父亲、儿子和一头驴

A man and his son were once going with their Donkey to market. As they were walking along by its side a countryman passed them and said: “You fools, what is a Donkey for but to ride upon?”

So the Man put the Boy on the Donkey and they went on their way. But soon they passed a group of men, one of whom said: “See that lazy youngster. He lets his father walk while he rides.”

So the Man ordered his Boy to get off and got on himself. But they hadn’t gone far when they passed two women, one of whom said to the other: “Shame on that lazy man to let his poor little son walk along.”

Well the Man did not know what to do. But at last he took his Boy up before him on the Donkey. By this time they had come to the town and the passers-by began to jeer and point at them. The Man stopped and asked what they were laughing at. The men said: “Aren’t you ashamed of yourself for overloading that poor Donkey of yours—you and your heavy son?”

The man and Boy got off and tried to think what to do. They thought and thought, till at last they cut down a pole (杆), tied the Donkey’s feet to it and raised the pole and the Donkey to their shoulders. They went along amid the laughter of all who met them till they came to Market Bridge when the Donkey, getting one of his feet loose, kicked out and caused the Boy to drop his end of the pole. In the struggle the Donkey fell over the bridge and his fore-feet were tied together.

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1.Who said the boy was lazy?

A His dad.

B A countryman.

C A man in a group.

D A woman.

解析：选C。C细节理解题。根据第二段的“But soon they passed a group of men, one of whom said: ‘See that lazy youngster...’”可知，是一群男人中的一个人说，这个男孩很懒。故选C。

2.What does the underlined word “jeer” probably mean?

A Stay away from.

B Take notice of.

C Make fun of.

D Look up to.

解析：选C。C词义猜测题。根据第四段划线部分后文“The Man stopped and asked what they were laughing at.”可知，过路的人都在“嘲笑”他们。故选C。

3.What might be the end of the story?

A The Donkey was dead.

B The boy was kicked into the river.

C The man regretted not selling the Donkey.

D The Donkey was sold to someone.

解析：选A。A推理判断题。根据文章最后一句“In the struggle the Donkey fell over the bridge and his fore-feet being tied together.”可知，驴子从桥上摔下河去，前脚被绑在一起，由此可推知，驴子可能会被淹死在河里。故选A。

4.What message does the author seem to convey in the text?

A It is good to learn at another man’s cost.

B A friend in need is a friend indeed.

C You can not please everyone.

D Safety is the first importance.

解析：选C。C推理判断题。一对父子牵着一头驴走在路上，他们先后听从了四种意见，结果都遭到了路人的非议。由此可知，我们并不能取悦所有人，我们应该有自己的主见。故选C。