This seemed like money for nothing. There were millions of frogs in the fields around, an

This seemed like money for nothing. There were millions of frogs in the fields around, and they were no use to the villagers. All they had to do was catch them. Agreement was reached, and the children were sent into the fields to catch frogs. Every week a truck arrived to collect the catch and hand over the money. For the first time, the people were able to dream of a batter future. But the dream didn’t last long.     

The change was hardly noticed at first, but it seemed as if the crops were not doing so well. More worrying was that the children fell ill more often, and, there seemed to be more insects around lately.

The villagers decided that they couldn’t just wait to see the crops failing and the children getting weak. They would have to use the money earned to buy pesticides(杀虫剂) and medicines. Soon there was no money left.

Then the people realized what was happening. It was the frog. They hadn’t been useless. They had been doing an important job---eating insects. Now with so many frogs killed, the insects were increasing more rapidly. They were damaging the crops and spreading diseases.

   Now, the people are still poor. But in the evenings they sit in the village square and listen to sounds of insects and frogs. These sounds of the night now have a much deeper meaning.

56. From paragraph one we learn that the villagers __________.

A. worked very hard for centuries     B. dreamed of having a better life 

C. were poor but somewhat satisfied   D. lived a different life from their forefathers 

57. Why did the villagers agree to sell frogs?

A. the frogs were easy money        B. They needs money to buy medicine

C. they wanted to please the visitors   D. the frogs made too much noise

58. What might be the cause of the children’s sickness?

A. the crops didn’t do well              B. there were too many insects

C. the visits brought in diseases        D. the pesticides were overused

59. What can we infer from the last sentence of the text?

A. Happiness comes from peaceful life in the country 

B. Health is more important than money

C. The harmony between man and nature is important 

D. good old day will never be forgotten

CABC