In colonial America, people generally covered their beds with decorative quilts
resembling those of the lands from which the quilters had come.
Wealthy and socially
prominent settlers made quilts of the English style, cut from
large lengths of cloth of
Line the same color and texture rather than stitched together from
smaller pieces. They made
(5) these until the advent of the Revolutionary War in 1775, when
everything English
came to be frowned upon.
Among the whole-cloth quilts
made by these wealthy settlers during the early period
are those now called linsey-woolseys. This term was usually
applied to a fabric of wool
and linen used in heavy clothing and quilted petticoats worn in
the wintertime. Despite
(10) the name, linsey-woolsey bedcovers did not often contain linen.
Rather, they were
made of a top layer of woolen or glazed worsted wool fabric,
consisting of smooth,
compact yarn from long wool fibers, dyed dark blue, green, or
brown, with a bottom
layer of a coarser woolen material, either natural or a shade of
yellow. The filling was
a soft layer of wool which had been cleaned and separated and the
three layers were
(15) held together with decorative stitching done with homespun linen
thread. Later, cotton
thread was used for this purpose. The design of the stitching was
often a simple one
composed of interlocking circles or crossed diagonal lines giving
a diamond pattern.
This type of heavy, warm,
quilted bedcover was so large that it hung to the floor.
The corners were cut out at the foot of the cover so that the
quilt fit snugly around the tall
(20) four-poster beds of the 1700's, which differed from those of today
in that they were
shorter and wider ; they were short because people slept in a
semi-sitting position with
many bolsters and pillows, and wide because each bed often slept
three or more. The
linsey-woolsey covering was found in the colder regions of the
country because of the
warmth it afforded. There was no central heating and most bedrooms
did not have
fireplaces.
Questions
22. What does this passage mainly discuss ?
(A) The processing of wool
(B)
Linsey-woolsey bedcovers
(C) Sleeping habits of colonial
Americans
(A) Quilts made in England
23. The word "prominent" in line 3 is closest in meaning to
(A) isolated
(B) concerned
(C) generous
(A) distinguished
24. The author mentions the Revolutionary War as a time period when
(A) quilts were supplied to the
army
(B) more immigrants arrived
from England
(C) quilts imported from
England became harder to find
(A) people's attitude toward
England changed
25. The phrase "applied to" in line 8 is closest in meaning
to
(A) sewn onto
(B) compared to
(C) used for
(D) written down on
26. The term "linsey-woolsey" originally meant fabric
used primarily in
(A) quilts
(B) sheets
(C) clothing
(D) pillows
27. The word "coarser" in line 13 is closest in meaning
to
(A) older
(B) less heavy
(C) more attractive
(D) rougher
28. The quilts described in the second and third paragraphs
were made primarily of
(A) wool
(B) linen
(C) cotton
(D) a mixture of fabrics
29. It can be inferred from the third paragraph that the sleeping
habits of most
Americans have changed since
the 1700's in all of the following ways EXCEPT
(A) the position in which
people sleep
(B) the numbers of bolsters or
pillows people sleep on
(C) the length of time people
sleep
(D) the number of people who
sleep in one bed
30. The word "afforded" in line 24 is closest in meaning
to
(A) provided
(B) spent
(C) avoided
(D) absorbed
31. Which of the following was most likely to be found in a
bedroom in
the colder areas of the American colonies ?
(A) A linsey-woolsey
(B)
A vent from a central heating system
(C) A fireplace
(D) A wood stove
Please tally your answer with the below provided answers and
then comment here how much you got!
Answers
22.
B 23. A 24. A 25. C 26. C 27.
D 28. A 29. C 30. A 31. A
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