Jack Baines is a self-made millionaire, but his beginnings were very lowly. He was the youngest of eight children. His father had a _______ in a cotton mill (纱厂), but he was often _______ to work because of poor health. The family couldn’t _______ to pay the rent or bills, and the children often went _______. After leaving school at the age of 14, Jack was _______ what to do when Mr Walker, his old teacher, offered to lend him ￡100 to start his own _______.

It was just after the war. Raw materials were not enough, and Jack saw a _______ in scrap metal(废弃金属). He bought bits of metal and stored it in an old garage. When he had built up a large amount, he sold it and _______ plenty of money.

Jack _______ working hard. After one year he succeeded in ________ the ￡100.

By the time Jack was 30 years old he had ________ his first million, and he wanted to ________ this achievement by doing something “________”. With all his money it was ________ to build a beautiful home for himself and his parents. In 1959, “Baines Castle” was built in the ________ of the Lancashire countryside. It was one of the finest buildings in the country.

Jack has recently sold “Baines Castle” for ￡500 million, ________ Jack still can’t get used to ________ the good life. He can ________ be found drinking with the locals at the local pub(酒吧).

“I remember being very ________ as a child, but never ________ as a child,” says Jack, “and I will never forget where I came from and who I am.”

1.

A．job

B．work

C．company

D．house

2.

A．able

B．glad

C．unable

D．eager

3.

A．offer

B．like

C．expect

D．afford

4.

A．wrong

B．hungry

C．ill

D．bad

5.

A．seeing

B．wondering

C．doubting

D．preparing

6.

A．school

B．farm

C．business

D．store

7.

A．problem

B．purpose

C．future

D．principle

8.

A．spent

B．borrowed

C．wasted

D．earned

9.

A．enjoyed

B．preferred

C．promised

D．hated

10.

A．developing

B．saving

C．repaying

D．paying

11.

A．given

B．made

C．taken

D．lost

12.

A．remember

B．honor

C．celebrate

D．recognize

13.

A．common

B．simple

C．interesting

D．grand

14.

A．impossible

B．possible

C．obvious

D．basic

15.

A．ground

B．front

C．spot

D．heart

16.

A．so

B．and

C．or

D．but

17.

A．using

B．sparing

C．living

D．keeping

18.

A．often

B．never

C．sometimes

D．seldom

19.

A．rich

B．poor

C．healthy

D．well

20.

A．proud

B．satisfied

C．unhappy

D．happy

Hobbs was an orphan（孤儿）. He worked in a factory and every day he got a little money. Hard work made him thin and weak. He wanted to borrow a lot of money to learn to paint pictures, but he did not think he could pay off the debts.
One day a lawyer said to him, “One thousand dollars, and here is the money.” As Hobbs took the package of notes, he was very dumbfounded. He didn’t know where the money came from and how to spend it. He said to himself, “I could go to find a hotel and live like a rich man for a few days; or I give up my work in the factory and do what I’d like to do: painting pictures. I could do that for a few weeks, but what would I do after that? I should have lost my place in the factory and have no money to live on. If it were a little less money, I would buy a new coat, or a radio, or give a dinner to my friends. If it were more, I could give up the work and pay for painting pictures. But it’s too much for one and too little for the other.”
“Here is the reading of your uncle’s will（遗嘱）,” said the lawyer, “telling what is to be done with this money after his death. I must ask you to remember one point. Your uncle has said you must bring me a paper showing exactly what you did with his money, as soon as you have spent it.”
“Yes, I see. I’ll do that,” said the young man.
21. Hobbs wanted to borrow money to _______.

A．study abroad

B．work abroad

C．pay off the debts

D．learn to paint pictures

22. What does the underlined word “dumbfounded” （in Paragraph 2） probably mean?

A．Surprised.

B．Frightened

C．Satisfied.

D．Excited.

23. With the money he got, at first Hobbs _______.

A．planned to have a happy life for a few days	B．decided to give up his work in the factory
C．was to give a dinner to his friends	D．had no idea what to do

24. Hobbs was asked to _______.

A．tell the lawyer what he did with the money after spending it

B．read his uncle’s will

C．buy some pictures

D．tell the lawyer what was to be done with the money

Mark Twain was a great writer. He was from the USA. He was born in 1835. He was also a famous speaker. He was famous for his sense of humour. Many people liked to listen to him talk because he liked to tell some interesting stories to make people laugh all the time.
One day Mark Twain was going to a small town because of his writing. Before he was going to leave, one of his friends said to him that there were always a lot of mosquitoes in the town and told him that he’d better not go there. Mark Twain waved his hand and said, “It doesn’t matter. The mosquitoes are no relatives of mine. I don’t think they will come to visit me.”
After he arrived at the town, Mark Twain stayed in a small hotel near the station. He went into his room, but when he was just about to have a rest, quite a few mosquitoes flew about him. The waiters felt very sorry about that. “I’m very sorry, Mr Mark Twain. There are too many mosquitoes in our town.” One of them said to him.
Mark Twain, however, made a joke, saying to the waiter, “The mosquitoes are very clever. They know my room number. They didn’t come into the wrong room.” What he said made all the people present laugh heartily.
But that night Mark Twain slept well. Do you know why? That was because all the waiters in the hotel were driving the mosquitoes away for him during the whole night.
25. That day Mark Twain went to the town _____.

A．to see one of his friends

B．because he wanted to do something there for his writing

C．because he was told there were a lot of mosquitoes there

D．to see one of his relatives

26. The waiters felt sorry because _____.

A．they did something wrong to Mark Twain

B．their hotel was too small

C．the room was not very clean

D．there were quite a few mosquitoes in Mark Twain’s room

27. All the people present laughed heartily because _____.

A．the mosquitoes were very clever and they didn’t come into the wrong room

B．the mosquitoes knew Mark Twain’s room number

C．Mark Twain gave the waiters some nice presents

D．Mark Twain made a joke

28. From e story we know _____.

A．no mosquitoes troubled Mark Twain in the night

B．the owner of the hotel told the waiters to look after Mark Twain well at night

C．Mark Twain didn’t have a good rest that night

D．there were not mosquitoes in the hotel any longer