Nasreddin and the Beggar It was a long way to go down the ladder.

One day, Nasreddin was up on the roof of his house,

mending a hole in the tiles. He had nearly finished, and he
was pleased with his work. Suddenly, he heard a voice 4 Why did Nasreddin go down the ladder?
below call "Hello!" When he looked down, Nasreddin saw He wanted to get away from his work.
an old man in dirty clothes standing below.

"What do you want?" asked Nasreddin. Because the beggar asked him to.

"Come down and I'll tell you," called the man.

He wanted to speak to the beggar.
Nasreddin was annoyed, but he was a polite man, so he put
down his tools. Carefully, he climbed all the way down to
the ground.

"What do you want?" he asked, when he reached the 5 Why did Nasreddin make the beggar climb
ground. up the ladder?
He wanted to show him the view from the
"Could you spare a little money for an old beggar?" asked roof.
the old man. Nasreddin thought for a minute.
He wanted to get his revenge on the
Then he said, "Come with me." He began climbing the beggar.
ladder again. The old man followed him all the way to the
top. When they were both sitting on the roof, Nasreddin He wanted the beggar to help him fix the
turned to the beggar. roof.

"No," he said.

Nasreddin and the Smell of Soup

1 Why was Nasreddin on the roof of his One day, a poor man, who had only one piece of bread to
house? eat, was walking past a restaurant. There was a large pot of
He was looking at the view. soup on the table. The poor man held his bread over the
soup, so the steam from the soup went into the bread, and
gave it a good smell. Then he ate the bread.
He was waiting for the old man.
The restaurant owner was very angry at this, and he asked
the man for money, in exchange for the steam from the
He was fixing the roof.
soup. The poor man had no money, so the restaurant
owner took him to Nasreddin, who was a judge at that time.
Nasreddin thought about the case for a little while.

Then he took some money from his pocket. He held the

2 Who was the old man? coins next to the restaurant owner's ear, and shook them,
a beggar so that they made a jingling noise.

"What was that?" asked the restaurant owner.

Nasreddin's friend
"That was payment for you," answered Nasreddin.
a roof-mender
"What do you mean? That was just the sound of coins!"
protested the restaurant owner.

"The sound of the coins is payment for the smell of the

soup," answered Nasreddin. "Now go back to your
3 Why was Nasreddin angry? restaurant."
It was a hot day.

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He knew the beggar only wanted money.
1 What food did the poor man have?
 soup the sound of money

bread a few coins

nothing there was no payment

2 What kind of food did he see in the

restaurant?
bread
The Choking Dog
meat "Come on, come on, move it, idiot!"
Joanne beat impatiently on the steering wheel of her
Mercedes sports car. How stupid to get caught up in the
soup rush hour! She had planned to leave work early this
afternoon, at three o'clock, to give herself a chance to relax
and have a bath before going out to a meeting of her local
tennis club. But just at ten to three a client had arrived, and
it was two hours before she had finished dealing with the
man. When she came out of her office, all the other staff in
the Highlight Advertising Agency had already left. Now she
was stuck in a traffic jam in central Birmingham at 5:30, and
at 6:30 she was expected to be chairing a meeting of the
3 Why did he hold the bread over the soup? tennis club. There would be no time for any hot bath.
So the steam from the soup would go Ahead of her, the traffic was moving at last, and she
into the bread. swung quickly out into the centre lane to turn right, and
raced the last half-mile through the quiet suburban streets
So he could warm his hand. to her house. Pulling up on the driveway, she leapt out of
the car and ran for the house. As she opened the door, she
nearly tripped over Sheba, who was standing behind it.
So the restaurant owner would get angry. "Hey, Sheba, hello," she said, bending down to stroke
the large alsatian dog's head, "I've got no time for you now,
but I'll take you out as soon as I get back from the tennis
club."
It was then that she noticed something worrying about
4 Why did the restaurant owner take the poor the dog. Sheba seemed to be coughing or choking, her
man to Nasreddin? stomach pumping repeatedly as if she was trying to vomit
Because Nasreddin was a judge. something up. She was obviously in real discomfort and
could hardly breathe; her sad eyes gazed up at Joanne
helplessly.
So that Nasreddin could pay for the "Oh damn, this is all I need now," said Joanne to herself,
soup. dropping her briefcase and bending down to take a closer
look, "a sick dog, today of all days!" On closer examination,
Because Nasreddin was the man's Sheba did look very sick, and Joanne realised she would
relative. have to take her down to the vet immediately. Luckily, the
vet's surgery was only a few streets away, and Joanne
quickly loaded the dog, still coughing and choking, into her
car for the short drive.
5 What did Nasreddin do with the coins? When she got there, the surgery was just about to close
He gave them to the restaurant owner. for the day. Luckily, Dr. Sterne had not left yet, and when
he saw the state of Sheba, he brought her quickly into his
office.
He made a noise with them. "It looks like something is stuck in her throat," said Dr.
Sterne. It shouldn't take me too long to get it out."
"Listen, doctor, I'm really in a rush to get to a meeting --
He gave them to the poor man.
can I leave her with you, and go and get changed? I'll be
back in ten minutes to pick her up, then I'll take her on to
the meeting with me. Is that OK?"
"Sure," said the doctor. "You get going. I'll see you in ten
minutes."
6 What was the payment for the smell of the Joanne jumped back into her car again, and made the
soup? quick trip round to her house in a couple of minutes. As she
was once more entering the hallway, the phone on the table the dog at the surgery a burglar.
by the door began to ring. She picked it up, annoyed by this and drive home again? b) The dog was too sick
additional interruption to her plans. to come home.
"This is Dr. Sterne," said an anxious voice. "Is that you,
Joanne?" c) The doctor wanted to
"Of course it's me," said Joanne, surprised at the keep her.
sound of his voice, "no-one else lives here." d) Joanne wanted to
"I want you to get right out of that house change her clothes.
immediately," said the doctor's voice. "Right now. I'm
coming round right away, and the police will be there any
time now. Wait outside for us." The phone went dead. 5. How long did it take a) two minutes
Joanne stared at it. She was confused, but she was also a Joanne to drive home b) ten minutes
little frightened by the obvious fear in the voice of the from the surgery?
c) an hour
doctor. She replaced the receiver, then quickly backed out
d) the text does not say
of the door and ran into the street.
At that moment, a police car with its lights flashing
swung round the corner and screeched to a stop outside 6. What happened as a) The police arrived.
the house. Two policemen got out. After briefly checking she arrived home for b) The phone rang.
that she was the owner of the house, they ran into the the second time?
house through the still open door, without explaining c) The dog died.
anything. Joanne was by now completely confused and d) A burglar was just
very frightened. Then the doctor arrived. escaping.
"Where's Sheba? Is she OK?" shouted Joanne, running
over to his car.
"She's fine, Joanne. I extracted the thing which was 7. Why did the doctor a) There was a
choking her, and she's OK now." tell her to get out of dangerous dog in
"Well what's this all about? Why are the police in my the house? there.
house?" b) It was on fire.
Just then, the two policemen reappeared from the c) He knew there was a
house, half-carrying a white-faced figure, a man in a dark burglar inside.
grey sweater and jeans, who, it seemed, could hardly walk.
d) He wanted to meet
There was blood all over him.
her outside.
"My God," said Joanne, "how did he get in there? And
how did you know he was there?"
"I think he must be a burglar," said the doctor. "I knew The police had
he was there because when I finally removed what was 8. Why did the burglar a) caught him, and he
stuck in Sheba's throat, it turned out to be three human look very sick? would probably have
fingers. I don't think he's a very happy burglar." to go to prison.
b) He had caught a
1. Where did Joanne a) an advertising disease from the
work? agency dog.
b) a vet's surgery c) He hadn't found any
c) a Mercedes dealer's valuable things to
office steal.
d) the text does not say d) The dog had bitten
off his fingers.
2. Why was she angry a) She was lost.
at the beginning of the b) She had lost a client 9. The story says that a) stared
story? at work. the dog "gazed up at b) cried
Joanne helplessly".
c) She was stuck in a c) barked
"Gazed" means
traffic jam. d) laughed
d) Her dog was sick.
10. A "vet's surgery" is a) a serious operation
3. Why did she take the a) It was time for probably b) a minor operation
dog to Dr. Sterne's Sheba's checkup.
surgery? c) an animal doctor's
b) The dog couldn't office
breathe properly.
d) a police station
c) She wanted to get
her out of the house.
d) The doctor had
asked to see her.

4. Why did she leave a) She wanted to catch

 1. When was the letter written?
Early of June
Late in June
Middle of June

2. Will the writer of the letter be transferring to a new

job?

No
Not mentioned
Yes

3. The writer has how many weeks to finish

everything before he leaves the company?
Three full weeks
Two full weeks
Four full weeks

4. Which paragraph states that the writer is grateful to

what the company has given to him?
Third paragraph
Fourth paragraph

789 Ferguson St.

Exeter, PA, 52094
June 2, 2006

Alfred Shrimpton
Director, Marketing
LithText International Inc.
151 North Valley Dr.
Exeter, PA, 52187

Dear Alfred:
This is to advise you that I have accepted the position of Marketing Manager, with Gandolfo Networks Inc., based in
Buffalo New York. Accordingly, please regard this as my official letter of resignation.
My last day of work here will be June 28, 2006. This will give me three full weeks from next Monday to complete the
current marketing program design that I have recently been putting the finishing touches on. In addition, during this
period I will be able to bring both you, and my deputy Aaron Roach, up-to-speed on all of the operations and outstanding
issues in my department.
I am very much looking forward to the professional challenge being offered to me by Gandolfo, which as you know, is the
market leader in its field. Incidentally, during the recruiting process, the Gandolfo people were very impressed with the
experience and knowledge that I had gained here at LithText International over the past five years.
In closing, I would like to express my sincere appreciation to you as my supervisor, as well as to my many friends and
colleagues at LithText. I have truly enjoyed my years working with all of you, and am grateful for the many learning and
growth opportunities I was given over the years.
I wish all of you at LithText International continued success.
Sincerely,

Ryan Alexander
 Second paragraph

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