Pennsylvania‘s colonial ironmasters forged iron and a revolution that had both industrial and political I implications.The colonists in North America wanted the right to the profits gained from their manufacturing.However，England wanted all of the line colonies’rich ores and raw materials to feed its own factories，and also wanted the colonies to be a market for its finished goods.England passed legislation in 1750 to prohibit colonists from making finished iron products，but by 1771，when entrepreneur Mark Bird established the Hopewell blast furnace in Pennsylvania，iron making had become the backbone of American industry.It also had become one of the major issues that fomented the revolutionary break between England and the British colonies.By the time the war of independence broke out in 1776， Bird， angered and determined， was manufactureing cannons and shot at Hopewell to be used by the Continental Army.

After the War，Hopewell，along with hundreds of other“iron plantations”，continued to form the new nation’s industrial foundation well into the nineteenth century.The tufa/landscape became dotted with tall i

stone pyramids that breathed flames and smoke，charcoal—fueled iron furnaces that produced the versatile metal SO crucial to the nation‘s growth.Generations of ironmasters，craftspeople，and workers produced goods during war and peace——ranging from cannons and shot to domestic items such as cast—iron stoves，pots，and sash weights for windows.

The region around Hopewell had everything needed for iron production：a wealth of iron ore near the surface，limestone for removing impurities from the iron，hardwood forests to supply the charcoal used for fuel，rushing water to power the bellows that pumped blasts of air into the furnace fires，and workers to supply the labor.By the 1 830s，Hopewell had developed a reputation for producing high quality cast—iron stoves，for which there was a steady market.As Pennsylvania added more links to its transportation system of roads，canals，and railroads，it became easier to ship parts made by HopeweU workers to sites all over the east coast.There they were assembled into stoves and sold from Rhode Island to Maryland as the“Hopewell stove”。By the time the last fires burned out at Hopewell ironworks in 1 883， the community had produced some 80，000 cast-iron stoves.

1. It can be inferred that the purpose ofthe legislation passed by England in 1 750 was to——。

[A]reduce the price of English—made iron goods sold in the colonies

[B]prevent the outbreak of the war of Independence

[C]require colonists to buy manufactured goods from England

[D]keep the colonies from establishing new markets for their raw materials

2. The author compares iron furnaces to which ofthe following?

[A]Cannons. [B]Pyramids.

[C]Pots. [D]Windows.

3. The word“blasts”in(Line 3，Para.3)is closest in meaning to .

[A]eruption [B]gust

[C]roar [D]dynamite

4. Pennsylvania was an ideal location for the Hopewell ironworks for the following reason that————————。

[A]many workers were available in the area

[B] the center ofoperations ofthe army was nearby

[C]che deep—embedded metal ore was easy to acquire

[D]there was an abundance ofcoal

5. The passage mentions“roads，canals，and railroads”in order to explain that——。

[A]improvements in transportation benefited the Hopewell ironworks

[B]iron was used in the construction of various types of transportation

[C]me transportation system ofPennsylvania was superior to that of other states

[D]Hopewell never became a major transportation center

阅读小帮手

Raw adj.未加工的 legislation n.立法 entrepreneur n.企业家

blast n.(一阵)疾风 plantation n.耕地 foundation n.基础

rural adj.咖乡下的 versatile adj.多用途的 crucial adj.至关紧要的

domestic adj.家用的pump v.注入 reputation n.名声

assemble v.装配，组合 stoven n.炉

答案解析

1.C推断题。根据题干关键词the legislation passed by England in 1750定位文章第一段。该段前部 分提到英国不仅需要殖民地的矿石和原材料以满足工厂的需要，还想让殖民地成为产品倾销市场，很显然英国人在1750年通过法案，阻止殖民者制造铁制成品，其目的就在于防止殖民地形成本地生产市场，从而不再从英国购买产品。结合选项可知，只有C“要求殖民者购买 来自英国的制造品”与原文意思一致，故为答案。

2.B细节题。根据题干中的关键词iron furnaces to…定位第二段…dotted with tall stone pyramids that breathed flames and smoke，charcoal—fueled iron fumaces…，该段提到“乡村密布着冒出火焰与 烟雾的高大石塔以及以木炭为燃料的高炉，这些高炉生产着对国家发展极为重要的多功能金属。”由此可见，作者把tall stone puramids与iron furnaces相比照。故选B.

3.B语义题。文章第三段提到“霍普韦尔的周边地区拥有制铁所需的一切……推动风箱向炉火——的湍急的河水……”，结合选项A“爆发”，B“一阵风”，C“吼叫”和D“炸药‘’可知。风箱向炉火吹的应该是风，故选B.本题也可根据原文中的关键词bellow(风箱)，pump(抽吸)，air(空气)等推断出该词的含义。

4.A细节题。根据题干中的关键词Pennsylvania、Hopewell定位文章最后一段。原文当中提到 Hopewell周围地带有着生产铁制品得天独厚的条件，丰富的铁矿、除去杂质所用的石灰石矿、可用作燃料的广袤的森林、足够的工人等，结合选项可知，答案应为A.

5.A推断题。由关键词roads，canals，and railroads定位最后一段。文章提到PenIlsylvania加强了交通网络的建设，从而使得Hopewell的工人所生产的零部件更易于向整个东海岸运输，结合选项，A“交通状况的改善使Hopewell的钢铁厂从中受益”，符合题意。其余三项B“钢铁被普遍用在不同交通设施的建造上”C“Peansylvania的交通系统比其他各州的状况都要完善”，D“Hopewell从来都没成为主要的运输中心”，都属于无中生有。