baltimore. But the people of Baltimore expected the attack, and began to prepare for it. Fifty thousand of them built defenses around the city. The port of Baltimore was protected by Fort McHenry. The guns and cannon of the fort could prevent British ships from reaching the city. VOICE TWO: The British began with a land attack against Baltimore. General Ross, Admiral Cockburn, and about four thousand British soldiers landed at North Point, a finger of land reaching into the Chesapeake Bay. From North Point, it was a march of about twenty-two kilometers to Baltimore. The march began about seven in the morning. General Ross and Admiral Cockburn stopped their men after an hour. The two commanders and several of their officers rode to a nearby farmhouse and forced the family living there to give them breakfast. When the British officers had finished eating, the farmer asked General Ross where the British were going. "To Baltimore," answered Ross. The farmer told Ross that he might have some difficulty getting there, because of the city's strong defenses. "I will eat supper in Baltimore...or in hell," answered the British general. VOICE ONE: Ross and Cockburn moved far in front of the British forces. A group of several hundred Americans opened fire on the British officers. Ross was hit and died soon afterwards.

The Americans retreated, but slowed the progress of the British soldiers. It was late the next day before the British force arrived to face the army of Americans near Baltimore. The Americans were on high ground and had about one hundred cannon to fire down on the British. The British commander ordered his men to rest for the night. He sent a message to the British warships to attack the city with guns and mortars. Such an attack, he felt, might cause the Americans to fall back. But the British ships already had been firing since early morning at Fort McHenry. The British guns were more powerful than those of the fort. This let the ships fire from so far away that the American guns could not hit them.

The battle at Fort McHenry

Shells and bombs from British mortars fell like rain over Fort McHenry. But few Americans in the fort were hurt or killed. Most of the rockets and shells exploded in the air or missed. Many of them failed to explode. VOICE TWO: On a tall staff from the center of the fort flew a large American flag. The flag could be seen by the soldiers defending the city and by the British warships. The flag also was seen by a young American. His name was Francis Scott Key. Key was a lawyer who once had thought of giving his life to religious work. He was a poet and writer. Key opposed war. But he loved his country and joined the army in Washington to help defend it. When the British withdrew from Washington, they took with them an American doctor, Wiliam Beanes. Key knew Beanes. And he asked President Madison to request the British commander to release the doctor. President Madison wrote such a request, and Key agreed to carry it to Admiral Cockburn. Key also carried letters from wounded British soldiers in American hospitals. In one of the letters, a British soldier told of the excellent medical care he was being given. Cockburn agreed to free the doctor after he read the reports of good medical care given his wounded men. But Cockburn would not permit Key, the doctor, or a man who came with Key to return to land until after the attack. VOICE ONE: Francis Scott Key watched as the shells and rockets began to fall on Fort McHenry. "I saw the flag of my country," Key said later, "waving over a city -- the strength and pride of my native state. I watched the enemy prepare for his assault. I heard the sound of battle. The noise of the conflict fell upon my listening ear. It told me that the `brave and the free' had met the invaders." All through the rainy day, the attack continued. Doctor Beanes, watching with Key, had difficulty seeing the flag. He kept asking Key if Francis Scott Key

the "stars and stripes" still flew above the fort. Until dark, Key could still see it. After then, he could only hope. VOICE TWO: Britain tried to land another force of men near the fort. But the Americans heard the boats and fired at them. The landing failed. Shells and rockets continued to rain down on Fort McHenry. At times, the fort's cannon answered. And Key knew the Americans had not surrendered. The British land force east of Baltimore spent most of the night trying to keep dry. Commanders could not decide if they should attack or retreat. Finally, orders came from the admiral: "Withdraw to your ships." A land attack against Baltimore's defenses would not be attempted. At first light of morning, British shells were still bursting in the air over the fort. The flag had holes in it from the British shells. But it still flew. The British shelling stopped at seven o'clock. Key took an old letter from his pocket and wrote a poem about what he had seen. VOICE ONE: Oh, say can you see by the dawn's early light What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming? Whose broad stripes and bright stars, through the perilous fight O'er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming?

Francis Scott Key's original copy of his "Star-Spangled Banner" poem. It is now on display at the Maryland Historical Society.

And the rocket's red glare, the bombs bursting in air, Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there. Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave? For more than one hundred years, Americans sang this song and remembered the attack at Fort McHenry. In nineteen thirty-one, Congress made the "Star-Spangled Banner" the national anthem of the United States. VOICE TWO: The unsuccessful British attack on Baltimore was followed by news that Britain also had suffered a defeat to the north. British General Sir George Prevost led eleven thousand soldiers south from Montreal to New York. At Plattsburgh, on the western shore of Lake Champlain, his army was opposed by less than four thousand Americans. General Prevost believed he should get control of the lake before moving against the American

defenders. He requested the support of four British ships and about ten gunboats. A group of American ships of about the same size also entered the lake. In a fierce battle, the American naval force sank the British ships. The large land army of Prevost decided not to attack without naval support. The eleven- thousand British soldiers turned around and marched back to Montreal. VOICE ONE: By the time these battles of eighteen f ourteen had been fought, the two sides already had agreed to discuss peace. The peace talks began in the summer at Ghent, in Belgium. The British at first were in no hurry to sign a peace treaty. They believed that their forces would be able to capture parts of the United States. Britain demanded as a condition for peace that the United States give large areas of its northwest to the Indians. It also said America must give Canada other areas along the border. And Britain would not promise to stop seizing American seamen and putting them in the British navy. (MUSIC) ANNOUNCER: British policy at the peace talks changed after the battles of Baltimore and Plattsburgh. That will be our story next week. Join us each week for THE MAKING OF A NATION – an American history series in VOA Special English. (Star-Spangled Banner)

History Repeats Itself: A Fresh Start to 'The Making of a Nation' We begin our popular American history series from the beginning again. Transcript of radio broadcast: 03 October 2007 MP3 - Download Audio Listen to MP3 Listen in RealAudio

VOICE ONE: Welcome to THE MAKING OF A NATION -- American history in VOA Special English. I'm Shirley Griffith. VOICE TWO: And I'm Steve Ember. Today history repeats itself. We start our series over again. The last time we were at the beginning was in February of two thousand three. (MUSIC)

VOICE ONE: THE MAKING OF A NATION has a loyal following. In fact, listener research finds it the most popular weekly program in VOA Special English. It started in May of nineteen sixty-nine. Some people can remember when THE MAKING OF A NATION was on the radio two times a week. People who grew up listening to it are old enough now to listen with their own children, or even their grandchildren. The series tells a story. You can think of it not just as a series of programs about the history of America and its people, but a series of lessons. The subjects include exploration, revolution, civil war, social and political change, the rise of industry and modern technology, and more. VOICE TWO: We ended last week at program number two hundred thirty-eight. The subject was the presidential election of two thousand four. As time adds to the story, we add new programs to the series. In a sense, THE MAKING OF A NATION is a living history. Yet some of the announcers are no longer even alive after all these years. Here and there, too, the language may sound a little dated. For example, some of the programs call black people Negroes. The use of that term may be historically correct, but today the socially accepted name is African-American. Technology has also changed. Today THE MAKING OF A NATION is not just on radio but also on the Internet. At voaspecialenglish.com, you can download MP3 files and transcripts. That way you can listen anytime or anyplace -- and read along. The site also includes archives, in case you ever miss a program. (MUSIC) VOICE ONE: So how was the nation made? Why did loyal citizens rebel against one nation and start their own, with different laws? THE MAKING OF A NATION answers these and other questions about American history. We tell the story of how a group of farmers, businessmen and lawyers wrote a document they called the Constitution of the United States. On September seventeenth, seventeen eighty-seven, delegates to the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia met one last time to sign it. We explain why that document is still extremely important today -- and not just to Americans. Other governments have used it as a guide to creating a modern democracy. VOICE TWO: We explore why the writers of the Constitution included guarantees of freedom of speech and religion, and the right to a fair and public trial.

U.S. Constitution

We also talk about the reasons for the American Revolution. One of the most important was the idea that citizens of a country should have a voice in its decisions. British citizens in the American colonies paid taxes but had no representatives in the British Parliament. Taxation without representation led to growing anger in the American colonies. The leaders of the revolt made important changes. They decided that any free citizen could be a candidate for public office. And they made sure that all free men who owned land and paid taxes were permitted to vote. Not until nineteen twenty did the Constitution give women the right to vote. Later, another change lowered the voting age for Americans from twenty-one to eighteen. Our programs explain the thinking behind these and other rights. They also tell the story of each presidential election and presidency in American history. (MUSIC) VOICE ONE: THE MAKING OF A NATION explores the good and the bad in American history. For example, how could slavery exist in a nation whose people declared that "all men are created equal" and with a right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness? Many programs tell about the ideas and issues that have shaped the United States. But most importantly, they tell about the people. For example, George Washington was a farmer before he became a military commander. He became president because the citizens of the new country wanted him as their first leader. After two terms, he gave up power by his own choice. He once again became a farmer and a private citizen. In his farewell address in seventeen ninety-six, he warned Americans about the dangers of political parties.

George Washington

Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence. It told the world that the people of this new country would no longer answer to a European ruler. VOICE TWO: Some of the people who formed the United States into a nation during the seventeen hundreds were well educated and wealthy. Abraham Lincoln was not. Still, he grew up to become president. Abraham Lincoln became president during the eighteen sixties when several southern states decided they no longer wanted to be part of the United States. Abraham Lincoln We tell how President Lincoln dealt with the terrible Civil War that almost split the country apart.

VOICE ONE: One of our programs deals with a speech he gave in the little town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. A great battle had been fought there. President Lincoln had been asked to come to Gettysburg to say a few words at the dedication of a military burial place. The speech was short. President Lincoln honored the young men who had died on that bloody battlefield. He also told the world why the terrible war was being fought and why it was so important. "Four score and seven years ago, our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation, conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal." Those words were just the first sentence. After President Lincoln wrote the speech, he felt sad. He considered it a failure. In fact, his words earned the respect of history. You can hear the full Gettysburg Address in our programs about the life and presidency of Abraham Lincoln. (MUSIC) VOICE TWO: THE MAKING OF A NATION touches on many different subjects. One of them is social change. For example, we tell about the changes that took place in the nineteen twenties, known as the Roaring Twenties. Many young people decided they no longer needed to follow the conservative traditions of their parents and grandparents. This was the age of jazz. (MUSIC) VOICE ONE: But music and social values were not the only things changing. The Roaring Twenties were also a time of fast-moving economic change. Productivity grew sharply. At the same time, the divide between rich and poor Americans grew wider. By the end of the Roaring Twenties, the economy was ready to collapse. Then, in October of nineteen twenty-nine, the stock market crashed. What followed was an economic disaster worse than any the modern world has ever known. We examine the causes of the Great Depression and how it affected Americans and the rest of the world. We tell the story of people who lost their jobs, their homes and their hope for the future. VOICE TWO: Franklin Roosevelt was elected with a promise to bring the country out of the Depression. On March fourth, nineteen thirty-three, he was inaugurated to his first of four terms. He served longer than any other president in American history. We discuss Roosevelt's New Deal programs and his leadership during World War Two.

But not all of the subjects on THE MAKING OF A NATION are so serious. We also look at the history of American popular culture and subjects like the rise of high technology. Something for everyone. (MUSIC) VOICE ONE: Today's news is not only tomorrow's history, it will also become part of THE MAKING OF A NATION. But for now, we start again from the beginning. I'm Shirley Griffith. VOICE TWO: And I'm Steve Ember. Join us at this time next week and every week as we go back in time. Listen on radio or online at voaspecialenglish.com as we bring you THE MAKING OF A NATION in VOA Special English.

American History Series: A Clash of Cultures in the New World Differences over land ownership and religion led to mistrust between European settlers and Indian tribes. The arrival of diseases from Europe further damaged relations. Transcript of radio broadcast: 31 October 2007 MP3 - Download Audio Listen to MP3 Listen in RealAudio

VOICE ONE: This is Rich Kleinfeldt. VOICE TWO: And this is Ray Freeman with the MAKING OF A NATION, a VOA Special English program about the history of the United States. (MUSIC) VOICE ONE: Our story today is a sad one. It is the story of a clash of peoples, religions, ideas, and cultures. It is a story of strongly held ideas and a lack of compromise. It is the story of the relations between Europeans and the natives who had lived for thousands of years in the area we now call North America. VOICE TWO:

Many different Native American groups lived on the East Coast of what would become United States. They spoke many different languages. Some were farmers, some were hunters. Some fought many wars, others were peaceful. These groups are called tribes. Their names are known to most Americans...the Senecas, the Mohawks, the Seminole, the Cherokee to name only a few. VOICE ONE:

Teton Sioux horse races in South Dakota. Artwork by Karl Bodmer from the 1830s.

These tribes had developed their own cultures many years before the first European settlers arrived. Each had a kind of religion, a strong spiritual belief. Many tribes shared a similar one. The Indians on the East Coast shared a highly developed system of trade. Researchers say different tribes of Native Americans traded goods all across the country. VOICE TWO: The first recorded meetings between Europeans and the natives of the East Coast took place in the fifteen hundreds. Fishermen from France and the Basque area of Spain crossed the Atlantic Ocean. They searched for whales along the east coast of North America. They made temporary camps along the coast. They often traded with the local Indians. The Europeans often paid Indians to work for them. Both groups found this to be a successful relationship. Several times different groups of fishermen tried to establish a permanent settlement on the coast, but the severe winters made it impossible. These fishing camps were only temporary. VOICE ONE: The first permanent settlers in New England began arriving in sixteen twenty. They wanted to live in peace with the Indians. They needed to trade with them for food. The settlers also knew that a battle would result in their own, quick defeat because they were so few in number. Yet, problems began almost immediately. Perhaps the most serious was the different way the American Indians and the Europeans thought about land. This difference created problems that would not be solved during the next several hundred years. (MUSIC) VOICE TWO: Land was extremely important to the European settlers. In England, and most other countries, land meant wealth. Owning large amounts of land meant a person had great wealth and political power.

Many of the settlers in this new country could never have owned land in Europe. They were too poor. And they belonged to minority religious groups. When they arrived in the new country, they discovered no one seemed to own the huge amounts of land. Companies in England needed to find people willing to settle in the new country. So they offered land to anyone who would take the chance of crossing the Atlantic Ocean. For many, it was a dream come true. It was a way to improve their lives. The land gave them a chance to become wealthy and powerful. VOICE ONE: American Indians believed no person could own land. They believed, however, that anyone could use it. Anyone who wanted to live on and grow crops on a piece of land was able to do so. The American Indians lived within nature. They lived very well without working very hard. They were able to do this because they understood the land and their environment. They did not try to change the land. They might farm in an area for a few years. Then they would move on. They permitted the land on which they had farmed to become wild again.

Calender of 37 months, 1889-92, kept on an animal skin by a Kiowa Indian

They might hunt on one area of land for some time, but again they would move on. They hunted only what they could eat, so the numbers of animals continued to increase. The Indians understood nature and made it work for them.

VOICE TWO: The first Europeans to settle in New England in the northeastern part of America were few in number. They wanted land. The Indians did not fear them. There was enough land for everyone to use and plant crops. It was easy to live together. The Indians helped the settlers by teaching them how to plant crops and survive on the land. But the Indians did not understand that the settlers were going to keep the land. This idea was foreign to the Indians. It was like to trying to own the air, or the clouds. As the years passed, more and more settlers arrived, and took more and more land. They cut down trees. They built fences to keep people and animals out. They demanded that the Indians stay off their land. (MUSIC) VOICE ONE: Religion was another problem between the settlers and the Indians. The settlers in New England were very serious about their Christian religion. They thought it was the one true faith and all people should believe in it. They soon learned that the Indians were not interested in learning about it or changing their beliefs.

Many settlers came to believe that Native Americans could not be trusted because they were not Christians. The settler groups began to fear the Indians. They thought of the Indians as a people who were evil because they had no religion. The settlers told the Indians they must change and become Christians. The Indians did not understand why they should change anything. VOICE TWO: The European settlers failed to understand that the Native American Indians were extremely religious people with a strong belief in unseen powers. The Indians lived very close to nature. They believed that all things in the universe depend on each other. All native tribes had ceremonies that honored a creator of nature. American Indians recognized the work of the creator of the world in their everyday life. VOICE ONE: Other events also led to serious problems between the Native Americans and the settlers. One serious problem was disease. The settlers brought sickness with them from Europe. For example, the disease smallpox was well known in Europe. Some people carried the bacteria that caused smallpox, although they did not suffer the sickness itself. Smallpox was unknown to Native Americans. Their bodies' defense systems could not fight against smallpox. It killed whole tribes. And, smallpox was only one such disease. There were many others. (MUSIC) VOICE TWO: The first meetings between settlers and Native Americans were the same in almost every European settlement on the East Coast of America. The two groups met as friends. They would begin by trading for food and other goods. In time, however, something would happen to cause a crisis. Perhaps a settler would demand that an Indian stay off the settler's land. Perhaps a settler, or Indian, was killed. Fear would replace friendship. One side or the other would answer what they believed was an attack. A good example of this is the violent clash called King Philip's War. VOICE ONE: Matacom was a leader of the Wampanoag tribe that lived in the northern-most colonies. He was known to the English as King Philip. Without the help of his tribe, the first European settlers in that area might not have survived their first winter. The Wampanoag Indians provided them with food. They taught the settlers how to plant corn and other food crops. The two groups were very friendly for several years. As the years passed, however, fear and a lack of understanding increased. Matacom's brother died of a European disease. Matacom blamed the settlers. He also saw how the increasing numbers of settlers were changing the land. He believed they were destroying it. VOICE TWO:

One small crisis after another led to the killing of a Christian Indian who lived with the settlers. The settlers answered this by killing three Indians. A war quickly followed. It began in sixteen seventy-five and continued for almost two years. It was an extremely cruel war. Men, women and children on both sides were killed. Researchers believe more than six hundred settlers were killed. They also say as many as three thousand Native Americans died in the violence. VOICE ONE: History experts say the tribe of Indians called the Narraganset were the true victims of King Philip's War. The Narraganset were not involved in the war. They did not support one group or the other. However, the settlers killed almost all the Narraganset Indians because they had learned to fear all Indians. This fear, lack of understanding and the failure to compromise were not unusual. They strongly influenced the European settlers relations with Native Americans in all areas of the new country. (MUSIC) VOICE TWO: This MAKING OF A NATION program was written and produced by Paul Thompson. This is Ray Freeman. VOICE ONE: And this is Rich Kleinfeldt. Join us again next week for another VOA Special English program about the history of the United States.

American History Series: Columbus Sails, Others Follow, and Spain Is on Top of the World By the 15th century, European countries were ready to explore new parts of the world. Technological improvements helped them succeed. Transcript of radio broadcast: 10 October 2007 MP3 - Download Audio Listen to MP3 Listen in RealAudio

Welcome to THE MAKING OF A NATION -- American history in VOA Special English. In the United States, October ninth is observed as Leif Erickson Day. It honors the Norse explorer who sailed around the northeastern coast of what we now call North America about one thousand years ago. Leif Erickson and his crew returned home to Greenland with news of a place he called "Vinland." Following his explorations, a few settlements were built. Experts digging in eastern Canada in the nineteen sixties found the remains of a village with houses like those in Greenland, Iceland and Norway. But the Norse did not establish any permanent settlements in North America. Today, as we launch our series from the beginning again, Sarah Long and Rich Kleinfeldt tell the story of early European explorers in North America.

(MUSIC) VOICE TWO: About ten hundred, Europe was beginning a period of great change. One reason was the religious wars known as the crusades. These wars were efforts by Europeans who were mainly Roman Catholic Christians. They wanted to force Muslims out of what is now the Middle East. The crusades began at the end of the eleventh century. They continued for about two hundred years. The presence of European armies in the Middle East increased trade, which was controlled by businessmen in Venice and other Italian city-states. The businessmen were earning large profits by transporting and supplying the warring armies. When the European crusaders returned home, they brought with them some new and useful products. The products included spices, perfumes, silk cloth, steel products and drugs. Such products became highly valued all over Europe. Increased trade resulted which led to the growth of towns. It also created a large number of rich European businessmen. The European nations were growing. They developed armies and governments. These had to be paid for by taxes from the people. By the fifteenth century, European countries were ready to explore new parts of the world. VOICE ONE: The first explorers were the Portuguese. By fourteen hundred, they wanted to control the Eastern spice trade. European businessmen did not want to continue paying Venetian and Arab traders for their costly spices. They wanted to set up trade themselves. If they could sail to Asia directly for these products, the resulting trade would bring huge profits. The leader of Portugal's exploration efforts was Prince Henry, a son of King John the first. He was interested in sea travel and exploration. So he became known as Henry the Navigator. Prince Henry brought experts to his country and studied the sciences involved in exploration. He built an observatory to study the stars. Portuguese sea captains led their ships around the west coast of Africa hoping to find a path to India and East Asia. They finally found the end of the African continent, the area called the Cape of Good Hope. VOICE TWO: It took the Portuguese only about fifty years to take control of the spice trade. They established trading colonies in Africa, the Persian Gulf, India and China. Improvements in technology helped them succeed. One improvement was a new kind of ship. It could sail more easily through ocean storms and winds. Other inventions like the compass permitted them to sail out of sight of land. The Portuguese also armed their ships with modern cannon. They used these weapons to battle Muslim and East Asian traders.

(MUSIC) VOICE ONE: The other European nations would not permit Portugal to control this trade for long, however. Spain's Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand agreed to provide ships, crew and supplies for an exploration by an Italian seaman, Christopher Columbus. Columbus thought the shortest way to reach the East was to sail west across the Atlantic Ocean. He was right. But he also was wrong. He believed the world was much smaller than it is. He did not imagine the existence of other lands and another huge ocean area between Europe and East Asia. VOICE TWO: Columbus and a crew of eighty-eight men left Spain on August third, fourteen ninety-two, in three ships. On October twelfth, they stood on land again on an island that Columbus named San Salvador. He explored it, and the nearby islands of what is now known as Cuba and Hispaniola. He believed they were part of the coast of East Asia, which was called the Indies. He called the people he found there Indians.

Columbus claims possession of the island he named San Salvador, now a part of the Bahamas

Columbus left about forty men on the island to build a fort from the wood of one of the ships. He returned to Spain with captured natives, birds, plants and gold. Columbus was considered a national hero when he reached Spain in March, fourteen ninety-three. VOICE ONE:

Columbus returned across the Atlantic Ocean to the Caribbean area five months later. This time, he had many more men and all the animals and equipment needed to start a colony on Hispaniola. He found that the protective fort built by his men had been destroyed by fire. Columbus did not find any of his men. Seven months later, Columbus sent five ships back to Spain. They carried Indians to be sold as slaves. Columbus also sailed back to Spain leaving behind some settlers who were not happy with conditions. Christopher Columbus made another trip in fourteen ninety-eight, with six ships. This time he saw the coast of South America. The settlers were so unhappy with conditions in the new colony, Columbus was sent back to Spain as a prisoner. Spain's rulers pardoned him. In fifteen-oh-two, Columbus made his final voyage to what some were calling the New World. He stayed on the island of Jamaica until he returned home in fifteen-oh-four. VOICE TWO:

During all his trips, Columbus explored islands and waterways, searching for a passage to the Indies. He never found it. He also did not find spices or great amounts of gold. Yet, he always believed that he had found the Indies. He refused to recognize that it was really a new world. Evidence of this was all around him -- strange plants that were not known in either Europe or Asia and a different people who did not understand any language spoken in the East. Columbus' voyages, however, opened up the new world. Others later explored all of North America. VOICE ONE: You may be wondering about the name of this new land. If Christopher Columbus was the first European to attempt to settle the new world, why is it called "America"? The answer lies with the name of an Italian explorer, Amerigo Vespucci. He visited the coast of South America in fourteen ninety-nine. He wrote stories about his experiences that were widely read in Europe. In fifteen-oh-seven, a German mapmaker read Vespucci's stories. He decided that the writer had discovered the new world and suggested that it be called America in his honor. So it was. (MUSIC) VOICE TWO: Spanish explorers sought to find gold and power in the New World. They also wanted to expand belief in what they considered to be the true religion, Christianity. The first of these Spanish explorers was Juan Ponce de Leon. He landed on North America in fifteen thirteen. He explored the eastern coast of what is now the southern state of Florida. He was searching for a special kind of water that people in Europe believed existed. They believed that this water could make old people young again. Ponce de Leon never found it. VOICE ONE: Also in fifteen thirteen, Vasco Nunez de Balboa crossed the Isthmus of Panama and reached the Pacific Ocean. In fifteen nineteen, Hernan Cortes landed an army in Mexico and destroyed the empire of the Aztec Indians. That same year Ferdinand Magellan began his three-year voyage around the world. And in the fifteen thirties, Francisco Pizarro destroyed the Inca Indian empire in Peru. VOICE TWO: Ten years later, Francisco Vasquez de Coronado had marched as far north as the central American state of Kansas and west to the Grand Canyon. About the same time, Hernan de Soto reached the Mississippi River. Fifty years after Columbus first landed in San Salvador, Spain claimed a huge area of America.

The riches of these new lands made Spain the greatest power in Europe. But other nations refused to accept Spain's claim to rights in the new world. Explorers from England, France and Holland also were traveling to North America. That will be our story next week. (MUSIC) VOICE ONE: This MAKING OF A NATION program was written by Nancy Steinbach and produced by Paul Thompson. This is Rich Kleinfeldt. VOICE TWO: And this is Sarah Long. Join us again next week for another Special English program about the history of the United States

US History: A Declaration for Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness A 33-year-old Virginia planter, Thomas Jefferson, wrote the Declaration of Independence in 17 days. America’s colonial leaders wanted the world to understand why they were rebelling against Britain. Transcript of radio broadcast: 19 December 2007 MP3 - Download Audio Listen to MP3 Listen in RealAudio

VOICE ONE: This is Rich Kleinfeldt. VOICE TWO: And this is Sarah Long with THE MAKING OF A NATION, a VOA Special English program about the history of the United States. Today, we continue the story of the American Revolution against Britain in the late seventeen hundreds. (SOUND) VOICE ONE: Battles had been fought between Massachusetts soldiers and British military forces in the towns of Lexington and Concord. Yet, war had not been declared. Even so, citizen soldiers in each of the thirteen American colonies were ready to fight. This was the first question faced by the Second Continental Congress meeting in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Who was going to organize these men into an army? Delegates to the Congress decided that the man for the job was George Washington. He had experience fighting in the French and Indian War. He was thought to know more than any other

George Washington's commission as commanderin-chief, signed by John Hancock and Charles Thompson

colonist about being a military commander. Washington accepted the position. But he said he would not take any money for leading the new Continental Army. Washington left Philadelphia for Boston to take command of the soldiers there. VOICE TWO: Delegates to the Second Continental Congress made one more attempt to prevent war with Britain. They sent another message to King George. They asked him to consider their problems and try to find a solution. The king would not even read the message. You may wonder: Why would the delegates try to prevent war if the people were ready to fight? The answer is that most members of the Congress -- and most of the colonists -- were not yet ready to break away from Britain. They continued to believe they could have greater self-government and still be part of the British Empire. But that was not to be. VOICE ONE: Two days after the Congress appointed George Washington as army commander, colonists and British troops fought the first major battle of the American Revolution. It was called the Battle of Bunker Hill, although it really involved two hills: Bunker and Breed's. Both are just across the Charles River from the city of Boston.

Detail from a drawing made shortly after the Battle of Bunker Hill by British Lieutenant Thomas Page

Massachusetts soldiers dug positions on Breed's Hill one night in June, seventeen seventy-five. By morning, the hill was filled with troops. The British started to attack from across the river. The Americans had very little gunpowder. They were forced to wait until the British had crossed the river and were almost on top of them before they fired their guns. Their commander reportedly told them: Do not fire until you see the whites of the British soldiers' eyes. VOICE TWO:

The British climbed the hill. The Americans fired. A second group climbed the hill. The Americans fired again. The third time, the British reached the top, but the Americans were gone. They had left because they had no more gunpowder. The British captured Breed's Hill. More than one thousand had been killed or wounded in the attempt. The Americans lost about four hundred. That battle greatly reduced whatever hope was left for a negotiated settlement. King George declared the colonies to be in open rebellion. And the Continental Congress approved a declaration condemning everything the British had done since seventeen sixty-three. (MUSIC) VOICE ONE:

The American colonists fought several battles against British troops during seventeen seventy-five. Yet the colonies were still not ready to declare war. Then, the following year, the British decided to use Hessian soldiers to fight against the colonists. Hessians were mostly German mercenaries who fought for anyone who paid them. The colonists feared these soldiers and hated Britain for using them. At about the same time, Thomas Paine published a little document that had a great effect on the citizens of America. He named it, "Common Sense." It attacked King George, as well as the idea of government by kings. It called for independence.

General George Washington in 'The Prayer at Valley Forge,' painted by H. Brueckner

About one hundred fifty thousand copies of "Common Sense" were sold in America. Everyone talked about it. As a result, the Continental Congress began to act. It opened American ports to foreign shipping. It urged colonists to establish state governments and to write constitutions. On June seventh, delegate Richard Henry Lee of Virginia proposed a resolution for independence. VOICE TWO: The resolution was not approved immediately. Declaring independence was an extremely serious step. Signing such a document would make delegates to the Continental Congress traitors to Britain. They would be killed if captured by the British. The delegates wanted the world to understand what they were doing, and why. So they appointed a committee to write a document giving the reasons for their actions. One member of the committee was the Virginian, Thomas Jefferson. He had already written a report criticizing the British form of government. So the other committee members asked him to prepare the new document. They said he was the best writer in the group. They were right. It took him seventeen days to complete the document that the delegates approved on July fourth, seventeen seventy-six. It was America's Declaration of Independence. (MUSIC) VOICE ONE: Jefferson's document was divided into two parts. The first part explained the right of any people to revolt. It also described the ideas the Americans used to create a new, republican form of government. The Declaration of Independence begins this way: ANNOUNCER:

From Thomas Jefferson's first attempt at writing the Declaration of Independence

When in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them to another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the laws of nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

VOICE ONE: Jefferson continued by saying that all people are equal in the eyes of God. Therefore, governments can exist only by permission of the people they govern. He wrote: ANNOUNCER: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal and that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. VOICE ONE: The next part states why the American colonies decided to separate from Britain: ANNOUNCER: That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or abolish it. VOICE ONE: This is why the Americans were rebelling against England. The British believed the Americans were violating their law. Jefferson rejected this idea. He claimed that the British treatment of the American colonies violated the natural laws of God. He and others believed a natural law exists that is more powerful than a king. The idea of a natural law had been developed by British and French philosophers more than one hundred years earlier. Jefferson had studied these philosophers in school. In later years, however, he said he did not re-read these ideas while he was writing the Declaration. He said the words came straight from his heart. (MUSIC) VOICE TWO: The second part of the Declaration lists twenty-seven complaints by the American colonies against the British government. The major ones concerned British taxes on Americans and the presence of British troops in the colonies. After the list of complaints, Jefferson wrote this strong statement of independence: ANNOUNCER: That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States they

have the full Power to levy War, conduct Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. VOICE TWO: The last statement of the Declaration of Independence was meant to influence the delegates into giving strong support for that most serious step -- revolution: ANNOUNCER: And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor. (MUSIC) VOICE ONE: Today's MAKING OF A NATION program was written by Nancy Steinbach. Shep O’Neal read the Declaration of Independence. This is Rich Kleinfeldt. VOICE TWO: And this is Sarah Long. Join us again next week for another VOA Special English program about the history of the United States.