Comprehension and Precies Pieces

FURTHER COMPREHENSION AND

PRECIS PIECES

(4) Code (222)

By

Dr. Ghada Abdel Kader & Dr. Sherine El Shoura

2010/2011

PDF created with pdfFactory Pro trial version www.pdffactory.com

FURTHER COMPREHENSION

AND PRECIS PIECES


CONTENTS

PAGE

Introduction 3 1 Aeroplanes 7 2 The Best Age to be. 11 3 The Hero 15 4 A Day in London 18 5 Escape 22 6 Beware of the Bull . 26 7 An Ideal Holiday 30 8 National Heroes 34 9 Trees 38 10 Radar 41 II The Underground in London 45 12 Taxation 49 13 Ships 53 14 Sports and Games 57 15 The Value of Education 61 16 Travelling Cheaply 64 17 The Value of Fear 68 18 Women's Rights 72 19 A Wet Afternoon. 75 20 Beginnings of Government in Europe 79 21 A Quiet Holiday 84 22 Freedom 88


23 A Lucky Escape 92 24 Equal Pay for Equal Work 96 25 Amusements 100 26 My Hobby 104 27 Memory. 108 28 Public Spirit 112 30 Money 120


INTRODUCTION

This book contains thirty pieces, most of them of a factual

nature, which have been specially written for overseas students.

The vocabulary, with a few exceptions, is that of A General

Service List of English Words (WEST, Longmans), and the

authors have tried to use each word only in ways which are

given in this "List". In the choice of structures, the aim has been

to avoid the rarer ones and to give as much practice as possible

of commoner ones.

The value of comprehension work in learning a foreign

language is now widely recognized. In countries where a

reading knowledge of English is the main aim, the most

important thing is to train students to read the language rapidly

with good comprehension. This cannot be done suddenly. Good

foundations have first to be laid by using a carefully graded

course. Then an intensive course of reading for speed and

comprehension can be started, using texts which are still written

within controlled English. Finally, full English can be used in a

similar fashion. This book, like my previous one

(Comprehension & Prcis Pieces for Overseas Students,


Longmans), is intended to help in the second step by providing

texts written within limits which should be reached somewhere

about the end of the Fourth Year of study. This book is rather

more advanced than Comprehension & Prcis Pieces, especially

in thought content.

It is not necessary to use all the questions provided in the book,

nor to use all the questions on one piece at the same time. Some

of the questions have deliberately been made more difficult

than others on the same piece (the more difficult ones are

marked ADV., for Advanced). Such questions may be left until

later in the year. Some of them ask for a personal opinion

instead of merely requiring the student to show that he

understands what the writer has said.

If the maximum benefit is to be obtained from this book, the

instructions which head each question must be carefully

followed, and failure to observe them must be penalised by the

teacher.

In the vocabulary questions, for instance, the words "of similar

meaning to that in the context" are used. This means that the

student must show that he knows the meaning in which the


word is used in the piece, not 'merely one meaning that might

be shown opposite it in a dictionary.

Where a question requires one complete sentence for the

answer, the teacher should insist that the sentence makes

complete sense when taken by itself and that it shows what

question it is an answer to. For instance, if the question is,

"Why did Mr. Smith arrive late?", the answer should not be,

"Because he missed his train", or "He did this because he

missed his train", but "Mr. Smith arrived late because he missed

his train". The teacher should also insist on only one sentence

being in fact used, and he should make sure that only the

information asked for in the question is given in the answer.

Marks should be taken off for any extra information, even if it

is correct. In the answers to these questions, it is often

necessary to rearrange material to be found in the piece, so that

the question can be answered clearly.

Where a question requires a longer answer, and a limit is set to

the number of words to be used, it is once more essential to

make sure that the students give all the information asked for in

the question and nothing more. The teacher should insist on the

limit being strictly adhered to, as this is part of the exercise.


It should not be thought that all the opinions expressed in the

pieces are those of the authors of this book. The pieces have

been written primarily with a linguistic aim, and a number of

them are intended to test ability to follow argumentative

writing, whether one happens to agree with the writer's opinion

or not. Teachers may find certain of these pieces useful as a

basis for discussion or debate.

The approximate number of words in each piece is given at the

end of it. For prcis work, a piece should be reduced to within a

third of the number of words it contains.


I

AEROPLANES

Man's natural home is the land, but many thousands of years

ago he learnt how to travel on the sea-in fact boats are older

than anything built for land transport.

Travel on the sea was not a very difficult problem, * since

wood, which can be found in most places near the sea, floats

easily on water. But travel through the air was quite a different

matter, since men knew of nothing which could at the same

time float in the air and carry a man's weight. For centuries,

therefore, flying remained only a dream. * In Ancient Greek

times, there is the story of two men who escaped from an island

by sticking wings made of feathers on to themselves with wax.

(Unfortunately, we are told, one of them flew too near the sun,

and the wax melted, so that he fell to his death in the sea.) Then

we have the plans of Leonardo da Vinci, the Renaissance Italian

artist and engineer, as a further example of Man's interest in

flying. But it was not until rather recent times that the great

dream became a fact.


First, man made use of the fact that hot air rises to make a light

balloon carry people up a short distance above the ground. Then

gases lighter than air were used in place of hot air, and in the

1870-71 war between France and Prussia a balloon was used by

a Frenchman to fly out of Paris when the Prussians were all

round it.

But balloons had the disadvantage of having to go wherever the

wind blew them, so that one never knew where they would

come down. It was not until the petrol engine was invented that

this difficulty could be overcome. During the 1914-18 war,

early. aeroplanes, made of wood and canvas and armed with an

ordinary machine-gun each, were used by both sides. Great

progress was made in knowledge about flying as a result of the

needs of the war, so that the years between 1918 and the

beginning of the Second World War in ] 939 saw an

extraordinary development of aeroplanes, which increased

greatly in size, strength, speed and safety.

For thousands of years man dreamt what seemed impossible

dreams about flying; and then suddenly, in the short space of

fifty years, aeroplanes were invented and developed into one of

the most important means of transport* and instruments of war,


without which the atom-bomb might never have been thought

of.

(About 410 words.)

QUESTIONS

I. In the piece, five words are printed in italic. They are listed

below and opposite each are three words or phrases. Only one

of these gives the correct meaning as the word is used in the

piece. Choose this word and write it down.

(a) natural wild, country, usual

(b) floats rises, remains on top, swims

(c) fell dropped, came, met

(d) lighter less dark, less heavy, burning more easily

(e) progress superiority, advance, expedition

2. Explain the meaning of the following phrases, marked * in

the piece:

a very difficult problem

remained only a dream

one of the most important means of transport


3 Answer the following questions using short-form answers

wherever possible.

(a) Why did one of the Greeks who were trying to fly fall into

the sea?

(b) Who was Leonardo da Vinci?

(c) What was a balloon used for during the war between France

and Prussia in 1870?

(d) What were the early planes made of?

4. Give brief answers to the following questions using ONE

COMPLETE sentence for each. Use your own words as far as

possible, but your answer must be based only on the

information in the piece.

(a) Why was it not difficult for men to be able to travel on the

sea?

(b) Why was it hard to discover how to travel through the air?

(c) What was the disadvantage of flying in a balloon?

(d) What reasons does the author give for the extraordinary

development of aeroplanes between 1918 and 1939?


2

THE BEST AGE TO BE

How often one hears children wishing they were grown up, and

old people wishing they were young again. Each age has its

pleasures and its pains, and the happiest person is the one who

enjoys what each age gives him without wasting his time in

useless regrets.

Childhood is a time when there are few responsibilities to make

life difficult. If a child has good parents, he is fed, looked after

and loved, whatever he may do. It is improbable* that he will

ever again in his life be given so much without having to do

anything in return. In addition, life is always presenting new

things to the child-things that have lost their interest for older

people because they are too well-known. A child finds pleasure

in playing in the rain, or in the snow. His first visit to the

seaside is a marvellous adventure. But a child has his pains: he

is not so free to do as he wishes as he thinks older people are;

he is continually being told not to do things, or being punished

for what he has done wrong. His life is therefore not perfectly

happy.


When the young man starts to earn his own living, he becomes

free from the discipline of school and parents; but at the same

time he is forced to accept responsibilities. He can no longer

expect others to pay for his food, his clothes, and his room, but

has to work if he wants to live comfortably. If he spends most

of his time playing about in the way that he used to as a child,

he will go hungry. And if he breaks the laws of society as he

used to break the laws of his parents, he may go to prison. If,

however, he works hard, keeps out of trouble and has good

health, he can have the great happiness of seeing himself make

steady progress in his Job and of building up for himself his

own position in society.*

Old age ago always been thought of as the worst age to .be; but

It IS not necessary for the old to be unhappy. With old age

should come wisdom and the ability to help others with advice

wisely given. The old can have the Joy of seeing their children

making progress in life; they can watch their grandchildren

growing up around them; and, perhaps best of all, they can, if

their life has been a useful one, feel the happiness of having

come through the battle of life* safely and of having reached a

time when they can he back and rest, leaving others to continue

the fight.


(About 350 words.)

QUESTIONS

I. The following words and phrases are printed above in italic.

Give for each of them another word or phrase of similar

meaning to that used in the passage.

useless, responsibilities, adventure, discipline, playing about,

wisdom,


the piece:

it is improbable

building up for himself his own position in society the battle of

life

3 Give brief answers to the following questions using ONE




(a) What kind of person is the happiest according to the author?

(b) What things are mentioned that the child enjoys very much?

(c) What may happen if the young man breaks the law?


(d) What are the pleasures of old people?

4. (ADV.) There are four paragraphs in this piece. Write down

in a few words what each one IS about.


3

THE HERO

"Fire! Fire I" What terrible words to hear when one wakes up in

a strange house in the middle of the night! It was a large, old,

wooden house-the sort that burns . beautifully-and my room

was on the top floor. I jumped out of bed, * opened the door

and stepped out into the passage. It was full of thick smoke.

I began to run, but as I was still only half-awake, instead of

going towards the stairs I went in the opposite direction. The

smoke grew thicker and I could see flames all around. * The

floor became hot under my bare feet. I found an open door and

ran into a room to get to the window.* But before I could reach

it, one of my feet caught in something soft and I fell down. The

thing I had fallen over felt like a bundle of clothes, and I picked

it up to protect my face from the smoke and heat. Just then the

floor gave way under me and I crashed to the floor below with

pieces of burning wood all around me.

I saw a flaming doorway in front, put the bundle over my face

and ran. My feet burned me terribly, but I got through. As I


reached the cold air outside, my bundle of clothes gave a thin

cry. I nearly dropped it in my surprise. Then I saw a crowd

gathered in the street. A woman in a night-dress and a borrowed

man's coat screamed as she saw me and came running madly.

"My baby! My baby!" she cried. The crowd cheered wildly as

she took the smoke-blackened bundle out of my arms. I had

some difficulty in recognizing her. She was the Mayor's wife,

and I had saved her baby. I was a hero!

(About 300 words.)

QUESTIONS




beautifully, protect, gave way, got through, gathered,

recognizing.


the piece:

jumped out of bed

I could see flames all around

to get to the window






(a) Why was it so terrible on this occasion to hear the cry of

"Fire"?

(b) Why did the writer not run straight to the stairs?

(c) For what reason did he pick up the bundle he had fallen

over?

(d) Why did the crowd gathered in the street cheer when the

writer came out?

(e) Why was it difficult for him to recognize the mother of the

baby?

4 Explain, in your own words, exactly how the writer escaped

from his room. Be sure not to miss anything out. Do not use

more than 80 words.


4 A DAY IN LONDON

This morning the sun was shining, and I decided to begin seeing

the sights of London. So I asked the manager of my hotel what I

should see first, and he advised me to go to the Tower of

London in the morning and to Westminster in the afternoon.

I set off at about nine in the morning by the Underground train,

and managed to get out at the right station.* I had to walk a

short distance from the latter to the Tower, and found myself in

a group of several other people, some of them foreigners like

myself, who were also taking the opportunity of the fine

weather to see something of London. We reached the entrance

to the Tower, crossed a bridge and were met by a soldier in

strange red and yellow clothes, with a big crown sewn on his

chest, a flat black hat on his head and a long stick in his hand. I

knew from books I had read that he was one of the

"Beefeaters", the old soldiers dressed in clothes of long ago

who guard the Tower.

Our "Beefeater" took us round the Tower, and showed us the

Crown jewels, which the King and Queen wear on special days;


the prisons in which famous people were kept long ago; and the

places where some queens of England had their heads cut off.

Listening to all these strange stories and seeing the old stones of

the Tower, I could easily imagine the terrible things that had

happened within those walls, and I left the Tower at lunch-time

with a clearer idea of English history* than I had had before.

In the afternoon I went out again, this time to see Westminster,

with its bridge over the Thames, the Houses of Parliament, Big

Ben and Westminster Abbey. As I looked at these famous

buildings, at the Abbey where kings and queens of England are

crowned, at the tower of Big Ben, which is heard all over the

world through the B.B.C., and at the Houses of Parliament,

where history is made day after day,* I felt that I was at the

heart of modern England, just as that morning I had been at the

heart of English history when I was at the Tower.

(About 380 words.)

QUESTIONS





advised, set off, terrible, famous, at the heart of.


the piece:

managed to get out at the right station

with a clearer idea of English history

day after day


wherever possible.

(a) What was the weather like on the day described in the

piece?

(b) How did the author travel to the Tower of London?

(c) How is Big Ben heard all over the world?

(d) What buildings did the writer see in the afternoon?

4 Give brief answers to the following questions using

ONE COMPLETE sentence for each. Use your own words as

far as possible, but your answer must be based only on the


(a) What does the author tell us about the group of people with

whom he went round the Tower?

(b) What did the "Beefeater" show them?


(c) What helped the author to imagine the events that had taken

place?

5 (ADV.) Imagine that you are spending a holiday in London.

Write a short letter to your parents or a friend describing such a

day as the writer had, but tell it in your own way.


5 ESCAPE

Our boat floated on, between walls of forest* too thick to allow

us a view of the land we were passing through, though we knew

from the map that our river must from time to time be passing

through chains of hills which crossed the jungle plains.

Nowhere did we find a place where we could have landed:

where the jungle did not actually spread right down into the

river, banks of soft mud prevented us going ashore. In any case,

what would we have gained by landing? The country was full

of snakes and other dangerous creatures, and the jungle so thick

that one would be able to advance only slowly, cutting one's

way with knives the whole way. So we stayed in the boat,

hoping that when we reached the sea, a friendly fisherman

would pick us up* and take us to civilization.

We lived on fish, caught with a home-made net of string (we

had no hooks), and any fruit and nuts we could pick up out of

the water. As we had no fire, we had to eat everything,

including the fish, raw. I had never tasted raw fish before, and I

must say I did not much enjoy the experience: perhaps sea-fish

which do not live in the mud are less tasteless.* After eating my


raw fish, I lay back and dreamed of such things as fried chicken

and rice, and ice-cream. In the never-ending damp heat of the

jungle, ice-cream was a particularly frequent dream.

As for water, there was a choice: we could drink the muddy

river water, or die of thirst. We drank the water.

Me-r who have just escaped what had appeared to be certain

death lose all worries about such small things as diseases

caused by dirty water. In fact, none of us suffered from any

illness as a result.

One day we passed another village, but fortunately nobody saw

us. We did not wish to risk being taken prisoners a second time:

we might not be so lucky as to escape* in a stolen boat again.

(About 350 words.)

QUESTIONS

I. The following words are printed above in italic. Give for each

of them another word or phrase of similar meaning to that used

in the passage.

chains, landing, experience, frequent, escaped, risk.



the piece:

walls of forest

pick us up

less tasteless

we might not be so lucky as to escape


wherever possible.

(a) Why could the people in the boat not see the land they were

passing through?

(b) What did they live on?

(c) Did any of them become ill through drinking the river

water?

(d) How had they obtained their boat?





(a) Why were the people in the boat unable to land?

(b) What did the writer often dream of?


(c) Why did they drink the dirty river water?

(d) What did they fear as they passed another village?

5 (ADV.) Explain, as clearly as you can, how these people

came to be in the boat. Do not use more than 60 words. It is not

necessary to make up facts: you are told sufficient in the piece.


6

BEWARE OF THE BULL

A friend and I had arranged to spend a whole Sunday taking a

long walk in the country. We set off on an early train, each

carrying a heavy bag filled with sandwiches, cakes, fruit and

bottles of lemonade. I wondered how two people would be able

to finish it all.

Soon we had left behind the smoky air of the city and had

reached the country station where our walk was to begin. We

were lucky, because the sun was shining and there was a gentle

breeze to make it just right for walking.*

We decided to go on a walk called the Four Mile Square: it has

four equal sides, each about four miles in length and on a map

looks like a rough square. It is famous because each side passes

through a different kind of country.

We started off in high spirits along the first side, which

followed a river, planning to have a swim and our first meal

before we left it. Before long, we came to a gate near which


there was a notice "Beware of the Bull". We were very

annoyed. Our path ran through this field, and, as it was a public

foot-path, the farmer had no right to put a dangerous animal in

it. "Oh, but it's all right," my friend said. "The bull is tied up.

Come on."

I followed, because I could see for myself a strong rope tied to

the ring in its nose at one end and round a large tree at the other.

We felt very bold and walked nearer, waving a red

handkerchief just to show that we weren't afraid.

The bull began to walk towards us-and did not stop.

"He seems to have a long rope."* I said, walking more quickly.

The bull too was .walking more quickly. Then, at the same

moment we both saw that the rope was broken, and without

another word we began to run.

We were half way across the field but it didn't take us long to

reach the gate again. We jumped over, very much out of breath,

and looked back to see the bull quietly examining a bag of food.

"That was a clever trick of mine, wasn't it?" said my friend: "I

dropped the food on purpose to draw away the bull's attention:'


"No," I cried, "it was not clever! I dropped mine-accidentally. "

(About 400 words.)

QUESTIONS




set off, lucky, before long, annoyed, ran, bold, looked back,

examining, accidentally.


the piece:

just right for walking

the farmer had no right

he seems to have a long rope


wherever possible.

(a) What were their bags filled with?

(b) How far would it be round the Four Mile, Square?

(c) What did they do to show that they weren't afraid?

(d) Which way did they run?



COMPLETE sentence for each. Use your own words 16

as far as possible, but your answer must be based only on the


(a) Why does the writer say they were lucky?

(b) What did the friends plan to do before they left the first side

of the walk?

(c) Why were they not afraid to go into the field where they

could see the bull?

(d) When did they start to run?

5 (ADV.) Explain the friend's trick and why he thought it was

clever, and why the writer thought it was not. Do not use more

than 60 words.


7

AN IDEAL HOLIDAY

Of course, what is an ideal holiday for one person may be a

very unpleasant one for another. The sportsman likes a kind of

holiday which his lazy friend would find worse than his daily

work; while the lazy man's ideal holiday would leave the

sportsman quite unsatisfied.

If I were allowed to choose my own holiday, I would have no

doubts*: I would go on a voyage in a modern passenger ship

with a swimming bath. Even if my sportsman friend and my

lazy friend came with me, they would both be happy: one

would have plenty of games, swimming and dancing; the other

could sit in a comfortable chair all day, looking at the sea and

drinking lemonade or beer. In a ship, one can do as one likes,*

when one likes. If one day I find an interesting book in the

ship's library, I can spend the whole day reading it, and nobody

will stop me. Perhaps the next day I shall want some exercise.

Well, then I can play games with other passengers until I am

hot and sweating and ready for a bath. I can go and sleep in my

cabin at any time of the day or night, I can get cheap drinks


during most of the day, and I can eat as I like, choosing among

a variety of foods.

But what I like even more about a sea voyage is the chance to

meet new and interesting people from many countries. What

other kind of holiday gives us such a chance? Freed from all the

duties* of life at home, we can talk, play games, swim, drink

and dance with our new friends. They can tell us about their

own countries, their daily lives and amusements, their hopes

and their fears. And in return we can tell them all about

ourselves.

But perhaps the greatest pleasure of a sea holiday is coming to

new ports in strange lands, and going ashore for a few hours to

see strange places, eat strange foods and hear a strange

language talked around us. Whenever I think of my ideal

holiday, it is the picture of a mysterious foreign city that comes

to my mind.

(About 370 words.)


QUESTIONS



in the passage.

ideal, worse, exercise, variety, chance, strange.


the piece:

I would have no doubts

one can do as one likes

freed from all duties.





(a) What does the writer say the sportsman would feel about the

lazy man's holiday?

(b) What are we told about the food and drink on a modern

passenger ship?

(c) What does the author discuss with his new friends? (d) What

picture comes into the writer's mind when he thinks of the ideal

holiday?


4 State briefly, using not more than 90 words, the reasons the

author gives for choosing to take his holiday on a modem

passenger ship.


8

NATIONAL HEROES

Most nations have a hero who is remembered for his great

deeds, either in saving his country from enemies, or in bringing

order, by his wise rule, to a land which had previously been in

disorder. An English hero of this kind is King Alfred, called

"the Great" because he did both these things while he was king,

at the time when England was being attacked by Danish tribes.

He was a brave fighter and a great leader of men in battle so

that, although he had only a small army, he was able to defeat

the attackers soon after he became king. He was a great

organiser," respected as the English ruler who first built ships to

defend the island against enemies by sea. He was also a good

man who preferred peace to war, and he encouraged learning in

his kingdom by translating foreign books into English and

sending them all over England.

Many heroes are remembered only for their famous deeds and

those which are not heroic have been forgotten. But the story

most often told about Alfred is certainly not heroic. He was

escaping after one of the early battles against the Danes in


which his army had been defeated. Alone and dressed in

borrowed clothes." he asked a poor man's wife for shelter in her

cottage. She was baking some cakes at the fire and, as she

wished to go out, she asked the stranger to stay and watch her

cakes. She reminded him to turn them so that they would not

burn. But the king spent the time thinking of plans to defeat the

enemy and bring peace to his unfortunate people, with the result

that he did not notice the cakes although he was looking at the

fire. When the housewife returned she found that they were

very burnt. Since she did not recognise the stranger as her king,

she was very angry with him for being so careless as to allow

her cakes to spoil.

Yet this story, re-told to English children ever since," helps

them to remember King Alfred the Great although he lived so

long ago. They remember him first as the man who burnt the

cakes and then as the national hero whose bravery and wisdom

brought peace and honour to his native land.

(About 360 words.)


QUESTIONS



in the passage.

deeds, defeat, preferred, escaping, notice, recognise.


the piece. .

a great orgainser,

dressed in borrowed clothes,

ever since.

3 Answer the following questions using short form answers

wherever possible.

(a) When did King Alfred beat the Danes?

(b) How had he got the clothes that he wore during his escape?

(c) What did he forget to do in the cottage?

(d) Why didn't the woman watch the cakes herself?






(a) What were the two things that caused people to call King

Alfred "the Great"?

(b) Why did King Alfred ask for shelter in a poor cottage?

(c) Why were the cakes burnt?

(d) Why did the woman not recognise Alfred as her king?

5. (ADV.) State, in your own words as far as possible, what the

reader learns about the character of King Alfred from this piece.


9

TREES

Trees are useful to Man in three very important ways: they

provide him with wood and other products; they give him

shade; and they help to prevent drought and floods.

Unfortunately, in many parts of the world, Man has not realized

that the third of these services is the most important. In his

eagerness to draw quick profit* from the trees, he has cut them

down in large numbers, only to find that with them he has lost

the best friends he had.

Two thousand years ago a rich and powerful country cut down

its trees to build warships, with which to gain itself an empire.

It gained the empire but, without its trees, its soil became hard

and poor. When the empire fell to pieces, the home country

found itself faced by floods and starvation. *

Even where a government realizes the importance of a plentiful

supply of trees, it is difficult for it to persuade the villager to see

this. The villager wants wood to cook his food with; and he can


earn money by making charcoal or selling wood to the

townsman. He is usually too lazy or too careless to plant and

look after new trees. So, unless the government has a good

system of control, or can educate the people, the forests slowly

disappear.

This does not only mean that the Villagers' sons and grandsons

have fewer trees. The results are even more serious: for where

there are trees their roots break the soil up-allowing the rain to

sink in-and also bind the soil, thus preventing its being washed

away easily; but where there are no trees, the rain falls on hard

ground and flows away on the surface, causing floods and

carrying away with it the rich top-soil, in which crops grow so

well. When all the top-soil is gone, nothing remains but

worthless desert.*

(About 310 words.)

QUESTIONS

I. Choose SIX of the following words and give for each another

word or phrase of similar meaning to that used in the piece:

products gain disappear realized poor serious services importance worthless


2. Explain briefly what you understand by the following

phrases, marked * in the piece:

to draw quick profit the country found itself faced by floods and

starvation nothing remains but desert





(a) What is the most important service of trees to man?

(b) What did the country mentioned in the third paragraph gain

and what did it lose, by cutting down its trees?

(c) Why does a villager cut down trees?

(d) What happens to land in the end after all the trees are cut

down?

4. Explain clearly in your own words the effects trees have on

the soil, and the result of taking them away. You should not use

more than 50 words.


10

RADAR

When we are travelling along in a ship or an aeroplane at night

or in fog, we are much happier if we know that the captain of

the ship, or the pilot of the plane, knows where rocks or

mountain tops are, so that he can keep away from them. Until

the Second World War, travellers could never have this feeling

of safety, because there was no way of "seeing" dangers

through fog and cloud. But now there is "radar", a wonderful

wartime invention, which has saved the lives of many

thousands, both in war and in peace.

Radar is not too difficult a thing for the ordinary man in the

street to understand. All of us have heard echoes: we speak in a

large hall or before a wall of rock, and our voices come back to

us, echoed by the hard substance which they hit, just as light is

reflected by a mirror, or a ball is thrown back by the wall it has

hit. Scientists know the speed at which sound travels, so they

can measure the distance of a wall of rock by making a loud

sound and seeing how long it takes to reach the wall and return

to the place from which it started. For example, at the same


time as the noise is made (perhaps with a car horn) a special

watch, which can measure time very accurately, is started. As

soon as the echo comes back, the watch is stopped, and it is

found that the sound has taken 20 seconds to go and return. We

know that the speed of sound is about I mile in 5 seconds. So

we know that the noise of our car horn has covered 4 miles, two

miles from us to the rock, and two from the rock back to us.

The rock, then, must be two miles away.

But sound travels too slowly and cannot go far enough to be

useful over long distances or when something is moving very

fast. It is therefore no use to an aeroplane, or to a ship which

wants to discover a small enemy ten miles away.

Now, it has been known for many years that wireless waves

travel at very great speed: it takes them less than four seconds

to go from the earth to the moon and back. But the difficult

thing is to measure the time they take to go a certain distance. If

they take less than two seconds to reach the moon, you can

imagine that you would not be able to measure (with a watch or

a clock) how long they take to go from a ship to the shore, or

from an aeroplane to a mountain near it. Radar was made

possible by the use of a thing called a "cathode-ray tube" which


can measure millionths of a second. With this tube, we can

"see" things at a great distance, and it shows us how far away

they are, in which direction they lie, and what movements they

are making. On the radar screen we can "see" all around us. The

captain of a ship can find his way between rocks and other

ships, and the soldiers guarding a town can see enemy

aeroplanes hundreds of miles away, and follow them as they

approach, perhaps from many different directions at once.

That is radar, one of the wonders of modern science, which is

making travel and trade between the nations easier and safer.

(About 580 words.)

QUESTIONS

I. Give brief answers to the following questions using ONE




(a) If we are travelling in a plane, what does the writer say

makes us much happier?

(b) What examples of different kinds of echoes does the writer

give?


(c) Why cannot sound be used for finding distances from an

aeroplane?

(d) How did the "cathode-ray tube" make radar possible?

(e) What information is radar able to give us?

2. In the example of scientists measuring the distance of a rock,

explain exactly how they found it was two miles away. Do not

use more than 60 words.

3. (ADV.) How can radar make "travel and trade between the

nations easier and safer", as the author says it does?


11 THE UNDERGROUND IN LONDON

In a very big city, in which millions of people live and work,

fast, frequent means of transport* are of the greatest

importance. In London, where most people live long distances

from their work, all offices, factories and schools would have to

close if the buses, the trains and the Underground stopped work.

Originally the London Underground had steam trains which

were not very different from other English trains, except that

they went along in big holes under the ground in order to keep

away from the crowded city above their heads. They could get

from one place to another faster under the ground than above it,

because there were no buses, trams, carriages and people on

foot to get in their way the whole time.

Steam trains used coal, however, which filled the underground

stations with terrible smoke. As a result, the old engines were

taken away, and electric ones put in their place. Now the

London Underground is very clean, and the electric trains make

faster runs possible. As the traffic on the roads above has also

become greater and greater, the time . which one saves by going


by Underground instead of by bus has increased year after

year.* Taxis are usually faster, but they are very much more

expensive.

At every Underground station there are maps of all the

Underground lines in London, so that it is easy to see how to

get to wherever one wants to go. Each station has its name

written up clearly and in large letters several times, so that one

can see when one comes to where one must get out. At some

stations one can change to a different underground line, and in

some places, such as Piccadilly, there are actually three lines

crossing each other. So that there should not be accidents, * the

trains on the different lines are not on the same level. To change

trains, one has to go up or down some stairs to a new level. It

would be tiring to have to walk up these stairs, so the stairs are

made to move themselves, and all that the passengers have to

do is to stand and be carried up or down to where they wish. In

fact, everything is done to make the Underground fast and

efficient.

(About 385 words.)


QUESTIONS

I. For each of the following words write a separate sentence of

your own to illustrate its meaning.

originally, crowded, faster, clearly, efficient.


the piece:

means of transport

increased year after year

so that there should not be accidents





(a) Why would all offices, factories and schools have to close if

the Underground stopped working?

(b) Why can these trains travel quicker than the traffic above

ground?

(c) Why were the original Underground stations not clean?

(d) What does the writer say about travel by taxi commpared

with travel by Underground?


4 Explain what is done to make it both easy and safe for people

to travel on the London Underground. You should not use more

than 75 words.


12

TAXATION

Everyone knows that taxation is necessary in a modern state:

without it, it would not be possible to pay the soldiers and

policemen who protect us; nor the workers in government

offices who look after our health, our food, our water, and all

the other things that we cannot do for ourselves; nor also the

ministers and members of parliament who govern the country

for us. By means of taxation, we pay for things that we need

just as much as we need somewhere to live and something to

eat.

But though everyone knows that taxation is necessary, different

people have different ideas about how taxation should be

arranged. Should each person have to pay a certain amount of

money to the government each year? Or should there be a tax

on things that people buy and sell? If the first kind of taxation is

used, should everyone pay the same tax, whether he is rich or

poor? If the second kind of tax is preferred, should everything

be taxed equally?


In most countries, a direct tax on persons, which is called

income tax, exists. It is arranged in such a way that the poorest

people pay nothing, and the percentage of tax grows greater as

the taxpayer's income grows. In England, for example, the tax

on the richest people goes up as high as ninety-five per cent I

But countries with direct taxation nearly always have indirect

taxation too. Many things imported into the country have to pay

taxes or 'duties'. Of course, it is the men and women who buy

these imported things in the shops who really have to pay the

duties, in the form of higher prices. In some countries, too,

there is a tax on things sold in the shops. If the most necessary

things are taxed, a lot of money is collected, but the poor people

suffer most. If unnecessary things like jewels and fur coats are

taxed, less money is obtained, but the tax is fairer, as the rich

pay it.

Probably this last kind of indirect tax, together with a direct tax

on incomes which is low for the poor and high for the rich, is

the best arrangement.

(About 370 words.)

QUESTIONS


I. Choose SIX of the following words or phrases and give 'for

each of them another word or phrase of similar meaning to that

in the context.

state Should income protect arranged imported look after preferred fairer

2. Distinguish between each of the following pairs of words:

(a) Soldiers and policemen;

(b) ministers and members of Parliament;

(c) taxes and duties.





(a) Who has to be paid out of the taxes?

(b) How is income tax arranged?

(c) Who has to pay the duties that are collected on imported

goods?

(d) Why is it fairer if unnecessary things are taxed?


4. Explain the differences between direct and indirect taxes, and

the effects they have on rich people and poor people. Do not

use more than 50 words.


13

SHIPS

The person who can see a ship without some feeling of

excitement must have very little imagination. Even the idea of

leaving the solid land on which most of us were born and

brought up, and going out on to the ever-moving waters must

rouse in us all some feelings of strangeness. We may remember

stories of terrible storms, with waves as high as mountains; and

of people from ships which have sunk spending weeks in small

boats hundreds of miles from land. But we have also heard of

the joy of travelling over calm seas under blue skies, and of the

unforgettable excitement of coming, one fine morning, to a new

and beautiful land which we have seen only in pictures before.

But ships are not, of course, made chiefly for pleasure: their

biggest use is in carrying goods from country to country. If

ships did not exist, the British Government would be quite

unable* to feed the people in the British Isles. Aeroplanes are

much too expensive, and there are not enough of them to feed

even a small country like England. Trains cannot cross seas,

and even if they could, the amount of goods they can carry


cannot be compared with* the amount that ships can. In fact,

ships can carry more goods than any other means of transport,

and can do so more cheaply; but, on the other hand, they are

slower than trains or aeroplanes.

This slowness means that travellers who want to get somewhere

in a hurry and who have not got too much luggage now usually

prefer to fly rather than to go by ship. But even for passengers,

ships have the advantage of being cheaper* than trains or

aeroplanes, and also much more comfortable, so that if you

want a restful, not too expensive voyage, the ship will suit you

best.

Ships have played a very important part in history by making it

possible to discover more and more distant parts of our world.

Columbus used a ship to discover America about 450 years ago.

And even now, ships are used for exploring the Antarctic, It

would, in fact, not be too much to say* that ships have for

thousands of years played one of the most important parts in

shaping society.

(About 380 words.)


QUESTIONS

I. Choose SIX of the following words or phrases and give for


in the context.

excitement unforgettable suit

solid chiefly exploring

rouse in a hurry shaping


the piece: quite unable

cannot be compared with

have the advantage of being cheaper

it would not be too much to say





(a) What does the writer say we must all feel at the idea of

going to sea?

(b) What stories may we remember of unpleasant experiiences

at sea?


(c) What have we heard about pleasant ones?

(d) What is the most important use of ships?

(e) Why cannot aeroplanes be used to carryall the goods from

abroad that England needs?

(f) Who prefers to fly rather than go by sea?

(g) How have ships played an important part in history?

4- (ADV.) In one paragraph describe the advantages of sea

travel that the writer gives compared with other means.

In the next paragraph, describe the disadvantages.

In a third paragraph, say which method you would prefer and

why.


14 SPORTS AND GAMES

Some people seem to think that sports and games are

unimportant things that people do, at times when they are not

working, instead of going to the cinema, listening to the radio,

or sleeping. But in actual fact* sports and games can be of great

value, especially to people who work with their brains most of

the day, and should not be treated only as amusements.

Sports and games make our bodies strong, prevent us from

getting too fat, and keep us healthy. But these are not their only

uses. They give us valuable practice in making eyes, brain and

muscles work together. In tennis, our eyes see the ball coming,

judge its speed and direction and pass this information on to the

brain. The brain then has to decide what to do, and to send its

orders to the muscles of the arms, legs, and so on, so that the

ball is met and hit back where it ought to go. * All this must

happen with very great speed, and only those who have had a

lot of practice at tennis can carry out this complicated chain of

events successfully. For those who work with their brains most

of the day, the practice of such skills is especially useful.


Sports and games are also very useful for character-training. In

their lessons at school, boys and girls may learn about such

virtues at unselfishness, courage, discipline and love of one's

country; but what is learned in books cannot have the same

deep effect on a child's character as what is learned by

experience. The ordinary day-school cannot give much practical

training in living, because most of the pupils' time is spent in

classes, studying lessons. So it is what the pupils do in their

spare time that really prepares them to take their place in

society as citizens when they grow up. If each of them learns to

work for his team* and not for himself on the football field, he

will later find it natural to work for the good of his country

instead of only for his own benefit.

(About 350 words.)

QUESTIONS




instead of, judge, pass on, complicated. experience, benefit.


2. Write down the following words and then give for each a

word or phrase of opposite meaning to that used in the passage.

valuable

successfully

practical


the piece:

in actual fact

where it ought to go

for his team





(a) What different activities are mentioned in the first

paragraph?

(b) To whom are sports and games of especial value?

(c) What does the writer say that the playing of sports and

games will do for us?

(d) What is the writer's opinion about learning from books?


5 (ADV.) The writer says "sports and games should not be

treated only as amusements". What does he tell us to support

this statement? You should not use more than 75 words for your

answer.


15 THE VALUE OF EDUCATION

Education is not an end. but a means to an end. In other words.

we do not educate children only for the purpose of educating

them; our purpose is to fit them for life. As soon as we realize

this fact. we will understand that it is very important to choose a

system of education which will really prepare children for life.

It is not enough* just to choose the first system of education

one finds; or to continue with one's old system of education

without examining it to see whether it is in fact suitable or not.

In many modern countries it has for some time* been

fashionable to think that. by free education for all-whether rich

or poor, clever or stupid-one can solve all the problems of

society and build a perfect nation. But we can already see that

free education for all is not, enough: we find in such countries a

far larger number of people with university degrees than there

are jobs for them to fill. Because of their degrees, they refuse to

do what they think "low" work; and, in fact. work with the

hands is thought to be dirty and shameful in such countries.


But we have only to think a moment* to understand that the

work of a completely uneducated farmer is far more important

than that of a professor: we can live without education. but we

die if we have no food. If no one cleaned our streets and took

the rubbish away from our houses. we should get terrible

diseases in our towns. In countries where there are no servants

because everyone is ashamed to do such work, the professors

have to waste much of their time doing housework.

In fact, when we say that all of us must be educated to fit us for

life, it means that we must be educated in such a way that,

firstly, each of us can do whatever job is suited to his brain and

ability, and, secondly, that we can realize that all jobs are

necessary to society, and that it is very bad to be ashamed of

one's work, or to scorn someone else's. Only such a type of

education can be called valuable to society.

(About 375 words.)

QUESTIONS

I. Choose SIX of the following words and give for each .of

them another word of similar meaning to that in the context.

education suitable shameful

fit fashionable housework

realize perfect scorn



the piece:

it is not enough

for some time

we have only to think a moment




information in the piece. .

(a) What is the definition of education given by the writer in the

first paragraph?

(b) What is the fashionable view about free education for all?

(c) How is a farmer's work more important than a professor's?

(d) Why do professors in some countries have to spend their

time doing housework?

4 What does the writer think education is for? How does he

disagree with the system used in many modern countries? Use

two paragraphs in answering these questions. Your total

number of words should not be more than 75


16

TRAVELLING CHEAPLY

The express train was waiting for us when we left the Cross-

Channel steamer. After climbing up into my carriage and

finding my reserved seat, I had the usual heated argument with

the porter and then settled down to wait* for the train to start,

while passengers from the ship continued to stream past. I leant

out of the window and watched the fatter people struggling to

climb up -the steps into the train. I could never understand why

they did not build a platform high enough to enable people to

step straight into the train, as they do in England. instead of

making them climb about four feet.

I was lucky: the five travellers with whom I shared my

compartment were pleasant people-and not too fat. A waiter

from the dining-car came round. and I arranged to have dinner

soon after the train started. I knew that the food on these big

Continental trains was always excellent.

Before going to dinner, however, I went along to the sleeping-

cars, and booked a bed just for the night* at a cost of ten


shillings (this was before the war I). It was much cheaper that

way than if one booked for the whole journey. During the day, I

travelled in an ordinary second-class carriage, which was just as

comfortable and much more interesting, because I met more

people. Then each evening I went along to see the sleeping-car

attendant. Of course, I was sometimes unlucky enough to find

all the beds already booked; but this was rare.

Next morning, after an unhurried wash and shave, followed by

a pleasant breakfast in the dining-car, I returned to my carriage

of the day before, to find my fellow-passengers tired and

unshaven.

I had to change trains at Munich, which gave me a chance of

having a hot bath at the railway station, followed by a good and

amazingly cheap lunch in a little restaurant opposite. As my

next train did not leave until the evening, I had plenty of time

for a sleep on a park-bench and a visit to a museum, before I

went back to my little restaurant for dinner.

On returning to the station after a cheap and interesting day, Y.

again began by making sure of a bed* in the train for the night,

knowing that I would wake up in the mountains next morning


in time for coffee and delicious buns at the Austrian frontier

before I again returned to my day-carriage.

(About 415 words.)

QUESTIONS

I. Choose SIX of the following words or phrases and give. for


in the context.

reserved seat came round amazingly

heated argument went along delicious

stream past unhurried frontier


the piece:

settled down to wait

just for the night

making sure of a bed






a) What were the writer's thoughts as he saw fat people

struggling to get into the train?

(b) What did the writer do before he went for his dinner on the

train?

(c) What did he notice about his fellow-passengers when he

returned to his carriage in the morning?

(d) What did the writer do during his day in Munich?

4. Make clear, using not more than 60 words, how the writer

travelled cheaply.

5. (ADV.) This piece could be an extract from a diary.

Write down the notes that the writer might have made at the

time. E.g.:

Thurs. 10 a.m. Left steamer, found reserved seat, had to argue

with porter. Fat people...


17

THE VALUE OF FEAR

Fear and its companion pain are two of the most useful things

that men and animals possess, if they are properly used. If fire

did not hurt when it burnt, children would play with it until

their hands were burnt away.* Similarly, if pain existed but fear

did not, a child would burn itself again and again, because fear

would not warn it to keep away from the fire that had burnt it

before. A really fearless soldier-and some do exist-is not a good

soldier, because he is soon killed; and a dead soldier is of no

use to his army. Fear and pain are therefore two guards without

which men and animals might soon die out.

In our first sentence we suggested that fear ought to be properly

used. If, for example, you never go out of your house because

of the danger of being knocked down and killed in the street by

a car, you are letting fear rule you too much. Even in your

house you are not absolutely safe:* an aeroplane may crash on

your house, or ants may eat away some of the beams in your

roof so that the latter falls on you, or you may get cancer!


The important thing is not to let fear rule you, but instead to use

fear as your servant and guide. Fear will warn you of dangers;

then you have to decide what action to take.

In many cases, you can take quick and successful action to

avoid the danger. For example, you see a car coming straight

towards you; fear warns you, you jump out of the way, and all

is well.

In some cases, however, you decide that there is nothing that

you can do to avoid the danger. For example, you cannot

prevent an aeroplane crashing into your house, and you may not

want to go and live in a desert where there are no aeroplanes. In

this case, fear has given you its warning; you have examined it

and decided on your course of action,* so fear of this particular

danger is no longer of any use to you, and you have to try to

overcome it.

(About 365 words.)

QUESTIONS



in the context.


companion warn avoid

hurt guards prevent

again and again servant examined


the piece:

burnt away

absolutely safe

decided on your course of action.





(a) If fire did not give pain what would happen to a child who

put his hand in a fire?

(b) What would happen to the same child if he did not have

fear?

(c) What does the writer say may happen to you even if you

stay in your house?

(d) What might you do to avoid the danger of an aeroplane

crashing on your house?


4 Make clear, in not more than 60 words, how the author

shows that without fear and pain animals and men might die

out.


18

WOMEN'S RIGHTS

Ought women to have the same rights as men? A hundred-

years ago, the answer In every country In the world would have

been, "No". If you had asked, "Why not?" you would have been

told, scornfully and pityingly, that women were weaker and less

clever than men, and had worse characters. Even now, In the

Twentieth Century, there are many countries where women are

still treated almost like servants, or even slaves.

It is certainly true that the average woman has weaker muscles

than the average man. Thousands of years ago, when men lived

in caves and hunted animals for food, strength of body was the

most important thing; but now, in the Twentieth Century, brains

are more important. Strength of body is still needed for a few

kinds of work, but the fact that such kinds of work are not well

paid shows that the Twentieth Century does not think that

muscles are of very great importance.

What about women's brains? Of course, in countries where girls

are not given so good an education as boys they know less. But


in countries where there is the same education for both, it has

been clearly shown that there is no difference at all between the

brain of the average woman and that of the average man. There

have been women judges in Turkey, women ambassadors in

America, women ministers in the British government and

women University professors in many countries.

And among the greatest and strongest rulers of England were

Queen Elizabeth and Queen Victoria.

But women can do one thing that men cannot: they can produce

children. Because they, and not men, do this, they usually love

their children more, and are better able to look after them, since

they are more patient and understanding with small children.

For this reason, many women are happier if they can stay at

home and look after their house and family than if they go out

and do the same work as men do. It is their own choice, and not

the result of being less clever than men.

(About 350 words.)

QUESTIONS




in the context.

ought well paid understanding

scornfully know look after

average ambassadors the result of





(a) Why would you have been told a hundred years ago that

women ought not to have the same rights as men?

(b) Why was strength of body important thousands of years

ago?

(c) How can we see that it is no longer so important?

(d) What work does the writer mention that women have done

as well as men?

3 What does the writer think about the brains of women

compared with those of men? Do not use more than 50 words in

your answer.


19

A WET AFTERNOON

"Hullo," said John, "it's raining again. What a nuisance I Now

we shan't be able to play tennis this afternoon."

"No," said Mary, "I suppose we shan't. Let's stay at home and

stick some photographs in our book, shall we?"

"Do you really want to?" said John rather doubt. fully. "I

thought you said you didn't like doing it because it was so

messy."

"Oh,' replied Mary, "I'll just watch you sticking them in."

"Oh, no, you won't," said John. "You've done that to me before.

You'll have to do your share, my girl I " "All right. Then what

about playing cards? You're keen enough on doing that with

your friends at the club."


"But you don't know how to play," protested John. "That's all

right. You can teach me, can't you? You taught me to drive a

car."

"Well, it's not much fun teaching someone to play cards. The

whole point of playing cards is the chance of winning."

"You'd be sure to win if you played with me, because I don't

know how to play. Surely that would be better than playing

with your friends, because you sometimes lose there."

"But if I did win when I was playing against you, I would only

win my own money I "

Mary laughed. Then she said. "All right, I think we'll just have

to go to the cinema. There's a good film on at the Grand, isn't

there?"

"Not the Grand," said John. "The Splendid."

"Oh, yes," said Mary. "I keep on getting them mixed up. The

Grand's the one down by the river, isn't it?"


"Yes," answered John. "After we've been here a few more

weeks we'll know everything there is to know about this town:

it's small enough. Well, we'd better go, or we'll be too late for

the matinee. Have you got your umbrella back from Jane yet, or

will you have to go on sharing mine?"

"No, I got mine back. I came across Jane in a shop this

morning. She was carrying my umbrella, but she put it down for

a moment while she looked in her handbag for some money. So

I picked the umbrella up and started to walk out. The

shopkeeper was horrified. He said, 'Madam, that umbrella

belongs to this lady!' 'No, it doesn't,' I answered, 'it belongs to

me.' 'That's right,' said Jane. 'It does.' You should have seen the

shopkeeper's face! He didn't know whether to believe his eyes

or his ears-especially as Jane pretended never to have seen me

before: you know how she loves a joke!"

(About 4.25 words.)

QUESTIONS

I. (a) What had John and Mary planned to do earlier?

(b) Why didn't Mary like sticking photographs in a book?

(c) Why does Mary say that John would be sure to win at

cards?


(d) What does John mean when he says that he would only

win his own money? .

(c) Whereabouts is the Grand Cinema?

(f) What reason does John give for saying that they will soon

get to know the town?

(g) Which performance of the film are they going to?

(h) Why was the shopkeeper horrified when Mary picked up

the umbrella?

(i) What was Jane's joke?

2. Explain why the shopkeeper "didn't know whether to believe

his eyes or his ears",


20

BEGINNINGS OF GOVERNMENT IN EUROPE

About 4000 years ago, the Greeks began to move across from

their' home in the mountains of Asia towards the Western

Mediterranean Sea. At this time they were wandering

shepherds, living in groups of families called tribes. They had

no real government: such a thing was unnecessary because

there was no public business, there were no taxes, and nobody

owned any land, since the tribe moved from place to place the

whole time looking for grass for its sheep and goats. There were

also no law cases and no lawyers, and men were controlled by a

few customs, such as the one that said that if one man killed

another, one of the dead man's relations had to find and kill the

killer.

Sometimes the old men of the tribe would meet together to

discuss questions which were very important to the whole tribe,

such as a war or long journeys; and occasionally there might be

a meeting of all the fighting men in the tribe to say what they

thought about such important matters. But such meetings were

only for discussion, not for governing.


When the Greek shepherds came to what is now Greece, they

began to become farmers, growing corn as well as keeping

sheep. This forced them to settle in one place and build real

houses, instead of living only in tents, as they had done before.

At first, the men continued to look after the sheep and goats and

to fight enemies, while the women did the work in the fields.

As each tribe settled and became a group of villages, the land

was divided among the families, but for a long time the tribe

continued to be the only owner of the land. But slowly families

began to own pieces of land, and arguments began between

families about who owned a certain piece of land, and about the

lines dividing one piece of land from the next. After a man had

died, there were also arguments between his relations as to how

his land should be divided. To settle such business. some sort of

government became necessary, and for about 400 years the

Greeks struggled to learn how to carry out the business of

groups of people living a settled life and owning land. During

this time, too, people began to be divided into rich and poor by

the owning of land, and quarrels between classes, which had

never taken place when the Greeks were wandering shepherds,

became more and more dangerous.


Slowly groups of villages joined together to make cities, which

were not like our modern cities, but more like small nations,

each quite independent of other cities, governing itself and

going to war with other cities when it wanted to.

Each of these cities had its own laws and its own army. The rich

landowners, who alone could buy good armour and weapons,

loved war and robbed the poor and weak. The head of the

government was the king, who was one of the rich. In his work

he was helped by a council, or group, of other rich men. The

king and his council used to sit in the market-place all day,

hearing all those who came to them to complain against anyone,

and doing all the public business of the city. These public, daily

meetings were the beginnings of real government in Europe,

even though they were often neither very honest, nor very

effective, nor very just.

(About 575 words.)

QUESTIONS

I. Choose SIX of the following words and give for each ?f them

another word or phrase of similar meaning to that III the

context.


taxes discussion governing

owned settle council

relations dangerous effective

2. Write down the following words and then give for each a

word or phrase of opposite meaning to that used in the passage.

wandering

public

whole

loved





(a) Why was a government unnecessary to the wandering Greek

shepherds?

(b) What example of an early custom does the writer give?

(c) What did the old men of the tribe discuss when they met

together?

(d) What were quarrels between families usually about? (e) In

what ways were the Greek cities different from modern ones?

(f) Who did the fighting in the time of the Greek ci ties?


4 (ADV.) What are we told about the different kinds of public

meeting that are mentioned in this piece?

You should not use more than 60 words in your answer.


21

A QUIET HOLIDAY

It was the hottest part of the year, and also the busiest in the

office. The school was closed for the holidays, and the children

could not find enough to do,* so that they were had-tempered

and disobedient. As for the servants, they seemed even more

stupid than usual.

At last, we rented a house in the mountains for two weeks. We

decided to take the three children, but no servants, and said we

would spend our time swimming, walking and enjoying the air

of the mountains, far from hot offices and stupid servants.

It was a very small house, clean and cheerful, standing in a

beautiful garden, with the green mountain rising up behind it.

We were delighted. We stood in the garden for half an hour

before unpacking our things from the car, enjoying the peace

and coolness and watching the sunset.

Then we went in to turn on the light---but there was no switch I

We searched all the rooms carefully-there was no electricity I


We found several oil lamps-but we had no oil I At last, I went

down the road to the little village store and bought some

candles: they had no oil.

When I got back, my wife said, "There's no water either." There

were pipes and taps, so there must be water* somewhere: I took

a candle and followed a pipe out of the house. It led to a pump

and well. I began pumping. I pumped for a quarter of an hour

and then stopped, too tired to continue.

There was a shower in the house, but no way of heating it; and

the water felt very, very cold. The children's cries as they were

being washed brought a crowd of village children to our gate.*

We ate sandwiches and drank lemonade for supper: we were

too tired to cook. Then we went straight to bed. My wife and I

didn't even wash: we do not like cold water.

We cooked breakfast on the oil-stove next morning: the smell

of that burning oil was terrible. Then we heated water for

washing ourselves, and lots more water for washing our clothes.

I pumped for three-quarters of an hour that morning.


That afternoon I drove back to town and brought the servants

up to the mountains. We were all very glad to see them; and

they seemed less stupid now.

(About 400 words.)

QUESTIONS


Choose SIX, and give for each of them another word or phrase

of similar meaning to that used in the passage.

busiest searched no way

seemed got back straight

far from led to terrible


the piece:

could not find enough to do

there must be water

the cries brought a crowd of children to our gate

3 (a) What did the writer and his family plan to do for their

holiday?


(b) What did they do before they unpacked their things from the

car?

(c) Why had they to use candles?

(d) Why did the writer and his wife not wash on their first night

in the mountains?

4. Describe what the writer did on the first two days of his

holiday. Make sure that you do not miss out anything

mentioned in the piece.


22

FREEDOM

A man living absolutely alone in a desert or forest is free from

other people; but he is not absolutely free. His freedom is

limited* in several ways. Firstly, by th

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