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  3. In the eighteenth century, Japan’s feudal overlords, from the shogun to the humblest samurai, found themselves under financial s

In the eighteenth century, Japan’s feudal overlords, from the shogun to the humblest samurai, found themselves under financial s

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问题     In the eighteenth century, Japan’s feudal overlords, from the shogun to the humblest samurai, found themselves under financial stress. In part, this stress can be attributed to the overlords’ failure to adjust to a rapidly expanding economy, but the stress was also due to factors beyond the overlords’ control. Concentration of the samurai in castle-towns had acted as a stimulus to trade. Commercial efficiency, in turn, had put temptations in the way of buyers. Since most samurai had been reduced to idleness by years of peace, encouraged to engage in scholarship and martial exercises or to perform administrative tasks that took little time, it is not surprising that their tastes and habits grew expensive. Overlords’ income, despite the increase in rice production among their tenant farmers, failed to keep pace with their expenses. Although shortfalls in overlords’ income resulted almost as much from laxity among their tax collectors (the nearly inevitable outcome of hereditary office-holding) as from their higher standards of living, a misfortune like a fire or flood, bringing an increase in expenses or a drop in revenue, could put a domain in debt to the city rice-brokers who handled its finances. Once in debt, neither the individual samurai nor the shogun himself found it easy to recover.
    It was difficult for individual samurai overlords to increase their income because the amount of rice that farmers could be made to pay in taxes was not unlimited, and since the income of Japan’s central government consisted in part of taxes collected by the shogun from his huge domain, the government too was constrained. Therefore, the Tokugawa shoguns began to look to other sources for revenue. Cash profits from government-owned mines were already on the decline because the most easily worked deposits of silver and gold had been exhausted, although debasement of the coinage had compensated for the loss. Opening up new farmland was a possibility, but most of what was suitable had already been exploited and further reclamation was technically unfeasible. Direct taxation of the samurai themselves would be politically dangerous. This left the shoguns only commerce as a potential source of government income.
    Most of the country’s wealth, or so it seemed, was finding its way into the hands of city merchants. It appeared reasonable that they should contribute part of that revenue to ease the shogun’s burden of financing the state. A means of obtaining such revenue was soon found by levying forced loans, known as goyo-kin; although these were not taxes in the strict sense, since they were irregular in timing and arbitrary in amount, they were high in yield. Unfortunately, they pushed up prices. Thus, regrettably, the Tokugawa shogunsl search for solvency for the government made it increasingly difficult for individual Japanese who lived on fixed stipends to make ends meet.
Which of the following financial situations is most analogous to the financial situation in which Japan’s Tokugawa shoguns found themselves in the eighteenth century?
选项 A、A small business borrows heavily to invest in new equipment, but is able to pay off its debt early when it is awarded a lucrative government contract.
B、Fire destroys a small business, but insurance covers the cost of rebuilding.
C、A small business is turned down for a loan at a local bank because the owners have no credit history.
D、A small business has to struggle to meet operating expenses when its profits decrease.
答案D
解析 主旨大意题。第一段指出，18世纪日本德川幕府面临着财务压力并分析其原因。第二段列举了德川幕府寻找的三个收入来源均不可行。第三段说明向商人强制性贷款的方案也最终失败。由此可知，本文主要讲18世纪日本德川幕府面临收支不平衡的境况，并寻找解决办法。D项描述的小企业在利润减少的情况下努力支付经营费用与之相似，故为答案。
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