Fluency Listen, read and practise. It was Friday 13 January 1985

Ghosts

It was Friday 13 January 1985. The Samsons had just moved into an old house in Borley in Essex.

The house, built about two hundred years earlier, had once belonged to a man called Boyson. Some people in the village said the house was haunted. They said that Boyson's daughter Mary had fallen in love with Harold, a blacksmith from the village. Knowing that her father would not allow them to marry, Mary had planned to run away with Harold. But her father, having overheard their plans, locked Mary in her room and shot Harold. When Mary found out, she hanged herself. Her father, realizing that he had done something terrible, died of a broken heart.

One night, John Samson was lying in bed reading. Suddenly he heard a strange moaning noise, like a man crying. Seconds

later, the cigarette he was smoking went out and the room turned cold. Again he thought he heard someone crying and moving about. Having searched all the rooms, he decided it must have been the wind. Being very tired, he fell asleep, with a lighted cigarette in his hand... He dreamt that he could hear someone knocking loudly and that he could smell something burning. But it wasn't a dream. The bedroom curtains were on fire! Samson ran out of the house.

Fifty people from the village gathered outside, watching the burning house. A policeman thought he saw a young woman trapped in an upstairs room, knocking at the window, but there was nobody in the house. Several people saw two figures wearing dark clothes walking through the flames. An old man with a beard stood crying at the door...

No bodies were found in the ruins. No one was surprised.

A. Ask and answer questions on the text.

B. Retell the text. Use the participial constructions.

C. Say the sentences using a participle instead of a relative clause.

eg The story which has been told in Borley for over a hundred years is true. The story told in Borley for over a hundred years is true.

1. The old house which had been built two hundred years earlier had once belonged to Boyson. 2. John Samson heard the noise of a man who was crying. 3. The woman who was seen at the window was the ghost of Mary Boyson. 4. The strange moaning noise which had been heard by John Samson on the night of the fire was Boyson's ghost crying. 5. The two figures who were wearing dark clothes were the ghosts of Mary Boyson and Harold. 6. The old man who was standing at the door crying was the ghost of Mary's father.

E. Make one sentence using a participle, without changing the meaning.

eg The ghosts appeared and disappeared. They left no trace. The ghosts appeared and disappeared, leaving no trace.

1. The Samsons arrived in Borley. They knew nothing about I the ghosts. 2. Mr Samson ran out of the burning house. He shouted

loudly. 3. Some neighbours came. They were carrying buckets. 4. The villagers gathered. They watched the fire. 5. Three firemen arrived. They brought fire equipment. 6. A young woman was standing at the window. She was knocking at the window. 7. An old man was standing in the door. He was crying. 8. The Samsons moved to London. They left behind the ruined house.

Not a Cold Mine

Dreams of finding lost treasure came true recently. A new machine called "The Revealer" has been invented and has been used to detect gold which has been buried in the ground. The machine was used in a cave near the sea-shore where — it is said — pirates used to hide gold. The pirates would often bury gold in the cave and then fail to collect it. Armed with the new machine, a search party went into the cave hoping to find buried treasure. The leader of the party was examining the soil near the entrance to the cave when the machine showed that there was gold under the ground. Very excited, the party dug a hole two feet deep. They finally found a small gold coin which was almost worthless. The party then searched the whole cave thoroughly but did not find anything except an empty tin trunk. In spite of this many people are confident that "The Revealer" may reveal something of value fairly soon.

A. Questions

1. Is "The Revealer" a new machine or an old machine? 2. What is it used for? 3. Where was this machine used recently? 4. Did the search party find any gold? 5. Do many people believe that the machine may reveal something of value soon or not?

B. Complete the sentences from the text

1. Dreams of finding... treasure almost came true recently. 2. A new machine... "The Revealer" has been invented. 3.... with the new machine, a search party went into the cave ... to find ... treasure. 4. ... , the party dug a hole two feet deep.

C. Study and practise the text.

D. Complete using "used to" or "would" where possible.

When I was young I ... have a lot more free time than I do now. I... live near my work and ... always get home early. I... do a bit of gardening or go for a long walk. Now I never have time for anything like that.

A. Dangerous Place

Paula had always wanted to go to New York and now she had the chance at last. She was a journalist, and her newspaper was sending her there to do a series of articles on the city. But before she left her home in London, several friends warned her to be careful and not to go out alone at night in New York. "It's a dangerous place. People get robbed or even killed in broad daylight!" they told her.

But when she got there, the only thing she was afraid of was exhaustion. It was such an exciting city that she never got any sleep. It took her two weeks to do the articles and she had to interview a lot of people but she enjoyed every minute of it. She completely forgot all her friends' warnings until the day she went back to London. It all began in a bar.

She was having lunch there when she suddenly felt someone watching her. She looked up and noticed a man sitting at a table opposite her. He was staring at her, but looked away. She noticed that he had a scar on his cheek. He was about 30 and had short, curly hair. Paula was not worried at all. She had to go to an airline office to re-book her flight home. She wanted an afternoon flight instead of a morning one, as originally planned. On her way there, she stopped to look at something in a shop-window. To her surprise she saw the man follow her. She could see his reflection in the glass. He had stopped just behind her. Suddenly she felt afraid. She walked on. Then she stopped and looked behind her again. But this time she could not see him. Just then she noticed she had come to the airline office. She went in and after she had finished her business, decided to phone a friend from a telephone booth there. She was carrying a small, portable but very expensive tape-recorder. It was in a black case in which she kept her money and passport as well. But the booth was so small that she had to leave the case outside. When she came out, it had disappeared. Then she saw the red-haired man hurrying out of the office. He had the case in his hand. She shouted but it was too late.

A Questions

1. Why did Paula go to New York? 2. What did her friends warn her about before she left London? 3. What made Paula forget her friends' warnings? 4. What did Paula notice while she was having lunch? 5. What surprised Paula? 6. Why did she have to go to the airline office? 7. What happened while Paula was phoning her friend?

B. Complete the sentences from the text.

1. She was having lunch there when she suddenly felt some­one... 3. She looked up and noticed a man... 3. To her surprise, she saw the man... 4. Then she saw the red-haired man...

C. Study and practise the text.

D. Complete the sentences with the words in the list. Use both possible forms.

walk burn sing laugh call play ring shake snore win

1. It was a thrill to see my brother... the chess tournament last year. 2. Uncle Jake is in his bedroom right now. I can hear him... 3. When I glanced out of the window I saw Jack ... toward my house. 4. When I heard the principal of the school... my name at the graduation ceremony, I walked to the front of the auditorium to receive my diploma. 5. Last night while I was trying to fall asleep, I could hear the people in the next apartment... and...

6. When I walked past the park, I saw some children... baseball.

7. Polly was working in the garden, so she didn't hear the phone...

8. There was an earthquake in my hometown last year. It was just a small one, but I could feel the ground... 9. Do you smell something...?

E. Complete the sentences by using an appropriate form of get and the past participles of the verbs in the list.

break hire hurt lose pack worry tear

1.1 had a terrible day. First the heel of my shoe broke off, then my dress got torn in the elevator door. I'm glad the day is over!

2. Oh! Look at that beautiful vase on the floor. How did it...?

3. A: You're late. What happened?

B: We... We took the wrong exit from the highway, and it took a long time to figure out where we were.

4. A: I really need a job.

B: Why don't you apply for a job at the fast-food restau­rant? They're looking for help. I'm sure you'll...

5. A: Did Susan ... when she fell down the stairs?

В: Not badly. Just a few bumps and bruises. She'll be fine.

6. A: You're here! I... about you. What happened that made

you so late. B: I couldn't start my car. The battery was dead.

Lucky Уои!

Keiko: Hey, you look different. Did you get your hair cut? Sandra: Yeah. It's a little short, isn't it? Keiko: No, I think it looks great! Where did you get it cut? Sandra: At Short Cuts on Third Street. They usually do a nice

job and they're reasonable. Keiko: That's good to know. Speaking of reasonable, do you

know where there's a good shoe repair shop? I have

to get some shoes repaired.

Sandra: There's a little shoe repair shop on Fourth Street. Keiko: You mean the place next to the bookstore? Sandra: Yeah, that's the one. I know they're good and they're

fast, but they might be a little expensive. Keiko: Well, if they are good, I guess they're worth it. Any­way, time to get back to work. Doing anything for

lunch? Sandra: Yeah. I've got a dentist's appointment. I've got to have

a tooth filled. Keiko: Lucky you! Sandra: Yeah, really! And my car isn't working today either.

Something's wrong with the brakes so I have to get

them fixed, too.

. Complete the sentences from the text. 1. Did you ... your hair...? 2. Where did you ... it...? 3.1 have

to ... some shoes ... 4. I've got to ... a tooth ... 5. ... so I have to ... them ... too.

B. Study and practise the conversation.

I'll help you.

(Mrs W=Mrs Williams; Mr W=Mr Williams)

Mrs W: Can you take me into town on Saturday morning, dar-

ling? I want to have my hair done. Mr W: Yes, I can. I've got to go there anyway. I'm going to

have my car serviced. Mrs W: Good. If we leave early, I can have my hair dyed. And

you can pick me up at the hairdresser's when the car

is ready. Mr W: All right. I'll have the car washed by the time. And

when we return home I'll paint the garage doors —

maybe you could help me. Mrs W: We only had the garage repainted a few months ago;

surely it isn't necessary yet.

Mr W: I'm afraid so. The paint is peeling off already. Mrs W: All right. I'll help you.

A. Complete the sentences from the text

1 . 1 want... 2. I'm going... 3. 1 can... 4. I'll ... by the time. 5. We only ... a few months ago.

B. Study and practise the conversation.

C. What kinds of things can you have done at these places?

1 . shoe repair shop 2. barbershop (beauty saloon) 3. tailor's workshop 4. dry cleaner's 5. garage 6. camera shop 7. optometrist 8. watch repair shop

Prompts

shoes/repaired hair/cut clothes/made trousers/pressed

pictures/developed brakes/fixed eyes/checked watch/repaired

On Christmas Eve

One afternoon just before Christmas an old gentleman was walking through the city centre. The gaily illuminated shops were packed with good things and crowded with cheerful shop­pers. Suddenly in the middle of the crowd he noticed a dirty little boy sitting on the pavement, weeping bitterly. When the kind old man asked him why he was crying, the little boy told him that he had lost a ten penny coin that his uncle had given him. Thrusting his hand into his pocket, the old man pulled out a handful of coins. He picked out a shiny, new ten penny coin and handed it to the child. "Thank you very much," said the little boy, and, drying his eyes, he cheered up at once. An hour or so later the old man was making his way back home by the same route. To his astonishment he saw the same dirty little boy in precisely the same spot, crying just as bitterly as before. He went up to the boy and asked him if he had lost the ten pence he had given him as well. The little boy told him that actually he had not lost the second coin, but he still could not find his first ten pence. "If I could find my own ten pence," he said tearfully, "I'd have twenty pence now."

A. Study and practise the text.

A Meeting in the Park.

Cliff and Celia met by chance one sunny morning. They were sitting side by side on a bench in the park. She was reading, and he was just sitting in the sunshine, enjoying doing nothing. There was a rather cross-looking elderly lady sitting on the other side of her. Cliff liked the look of Celia right from the start. He tried hard to get into conversation with her, but she was not very encouraging.

"Isn't it a lovely day?" he said.

"It is, yes."

"Hardly a cloud in the sky."

"No."

"It's nice to have some decent weather for a change, isn't it?" Celia did not reply to this at all. She turned over a page of her book, and went on reading.

"What are you reading?" Cliff was determined to keep the conversation going.

"Madame Bovary."

"What's it like?"

"They say it is rather good," Celia said, without looking up from her book.

"I don't know much about French literature," Cliff said.

Celia closed her book and stood up. "I don't either," she said. "That's why I'm trying to read some. Well, good bye."

Cliff was sorry to see her go, but he could not think of a way of preventing her. He watched her walking away across the grass. Suddenly he noticed a white cardigan lying on the bench beside him. It must be hers. He picked it up and ran after her.

"You forgot this," he said, holding out the cardigan.

"You left it on the seat."

She looked at it in surprise. "It isn't mine," she said,

"What are you doing with my cardigan?" a furious voice behind them said.

Cliff turned. It was the cross-looking elderly lady. She looked even crosser now.

"I'm terribly sorry," he said. "I thought..."

"You'll end up in prison if you're not careful," the lady snap­ped.

"Running off with clothes that don't belong to you."

She snatched the cardigan and walked away, muttering to her­self. Celia was smiling. "You looked terribly guilty," she said.

"Have you got time for a cup of coffee?" Cliff said.

"I think so."

A. Questions

1. Where did Cliff and Celia meet? 2. Where were they sitting? 3. What was the weather like? 4. Where was the elderly lady? 5. What did Cliff try hard to do? 6. Did he succeed? 7. How did Cliff feel when he saw Celia go? 8. What did he do to stop her? 9. Why was Celia surprised? 10. Who did the cardigan belong to? 11. Where did the elderly lady say Cliff might find himself? 12. How did the story end?

B. Study and practise the text. Observe the use of the verbals.

C. Make up sentences using these models:

There is a man waiting outside.

There were fifteen people living in that house.

She was sitting in the park enjoying the fine weather.

They watched her crossing the road.

I heard him singing in the bath.

I saw him leave.

He stood smiling.

She sat reading.

He went away singing to himself.

Cliff saw a pretty girl sitting on a bench.

Smoking in bed is risky.

There was no way of avoiding the accident.

He stopped for a moment and then went on reading.

He left without saying good-bye.

He was determined to win.

We were surprised to find the door locked.

D. Note: We never use adverbial phrases of place after forget. We often use them after leave: She forgot her book. She left it at home. He often forgets things. Yesterday he left his umbrella on the bus.

UNIT 12TOPIC: SPORTS