2 . Arguster grew up on his family’s farm in a remote village. Planting cash crop — cotton, they were breaking even and had to make ends meet. In his childhood, there were nine kids at home. All the boys were in one room with two beds. Two slept at the head while two slept at the foot. Therefore, there was one thing about their feet — washing them before crowding onto the bed.
When there was a hole in Arguster’s jeans, his mother would put a patch on it. However, the hole kept going. It was the naughty kids, Arguster included, that took the jeans out, hung them on a line and shot them to put holes. Aware of that, however, Ben, the father, didn’t rebuke them, knowing it might be the only way to bring laughter to his kids.
Arguster’s first lesson in economics was taught by Ben. The childish kid had worked and made a little extra money. He couldn’t help admiring himself, “I make six dollars! Six dollars! Man! I’m on the top of the world!” With a great thrill, Arguster decided to go to fair, where he played games, ate cotton candy... When asked by Ben how much he had spent, with his head down, Arguster replied, “Daddy, I spent it all...” Looking at his messy hair, Ben sighed, “Boy, you spent all your money and haircut’s gone up to 75 cents. I’m afraid...” From then on, Arguster always kept enough money to get himself a haircut.
Ben taught his kids how to do the right thing and wanted them to do the right thing, which Ben tried to pass on to his kids, in his own way. Ben started a syrup mill(糖坊). People in the community brought their cane and millet for Ben to grind up (磨碎) for syrup. When people paid with buckets of syrup, Ben refused. Arguster got confused, “Daddy, why don’t you let these people pay you?”
“Because we got enough syrup to last for a long time! Son, these people don’t have money to pay. That’s the only way they can pay.”
1. Why should the kids wash their feet before going to bed?
| A．Because they turned dirty after playing on the farm. |
| B．Because they crowded on a small bed with feet close to others’ heads. |
| C．Because the beds were made of cotton which was easy to spot. |
| D．Because they had to make ends meet, making them seldom bathe. |
2. What does the underlined word “rebuke” in Paragraph 2 probably mean?
| A．Question. | B．Oppose. | C．Amuse. | D．Criticize. |
3. What might happen to Arguster after he spent all the money he earned?
| A．He worked and earned money again for his haircut. |
| B．He had his hair cut with the money Ben gave him. |
| C．He waited for the price of haircut to decrease. |
| D．He borrowed money from his mother for his haircut. |
4. What’s Ben’s attitude towards people in the community?
| A．Strict. | B．Casual. | C．Considerate. | D．Mean. |
