Question

On June 17, 1774, the officials from Maryland and Virginia held a talk with the Indians of the Six Nations. The Indians were invited to send boys to William and Mary College. In a letter the next day they refused the offer as follows:

    We know that you have a high opinion of the kind of learning taught in your colleges, and that the costs of living of our young men, while with you, would be very expensive to you. We are convinced that you mean to do us good by your proposal; and we thank you heartily. But you must know that different nations have different ways of looking at things, and you will therefore not be offended if our ideas of this kind of education happen not to be the same as yours. We have had some experience of it. Several of our young people were formerly brought up at the college of the northern provinces: they were taught all your sciences; but when they came back to us, they were bad manners, ignorant of every means of living in the woods – they were totally good for nothing.

    We are, however, not the less obliged by your kind offer, though we refuse to accept it; and, to show our grateful sense of it, if the gentlemen of Virginia will send us a dozen of their sons, we will take care of their education, teach them in all we know, and make men of them.

1. The passage is about ____.

  A. the talk between the Indians and the officials

  B. the colleges of the northern provinces

  C. the educational values of the Indians

  D. the problems of the Americans in the mid-eighteen century

2. The Indian chief’s purpose of writing the letter seems to be to ____.

  A. politely refuse a friendly offer

  B. express their opinions on equal treatment

  C. show their pride

  D. describe Indian customs

3. According to the letter, the Indians believed that ____.

  A. it would be better for their boys to receive some schooling

  B. they were being insulted by the offer

  C. they knew more about science than the officials

  D. they had better way of educating young men

4. Different from the officials’ view of education, the Indians thought ____.

  A. young women should also be educated

  B. they had different goals of education

  C. they taught different branches of science

  D. they should teach the sons of the officials first

Answer 1

1—4 CADB