Reading Comprehension (30 points, 2 points for each item)从下列每篇短文的问题后所给的四个选项中选出一个最佳答案，并在答题纸上将相应的答案涂黑。

Passage One

Questions 21 to 25 are based on the following passage.

When Rowland Hill, little more than a hundred years ago, first advocated the introduction of cheap postage in England, he had to face many opponents of the scheme; some said that it would not pay, others that it was unworkable. But Hill, supported by general public opinion, eventually overcame opposition, and late in 1839 the Penny Post was established. From then until the first world war the cost of sending a letter any distance within the United Kingdom remained at one penny. The gloomy prophecies (预言) of the critics were not fulfilled: the profits of the Post Office were maintained and improvements in transport and administration made it possible not only to handle the increased volume of correspondence but also to extend postal facilities.

Before this great change took place, the charge for sending a letter varied according to the distance the letter was carried and had to be paid for on delivery by the person to whom it was addressed. The lowest charge was four pence and for long distances as much as eighteen pence. Such high rates, when wages were low, could rarely be afforded by poor people, who were often compelled to refuse letters from their dear ones because they were unable to pay. Under the new scheme, a letter was paid for by the sender, who affixed(贴上) to it an adhesive(粘的) postage stamp, the cost of which was within reach of all. Thus the poor were enabled to exchange news with their relations and friends at a time when many of them had left their homes to seek work elsewhere.

Businessmen also found cheap postage a boom and, since it soon turned out to be a great financial success, the new scheme was, before long, adopted by every civilized country in the world——a final tribute(明证) to the wisdom and vision of its promoter.

　Passage Two

Questions 26 to 30 are based on the following passage.

We can make mistakes at any age. Some mistakes we make are about money. But most mistakes are about people. “Did Jerry really care when I broke up with Helen?” “When I got that great job, did Jim really feel good about it, as a friend? Or did he envy my luck?”“And Paul-why didn't I pick up that he was friendly just because I had a car?” When we look back, doubts like these can make us feel bad. But when we look back, it's too late.

Why do we go wrong about our friends——or our enemies? Sometimes what people say hides their real meaning. And if we don't really listen, we miss the feeling behind the words. Suppose someone tells you, “You're a lucky dog.” Is he really on your side? If he said, “You're a lucky guy” or “You're a lucky gal,” that's being friendly. But “lucky dog”? There's a bit of envy in those words. Maybe he doesn't see it himself. But bringing in the “dog” bit puts you down a little. What he may be saying is that he doesn't think you deserve your luck.

“Just think of all the things you have to be thankful for” is another noise that says one thing and means another. It could mean that the speaker is trying to get you to see your problem as part of your life as a whole. But is he? Wrapped up in this phrase is the thought that your problem isn't important. It's telling you to think of all the starving people in the world when you haven't got a date for Saturday night.

How can you tell the real meaning behind someone's words? One way is to take a good look at the person talking. Do his words fit the way he looks? Does what he says quare with(符合) the tone of voice? His posture? The look in his eyes? Stop and think. The minute you spend thinking about the real meaning of what people say to you may save another mistake.

Passage Three

Questions 31 to 35 are based on the following passage.

It is not often realized that women held a high place in southern European societies in the 10th and 11th centuries. As a wife, the woman was protected by the setting up of a dowry or decimum. Admittedly, the purpose of this was to protect her against the risk of desertion(抛弃), but in reality its function in the social and family life of the time was much more important. The decimum was the wife's right to receive a tenth of all her husband's property. The wife had the right to withhold consent(不同意), in all transactions(交易) the husband would make. And more than just a right: the documents show that she enjoyed a real power of decision, equal to that of her husband. In no case do the documents indicate any degree of difference in the legal status of husband and wife.

The wife shared in the management of her husband's personal property, but the opposite was not always true. Women seemed perfectly prepared to defend their own inheritance against husbands who tried to exceed their rights, and on occasion they showed a fine fighting spirit. A case in point is that of Maria Vivas, a Catalan woman of Barcelona(巴塞罗那). Having agreed with her husband Miro to sell a field she had inherited, for the needs of the household, she insisted on co mpensation(补偿). None being offered, she succeeded in dragging her husband to the scribe(法律学家) to have a contract duly drawn up assigning her a piece of land from Miro's personal inheritance. The unfortunate husband was obliged to agree, as the contract says, “for the sake of peace.” Either through the dowry or through being hottempered, the Catalan wife knew how to win herself, within the context of the family, a powerful economic position.