Passage Three
Banks are not ordinarily prepared to pay out all accounts; they rely on depositors (储户) not to demand payment all at the same time. If depositors should come to fear that a bank is not safe, that it cannot pay off all its depositors, then that fear might cause all the depositors to appear on the same day. If they did, the bank could not pay all accounts. However, if they did not all appear at once, then there would always be enough money to pay those who wanted their money when they wanted it. Mrs. Elsie Vaught has told us of a terrifying bank run that she experienced. One day in December of 1925 several banks failed to open in a city where Mrs. Vaught lived. The other banks expected a run the next day, and so the officers of the bank in which Mrs Vaught worked as a teller had enough money on hand to pay off their depositors. The officers simply told the tellers to pay on demand. The next morning a crowd gathered in the bank and on the sidewalk outside. The length of the line made many think that the bank could not possibly pay off everyone. People began to push and then to fight for places near the tellers’ windows, The power of the panic atmosphere was such that two tellers, though they knew that the bank was quite all right and could pay all depositors, drew their own money from the bank. Mrs Vaught says that she had difficulty keeping herself from doing the same.
71. A bank run happens when _______.
a bank is closed for one or more days
too many depositors try to draw out their money at one time
there is not enough money to pay all its depositors at one time
tellers of a bank take their own money from the bank
72. The tellers in Mrs. Vaught’s bank were told to ________.
explain why they could not pay out all accounts
pay out accounts as requested
make the depositors believe that the bank was stand
pay out money as slowly as possible
73. The main cause of a bank run is _______.
A. loss of confidence B. lack of money
C. crowds of people D. inexperienced tellers
74. Which of the following did Mrs. Vaught say?
She know that the bank was not sound.
She feared that too many depositors drawing their money would close the bank.
She was not able to draw out her money.
She was tempted to draw out her money.
75. According to the passage, the actions of the depositors of Mrs. Vaught’s bank were affected mainly by the _______.
ease with which they could get their money
confidence that Mrs. Vaught showed
failure of several other banks to open
confidence shown by other depositors of the bank
Passage Four
One of the greatest problems for those settlers in Nebraska in the last quarter of the previous century was fuel. Little of the state was forested when the first settlers arrived and it is probable that by 1880, only about one-third of the originally forested area remained, down to a mere 1 percent of the state’s 77,000 square miles. With wood and coal out of the question, and with fuel needed year-round for cooking, and during the harsh winter months for heating, some solution had to be found.
Somewhat improbably, the buffalo provided the answer. Buffalo chips (干粪块) were found to burn evenly, hotly, and cleanly, with little smoke and interestingly, no odor, Soon, collecting them became a way of life for the settlers’ children who would pick them up on their way to and from school, or take part in competitions designed to counteract their natural reluctance. Even a young man, seeking to impress the girl he wanted to marry, would arrive with a large bag of chips rather than with a box of candy or a bunch of flowers.
76. What is the main topic of this passage?
The solution to the Nebraska settlers’ fuel problem.
Life in Nebraska in the late ninteenth century.
The imporance of the American buffalo.
Deforestation in Nebraska in the late nineteenth century.
77. Which of the following statements is NOT true?
Nebraska was not a densely-forested state even before the settlers arrived.
The children enjoyed collecting the buffalo chips.
The children spent a lot of time collecting the chips.
Buffalo chips were satisfactory as a fuel.
78. The passage implies that buffalo chips were needed _______.
A. in greater amounts in summer B. in greater amounts in winter
C. only in summer D. only in winter
79. Which of the following does the author not express surprise at?
The children needed competitions to them.
The buffalo chips gave off no smell.
Buffalo chips were the answer to the settlers’ fuel problem.
Young men took bags of buffalo chips to their girl friends.
80. What’s the best title of the passage?
A. Early Settlers B. One Use of the Buffalo Chips
C. Nebraska’s Problems D. How Young Men Express Their Love for Girls
Ⅴ. Writing (20 points)
Directions:
For this part, you are allowed 20 minutes to write a letter of about 80 words according to the following situation.
你叫李平，是英语系学生会主席。写一封信给王教授，请他做一个有关中国历史的报告。注意信中要包括目的、时间、日期和地点。
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