TOEFLREADING1993/08BM(3)

　The ability of agriculture to smooth out the seasonal scarcities of wild foodstuffs had major consequences for the sizes of Native American populations in New England, The nonagricultural Native Americans of Maine sustained population densities, on average, of perhaps 41 persons per 100 square miles. the crop-raising native Americans, on the other hand, probably maintained 287 persons on an identical amount of land, a sevenfold difference. When these two broad groups were combined, the total Native American population of New England probably numbered somewhere between 70,000 and 100,000 people in 1600, ( Lest this seem unimpressive, one should remember that the English population of New England was smaller than this even at the beginning of the eighteenth century, having reached only 93,000 people by 1700.) the crucial role of agriculture in maintaining so large a Native American population in pre colonial New England is clear; although agricultural and nonagricultural peoples inhabited roughly equal areas of southern and northern New England, respectively, those who raised crops contributed over 80 percent of the total population.　　

　　重点单词：

smooth : a. 平滑的,平坦的,平稳的,调匀的,和蔼的,无毛的,流畅的,圆滑的,安祥的;vt.

使光滑,烫平,使优雅,消除;vi. 变平滑,变平静;n. 一块平地,平滑部分

scarcity : n. 缺乏,不足,缺少

foodstuff : n. 食品,粮食

consequence : n. 结果,影响力

sustain : vt. 承受,支持,支撑,供养,蒙受,准许,证实,忍受,继续

density : n. 密度

maintain : vt. 维持,维修,保持,坚持,供养,主张

identical : a. 同一的,恒等的,完全相同的

sevenfold : adj. 七倍的,七重的; adv. 七倍,七重

unimpressive : a. 无印象的,印象淡薄的

crucial : a. 决定性的,重要的,严厉的

inhabited : a. 有人居住的

respectively : adv. 各自,分别

crop : n. 农作物,产量,平头;vt. 收割,修剪,种植;vi. 收获

contribute : vt. 有助于,捐助,投稿;vi. 出力,捐献,投稿