The drug store was closing for the night. Young Alfred Higgins, the shop-assistant, was ready to go home. Mr. Carr, the boss, stared at him and said: “Hold on, Alfred. Maybe you'd be good enough to take the things out of your pockets and leave them here before you go.”Alfred's face got red. After a little hesitation, he took out what he had stolen. Mr. Carr said, “Maybe I should call your mother and let her know I'm going to have to put you in prison.”
Alfred thought his mother would come rushing in, eyes burning with anger. But, to his surprise, she arrived wearing a smile. “Hello, I'm Alfred's mother. Is he in trouble?”she said. Mr. Carr was surprised, too. He had expected Alfred's mother to come in nervously, shaking with fear, asking with wet eyes for a mercy for her son. But no, she was most calm, quiet and pleasant and was making Mr. Carr feel guilty…. Soon Mr. Carr was shaking his head in agreement with what she was saying. “Of course”, he said, “I don't want to be cruel. You are right. Sometimes, a little good advice is the best thing for a boy at certain times in his life and it often takes the youths long time to get sense into their heads.”And he warmly shook Mrs. Higgins's hand.
Back home, without even looking at Alfred, she said, “You are a bad luck. It is one thing after another, always has been. Why do you stand there so stupidly? Go to bed.”In his bedroom, Alfred heard his mother in the kitchen. There was no shame in him, just pride in his mother's strength. He felt he must tell her how great she was. As he got to the kitchen, he saw his mother drinking a cup of tea. He was shocked by what he saw. His mother's face was a frightened, broken one. It was not the same cool, bright face he saw earlier in the drug store. As she lifted the tea cup, her hand shook. And some of the tea splashed on the table. Her lips moved nervously. She looked very old. He watched his mother without making a sound. The picture of his mother made him want to cry. He felt his youth coming to an end. He saw all the troubles he brought his mother in her shaking hand and the deep lines of worry in her grey face. It seemed to him that this was the first time he had ever really seen his mother.
【小题1】The reason why Mr. Carr felt guilty was that ________.

The drug store was closing for the night. Young Alfred Higgins, the shop-assistant, was ready to go home. Mr. Carr, the boss, stared at him and said: “Hold on, Alfred. Maybe you'd be good enough to take the things out of your pockets and leave them here before you go.”Alfred's face got red. After a little hesitation, he took out what he had stolen. Mr. Carr said, “Maybe I should call your mother and let her know I'm going to have to put you in prison.”
Alfred thought his mother would come rushing in, eyes burning with anger. But, to his surprise, she arrived wearing a smile. “Hello, I'm Alfred's mother. Is he in trouble?”she said. Mr. Carr was surprised, too. He had expected Alfred's mother to come in nervously, shaking with fear, asking with wet eyes for a mercy for her son. But no, she was most calm, quiet and pleasant and was making Mr. Carr feel guilty…. Soon Mr. Carr was shaking his head in agreement with what she was saying. “Of course”, he said, “I don't want to be cruel. You are right. Sometimes, a little good advice is the best thing for a boy at certain times in his life and it often takes the youths long time to get sense into their heads.”And he warmly shook Mrs. Higgins's hand.
Back home, without even looking at Alfred, she said, “You are a bad luck. It is one thing after another, always has been. Why do you stand there so stupidly? Go to bed.”In his bedroom, Alfred heard his mother in the kitchen. There was no shame in him, just pride in his mother's strength. He felt he must tell her how great she was. As he got to the kitchen, he saw his mother drinking a cup of tea. He was shocked by what he saw. His mother's face was a frightened, broken one. It was not the same cool, bright face he saw earlier in the drug store. As she lifted the tea cup, her hand shook. And some of the tea splashed on the table. Her lips moved nervously. She looked very old. He watched his mother without making a sound. The picture of his mother made him want to cry. He felt his youth coming to an end. He saw all the troubles he brought his mother in her shaking hand and the deep lines of worry in her grey face. It seemed to him that this was the first time he had ever really seen his mother

1. 1.

   The reason why Mr. Carr felt guilty was that ________

   1. A.
      he found Alfred was in fact innocent
   2. B.
      he should have called a policeman in first
   3. C.
      Alfred's mother appeared polite and gentle
   4. D.
      he thought he was partly responsible for it
2. 2.

   Which of the following is probably said by Mrs. Higgins while talking to Mr. Carr?

   1. A.
      “Please, for God's sake, you know, he is just a kid.”
   2. B.
      “I can't believe it! You are treating my son like that!”
   3. C.
      “You know, it takes time for a youth to truly grow up.”
   4. D.
      “Punishment makes sense because it teaches about the law.”
3. 3.

   What does the underlined phrase "his mother's strength"(Para. 3) refer to?

   1. A.
      Mrs. Higgins's calmness and communicating skills
   2. B.
      Mrs. Higgins's attitude towards parental sufferings
   3. C.
      Mrs. Higgins's love and care for her son Alfred
   4. D.
      Mrs. Higgins's greatness as a woman
4. 4.

   After the incident, young Alfred would probably ________

   1. A.
      feel ashamed of her mother
   2. B.
      change his attitudes towards life
   3. C.
      learn to live an independent life
   4. D.
      hate Mr. Carr for hurting her mother

There’s a guy like me in every state and federal prison in America，I guess—I’m the guy who can get these for you：cigarettes，a bag of cigar，if you want that，a bottle of wine to celebrate your son or daughter’s high school graduation，or almost anything else．．．within reason，that is．It wasn’t always that way．

I came to Shawshank when I was just twenty，and I am one of the few people in the prison who is willing to admit what he did．I committed murder．I put a large insurance policy on my wife，who was three years older than 1 was，and then I fixed the brakes of the car her father had given us as a wedding present．It worked out exactly as I had planned，except I hadn’t planned on her stopping to pick up the neighbour woman and the woman’s son on the way down Castle Hill and into town．The brakes let go and the car crashed through the bushes，gathering speed．Bystanders said it must have been doing fifty or better when it hit the base of the Civil War statue in the town arid burst into flames．

I also hadn’t planned on getting caught，but caught 1 was．I got a pass into this place．My state has no death penalty(死刑)，but I was tried for all three deaths and given three life sentences，to run one after the other．That fixed up any chance of parole(假释)I might have，for a long，long time．The judge called what I had done‘an extremely evil crime’, and it was ,but it is also in the past now．

Have I transformed myself，you ask ?I don’t know what that word means，at least as far as prisons and corrections go．I think it’s a politician’s word．It may have some other meaning，and it may be that 1 will have a chance to find out，but that is the future．．．

I was young，good—looking，and from the poor side of town．I met a pretty，headstrong girl who lived in one of the fine old houses on Carbine Street．She got pregnant later．Her father was agreeable to the marriage if 1 would take a job in the company he owned and ‘work my way up’．I found out that what he really had in mind was keeping me in his house and under his thumb，like a disagreeable pet that has not quite been housebroken and which may bite．Enough hate eventually piled up to cause me to do what I did．

?? Given a second chance 1 would not do it again，but I'm not sure that means I am transformed．

1.What do we know about the man from the passage?

A．He is treated unfairly in the prison．

B．He is in charge of the federal prison．

C．He is quite an able person as a prisoner．

D．He is the most powerful man in the prison．

2.By saying that“I got a pass into this place”(in Para．3)，the man means that________.

A．he has got to stay in prison

B．he was allowed to go home

C．he was caught by the police without a pass

D．he has stayed in the federal prison before

3.The man committed such an evil crime because__________.

A．he had made a secret deal with an insurance company

B．he had been angry for a long time with his father—in—law

C．his wife’s family members had disapproved of their marriage

D．his wife had looked on him as a pet and he didn’t feel respected

4.Which of the following is TRUE about the man?

A．He regrets having committed the crime．

B．He will be out of prison in the near future．

C．He thinks the trial a mistake and is unfair．

D．He has found out the

阅读理解

阅读下面的短文，从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中选出最佳选项

　　Joe Temper should have known better. After all he works for a large auto insurance company. It won't hurt to leave the key in the truck this once, he thought, as he filled his gas tank at a self-service gas station. But moments later, as he was paying the money, he saw the truck being driven away.

　　In 2001, 1.．6 million motor vehicles were stolen in the United States-one every 20 seconds. If present trends continue, experts predict vehicle thefts could be over two million every year by the end of the decade.

　　Vehicle theft is a common phenomenon, which has a direct effect on over four million people a year. The cost is astonishing.

　　Many police officials blame professional thieves for the high volume of the thefts. It is a major moneymaker far organized crime(犯罪). Typically, stolen cars are taken to pieces and the parts sold to individuals. But as many as 200000 cars are smuggled out of the country every year. Most go to Latin America, the Middle East and Europe.

　　Only about 15 percent car thefts result in an arrest, because few police departments specially conduct in depth auto investigations(调查). When thieves are arrested, judges will often sentence them to probation, not immediately put them in prison because the prisons are overcrowded with violent criminals(罪犯).

　　One exception is a Michigan program that calls for 92 police officers to work full time on the state's 65,000 car theft cases a year. Since 1996, when the effort began, the state's auto theft rate has fallen from second in the nation to ninth.

　　How can you protect your car? If you live in a high theft area or drive an expensive model, consider a safety system. It may cost anywhere from $ 25 to $ 1 000. Some systems work automatically-simply removing the key disables the fuel pump and the starter. When cars are equipped with such systems, thefts may drop by one third. In some states, you may be able to use a device(仪器设备) that transmits radio signals, allowing stolen cars to be tracked by police.

1．What does the author think Joe Temper should be to blame for?

[　　]

A．He should have equipped his car with a security system.

B．He should not have his car refilled at the gas station.

C．He should not have been so sure of himself.

D．He should have shut down the engine of his car.

2．What is NOT a reason for the increase of car theft as mentioned in the passage?

[　　]

A．Police don't give enough attention to car theft cases.

B．More people park their cars and left the keys inside.

C．Measures and laws against car thieves are not effective enough.

D．Car theft brings car thieves much money.

3．It is obvious that the Michigan program ________.

[　　]

A．has an effect on the whole USA

B．involves(牵涉) much work but groves to be quite effective

C．involves the construction of larger prisons

D．involves the development of a new safety system

4．What type(s) of safety system can help the police find a stolen car back?

[　　]

A．The device that sends out radio signals.

B．The device that disables the fuel pumps.

C．The device that disables the starter.

D．All of the above.