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Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.
1. One of the characteristics of the postal service before the 1840s was that
A. postmen were employed by various organisations.
B. letters were restricted to a certain length.
C. distance affected the price of postage.
D. the price of delivery kept going up.
2. Letter writers in the 1830s
A. were not responsible for the cost of delivery.
B. tried to fit more than one letter into an envelope.
C. could only send letters to people living in cities.
D. knew all letters were automatically read by postal staff.
3. What does the text say about Hill in the 1830s?
A. He was the first person to express concern about the postal system.
B. He considered it would be more efficient for mail to be delivered by rail.
C. He felt that postal service reform was necessary for commercial development.
D. His plan received support from all the important figures of the day.
The Penny Black
It might not have looked very impressive, but the Penny Black, now 170 years old, was the first stamp to be created and it launched the modem postal system in Britain.
Before 1840 and the arrival of the Penny Black, you had to be rich and patient to use the Royal Mail. Delivery was charged according to the miles travelled and the number of sheets of paper used; a 2-page letter sent from Edinburgh to London, for example, would have cost 2 shillings, or more than £7 in today’s money. And when the top-hatted letter carrier came to deliver it, it was the recipient who had to pay for the postage. Letter writers employed various ruses to reduce the cost, doing everything possible to cram more words onto a page. Nobody bothered with heavy envelopes; instead, letters would be folded and sealed with wax. You then had to find a post office - there were no pillar boxes - and hope your addressee didn't live in one of the several rural areas which were not served by the system. If you were lucky, your letter would arrive (it could take days) without being read or censored.
The state of mail had been causing concern throughout the 1830s, but it was Rowland Hill, an inventor, teacher and social reformer from Kidderminster, who proposed a workable plan for change. Worried that a dysfunctional, costly service would stifle communication just as Britain was in the swing of its second industrial revolution, he believed reform would ease the distribution of ideas and stimulate trade and business, delivering the same promise as the new railways.
Hill’s proposal for the penny post, which meant any letter weighing less than half an ounce (14 grams) could be sent anywhere in Britain for about 30p in today’s money, was so radical that the Postmaster General, Lord Lichfield, said, 'Of all the wild and visionary schemes which I ever heard of, it is the most extravagant.’ Lord Lichfield spoke for an establishment not convinced of the need for poor people to post anything. But merchants and reformers backed Hill. Soon the government told him to make his scheme work. And that meant inventing a new type of currency.
Hill quickly settled on 'a bit of paper covered at the back with a glutinous wash which the user might, by applying a little moisture, attach to the back of a letter’. Stamps would be printed in sheets of 240 that could be cut using scissors or a knife. Perforations would not arrive until 1854. The idea stuck, and in August 1839 the Treasury launched a design competition open to ‘all artists, men of science and the public in general’. The new stamp would need to be resistant to forgery, and so it was a submission by one Mr Cheverton that Hill used as the basis for one of the most striking designs in history. Cheverton, who worked as a sculptor and an engineer, determined that a portrait of Queen Victoria, engraved for a commemorative coin when she was a 15-year-old princess, was detailed enough to make copying difficult, and recognisable enough to make fakes easy to spot. The words ‘Postage’ and ‘One Penny’ were added alongside flourishes and ornamental stars. Nobody thought to add the word ‘Britain’, as it was assumed that the stamps would solely be put to domestic use.
With the introduction of the new postal system, the Penny Black was an instant hit, and printers struggled to meet demand. By the end of 1840, more than 160 million letters had been sent - more than double the previous year. It created more work for the post office, whose reform continued with the introduction of red letter boxes, new branches and more frequent deliveries, even to the remotest address, but its lasting impact on society was more remarkable.
Hill and his supporters rightly predicted that cheaper post would improve the ‘diffusion of knowledge’. Suddenly, someone in Scotland could be reached by someone in London within a day or two. And as literacy improved, sections of society that had been disenfranchised found a voice.
Tristram Hunt, an historian, values the ‘flourishing of correspondence’ that followed the arrival of stamps. ‘While I was writing my biography of Friedrich Engels I could read the letters he and Marx sent between Manchester and London,’ he says. ‘They wrote to each other three times a day, pinging ideas back and forth so that you can almost follow a real-time correspondence.’
The penny post also changed the nature of the letter. Weight-saving tricks such as cross-writing began to die out, while the arrival of envelopes built confidence among correspondents that mail would not be stolen or read. And so people wrote more private things - politically or commercially sensitive information or love letters. ‘In the early days of the penny post, there was still concern about theft,’ Hunt says. ‘Engels would still send Marx money by ripping up five-pound notes and sending the pieces in different letters.’ But the probity of the postal system became a great thing and it came to be expected that your mail would not be tampered with.
For all its brilliance, the Penny Black was technically a failure. At first, post offices used red ink to cancel stamps so that they could not be used again. But the ink could be removed. When in 1842, it was determined that black ink would be more robust, the colour of the Penny Black became a sort of browny red, but Hill’s brainchild had made its mark.
Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.
1. One of the characteristics of the postal service before the 1840s was that
A. postmen were employed by various organisations.
B. letters were restricted to a certain length.
C. distance affected the price of postage.
D. the price of delivery kept going up.
2. Letter writers in the 1830s
A. were not responsible for the cost of delivery.
B. tried to fit more than one letter into an envelope.
C. could only send letters to people living in cities.
D. knew all letters were automatically read by postal staff.
3. What does the text say about Hill in the 1830s?
A. He was the first person to express concern about the postal system.
B. He considered it would be more efficient for mail to be delivered by rail.
C. He felt that postal service reform was necessary for commercial development.
D. His plan received support from all the important figures of the day.
II. Finish each of the following sentences in such a way that it is as similar its possible in meaning
to the original sentence. Use the word/ phrase given and other words as necessary. Do not change
the form of the given word. (2.0 p)
1. My father said I could use his car. (allowed)
__________________My father allowed me to use his car_______________________________________________
2. He didn’t take up the post till early the following year. (It…until)
_______________________It was not until early the following year that he didn't take up the post__________________________________________
3. I won’t swim in the sea because it is too cold. (enough)
_____________________The sea isn't warm enough for me to swim____________________________________________
4. Do you know Mrs. Linda? Her son has just won the scholarship. (whose)
____________________Do you know Mrs. Linda whose son has just won the scholarship?_____________________________________________
5. If we hear any further news, we will be in touch immediately. (Should)
________________________Should we hear any futher news, we will be in tough immediately_________________________________________
6. The police arrived too late, so the burglar escaped. (By the time)
______________________By the time the police arrived, the burglar had escaped___________________________________________
7. Our flight couldn’t take off because of the frog. (prevented)
________________________The frog prevented our flight from taking off_________________________________________
8. You left the key in the room. That was rather careless of you. (which)
___________________________You left the key in the room, which was rather careless of you______________________________________
9. The driver said it was true that he didn’t have a license. (admitted)
________________________The driver admitted not to have a license_________________________________________
10. Their game of badminton is always on Tuesday. (play)
______________________They always play badminton on Tuesday____________________________________
Adjectives
I. Underline all the adjectives in this description.
This comfortable hotel with its pleasant gardens is ideal for people who want a quiet holiday, yet it is only a short distance from the highly popular attractions of the area. There are lovely views from every room. The atmosphere is very friendly, and the staff are always helpful. The holiday here is very good value for money.
You can eat your meals at the hotel, where the food tastes marvellous. Or you can of course try some of the excellent local restaurants.
II. Complete the sentences for each situation. Use the word given + the ending –ing or -ed
The film wasn’t as good as we had expected. (disappoint)
a. The film was ___disappointing______ b. We were___disappointed______ with the film.
2. Diana teaches young children. It’s a very hard job but she enjoys it. (exhaust)
a. She enjoys her job but it’s often_____exhausting____.
b. At the end of a day’s work, she is often ___exhausted______.
3. It’s been raining all day. I hate this weather. ( despress)
a. This weather is ____depressing_____. b. This weather makes me ___depressed_____.
c. It’s silly to get ___depressed______.
4. Clare is going to the United States next month. She has never been there before. (excite)
a. It will be an _____exciting____ experience for her.
b. Going to new places is always ____exciting______.
c. She is really ____excited_____ about going to the United States.
5. Jane doesn’t enjoy her any more and would like to do something different. (bore)
a. Jane is ___bored_____ with her job because she does the same thing every day.
b. Jane’s job is going ____boring____ .
III. Choose the correct word.
Are you interesting/ interested in football?
The football match was quite exciting/ excited. I enjoyed it.
It’s sometimes embarrassing/ embarrassed when you have to ask people for money.
Do you easily get embarrassing/ embarrassed?
I had never expected to get the job. I was really amazing/ amazed when I was offered it.
She has really learned very fast. She has made astonishing/ astonished progress.
I didn’t find the situation funny . I was not amusing? amused.
It was a really terrifying/ terrified experience. Afterwards everybody was very shocking/ shocked.
Why do you always look so boring/ bored? Is your life really so boring/ bored?
He’s one of the most boring/ bored people I’ve ever met. He never stops talking and he never says anything interesting/ interested.
The two-hour delay was annoying/ annoyed.
This weather makes me so depressing/ depressed.
Going for a jog with Matthew is exhausting/exhausted.
This computer has some very confusing/ confused instructions.
When I got onto the roof. I felt frightening/ frightened.
The journey took all day and night. They found it very tired/ tiring.
I thought the program on wildlife was fascinating/ fascinated.
The childen always get exciting/ excited when the Granny comes.
What thrilling/ thrilled news this is! Congratulation!
I must say it made me puzzling/ puzzled. I just don’t understand.
IV. Complete the sentences, using one of the following words.
|
bored/boring interedted/interesting amused/amusing exhausted/exhausting |
confused/confusing excited/exciting surprised/surprising annoying/annoyed
|
He words very hard. It’s not surprising that he’s always tired.
The teacher’s explanation was ___confusing_____. Most of the students didn’t understand it.
I seldom visit art galleries. I’m not particularly ____interested____ in art.
The lecture was ____boring____. I fell asleep.
Liz is always late. I’ll be ____surprised____ if she gets here on time.
I’ve been working very hard all day and now I’m ____exhausted_____.
I’m starting a new job next week. I’m quite ____excited_____ about it.
Tom is very good at telling funny stories. He can be very _amusing_______.
There is no need to get ___annoyed____ just because I’m a few minutes late.
Liz is a very ___interesting____ person. She knows a lot, she’s traveled a lot and she’s done lots of different things.
– buys– Do – go– washes– catches– is– drink– don’t– Are– shines– is– migrate– uses.– am reading– Is – coming– Are growing– is watering– is cleaning– are sitting – having– is increasing– is staying– am reading.– been– Have– worked– has lived– visited– having– have – been– has seen– have – lived– has been learning– have been waiting– has been thinking– has been increasing– has been rising– has been working– has been reading– have been chatting.– visited– travelled– was– went– spent– went – didn’t like.– did– moved.– was swimming– were relaxing / were playing– was staying– was having– were sleeping– was trying– was declining– were you going– was watching– had heard– had landed– hadn’t cared– had helped– had gone– had known– hadn’t earned– had worked– had studied– Had – ended– had been waiting– had been working– had been talking– had been having– had been stopping– had been waiting– had been preparing– will try– will help– won’t stay– will bring– won’t tell– Will– will come– Will– will go– Shall– will have learnt– will have finished– will have spent– will be started– will have become– will have done
Fill each gap with the correct form of the word given in brackets:
1.I....endlessly...... wrote letters of application, but got no reply.(END)
2. The thing I hate most about John is his.....unreliability.....(RELY)
3. Bater, however, was a very..dissatisfying. system(SATISFY)
4. Although he was not...enthusiastic........... about helping with the washing up, he did so all the time(ENTHUSIASM)
5. In some areas water has to be boiled to ..purify.. it(PURE)
6. There was a heavy..downpour.... yesterday afternoon which completely ruined the church garden party. (POUR)
7. The man was found guilty of fraud and sentences to 3-year...imprisoned.......( PRISON)
8. Some people claim to be able to......foretell........ the future. (TELL)
9. While walking in the mountains in the Noth Wales, we came across a ...misused...quarry. (USE)
10. Thank you for your......timely....... delivery of the parcel(time)
ủa câu 9 phải là disused chớ