Name: ………………………… Grade: ………….. Div: …………… Date: ………………..
Journal writing Practice Test Marks obtained: /25 marks Duration 30 mins
Passage A
In this passage, the writer, Robert Louis Stevenson, describes his experience on first arriving
by ship in New York over 120 years ago.
Of my wanderings in New York City, I hesitate to tell. I had a thousand and one things to do;
only the day to do them in, before starting a journey across the continent in the evening. It
rained with patient fury. Every now and then I had to get under cover for a while in order to
give my raincoat a rest as it began to grow damp on the inside from this continued drenching.
I went to banks, post offices, railway offices, restaurants, booksellers, money changers, and
wherever I went a pool would gather about my feet, and those who were concerned about the
state of their floors looked at me with unfriendly eyes.
The same traits struck me about the people I met; everyone I met seemed to be surprisingly
rude yet surprisingly kind. The money changer cross-questioned me like a prosecution
counsel, asking my age, my business, my average income, and my destination, dismissing my
attempts at evasion, and receiving my answers in silence. When our business was over,
however, he heartily shook hands with me, and sent his assistant four hundred metres in the
rain to get me books at a reduced price.
Similarly, in a very large bookselling establishment, a man, who seemed to be the manager,
received me in a way I had certainly never before been received in any normal shop. He
implied that he put no faith in my honesty, and refused to look up the names of books or give
me the slightest help or information, on the grounds that it was none of his business. Finally, I
lost my temper, said I was a stranger in America and not familiar with American customs; but
I would assure him, if he were a customer in any bookshop in England, he would be much
better treated. This may have been an exaggerated claim but it had the desired effect. The
manager went at once from one extreme to the other and, from that moment, he loaded me
with kindness. He gave me all sorts of good advice and addresses of those who might help
me. He even came out bareheaded into the rain to point me out a restaurant, where I might
lunch – even then he seemed to think that he had not done enough. These examples are
typical of the manners of America.
I was so wet when I got back to my hotel that evening that I found the best thing was to shed
my shoes, socks, and trousers, and leave them behind for the benefit of New York City. No
fire could have dried them before I was due to start on the next stage of my journey and
packing them in their present condition would ruin my other possessions. With a heavy heart
I said farewell to them as they lay in a sodden heap in the middle of the floor of the hotel’s
kitchen. I wonder if they are dry by now.
The hotel owner hired a man to carry my luggage to the station, which was nearby,
accompanied me there himself, and did all he could to help me on my way. No one could
have been kinder. I would recommend his hotel to other travellers as they will get decent
meals and find an honest and obliging landlord.
Imagine that you are the narrator in Passage A. Soon after this experience you write
your journal about your time in New York City.
Write your journal.
In your journal you should:
• describe your first impressions of New York City
• explain your thoughts and feelings about the people that you met there
• say what advice you would give to other people from your country who are considering
visiting New York City.
Base your responses on what you have read in Passage A, but do not copy from it. Be careful
to use your own words. Address each of the three bullet points.
Begin your journal: ‘New York City has been busy to say the least …’
Write about 200 to 300 words.
Up to 15 marks are available for the content of your answer, and up to 10 marks for the
quality of your writing.
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...............................................................................................................................................[25 Marks]
