Ⅲ.Reading Comprehension (30 points, 2 points for each item)
从下列每篇短文的问题后所给的四个选项中选出一个最佳答案，并在答题纸上将相应的答案涂黑。
Passage One
Questions 21 to 25 are based on the following passage.
When Rowland Hill, little more than a hundred years ago, first advocated the introduction of cheap postage in England, he had to face many opponents of the scheme; some said that it would not pay, others that it was unworkable. But Hill, supported by general public opinion, eventually overcame opposition, and late in 1839 the Penny Post was establishe
D. From then until the first world war the cost of sending a letter any distance within the United Kingdom remained at one penny. The gloomy prophecies (预言) of the critics were not fulfilled: the profits of the Post Office were maintained and improvements in transport and administration made it possible not only to handle the increased volume of correspondence but also to extend postal facilities.
Before this great change took place, the charge for sending a letter varied according to the distance the letter was carried and had to be paid for on delivery by the person to whom it was addresse
D. The lowest charge was four pence and for long distances as much as eighteen pence. Such high rates, when wages were low, could rarely be afforded by poor people, who were often compelled to refuse letters from their dear ones because they were unable to pay. Under the new scheme, a letter was paid for by the sender, who affixed(贴上) to it an adhesive(粘的) postage stamp, the cost of which was within reach of all. Thus the poor were enabled to exchange news with their relations and friends at a time when many of them had left their homes to seek work elsewhere.
Businessmen also found cheap postage a boom and, since it soon turned out to be a great financial success, the new scheme was, before long, adopted by every civilized country in the world——a final tribute(明证) to the wisdom and vision of its promoter.
21. “Some said that it (i.e. Rowland Hill's scheme) would not pay” means ________.
A. some said that people would refuse to pay for the scheme
B. some said that the scheme would not be profitable
C. some said that the scheme was not economical
D. some said that they did not have enough money to pay for the scheme
22. Rowland Hill's system is known as the ‘Penny post’ ________.
A. because it undertook the delivery of all inland letters for the charge of one penny
B. since it was established late in 1839
C. because many people who used its facilities were poor
D. as a result of the gloomy prophecies of those who had said scheme would not pay
23. Postal facilities were extended after the introduction of the Penny Post ________.
A. because the volume of correspondence increased
B. as a result of improvements in transport and administration
C. until the first world war
D. provided that the cost of sending a letter remained at one penny
24. Under the old system the poor had frequently been compelled to refuse letters ________.
A. because they could not afford to pay the high postage rates which had to be paid on receipt of a letter
B. unless the charge on them was less than four pence
C. although rates varied according to the distance letters were carried
D. because many of them had left their homes to seek work elsewhere
25. The new postal scheme was adopted by every civilized country in the world ________.
A. because it enabled the poor, as well as the rich, to exchange news
B. as a tribute to the wisdom and vision of its promoter
C. since the scheme, in addition to its convenience, had proved financially successful
D. a hundred years after its adoption by the English
Passage Two
Questions 26 to 30 are based on the following passage.
We can make mistakes at any age. Some mistakes we make are about money. But most mistakes are about people. “Did Jerry really care when I broke up with Helen?” “When I got that great job, did Jim really feel good about it, as a friend? Or did he envy my luck?”“And Paul-why didn't I pick up that he was friendly just because I had a car?” When we look back, doubts like these can make us feel ba
D. But when we look back, it's too late.
Why do we go wrong about our friends——or our enemies? Sometimes what people say hides their real meaning. And if we don't really listen, we miss the feeling behind the words. Suppose someone tells you, “You're a lucky dog.” Is he really on your side? If he said, “You're a lucky guy” or “You're a lucky gal,” that's being friendly. But “lucky dog”? There's a bit of envy in those words. Maybe he doesn't see it himself. But bringing in the “dog” bit puts you down a little. What he may be saying is that he doesn't think you deserve your luck.
“Just think of all the things you have to be thankful for” is another noise that says one thing and means another. It could mean that the speaker is trying to get you to see your problem as part of your life as a whole. But is he? Wrapped up in this phrase is the thought that your problem isn't important. It's telling you to think of all the starving people in the world when you haven't got a date for Saturday night.
How can you tell the real meaning behind someone's words? One way is to take a good look at the person talking. Do his words fit the way he looks? Does what he says quare with(符合) the tone of voice? His posture? The look in his eyes? Stop and think. The minute you spend thinking about the real meaning of what people say to you may save another mistake.
26. In the first paragraph, the writer recalls some things that happened between him and his friends. He ________.
A. feels happy, thinking of how nice his friends were to him
B. feels he may not have “read” his friends' true feeling correctly
C. is sorry that his friends let him down
D. thinks it was a mistake to have broken up with his girl friends, Helen
27. In the second paragraph, the writer talks about someone saying, “You're a lucky dog.” He is saying that ________.
A. the speaker of this sentence is just being friendly
B. this saying means the same as “You're a lucky guy” or “You're a lucky gal.”
C. the word “dog” shouldn't be used to apply to people
D. sometimes the words give a clue(线索) to the feeling behind the words
28. This passage tries to tell you how to ________.
A. avoid mistakes about money and friends
B. “size up” people
C. avoid mistakes in understanding what people tell you
D. keep people friendly without trusting them
29. In listening to a person the important thing is ________.
A. to notice his tone, his posture, and the look in his eye
B. to listen to how he pronounces his words
C. to check his words against his manner, his tone of voice, and his posture
D. not to believe what he says
30. The phrase ‘puts you down’ (Para 2, Line 7) can be replaced by another phrase “________”.
A. makes you humble
B. reduces you to silence
C. press you down
D. makes you sad
Passage Three
Questions 31 to 35 are based on the following passage.
It is not often realized that women held a high place in southern European societies in the 10th and 11th centuries. As a wife, the woman was protected by the setting up of a dowry or decimum. Admittedly, the purpose of this was to protect her against the risk of desertion(抛弃), but in reality its function in the social and family life of the time was much more important. The decimum was the wife's right to receive a tenth of all her husband's property. The wife had the right to withhold consent(不同意), in all transactions(交易) the husband would make. And more than just a right: the documents show that she enjoyed a real power of decision, equal to that of her husban
D. In no case do the documents indicate any degree of difference in the legal status of husband and wife.
The wife shared in the management of her husband's personal property, but the opposite was not always true. Women seemed perfectly prepared to defend their own inheritance against husbands who tried to exceed their rights, and on occasion they showed a fine fighting spirit. A case in point is that of Maria Vivas, a Catalan woman of Barcelona(巴塞罗那). Having agreed with her husband Miro to sell a field she had inherited, for the needs of the household, she insisted on co mpensation(补偿). None being offered, she succeeded in dragging her husband to the scribe(法律学家) to have a contract duly drawn up assigning her a piece of land from Miro's personal inheritance. The unfortunate husband was obliged to agree, as the contract says, “for the sake of peace.” Either through the dowry or through being hottempered, the Catalan wife knew how to win herself, within the context of the family, a powerful economic position.
31. A decimum was ________.
A. the wife's inheritance from her father
B. a gift of money to the new husband
C. a written contract
D. the wife's right to receive onetenth of her husband's property
32. In the society described in the passage, the legal standing(地位) of the wife in marriage was ________.
A. higher than that of her husband
B. lower than that of her husband
C. the same as that of her husband
D. higher than that of a single woman
33. What compensation did Maria Vivas get for the field?
A. Some of the land Miro had inherited
B. A tenth of Miro's land
C. Money for household expenses
D. Money from Miro's inheritance
34. Could a husband sell his wife's inheritance?
A. No, under no circumstances.
B. Yes, whenever he wished to.
C. Yes, if she agree
D.
D. Yes, if his father in law agree
D.
35. Which of the following is NOT mentioned as an effect of the dowry system?
A. The husband had to share the power of decision in marriage.
B. The wife was protected from desertion.
C. The wife gained a powerful economic position.
D. The husband was given control over his wife's property.
PART TWO
