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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. On page 621, how does the reader learn that the first police officer was actually Jimmy?
(a) The plainclothes officer reveals his true identity to Bob.
(b) The narrator describes "the patrolman" waiting around the corner as his "oldest friend" is arrested.
(c) Jimmy himself explains his identity.
(d) The plainclothes officer refers to him as "Patrolman Wells."

2. What kind of street is a "pacific thoroughfare" (619)?
(a) Crowded.
(b) Peaceful.
(c) Wet.
(d) Ominous.

3. What causes the few pedestrians around to hurry "dismally" past Bob (621)?
(a) Bob's obvious wealth.
(b) Bob is a suspicious-seeming person.
(c) It is almost time for the last businesses to close.
(d) The weather has gotten worse.

4. What can logically be inferred about Jimmy's question about whether Bob and Jimmy kept in touch?
(a) He wonders why Bob stopped writing to him.
(b) He is unsure if the man he is talking to really is his old friend.
(c) He wants to know if Bob realizes that he deliberately stopped writing to him.
(d) He does not remember when the last time he heard from Bob was.

5. How long does Bob wait for Jimmy after he speaks with the police officer?
(a) 20 minutes.
(b) 5 minutes.
(c) 10 minutes.
(d) 15 minutes.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does Bob do while he waits for Jimmy?

2. What is the significance of Jimmy knowing how long ago the restaurant closed?

3. What does the narrator say causes Bob to tell officer about his career in the West?

4. What is the name of the restaurant that used to be in the spot where the man is waiting?

5. On page 621, Bob uses the slang word "bully." What does this word mean in the context of the story?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Jimmy, in his role as the police officer, ask Bob if he is going to keep waiting for his friend to show up?

2. Why does Bob guess that Jimmy might not be as much of a success as Bob himself has become?

3. What is the significance of the similarities and differences in the ways that Bob's and the plainclothes officer's faces are revealed?

4. What is amusing about the plainclothes officer's answer to Bob's question about whether he is doing well in New York?

5. What causes Bob to finally realize that the plainclothes officer is not Jimmy Wells?

6. When the plainclothes officer tells Bob "We'll go around to a place I know of, and have a good long talk about old times," (621), what does he mean, and what does Bob likely think he means?

7. In the story's beginning, what evidence is there that Jimmy takes pride in his job?

8. What surprises Bob about the appearance of the man that he thinks is his old friend, and how does the man explain away Bob's doubts?

9. How does the introduction of Bob's character contrast with the introduction of Jimmy's character?

10. How is Bob characterized by the accessories that he carries?

(see the answer keys)

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