九年级英语质量检测阅读短文回答问题练习题

九年级英语质量检测阅读短文回答问题练习题

学校名称：班级：学号：姓名：

1.根据短文内容，回答问题。

Sydneyisayoungcity.Itshistorygoesbackjustover200years.Butin

Australia,itistheoldestcity.Itisalsothecountry'slargestcity.Sydney

isthecapitalofNewSouthWalesandthemostpopulous（人口稠密的）cityof

Australia.

Theclimate（气候）ofSydneyisverygood.It，snottoocoldduringthewinter

andnottoohotduringthesummer.Theskyisblue,theairisfresh（清新的），

birdssinginthegarden.PeoplewholiveinSydneyseemtohaveaneasylife

style.Theywilltellyou,"Don'tworry.”

ManypeoplethinkthatSydneyisoneofthemostattractivecitiesinthe

world.Ithasmanytallandmodernbuildings.Amongthem,CentrepointTower

isthetallest.Standingonthe305-metre（80storeys）tower,youwillhavea

greatview（视野）ofthecity.

Sydneyisfamousforitsdeepharbor（港口）.Theharborhasmanybays

（湾）andbeautifulsurfbeaches.Amongthem,Bondibeachisthemost

popular.SydneyHarborisnotonlybeautiful,italsoservesasalargeport.Ships

carrywool,wheatandmeatfromSydneytoothercountries.

PeoplelivinginSydneyliketocallthemselvesSydneysiders.Theyare

mostlyfriendlyandeasygoing.Whentheyarenotworking,theylovetohavea

goodtimeatthebeach,swimmingandsailing.

71.HowoldisSydney?

72.HowistheclimateofSydney?

73.HowtallisCentrepointTower?

74.WhatisSydneyfamousfor?

75.WhatdopeoplelivinginSydneylovetodowhentheyarenotworking?

2.根据短文内容，回答问题。

Thefirstnewspaperwaswrittenbyhandandputuponwalls.Theearliest

dailynewspaperwasstartedinRomein59BC.Inthe700's,theworldJsfirst

printednewspaperwaspublished.In1609inGermanythefirstregular（定期

lKl）newspaperwasstarted.

ThefirstregularpublishednewspaperinEnglishwasprintedinAmsterdam

in1620.In1621,anEnglishnewspaperwasstartedinLondonandwaspublished

onceaweek.ThefirstdailyEnglishnewspaperwastheDailyCurrant.Itcame

outinMarch1702.

In1690,BenjaminHarrisprintedthefirstAmericannewspaperinBoston.

Butnotlongafteritwasfirstpublished,thegovernmentstoppedthepaper.In

1704,JohnCampbellstartedtheBostonNewsletter,thefirstnewspaperpublished

dailyinAmerica.By1760,Americahadmorethanthirtydailynewspapers.There

arenowabout1800dailypapersintheUSA.

Tosay,asagroup,Englishlanguagenewspaperhavethelargestcirculation（发

行量）intheworld.Butthelargestcirculationforanewspaperisthatofthe

JapanesenewspaperAsahiShimbun.Itsellsmorethanelevenmillioncopiesevery

year.

46.WherewathefirstregularpublishednewspaperinEnglishprinted?

47.WhendidthefirstdailyEnglishnewspapercomeout?

48.HowmanymorenewspapersarethereinAmericanowthanthatin1760?

49.DoesAsahiShimbunhavethelargestcirculationofallthenewspapers?

50.WhichEnglishwordhastheclosestmeaningto'Newsletter”?

3.根据短文内容，回答问题。

BillClintontookoffice（就职）onJanuary20,1993andbecamethe42ndU.S.

president（，总统）.HeisthefirstU.S.presidentwhowasbornafterWorldWar

II（二次世界大战）.HeisalsooneoftheyoungestofallU.S.presidents.Clinton

wasborninapoorfamilyin1946.Threemonthsbeforehewasborn,his

father,WilliamBlats,died.Whenhewassmall,hismotherremarried（再婚）

NorgerClinton,sotheboy'sfamilynamewaschanged.Inthesummerof1963,

ClintonwasaskedtovisitthecityofWashington.Duringhisvisit,hemet

PresidentKennedyintheWhiteHouse.Atthattime,hewantedtobecomea

president,andnowheis!

61.WhendidClintonbecomethe42ndU.S.president?

62.WhendidClinton，sfatherdie?

63.Whywastheboy，snamechanged?

64.WhydidClintoncometothecityofWashingtonin1963?

65.WhatwasthenameofClinton,sfather?

4.根据短文内容，回答问题。

Thecomputerisausefulmachine.Itcanhelppeoplealotintheirdaily

life.Forexample,itcanhelppeopletosavemuchtimetodomuchwork,and

itcanhelppeopletoworkoutcomplicated（复杂的）problemsthatpeoplecan，t

doeasily.What'smore,itmakesitmoreconvenient（方便）tosendandreceive

messages.Inthenewcentury,itseemsthatit'sverynecessaryforeveryone

tolearnhowtousecomputers,evenfortheoldpeople.Thecomputerisreally

animportanttoolinmodernlife.

Todaymoreandmorefamilieshavecomputers.Parentsbuycomputersfor

theirchildren.Theyhopecomputerscanhelptheirchildrenimprovetheirstudies

atschool.Yet,manyoftheirchildrenusecomputerstoplaygames,towatch

videos,orsingkaraoke,insteadofstudying.So,manyteachersandparents

complainthatcomputerscannothelpchildrentostudybutinsteadmakethemfall

behind.Becauseofthis,computersarelockedinboxesbyparents.

Insomeothercountries,evensomescientistshatecomputers.Theysay

computerscausemillionsofpeopletolosetheirjobsorcausethemalotof

trouble.

Whoknowswhatthecomputersoftomorrowwillbelike?Willtheyreally

makelifebetter,orwilltheybringtroubletopeople?Thestudentstodaywill

havetodecidehowtousethecomputersoftomorrow.

1.Whydoesthewritersaythecomputerisausefulmachine?Thewritersays

thisbecause.

2.Whydotheparentsbuytheirchildrencomputers?Theythink

computers.

3.Whatdosometeachersandparentscomplainabout?Theycomplain

that.

4.Docomputersonlymakeourlifebetter?No,they.

5.Cancomputersreallyhelpchildrentostudy?.

6.Someonesaidthatit，snecessaryforusmiddleschoolstudentstospendsome

timeoncomputerseveryday.Whatdoyouthinkofit?

5.根据短文内容，回答问题。

BarkyandItalkeveryday.WhenIcomehome,wediscusswhatI'mhavingfor

dinner,butstrictlyspeakinghedoesn'ttalkback.Iusuallyaskhimwhathe

hasbeendoingallday,andhetellsmehehasbeenswimmingaroundandlooking

afterthehouse.He'sagoodguardfish.Hewouldknowiftherewereintruders

（闯入者）inthekitchenandwouldstarethemout.

Hisfavouritehobbyiswatchingtelevision.Hepusheshisfaceuptothe

glasstosee.WewatchCoronationStreetandEastEnderstogether,andheenjoys

football.Ithinkhelikesthecolours,andhedefinitelyprefersnorthernteams.

HemustbeaManchesterUnitedfan,ashehassomuchredinhisbowl.AlexFerguson

wouldbeproud.

IfBarkyiseverupset,hesquirts（使喷出）wateroutofthetopofhis

bowl,sothereisnochanceofusforgettinghisbirthday.Hewillbetwoyears

oldinSeptember,butinfishyearsthatismorelike30,sohecouldbeplanning

abignightout.Wewillgivehimextrafoodandanicedgemasabirthdaycake.

However,whathereallywantsisamate,sowewillhavetoseewhatwecanarrange.

IwouldneverswapBarky.Heisagoodlistener.Thechildrenlikehimand

hedoesn'tneedwalking.Whenhewasinhisteens,heusedtotrytosneakout,

buthebehavesnow.Heisforkeeps.

41.WhoisBarky?

42.What'sBarky，shobby?

43.WhatwillBarkydoifheisunhappy?

6.根据短文内容，回答问题。

HankwasonholidaytravellingthroughEuropebytrainwithhistwochildren,

TinaandMax.

Theirseatswereinthelastcarriageofthetrain.

Aftertheyhadeatentheirlunch,Hankgotup.〃I'injustgoingdowntothedining

cartogetacoffee.I'11bebacksoon.Wewon'tgettothestationtill

fivethisafternoon.〃

Thediningcarwasnearthefrontofthetrain.Asthetrainwastravellingfast

andmovingfromsidetoside,Hankdecidedtodrinkhiscoffeethereandnot

tocarryitbacktohisseat.Soonhegottalkingtoanotherpersonwhohappened

tobefromAmerica,too,Theyfoundthattheyhadalotincommonandgot

onwell.TherewasanannouncementinGermanwhenthetrainstarted

movingagain.ButHankpaidnoattention.

FinallytheysaidgoodbyetoeachotherandHankstartedtowalkthroughthe

carriageswhenhefoundhecouldn，tgoonfurther.Hewasinthelastcarriage!

Atthatmoment,hischildrenwereenjoyingtheirtrip.Theylookedoutofthe

windowandtalkedhappily.Theythoughttheirfatherwasonthesametrain.

Ataboutthreeo'clockTinadecidedtoseewhattheirdadwasupto.But

whenshewentthroughjustafewcarriages,shefoundherselfatthefront

ofthetrain.Finallyshediscoveredthetruth.Thetrainhaddivided（分

开）inthestationwheretheyhadstopped.Thefrontpartwasgoingto

FrankfortandtheotherpartwasgoingtoBonn.Thentheyknewtheyhadlost

theirdad.

Atfiveo'clocktheirtrainstoppedinBonnStation.ButHankwasnotwiththem.

Wherewashe?

61.WherewereHankandhistwochildrentravellingto?

62.WhydidHankleavehischildren?

63.WhatdidHankdowhenhegottothediningcar?

64.Whendidthetwochildrenrealizethattheyhadlosttheirdad?

65.WhichpartofthetrainwasgoingtoFrankfort?

7.根据短文内容，回答问题。

Passage6

Intheearlynineteenthcentury,peopledidnotusrstamps.Theyhadtopay

postage（邮费）whentheyreceivedletters.Sometimestheydidn'twanttoreceive

aletteratall,buttheyhadtopaymoneyforit.Theywereunhappyaboutthis.

Thepostagewashighatthattime,becausethepostofficeshadtosendmany

peopletogetthepostage.

RowlandHillwasaschoolteacherinEngland.Hewasthefirsttthinkof

usingstampsinthe1850s.Hethoughtitwouldbemucheasierforpeopletouse

stamps.Theycouldgotothepostofficetobuystampsandputthemonenvelopes（｛5

封）beforetheysenttheletters.Thepostofficecouldjustputseals（EfJ记）

onthestampssothatpeoplecouldnotusethestampsagain.Inthisway,the

postofficedidnotneedtosendpostmentogetpostage.Itonlyneededfewer

postmentosendletters.

104.Didpeopleusestampsintheearlynineteenthcentury?

105、whatdidthepeoplehavetodowhentheyreceivedletters?

106.whywasthepostagehighatthattime?

107.WhendidRowlandHillthinkofusingstamps?

108.Whatdidthepostofficeputsealsonthestampsfor?

8.根据短文内容，回答问题。

Sydneyisayoungcity.Itshistorygoesbackjustover200years.But

inAustralia,itistheoldestcity.Itisalsothecountry，slargest

city.SydneyisthecapitalofNewSouthWalesandthemostpopulouscity

ofAustralia.

Theclimate（气候）ofSydneyisverygood.It'snottoocoldduringthewinter

andnottoohotduringthesummer.Theskyisblue,theairisfresh（清新的），

birdssinginthegarden.PeoplewholiveinSydneyseemtohaveaneasylife

style.Theywilltellyou,"Don'tworry.”

ManypeoplethinkthatSydneyisoneofthemostattractivecitiesinthe

world.Ithasmanytallandmodernbuildings.Amongthem,CentrepointTower

isthetallest.Standingonthe305-metre（80storeys）tower,youwillhavea

greatview（视野）ofthecity.

Sydneyisfamousforitsdeepharbor（港口）.Theharborhasmanybays

（湾）andbeautifulsurfbeaches.Amongthem,Bondibeachisthemost

popular.SydneyHarborisnotonlybeautiful,italsoservesasalargeport.Ships

carrywool,wheatandmeatfromSydneytoothercountries.

PeoplelivinginSydneyliketocallthemselvesSydneysiders.Theyare

mostlyfriendlyandeasygoing.Whentheyarenotworking,theylovetohavea

goodtimeatthebeach,swimmingandsailing.

1.HowoldisSydney?

2.HowistheclimateofSydney?

3.HowtallisCentrepointTower?

4.WhatisSydneyfamousfor?

5.WhatdopeoplelivinginSydneylovetodowhentheyarenotworking?

9.根据短文内容，回答问题。

AfterTomfinishedhismiddleschool,hewenttoworkinapostoffice.He

wasglad（高兴）togetthework,becausehecouldsendthelettersonhisbike.

Itwaseasyandinteresting.Onedayhetookalettertoahouse.Whenhegot

tothedoor,abigdogranfasttohim.Hewasafraidofitverymuchandquickly

threwtheletterontheground.Tohissurprise（令他惊奇的是），thedogdidn,

tcomeathim.Itstoppedbeforetheletterandpickeditupwithitsmouth.

Theitcarriedtheletterintothehouse.Tomsaidtohimself,“Itdoesthe

sameworkasme.”

1、WheredidTomwork?

Ina.

2、HowdidTomsendtheletter?

the.

3^WhatdidTomseewhenhearrivedatthehouse?

He___abig.

4、DidthedogmakeanytroubleonTom?

,it.

5、WhatdidthedogcometoTomtodo?

Itcametotheletter.

10.根据短文内容，回答问题。

Johnwasinhospitalforafewdays,andhiswifetoldhimthathisdogreally

missedhim."Hespendsthemightatthefrontdoorinwaitingforyoutoreturn.”

ShesaidtoJohn.

“Whatanexamploftruelove!”Johnanswered."Iwonderofyouwouldtake

careofmelikethat.w

“OfcourseIwould,“hiswifeanswered,“Ifyouarenotathomeallthe

night,andIdon'tknowwhereyouare,youcanbesureI'11waitforyouat

thefrontdoor.”

1、WhywasJohninhospital?

Maybehewas.

2^HowdidthedogshowloveforJohn?

He_______forJohntocome_______atthefrontdoor.

3、Whydidn,tJohn,swifestayatthedoorwaitingforhim?

BecauseshewhereJohnwasandneedtodothat.

4、HowlongwasJohninhospital?

several.

5、Hiswifedoesn?tlovehim,doesshe?

she

11.根据短文内容，回答问题。

AfterTomfinishedhismiddleschool,hewenttowrkinapostoffice.Hewasglad（高兴）

togetthework,becausehecouldsendthelettersonhisbike.Itwaseasyandinteresting.One

dayhetookalettertoahouse.Whenhegottothedoor,abigdogranfasttohimhewasafraid

ofitverymuchandquicklythrewtheletterontheground.Tohissurprise,the

dogdidn'tcomeathim.Itstoppedbeforetheletterandpickeditupwithitsmouth.Thenit

carriedtheletterintothehouse.Tansaidtohimself,“Itdoesthesamewrkasme.”

1.WheredidTomwork?Ina___________________.

2.HowdidTomsendtheletter?the_________.

3.WhatdidTanseewhenhearrivedatthehouse?He_________abig_________.

4.DidthedogmakeanytrcxibleonTom?_________,it

5.WhatdidthedogcometoTontodo?Itcametotheletter.

12.根据短文内容，回答问题。

Johnwasinhospitalforafewdays,andhiswifetoldhimthathisdogreallymissedhim.

“Hespendsthenightatthefrontdoorinwaitingforyoutoreturn."ShesaidtoJohn.

“Whatanexampleoftruelove!vJohnanswered“Iwonderifyouwouldtakecareofmelike

that."

“OfcourseIwould,“hiswifeanswered,“Ifyouarenotathomeallthenight,andIdon,

tknowwhereyouare,youcanbesureI'11waitforyouatthefrontdoor.”

1>WhywasJohninhospital?Maybe_________hewas_________.

2、lk>TdidthedogshowloveforJohn?HeforJohntocomeatthefrontdoor.

3、Whydidn'tJohn,swifestayatthedoorwaitingforhim?

Becauseshe_________whereJohnwasand_________needtodothat.

4、fkwlongwasJohninhospital?several.

5、Hiswifedoesn,tlovehim,doesshe?_________,she_________.

13.根据短文内容，回答问题。

TheTaiwanWorkofficesaidtothepublicthatitwouldease（放松）the

restriction（限制J）ontouristvisitstoTaiwanlastweek.

But,becausedirect（直接的）flightsarenotintheworks,a10-daytripwill

costaround10,000yuan.ThatmakesitalmostasexpensiveasaEuropeanjourney.

Butthecostcouldcomedownovertime,becausethedirectflightswould

open,expertshavesaid.Mainlandershaveshowngreatinterestintetripafter

theyaretobeallowedtotraveltoTaiwan.

Thetravelrestrictionahsbeeninplaceforthepast20years.

In2003,peopleinTaiwanmade2.4milliontripstothemailand.In2004,the

numberreached3.7million,thais35%upfromthepreviousyear.But,only145,000

mainlandersvisitedTaiwanforbusinessduringthesameyear.

Beforeanytripsbegin,thereisstillalongwaytogo.

71.WhatdidtheTaiwanWorkofficetellthepublic?

72.Whyisthe10-daytripsoexpensive?

73.WhatdomainlandersfeelaboutthetriptoTaiwan?

74.Whichyearis“thepreviousyear”?

75.HowmanymainlanderswenttoTaiwanforbusinessin2004?

14.根据短文内容，回答问题。

ThomasEdisonlostthefirstjob.Forthenextfiveyears,hewentaround

thecountryfromjobtojob.AtlastEdisonwenttoNewYork.Hehad

littlemoney.Hecouldnotbuyenoughfoodtoeat.Hehadnoplaceto

livein.

FormanydaysEdisonlookedforwork.Hewashungry.Atlasthefoundwork

一mendingmachines.Healsomadenewones.TheheadmanlikedEdison'snew

machines.HewasgoingtogiveEdison40,000dollarsforthem.Edisonwouldnow

havemoneytodowhathewanted.

ThomasEdisonwasthen23.HeusedthemoneytobuildashopINewJersey.

Hehadmanypeopleworkingforhim.Butheworkedmorethananyofthem.Herested

little.Soonhewasmakingmorethanfortynewthingsatonetime.

1.1.WhowasThomasEdison?

2.2.HowwasThomasEdisoninNewYorkbeforehefoundajob?

3.3.HowmuchmoneydidEdisongetforhisnewmachines?

4.4.WhendidEdisonbuildhisownshop?

15.根据短文内容，回答问题。

Howdowechoosetheclotheswewear?Oftenwechooseclothesthatwillprotect

usfromtheweather.Incolddayswewearwarmclothesmadeofwooloranimal

skins.Inhotdayswewearlightclothesmadeofcotton.Whentheweatheris

veryhot,asitisindesert（沙漠）,peoplewearlong,wideclothes.These

kindsofclothesgiveprotectionfromthehotsunandletairintohelpthe

peoplestaycool.

Peoplealsochoosetheirclothesforthejobstheydo.Thepolice,busdrivers

andsalesmenwearuniforms（制服）.Workersandminers（矿工）wearclothes

thatprotectthemwhiletheydotheirwork.

Inthepast,mostpeoplemadetheirownclothes.Womenusedclothtomakeclothes

forthemselvesandtheirfamilies.Later,peoplesometimeswenttodressmakersv.

Mostofthetime,richpeoplecopiedthestyles（样式）ofkingsandqueens”

（国王和王后）.Whenkingsorqueensworeanewstyle,peoplecopiedit.Travelers

gotideasfornewstylesfromothergroupsofpeopleduringtheirvisittosome

otherplaces.

Today,highfashiondesigns（时装设计）fromEurope,andmorerecently（最

近地）fromJapan,aresoldinternationally（国际化地）.Fashioncenterssuch

asNewYork,Parisproducetheirowndesigns.Peoplenolongercopythestyles

ofkingsandqueens.Nowtheywanttolookliketheirfavoritemoviestarsand

singers.

Manystylestodayareinternational.Peopleinmanycountriesintheworldwear

bluejeans（牛仔服）andT-shirts.Leatherjacketsandkimonos（和服）migrate

fromoneculturetoanothertoo.Wewanttobuynewclothes.Peoplewillnot

buynewclothessooftenifthestylesdonotchangessomuch!

Thekindofclothesweweartellpeopleaboutus.Wewearonekindofclothes

towork.Wewearadifferentkindofclothestorelax（放松）athomeafterwork

ortogotoaparty.Whatkindofclothesdoyouwear?

21.Whatclothesdopeopleprefertowearincoldweather,woolenorcotton

clothes?

22.Accordingtothethirdparagraph,howdidpeoplegettheirclothes?

23.Whosestylesofclotheswerecopiedbyrichpeopleinthepast?

24.Whichcitiesarefashioncentersaccordingtothepassage?

25.Whenwillpeoplebuyclothesaccordingtothepassage?

16.根据短文内容，回答问题。

Tomwasonlysevenyearsold,sowhenhewenttocamp（野营）withalotof

othersmallboysinsummer,hismotherthoughtthathemightnotbehappyand

askedhisaunts,hisgrandmotherandallhisotherrelatives（亲戚）towrite

tohim.Hismotherhopedthathewouldgetalettereverydaywhilehewasat

thecamp.

Ofcourse,Tomgetalettereverydaywhilehewasatthecampbuthewrote

tonobody.Afewdayslater,whenhecamebackhome,hismothersawhimlooking

atsomepapersandaskedhimwhathewasdoing.〃0h〃，hesaid,“Theyareletters.

IgottheseletterswhileIwasatthecamp.Ididnothavetimemetolookat

themwhenIwasthere.

(1)WhatseasondidTomgotothecamp?

(2)Whomdidhegotothecampwith?

(3)Whatdidhismotherhope?

(4)Tomdidn，twritetoanybody,didhe?

(5)Whydidn，tTomlookattheseletters?

17.根据短文内容，回答问题。

JanMelaisn“tlikemostkids.Twoyearsago,helostanarmandaleg.But

thatdidn“tstophim.

OnSaturday,the15-year-oldboyfromPoland(波兰)walkedtotheNorthPole

(北极)withoutanyhelp.

“IfIcandoit,otherpeoplecandogreatthings,too."Melasaidbeforehe

went.

PolishnewspaperssaidMelaistheyoungestpersonandthefirsthandicapped

(残疾的)persontowalktotheNorthPole.

HowdidMelaloseanarmandaleg?Hehadanelectrical(电的)accident.Now,

hewalkswiththehelpofa62,000—yuanman-madeleg.

Aftertheaccident,Melafeltsadforhimself.Buthedidn”tlosehope.One

day,hemetMarekKaminski,aPolishexplorer.Eightyearsago,Kaminskiwent

totheNorthPoleandtheSouthPoleinthesameyear.Melawantedtoseethe

NorthPole,too.SoMelaaskedKaminskiiftheycouldgotogethernexttime.

Kaminskisaidyes!

IttookMela21daystogettotheNorthPole.Thelastthreeorfourdayswere

reallyhardbecauseofbadweather.ButMelakeptgoing.

“Ididn,,tthinkwewouldmakeit,”hesaid,“Then,thingsgotbetter.”

71.WhathappenedtoMelatwoyearsago?

72.WhydidPolishnewspapersreportthetraveltotheNorthPole?

73.HowdoesMelawalkaftertheaccident?

74.WheredidKaminskigoeightyearsago?

75.WhydidMelamakethetravel?

18.根据短文内容，回答问题。

Differentpeoplehavedifferentcolorskin.Somehaveblackskin,some

haveyellowskin,andsomehavewhiteskin.OncetherewasawomaninAlaska.

Herskinwasanorangecolor.Itwasalmostthecoloroforangejuice.Howdid

thewomanbecomeorange?Sheatelotsoftomatoes,carrotsandsquashes.She

atesomanyorangethings.Thiswaswhyherskinturnedorange.

Whydidsheeatsomanyorangethings?Shethoughtsheneededmoresun.So

sheatesunnythings.

Thewomandidn，twanttobeorange.Shewenttothedoctor.Thedoctor

said,“Stopeatingorangethings.Trysomegreenthings."Thewomandidso.And

shewasn，torangeanymore.

1.Whatcolorwasthewoman'sskincolorinAlaska?

2.Whydidherskinturnorange?

3.Whydidshegotothedoctor?

4.Whatdidthedoctoradvisehertodo?

5.Ifyoucanchooseyourskin'scolor,whatcolorwouldyoulike?Why?

19.根据短文内容，回答问题。

AftersupperMr.Jacksonturnedonthetelevision.Hetriedtofindafootball

gameonit.Atthattimethetelephonerangandhewenttoanswerit.

“Hello,"hesaid,“7465487872135.

“It”sBettyspeaking,“saidawoman."Henryisill.AndIhavetotakehim

tothehospital.ButLucyistooyoung...”

"Don"tworry.I"11goandlookafterher.ButwherewsJames?”

“He”sgonetoLondon.He"11bebackattwotomorrowmorning.”

Mrs.JacksonwasondutyinthehospitalthatnightandMr.Jacksonhadtogo

tohelphissister.Lucywasonlyfour.Shebegantocrywhenhermotherleft.

Mr.Jacksontoldhersomestories,taughtherasongandshowedhersomenice

pictures.Hedidn“tstopuntilthelittlegirlwenttosleep.

Mr.JacksonwenthomeafterJamescameback.Hewasasleepsoonafterhewent

tobed.Hiswifecameintothebedroomanditwokehimup.Hehadalookatthe

clockonthewallandfounditwashalfpasteight.Hejumpedoffthebedand

rantothegaragewithhisbag.Hiswifetriedtosaysomething,buthecalled

back,aIwasneverlateforwork,youknow.ButI“mlatethismorning.”

“No,youaren"t,“saidMrs.Jackson."It”sSaturday.

21.WhydidBettytelephoneMr.Jackson?

22