Any mistake made in the printing of a stamp raises its value to stamp collectors.A mistake on a two-penny stamp has made it worth a million and a half times its face value. Do you think it impossible? Well,it is true.And this is how it happened. The mistake was made more than a hundred years ago in the former British colony of Mauritius,a small island in the Indian Ocean. In l847 all order for stamps was sent to London Mauritius was about to become the fourth country in the world to put out stamps. Before the order was filled and the stamps arrived from England,a big dance was planned by the commander-in-chief of all the armed forces on the island.The dance would be held in his house and letters of invitation would be sent to all the important people in Mauritius.Stamps were badly needed to post the letters.Therefore,an islander,who was a good printer,was told to copy the pattern of the stamps.He carelessly put the words "Post Office" instead of "Post Paid", two words seen on stamps at that time,on the several hundred that he printed. Today, there are only twenty-six of these misprinted stamps left-fourteen One-penny Reds and twelve Two-penny Blues, Because there are so few Two-penny Blues and because of their age, collectors have paid as much as$16,800 for one of them. Which of the following would be a proper title for the passage? A) The Birth of the Stamp. B) How Can a Small Stamp Be Worth$16,800? C) Mauritius-a Former British Colony. D) Good News for Stamp Collectors.
B
One of my neighbors used to have a beautiful tree in her front yard. Her dad had planted it for her when it was nothing more than a twig and several years later it started to shoot towards the sky with amazing speed. Soon it blessed her with cooling shade in the summer and glorious, golden leaves in the fall. When the two-day snowstorm struck our town, heavy snow fell on the tree's branches that were still full of leaves. The weight split that lovely tree down the middle. It was so sad seeing half of it laying on the ground after the storm. When I talked to my neighbor later, she said that the damage had been too much and that the entire tree would have to be cut down. Thankfully she had saved a few saplings from it that she hoped to replant in the future. Still, it was a shock to drive by her house the other day and see nothing but a stump in her front yard. I missed that tree. I missed its beauty, its leaves shinning in the afternoon sun. I missed seeing its limbs reach towards the heavens. I thought that the stump would be a sad reminder of its loss for a long time to come. My wonderful neighbor, though, had another plan. When I drove by her home today I saw a tiny bird feeder sitting on that stump and a colorful songbird having its dinner. It was such an affirmation of life. It was such a joy to see. I could feel my heart smile. Life by its very nature is a mixed bag. It hands us both beauty and tragedy, love and loss, pleasure and pain. What we do with it, however, is up to us. We can let it split us in two, or we can use even its hardest times to make our souls stronger and our hearts more loving. We can spend it complaining or we can use it to help others. The author's neighbor left a stump in her front yard to use it as _ . A) a good reminder. B) a seat after dinner. C) a place to feed birds. D) a beautiful sculpture.
C
Q: If you are ever lucky to be invited to a formal dinner party in Paris,remember that the French have their own way of doing things, and that even your finest manners may not be "correct" by French custom.For example,if you think showing up promptly at the time given on the invitation,armed with gifts of wine and roses,complimenting your hostess on her cooking,laughing heartily at the host's jokes and then leaping up to help the hostess will make you the perfect guest,think again. Here Madame Nora Chabal,the marketing director of the Ritz Hotel in Paris,explained how it works. The first duty of the guest is to respond to the invitation within 48 hours.And,the guest may not ask to bring a guest because the hostess has chosen her own. Flowers sent ahead of schedule are the preferred gift.They may also be sent afterwards with a thank-you note.It is considered a very bad form to arrive with a gift of flowers vase when she is too busy to do with that. See,that's the logic!The type of flowers sent has a code of its own,too.One must never send chrysanthemums because they are considered too humble for occasion.Carnations are considered bad luck,and calla are too reminiscent of funerals .A bouquet of red roses is a declaration of romantic intent.Don't send those unless you mean it,and never to a married hostess.And though the French love wine,you must never bring a bottle to a dinner party.Why?It's as if you feared your hosts would not have enough wine on hand,and that's an insult .You may,however,offer a box of chocolates which the hostess will pass after dinner with coffee. If an invitation is for eight o'clock,the considerate guest arrives at a quarter past eight.Guests who arrive exactly on time or early are mere thoughtless ones who are not giving the hostess those last few minutes she needs to deal with details and crises. What is the passage mainly about? A) Different flowers have different meanings B) How to send flowers C) Good manners at a French dinner party D) Different countries have different manners
A: C
My grandfather spent most of his life in a turbulent India. After settling in New York, he took up his true passion: gardening. Grandfather's garden was where I took refuge from a world of adults and schoolwork. My grandfather cultivated squash and tomatoes -- it was not rare to find me somewhere in the garden, either secretly eating a tomato, or just sitting and admiring my grandfather's hard work. However, as time went by, I did not have the chance to visit his house as often as I used to. On my eleventh birthday, I received a gift bag wrapped in pretty paper from my grandfather. Excited to see what he had given to me for my birthday, I tore apart the paper only to find a yellow squash. I was very angry. What a stupid present! But gradually, I realized that in my developing a relationship with his garden, I had unknowingly grown very close to my grandfather himself, something he wished to remind me of through his gift. His commitment towards doing things definitely influenced me. It could bring him a sense of accomplishment. Because of him, I try to model the idea of approaching everything with both drive and passion. My grandfather passed away five years ago, but his influence on me could not be bigger than it is today. As I prepare to enter college and move on from my relatively sheltered high school life toward achieving complete independence, allowing my passions to find their way into whatever I may be doing will be very necessary. I still look up to my grandfather very much to this day, and I hope that one day I will be able to sow in my own garden, and give someone else a squash on his or her birthday -- it was the most meaningful gift I have ever received.[:ZXXK] When the author saw the squash gift from her grandfather, she was _ . A) excited B) confused C) curious D) upset
D