Hilary Smith belonged to a good family. But by the age of twenty, he had spent all the money the good old family had. He then had some trouble with the bank and was put in prison. He escaped from the prison and ran to Australia without delay.

Hilary did not like Australia and Australia did not like Hilary. What he could do seemed to be one of two things: die or work. The thought of neither of these gave him any pleasure. Then he remembered that he was not alone in the world. He possessed an aunt.

She was his father’s only sister, but his father used to say she brought no glory to the family. Hilary, of course, tried to discover what she had done. It seemed that she had failed to marry a nobleman. Instead, she had chosen a husband who was connected with trade. Of course as soon as she became “Mrs Parks”, her brother considered her dead. Later on, Mr. Parks died and left her a lot of money; but that did not bring her back to life in her brother’s opinion.

Hilary discovered his aunt’s address. Fortunately she remained faithful and honest to him even after she fell ill. So Hilary’s star shone again. When he was feeling honest, he could talk attractively. He frequently visited his aunt’s house; and soon he was living comfortably in the building which the profits of trade had provided.

One thing was soon clear: his aunt was seriously ill, and nothing could cure her illness. Hilary was very worried. Fate had found a home for him, and was now going to throw him out of it. There was only one thing that could save him: her will.

“Will?” she said, “yes, I have made one. That was when I was a girl and had not much money. I left all my money to some religious people.”

“Didn’t you make another will when you were married?” Hilary asked.

His aunt shook her head. “No,” she said in a low voice, “There was no need. When I finally had a lot of money I found I had no relations.”

On the next day he went to the public library and examined a book of law. It told him what he already believed. When a woman is married, an earlier will loses its value. A new will must be made. If no new will is made, the money goes to the nearest relation. Hilary knew that he was his aunt’s only relation. His future was safe.

After a few months had passed, Hilary’s problems became serious. He badly needed money. He had expensive tastes, and owed a lot of money to shopkeepers. They trusted him because his aunt was rich; but the debt was terrible.

Unfortunately his aunt did not want to discuss money matters at all. In the end they had a quarrel about the small amount of ten pounds. Hilary was now very angry. He began to wonder about a new problem. Was it kind to want his aunt to live any longer? Was it not better for her to die now? While he was considering what to do, his aunt told him that she was going to send for her lawyer. So she was going to make a new will. Hilary thought she might leave all her money to someone else. Soon he reached a clear decision．He must do a great kindness to the poor old woman.

One night when the old servant who had been nursing his aunt went off, he doubled the amount of some medicine. The total amount was too great and it could just put her to sleep forever.

“Thank you,” his aunt took the glass from his hand with a grateful look. “I want, more than anything, to sleep, and never to wake up again. Is that what you wish, Hilary? I have given you your chance. Don’t blame me if I have some doubts about what you intended to do. Sick people get these ideas, you know. One thing I ought to explain to you. Mr. Parks never married me. He already had a wife and couldn’t marry again. That made your foolish father very angry with me… Well, if I am alive tomorrow I shall make another will in your favor. If I die tonight, you’ll get nothing… No, Hilary, don’t try to take the glass away. If you do that, I shall know; and I don’t want to know. Good night, Hilary.”

Then, very carefully, she raised the glass to her mouth and drank.

1.From the story, we learn that Hilary’s aunt was ______.

A. bad-tempered and lonely                    B. kind-hearted and wise

C. careless about money                       D. cruel to her nephew

2.Why did Hilary’s father consider his aunt dead?

A. Because they lost contact with each other after her marriage.

B. Because she married a businessman.

C. Because she broke away from the family for a better life.

D. Because he thought she was a shame to the family.

3.The underlined sentence “He must do a great kindness to the poor old woman” in Paragraph 11 suggests that Hilary Smith ______.

A. was determined to put his aunt’s life to an end

B. decided to do his aunt a favor to call in a lawyer

C. made up his mind to take good care of his aunt

D. would help his aunt to donate all her money to religious people

4.Which of the following is the focus of the story?

A. Hilary’s aunt’s money.                    B. Hilary Smith’s debts.

C. The intended murder.                     D. Hilary’s aunt’s marriage.

5.Which part of what Hilary’s aunt said finally might make Hilary frustrated?

A. She wanted to sleep and never to wake up again.

B. She never got married to Mr. Parks.

C. Mr. Parks had a wife.

D. She would make a new will tomorrow.

6.Which detail from the story is the climax（高潮）of the story?

A. Hilary escaped from the prison.

B. Hilary quarreled with his aunt about ten pounds.

C. Hilary’s aunt drank the medicine her nephew prepared for her.

D. Hilary’s aunt made a will to leave all her money to someone else.

 

Hilary Smith belonged to a good family. But by the age of twenty, he had spent all the money the good old family had. He then had some trouble with the bank and was put in prison. He escaped from the prison and ran to Australia without delay.

Hilary did not like Australia and Australia did not like Hilary. What he could do seemed to be one of two things: die or work. The thought of neither of these gave him any pleasure. Then he remembered that he was not alone in the world. He possessed an aunt.

She was his father’s only sister, but his father used to say she brought no glory to the family. Hilary, of course, tried to discover what she had done. It seemed that she had failed to marry a nobleman. Instead, she had chosen a husband who was connected with trade. Of course as soon as she became “Mrs Parks”, her brother considered her dead. Later on, Mr. Parks died and left her a lot of money; but that did not bring her back to life in her brother’s opinion.

Hilary discovered his aunt’s address. Fortunately she remained faithful and honest to him even after she fell ill. So Hilary’s star shone again. When he was feeling honest, he could talk attractively. He frequently visited his aunt’s house; and soon he was living comfortably in the building which the profits of trade had provided.

One thing was soon clear: his aunt was seriously ill, and nothing could cure her illness. Hilary was very worried. Fate had found a home for him, and was now going to throw him out of it. There was only one thing that could save him: her will.

“Will?” she said, “yes, I have made one. That was when I was a girl and had not much money. I left all my money to some religious people.”

“Didn’t you make another will when you were married?” Hilary asked.

His aunt shook her head. “No,” she said in a low voice, “There was no need. When I finally had a lot of money I found I had no relations.”

On the next day he went to the public library and examined a book of law. It told him what he already believed. When a woman is married, an earlier will loses its value. A new will must be made. If no new will is made, the money goes to the nearest relation. Hilary knew that he was his aunt’s only relation. His future was safe.

After a few months had passed, Hilary’s problems became serious. He badly needed money. He had expensive tastes, and owed a lot of money to shopkeepers. They trusted him because his aunt was rich; but the debt was terrible.

Unfortunately his aunt did not want to discuss money matters at all. In the end they had a quarrel about the small amount of ten pounds. Hilary was now very angry. He began to wonder about a new problem. Was it kind to want his aunt to live any longer? Was it not better for her to die now? While he was considering what to do, his aunt told him that she was going to send for her lawyer. So she was going to make a new will. Hilary thought she might leave all her money to someone else. Soon he reached a clear decision．He must do a great kindness to the poor old woman.

One night when the old servant who had been nursing his aunt went off, he doubled the amount of some medicine. The total amount was too great and it could just put her to sleep forever.

“Thank you,” his aunt took the glass from his hand with a grateful look. “I want, more than anything, to sleep, and never to wake up again. Is that what you wish, Hilary? I have given you your chance. Don’t blame me if I have some doubts about what you intended to do. Sick people get these ideas, you know. One thing I ought to explain to you. Mr. Parks never married me. He already had a wife and couldn’t marry again. That made your foolish father very angry with me… Well, if I am alive tomorrow I shall make another will in your favor. If I die tonight, you’ll get nothing… No, Hilary, don’t try to take the glass away. If you do that, I shall know; and I don’t want to know. Good night, Hilary.”

Then, very carefully, she raised the glass to her mouth and drank.

50. From the story, we learn that Hilary’s aunt was ______.

A. bad-tempered and lonely                    B. kind-hearted and wise

C. careless about money                       D. cruel to her nephew

51. Why did Hilary’s father consider his aunt dead?

A. Because they lost contact with each other after her marriage.

B. Because she married a businessman.

C. Because she broke away from the family for a better life.

   D. Because he thought she was a shame to the family.

52. The underlined sentence “He must do a great kindness to the poor old woman” in Paragraph 11 suggests that Hilary Smith ______.

A. was determined to put his aunt’s life to an end

B. decided to do his aunt a favor to call in a lawyer

   C. made up his mind to take good care of his aunt

   D. would help his aunt to donate all her money to religious people

53. Which of the following is the focus of the story?

A. Hilary’s aunt’s money.                    B. Hilary Smith’s debts.

C. The intended murder.                     D. Hilary’s aunt’s marriage.

54. Which part of what Hilary’s aunt said finally might make Hilary frustrated?

   A. She wanted to sleep and never to wake up again.

B. She never got married to Mr. Parks.

C. Mr. Parks had a wife.

D. She would make a new will tomorrow.

55. Which detail from the story is the climax（高潮）of the story?

   A. Hilary escaped from the prison.

   B. Hilary quarreled with his aunt about ten pounds.

   C. Hilary’s aunt drank the medicine her nephew prepared for her.

D. Hilary’s aunt made a will to leave all her money to someone else.

　　Then by chance, Darwin read a book by Malthus, an Englishman. The book was forty years old, and Malthus was already dead. But it suddenly pushed Darwin nearer to some answers. Malthus said,“The number of people in the world can grow very quickly. Just think, a man and his wife could have ten children. When these ten grow up, every one of them could have ten more children. So now we have a hundred children. Again, if every one of these has ten children, we will have a thousand children and this can continue. We will have more and more people.”

　　All this could happen. But did it? Malthus said,“No. It doesn't happen in the real world. The number of people remains almost the same. Why? The reason is this. We just can't grow food quickly enough. Soon there's not enough food. So some people can't eat. They die before they bring any more children into the world.”

　　These ideas came at just the right time for Darwin. He asked one more question: Which people will die before they have children? For Malthus, this was not an important question. But for Darwin, it was very important.

　　He asked,“Which people will have children? Why does this man have children, and why does that man not have any?”And soon of course he was thinking of the Galapagos finches（鸣鸟）again.

　　“The number of finches remains almost the same. So usually two birds must give us only two new birds. But a finch lays more than two eggs. Which two young birds will live, and give us more eggs? Which will not?”

　　The answer is some birds can't get enough food--they will die. But why can't they get enough? Why are some birds better than them? The birds in one family are not quite the same. Some are stronger, some are quicker, some are bigger, some have longer beaks, some have lighter bodies. The best birds will live.

　　And always an answer brought with a question: What is“best”? Darwin now, had his list of facts and questions, answers and ideas. Could he put them together and make a clear story? Could he explain the evolution（进化）of the finches?

　　He could and he did.

(1) What are the general differences between Darwin and Malthus according to the passage?

[　　]

A．Darwin thought of the evolution while Malthus considered the starvation.

B．Malthus believed that more food was needed for more people while Darwin found the answer to the problem of how to keep the“best one”.

C．Darwin concluded“the survival of the fittest”,while Malthus made it clear that the lack of food might prevent the increase of population.

D．Malthus felt it important for people to live better while Darwin supposed it more important for birds to have more young ones.

(2) What is Malthus'point of view about the problem of population?

A．It is natural for the population to increase without any plan.

B．It is unnecessary to make people have fewer children.

C．Some people could not have fewer children because of the lack of food.

D．The number of people would remain almost the same if the food conditions would not change.

(3) What was the result of Darwin's research?

[　　]

A．He wanted to find out why some birds can live better while some others cannot.

B．He only made an answer to the question“What is the best?”

C．He explained the evolution of the finches through his observation（观察）.

D．He discovered a lot more“Whys”than Malthus did.

(4) Which of the following is TRUE?

[　　]

A．Darwin developed his theory with the help of Malthus'.

B．Darwin agreed completely with Malthus.

C．Darwin held the same opinion that lack of food made people have fewer children.

D．Darwin used finches to do experiments before using people.

(5) From the passage we can find out the author ________.

[　　]

A．preferred talking about Darwin to Malthus

B．just gave some facts of scientists'research work without any comments（评论）

C．thought Malthus'book led Darwin to the scientific research of the birds

D．believed Darwin had done much more research work than Malthus ever did

　　Then by chance, Darwin read a book by Malthus, an Englishman. The book was forty years old, and Malthus was already dead. But it suddenly pushed Darwin nearer to some answers. Malthus said,“The number of people in the world can grow very quickly. Just think, a man and his wife could have ten children. When these ten grow up, every one of them could have ten more children. So now we have a hundred children. Again, if every one of these has ten children, we will have a thousand children and this can continue. We will have more and more people.”

　　All this could happen. But did it? Malthus said,“No. It doesn't happen in the real world. The number of people remains almost the same. Why? The reason is this. We just can't grow food quickly enough. Soon there's not enough food. So some people can't eat. They die before they bring any more children into the world.”

　　These ideas came at just the right time for Darwin. He asked one more question: Which people will die before they have children? For Malthus, this was not an important question. But for Darwin, it was very important.

　　He asked,“Which people will have children? Why does this man have children, and why does that man not have any?”And soon of course he was thinking of the Galapagos finches（鸣鸟）again.

　　“The number of finches remains almost the same. So usually two birds must give us only two new birds. But a finch lays more than two eggs. Which two young birds will live, and give us more eggs? Which will not?”

　　The answer is some birds can't get enough food--they will die. But why can't they get enough? Why are some birds better than them? The birds in one family are not quite the same. Some are stronger, some are quicker, some are bigger, some have longer beaks, some have lighter bodies. The best birds will live.

　　And always an answer brought with a question: What is“best”? Darwin now, had his list of facts and questions, answers and ideas. Could he put them together and make a clear story? Could he explain the evolution（进化）of the finches?

　　He could and he did.

(1) What are the general differences between Darwin and Malthus according to the passage?

[　　]

A．Darwin thought of the evolution while Malthus considered the starvation.

B．Malthus believed that more food was needed for more people while Darwin found the answer to the problem of how to keep the“best one”.

C．Darwin concluded“the survival of the fittest”,while Malthus made it clear that the lack of food might prevent the increase of population.

D．Malthus felt it important for people to live better while Darwin supposed it more important for birds to have more young ones.

(2) What is Malthus'point of view about the problem of population?

A．It is natural for the population to increase without any plan.

B．It is unnecessary to make people have fewer children.

C．Some people could not have fewer children because of the lack of food.

D．The number of people would remain almost the same if the food conditions would not change.

(3) What was the result of Darwin's research?

[　　]

A．He wanted to find out why some birds can live better while some others cannot.

B．He only made an answer to the question“What is the best?”

C．He explained the evolution of the finches through his observation（观察）.

D．He discovered a lot more“Whys”than Malthus did.

(4) Which of the following is TRUE?

[　　]

A．Darwin developed his theory with the help of Malthus'.

B．Darwin agreed completely with Malthus.

C．Darwin held the same opinion that lack of food made people have fewer children.

D．Darwin used finches to do experiments before using people.

(5) From the passage we can find out the author ________.

[　　]

A．preferred talking about Darwin to Malthus

B．just gave some facts of scientists'research work without any comments（评论）

C．thought Malthus'book led Darwin to the scientific research of the birds

D．believed Darwin had done much more research work than Malthus ever did