When one loves one’s Art, no service seems too hard.

Joe was a man with a genius(天才) for art. Delia did things in six octaves(音阶) promisingly.

Joe and Delia became in love with one of the other, or each of the other, as you please, and in a short time were married – for (see above), when one loves one’s Art no service seems too hard.

They began housekeeping in a flat. It was a lonesome(无人迹的) flat, but they were happy; for they had their Art, and they had each other.

Joe was learning painting in the class of the great Magister – you know his fame. His fees are high; his lessons are light – his high-lights have brought him fame. Delia was studying under Rosenstock – you know his reputation as a disturber of the piano keys.

They were mighty(非常地) happy as long as their money lasted. 

After a while, Art flagged(减退). Everything going out and nothing coming in, money was lacking to pay Mr. Magister and Rosenstock their prices. When one loves one’s Art, no service seems too hard. So, Delia said she must give music lessons to make the ends meet.

For two or three days she went out looking for pupils. One evening she came home overjoyed.

“Joe, dear,” she said, cheerfully, “I’ve a pupil. And, oh, the loveliest people! General – General Pinkney’s daughter Clementina – on Seventy-first street.”

“That’s all right for you, Dele,” said Joe, “but how about me? Do you think I’m going to let you work while I play in the regions of high art? ”

Delia came and hung about his neck.

“Joe, dear, you are silly. You must keep on at your studies. It is not as if I had quit my music and gone to work at something else. While I teach I learn. I am always with my music.”

“All right,” said Joe. “But I may sell some of my pictures as well.”

The next few weeks, they both busied themselves with their own business and brought back a ten, a five, a two and a one – all legal tender notes – and laid them beside each others’ earnings.

One Saturday evening Joe reached home first. He spread his $18 on the table and washed what seemed to be a great deal of dark paint from his hands.

Half an hour later Delia arrived, her right hand tied up in a shapeless bundle(束) of wraps and bandages(绷带).

“How is this?” asked Joe. Delia laughed, but not very joyously. “Clementina,” she explained, “insisted upon a Welsh rabbit(一种奶酪) after her lesson. In serving the rabbit she spilled a great lot of it, boiling hot, over my wrist. Nothing serious, dear.”

“What time this afternoon did you burn your hand, Dele?”

“Five o’clock, I think,” said Dele. “The iron – I mean the rabbit came off the fire about that time.”

“Sit down here a moment, Dele,” said Joe. “What have you been doing for the last few weeks, Dele?” he asked.

She braved it for a moment or two with an eye full of love and stubbornness, but at last down went her head and out came the truth and tears.

“I couldn’t get any pupils,” she wept. “I got a place ironing shirts in that big Twenty-fourth street laundry(洗衣店). A girl in the laundry set down a hot iron(熨斗) on my hand this afternoon. I think I did very well to make up both General Pinkney and Clementina. What made you ever suspect that I wasn’t giving music lessons?”

“I didn’t,” said Joe, “until tonight. And I wouldn’t have then, only I sent up this cotton waste and oil from the engine-room this afternoon for a girl upstairs who had her hand burned with a smoothing-iron. I’ve been firing the engine in that laundry for the last few weeks.”

“And then you didn’t …” said Delia

And then they both looked at each other and laughed, and Joe began:

“When one loves one’s Art no service seems …”

But Delia stopped him with her hand on his lips. “No,” she said – “just ‘When one loves.’”

1.What can we know about the couple from the story?

A. They both became famous for their talents in art.

B. They turned out to be working at the same laundry.

2.What qualities of the couple’s are best conveyed in the story?

A. intelligent and economical B. faithful and romantic

C. considerate and giving D. hardworking and loyal[

3.Which of the following does NOT give readers a clue(线索) that the couple were telling white lies?

A. Delia said she must give music lessons to make the ends meet.

B. Joe washed what seemed to be a great deal of dark paint from his hands.

C. Delia’s right wrist was tied up in a shapeless bundle of wraps and bandages.

D. “The iron – I mean the rabbit came off the fire about that time” said Dele.

4.Why does the author repeat “When one loves one’s Art no service seems too hard.”?

A. To reveal the theme of the story.

B. To explain the author’s writing purpose.

C. To indicate the sad mood of the story.

D. To assist with the development of the story.

5.What can serve as the best title of this story?

A. A Service of Love B. A Service of Art

C. No Art No Love D. The Love for Art

Companion(同伴)robots are playing an ever-increasing role in helping busy people look after the elderly and children. With an aging population and an increasing labor shortage, the demand for companion robots for elder care and children’s companions is on the rise.

Xiaoyuzaijia is an intelligent companion robot produced by Zaijia.com, a Beijing-based startup engaged in internet hardware and intelligent home appliances businesses.

If the elderly people are ill at home, the robot can bring medicine and water. The robot will open the door when the guest comes. It can even tell a story, sing a song and play chess.

The number of elderly people aged 60 and above reached more than 222 million in 2015, accounting for 16.2 percent of the total population, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. It is estimated that the number will reach 243 million in 2020.

Song Chenfeng, founder and CEO of Zaijia, said: "The robot is equipped with a monitoring camera and other hardware for facial and voice recognition.” Family members could also connect their smart phones with the robot. “When the elderly fall or the children cry at home, the robot will send messages to inform other family members," he said. “The companion robot should be an important 'blue sea' in the intelligent household robot market. Xiaoyuzaijia aims at white-collar people who are busy with their work and spend less time accompanying their family members. It builds a bridge among family members and satisfies the emotional communications needs of modern people,” said Song.

Yuan Wenhui, chairman of Zaijia, said the company will offer personalized service in the family healthcare and children's education sectors, based on big data algorithms, aiming to be an indispensable intelligent family housekeeper in the future.

Statistics from the International Federation of Robotics show that the market demand for service robots will boom in the next three years, with the market scale reaching $46 billion.

1.Why will the companion robots be warmly welcomed?

A. They are equipped with a camera and other hardware

B. They are helpful in the care of the elder and children

C. They can be connect with their family members

D. They can bring medicine and even tell stories

2.Which can replace the underlined phrase “accounting for” in Paragraph 4?

A. taking on B. taking off

C. making out D. making up

3.Who is the companion robot of Zaijia mainly designed for?

A. The doctors B. The injured

C. The white-collar D. The students

4.Which could be the best title for the text?

A. Companion robots will be our best friends

B. Companion robots will be our family pets

C. Companion robots will help you do anything

D. Companion robots will replace housekeepers

At midnight, Peter was awakened by heavy knocks on the door. He rolled over and looked at his _____, and it was half past one. “I’m not getting ___ at this time,” he ____ to himself, and rolled over.

Then, a ______ knock followed. “Aren’t you going to ____ it?” said his wife.

So he dragged himself out of bed and went downstairs. He opened the door and there was a man

______ at the door. It didn’t take long to ______ the man was drunk.

“Hi, there, ” slurred (嘟囔) the stranger, “Can you give me a push?”

“No, _____. It’s half past one. I was _____,” Peter said and slammed(猛关) the door. He went back ______ to bed and told his wife what had happened.

She said, “That wasn’t very ______ of you. Remember that night we had a _____ in the pouring rain on the way to ____ the kids and you had to knock on a man’s door to get our car

____ again? What would have happened if he’d told _____ to go away? ”

“But the guy was _______,” said Peter.

“It doesn’t matter,” said the wife. “He needs help ______ it would be the Christian thing to help him.”

So Peter went out of bed again, got dressed, and went downstairs. He opened the door, and not being able to see the stranger anywhere, he shouted, “Hey, do you still want a ___ ?”

And he heard a _____, “Yeah, please.”

So still being unable to see the stranger, he shouted, “_____ are you?”

The drunk replied, “Over here, on the swing(秋千).”

1.A. door B. wife C. clock D. window

2.A. into trouble B. out of the house C. down to work D. out of bed

3.A. complained B. explained C. thought D. replied

4.A. louder B. weaker C. longer D. angrier

5.A. stand B. stop C. refuse D. answer

6.A. knocking B. lying C. standing D. looking

7.A. remember B. realize C. show D. doubt

8.A. go out B. go away C. go ahead D. go up

9.A. in bed B. in surprise C. at home D. at work

10.A. down B. in C. inside D. up

11.A. foolish B. nice C. typical D. generous

12.A. look B. quarrel C. fight D. breakdown

13.A. put up B. pick down C. pick up D. put down

14.A. united B. refreshed C. started D. delighted

15.A. us B. them C. the man D. others

16.A. mad B. drunk C. different D. dangerous

17.A. but B. though C. and D. because

18.A. push B. rest C. room D. lift

19.A. lady B. gentleman C. sound D. voice

20.A. where B. how C. who D. what

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