On my first trip in the United States , I went to San Antonion . I was on foot . So I went to only three places there : the Alamo , the River Walk , and the Art Gallery . I especially enjoyed visiting the Alamo , a well- known building in America .
When I arrived at the Alamo , I was deeply impressed because it was well kept and in good shape . The Alamo was erected in about 1722, was later used as a fort(保垒) , and has been kept as a state monument(纪念馆) to the Texan War of Independence against Mexico . During the battle , all of the Texan defenders were killed . I was surprised at the exhibition of rifles , guns , cannons and swords .
I was especially attracted by the paintings of a war . The paintings expressed the feelings of a painter very well . Even thought about 160 years have passed since the Battle of the Alamo , the exhibit is well kept . When I came out after seeing the exhibition , I felt as if I had a victory . The outer wall of the Alamo was destroyed here and there . When I touched the wall , I could feel the damage . After the war , little remained of the Alamo . All of the windows and doors were destroyed . The top part of the gate way disappeared without a trace(遗迹) . I will remember the Alamo forever . It is one of the best places to visit in San Antonio .
【小题1】It can be inferred according to the passage that the author may be a____ .

III.阅读理解(20×2)
When Sir Winston Churchill , the great British prime minister, reached his eightieth birthday in November 1954, he was presented with his portrait by a well-known modern artist, Granham Sutherland. The painting had been ordered and paid by the members of Parliament(国会)， who wanted to honor the Grand Man of World war II.
Sir Winston and Lady Churchill were deeply moved by this mark of respect and affection. Neither of them, of course, allowed the donors（捐赠者） to see how much they both disliked the portrait. “It makes me look stupid—which I am not !” Churchill protested in private. Publicly, he only said that it was “a fine example of modern art”. His friends smiled: it was well-known that Sir Winston didn’t care for modern art.
Churchill was so unhappy about the portrait that finally his wife had it destroyed. Churchill died at ninety in January 1965. lady Churchill followed him in 1977. Shortly after her death, the public learned what had happened to Sutherland’s painting, and a heated argument broke out. The painter was understandably sad. The artistic community, shocked and angry, claimed that the destruction of the picture had been a crime. Historians said that they regretted the disappearance of a historical document. All agreed that Churchills didn’t have the right to do what they had done.
Well—did they ? A good part of the public felt that the owner of a portrait had the right to get rid of it if it made him so unhappy. The question, however, has been raised many times before: who has the right to a work of art—the sitter, the owner, the donor or the artist who created it?  And when the painting is the portrait of a historical figure, should the right of posterity (后代) be considered, as the historians claimed?
1. To have Churchill’s portrait painted was the idea of ______.
A.a well-known modern artist       B.Parliament
C.a friend of Churchill             D.the public
2. Which of the following is true ?
A. Churchill liked the portrait but his wife not
B. Churchill didn’t like the portrait because he didn’t like the painter
C. Churchill liked the portrait because it was a fine modern art.
D . Churchill didn’t like the portrait and nor did his wife
3. When Churchill said it was “a fine example of modern art”, he was ______.
A. dishonest           B. joking        C. praising the portrait          D. not been straight
4.When was the destruction of the portrait known to the public?
A . As soon as it happened             B.After Churchill died in 1965
C. Soon after Lady Churchill’s death     D. Not until recently
5. How did people reacted to the news?
A. People of the artistic community were all very sad.
B. The historians felt more strongly against it than the artistic community.
C.All people agreed that Chutchills had no right to destroy the picture.
D. while some were upset, quite a few people believed the Churchills had the right to destroy it.

Like most people, I was brought up to look upon life as a process of getting. It was not until in my late thirties that I made this important  36  : giving-away makes life so much more exciting. You need not worry if you  37  money.

       This is how I   38  with giving-away. If an idea for improving the window display of a neighborhood store  39  to me, I step in and make the suggestion to the   40  . If an accident takes place, the  41  of which I think the local police could use, I  42  him up and tell him about it, though I am not in   43  here. One discovery I made about this world is to give  44  getting something back, though the  45  often comes in an unexpected form.

       One Sunday morning the local post office delivered an important  46  letter to my home, though it was   47  to me at my office. I wrote the postmaster a note of   48  . More than a year later I needed a post-office box for a new business I was  49  . I was told at the window that there were  50  boxes left, and that my name would have to go on a long  51  list. As I was about to  52  , the postmaster appeared in the   53  .“Wasn’t it you that wrote us that letter a year ago about delivering a special delivery to your home?” I said it was. “Well, you certainly are going to have a box in this post office  54  we make one for you. You don’t know what a letter like that means to us. We usually get  55  but complaints（投诉）.”

36．A．decision                  B．research                  C．speech                    D．discovery

37．A．earn                       B．lack                        C．spend                     D．steal

38．A．experienced            B．connected               C．combined                D．agreed

39．A．happens                  B．flashes                    C．sticks                      D．leads

40．A．postmaster              B．headmaster              C．storekeeper             D．policeman

41．A．story                      B．damage                   C．challenge                D．material

42．A．call                        B．hold                       C．break                      D．pick

43．A．need                       B．trouble                   C．common                 D．charge

44．A．within                    B．without                   C．for                         D．before

45．A．process                   B．goal                       C．return                     D．concern

46．A．curious                   B．immediate               C．special                    D．heavy

47．A．realized                  B．addressed                C．forgotten                D．brought

48．A．invitation                B．apology                  C．instruction                     D．appreciation

49．A．dealing                   B．providing                C．operating                D．starting

50．A．enough                   B．some                      C．no                          D．more

51．A．admitting                B．relating                   C．examining               D．waiting

52．A．leave                      B．shout                      C．guess                      D．conduct

53．A．window                  B．doorway                 C．library                    D．yard

54．A．in case                   B．now that                 C．even if                    D．as if

55．A．anything                 B．everything                     C．nothing                   D．something

Ray Travers sat back at the large desk, and looked around his plush（豪华的）office．He was tired．
Ray's eyes stopped at a painting on the wall．It was a gift given by an old friend, Bull, as a farewell gift when he left his hometown．He recalled the life spent in that small town; pleasant times．The many hours he spent talking lo his good friend, and the tales he was told about hunting in the Africa of old．
Memories flowed back more than ten years; he remembered how he enjoyed hearing about the wonderful hunting, and how he wished he could have shared those times．
Ray opened his desk drawer and brought out a wooden box．He opened the lid and exposed a work of art, a hand-made hunting knife．This was a gift from Bull, given to Ray more than 20 years ago．It was one of the first knives Bull had made, and Ray had called it "Zambezi”, the river where Bull had been so many times．
He closed the box and sat upright at his desk; he was driving himself hard, and deserved a break．Things were going well with the business, everything running smoothly．He could afford a week off!
He went back home．A week in the hometown would be like going back in history．"Man, it's going to be good," Ray said aloud, as he turned onto the highway and watched the city lights fast disappearing, as he looked in the rearview mirror．
It was well into the night when Ray pulled into an all-night gas station He walked around the gas station and the memories started …  He was finally back on the road, the powerful car going its way through the night, headlights piercing （穿透） the darkness．Memories danced through the man' s mind．Memories of good times , when he knew what it was to relax , to talk, and to really visit．
Slowly entering town he looked around．Ray sat in his car, looking at the old building, smiling． Inside it was almost as though it was the same people as 15 years ago．
【小题1】We learn from the passage that Bull is                    ．

Like most people, I was brought up to look upon life as a process of getting. It was not until in my late thirties that I made this important  36  : giving-away makes life so much more exciting. You need not worry if you  37  money.

       This is how I   38  with giving-away. If an idea for improving the window display of a neighborhood store  39  to me, I step in and make the suggestion to the   40  . If an accident takes place, the  41  of which I think the local police could use, I  42  him up and tell him about it, though I am not in   43  here. One discovery I made about this world is to give  44  getting something back, though the  45  often comes in an unexpected form.

       One Sunday morning the local post office delivered an important  46  letter to my home, though it was   47  to me at my office. I wrote the postmaster a note of   48  . More than a year later I needed a post-office box for a new business I was  49  . I was told at the window that there were  50  boxes left, and that my name would have to go on a long  51  list. As I was about to  52  , the postmaster appeared in the   53  .“Wasn’t it you that wrote us that letter a year ago about delivering a special delivery to your home?” I said it was. “Well, you certainly are going to have a box in this post office  54  we make one for you. You don’t know what a letter like that means to us. We usually get  55  but complaints（投诉）.”

36．A．decision                  B．research                  C．speech                    D．discovery

37．A．earn                       B．lack                        C．spend                     D．steal

38．A．experienced            B．connected               C．combined                D．agreed

39．A．happens                  B．flashes                    C．sticks                      D．leads

40．A．postmaster              B．headmaster              C．storekeeper             D．policeman

41．A．story                      B．damage                   C．challenge                D．material

42．A．call                        B．hold                       C．break                      D．pick

43．A．need                       B．trouble                   C．common                 D．charge

44．A．within                    B．without                   C．for                         D．before

45．A．process                   B．goal                       C．return                     D．concern

46．A．curious                   B．immediate               C．special                    D．heavy

47．A．realized                  B．addressed                C．forgotten                D．brought

48．A．invitation                B．apology                  C．instruction                     D．appreciation

49．A．dealing                   B．providing                C．operating                D．starting

50．A．enough                   B．some                      C．no                          D．more

51．A．admitting                B．relating                   C．examining               D．waiting

52．A．leave                      B．shout                      C．guess                      D．conduct

53．A．window                  B．doorway                 C．library                    D．yard

54．A．in case                   B．now that                 C．even if                    D．as if

55．A．anything                 B．everything                     C．nothing                   D．something