A HALF - EMPTY BASKET

Once there was a poor farmer and his farm belonged to a rich man. To make a living, the poor farmer offered to work on the farm for the rich man. One day, he went to the farm and picked a basket of apples from the farm as the rich man asked him to, and brought them to the rich man’s house. On the doorsteps, he met two monkeys dressed like children. They jumped onto the basket to eat the apples and threw some on the ground. The farmer politely took off his hat and asked the monkeys to get off. They obeyed and the farmer went into the house. He asked to see the rich man. A servant took him to the room where the rich man was sitting.

“I have brought you the basket of apples that you asked for,” he said.

“But why have you brought me only a half-empty basket of apples?” the rich man asked unhappily, looking at the apples in the basket.

“I met your children outside, and they stole some of the apples,” the poor man answered.

【小题1】Why did the farmer work for the rich man?

A．Because he was poor and he had to make a living.	B．Because he liked the rich man.
C．Because the rich man forced him to work on the farm.	D．Because the rich man’s children liked him.

【小题2】What did the monkeys do when the farmer was on the doorsteps?

A．They jumped here and there.	B．They played with the farmer.
C．They were scared and ran away.	D．They ate some of the apples.

【小题3】What does the underlined word “They” in Paragraph 1 refer to?

A．The apples.

B．The monkeys.

C．The children.

D．The farmer and the rich man.

【小题4】How did the rich man feel when he saw the basket?

A．Pleased.

B．Excited.

C．Unhappy.

D．Moved.