Passage 10
Passage 10
Passage 10
The National Automobile Show in New York has been one of the top auto shows in the United States
since 1900. On November 3 of that year, about 8,000 people looked over the “horseless carriages.” It was
the opening day and the first opportunity for the automobile industry to show off its wares to a large
crowd; however, the black-tie audience treated the occasion more as a social affair than as a sales
extravaganza. It was also on the first day of this show that William McKinley became the first U.S.
president to ride in a car.
The automobile was not invented in the United States. That distinction belongs to Germany. Nikolaus
Otto built the first practical internal-combustion engine there in 1876. Then, German engineer Karl Benz
built what are regarded as the first modern automobiles in the mid-1880s. But the United States pioneered
the merchandising of the automobile. The auto show proved to be an effective means of getting the public
excited about automotive products.
By happenstance, the number of people at the first New York show equaled the entire car population
of the United States at that time. In 1900, 10 million bicycles and an unknown number of horse-drawn
carriages provided the prime means of personal transportation. Only about 4,000 cars were assembled in
the United States in 1900, and only a quarter of those were gasoline powered. The rest ran on steam or
electricity.
After viewing the cars made by forty car makers, the show’s audience favored electric cars because
they were quiet. The risk of a boiler explosion turned people away from steamers, and the gasoline-
powered cars produced smelly fumes. The Duryea Motor Wagon Company, which launched the
American auto industry in 1895, offered a fragrant additive designed to mask the smells of the naphtha
that it burned. Many of the 1900 models were cumbersome—the Gas mobile, the Franklin, and the
Orient, for example, steered with a tiller like a boat instead of with a steering wheel. None of them was
equipped with an automatic starter.
These early model cars were practically handmade and were not very dependable. They were
basically toys of the well-to-do. In fact, Woodrow Wilson, then a professor at Princeton University and
later President of the United States, predicted that automobiles would cause conflict between the wealthy
and the poor. However, among the exhibitors at the 1900 show was a young engineer named Henry Ford.
But before the end of the decade, he would revolutionize the automobile industry with his Model T Ford.
The Model T, first produced in 1909, featured a standardized design and a streamlined method of
production—the assembly line. Its lower costs made it available to the mass market.
Cars at the 1900 show ranged in price from $1,000 to $1,500, or roughly $14,000 to $21,000 in
today’s prices. By 1913, the Model T was selling for less than $300, and soon the price would drop even
further. “I will build cars for the multitudes,” Ford said, and he kept his promise.
Question 1. The passage implies that the audience viewed the 1900 National Automobile Show primarily
as a(n)
A. formal social occasion.
B. chance to buy automobiles at low prices.
C. opportunity to learn how to drive.
D. chance to invest in one of thirty-two automobile manufacturers.
Question 2. According to the passage, who developed the first modern car?
A. Karl Benz B. Nikolaus Otto C. William McKinley D. Henry Ford
Question 3. Approximately how many cars were there in the United States in 1900?
A. 4,000 B. 8,000 C. 10 million D. An unknown number
Question 4. The phrase “by happenstance” in paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to
A. Generally B. For example C. Coincidentally D. By design
Question 5. Approximately how many of the cars assembled in the year 1900 were gasoline powered?
A. 32 B. 1,000 C. 2,000 D. 4,000
Question 6. Which of the following is closest in meaning to the word “launched” in paragraph 4.
A. designed B. anticipated C. joined D. initiated
Question 7. The purpose of the “additive” mentioned in paragraph 4 was to
A. increase the speed of cars. B. hide strong smells.
C. make engines run more efficiently. D. make cars look better
Question 8. Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the passage as steering with a tiller rather than
with a steering wheel?
A. A Franklin B. A Gasmobile C. An Orient D. A Duryea
Question 9. It is clear from the passage that the early cars
A. were more formal. B. were more spectacular.
C. involved less expensive cars. D. involved fewer manufacturers.
Question 10. What was the highest price asked for a car at the 1900 National Automobile Show in the
dollars of that time?
A. $300 B. $1,500 C. $14,000 D. $21,000
ĐÁP ÁN
1-A 2-A 3-B 4-C 5-B
6-D 7-B 8-D 9-D 10-B