Hundreds of years ago there was a king of Scotland whose name was Robert Bruce. The king of England was at war with him, and had led a great army into Scotland, Bruce led his people in the defense of their country.
Battle after battle he had fought with England. Six times Bruce had led his brave little army against his enemies. Six times his men had been beaten. At last the army of Scotland was entirely defeated, and the king was forced to hide in the woods and in lonely places among the mountains.
One rainy day, Bruce lay in a cave, tired and felt sick at heart, ready to give up all hope, seemed to him that there was no use for him to try to do anything more.
As he lay thinking, he noticed a spider over his head, getting ready to weave her web. He watched her as she worked slowly and with great care. Six times she tried to throw her in thread from one edge of the cave wall to another. Six times her thread fell short.
“Poor thing!” said Bruce. “You, too, know what it’s like to fail six times in a row.”
But the spider did not lose hope. With still more care, she was ready to try for a seventh time. Robert almost forgot his own trouble as he watched, fascinated. She swung herself out on the slender thread. Would she fail again? No! The thread was carried safely to the cave all, and fastened there.
“Yes!” cried Bruce, “I, too, will try a seventh time!”
So he got up and called his men together. He told them of his plans, and sent them out with hopeful messages to cheer the discouraged people. Soon there was an army of brave men around him. A seventh battle was fought, and this time the King of England was forced to retreat back to his own country.
【小题1】How did King Bruce feel after his army was beaten six times?| A．Easy. | B．Cheerful. | C．Angry. | D．Hopeless. |
| A．Thick. | B．Thin. | C．Short. | D．Smooth. |
| A．His powerful army. |
| B．People’s service and support. |
| C．Aid from neighboring countries. |
| D．The spider’s efforts to weave the web. |
| A．Never give up. |
| B．Things of one kind come together. |
| C．As one door closes, another door opens. |
| D．All things in their being are good for something. |
