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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. When Mary searches Ned's desk, to whom does she find he has been writing?
(a) Parvis.
(b) Alida Stair.
(c) The Waukesha Sentinel.
(d) Bob Elwell.

2. On page 95, Mary mentions the "fun of the frisson." What is a frisson?
(a) A sensation of chills or prickling down one's back.
(b) The feeling of "butterflies" in one's stomach.
(c) A frightening story.
(d) A teasing remark.

3. What does Mary learn about the Blue Star Mine deal from her visitor in section "V"?
(a) Ned committed a crime in order to make the deal.
(b) Ned's actions caused the mine to go bankrupt.
(c) Ned cheated Bob Elwell in order to make more money from it.
(d) It was not nearly as lucrative a deal as Ned pretended.

4. Why does Mary believe that people should not talk about seeing ghosts?
(a) It is dangerous.
(b) It is bad manners.
(c) It makes people wonder about your sanity.
(d) It frightens the ghosts away.

5. When the young man appears behind Mary, who does she at first assume that he is?
(a) The ghost.
(b) Bob Elwell.
(c) The boiler repairman.
(d) A tourist.

6. In section "II," what question does Mary repeatedly ask Ned that evening in the library?
(a) She asks whether it was a good idea to move into this particular house.
(b) She asks him what secret he is keeping from her.
(c) She asks whether he is having an affair.
(d) She asks whether he has given up trying to see the ghost.

7. What does Ned say, on page 83, must be true for him to believe a house is old?
(a) It must be "thoroughly uncomfortable."
(b) It must be "practical."
(c) It must be "bought out of an exhibition."
(d) It must be "a registered home."

8. When does Mary first realize that Ned is missing?
(a) When the boiler repairman asks to speak with him.
(b) When the stranger reappears and asks for him again.
(c) When Trimmle comes in to ask her whether she has seen Ned.
(d) When she tries to find him to tell him that lunch is ready.

9. Why is the information about Bob Elwell's slow death so significant to Mary?
(a) She realizes that Ned lied when he told her that everything was resolved.
(b) She cannot help being glad that the man who made her husband suffer also suffered.
(c) She is devastated about how much suffering her husband caused.
(d) She realizes that the timing lines up with the sightings of the ghost.

10. When Mary finally catches up with Ned on that October day, what is he doing?
(a) Staring out the front door.
(b) Searching the lower floor for the intruder.
(c) Pacing in front of the library fireplace.
(d) Looking through his papers in the library.

11. For how many years did Ned and Mary live in the American Midwest while Ned worked as an engineer?
(a) 14.
(b) 4.
(c) 34.
(d) 24.

12. What event causes Mary to temporarily forget about the mysterious man they saw in October?
(a) She receives a letter from Alida Stair.
(b) She and Ned climb Meldon Steep.
(c) The greenhouse boiler breaks.
(d) One of the housemaids quits.

13. What does Mary find in the envelope addressed to her?
(a) A newspaper clipping.
(b) A photograph.
(c) An anonymous note.
(d) A letter from Parvis.

14. What have Mary's new neighbors told her about the ghost?
(a) That she will not know when she sees it.
(b) Nothing.
(c) That it is often absent for long stretches of time.
(d) That it can only be seen at night.

15. What does Mary suddenly remember finding one day in October?
(a) A mysterious portrait.
(b) A letter addressed to a previous occupant of the house.
(c) A hidden staircase.
(d) A book on the house's history.

Short Answer Questions

1. Which character opens the story on page 83 by saying "Oh, there is one, of course, but you'll never know it"?

2. When Mary tells Ned what she has learned from her mail, how does Ned react?

3. When the story refers to "Boyne," who or what is being referred to?

4. For the past week, what has Mary been assuming is the cause for Ned's need to be alone and his odd mood?

5. What detail does the narrator relate as evidence of how much Ned and Mary have yearned for a life like the one they have in England?

(see the answer keys)

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