Passage TwoQuestions 26 to 30 are based on the following passage:

The railroads played a key role in the settlement of the West. They provided relatively¹ easy access to the region for the first time, and they also actively² recruited farmers to settle there. The railroads are criticized for their part in settling the West too rapidly, with its resultant economic unrest. (After the Civil War the vast Great Plains area was settled all at once.) Of course there were abuses connected with building and operating the railroads, but it must be pointed³ out that they performed a useful service in extending the frontier and helping⁴ to achieve national unity⁵.

The real tragedy of the rapid settlement of the Great Plains was the shameful⁶ way in which the American Indians were treated. Threatened with the destruction of their whole mode of life, the Indians fought back savagely⁷ against the white man’s final assault. Justice was almost entirely⁸ on the Indians’ side. The land was clearly theirs. The Indians, however, lacked the  the political power to protect this right. Not only did white men possess the Indians’ hunting grounds, but they rapidly destroyed the Indians’ principal means of existence—the buffalo⁹. It has been estimated that there are 15 million buffalo in the plains in the 1860s. By 1869 the railroads had cut the herd¹⁰ in half, and by 1875 the southern herd was all but eliminated. By the middle of the 1880s the northern herd was also a thing to the past. Particularly annoying to the Indians was the fact that the white man frequently killed the buffalo merely for sport, leaving the valuable dead body to rot in the sun. 

Theoretically, at least, the government tried to be fair to the Indians, but all too often the Indian agents were either too indifferent or corrupt¹¹ to carry out the government’s promises conscientiously¹², the army frequently ignored the Indian Bureau and failed to coordinate¹³ its policies with the civilians¹⁴ who were normally in charge of Indian affairs. The settlers hated and feared the Indians and wanted them exterminated¹⁵. This barbaric attitude, is certainly not excusable, but it is understandable in the context of the times.

26.The author’s attitude toward the treatment of American Indians by whites is of ____.
A) qualified¹⁶ regret B) violent angerC) strong disapproval¹⁷ D) objective indifference¹⁸

27.The author implies which of the following about the forces at work during the settlement of the Great Plains
A)The federal government represented the moral use of law.
B)Justice was overcome by military firepower.
C)Attempts by the government to be fair were rejected by the Indians.
D)The settler’s hatred¹⁹ and fear was offset²⁰ by the Indians’ attempts at kindness.

28.Which of the following shows that the white settlers did not need the buffalo as did the Indians
A) Buffalo dead bodies were left rotting in the sun by whites.
B) Nearly fifteen million buffalo were killed within twenty years.
C) More than half of the great buffalo herd had disappeared by 1869.
D) The railroad brought necessary food and supplies to the white settlers.

29.The author of the passage would most likely disagree that____.
A) the U.S. government’s policies towards the American Indians were shameful
B) the land that the Indians fought to retain belonged to them
C) numerous abuses were among the results of the railroads’ rapid spread
D) the U. S. army could not be considered a friend of the American Indian

30.It can be inferred from the passage that the purpose of the Indian Bureau was to____.
A) establish reservations where the peaceful American Indians would live
B) assist with Indian affairs regarding the American Indians
C) help Indians with their food supplies
D) assist the Indians in learning a new method of obtaining food

内容概要:本文主要讲述的是美国印第安人在西部扩张过程中所遭受的不公平的待遇。他们的领土被侵占，生活方式被迫改变。白人大量屠杀水牛，使印第安人失去了基本的生活保障。虽然美国政府试图公平对待印第安人，但印第安事物局的腐败和冷漠使得政府的措施不能得到执行。

26.【答案】D。
【译文】作者对美国印第安人所遭受的待遇所持的态度是强烈的反对。
【试题分析】细节推理题。
【详细解答】第二段的第一句中作者用shameful来修饰美国白人对待印第安人的方式，第三句又指出“Justice was almost entirely on the Indians’ side” 正义显然是属于印第安人的，由此可推断出作者对白人的做法是持反对态度的，所以D)为正确答案。A)歉意， B)愤怒， C) 冷漠，都与文章不符，为错误答案。

27.【答案】B。
【译文】作者表明在大草原地区的定居过程中，军事力量战胜了正义。
【试题分析】细节推理题。
【详细解答】见第二段第五句，“The Indians... lacked the military force ... protect this right” 印第安人缺乏军事和政治力量来保护自己的权利，所以B)为正确答案。A)联邦政府代表了法律的道德作用； C)政府公平对待印第安人的企图遭到了拒绝；D)定居者的恐惧和仇恨被印第安人的友善所抵消；文中均未提及，为错误答案。

28.【答案】A。
【译文】下面哪一项表明白人不象印第安人那样需要水牛？白人任由水牛的尸体在阳光下腐烂。
【试题分析】细节推理题。
【详细解答】见第二段最后一句，“Particularly annoying to the Indians was the fact that ... leaving the valuable dead body to rot in the sun”特别使印第安人恼火的是白人只是将捕杀水牛作为一项运动，使水牛的尸体在阳光下腐烂，由此可知A)为正确答案。B) 二十年内有一亿五千万水牛被杀死；C) 到1869年超过一半的水牛群消失了；铁路给白人提供了必需的食物供应；与题意不符，为错误答案。

29.【答案】A。
【译文】作者最有可能不同意的是：美国政府对印第安人的政策是不体面的。
【试题分析】细节推理题。
【详细解答】文章并没有说政府的政策不体面，从第三段可知，政府试图对印第安人公平，但在政策实施的过程中，遇到了问题。由此可知作者最不能同意的应该是 A)。B) 印第安人为之而战的土地是属于他们的，是作者同意的观点；C)铁路的快速扩张造成了很多弊端，是文章第一段提出的观点；D)美国军队不能被认为是印第安人的朋友；文中并未提及；为错误答案。

30.【答案】B。
【译文】从文中可以推断出，印第安局的主要目的是--协助处理跟印第安人有关的事件的。
【试题分析】细节推理题。
【详细解答】第三段第一句话“....the Indian Bureau and failed to coordinate its policies with the civilians who were normally in charge of Indian affairs” 军队经常忽视印第安局，没有协调好与掌管印第安事务的公务员之间的关系，由此可知B)为正确答案。A)建立印第安人和平居住的保留地；C)为印第安人提供食物供应；D)帮助印第安人学习获得食物的新方法；文中都未提到，为错误答案。