概括：内容选自老托福听力，是练习托福听力的绝佳材料。


这次这个略显有些微坑，大家做好心理准备。
P.S.忽略文章的中的 ur
Hints:
Jim
James Polk
Zachary Taylor
Old Rough and Ready
Whig party
West Coast
California
Oregon
Department of the Interior
So, as Jim said, James Polk was the 11th President, and well, my report's about the next President - Zachary Taylor. Taylor was elected in 1849. It's surprising because, well, he was the first President that didn't have any previous political experience. The main reason he was chosen as a candidate was because he was a war hero. In the army, his men called him "Old Rough and Ready". I guess because of his "rough edges". He was kind of blunt and he didn't really look like a military hero. He liked to do things like wear civilian clothes instead of a uniform even in battle. And he was so short and plump he had to be lifted up onto his horse. But he did win a lot of battles and he became more and more popular. So, the Whig party decided to nominate him for the presidency, even though no one knew anything about where he stood on the issues. I couldn't find much about his accomplishments, probably because he was only in office about a year and a half before he died. But one thing - he pushed for the development of the transcontinental railroad because he thought it was important to form a link with the West Coast - there was a lot of wealth in California and Oregon from commerce and minerals and stuff. Also, he established an agricultural bureau in the Department of the Interior and promoted more government aid to agriculture. Well, that's about all I found. Like I said, he died in office in 1850 so his Vice President took over and that's the next report, so thank you.