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2017年12月英語(yǔ)四級(jí)美文100篇匯總

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Money

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In the earliest stages of man’s development

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he had no more need of money than animals have.

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He was content with simple forms of shelter

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and from natural materials around him,

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he made his own rough tools and weapons.

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As he became more civilized,

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however, he began to want better shelter,

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more efficient tools and weapons,

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and more comfortable clothing

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than could be provided by the work of his own unskilled hands.

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For these things he had to turn to the skilled people

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such as smiths and carpenters who were springing up everywhere.

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It was then that the question of payment arose.

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At first he got what he wanted by a simple process of exchange.

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The smith who had not the time to look after land or cattle

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was glad to take meat or grain

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from the farmer in exchange for an axe or a plough.

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But as more and more goods which had no fixed exchange value

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came on the market,

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exchange became too complicated to be satisfactory.

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Another problems arose

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when those who made things wanted to get stocks of wood，

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leather or iron,

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but had nothing to offer in exchange

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until their finished goods were ready.

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Thus the difficulties of exchange

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led by degrees to the invention of money.

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In some countries,

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easily handled things like seeds or shells

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were given a certain value and the farmer,

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instead of paying the smith for a new axe

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by giving him some meat or grain,

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gave him so many shells.

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If the smith had any shells left when he had bought his food,

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he could get stocks of the raw materials of his trade.

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In some countries quite large things

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such as cows or camels or even big flat stones were used for trade.

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Later, pieces of metal,

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bearing values according to the rarity of the metal

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and the size of the pieces of coins were used.

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Money as we know it had arrived.

2017年12月英語(yǔ)四級(jí)美文100篇匯總