The Great Western
The ‘Great Western’ was a very famous British ship built in 1838. “大西部”是一艘非常著名的英国船，建于 1838 年。
It was a paddle steamship with 4 masts that was purpose-built for crossing the Atlantic Ocean.
这是一艘有四根桅杆的明轮船，专门为横渡大西洋而建。
This ship was designed and built by a very famous British engineer called Isambard Kingdom Brunel.
这艘船是由一个非常著名的英国工程师伊萨姆巴德·金德姆·布鲁奈尔设计并建造的。
Brunel is known for his many beautiful and revolutionary engineering projects in the U.K.
布鲁内尔以他在英国的许多美丽而革命性的工程项目而闻名。
His engineering projects included many bridges, ships and railways, as well as building the first tunnel under the River Thames in London.
他的工程项目包括许多桥、船和铁路，以及在伦敦泰晤士河下建造第一条隧道。
When it was built it was the largest passenger ship in the world.
建造的时候，它是世界上最大的客轮。
Some people though that the ship was too big.
有些人觉得船太大了。
However, Brunel knew that larger ships were more fuel efficient which was very important when crossing the Atlantic.
不过，布鲁内尔知道，更大的船在燃料效率上更高，这在横渡大西洋时非常重要。
The ship was built of oak with rotating paddles on each side.
这艘船是用橡木建造的，两个侧面都有旋转的明轮。
It also had 4 masts for sails.
它还有 4 根帆桅杆。
The sails not only provided propulsion but also made the ship more stable.
帆不仅提供了动力，还让船更稳。
The ship was built to provide a regular shipping service between Bristol in Southwest England and New York in America.
这艘船是为了在英格兰西南的布里斯托和美国纽约之间提供定期航运服务而建造的。
On the 31st March 1838 set off for New York on its maiden voyage. 1838 年 3 月 31 日，它启程前往纽约，开始处女航。
Shortly after departure, a small fire broke out in the engine room.
刚走没多久，机舱里就着火了。
During the confusion, Brunel had an accident.
在混乱中，布鲁内尔出事了。
He fell 6 metres and had to be taken back to shore for treatment. 他从 6 米高处坠落，不得不被送回岸上接受治疗。
Although the fire was quickly extinguished and the damage to the ship was minimal, many of the passengers became scared and refused to travel.
虽然火很快被扑灭，船只的损坏很小，但许多乘客感到害怕，拒绝继续旅行。
Consequently, the ‘Great Western’ departed for America with only 7 passengers.
因此，“大西部”出发前往美国，只有 7 名乘客。
Despite this initial incident, the ‘Great Western’ proved to be a very reliable and efficient ship.
尽管发生了这个最初的事件，‘大西部’还是证明是一艘非常可靠和高效的船。
Often, it was the fastest passenger ship to cross the Atlantic, making record voyages as late as 1843.
它通常是穿越大西洋最快的客船，直到 1843 年才创下航行记录。
This ship thus became a template for other ships that crossed the Atlantic between Great Britain and America.
这艘船因此成为了其他穿越大西洋的船的模板，连接着英国和美国。
The ‘Great Western’ provided a transatlantic service for 8 years.
“大西部”提供跨大西洋服务长达 8 年。
The service stopped when the ship’s owners became bankrupt.
船东破产后，服务就停止了。
The ‘Great Western’ was then sold to the Royal Mail Steam Packet Company who used it to deliver mail to the West Indies and South America.
‘大西洋’随后被售予皇家邮政邮轮公司，他们用它来向西印度群岛和南美洲传递信件。
In 1856, it was then used by the British Government as a troop ship in the Crimean war.
1856 年，它被英国政府用作克里米亚战争中的运兵船。
It carried soldiers between the U.K., Gibraltar, Malta and the Crimean Peninsula.
它把士兵从英国、直布罗陀、马尔他和克里米亚半岛之间运送。
Later that year, the it was decided that the ship was obsolete and was sold for scrap.
那年晚些时候，决定这艘船已经过时，卖掉了拆解。