PASSAGE 4
Despite the road improvements of the turnpike era (1790-1830), Americans
continued as in colonial times to depend wherever possible on water routes for travel
and transportation. The larger rivers, especially the Mississippi and the Ohio, became
Line increasingly useful as steamboats grew in number and improved in design.
(5) River boats carried to New Orleans the corn and other crops of northwestern
farmers, the cotton and tobacco of southwestern planters. From New Orleans, ships
took the cargoes on to eastern seaports. Neither the farmers of the west nor the
merchants of the east were completely satisfied with this pattern of trade. Farmers
could get better prices for their crops if the alternative existed of sending them directly
(10)eastward to market, and merchants could sell larger quantities of their manufactured
goods if these could be transported more directly and more economically to the west.
New waterways were needed. Sectional jealousies and constitutional scruples stood
in the way of action by the federal government, and necessary expenditures were too
great for private enterprise. If extensive canals were to be dug, the job would be up to
(15)the various states.
New York was the first to act. It had the natural advantage of a comparatively level
route between the Hudson River and Lake Erie, through the only break in the entire
Appalachian Mountain chain. Yet the engineering tasks were imposing. The distance
was more than 350 miles, and there were ridges to cross and a wilderness of woods and
(20)swamps to penetrate. The Erie Canal, begun in 1817 and completed in 1825, was by far
the greatest construction job that Americans had ever undertaken. It quickly proved a
financial success as well. The prosperity of the Erie encouraged the state to enlarge its
canal system by building several branches.
(20) The range of the New York canal system was still further extended when the states
of Ohio and Indiana, inspired by the success of the Erie Canal, provided water
connections between Lake Erie and the Ohio River.
9.What does the passage suggest was the principal route for transporting crops to the east prior to 1825?
(A) River to road
(B) Canal to river
(C) River to ocean
(D) Road to canal
10.It can be inferred from the passage that shipping cargo east by way of New Orleans was
(A) advantageous for manufacturers
(B) inexpensive for merchants
(C) not economical for farmers
(D) considered economical by the government
11.The word "alternative" in line 9 is closest in meaning to
(A) option
(B) transition
(C) intention
(D) authorization
12.The word "them" in line 9 refers to
(A) crops
(B) farmers
(C) prices
(D) merchants
13.Which of the following products would a northwestern farmer in the early nineteenth century be most likely to purchase from the east?
(A) Grain
(B) Vegetables
(C) Textiles
(D) Fruit
14.According to the passage, where was the Erie Canal located?
(A) Between Ohio and Indiana
(B) Along the Appalachian Mountains
(C) Between Lake Erie and the Ohio River
(D) Across New York State
15.The word "imposing" in line 18 could best be replaced by
(A) impractical
(B) successful
(C) demanding
(D) misleading
16.The word "penetrate" in line 20 is closest in meaning to
(A) cut down
(B) go through
(C) fill up
(D) take over
17.The word "its" in line 22 refers to
(A) prosperity
(B) Erie
(C) system
(D) state
18.The word "extended" in line 24 is closest in meaning to
(A) increased
(B) constructed
(C) deepened
(D) measured
19.According to the passage, Indiana and Ohio supported the development of the New York canal system by
(A) helping to build the Erie Canal
(B) building branches to connect it with the Ohio River
(C) providing much of the water for the Erie Canal
(D) contributing financially to the construction costs
20.What does the paragraph following the passage probably discuss?
(A) Industry on Lake Erie
(B) Canals in Ohio and Indiana
(C) Sectional jealousies in Indiana and Ohio
(D) Travel on the Erie Canal4.