New
York is one of the last large American cities to have some of its policemen on
horseback. The New York police have 170 horses that they use in certain parts
of the city. The horses are expensive to feed, but it is even more expensive to
take care of them. Because the horses must walk on the streets, they need
special horseshoes. In fact, they need more than 8,000 of them each year. Every
police horse in New York gets new shoes every month. Keeping these shoes in
good repair is the job of six blacksmiths. There are only about thirty-five of
these blacksmiths in the whole Unite States.
The
cost of shoeing a horse is between twenty dollars and thirty--five dollars, and
it takes a good blacksmith two to three hours to do the job.
A blacksmith’s
job is not an easy one. He must be able to shape a shoe from a piece of metal
and then fit it to the horse’s foot. The blacksmith must bend over all the time
when he is fitting the shoe and must hold the weight of the horse’s leg while
he works. But even more important, he must be able to deal with horses ------
for before the blacksmith can begin his work, he has to get the horse to lift
its leg.
One of
the blacksmiths in New York is James Corbin. He came to the country form
Ireland in 1948.He not only makes horseshoes for the police but also works for
a group of horse owners near the city. Corbin became interested in
blacksmithing because his father did it, and, as he puts it, “It’s a good way
to make a living.”
1.According to the reading passage, a blacksmith must be likely a
man.
A. clever B.
rich C.
strong D.
tall
2. James Corbin became a blacksmith because he .
A. was
interested in horses. B.
was needed by the policemen
C. drew a
picture of the horses D.
had to make a living
3. In the reading passage “to shape a shoe” is to .
A. fit it on
the horse’s foot B.
use it for two or three hours
C. make the
form of a horseshoe from a piece of metal D. draw a picture of the shoe
4.The best title for the passage is .
A. Policemen
on Horseback B.
Blacksmiths and Horseshoeing
C. James
Corbin, a Blacksmith D.
Horseshoeing Is a Good Way to Make a Living
5. Which of the following is true?
A. Only a few
large American cities have some policemen on horseback.
B. New York is
the only city in America to have some policemen on horseback.
C. Policemen
on horseback enjoy traveling around the United States.
D. Policemen on horseback
are less expensive than those in cars.