DIRECTIONS: In the passages that follow, some words and phrases are underlined and numbered. In the answer column, you will find alternatives for the words and phrases that are underlined. Choose the alternative that you think is best, and fill in the corresponding bubble on your answer sheet. If you think that the original version is best, choose “NO CHANGE,” which will always be either answer choice A or F. You will also find questions about a particular section of the passage, or about the entire passage. These questions will be identified either by an underlined portion or by a number in a box. Look for the answer that clearly expresses the idea, is consistent with the style and tone of the passage, and makes the correct use of standard written English. Read the passage through once before answering the questions. For some questions, you should read beyond the indicated portion before you answer.
A Modern Blacksmith
You will probably never find his name in a history book, but to this day, Walker Lee continues to contribute to America heritage. Q1 Walker Lee is an old-fashioned, modern day blacksmith who still practices Q2 the fine art of manipulating metal over a hot fire. In his words, “Blacksmithing is no dying art!” Walker Lee had began Q3 his career in hand-forged ironwork at the age of 30. The idea of creating an object out of iron, a most intractable material Q4
, appealed to him. He started on this new venture by collecting and reading every book he could find that described the process of blacksmithing: its history, its practical and decorative uses, and the equipment needed to establish and outfit his own smithy. During the course of his research, Lee discovered a tool necessary for the success of any blacksmith: the anvil, a heavy block of iron or steel upon which the blacksmith hammered and shaped the malleable metal.
Lee bought his first anvil from 84-year-old Hurley Alford Templeton of Philadelphia, lugging Q5 it home to Michigan in the back of a 4-H county bus. This anvil weighed 100 pounds, about the minimum size Walker Lee needed to get started Q6 in his craft.
Lee’s first anvil cost him $100, and four months later, he paid $75 for an additional implement—a vice—from Cornell University in New York. This important tool also made its Q7 way back to Michigan in the back of Lee’s 4-H bus.
Lee had spent the summer carting 4-H groups out from Michigan to the east coast for various county fairs and expositions. Q8
Once Lee obtained his first portable forge, he was ready to build his blacksmith shop, commonly referred to as a “smithy.” Q9 In the interest of economy, he constructed this shop out of inexpensive oak planks and tarpaper. It was a crude little shack but stood for Q10 only nine years. Lee, who by then was completely hooked on blacksmithing,replaced his first shop with a finer one made of more expensive wood; this shop also had glass windows, a definite improvement over Lee’s original “smithy.”
[1] The very first object Lee forged was a long, pointed Q11 Hudson Bay dagger. [2] Many people refer to this type of knife as a “dag.” [3] As he recalls that event he says, “From the minute I first saw the thing take shape, I was hooked ... still am. There’s an element of magic in it to me. You heat it up and pound it with a hammer and it goes where you want it to go.” [4] Years later at a family event Lee, Q12 discovered that his Italian ancestors were accomplished coppersmiths. [5] During the gathering, Lee’s great uncle Johnny was proclaiming Q13 that Lee’s propensity for blacksmithing was “in the blood” as he happily presented Lee with a new 125-pound anvil. Q14
As an outside observer watches Q15 Walker Lee bending and shaping a hot metal rod into some recognizable form, it is difficult to discern the origin of the magic Lee spoke of; is it in the glowing, orange steel or in Walker himself?