By Charles Scanlon, BBC Journalist, Americas

媒体英语会带大家一起学习BBC撰稿人在报道世界大事时常用到的单词和短语。

Background: 美国前总统林肯多年前写给一名男孩的书信以6万美元的高价（41万人民币）在美国售出。当这名八岁男孩告诉同学他见到了总统时，不仅没人相信而且他还受到众人的一阵讥讽。

Abraham Lincoln was facing the biggest crisis in American history. The Southern states had seceded from the Union and civil war was imminent.

But shortly after his inauguration in 1861 he still found time to write to a distressed eight year-old boy. George Patton had met the newly-nominated candidate the year before with his journalist father but he faced howls of disbelief when he told his classmates.

A teacher wrote to the White House and back came the terse four-line reply confirming the meeting.

Abraham Lincoln set the ideal for the presidency that all his successors have aspired to. The brief letter feeds the legend of the man and the austeregentility for which he was renowned.

• background [´bækgraund]   n.背景；经历；幕后   (初中英语单词)
• shortly [´ʃɔ:tli]   ad.立刻，马上；不久   (初中英语单词)
• candidate [´kændideit]   n.候选人；投考者   (初中英语单词)
• crisis [´kraisis]   n.转折点；危机   (高中英语单词)
• presidency [´prezidənsi]   n.总统的职位(任期)   (高中英语单词)
• renowned [ri´naund]   a.有名的，有声望的   (高中英语单词)
• lincoln [´liŋkən]   n.林肯   (英语四级单词)
• austere [ɔ´stiə]   a.严峻(格)的；质朴的   (英语四级单词)
• imminent [´iminənt]   a.临头的，逼近的   (英语六级单词)
• inauguration [inɔ:gju´reiʃ(ə)n]   n.开幕仪式；就职典礼   (英语六级单词)