input: Make use of the article to answer the questions. CHAPTER II

HESTER THINKS IT "A GREAT PITY"

"You will understand," Mannering said, as the brougham drove off, "that you and I are speaking together merely as friends. I have nothing official to say to you. It would be presumption on my part to assume that the time is ripe for anything definite while you are still at the head of an unbeaten Government. But one learns to read the signs of the times. I think that you and I both know that you cannot last the session."

"It is a positive luxury at times," Redford answered, "to be able to indulge in absolute candour. We cannot last the session. You pulled us through our last tight corner, but we shall part, I suppose, on the New Tenement Bill, and then we shall come a cropper."

Mannering nodded.

"The Opposition," he said, "are not strong enough to form a Government alone. And I do not think that a one-man Cabinet would be popular. It has been suggested to me that at no time in political history have the conditions been more favourable for a really strong coalition Government, containing men of moderate views on both sides. I am anxious to know whether you would be willing to join such a combination."

"Under whom?" Lord Redford asked.

"Under myself," Mannering answered, gravely. "Don't think me over-presumptuous. The matter has been very carefully thought out. You could not serve under Rushleigh, nor could he serve under you. But you could both be invaluable members of a Cabinet of which I was the nominal head. I do not wish to entrap you into consent, however, without your fully understanding this: a modified, and to a certain extent an experimental, scheme of tariff reform would be part of our programme." 1. Were the two men having a conversation on the record?
2. What was the name of the man who started the discussion?
3. Who was the man responding to him?
4. Was the second man a noble?
5. Did he believe his party would endure the term?
6. Where did he believe his party and the other man's, would differ?
7. Was he grateful for the chance to be honest?
8. Did the first man say it was time for certain action?
9. Did he thing the opposing party was strong?
10. What did he suggest wouldn't be popular?
11. What did he believe circumstances favored?
12. With what kind of membership?
13. Was he relaxed?
14. What did he want to know?
15. Who did he suggest would lead it?
16. Was the plan hastily decided?
17. Who did he suggest Redford would be unable to work for?
18. Did he believe the reverse was true as well?
19. How did he characterize the value of their service to him?
20. What vehicle left as the conversation began?
numbered_answers: 1. No.
2. Mannering
3. Redford
4. Yes.
5. No.
6. on the New Tenement Bill
7. Yes.
8. No.
9. No.
10. a one-man Cabinet
11. a really strong coalition Government
12. men of moderate views
13. No.
14. whether Redford would be willing to join such a combination
15. Himself.
16. No.
17. Rushleigh
18. Yes.
19. invaluable
20. the brougham

input: Make use of the article to answer the questions. CHAPTER TWELVE.

VICTORY!

But before that winter closed, ay, before it began, a great victory was gained, which merits special mention here. Let us retrace our steps a little.

One morning, while Ian Macdonald was superintending the preparation of breakfast in some far-away part of the western wilderness, and Michel Rollin was cutting firewood, Victor Ravenshaw came rushing into camp with the eager announcement that he had seen the footprints of an _enormous_ grizzly bear!

At any time such news would have stirred the blood of Ian, but at that time, when the autumn was nearly over, and hope had almost died in the breast of our scholastic backwoodsman, the news burst upon him with the thrilling force of an electric shock.

"Now, Ian, take your gun and go in and win," said Victor with enthusiasm, for the youth had been infected with Rollin's spirit of gallantry.

"You see," Rollin had said to Victor during a confidential _tete-a-tete_, "ven a lady is in de case ye must bow de head. Ian do love your sister. Ver goot. Your sister do vish for a bar-claw collar. Ver goot. Vell, de chance turn up at last--von grizzly bar do appear. Who do shot 'im? Vy, Ian, certaintly. Mais, it is pity he am so 'bominibly bad shot!"

Victor, being an unselfish fellow, at once agreed to this; hence his earnest advice that Ian should take his gun and go in and win. But Ian shook his head.

"My dear boy," he said, with a sigh, "it's of no use my attempting to shoot a bear, or anything else. I don't know what can be wrong with my vision, I can see as clear and as far as the best of you, and I'm not bad, you'll allow, at following up a trail over hard ground; but when it comes to squinting along the barrel of a gun I'm worse than useless. It's my belief that if I took aim at a haystack at thirty yards I'd miss it. No, Vic, I must give up the idea of shooting altogether." 1. Who was in charge of the meal?
2. What was the meal?
3. What was Michael doing?
4. What did Victor see?
5. What did Victor want his friend to get?
6. Why?
7. What season was it?
8. Was Victor excited about the animal?
9. What about Ian?
10. Was Ian a good shot?
numbered_answers:
1. Ian Macdonald
2. breakfast
3. cutting firewood
4. the footprints of an _enormous_ grizzly bear!
5. his gun
6. to win
7. winter close
8. Yes
9. Yes
10. No