Watching some children trying to catch butterflies one hot August afternoon, I was reminded of an incident in my own childhood. When I was a boy of 12 in South Carolina, something happened to me that cured me forever of wanting to put any wild creature in a cage.
We lived on the edge of a wood, and every evening at dusk the mockingbirds would come and rest in the tree and sing. There isn’t a musical instrument made by man that can produce a more beautiful sound than the song of the mockingbird.
I decided that I would catch a young bird and keep it in a cage and that way have my own private musician.
I finally succeeded in catching one and put it in a cage. At first, in its fright at being captured, the bird fluttered about the cage, but eventually it settled down in its new home, I felt very pleased with myself and looked forward to some beautiful singing from my tiny musician.
I had left the cage out on our back porch（门廊）, and on the second day of the bird’s captivity my new pet’s mother flew to the cage with food in her mouth . The baby bird ate everything she brought to it. I was pleased to see this. Certainly the mother knew better than I how to feed her baby.
The following morning when I went to see how my captive was doing, I discovered it on the floor of the cage, dead. I was shocked! What had happened? I had taken excellent care of my little bird, or so I thought.
Arthur Wayne, the famous ornithologist, happened to be visiting my father at the time and, hearing me crying over the death of my bird, explained what had occurred: “A mother mockingbird, finding her young in a cage, will sometimes bring it poison berries. She thinks it better for her young to die than to live in captivity.”
Never since then have I caught any living creature and put it in a cage. All living creatures have a right to live free.
1.The boy caught a mockingbird because___________.
A. he wanted a pet for a companion
B. he liked its beautiful feather
C. he wanted it to sing for him
D. he had just got a cage
2.The mockingbird died because__________.
A. it ate some poisonous food the boy gave it by mistake
B. it ate the poisonous food its mother gave it
C. it was frightened to death
D. it refused to eat anything
3.The word “ornithologist” in the last but one paragraph probably means________.
A. a religious person
B. a kind and sympathetic person
C. a schoolmaster
D. an expert in birds
4.The most important lesson the boy learned from the incident is that______.
A. birds put in a cage won’t live long
B. you have to be very careful about the food you give to young birds
C. when you capture a young mockingbird, you should keep it away from its mother
D. freedom is valuable to all living creature.
When I asked my daughter which item she would keep: the phone, the car, the cooker, the computer, the TV, or her boyfriend, she said, “the phone”. Personally, I could do without the phone entirely, which makes me unusual. Because the telephone is changing our lives more than any other piece of technology.
Point 1. The telephone creates the need to communicate, in the same way more roads create more traffic. My daughter comes home from school at 4:00 pm and then spends an hour on the phone talking to the every people she has been at school with all day. If the phone did not exist, would she have anything to talk about?
Point 2. The mobile phone means that we are never alone.”The mobile saved my life,” says Crystal Johnstone. She had an accident in her Volvo on the A45 between Otley and Skipton. Trapped inside, she managed to make the call that brought the ambulance to her rescue.
Point 3. The mobile removes our secret. It allows marketing manager of Haba Deutsch, Carl Nicolaisen, to ring his sales staff all round the world at any time of day to ask where they are, where they are going, and how their last meeting went.
Point 4. The telephone separates us. Antonella Bramanate in Rome says, “We worked in separate offices but I could see him through the window. It was easy to get his number. We were so near---but we didn’t meet for the first two weeks!”
Point 5. The telephone allows us to reach out beyond our own lives. Today we can talk to several complete strangers simultaneously（同声翻译地）on chat lines (at least my daughter does. I wouldn’t know what to talk about). We can talk across the world. We can even talk to astronauts (if you know any) while they’re space-walking. And, with the phone line hooked up to the computer, we can access the Internet, the biggest library on Earth.
1.Point 1 mainly tells us that __________.
A. The writer’s daughter enjoys talking on the phone
B. More roads create more traffic
C. phones create the need to communication
D. it’s easy to communicate through phones
2.People’s attitude towards mobile phone is that it _________.
A. helps people deal with the emergency
B. brings convenience as well as little secret to people
C. is so important and should be encouraged
D. is part of people’s life
3.It is possible to talk to several complete strangers at the same time through_____.
A. the TV screen B. a fax machine C. the Internet D. the phone
4.Which is the most suitable title for the passage?
A. Phone Power B. Kinds of Phones
C. How to Use Phone D. Advantages of Phones
A man has returned three library books to a Melbourne library—21 years overdue（误期）.The books were returned to Sam Merrifield Library with a (n)__ 21___note and a $50 bill.
___ 22___Margaret Young was pleased that the books had been returned. They were in excellent___23__ , except for the one that the borrower admitted had been damaged by a___24___.
“They’re all spy books. We were just surprised and___25 ___that he has returned the books, ___26 ___after so many years,” Mrs. Young said.
The books were__ 27__on June 18, 1985 and would have to be paid almost $5,800 in overdue
__28__. But, because of the sweet letter and $50 note, Mrs. Young said all was__29__.
She said, “We thank him for returning the books and hope his conscience（良心）is __ 30 _. I’d like to think he can come back into the library one day to borrow more material__31__he returns it.”
To whom it may concern,
About 20 years ago I__32 __to return the three books to your library. In fact I__33__them.During that time, one of the books was damaged by my dog. I have enclosed all three books and a sum of money that will go some way toward __34__the damaged book.
My __35__were unforgivable; a thief is a thief. Please __ 36__my apology for stealing the books and for not having the courage to return them__37__.
I want you to know that for the last few years this theft has__38__my conscience and I am sorry I was so selfish to steal them in the first__39__. I hope this goes some small way to__40 __my actions.
1.A. explanation B. apology C. thank D. payment
2.A. Secretary B. Borrower C. Lender D. Librarian
3.A. condition B. situation C. state D. position
4.A. cat B. thief C. dog D. spy
5.A. regretful B. lucky C. thankful D. sorry
6.A. specially B. shortly C. especially D. simply
7.A. over B. good C. due D. away
8.A. fines B. money C. rewards D. payment
9.A. paid B. punished C. returned D. forgiven
10.A. eased B. calmed C. killed D. lost
11.A. even if B. as long as C. as though D. because
12.A. planned B. failed C. meant D. promised
13.A. borrowed B lent C. stole D. kept
14.A. replacing B. cleaning C. replying D. recreating
15.A. habits B. manners C. ways D. actions
16.A. receive B. refuse C. blame D. accept
17.A. sooner B. later C. more D. worse
18.A. affected B. felt C. bothered D. disappointed
19.A. place B. time C. chance D. thing
20.A. look up for B. make up for C. come up for D. take up for
It was not until the 1960s and 1970s archaeologists made real progress in understanding the script.
A. when B. which C. how D. that
The couple are at the same age, but , the husband looks much older than his wife.
A. in addition B. in reality C. in contrast D. in detail
After so many hardships, the scientist his motherland at last.
A. set on his foot B. set foot on C. set feet on D. set his feet on
