1. When the plane caught fire, the crew ________.

A. were forced to go on flying

B. managed to put out the fire in the air

C. managed to return to the London Airport

D. managed to continue their flight

    2. Finally, the firemen ________.

    A. watched all the passengers getting off the plane

    B. got most of the passengers off the burning plane

    C. saved some crew members, who were hurt, from the plane

    D. were able to stop the fire spreading to the other parts of the plane

    3. Which of the following is true?

    A. When the fire broke out, the crew felt very nervous.

    B. The minute the plane stopped, the passengers jumped off it one after another.

    C. The plane was burnt down in the fire completely.

    D. The plane crew know what to do when there is fire in the air plane.

    4. The article is mainly about ________.

    A. how the crew and the firemen dealt with the fire

    B. what the plane was equipped with

    C. how the crew worked in the plane

    D. what the crew did to calm the passengers

    (5. Which of the following is not true?

    A. Airport should have twenty-four-hour fire service.

    B. The plane crew should be given a great deal of training in dealing with fires.

    C. Modern planes should be specially equipped to meet dangerous situations.

    D. Fire is no longer great danger to modern planes

Recently a Boeing 707 left London with 128 passengers. A minute after it took off, a fire broke out in one of the motors. It could not be controlled and the crew decided to turn back. Firemen in special fire-engines (消防车) rushed to meet the plane. It was coming in very fast with black smoke behind it. It landed and moved along at full speed. The fire-engines sped along behind it. The plane came to a stop. Within seconds the firemen were fighting the fire. At the same time, special doors and windows in the plane were thrown open. The crew worked calmly but very quickly. The passengers got to the ground by sliding down a special piece of cloth from the plane to the ground. In less than two minutes all the passengers and crew were out. Nobody was hurt. And the firemen had brought the fire under control. Such things seldom happen but when they do, the airport and crew are ready to deal with them.

    1. When the plane caught fire, the crew ________.

A. were forced to go on flying

B. managed to put out the fire in the air

C. managed to return to the London Airport

D. managed to continue their flight

    2. Finally, the firemen ________.

    A. watched all the passengers getting off the plane

    B. got most of the passengers off the burning plane

    C. saved some crew members, who were hurt, from the plane

    D. were able to stop the fire spreading to the other parts of the plane

    3. Which of the following is true?

    A. When the fire broke out, the crew felt very nervous.

    B. The minute the plane stopped, the passengers jumped off it one after another.

    C. The plane was burnt down in the fire completely.

    D. The plane crew know what to do when there is fire in the air plane.

    4. The article is mainly about ________.

    A. how the crew and the firemen dealt with the fire

    B. what the plane was equipped with

    C. how the crew worked in the plane

    D. what the crew did to calm the passengers

    (5. Which of the following is not true?

    A. Airport should have twenty-four-hour fire service.

    B. The plane crew should be given a great deal of training in dealing with fires.

    C. Modern planes should be specially equipped to meet dangerous situations.

    D. Fire is no longer great danger to modern planes

It was a Friday afternoon. An elderly lady was doing the   21  in a supermarket. When she returned to her 22 , she found four men in the act of   23  her car. So she  24  her shopping bags and took out her   25 , screaming at the top of her voice, “I have a gun, and I know how to use it!   26  the car!”

The four men didn’t   27  for a second threat. They all got out immediately and   28  like mad.

After she got into the   29   seat and prepared to drive away, she was   30  that she could not get her key into the ignition (点火开关). She   31  over and over again, and then she suddenly realized why,   32  she found that there was a football, a jacket and two packs of cigarettes in the front seat.

A few minutes later, she saw her own car   33  four or five spaces farther down. She put her bags into the car and drove to the police station to report her  34 .

The police officer to whom she told the story couldn’t stop  35 . He pointed to the other end of the corner, where four   36  men were reporting that their car was   37  by a mad, elderly woman   38  as white, less than five feet tall, glasses, curly white hair, and   39  a large handgun. Not surprisingly, the elderly lady felt very sorry for what she had done, and   40  to the four men.

It’s just a small, white envelope stuck among the branches of our Christmas tree. No name, no identification, no inscription. It has peeked through the branches of our tree for the past 10 years or so.

It all began because my husband Mike hated Christmas — oh, not the true meaning of Christmas, but the commercial aspects of it — overspending... the frantic running around at the last minute to get a tie for Uncle Harry and the dusting powder for Grandma — the gifts given in desperation because you couldn’t think of anything else.

Knowing he felt this way, I decided one year to bypass the usual shirts, sweaters, ties and so forth. I reached for something special just for Mike. The inspiration came in an unusual way.

Our son Kevin, who was 12 that year, was wrestling at the junior level at the school he attended; and shortly before Christmas, there was a non-league match against a team sponsored by an inner-city church. These youngsters, dressed in sneakers so ragged that shoestrings seemed to be the only thing holding them together, presented a sharp contrast to our boys in their spiffy blue and gold uniforms and sparkling new wrestling shoes.

As the match began, I was alarmed to see that the other team was wrestling without headgear, a kind of light helmet designed to protect a wrestler’s ears. It was a luxury the ragtag team obviously could not afford. Well, we ended up walloping them. We took every weight class. And as each of their boys got up from the mat, he swaggered around in his tatters with false bravado, a kind of street pride that couldn’t acknowledge defeat.

Mike, seated beside me, shook his head sadly, “I wish just one of them could have won,” he said. “They have a lot of potential, but losing like this could take the heart right out of them.”

Mike loved kids — all kids — and he knew them, having coached little league football, baseball and lacrosse. That’s when the idea for his present came. That afternoon, I went to a local sporting goods store and bought an assortment of wrestling headgear and shoes and sent the anonymously to the inner-city church.

On Christmas Eve, I placed the envelope on the tree, the note inside telling Mike what I had done and that this was his gift from me. His smile was the brightest thing about Christmas that year and in succeeding years.

For each Christmas, I followed the tradition — one year sending a group of mentally handicapped youngsters to a hockey game, another year a check to a pair of elderly brothers whose home had burned to the ground the week before Christmas, and on and on.

The envelope became the highlight of our Christmas. It was always the last thing opened on Christmas morning and our children, ignoring their new toys, would stand with wide-eyed anticipation as their dad lifted the envelope from the tree to reveal its contents.

As the children grew, the toys gave way to more practical presents, but the envelope never lost its allure. The story doesn’t end there. You see, we lost Mike last year due to dreaded cancer. When Christmas rolled around, I was still so wrapped in grief that I barely got the tree up. But Christmas Eve found me placing an envelope on the tree, and in the morning, it was joined by three more.

Each of our children, unbeknownst to the others, had placed an envelope on the tree for their dad. The tradition has grown and someday will expand even further with our grandchildren standing around the tree with wide-eyed anticipation watching as their fathers take down the envelope. Mike’s spirit, like the Christmas spirit, will always be with us.

55.　 Why did Mike get so bored with Christmas at first?

A.　 People would pour into stores to blindly purchase gifts over Christmas.

B.　 He wasn’t satisfied with the Christmas presents he had ever received.

C.　 People couldn’t come up with any fantastic ideas for Christmas gifts.

D.　 The true meaning of Christmas remained unchanged in people’s minds.

56．The writer mentions what the two teams wore in Paragraph 4 in order to _______.

A.　 show her pride in her children’s present living conditions

B.　 explain the reason why her son’s team won the match

C.　 reflect the financial difficulty of the inner-city church

D.　 express the shock those lower-class teenagers brought her

57. What did Mike mean by saying “losing like this could take the heart right out of them”

(Paragraph 6)?

A．They didn’t care whether they could win the match or not.

B．They didn’t acknowledge the defeat because of the unfairness.

C．Being defeated in this way could make them lose confidence.

D．Being defeated in this way could inspire them to train harder.

58．Mike’s bright smile at the note suggests.
A．what his wife had done as against the Christmas spirit.
B．he thought the very Christmas gift had real significance
C．what was written on the note was easy to understand
D．he was amused by the Christmas tradition of his family.
59．What happened at the first Christmas after Mike’s death?
A．The writer asked her children to follow their family tradition.
B．All the children stood around the Christmas tree with expectation.
C．The writer removed the Christmas tree to avoid thinking of Mike.
D．The children each put an envelope on the Christmas tree for their dad.
60．In the writer’s eyes, the white envelope is a symbol of　　　　 .
A．Mike’s spirit　　　　　 B．children’s love　　　　 C．unusual ideas　　　　　 D．special gifts

Hilary Smith belonged to a good family. But by the age of twenty, he had spent all the money the good old family had. He then had some trouble with the bank and was put in prison. He escaped from the prison and ran to Australia without delay.

Hilary did not like Australia and Australia did not like Hilary. What he could do seemed to be one of two things: die or work. The thought of neither of these gave him any pleasure. Then he remembered that he was not alone in the world. He possessed an aunt.

She was his father’s only sister, but his father used to say she brought no glory to the family. Hilary, of course, tried to discover what she had done. It seemed that she had failed to marry a nobleman. Instead, she had chosen a husband who was connected with trade. Of course as soon as she became “Mrs Parks”, her brother considered her dead. Later on, Mr. Parks died and left her a lot of money; but that did not bring her back to life in her brother’s opinion.

Hilary discovered his aunt’s address. Fortunately she remained faithful and honest to him even after she fell ill. So Hilary’s star shone again. When he was feeling honest, he could talk attractively. He frequently visited his aunt’s house; and soon he was living comfortably in the building which the profits of trade had provided.

One thing was soon clear: his aunt was seriously ill, and nothing could cure her illness. Hilary was very worried. Fate had found a home for him, and was now going to throw him out of it. There was only one thing that could save him: her will.

“Will?” she said, “yes, I have made one. That was when I was a girl and had not much money. I left all my money to some religious people.”

“Didn’t you make another will when you were married?” Hilary asked.

His aunt shook her head. “No,” she said in a low voice, “There was no need. When I finally had a lot of money I found I had no relations.”

On the next day he went to the public library and examined a book of law. It told him what he already believed. When a woman is married, an earlier will loses its value. A new will must be made. If no new will is made, the money goes to the nearest relation. Hilary knew that he was his aunt’s only relation. His future was safe.

After a few months had passed, Hilary’s problems became serious. He badly needed money. He had expensive tastes, and owed a lot of money to shopkeepers. They trusted him because his aunt was rich; but the debt was terrible.

Unfortunately his aunt did not want to discuss money matters at all. In the end they had a quarrel about the small amount of ten pounds. Hilary was now very angry. He began to wonder about a new problem. Was it kind to want his aunt to live any longer? Was it not better for her to die now? While he was considering what to do, his aunt told him that she was going to send for her lawyer. So she was going to make a new will. Hilary thought she might leave all her money to someone else. Soon he reached a clear decision．He must do a great kindness to the poor old woman.

One night when the old servant who had been nursing his aunt went off, he doubled the amount of some medicine. The total amount was too great and it could just put her to sleep forever.

“Thank you,” his aunt took the glass from his hand with a grateful look. “I want, more than anything, to sleep, and never to wake up again. Is that what you wish, Hilary? I have given you your chance. Don’t blame me if I have some doubts about what you intended to do. Sick people get these ideas, you know. One thing I ought to explain to you. Mr. Parks never married me. He already had a wife and couldn’t marry again. That made your foolish father very angry with me… Well, if I am alive tomorrow I shall make another will in your favor. If I die tonight, you’ll get nothing… No, Hilary, don’t try to take the glass away. If you do that, I shall know; and I don’t want to know. Good night, Hilary.”

Then, very carefully, she raised the glass to her mouth and drank.

1.From the story, we learn that Hilary’s aunt was ______.

A. bad-tempered and lonely                    B. kind-hearted and wise

C. careless about money                       D. cruel to her nephew

2.Why did Hilary’s father consider his aunt dead?

A. Because they lost contact with each other after her marriage.

B. Because she married a businessman.

C. Because she broke away from the family for a better life.

D. Because he thought she was a shame to the family.

3.The underlined sentence “He must do a great kindness to the poor old woman” in Paragraph 11 suggests that Hilary Smith ______.

A. was determined to put his aunt’s life to an end

B. decided to do his aunt a favor to call in a lawyer

C. made up his mind to take good care of his aunt

D. would help his aunt to donate all her money to religious people

4.Which of the following is the focus of the story?

A. Hilary’s aunt’s money.                    B. Hilary Smith’s debts.

C. The intended murder.                     D. Hilary’s aunt’s marriage.

5.Which part of what Hilary’s aunt said finally might make Hilary frustrated?

A. She wanted to sleep and never to wake up again.

B. She never got married to Mr. Parks.

C. Mr. Parks had a wife.

D. She would make a new will tomorrow.

6.Which detail from the story is the climax（高潮）of the story?

A. Hilary escaped from the prison.

B. Hilary quarreled with his aunt about ten pounds.

C. Hilary’s aunt drank the medicine her nephew prepared for her.

D. Hilary’s aunt made a will to leave all her money to someone else.