初級口語(LRC)-英語聽力初級口語part6
Oral Workshop: Reproduction Lesson 33-35 ;
Lesson 33 ;
Text A We Are Not Deaf! ;
Jane and Lise have had lunch with Uncle David and Aunt Janet. ;
The two old people are deaf and the girls are tired because they have had to shout. ;
They both want to leave. ;
LISE:We'll have to leave soon,Aunt Janet. ;
AUNT JANET:Yes,of course you can have some tea,dear.I'll go and make some. ;
JANE:Oh no,Lise.Stop her!You'd better say it louder. ;
LISE:WE'LL HAVE TO LEAVE,AUNT JANET. ;
UNCLE DAVID:You can't leave yet.I want to hear some more about Canada. ;
LISE:But I must go back and look after Malcolm. ;
Oh dear,they didn't hear.I MUST GO BACK AND LOOK AFTER MALCOLM. ;
AUNT JANET:Why, what's the matter with him? ;
LISE:I told you, aunt JANET.HE ISN'T WELL. ;
AUNT JANET:But I thought you said he was in the hotel. ;
Where are you staying? ;
LISE:We're camping ...WE'RE CAMPING. ;
AUNT JANET:In this weather?Well,I'm not surprised Malcolm isn't well. ;
Perhaps I ought to come out and see him. ;
LISE (firmly):NO, THAT'S NOT A GOOD IDEA,AUNTIE. HE'S ILL. ;
UNCLE DAVID:What's the matter with him? ;
LISE:He's got a cold. JANE:He's got a temperature. ;
LISE:Oh,what's the use?HE'S GOT A COLD. ;
UNCLE DAVID:All right,all right, we can hear.We're not deaf! ;
Text B The Stolen Smells ;
Many years ago in another country there lived a poor student. ;
He had very little money.He lived in a very small room over a restaurant. ;
His room was at the back of the building over the kitchen. ;
The restaurant owner was a very mean man. Nobody liked him. ;
But he was a good cook and many people came to his restaurant. ;
One day he was working quietly in his kitchen ;
when he heard the poor student talking to his friend. ;
"You must be very unhappy,"said his friend, "living in a poor room like this." ;
"Oh no,"said the student,"I am busy with my studies ;
and I'm not interested in my room." ;
"But you only eat plain rice--you don't have money for anything tasty." ;
"Yes,it's true,I eat only plain rice. ;
But the delicious smells that come from the kitchen ;
make the rice very tasty indeed."The restaurant owner was furious. ;
This student was stealing the smells from his kitchen. ;
He decided to take him to court.Everybody in the court laughed ;
when the mean man accused the student of stealing his smells. ;
But the judge took him seriously. ;
"Every man should be able to complain to the court,"he said. ;
When the restaurant owner told the judge everything,the judge said, ;
"You are right.The student is guilty." The restaurant owner was delighted, ;
but the poor student was very much afraid. What could he do? ;
He had only a few coins in his pocket. ;
The judge asked the student if he had any money. ;
The student took 5 coins from his pocket ;
and held them out to the judge in his right hand. ;
"Let the coins fall into your left hand, "said the judge. ;
The courtroom was very quiet.Everyone heard the tinkle of the coins ;
as they fell into the student's left hand. ;
"Well,"said the judge to the restaurant owner, ;
"you've heard his money.You've been well paid for your smells." ;
7.Read the following passage once. ;
Underline the key words while reading and retell the story to your partner. ;
A Bad Student ;
Peter's father wants to know how his son is getting along in school. ;
One day he asks him: "Peter,how are you getting along in school? ;
What seat do you have in the class? ;
Does the teacher place you in seats according to your marks?" ;
"Yes,father." "And what seat do you have?" ;
"Number twenty-one." "And how many students are there in your class?" ;
"Twenty-one,father." Several weeks pass. ;
Peter,who is a bad student and studies very little, ;
brings home the marks of his monthly examinations. ;
"How are you getting along in school now, Peter?"asks his father. ;
"Your marks do not seem to be very good." ;
"I am getting along much better now, father. ;
"What is your place in the class now?" "Number twenty now." ;
"Good.Then you are one place ahead." "No,father. ;
One of the students left the class.His family moved to another town." ;
Lesson 34 ;
Text A Stage Fright ;
Tom was sick with disappointment. ;
The piano recital had turned out well,all except for his solo. ;
He couldn't understand how it could have happened. ;
He had practised for weeks that seemed like months. ;
He had given up sports until after the recital ;
because he wanted to make his parents proud of him. ;
He spent all his time with the piano.His teacher had said he was gifted. ;
It was true that he accepted music as another language, ;
another way to talk to people. ;
His grandparents,aunt, and uncle all came to hear him play, ;
and he was anxious to show them that he was the best in the whole class. ;
But,when he stood up to go to the piano, his knees felt weak. ;
He looked into the audience and saw his family smiling back at him. ;
His mouth went dry. His fingers began to tremble. ;
The trembling became uncontrollable shaking ;
as though he had caught a bad cold. He sat down at the piano. ;
He took a deep breath. He played the first five bars of his music, ;
then realized with horror that he had forgotten the rest. ;
He started over, thinking that would help. It didn't. ;
He stood up as if in slow motion and walked off the stage. He was a failure. ;
The demon stage fright had left a brilliant musical career in ruins. ;
Text B I Shall Never Fly Again ;
Tom Jackson and Charles Brown are talking about their summer holidays. ;
TOM:Where are you going for your holidays,Charles? ;
CHARLES:To Australia I'm going to visit my uncle in Brisbane for three weeks. ;
TOM:Good gracious! You certainly are lucky.How are you going there? ;
CHARLES:By air,of course.It takes over two weeks to go by sea. ;
TOM:I once went to Singapore by air.It was very exciting --but never again. ;
CHARLES:Why?Did you feel frightened? ;
TOM:For a short time.One of the engines caught fire. ;
CHARLES:What did the pilot do? ;
TOM:He put it out and flew back to the airport. ;
Then he asked the people at the airport where the emergency runway was ;
CHARLES:Did you land safely? ;
TOM:Yes,we did.But I shall never fly again. ;
7.Read the following passage once. ;
Underline the key words while reading and retell the story to your partner. ;
It was a dark day when we got our report cards. ;
The sky was full of gray clouds and it was sprinkling rain. ;
I was over to Clyde's house and Gloria and Kitty were there. ;
Sam probably would have been there,too, ;
only he had got a two-week job in the afternoons helping out at Freddie's. ;
Actually he only did it ;
so that his mother would let him be on the track team again. ;
Sam and his mother had this little system going. ;
He would do something good-doing and she'd let him do something that he wanted to. ;
Clyde's report card was on the kitchen table ;
and we all sat around it like it was some kind of a big important document. ;
I had got a pretty good report card ;
and had wanted to show it off but I knew it wasn't the time. ;
Clyde pushed the card toward me and I read it. ;
He had all satisfactor -y remarks on the side labeled Personal Traits and Behavior. ;
He had also received B's in music and art appreciation. ;
But everything else was either a C or a D except mathematics ;
His mathematics mark was a big red F that had been circled. ;
I don't know why they had to circle the F when it was the only red mark on the card. ;
In the Teacher's Comments section someone had written that Clyde had ;
"little ability to handle an academic program." ;
"A little ability is better than none," I said.No one said anything ;
so I figured it probably wasn't the right time to try tocheer Clyde up. ;
I knew all about his switching from a commercial program to an academic program, ;
but I really hadn't thought he'd have any trouble. ;
"I saw the grede adviser today. ;
He said I should switch back to the commercial program." ;
Clyde looked like he'd start crying any minute. ;
His eyes were red and his voice was shaky. ;
"He said that I had to take mathematics over and if I failed again ;
or failed another required subject I couldn't graduate. The way it is now ;
I'm going to have to finish up in the summer because I switched over." ;
"I think you can pass it if you really want to," Kitty said. ;
Clyde's sister was so pretty I couldn't even look at her. ;
If I did,I started feeling funny and couldn't talk right. ;
Sometimes I daydreamed about marrying her. ;
Just then Clyde's mother came in and he gave a quick look at Kitty. ;
"Hi,young ladies and young gentlemen." ;
Mrs.Jones was a kind of heavy woman but she was pretty,too. ;
You could tell she was Kitty's mother if you looked close. ;
She put her package down and started taking things out. ;
"I heard you people talking when I first came in. ;
By the way you hushed up I guess you don't want me to hear what you were talking about ;
I'll be out of your way in a minute, ;
soon as I put the frozen foods in the refrigerator." ;
"I got my report card today,"Clyde said. ;
His mother stopped taking the food out and turned toward us. ;
Clyde pushed the report card about two inches toward her. ;
She really didn't even have to look at the card to know that it was bad. ;
She could have told that just by looking at Clyde. ;
But she picked it up and looked at it a long time. ;
First she looked at one side and then the other ;
and then back at the first side again."What do they say around the school?"she asked, ;
still looking at the card. ;
"They said I should drop the academic course and go back to the other one." ;
I could hardly hear Clyde,he spoke so low. ;
"Well,what are you going to do,young man?" ;
She looked up at Clyde and Clyde looked up at her ;
and there were tears in his eyes and I almost started crying. ;
I can't stand to see my friends cry."What are you going to do, Mr.Jones?" ;
"I'm--I'm going to keep the academic course,"Clyde said. ;
"You think it's going to be any easier this time?" Mrs.Jones asked. ;
"No." "Things ain't always easy.Lord knows that things ain't always easy." ;
For a minute there was a faraway look in her eyes, ;
but then her face turned into a big smile."You're just like your father,boy ;
That man never would give up on anything he really wanted. ;
Did 1 ever tell you the time he was trying to learn to play the trombone?" ;
"No."Clyde still had tears in his eyes but he was smiling, too. ;
Suddenly everybody was happy. ;
It was like seeing a rainbow when it was still raining. ;
Lesson 35 ;
Text A A Proud Linguist ;
Once upon a time there was an Austrian emperor ;
who made it a rule to interview every one of his soldiers once a year. ;
During the interviews he invariably asked three questions-- ;
"How old are you?", "How long have you been in my army? ;
"and" Are you satisfied with your pay and the food you get?"--in that order ;
One year,the day before the imperial interviews, ;
a Frenchman got himself enlisted in the Austrian army. ;
Since he knew no German he was on tenterhooks. ;
Now there was an old soldier in his unit who knew a little French ;
and was anxious to help.In fact he knew just about enough French ;
to be able to teach his young friend the shortest possible answers, ;
in the proper order, to the imperial questions. ;
The day arrived with all the sound and colour that befitted it. ;
The Emperor in all his splendour was seated on the throne, ;
his entourage attending respectfully in the background. ;
The soldiers filed past him,each taking barely half a minute ;
during which time the questions were asked ;
and the answers reverently provided. ;
When the Frenchman's turn came,far from being nervous he was sure of himself, ;
having recited the answers,in the proper order, ;
he did not know how many times.The Emperor looked at him long and hard ;
and suddenly took it into his head ;
that he had seen the young man somewhere before. ;
He began,a little out of the usual order,with the second question: ;
"How long have you been in my army?" ;
"Twenty-one years," replied the Frenchman,not without some pride ;
in his ability to learn a foreign language so quickly and so well. ;
The monarch was surprised, ;
for the young man did not look very much older than that, ;
but he went on to ask:"Then how old are you?" "One day," came the answer. ;
That was too much for the Emperor, who sat back and muttered:"Well,well. ;
That beats me. It seems either you're mad or I am." ;
Positive that that was the last of the imperial questions, ;
the proud linguist stepped forward and with a smile said: "Both,your majesty." ;
Text B What Am I Going to Do? ;
Mr Davidson is standing outside his house. ;
He has forgotten to bring his key with him. ;
Henry Black and John Field walk past and they say"Hello"to Mr Davidson. ;
MR DAVIDSON:Hello, boys.Can you help me? ;
I've forgotten my key and I can't get in . ;
JOHN AND HENRY: We'll try our best. Mr Davidson. ;
MR DAVIDSON:You're both taller than me,aren't you? ;
JOHN:Yes,I'm over five foot ten.I'm the tallest of the three of us. ;
HENRY:But I'm almost as tall as John. ;
MR DAVIDSON:Can you climb on John's shoulders and reach that window? ;
HENRY:All right.What shall I do now? ;
MR DAVIDSON:Open the window,please, and climb through it into the house. ;
HENRY:Oh dear,I can't move it. It's fastened inside. ;
MR DAVIDSON:Can you break the window? ;
JOHN:Look!There's a policeman!He's coming towards us. ;
7.Read the following passage once. ;
Underline the key words while reading and retell the story to your partner. ;
Adventure At Midnight ;
Long ago there lived two brothers who were very poor. ;
They lived in tiny huts at opposite sides of their large wheat field. ;
At the end of each summer,when harvest time came, ;
the brothers divided the grain they had grown into two equal parts. ;
Some of it they took to be milled into flour,from which they baked bread. ;
The rest was sold for money,with which they bought shoes, clothing,and tools. ;
Although they toiled from sunup to sundown, ;
six days a week,they hardly had enough to eat.In spite of this, ;
they were happy because of their great love for one another. ;
But one year,Simon, the younger brother, felt a great sadness. ;
His wife said,"Tell me what is making you so blue? ;
You no longer sing while you work,and the twinkle is gone from your eye." ;
"You are right,dear wife.I am worried about my older brother,Ruben. ;
He is alone in the world,with neither wife nor children. ;
Who will care for him when he gets old and can no longer work? ;
If only he had some money to save for his old age! ;
It isn't fair that we share the harvest equally. ;
But he is proud and will not accept gifts from me. ;
What shall I do?" "Would you take food from your own children?" ;
She asked in astonishment."There is nothing you can do,"she said. ;
"So forget it."Simon knew that his wife was right, ;
but he was determined to help Ruben,come what might. ;
Meanwhile,Ruben was sitting under a tree,thinking deeply. ;
When he noticed a bird on the way to its winter home,he said, ;
"That bird and I are fortunate because we are free. ;
Neither of us has a wife and children always needing to be fed. ;
But my poor brother, Simon,is burdened with a family. ;
"It isn't fair that we share the harvest equally. ;
Surely he deserves more than I! ;
But he is very proud and will not accept gifts from me. ;
What can I do? In several days we'll take our harvest to town. ;
If I don't think of a plan soon,it will be too late." ;
That night,when the moon was high in the sky, ;
Ruben went quietly to his barn where he filled a sack with wheat ;
and put in on his shoulder. ;
Then he crossed the empty field to his brother's hut ;
and secretly placed his wheat with Simon's. ;
"Ah,"he said when he had finished, "this is better. ;
Now my dear younger brother will have more than I." ;
Ruben went happily back to his hut ;
and slept soundly for the first time in weeks. ;
An hour later,Simon woke up with a start. He had dreamed of a marvelous plan. ;
He crept out of bed, got dressed,and went to his barn. ;
Filling a sack with wheat,walking across the field to Ruben's hut, ;
and placing it there took very little time. ;
Before long,he was back in bed,pulling up the covers. ;
"Now I can sleep peacefully,"he thought, ;
"because Ruben will have a little extra to save for his old age." ;
The next morning Ruben and Simon were amazed.How could this be? ;
Their piles were equal, ;
yet each knew he had secretly given wheat to his brother. ;
Something must have gone wrong. ;
So that night Ruben waited until midnight, ;
when he again took Simon some of his grain. ;
"There!Now I am fully awake and I'm sure I put it on his pile. ;
Tomorrow mine will be smaller and his larger,as it should be." ;
A short time later, Simon did the same. ;
He,too,was sure that all would be well this time.But when day dawned, ;
each brother saw that this share was exactly half the harvest. ;
Ruben and Simon were desperate. ;
Tomorrow they were to go to town to sell their grain. ;
Tonight was their last chance.Midnight came again. ;
But this time Ruben and Simon chose the same moment to carry out ;
their mission of brotherly love. ;
Each placed a sack of wheat on his shoulders ;
and began to walk across the field. Halfway across they met. ;
"Ruben!What are you doing out so late at night?" ;
cried Simon in dismay. He tried to hide his sack. ;
Startled,Ruben dropped his bundle. ;
Then he saw Simon's sack and they both began to laugh. ;
When they finished laughing,they hugged each other tightly. ;
Their hearts were full of love for each other and they were content. ;
Lesson 33 ;
Text A We Are Not Deaf! ;
Jane and Lise have had lunch with Uncle David and Aunt Janet. ;
The two old people are deaf and the girls are tired because they have had to shout. ;
They both want to leave. ;
LISE:We'll have to leave soon,Aunt Janet. ;
AUNT JANET:Yes,of course you can have some tea,dear.I'll go and make some. ;
JANE:Oh no,Lise.Stop her!You'd better say it louder. ;
LISE:WE'LL HAVE TO LEAVE,AUNT JANET. ;
UNCLE DAVID:You can't leave yet.I want to hear some more about Canada. ;
LISE:But I must go back and look after Malcolm. ;
Oh dear,they didn't hear.I MUST GO BACK AND LOOK AFTER MALCOLM. ;
AUNT JANET:Why, what's the matter with him? ;
LISE:I told you, aunt JANET.HE ISN'T WELL. ;
AUNT JANET:But I thought you said he was in the hotel. ;
Where are you staying? ;
LISE:We're camping ...WE'RE CAMPING. ;
AUNT JANET:In this weather?Well,I'm not surprised Malcolm isn't well. ;
Perhaps I ought to come out and see him. ;
LISE (firmly):NO, THAT'S NOT A GOOD IDEA,AUNTIE. HE'S ILL. ;
UNCLE DAVID:What's the matter with him? ;
LISE:He's got a cold. JANE:He's got a temperature. ;
LISE:Oh,what's the use?HE'S GOT A COLD. ;
UNCLE DAVID:All right,all right, we can hear.We're not deaf! ;
Text B The Stolen Smells ;
Many years ago in another country there lived a poor student. ;
He had very little money.He lived in a very small room over a restaurant. ;
His room was at the back of the building over the kitchen. ;
The restaurant owner was a very mean man. Nobody liked him. ;
But he was a good cook and many people came to his restaurant. ;
One day he was working quietly in his kitchen ;
when he heard the poor student talking to his friend. ;
"You must be very unhappy,"said his friend, "living in a poor room like this." ;
"Oh no,"said the student,"I am busy with my studies ;
and I'm not interested in my room." ;
"But you only eat plain rice--you don't have money for anything tasty." ;
"Yes,it's true,I eat only plain rice. ;
But the delicious smells that come from the kitchen ;
make the rice very tasty indeed."The restaurant owner was furious. ;
This student was stealing the smells from his kitchen. ;
He decided to take him to court.Everybody in the court laughed ;
when the mean man accused the student of stealing his smells. ;
But the judge took him seriously. ;
"Every man should be able to complain to the court,"he said. ;
When the restaurant owner told the judge everything,the judge said, ;
"You are right.The student is guilty." The restaurant owner was delighted, ;
but the poor student was very much afraid. What could he do? ;
He had only a few coins in his pocket. ;
The judge asked the student if he had any money. ;
The student took 5 coins from his pocket ;
and held them out to the judge in his right hand. ;
"Let the coins fall into your left hand, "said the judge. ;
The courtroom was very quiet.Everyone heard the tinkle of the coins ;
as they fell into the student's left hand. ;
"Well,"said the judge to the restaurant owner, ;
"you've heard his money.You've been well paid for your smells." ;
7.Read the following passage once. ;
Underline the key words while reading and retell the story to your partner. ;
A Bad Student ;
Peter's father wants to know how his son is getting along in school. ;
One day he asks him: "Peter,how are you getting along in school? ;
What seat do you have in the class? ;
Does the teacher place you in seats according to your marks?" ;
"Yes,father." "And what seat do you have?" ;
"Number twenty-one." "And how many students are there in your class?" ;
"Twenty-one,father." Several weeks pass. ;
Peter,who is a bad student and studies very little, ;
brings home the marks of his monthly examinations. ;
"How are you getting along in school now, Peter?"asks his father. ;
"Your marks do not seem to be very good." ;
"I am getting along much better now, father. ;
"What is your place in the class now?" "Number twenty now." ;
"Good.Then you are one place ahead." "No,father. ;
One of the students left the class.His family moved to another town." ;
Lesson 34 ;
Text A Stage Fright ;
Tom was sick with disappointment. ;
The piano recital had turned out well,all except for his solo. ;
He couldn't understand how it could have happened. ;
He had practised for weeks that seemed like months. ;
He had given up sports until after the recital ;
because he wanted to make his parents proud of him. ;
He spent all his time with the piano.His teacher had said he was gifted. ;
It was true that he accepted music as another language, ;
another way to talk to people. ;
His grandparents,aunt, and uncle all came to hear him play, ;
and he was anxious to show them that he was the best in the whole class. ;
But,when he stood up to go to the piano, his knees felt weak. ;
He looked into the audience and saw his family smiling back at him. ;
His mouth went dry. His fingers began to tremble. ;
The trembling became uncontrollable shaking ;
as though he had caught a bad cold. He sat down at the piano. ;
He took a deep breath. He played the first five bars of his music, ;
then realized with horror that he had forgotten the rest. ;
He started over, thinking that would help. It didn't. ;
He stood up as if in slow motion and walked off the stage. He was a failure. ;
The demon stage fright had left a brilliant musical career in ruins. ;
Text B I Shall Never Fly Again ;
Tom Jackson and Charles Brown are talking about their summer holidays. ;
TOM:Where are you going for your holidays,Charles? ;
CHARLES:To Australia I'm going to visit my uncle in Brisbane for three weeks. ;
TOM:Good gracious! You certainly are lucky.How are you going there? ;
CHARLES:By air,of course.It takes over two weeks to go by sea. ;
TOM:I once went to Singapore by air.It was very exciting --but never again. ;
CHARLES:Why?Did you feel frightened? ;
TOM:For a short time.One of the engines caught fire. ;
CHARLES:What did the pilot do? ;
TOM:He put it out and flew back to the airport. ;
Then he asked the people at the airport where the emergency runway was ;
CHARLES:Did you land safely? ;
TOM:Yes,we did.But I shall never fly again. ;
7.Read the following passage once. ;
Underline the key words while reading and retell the story to your partner. ;
It was a dark day when we got our report cards. ;
The sky was full of gray clouds and it was sprinkling rain. ;
I was over to Clyde's house and Gloria and Kitty were there. ;
Sam probably would have been there,too, ;
only he had got a two-week job in the afternoons helping out at Freddie's. ;
Actually he only did it ;
so that his mother would let him be on the track team again. ;
Sam and his mother had this little system going. ;
He would do something good-doing and she'd let him do something that he wanted to. ;
Clyde's report card was on the kitchen table ;
and we all sat around it like it was some kind of a big important document. ;
I had got a pretty good report card ;
and had wanted to show it off but I knew it wasn't the time. ;
Clyde pushed the card toward me and I read it. ;
He had all satisfactor -y remarks on the side labeled Personal Traits and Behavior. ;
He had also received B's in music and art appreciation. ;
But everything else was either a C or a D except mathematics ;
His mathematics mark was a big red F that had been circled. ;
I don't know why they had to circle the F when it was the only red mark on the card. ;
In the Teacher's Comments section someone had written that Clyde had ;
"little ability to handle an academic program." ;
"A little ability is better than none," I said.No one said anything ;
so I figured it probably wasn't the right time to try tocheer Clyde up. ;
I knew all about his switching from a commercial program to an academic program, ;
but I really hadn't thought he'd have any trouble. ;
"I saw the grede adviser today. ;
He said I should switch back to the commercial program." ;
Clyde looked like he'd start crying any minute. ;
His eyes were red and his voice was shaky. ;
"He said that I had to take mathematics over and if I failed again ;
or failed another required subject I couldn't graduate. The way it is now ;
I'm going to have to finish up in the summer because I switched over." ;
"I think you can pass it if you really want to," Kitty said. ;
Clyde's sister was so pretty I couldn't even look at her. ;
If I did,I started feeling funny and couldn't talk right. ;
Sometimes I daydreamed about marrying her. ;
Just then Clyde's mother came in and he gave a quick look at Kitty. ;
"Hi,young ladies and young gentlemen." ;
Mrs.Jones was a kind of heavy woman but she was pretty,too. ;
You could tell she was Kitty's mother if you looked close. ;
She put her package down and started taking things out. ;
"I heard you people talking when I first came in. ;
By the way you hushed up I guess you don't want me to hear what you were talking about ;
I'll be out of your way in a minute, ;
soon as I put the frozen foods in the refrigerator." ;
"I got my report card today,"Clyde said. ;
His mother stopped taking the food out and turned toward us. ;
Clyde pushed the report card about two inches toward her. ;
She really didn't even have to look at the card to know that it was bad. ;
She could have told that just by looking at Clyde. ;
But she picked it up and looked at it a long time. ;
First she looked at one side and then the other ;
and then back at the first side again."What do they say around the school?"she asked, ;
still looking at the card. ;
"They said I should drop the academic course and go back to the other one." ;
I could hardly hear Clyde,he spoke so low. ;
"Well,what are you going to do,young man?" ;
She looked up at Clyde and Clyde looked up at her ;
and there were tears in his eyes and I almost started crying. ;
I can't stand to see my friends cry."What are you going to do, Mr.Jones?" ;
"I'm--I'm going to keep the academic course,"Clyde said. ;
"You think it's going to be any easier this time?" Mrs.Jones asked. ;
"No." "Things ain't always easy.Lord knows that things ain't always easy." ;
For a minute there was a faraway look in her eyes, ;
but then her face turned into a big smile."You're just like your father,boy ;
That man never would give up on anything he really wanted. ;
Did 1 ever tell you the time he was trying to learn to play the trombone?" ;
"No."Clyde still had tears in his eyes but he was smiling, too. ;
Suddenly everybody was happy. ;
It was like seeing a rainbow when it was still raining. ;
Lesson 35 ;
Text A A Proud Linguist ;
Once upon a time there was an Austrian emperor ;
who made it a rule to interview every one of his soldiers once a year. ;
During the interviews he invariably asked three questions-- ;
"How old are you?", "How long have you been in my army? ;
"and" Are you satisfied with your pay and the food you get?"--in that order ;
One year,the day before the imperial interviews, ;
a Frenchman got himself enlisted in the Austrian army. ;
Since he knew no German he was on tenterhooks. ;
Now there was an old soldier in his unit who knew a little French ;
and was anxious to help.In fact he knew just about enough French ;
to be able to teach his young friend the shortest possible answers, ;
in the proper order, to the imperial questions. ;
The day arrived with all the sound and colour that befitted it. ;
The Emperor in all his splendour was seated on the throne, ;
his entourage attending respectfully in the background. ;
The soldiers filed past him,each taking barely half a minute ;
during which time the questions were asked ;
and the answers reverently provided. ;
When the Frenchman's turn came,far from being nervous he was sure of himself, ;
having recited the answers,in the proper order, ;
he did not know how many times.The Emperor looked at him long and hard ;
and suddenly took it into his head ;
that he had seen the young man somewhere before. ;
He began,a little out of the usual order,with the second question: ;
"How long have you been in my army?" ;
"Twenty-one years," replied the Frenchman,not without some pride ;
in his ability to learn a foreign language so quickly and so well. ;
The monarch was surprised, ;
for the young man did not look very much older than that, ;
but he went on to ask:"Then how old are you?" "One day," came the answer. ;
That was too much for the Emperor, who sat back and muttered:"Well,well. ;
That beats me. It seems either you're mad or I am." ;
Positive that that was the last of the imperial questions, ;
the proud linguist stepped forward and with a smile said: "Both,your majesty." ;
Text B What Am I Going to Do? ;
Mr Davidson is standing outside his house. ;
He has forgotten to bring his key with him. ;
Henry Black and John Field walk past and they say"Hello"to Mr Davidson. ;
MR DAVIDSON:Hello, boys.Can you help me? ;
I've forgotten my key and I can't get in . ;
JOHN AND HENRY: We'll try our best. Mr Davidson. ;
MR DAVIDSON:You're both taller than me,aren't you? ;
JOHN:Yes,I'm over five foot ten.I'm the tallest of the three of us. ;
HENRY:But I'm almost as tall as John. ;
MR DAVIDSON:Can you climb on John's shoulders and reach that window? ;
HENRY:All right.What shall I do now? ;
MR DAVIDSON:Open the window,please, and climb through it into the house. ;
HENRY:Oh dear,I can't move it. It's fastened inside. ;
MR DAVIDSON:Can you break the window? ;
JOHN:Look!There's a policeman!He's coming towards us. ;
7.Read the following passage once. ;
Underline the key words while reading and retell the story to your partner. ;
Adventure At Midnight ;
Long ago there lived two brothers who were very poor. ;
They lived in tiny huts at opposite sides of their large wheat field. ;
At the end of each summer,when harvest time came, ;
the brothers divided the grain they had grown into two equal parts. ;
Some of it they took to be milled into flour,from which they baked bread. ;
The rest was sold for money,with which they bought shoes, clothing,and tools. ;
Although they toiled from sunup to sundown, ;
six days a week,they hardly had enough to eat.In spite of this, ;
they were happy because of their great love for one another. ;
But one year,Simon, the younger brother, felt a great sadness. ;
His wife said,"Tell me what is making you so blue? ;
You no longer sing while you work,and the twinkle is gone from your eye." ;
"You are right,dear wife.I am worried about my older brother,Ruben. ;
He is alone in the world,with neither wife nor children. ;
Who will care for him when he gets old and can no longer work? ;
If only he had some money to save for his old age! ;
It isn't fair that we share the harvest equally. ;
But he is proud and will not accept gifts from me. ;
What shall I do?" "Would you take food from your own children?" ;
She asked in astonishment."There is nothing you can do,"she said. ;
"So forget it."Simon knew that his wife was right, ;
but he was determined to help Ruben,come what might. ;
Meanwhile,Ruben was sitting under a tree,thinking deeply. ;
When he noticed a bird on the way to its winter home,he said, ;
"That bird and I are fortunate because we are free. ;
Neither of us has a wife and children always needing to be fed. ;
But my poor brother, Simon,is burdened with a family. ;
"It isn't fair that we share the harvest equally. ;
Surely he deserves more than I! ;
But he is very proud and will not accept gifts from me. ;
What can I do? In several days we'll take our harvest to town. ;
If I don't think of a plan soon,it will be too late." ;
That night,when the moon was high in the sky, ;
Ruben went quietly to his barn where he filled a sack with wheat ;
and put in on his shoulder. ;
Then he crossed the empty field to his brother's hut ;
and secretly placed his wheat with Simon's. ;
"Ah,"he said when he had finished, "this is better. ;
Now my dear younger brother will have more than I." ;
Ruben went happily back to his hut ;
and slept soundly for the first time in weeks. ;
An hour later,Simon woke up with a start. He had dreamed of a marvelous plan. ;
He crept out of bed, got dressed,and went to his barn. ;
Filling a sack with wheat,walking across the field to Ruben's hut, ;
and placing it there took very little time. ;
Before long,he was back in bed,pulling up the covers. ;
"Now I can sleep peacefully,"he thought, ;
"because Ruben will have a little extra to save for his old age." ;
The next morning Ruben and Simon were amazed.How could this be? ;
Their piles were equal, ;
yet each knew he had secretly given wheat to his brother. ;
Something must have gone wrong. ;
So that night Ruben waited until midnight, ;
when he again took Simon some of his grain. ;
"There!Now I am fully awake and I'm sure I put it on his pile. ;
Tomorrow mine will be smaller and his larger,as it should be." ;
A short time later, Simon did the same. ;
He,too,was sure that all would be well this time.But when day dawned, ;
each brother saw that this share was exactly half the harvest. ;
Ruben and Simon were desperate. ;
Tomorrow they were to go to town to sell their grain. ;
Tonight was their last chance.Midnight came again. ;
But this time Ruben and Simon chose the same moment to carry out ;
their mission of brotherly love. ;
Each placed a sack of wheat on his shoulders ;
and began to walk across the field. Halfway across they met. ;
"Ruben!What are you doing out so late at night?" ;
cried Simon in dismay. He tried to hide his sack. ;
Startled,Ruben dropped his bundle. ;
Then he saw Simon's sack and they both began to laugh. ;
When they finished laughing,they hugged each other tightly. ;
Their hearts were full of love for each other and they were content. ;
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