At Blossom End Railroad Station, 22-year-old Stanley Vine sat, waiting for his new employer. The surrounding green fields were so unlike the muddy landscape of war-torn France. After four horrible years as an army private fighting in Europe, Stanley had returned to England in February 1946. Armed now with some savings and with no prospects for a job in England, he answered a newspaper ad for farm help in Canada. Two months later he was on his way.
When the old car rumbled toward the tiny station, Stanley rose to his feet, trying to make the most of his five foot, four inch frame. The farmer, Alphonse Lapine, shook his head and complained, “You’re a skinny thing.” On the way to his dairy farm, Alphonse explained that he had a wife and seven kids. “Money’s tight. You’ll get room and board. You’ll get up at dawn for milking, and then help me around the farm until evening milking time again. Ten dollars a week. Sundays off.” Stanley nodded. He had never been on a farm before, but he took the job.
From the beginning Stanley was treated horribly by the whole family. They made fun of the way he dressed and talked. He could do nothing right. The humourless farmer frequently lost his temper, criticizing Stanley for the slightest mistake. The oldest son, 13-year-old Armand, constantly played nasty tricks on him. But the kind-hearted Stanley never responded.
Stanley never became part of the Lapine family. After work, they ignored him. He spent his nights alone in a tiny bedroom. However, each evening before retiring, he lovingly cared for the farmer’s horses, eagerly awaiting him at the field gate. He called them his gentle giants. On Saturday nights he hitch-hiked into the nearest town and wandered the streets or enjoyed a restaurant meal before returning to the farm.
Early one November morning Alphonse Lapine discovered that Stanley had disappeared, after only six months as his farmhand. The railway station master, when questioned later that week, said he had not seen him. In fact no one in the community ever heard of him again. That is, until one evening, almost 20 years later, when Armand, opened an American sports magazine and came across a shocking headline, “Millionaire jockey, Stanley Vine, ex-British soldier and 5-time horse riding champion, began life in North America as a farmhand in Canada.”
41. Stanley Vine decided to go to Canada because ________.
A. he wanted to escape from war-torn France
B. he wanted to serve in the Canadian army
C. he couldn’t find a job in England
D. he loved working as a farmhand
42. Which of the following is True according to the passage?
A. Stanley joined the French army when he was 18 years old.
B. On the farm Stanley had to milk the cows 14 times a week.
C. The Lapine family were rich but cruel to Stanley.
D. Stanley read about the job offer in a newspaper.
43. What can we infer from the passage?
A. When Stanley first met his employer, he tried to impress him but failed.
B. Stanley had never worked on a farm, so he made a lot of mistakes.
C. Stanley’s weekly salary was not enough for him to live on.
D. Stanley left the farm by train, without telling anyone why he did so.
44. What did Stanley like doing after work each day?
A. Hitch-hiking to different towns.
B. Caring for the farmer’s horses.
C. Wandering around the farm alone.
D. Preparing meals on the farm.
45. Why was Armand so astonished when he read about Stanley in the magazine?
A. He didn’t know Stanley had been a British soldier.
B. He had no idea Stanley had always been a wealthy man.
C. He didn’t know his father paid Stanley so little money.
D. He didn’t expect Stanley to become such a success.
