装面包的篮子——粮仓
IN the north of Russia the ground is white with snow.
In the south of Russia the ground is black—almost as black as coal—because the soil is so rich，probably the richest in the World.So this part of Russia is called the Black Earth Land.In parts of our country the rich soil usually goes down only a few inches before there is rock or clay，on which nothing will grow，but in Russia the rich soil is so deep that you could dig down in some places three or four times your height before striking rock or clay in which nothing grows.In America many farms wear out，because there is such a thin layer of the rich soil that it is soon used up.This is the case on many farms in New England that were in use two hundred years ago but are now used up，and so little will grow on them that the farmers move away and leave their farms，for they are no longer any good.In Russia，however，the rich soil never seems to wear out.Their farms are thousands of years old and still there is enough of this soil to grow food.
In the Black Earth Land they raise great quantities of wheat and，as bread is made from wheat，this part of Russia is often called the Bread-Basket.There is one thing the farmers raise that may seem strange—that is，sunflowers—acres and acres of them.But they do not raise them for their flowers；they raise them for their seeds.They eat sunflower seeds as we eat peanuts；but the chief thing they do with them is to press the oil out of the seeds，for this oil is good for salad，for making soap and other things.
The largest lake in the World is in the corner of Russia next to the Black Sea.Rivers run into it but none run out of it，and so the lake is salt.It is called the Caspian Sea，for it is like a little ocean.
As the March Hare in “Alice in Wonderland”said，“You can draw
water out of a water-well，so I should think you could draw treacle out of a treacle-well，”and in the same way you get oil from an oil-well.At the city of Baku on the side of the Caspian Sea there are so many oil-wells and so much oil that it seems to get into everything.You see it，smell it，feel it，and taste it.As there are no rivers flowing out of the Caspian Sea，no ships can get to the ocean from Baku，so a way had to be found to carry the oil to a place where ships could come and get it.The nearest place where a ship could come was over seven hundred miles away，a place called Batum on the Black Sea，so they laid a huge pipe seven hundred miles long to carry the oil from Baku to Batum，where it is put into boats called oil tankers and carried away.
The highest mountains and the longest river in Europe are both in Russia.The mountains are the Caucasus，on the southern edge of Russia，between the Black and the Caspian Seas.They are higher than the ALps.
Most rivers we say “run，”but the longest river in Europe is also the slowest.It is the Volga.It moves so slowly it is hard to tell whether it is going or coming.It “walks”into the Caspian Sea.In the Volga River big fish are caught called sturgeon.The sturgeon’s eggs are called caviar，and caviar is considered a great delicacy，though one usually has to learn to like it.Caviar is probably the most expensive food there is—a very little costs so much：a pound of caviar costs almost a hundred times as much as a pound of beefsteak—perhaps that is one reason why people like it.
The most precious metal in the World is not silver，not gold，but a metal called platinum.Platinum looks something like silver，but there is so little of it that it costs more than gold.On the eastern edge of Russia，which is also the eastern edge of Europe，there is a range of mountains called the Ural Mountains；they are not very high，in fact they are not much more than hills.In these mountains platinum is found.
There is a peculiar kind of rock found in Russia.The rock is like bundles of silky threads，which can be made into a kind of cloth.It is called asbestos.As asbestos cloth is made from rock it will not burn.A king long ago had a table-cloth made of asbestos.People didn’t know about asbestos
at that time，so the king used to amaze his dinner guests by throwing the table-cloth into the fire after dinner was over，then after a while taking it out unburned.We use asbestos to cover hot pipes，for firemen’s suits，and for roofs of houses，as it will not burn，no matter how hot it is heated.Asbestos is also found in parts of the United States and Canada.
【中文阅读】
俄罗斯北部，土地白雪皑皑。俄罗斯南部，土地是黑色的——几乎和煤一样黑——因为这儿的土壤非常
肥沃，可能是世界上最肥沃的土地，所以俄罗斯的这片土地被称为黑土地。美国有些地区，肥沃的土壤往往只有几英寸厚，下面就是任何植物都无法生长的岩石或者黏土了。但在俄罗斯，肥沃的土层很厚很厚，有些地方你要是不断地向下挖，挖到有你身高的三四倍才会碰到什么都不能生长的岩石和黏土层在美国，许多农场渐渐废弃了，因为那里肥沃的土壤层太薄，很快就被耗尽了。这就是新英格兰很多农场的现状，这些农场种了两百年了，现在土地已经非贫瘠，根本种不了庄稼，所以当地农民只能搬走，离开农场，因为这些农场不再有任何用处了。然而在俄罗斯，肥沃的土壤似乎永远都不会耗尽。那里的田已经种了几千年了，仍有足够肥沃的土壤种植谷物。
俄罗斯人在黑土地上大量种植小麦，因为面包是由小麦做的，所以俄罗斯的这个地区又常常被比喻“面包篮”。农民们还种植一种似乎很奇怪的农物——向日葵——成亩成亩的向日葵。但是他们种植向日葵并不是为了向日葵花，而是为了获取它们的种子。他们吃向日葵的种子——葵花籽——就像我们吃花生一样。但是对他们来说，向日葵种子的主要用途是榨油，因为这种油适合用来拌沙拉，还可以用于生产肥皂和其他东西。
世界上最大的湖泊就靠近俄罗斯边疆，在黑海附近。很多河流汇入湖中是没有河流流出，所以这个湖是咸水湖，它被称作“里海”，因为它像一个小小的海洋。
《艾丽丝漫游奇境记》中的三月兔说，“你可以从水井中打水，所以我认你可以从糖浆井中打糖浆。”同样，你可以从油井中打石油。在里海边的巴库城有很多很多油田，出产大量的石油，似乎什么东西都沾上了石油。你随处可以看到它、闻到它、摸到它、尝到它。由于没有河流从里海流出，船只不能从巴库到达海洋，所以必须想个法子，将石油送到可以装船再运走的地方。船只以到达的最近的地方，是在700多英里以外的、黑海边上一个叫“巴统”的地方，于是人们铺设了一条长700多英里的巨型管道，将石油从巴库输送到巴统，然后石油被装进油船运到各地欧洲最高的山脉和最长的河流都在俄罗斯。最高的山脉是位于俄罗斯南部边界、在黑海和里海之间的高加索山脉，比阿尔卑斯山脉还要高。我们说大多数河流是“流动”的。但是欧洲最长的河流却是水流最慢的河流，它就是伏尔加河。伏尔加河的水流非常缓慢，你甚至很难区分河水是朝哪个方向流的。它像是“缓步”汇入了里海。在伏尔加河人们常常捕捉一种叫鱼的大鱼。鲟鱼的卵可以做成鱼子酱，鱼子酱被认为是一种美味佳肴，不过要习惯它的味道得有一个过程。鱼子酱可能是世界上最贵的食物了——一点点子酱就要花很多钱：一磅鱼子酱的价格几乎是一磅牛排的一百倍——也许这是人们喜欢它的一个原因。
世界上最珍贵的金属不是白银也不是黄金，而是一种叫做白金的金属。金看起来有点像银，但是全世界白金储量很少，所以它比黄金还贵。在俄罗斯边疆，也是欧洲的东部边界，有一条山脉叫乌拉尔山脉。乌拉尔山脉比较低矮甚至比丘陵也高不了多少，就是在这些山脉中人们发现了白金。
在俄罗斯，人们发现了一种特别的岩石。这种岩石就像一束束的丝线，可以做成一种布料。这种岩石叫石棉。因为石棉布是用岩石做成的，所以不会燃烧。很久以前，一个国王有一块用石棉做的桌布。人们那时并不了解石棉，以国王常常用完餐后将桌布扔进火中，一会儿又从火中拿出来，而桌布一点烧坏，国王的客人看了感到惊奇不已。石棉被用来包裹热管道、也可用作消防员制服和屋顶的材料，因为不管它被加热到多高的温度都不会燃烧。在美国和加拿大的一些地区，也发现了石棉。