Houses Made of Earth
用泥土蓋的房子
— English reading, TOEFL
文章
When settlers moved onto the Great Plains of North America in the nineteenth century, they faced a serious problem. There were very few trees, so wood for building was scarce and expensive.
十九世紀拓荒者遷入北美大平原時，面臨一個嚴重的問題：那裡樹木很少，建屋用的木材稀少又昂貴。
Their solution was to build with the ground itself. They cut thick blocks of sod, soil held together by grass roots, and stacked them like bricks.
他們的解決辦法是直接用土地本身蓋房子。他們切下厚厚的草皮塊——由草根緊緊抓住的泥土——像磚塊一樣堆疊起來。
These sod houses had clear advantages. Their thick walls kept them warm in winter and cool in summer, and they rarely burned.
這種草皮屋有明顯的優點。厚牆使屋內冬暖夏涼，而且很少著火。
However, they also leaked during heavy rain, and insects often lived in the walls. As railroads made lumber cheaper, most families replaced them with wooden homes.
不過，下大雨時會漏水，牆裡也常住著昆蟲。隨著鐵路使木材變便宜，大多數家庭都改住木屋。
生詞
settler 拓荒者
scarce 稀少的
solution 解決辦法
sod 草皮
stack 堆疊
advantage 優點
leak 漏水
lumber 木材