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　　The dog, called Prince, was an intelligent animal and a slave to Williams. From morning till night, when Williams was at home, Prince never left his sight, practically (几乎) ignoring all other members of the family. The dog had a number of clearly defined duties, for which Williams had patiently trained him and, like the good pupil he was, Prince lived for the chance to demonstrate (举出实例证明) his abilities. When Williams wanted to put on his boots, he would murmur “Boots” and within seconds the dog would drop them at his feet. At nine every morning ran off to the general store in the village, returning shortly not only with Williams's daily paper but with a half- ounce packet of Williams's favorite tobacco. John Rhiney's Mixed, a gun-dog by breed (牲畜等的种), Prince possessed a large soft mouth specially evolved (进化) for the safe carrying of hunted creatures, so the paper and tobacco came to no harm, never even showing a tooth mark.

　　Williams was a railway man, an engine driver, and he wore a blue uniform smelled of oil and oil fuel. He had to work at odd (临时的) times棥—days” or “nights”. Over the years Prince got to know these periods of work and rest, knew when his master would leave the house and return, and the dog did not waste this knowledge. If Williams overslept, as he often did, Prince barked (狗叫) at the bedroom door until he woke, much to the annoyance (恼怒) of the family. On his return, Willams's slippers were brought to him, the paper and tobacco too if previously undelivered.

　　A curious thing happened to Williams during the snow and ice of last winter. One evening he slipped and fell on the icy pavement (人行道) somewhere between the village and his home. He was so badly shaken that he stayed in bed for three days; and not until he got up and dressed again did he discover that he had lost his wallet containing over fifty pounds. The house was turned upside down in the search, but the wallet was not found. However, two days later-that was five days after the fall Prince dropped the wallet into Williams' hand. Very muddy, stained and wet through, the little case still contained fifty-three pounds, Williams's driving license and a few other papers. Where the dog had found it no one could tell, but he had found it and recognized it probably by the faint oil smell on the worn leather.

1．Which of the following is true about Prince?

[　　]

A．The dog had few chances to do his duties

B．The dog protected Williams from the others in the family.

C．Prince behaved as he did through fear of Williams.

D．The dog would de anything for Williams.

2．It can be learned from the passage that gun-dogs ________.

[　　]

A．are the fastest runners of all dogs

B．dogs whose teeth are removed when they are young

C．can carry birds, etc. without hurting them

D．breed well, producing many young dogs

3．It upset Williams's wife and family when ________.

[　　]

A．Williams had to go to work at night

B．the dog tried to wake up Williams.

C．Williams made them all get up early

D．the dog would not let them see the newspaper

4．Williams did not realize his loss for several days because ________.

[　　]

A．he trusted the dog to find the wallet

B．he was unconscious all that time

C．he thought the wallet was in the house

D．he had no occasion to feel in his pockets

5．The dog thought it was Williams's wallet because ________.

[　　]

A．he found it where Williams had fallen

B．he had seen it before and recognized it

C．of the mud that was on it

D．the scent of it was familiar to him

（河北省邯郸市磁县2010届高三质量检测）

C

The dog, called Prince, was an intelligent animal and a slave to Williams. From morning till night, he had a number of clear duties, for which Williams had patiently trained him and, like a good pupil, Prince lived for the chance to prove his abilities. When Williams wanted to put on his boots, he would murmur. “Boots” and within seconds the dog would drop them at his feet. At nine every morning Prince ran off to the general store in the village, returning shortly not only with Williams’ daily paper but with a packet of Williams’ favorite tobacco. A trained gun-dog, Prince had a large soft mouth specially evolved（演变；进化）for the sake of carrying hunted creatures, so the paper and tobacco came to no harm, never even showing a tooth mark.

Williams was an engine driver, and he had to work at irregular times — “days”, “late days”, or “nights”. Over the years Prince got to know these periods of work and rest, and knew when his master would leave the house and return and the dog did not waste this knowledge. If Williams overslept, Prince barked at the bedroom door until he woke. On his return, Williams’ slippers were brought to him, the paper and tobacco too.

A curious thing happened to Williams during the snow and ice of last winter. One evening he slipped and fell on the icy pavement somewhere between the village and his home. He was so badly shaken that he stayed in bed for three days; and not until he got up and dressed again did he discover that he had lost his wallet containing over fifty pounds. The house was turned upside down in the search, but the wallet was not found. However, two days later, Prince dropped the wallet into Williams’ hand. Very muddy, and wet through, the wallet still contained fifty-three pounds.

49. It can be learned from the passage that gun-dogs are dogs that          .

A. can take care of their owners

B. are the fastest runners of all dogs

C. have their teeth removed when they are young

D. can carry birds , foxes , etc . without hurting them

50. Williams did not realize his wallet was lost for several days because          .

A. he had no chance to feel in his pockets

B. he had thought it was in his house

C. he was sure his dog could find it

D. he was ill all the time

51. The best title for this passage is          .

A. An intelligent dog B. Williams had a trained dog

C. Williams’ family and a clever dog           D. Prince , a clever , well-trained dog

52. The underlined part “the dog did not waste this knowledge” probably means          .

A. the dog did know Williams                     B. the dog didn’t know what to do

C. the dog knew what to do all the time      D. the dog did have a lot of knowledge

       Italian sculptor and painter Michelangelo was one of the most remarkable artists who ever lived. Working in Rome and Florence in the early 1500s, he produced both religious and secular art that is still marveled at today. But it appears that Michelangelo could be his own harshest (苛刻的)critic(评论家).

       Michelangelo was an old, sick man when he began carving a sculpture known as The Florence Pieta (a pieta is a sculpture of the Virgin Mary holding the dead body of Jesus). He worked on the sculpture only at night, and sometimes was in such pain that he could not work at all. Michelangelo intended to have the huge, almost eight feet tall sculpture as part of his own tombstone(墓碑); included in the work was the figure of an elderly suffering man. In describing the sculpture, Michelangelo’s biographer wrote of its great “beauty and sorrow”.

       But one day, after ten years of labor, the artist suddenly turned on his work. He attacked it with a sledgehammer, chopping off arms and legs. He would have destroyed the sculpture entirely if an assistant had not dragged him away. Later, the work was repaired by another assistant, but in an imperfect way.

       What prompted(促使) Michelangelo to almost destroy one of his greatest works? Did he feel he had made a mistake in the composition or the carving? Did he discover a hidden flaw(瑕疵)in the marble? Scientists have begun studying the repaired statue, taking 3-D photos of it from every angle so that they can study its structure with a computer. Perhaps someday they will have a clue as to what motivated Michelangelo.

1．Choose a good title for this passage.

       A．The lonely life of a genius                B．An artistic mystery

       C．Beauty and sorrow                   D．Using a computer to reconstruct the past

2．Michelangelo was carving the pieta for___________.

       A．his tombstone      B．a museum           C．a private client     D．an Italian church

3．What conclusion can you draw from this passage?

       A．Michelangelo was an impatient, temperamental man

       B．Michelangelo worked in constant pain.

       C．Michelangelo ordered his assistant to repair the statue.

       D．Computer may help in resolving ancient puzzles.

4．The author of this passage quotes Michelangelo’s biographer in order to show that_______.

       A．the statue did not look to be flawed

       B．Michelangelo was unhappy with his work

       C．sometimes biographers don’t know what they are talking about

       D．Michelangelo could not stand to be criticized.

5．The word “secular” means__________.

       A．holy                                                 B．worldly(世俗的) 

       C．mediocre(低劣的)                   D．excellent