On his bench in Madison Square Soapy moved uneasily, and he realized the fact that the time had come for him to provide against the coming winter.

The winter ambitions of Soapy were not of the highest. In them there were no dreams of Mediterranean voyages or blue Southern skies. Three months on the Island was what his soul desired. Three months of assured board and bed and good company, safe from north winds seemed to Soapy the most desirable thing.

Just as the more fortunate New Yorkers had bought their tickets to Palm Beach each winter, Soapy had made his arrangements for his annual journey to the Island. And now the time had come.

There were many institutions of charity in New York where he might receive lodging and food, but to Soapy’s proud spirit the gifts of charity were undesirable. You must pay in humiliation of spirit for everything received at the hands of mercy. So it was better to be a guest of the law.

Soapy, having decided to go to the Island, at once set about accomplishing his desire. He left his bench and went up Broadway. He stopped at the door of a glittering cafe. He was shaven and his coat was decent. If he could reach a table in the restaurant, the portion of him that would show above the table would raise no doubt in the waiter’s mind. A roasted duck, with a bottle of wine, a cigar and a cup of coffee would be enough. Such a dinner would make him happy, for the journey to his winter refuge.

But as Soapy entered the restaurant door, the head waiter’s eye fell upon his shabby trousers and old shoes. Strong hands pushed him in silence and haste out into the street.

Some other way of entering the desirable refuge must be found.

At a corner of Sixth Avenue Soapy took a stone and sent it through the glass of a glittering shop window. People came running around the corner, a policeman at the head of them. Soapy stood still, with his hands in his pockets, and smiled at the sight of the policeman.

“Where is the man that has done that?” asked the policeman.

“Don’t you think that I have had something to do with it?” said Soapy, friendly.

The policeman paid no attention to Soapy. Men who break windows don’t remain to speak with policemen. They run away. He saw a man running and rushed after him, stick in hand. Soapy, disgusted, walked along, twice unsuccessful.

On the opposite side of the street was a restaurant for people with large appetites and modest purses. Soapy entered this place without difficulty. He sat at a table and ate beefsteak and pie. And then he told the waiter he had no money.

“Go and call a cop,” said Soapy. “And don’t keep a gentleman waiting.”

“No cop for you,” said the waiter. “Hey!”

Then Soapy found himself lying upon his left ear on the pavement. He arose with difficulty, and beat the dust from his clothes. Arrest seemed a rosy dream. The Island seemed far away.

After another unsuccessful attempt to be arrested for harassing a young woman, Soapy went further toward the district of theatres.

When he saw a policeman standing in front of a glittering theatre, he thought of “disorderly conduct”. On the sidewalk Soapy began to sing drunken songs at the top of his voice. He danced, cried, and otherwise disturbed the peace.

The policeman turned his back to Soapy, and said to a citizen, “It is one of the Yale boys celebrating their football victory. Noisy, but no harm.”

Sadly, Soapy stopped his useless singing and dancing. The Island seemed unattainable. He buttoned his thin coat against the north wind.

In a cigar store he saw a well-dressed man who had set his silk umbrella by the door. Soapy entered the store, took the umbrella, and went out with it slowly. The man with the cigar followed hastily.

“My umbrella,” he said.

“Oh, is it?” said Soapy. “Well, why don’t you call a policeman? I took your umbrella! Why don’t you call a cop? There stands one on the corner.”

The umbrella owner slowed his steps. Soapy did likewise. The policeman looked at them curiously.

“Of course,” said the umbrella man, “well, you know how these mistakes occur…if it’s your umbrella I hope you’ll excuse me – I picked it up this morning in a restaurant – if it’s yours, I hope you’ll…”

“Of course it’s mine,” said Soapy.

The ex-umbrella man retreated. The policeman hurried to help a well-dressed woman across the street.

Soapy threw the umbrella angrily. He was angry with the men who wear helmets and carry clubs. They seemed to regard him as a king who could do no wrong.

At last Soapy stopped before an old church on a quiet corner. Through one window a soft light glowed, where, the organist played a Sunday anthem. For there came to Soapy’s ears sweet music that caught and held him at the iron fence.

The moon was shining; cars and pedestrians were few; birds twittered sleepily under the roof. And the anthem that the organist played cemented Soapy to the iron fence, for he had known it well in the days when his life contained such things as mothers and roses and ambitions and friends.

The influence of the music and the old church produced a sudden and wonderful change in Soapy’s soul. He thought of his degraded days, dead hopes and wrecked faculties.

And also in a moment a strong impulse moved him to battle with his desperate fate. He would pull himself out of this pit; he would make a man of himself again. Those sweet notes had set up a revolution in him. Tomorrow he would be somebody in the world. He would…

Soapy felt a hand on his arm. He looked quickly around into the broad face of a policeman.

“What are you doing here?”

“Nothing.”

“Then come along,” said the policeman.

“Three months on the Island,” said the Judge the next morning.

1.Soapy regarded the Island as his winter ambition because _____.

A. he wanted to go on Mediterranean voyages and enjoy blue Southern skies

B. he wanted to spend the cold winter somewhere warm other than New York

C. he wanted to be put into prison to survive the coming winter

D. he wanted to buy a ticket to the Island to spend the cold winter

2.Which of the following is the reason for Soapy’s not turning to charity?

A. His pride gets in the way.

B. What the institutions of charity offer isn’t what Soapy needs.

C. He wants to be a citizen who obeys the law.

D. The institutions of charity are not located on the island.

3. How many times did Soapy try to accomplish his desire?

A. 4.                                       B. 5.                                       C. 6.                                       D. 7.

4. From the passage, we can see what the two restaurants have in common is that _____.

A. they are both fancy upper class restaurants

B. neither of them served Soapy

C. they both drove Soapy out of the restaurant after he finished his meal

D. neither of them called cops

5.Hearing the Sunday anthem at the church, Soapy _____.

A. was reminded of his good old days and wanted to play the anthem again

B. was reminded of his unaccomplished ambition and was determined to get to the Island

C. was reminded of his disgraceful past and determined to transform himself

D. was reminded of his rosy dream and wished to realize it

6.By ending the story this way, the author means to _____.

A. show that one always gets what he/she wants with enough efforts

B. make a contrast and criticize the sick society

C. surprise readers by proving justice was done after all

D. put a tragic end to Soapy’s life and show his sympathy for Soapy

 

On a number of drives throughout my childhood, my mother would suddenly pull over the car to examine a flower by the side of the road or rescue a beetle from tragedy while I, in my late teens and early twenties, sat impatiently in the car.

Though Mother’s Day follows Earth Day, for me, they have always been related to each other. My mom has been “green” since she became concerned about the environment. Part of this habit was born of thrift (节俭). Like her mother and her grandmother before her, mom saves glass jars, empty cheese containers and reuses her plastic bags.

Mom creates a kind of harmonious relationship with wildlife in her yard. She knows to pick the apples on her trees a little early to avoid the bears and that if she leaves the bird feeders(给食器) out at night, it is likely that they will be knocked down by a family of raccoons (浣熊). Spiders that make their way into the house and are caught in juice glasses will be set loose in the garden.

I try to teach my children that looking out for the environment starts with being aware of the environment. On busy streets, we look for dandelions (蒲公英) to fly in the wind; we say hello to neighborhood cats and pick up plastic cups and paper bags. This teaching comes easily, I realize, because I was taught so well by example. Mom didn’t need to lecture; she didn’t need to beat a drum to change the world. She simply slowed down enough to enjoy living in it and with that joy came mercy and an instinct for protection.

I am slowing down and it isn’t because of the weight of my nearly forty years on the planet, it is out of my concern for the planet itself. I’ve begun to save glass jars and reuse packing envelopes. I pause in my daily tasks to watch the squirrels race each other in the trees above my house.

Last summer, in the company of my son and daughter, I planted tomatoes in my yard. With the heat of August around me, I ate the first while sitting on my low wall with dirt on my hands. Warm from the sun, it burst on my tongue with a sweetness I immediately wanted to share with my mom.

1.. Why does the author say Earth Day is connected with Mother’s Day?

A. Because Mother’s Day falls shortly after Earth Day.

B. To stress that all the older women in her family are environmentalists.

C. To stress how much her mother cares about the environment.

D. Because her mother shows her how to be friendly to nature on Mother’s Day.

2.. Which of the following is NOT related to Mom’s “green life”?

A. Rescuing a beetle from a certain tragedy. 

B. Saving glass jars, empty cheese containers.

C. Setting a caught spider free in the garden 

D. Picking dandelions on busy streets.

3.. We can infer from the article that ______.

A. the author realizes that she should teach her children by example as well

B. the author’s mother knows how to get rid of the wildlife in her yard   

C. the author believes that only by learning to slow down can we enjoy life

D. the author’s mother used to lecture her to protect the environment.

4.. What can be learned from the last paragraph?

A. Tomatoes make the author think of her mother.

B. The author likes eating tomatoes planted by herself.

C. Planting tomatoes is a way of protecting environment.

D. The author really appreciates her mother’s teaching.

5.. The writer’s attitude towards her mom’s behavior changed in the order of ______.

A. understanding — critical — approving

B. approving — doubtful — negative

C. negative — understanding — approving

D. doubtful— critical— positive

 

On the Iraq­Syria border，a pack of wild dogs circled American soldiers for food．The leader of the pack was a gray­and­white dog．The soldiers called him Nubs．Nubs was shaking and __36__ able to stand．Marine major Brian Dennis looked closer and saw that there was a knife wound __37__ his chest．

Dennis couldn’t stand seeing the dog __38__．He and his men immediately treated the wound，and gave Nubs medicine．Nubs__39__but was still in pain．The next day，the team had to__40__．Ten days later，Dennis’s unit was back，and so was Nubs．He was still___41__，but the men fed him and played with him．

Before long the unit once again__42__an outpost (前哨) 70 miles away．Nubs，slowly but determinedly，__43__them far into the trackless wasteland until the men lost__44__of him．Two days later，beyond Dennis’s__45__，he saw Nubs just outside the outpost．The dog had tracked him across 70 miles of frozen desert to__46__with the friend who had saved his life．From then on Nubs and the men slept in the same place，and ran around in the same ruins．

Until an order came down from above that they were not__47__to have pets. Dennis__48__to make sure the dog would continue to live the__49__life．So he quickly raised $4,000 from his family and friends to fly Nubs to__50__．

A month later，when Dennis and the dog were__51__in California，at first Nubs didn’t recognize the guy．__52__within minutes，the dog jumped into Dennis’s arms，jumping up again and again to__53__ his friend’s face．

A little__54__and concern in the middle of war will not save a violent world．But small stories，like the story of a soldier and a dog，hold a promise of a(n) __55__world．

1.                A．mostly         B．certainly        C．hardly    D．never

 

2.                A．in             B．on             C．at   D．behind

 

3.                A．stand          B．starve          C．bleed    D．suffer

 

4.                A．pulled through   B．fell asleep       C．woke up  D．fell down

 

5.                A．leave          B．rest            C．pass D．remain

 

6.                A．hungry         B．tired           C．dirty D．weak

 

7.                A．took up         B．took over       C．left for   D．returned from

 

8.                A．watched        B．followed        C．accompanied  D．barked

 

9.                A．touch          B．sight           C．footprint  D．smell

 

10.               A．ability          B．surprise        C．imagination D．understanding

 

11.               A．part           B．fight           C．meet D．break

 

12.               A．asked          B．suggested       C．required  D．allowed

 

13.               A．decided        B．agreed         C．accepted  D．proposed

 

14.               A．moving         B．good           C．numb D．interesting

 

15.               A．London        B．America        C．Iraq  D．Syria

 

16.               A．found          B．interviewed     C．linked D．reunited

 

17.               A．So            B．And           C．But   D．Though

 

18.               A．lick            B．touch          C．bite  D．clean

 

19.               A．pity           B．mercy          C．care  D．contribution

 

20.               A．equal          B．harmonious     C．prosperous D．amazing

 

 

On the Iraq­Syria border，a pack of wild dogs circled American soldiers for food．The leader of the pack was a gray­and­white dog．The soldiers called him Nubs．Nubs was shaking and __36__ able to stand．Marine major Brian Dennis looked closer and saw that there was a knife wound __37__ his chest．

Dennis couldn’t stand seeing the dog __38__．He and his men immediately treated the wound，and gave Nubs medicine．Nubs__39__but was still in pain．The next day，the team had to__40__．Ten days later，Dennis’s unit was back，and so was Nubs．He was still___41__，but the men fed him and played with him．

Before long the unit once again__42__an outpost (前哨) 70 miles away．Nubs，slowly but determinedly，__43__them far into the trackless wasteland until the men lost__44__of him．Two days later，beyond Dennis’s__45__，he saw Nubs just outside the outpost．The dog had tracked him across 70 miles of frozen desert to__46__with the friend who had saved his life．From then on Nubs and the men slept in the same place，and ran around in the same ruins．

Until an order came down from above that they were not__47__to have pets，Dennis__48__to make sure the dog would continue to live the__49__life．So he quickly raised $4,000 from his family and friends to fly Nubs to__50__．

 A month later，when Dennis and the dog were__51__in California，at first Nubs didn’t recognize the guy．__52__within minutes，the dog jumped into Dennis’s arms，jumping up again and again to__53__ his friend’s face．

A little__54__and concern in the middle of war will not save a violent world．But small stories，like the story of a soldier and a dog，hold a promise of a(n) __55__world．

1.A．mostly     B．certainly    C．hardly           D．never

2.A．in         B．on           C．at               D．behind

3.A．stand      B．starve       C．bleed            D．suffer

4.A．pulled through B．fell asleep  C．woke up      D．fell down

5.A．leave      B．rest         C．pass             D．remain

6.A．hungry     B．tired            C．dirty        D．weak

7.A．took up        B．took over        C．left for     D．returned from

8.A．watched    B．followed         C．accompanied  D．barked

9.A．touch          B．sight            C．footprint    D．smell

10.A．ability  B．surprise         C．imagination  D．understanding

11.A．part          B．fight            C．meet         D．break

12.A．asked         B．suggested        C．required     D．allowed

13.A．decided  B．agreed           C．accepted     D．proposed

14.A．moving        B．good             C．safe         D．interesting

15.A．London    B．America          C．Iraq             D．Syria

16.A．found         B．interviewed      C．linked       D．reunited

17.A．So            B．And              C．But          D．Though

18.A．lick          B．touch            C．bite         D．clean

19.A．pity          B．mercy            C．care         D．contribution

20.A．equal         B．harmonious       C．prosperous  D．amazing

 

On the Iraq?Syria border，a pack of wild dogs circled American soldiers for food．The leader of the pack was a gray?and?white dog．The soldiers called him Nubs．Nubs was shaking and __36__ able to stand．Marine major Brian Dennis looked closer and saw that there was a knife wound __37__ his chest．

Dennis couldn’t stand seeing the dog __38__．He and his men immediately treated the wound，and gave Nubs medicine．Nubs__39__but was still in pain．The next day，the team had to__40__．Ten days later，Dennis’s unit was back，and so was Nubs．He was still___41__，but the men fed him and played with him．

Before long the unit once again__42__an outpost (前哨) 70 miles away．Nubs，slowly but determinedly，__43__them far into the trackless wasteland until the men lost__44__of him．Two days later，beyond Dennis’s__45__，he saw Nubs just outside the outpost．The dog had tracked him across 70 miles of frozen desert to__46__with the friend who had saved his life．From then on Nubs and the men slept in the same place，and ran around in the same ruins．

Until an order came down from above that they were not__47__to have pets. Dennis__48__to make sure the dog would continue to live the__49__life．So he quickly raised $4,000 from his family and friends to fly Nubs to__50__．

A month later，when Dennis and the dog were__51__in California，at first Nubs didn’t recognize the guy．__52__within minutes，the dog jumped into Dennis’s arms，jumping up again and again to__53__ his friend’s face．

A little__54__and concern in the middle of war will not save a violent world．But small stories，like the story of a soldier and a dog，hold a promise of a(n) __55__world．

36．A．mostly　　　　　　　　　 B．certainly　　　　　　　　 C．hardly　　　　　　　　　　 D．never

37．A．in　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B．on　　　　　　　　　　　　 C．at　　　　　　　　　　　　　 D．behind

38．A．stand　　　　　　　 　 B．starve　　　　　　　　　　 C．bleed　　　　　　　 　 D．suffer

39．A．pulled through 　　　 B．fell asleep　　　　　　　 C．woke up 　　　　　　 D．fell down

40．A．leave　　　　　　　　　　 B．rest　　　　　　　　　　　 C．pass　　　　　　　　　　　 D．remain

41．A．hungry　　　　　 　 B．tired　　　　　　　　　　　 C．dirty　　　　　　　　　　　 D．weak

42．A．took up B．took over C．left for D．returned from

43．A．watched 　　　 　　B．followed　　　　　　　　 C．accompanied 　　　　　　 D．barked

44．A．touch 　　　　　 　　B．sight　　　　　　　　　　　 C．footprint 　　　　　　 D．smell

45．A．ability 　　　　　 　　B．surprise　　　　　　　　 C．imagination 　 D．understanding

46．A．part 　　　　　　 　　B．fight　　　　　　　　　　　 C．meet 　　　　　　　　　 D．break

47．A．asked 　　　　　 　　B．suggested　　　　　　　 C．required 　　　　D．allowed

48．A．decided 　　　 　　B．agreed　　　　　　　　　 C．accepted 　　　　　　 D．proposed

49．A．moving 　　　 　　B．good　　　　　　　　　　　 C．numb 　　　　　　　　 D．interesting

50．A．London 　　　　B．America　　　　　　　　 C．Iraq 　　　　　　　　　 D．Syria

51．A．found 　　　　　 　　B．interviewed　　　　　　 C．linked 　　　　　　　　 D．reunited

52．A．So 　　　　　　　 　　B．And　　　　　　　　　　　 C．But 　　　　　　　　　　 D．Though

53．A．lick 　　　　　　 　　B．touch　　　　　　　 　 C．bite 　　　　　　　　　　 D．clean

54．A．pity 　　　　　　 　　B．mercy　　　　　　　　　　 C．care 　　　　　　　　　 D．contribution

55．A．equal 　　　　　 　　B．harmonious　　　　　　 C．prosperous 　　　　 D．amazing