Living in the midst of a manufacturing population,

阿科莱特周围的邻居都是制造工人，

Arkwright was accustomed to hear daily complaints of the difficulty of procuring sufficient yarn to keep the looms employed,

每天都会听到人们抱怨难以获得足够的纱线来维持织机的工作，

and of the restriction thus placed on the manufacture of cotton goods.

因此限制了棉织品的制造。

Being of a mechanical turn, he was led to think how the difficulty might be lessened, if not got rid of altogether.

大家知道他对机器有些研究，就请他帮忙出谋划策如何解决这一难题，哪怕只能解决一点也好。

Arkwright, assisted by a clock-maker of the name of Kay,

阿科莱特让一个叫凯伊的钟表工人打下手，

soon became so engrossed in his new task, and so confident of success,

很快就投入到新任务中，他对自己自信满满，

that he began to neglect his regular business.

因此开始忽略常规的生意。

 

All his thoughts, and nearly all his time, were given up to the great work he had taken in hand.

他所有的心思和时间几乎都花在这件事上面，

His trade fell off;

他的理发生意一落千丈；

he spent all his savings in buying materials for models, and in getting them put together;

他花光了所有积蓄去购买模型材料，并将其组装起来；

and he got into very poor circumstances.

他变得穷困潦倒。

His wife reasoned with him on what she considered his foolishness, but in vain;

他的妻子和他讲道理，让他醒醒，但都是徒劳；

and one day, in a rage at what she believed to be the cause of all their privations, she broke some of his models.

有一天，她一气之下打碎了她认为是导致家庭穷困的一些模型。

Such an outrage was more than Arkwright could bear, and they separated.

阿科莱特极其愤慨，他没办法容忍，因此就与妻子离婚了。