Lucky is the man who has no “skeleton in his closet”. When a man has done something in his life that he is ashamed of, that he wants to hide, he is said to have a “skeleton in his closet”. Some people may have more than one skeleton.

  As we have noted many times, it is hard to find out how these expressions begin. Sometimes, we get some hard facts. But more often we have to depend on guesswork. And that is true of this phrase, which came from England.

  Before 1932, English law did not permit a doctor to cut open a dead human body for scientific examination, unless it was the corpse(尸体) of an executed(处决) criminal.

  But when it became legal, more and more doctors demanded skeletons for a more scientific study of medicine. It was helping in the advance of modern medicine. The demand had become so strong that men began to rob tombs and sell skeletons to doctors at high prices.

  We are told that a doctor would usually buy just one skeleton for scientific study. It became very important in his work. But he had to keep it hidden because most people objected to keeping such a thing. As a rule, the doctor would keep his skeleton in some dark corner where it could not be seen, or hide it in a closet.

  After a time, people began to suspect(怀疑) every doctor of hiding a skeleton in the closet. From this suspicion, the phrase “a skeleton in the closet” took on a broader, more general meaning to describe anything that a man wanted to keep others from discovering. It could be proof of a criminal act, or something much less serious. Well, that is one theory.

  One writer, however, believes that the phrase might have come from something that really happened. It is his guess that a hidden closet in some old English country home may have turned up a real skeleton, clear proof of some old family shame or crime. Well, one man’s guess is as good as another. But this sounds like a story by the great French novelist, Balzac.

  Baizac tells us of a man who suspected his wife of having a lover. The husband comes home by surprise. But she hears him and quickly hides her lover in the closet of her bedroom. He enters her room and asks her if she is hiding her lover. He says he will not open the door to the closet if she promises him there is no one there; He will believe her. She answers firmly that she is not hiding anyone in the closet.

  The husband then begins to build a solid brick wall against the closet. His wife watches, knowing that her lover will never come out alive. But she will not change her story and admit her guilt.   

1. Which of the following situations is suitable for using the phrase “skeleton in the closet” ?

  A. You have stolen something precious and don’t want it discovered.

  B. You are a doctor and have to keep a skeleton for research.

  C. If you have cut open a dead human body for scientific examination you should keep the skeleton secret.

  D. You have done a crime or done something foolish, but you want to keep other from discovering it.

2. From the text we know that there are _______ theories about how the phrase “skeleton in the closet” came into being.

  A. one            B. two            C. three     D. four

3. In Chinese the world “skeleton” means _______.

  A. 尸体      B. 标本      C. 收藏     D. 骷髅

4. Which of the following is right according to the text?

     A. In the 20th century, doctors realized the importance of anatomy(解剖) in the development of medicine.

  B. The doctors of the ancient times liked to collect as many skeleton as possible.

  C. The thieves stole skeletons from tombs in order to help the doctors.

  D. It was legal that corpses of anybody were cut open for scientific examination in history.

5. From the story Balzac told we know that the wife’s lover must have become _______.

A. a corpse     B. a phrase     C. a skeleton    D. a secret

Pairs, Jan. 11--- An armored (武装) car robbery last night ended in a wild gunbattle that two men dead and a hostage (人质) seriously wounded.

The drama (刺激的事件) began when an armored car carrying the contents of safety(储备)boxes to a bank was struck by a large truck, police said.

The bank guards were helpless when the robbers jumped out of the truck and tied them. The robbers used heavy tools and explosives (爆炸品) to break the armored car.

    A passing police car turned to look into the accident as the men were removing the contents of the armored car. Police said the three robbers fled on foot across a nearby highway.

    Stopping a private car driven by a teenaged girl, the three escaped for central Pairs with the police car in hot pursuit(追捕).

A plain clothes policeman saw the car as it drove through the street of Lat in Quarter. The policeman tried to stop the car, but the thieves started shooting at him, witness (目击者) said.

The girl hostage tried to slip away. Just as she was crawling (爬出) away from the car, she was hit by a bullet. Police said she was out of danger at Central Hospital.

The gunmen gave up the car and got into a shop, pouring fire on more than 50 policemen that surrounded the building. After a wild gunbattle, police broke into the room. They only found two of the gunmen, both seriously wounded. The third thief was believed to have escaped with over $1.3 million in cash and jewellery.

The passage is about _____.

A. a gunbattle between the policeman and the government soldiers.

B. a bank robbery in Paris.

C. a group of gunmen's robbery of armored car in the streets.

D. how a teenaged girl got seriously wounded.

The robbers came       and they _____.

A. in a police car; stole the armed car.

B. in a truck; blasted (炸毁) the armored car.

C. in an armored truck; drove the money car away.

D. in an armored car; opened the armored car with heavy tools.

The three robbers escaped on foot across a nearby highway because_____.

A. a passing police car found them .

B. the explosives were too strong .

C. the contents of the armored car were too heavy .

D. the truck broke down .

A plain clothes policeman is ______.

A. not a policeman but a soldier .              B. not a policeman but a gunman .

C. a policeman but he doesn't wear a uniform .   D. a robber .

After a wild gunbattle, ______.

A. the robbers were shot dead.

B. the police got back what they wanted.

C. the police failed to get back what they wanted.

D. 50 policemen were killed and the robbers were seriously wounded.

Art theft is an ancient and complicated crime. When you look at some of the most famous cases of art thefts in history, you see thoroughly planned operations that involve art dealers, art fakers, mobsters, ransoms, and millions of dollars. Here you can read about some of the most famous cases of art theft in the history.
The First Theft:  
The first documented case of art theft was in 1473, when two panels of altarpiece of the Last Judgment by the Dutch painter Hans Memling were stolen. While the triptych was being transported by ship from the Netherlands to Florence, the ship was attacked by pirates who took it to the Gdansk cathedral in Poland. Nowadays, the piece is shown at the National Museum in Gdansk where it was recently moved from the Basilica of the Assumption.
The Most Famous Theft:
The most famous story of art theft involves one of the most famous paintings in the world and one of the most famous artists in history as a suspect. In the night of August 21, 1911, the Mona Lisa was stolen out of the Louver. Soon after, Pablo Picasso was arrested and questioned by the police, but was released quickly.
It took about two years until the mystery was solved by the Parisian police. It turned out that the 30×21 inch painting was taken by one of the museum employees by the name of Vincenzo Peruggia, who simply carried it hidden under his coat. Nevertheless, Peruggia did not work alone. The crime was carefully conducted by a notorious con man, Eduardo de Valfierno, who was sent by an art faker who intended to make copies and sell them as if they were the original painting.
While Yves Chaudron, the art faker, was busy creating copies for the famous masterpiece, Mona Lisa was still hidden at Peruggias’ apartment. After two years in which Peruggia did not hear from Chaudron, he tried to make the best out of his stolen good. Eventually, Peruggia was caught by the police while trying to sell the painting to an art dealer from Florence, Italy. The Mona Lisa was returned to the Louver in 1913.
The Biggest Theft in the USA:
The biggest art theft in United States took place at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. On the night of March 18, 1990, a group of thieves wearing police uniforms broke into the museum and took thirteen paintings whose collective value was estimated at around 300 million dollars. The thieves took two paintings and one print by Rembrandt, and works of Vermeer, Manet, Degas, Govaert Flinck, as well as a French and a Chinese artifact.
As of yet, none of the paintings have been found and the case is still unsolved. According to recent rumors, the FBI are investigating the possibility that the Boston Mob along with French art dealers are connected to the crime.
【小题1】 How long did it take to put back the stolen Mona Lisa in Louver ?___

A.Thirty six monthsB.Thirty months
C.Half a year D.Around two years
【小题2】What does the underlined sentence, “he tried to make the best out of his stolen good” mean?
A.Chaudron wanted to sell the stolen painting.
B.Peruggia thought he didn’t need to work for Chaudon any more and wanted to market the painting.
C.Valfierno was tired of waiting.
D.Peruggia wanted to study the painting carefully.
【小题3】 Which case among those mentioned in the passage is still a mystery?
A.Mona Lisa case
B.Last Judgment case
C.Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum thirteen paintings case
D.none
【小题4】People from the country of _____ is not involved in the passage.
A.ChinaB.FranceC.DutchD.Vantican
【小题5】 Which statement is WRONG according to this article?
A.Picasso was ever considered a art theft suspect.
B.Art thieves normally not work alone.
C.The first documented case of art theft was conducted by pirates.
D.The mastermind of Mona Lisa was an art faker who wanted to sell copies.
【小题6】 The passage is not finished, which subtitle could be the next?
A.The Economic Value of Art TheftB.The Loss to Art Lovers
C.The Most Sought After PaintingD.Boston Mob and French Art Dealers

In 1985 a France television company sent its reporters to the Paris Metro(地铁).They took ___21___ to see what passengers would do if they saw someone ___22___ on the platform or trains.The incidents looked ___23___ and they were all done with the help of actors.However, very ___24___ people tried to help, and most passengers ___25___ not to notice.In one of the ___26___, a foreigner was attacked by three men.The attack was on a ___27___ which was quite full, and although the man tried to get ___28___ passengers to help, they all refused.This is not only a French ___29___.A British newspaper reported in 1991 that a professor of Social Psychology in New York had ___30___ his students out to rob their own cars.The students didn’t try to ___31___ what they were doing.About 80 people ___32___ 250 car thefts, and only twelve of them tried to ___33___ the student robbers.In a typical incident, one man stopped, looked, and then put his hands over his ___34___ and shouted “I didn’t see that!” About forty people ___35___ to help the thieves, and two people ___36___ sat down next to the car and ___37___ to buy a camera and a television set a student was ___38___ from the back seat of his own car.The professor ___39___ whether it is a problem of big cities or would be the ___40___ thing as happens anywhere.

1.A.notes              B.trains           C.cameras          D.newspapers

2.A.attacked           B.stolen           C .wounded         D.struck

3.A.great              B.real             C.serious          D.terrible

4.A.many               B.old              C.few              D.large

5.A.pretended          B.seemed           C.managed          D.asked

6.A.passengers         B.actors           C.accidents        D.incidents

7.A.plane              B.train            C.truck            D.bus

8.A.another    B.all  C.more             D.the other

9.A.situation          B.agreement        C.problem          D.accident

10.A.brought           B.sent             C.took             D.put

11.A.expose            B.hide             C.tell             D.find

12.A.watched    B.discovered              C.found            D.realized

13.A.help              B.refuse           C.stop             D.report

14.A.face              B.head             C.eyes             D.ears

15.A.expected          B.offered          C.hated            D.liked

16.A.bravely           B.surely           C.actually         D.certainly

17.A.wanted            B.loved            C.needed           D.waited

18.A.sending           B.taking           C.offering         D.robbing

19.A.knows             B.wonders          C.learns           D.asks

20.A.former        B.different        C.same             D.small

 

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