Staggering tasks confronted the people of the United States, North and South, when
the Civil War ended. About a million and a half soldiers from both sides had to be
demobilized, readjusted to civilian life, and reabsorbed by the devastated economy.
Civil government also had to be put back on a peacetime basis and interference from
(5) the military had to be stopped.
The desperate plight of the South has eclipsed the fact that reconstruction had to be
undertaken also in the North, though less spectacularly. Industries had to adjust to
peacetime conditions: factories had to be retooled for civilian needs.
Financial problems loomed large in both the North and the South. The national debt
(10) had shot up from a modest $565 million in 1861, the year the war started, to nearly $3
billion in 1865, the year the war ended. This was a colossal sum for those days but one
that a prudent government could pay. At the same time, war taxes had to be reduced to
less burdensome levels.
Physical devastation caused by invading armies, chiefly in the South and border
(15) states, had to be repaired. This herculean task was ultimately completed, but with
discouraging slowness.
Other important questions needed answering. What would be the future of the four
million black people who were freed from slavery? On what basis were the Southern
states to be brought back into the Union?
(20) What of the Southern leaders, all of whom were liable to charges of treason? One
of these leaders. Jefferson Davis, president of the Southern Confederacy, was the
subject of an insulting popular Northern song, "Hang Jeff Davis from a Sour Apple
Tree." and even children sang it. Davis was temporarily chained in his prison cell
during the early days of his two-year imprisonment. But he and the other Southern
(25) leaders were finally released, partly because it was unlikely that a jury from Virginia, a
Southern Confederate state, would convict them. All the leaders were finally pardoned
by President Johnson in1868 in an effort to help reconstruction efforts proceed with as
little bitterness as possible.
41. What does the passage mainly discuss?
(A) Wartime expenditures
(B) Problems facing the United States after the
war
(C) Methods of repairing the damage caused by
the war
(D) The results of government efforts to revive
the economy
42. The word "Staggering" in line 1 is closest in
meaning to
(A) specialized
(B) confusing
(C) various
(D) overwhelming
43. The word "devastated" in line 3 is closest in
meaning to
(A) developing
(B) ruined
(C) complicated
(D) fragile
44. According to the passage, which of the following
statements about the damage in the South
is correct?
(A) It was worse than in the North.
(B) The cost was less than expected.
(C) It was centered in the border states.
(D) It was remedied rather quickly.
45. The passage refers to all of the following as
necessary steps following the Civil War EXCEPT
(A) helping soldiers readjust
(B) restructuring industry
(C) returning government to normal
(D) increasing taxes
46. The word "task" in line 15 refers to
(A) raising the tax level
(B) sensible financial choices
(C) wise decisions about former slaves
(D) reconstruction of damaged areas
47. Why does the author mention a popular song
in lines 22-23
(A) To give an example of a Northern attitude
towards the South
(B) To illustrate the Northern love of music
(C) To emphasize the cultural differences between
the North and the South
(D) To compare the Northern and Southern
presidents
48. The word "them" in line 26 refers to
(A) charges
(B) leaders
(C) days
(D) irons
49. Which of the following can be inferred from the
phrase "…it was unlikely that a jury from
Virginia, a Southern Confederate state, would
convict them" (lines 25-26)?
(A) Virginians felt betrayed by Jefferson Davis.
(B) A popular song insulted Virginia.
(C) Virginians were loyal to their leaders.
(D) All of the Virginia military leaders had been
put in chains.
50. It can be inferred from the passage that President
Johnson pardoned the Southern leaders in order to
(A) raise money for the North
(B) repair the physical damage in the South
(C) prevent Northern leaders from punishing more
Southerners
(D) help the nation recover from the war
答案:BDABC ADACB