高考英语必备——高考英语阅读理解随堂练(十二).doc

2009年高考英语阅读理解随堂练（十二）ARobert Spring, a 19th century forg高考资源网er (伪造签字者), was as good at his profession that he was able to make his living for 15 years by selling false signatures of famous Americans. Spring was born in England in 1813 and arrived in Philadelphia in 1858 to open a bookstore. At first he make some money by selling his small but genuine of early U.S. autographs (亲笔签字). Discovering his ability at copying handwriting, he began imitating signatures of George Washington and Ban Franklin and writing them on the title pages of old books. To make less the chance of detection (发觉), he sent his forgeries (伪造物) to England and Canada for sale and circulation (销售). w.w.w.k.s.5.u.c.o.mForgers have a hard time selling their products. A forger cant approach a respectable buyer but must deal with people who dont have much knowledge in the field. Forgers have many ways to make their work look real. For example, they buy old books to use the aged paper of the title page, and they can treat paper and ink with chemicals.In Springs time, right after the Civil War, Britain was still fond of the Southern states, so Spring invented a respectable maiden lady known as Miss Fanny Jackson, the only daughter of General Stonewall Jackson. For several years Miss Fannys economic problems forced her to sell a great number of letters and manuscripts belonging to her famous father. Spring had to work very hard to satisfy the demand. All this activity did not prevent Spring from dying in poverty, leaving sharp-eye experts the difficult task of separating this forgeries from the originals.1. Why did Spring sell his autographs in England and Canada?A. There was a greater demand there than in America.B. There was less chance of being detected there.C. Britain was Springs birthplace.D. The price were higher in England and Canada.2. After the Civil War, there was a great demand in Britain for _.A. Southern money w.w.w.k.s.5.u.c.o.mB. signatures of George Washington and Ben FranklinC. Southern manuscripts and lettersD. Civil War battle plans3. Robert Spring spent 15 years _.A. running a bookstore in PhiladelphiaB. corresponding with Miss Fanny JacksonC. as a forgerD. as a respectable dealer4. According to the passage, forgeries are usually sold to _.A. sharp-eyed expertsB. persons who arent expertsC. book dealersD. owner of the old books5. Who was Miss Fanny Jackson?A. The only daughter of General Stonewall Jackson.B. A little-known girl who sold her fathers papers to Robert Spring.C. Robert Springs daughter.D. An imaginary person created by Spring.BIn 1909 an English newspaper offered 1,000 to the first man to fly across the English Channel in an aeroplane. Today, modern jets cross it in minutes. But at that time it still seemed a good distance. The race to win the money soon became a race between two men. Both were very colorful. w.w.w.k.s.5.u.c.o.mOne is Louis Bleriot. He owed a factory in France that made motor car lamps. He was already well known as a pilot because he had crashed several times. Some people laughed at him. One man said, He may not be the first to fly across the Channel but he will certainly be the first to die in a crash! But Bleriot was really a good and brave pilot. He also had many good ideas about aeroplane design.The other man was Hubert Latham. He was half French and half English. He took up flying when his doctors told him he had only a year to live. Oh, well, he said, If Im going to die soon, I think I shall have a dangerous and interesting life now. Latham was the first to try the flight across the Channel. Ten kilometers from the French coast, his plane had engine trouble. It crashed into the water and began to sink under the water. A boat reached Latham just in time. He was sitting calmly on the wing and was coolly lighting a cigarette. Bleriot took off six days later. He flew into some very bad weather and very low cloud. He somehow got to the English side and landed in a farmers field. When he did so, a customs officer rushed up to his plane. Planes have changed since then but customs officers have not. Have you anything to declare? the officer demanded.1. The story took place _.A. in the early 20th centuryB. in the 19th centuryC. right after World War ID. at a time not mentioned in the passage2. A good distance here means _.A. a fairly long distanceB. a distance shorter than people thoughtC. an easy flying distanceD. no distance at all w.w.w.k.s.5.u.c.o.m3. Bleriot was well known as a pilot because _.A. he was exceptionally braveB. he was quite richC. he had many good ideas about the aeroplane designD. he had a few accidents4. Why did Hubert Latham want to fly across the Channel?A. He thought he could manage it easily.B. He wanted to compete with Louis Bleriot.C. He knew he only had a year to live.D. He had always been interested in flying.5. Why did the customs officer rush to the plane?A. To see if everything was all right with the plane.B. To make sure that the pilot was not hurt.C. To ask why the plane had landed in a farmers field.D. None of the above.CFrederic Chopin was one of the greatest composers of music for the piano. He wrote over two hundred musical compositions. They are still popular today.Frederic Chopin was born in 1810 in Zelazowa-Wola, a village near Warsaw, Poland. His father had moved there from France. Chopin was to feel strong ties to Poland throughout his life. Many of his musical works have the spirit and rhythm (节奏) of Polish folk dances.Chopin showed musical ability at an early age. He was giving public concerts and writing music by the time he was eight years old. The young Chopin often performed for members of the wealthy Polish nobility. He was a guest in their homes and was treated well by them.Poland was a kingdom under Russian control. In 1831, Chopin left Poland to make a tour of other European countries. While he was away, the Poles tried to win freedom from Russia. Their rebellion failed, and the Kingdom of Poland was crushed. Chopin never returned to his homeland.The piano fascinated Chopin. Believing that it could produce new and varied music, he challenged (对有异议) many of the strict rules that were followed by earlier composers. Chopin created lively, moving music by using new musical patterns. w.w.w.k.s.5.u.c.o.mChopin suffered from poor health. He became ill with tuberculosis (肺结核), a disease that affected his lungs. It caused his death in 1849, when he was only thirty-nine years old.1. We can infer from the passage that _.A. Chopin died in a foreign countryB. the Poles fought against the Russians and succeeded in defeating them in 1831C. Chopin followed many of the strict rules as some earlier composersD. although Chopin loved his motherland, he had never learned anything from Polish folk dances2. The passage is mainly about _.A. Chopins musical works and the pianoB. Poland and RussiaC. Chopins lifeD. new musical patternsDIt was not yet eleven oclock when a boat crossed the river with a single passenger who had obtained his transportations at that unusual hour by promising an extra fare. While the youth stood on the landing-place searching in his pockets for money, the ferryman lifted a lantern, by the aid of which, together with the newly risen moon, he took a very accurate survey (打量) of the strangers figure. He was a young man of barely eighteen years, evidently country bred, and now, as it seemed, on his first visit to town. He was wearing a rough gray coat, which was in good shape, but which had seen many winters before this one. The garments under his coat were well constructed of leather, and fitted tightly to a pair of muscular (肌肉发达的) legs; his stockings of blue yarn (线) must have been the work of a mother or sister, and on his head was a three-cornered hat, which in its better days had perhaps sheltered the grayer head of the lads father. In his left hand was a walking stick, and his equipment was completed by a leather bag not so abundantly stocked as to inconvenience the strong shoulders on which it hung. Brown, curly hair, well-shaped features, bright, cheerful eyes were natures gifts, and worth all that art could have done for his adornment (装饰). The youth, whose nam