有恒心才能走向成功
The Reward of Persistence
奥里森·马登 / Orison Marden
Cyrus W. Field had retired from business with a large fortune when he became possessed with the idea that by means of a cable laid upon the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean, telegraphic communication could be established between Europe and America. He plunged into the undertaking with all the force of his being. The preliminary work included the construction of a telegraph line one thousand miles long, from New York to St. John' s, Newfoundland. Through four hundred miles of almost unbroken forest they had to build a road as well as a telegraph line across Newfoundland. Another stretch of one hundred and forty miles across the island of Cape Breton involved a great deal of labor, as did the laying of a cable across the St. Lawrence.
By hard work he secured aid for his company from the British government, but in Congress he encountered such bitter opposition from a powerful lobby that his measure only had a majority of one in the Senate.
On the second trial, when two hundred miles at sea, the electric current was suddenly lost, and men paced the decks nervously and sadly, as if in the presence of death. Just as Mr. Field was about to give the order to cut the cable, the current returned as quickly and mysteriously as it had disappeared.
The following night, when the ship was moving but four miles an hour and the cable running out at the rate of six miles, the brakes were applied too suddenly just as the steamer gave a heavy lurch, breaking the cable.
Field was not the man to give up. Seven hundred miles more of cables were ordered, and a man of great skill was set to work to devise a better machine for paying out the long line. Before the vessels were three miles apart, the cable, parted. Again it was spliced, but when the ships were eighty miles apart, the current was lost. A third time the cable was spliced and about two hundred miles paid out, when it parted some twenty feet from the Agamemnon, and the vessels returned to the coast of Ireland.
Directors were disheartened, the public skeptical, capitalists were shy, and but for the indomitable energy and persuasiveness of Mr. Field. who worked day and night almost without food or sleep, the whole project would have been abandoned.
Finally a third attempt was made, with such success that the whole cable was laid without a break, and several messages were flashed through nearly seven hundred leagues of ocean, when suddenly the current ceased.
Faith now seemed dead except in the breast of Cyrus W. Field, and one or two friends, yet with such persistence did they work that they persuaded men to furnish capital for another trial even against what seemed their better judgment. A new and superior cable was loaded upon the Great Eastern, which steamed slowly out to sea, paying out as she advanced. Everything worked to a charm until within six hundred miles of Newfoundland, when the cable snapped and sank.
Not discouraged by all these difficulties, Mr. Field went to work with a will, organized a new company, and made a new cable far superior to anything before used,and on July 13, 1866, was begun the trial which ended with the following message sent to New York:
"We arrived here at nine o' clock this morning. All well. Thank God!The cable is laid and is in perfect working order—Cyrus Field."
The old cable was picked up, spliced, and continued to Newfoundland, and the two are still working, with good prospects for usefulness for many years.
希拉斯·菲尔德先生退休时已经是个很富有的人了。退休后，他想用自己的财产在大西洋海底铺设一条连接欧洲和美国的电缆线。决心已定，他便全身心地投入到这项事业中。前期的基础性工作是需要铺设一条从纽约到纽芬兰圣约翰的电缆，预计有1000英里长。首先，在纽芬兰大约400英里长的原始森林中，他们不仅要建造一条电报线路，还要修建一条同样长的公路。然后，还要穿越布雷顿角全岛140英里的线路和横跨圣劳伦斯海峡铺设电缆，这绝对是一个浩大的工程。
通过艰苦的努力，菲尔德最终从英国政府那里得到了资助。不幸的是，国会极力否决他的方案——仅有1票支持。
在第二次尝试中，当电缆线在海上铺到200英里时，电流突然中断，工作人员都在为此感到紧张不已，似乎意味着工程即将失败。正当菲尔德先生要下达切断电缆的命令时，电流又奇迹般地恢复了。
夜幕降临时，轮船仅能以4英里的时速缓缓前行。意想不到的是，轮船却在途中意外倾斜，致使电缆再次被割断。
菲尔德绝不是随便就放弃的人。他又重新订购了700英里长的电缆，并特地聘请相关方面的专家设计了一台适合远距离作业的设备。两艘轮船在分开不到3英里时，电缆线再次发生了断裂。紧急修补之后，两艘船继续前行。可是，在行驶了80英里后，电流又一次消失。电缆第三次修复后，在距离“阿伽门农”号20英尺的地方再次出现问题，两艘船被迫重新返回爱尔兰海港。
相关工作人员都备受打击，各种质疑的舆论从四面八方涌来。投资方也失去了信心，不愿再出资。唯独菲尔德没有放弃，他废寝忘食地继续工作——如果没有他，这项工程注定会以失败告终。
在菲尔德的坚持下，第三次尝试开始了。这一次可谓一帆风顺，所有电缆一次铺设完毕，也没有出现中途断电等事故。通过这条长长的海底电缆，终于可以发出信息了。就在这时，电流又一次中断了。
这一次，几乎所有人都陷入了绝望，除了菲尔德和他的几个朋友还在坚持着。菲尔德凭借自己的努力成功说服了投资人，开始了新的尝试。这次执行艰巨任务的是“大东方”号，它缓缓驶入海洋，开始重复之前的工作。起初，一切都很顺利，在横跨纽芬兰600英里处，电缆线再次被割断，并沉入到海底之中。
菲尔德没有因为眼前的失败而退缩。他重新组织人员，继续研发，制造出了一种质量远远优于普通电缆的新型电缆。1866年7月13日，菲尔德和他的同伴们终于顺利接通了电缆，并发出了第一份横跨大西洋直达纽约的电报：
“我们已于今天早上9时到达目的地，一切都很顺利。感谢上帝！电缆终于成功铺好，且运行正常——希拉斯·菲尔德。”
不久，喜讯再次传来，之前坠入海底的那条电缆最终被打捞并修复好，并一直通向纽芬兰。时至今日，这两条电缆仍运行良好，并且还会在将来继续造福人类。
有的时候，我们不能成功，不是因为能力不够，而是缺少了恒心。
preliminary [pri'liminri] adj. 初步的；开始的；预备的
What does a preliminary evaluation involve ?
初步评估涉及哪些方面呢？
Senate ['senit] n. 参议院；元老院；评议会；教务会
These rules unlock the power of the Senate.
这些章程表现出了参议院的权力。
lurch [l:t] n. 惨败；倾斜；举步蹒跚
The boat gave lurch sideways towards the rocks.
小船突然向礁石一边倾斜。
skeptical ['skeptikl] adj. 怀疑的；多疑的
The leader had the gift of being able to infuse enthusiasm into the
most skeptical member of the group.
那位领导人很有天赋，能使团体中最持怀疑态度的人都充满热情。
决心已定，他便全身心地投入到这项事业中。
菲尔德绝不是随便就放弃的人。
菲尔德没有因为眼前的失败而退缩。
Through four hundred miles of almost unbroken forest they had to build a road as well as a telegraph line across Newfoundland.
as well as：除……外（也）；既……又；除……之外
Just as Mr. Field was about to give the order to cut the cable...