The Million Pound Bank Note
Act I, Scene 4
(Outside a restaurant Henry looks at the envelope without opening it and decides to go in. He sits down at a table next to the front window.)
OWNER: (seeing Henry's poor appearance) That one's reserved. This way, please. (to the waiter) Take this gentleman's order, Horace.
HENRY: (after sitting down and putting the letter on the table) I'd like some ham and eggs and a nice big steak. Make it extra thick. I'd also like a cup of coffee and a pineapple dessert.
WAITER: Right, sir. I'm afraid it'll cost a large amount of money.
HENRY: I understand. And I'll have a large glass of beer.
WAITER: OK. (The waiter leaves and soon returns with all the food.)
HOSTESS: My goodness! Why, look at him. He eats like a wolf.
OWNER: We'll see if he's clever as a wolf, eh?
HENRY: (having just finished every bit of food) Ah, waiter. (waiter returns) Same thing again, please. Oh, and another beer.
WAITER: Again? Everything?
HENRY: Yes, that's right. (sees the look on the waiter's face) Anything wrong?
WAITER: No, not at all. (to the owner) He's asked for more of the same.
OWNER: Well, it is well-known that Americans like to eat a lot. Well, we'll have to take a chance. Go ahead and let him have it.
WAITER: (reading the bill after the meal) All right. That's two orders of ham and eggs, two extra thick steaks, two large glasses of beer, two cups of coffee and two desserts.
HENRY: (looking at the clock on the wall) Would you mind waiting just a few minutes?
WAITER: (in a rude manner) What's there to wait for?
OWNER: All right, Horace. I'll take care of this.
HENRY: (to owner) That was a wonderful meal. It's amazing how much pleasure you get out of title simple things in life, especially if you can't have them for a while.
OWNER: Yes, very interesting. Now perhaps, sir, if you pay your bill I can help the other customers.
HENRY: (looking at the clock on the wall again) Well, I see it's two o'clock. (he opens the envelope and holds a million pound bank note in his hands. Henry is surprised but the owner and waiter are shocked) I'm very sorry. But ... I ... I don't have anything smaller.
OWNER: (still shocked and nervous) Well .. er ... just one moment. Maggie, look! (the hostess screams, the other customers look at her and she puts a hand to her mouth) Do you think it's genuine?
HOSTESS: Oh, dear, I don't know. I simply don't know.
OWNER: Well, I did hear that the Bank of England had issued two notes in this amount ... Anyway, I don't think it can be a fake. People would pay too much attention to a bank note of this amount. No thief would want that to happen.
HOSTESS: But he's in rags!
OWNER: Perhaps he's a very strange, rich man. (as if he has discovered something for the first time) Why, yes! That must be it!
HOSTESS: (hits her husband's arm) And you put him in the back of the restaurant! Go and see him at once.
OWNER: (to Henry) I'm so sorry, sir, so sorry, but I cannot change this bank note.
HENRY: But it's all I have on me.
OWNER: Oh, please, don't worry, sir. Doesn't matter at all. We're so very glad that you even entered our little eating place. Indeed, sir, I hope you'll come here whenever you like.
HENRY: Well, that's very kind of you.
OWNER: Kind, sir? No, it's kind of you. You must come whenever you want and have whatever you like. Just having you sit here is a great honour! As for the bill, sir, please forget it.
HENRY: Forget it? Well ... thank you very much. That's very nice of you.
OWNER: Oh, it's for us to thank you, sir and I do, sir, from the bottom of my heart. (The owner, hostess and waiter all bow as Henry leaves.)
1. Whose behaviour changes the most during this scene?| A．Henry | B．Owner |
| C．Waiter | D．Hostess |
| A．Because he considered Henry a very rich man after looking at Henry’s million pound bank note. |
| B．Because Henry has a lot of money. |
| C．Because Henry could not pay for his meal without any money in his pocket. |
| D．Because the owner was very generous (慷慨的). |
| A．actually wanted to know whom Henry was waiting for |
| B．thought Henry may wait for someone else to come to eat with him |
| C．thought Henry were waiting for his friend to pay for his meal |
| D．actually laughed at Henry and wanted Henry to pay for his meal quickly |
| A．Another customer who was eating at the restaurant as Henry. |
| B．The waitress in the restaurant. |
| C．The hostess and the owner’s wife. |
| D．The passage doesn’t tell. |
| A．Five | B．Three |
| C．Two | D．Four |
相似题推荐
【推荐1】Brandon Olsen and Tylor Fritz of Hometown Sanitation(公共卫生) left gifts for three sisters who waved to them each Thursday after learning that one of them，3-year-old Rose，had been fighting cancer.
The men also gave their parents free garbage service for one year.
“When they did that，it was a few weeks before the diagnosis(诊断) when every day just felt so impossible，”said Rose’s mother，Angie Evenson，of Blue Earth，Minnesota.“Nothing in reality changes Rose’s diagnosis.But what they did makes us feel we are truly not alone in this fight.”
With binoculars(双筒望远镜) in hand，Rose and her two sisters，Grace,5 and Sophia,2 sat by the window and waved at their garbage men，Olsen and Fritz，as they drove by on their weekly route.
Olsen,29，and Fritz,24，told ABC News that the girls’ smiling faces are what they look forward to while working.They even left Halloween candy for the girls this year to show their appreciation.They hope that more and more people can understand and support their work.
But weeks later，Evenson wrote Olsen and Fritz a note explaining that little Rose wouldn’t be able to wave to them for a while since she’d be undergoing chemotherapy(化疗). Rose had been diagnosed with Stage 4 kidney cancer in September.
“As a father of three，it changed my outlook on things，” Olsen said.“It opened my eyes...you don’t know what someone else is going through.”
Fritz said he cried when he read the note.“I got to the chemo part and there were tears running down my face，” he recalled.“I don’t have any children of my own，but I can imagine if someone very close to me is diagnosed as cancer，I’ll be heartbroken.”
“Rose is being treated at Sanford Children’s Hospital in Sioux Falls，South Dakota.She will miss a few more Thursdays，when she can wave to her garbage men，but her chemo sessions will be switched to Mondays soon and she’ll be back by the window early next year.I have confidence in Rose’s recovery，” her mother said.
1. How did the garbage men help Rose’s family?| A．They took the sick girl to hospital regularly. |
| B．They collected the garbage for free. |
| C．They looked after Rose in turn. |
| D．They offered money to help cure Rose. |
| A．They made the family famous. |
| B．They encouraged the family. |
| C．They gave Angie Evenson a good lesson. |
| D．They doubted about the doctor’s diagnosis. |
| A．People’s appreciation for their work. |
| B．Good friendship with the young girls. |
| C．Making more efforts to do their work well. |
| D．The girls’ family’s caring more for their children. |
【推荐2】There are some people who are always surrounded by friends, and there are others who are always standing on the outside, looking at the crowd of friends.
1. Be yourself.
Nobody likes a liar.
2. Start with people you know.
Even if you don’t think that you have a lot of friends, you are likely to know a lot of people. Reach out to get in touch with acquaintances and reconnect with old friends you haven’t seen for a long time. Don’t forget about friends of friends.
3. Be open-minded.
4. Be there.
In order to have a good relationship with your friends, you need to be a friend. This means that you need to be there when your friends need you. For example, if one of your friends calls you in the middle of the night crying, don’t hang up.
| A．You may see some really cool people just by hanging out with your friends and their friends. |
| B．When you meet new people, ask them questions about themselves. |
| C．In fact, if you aren’t yourself, it isn’t you that others are becoming friends with. |
| D．If you don’t know where to start, join a community group or a club. |
| E．He calls you because he considers you to be a friend. |
| F．If you are one of the outsiders, it is time to come out of your shell and start making new friends. |
| G．Don’t go into a situation with a judgmental attitude which will make you less popular. |
【推荐3】Our hate for being alone can be quite fierce: A quarter of the women and two-thirds of the men in a study chose to experience an electric shock rather than do nothing and spend time alone with their thoughts.
"Historically, solitude(独处)has been considered to be a pretty bad rap because it is sometimes used as a form of punishment." said Robert Coplan, a professor of psychology at Carleton University.
The problem is that we forget solitude can also be a choice—and it does not have to be full time. Because there is so much research demonstrating that humans are social creatures who benefit from communicating with others. "People will try to refuse to consider that it's also important to spend time alone," said Coplan. "It's hard for them to imagine that you can have both."
People often feel inhibited(拘谨的)from enjoying activities alone, especially when they think others are watching them. Overestimating(高估)how much other people are paying attention to us, and worrying that we are being judged, can stop us from doing things that would otherwise bring us joy.
Indeed, loneliness hurts—it can even negatively influence your health. But the act of being alone with oneself is not bad.
An online survey called "The Rest Test" showed that the majority of activities people defined as most relaxing are things that are done alone. Despite the social anxiety about spending time alone, it is actually something our bodies long for. The time alone is all we need to make ourselves feel better.
The freedom of not having to follow the lead of others, with no pressure to do anything, to talk to anyone, is a great way to relax, even for highly social individuals. It also helps us discover new interests and ideas without having to worry about the opinions of others.
Developing this sense of being alone can help you develop your sense of self. Knowing oneself makes it easier to find other people who share your passions, and can improve your ability to understand other people's feelings. It can also help you re-evaluate the friendship: relationships you maintain even at the cost of spending time with people whose company you do not enjoy.
Don't confuse loneliness with time by yourself. The latter can improve your creativity and confidence, and help you control your emotions so that you can deal with serious situations. Getting started is easy—all you need is yourself.
1. The underlined words "a pretty bad rap" in Paragraph 2 probably mean "________".| A．an undesirable effect | B．an unfair treatment |
| C．a strong reaction | D．a frequent repetition |
a. solitude is regarded as an unpleasant experience
b. we believe that humans get no benefit from solitude
c. solitude tends to make people feel increasingly lonely
d. we care too much about what other people may think of us
| A．a b c | B．a c d | C．c b d | D．a b d |
| A．It can improve our efficiency. | B．It can relieve our stress. |
| C．It can develop our potential. | D．It can improve our social relationship. |
A． |
B． |
C． |
D． |
