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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. At the novel's conclusion, who is the owner of the "sweet" rifle?
(a) Harv Kline
(b) Nobody--Harv Kline destroys it
(c) Tilson
(d) John Byam

2. When Richard Allen Mesington is eleven and twelve years old what is his favorite hobby?
(a) Training dogs
(b) Building model airplanes and cars
(c) Drawing
(d) Shooting a rifle

3. With which relative is Richard Allen Mesington particularly close?
(a) His son
(b) His adopted little sister
(c) His grandfather
(d) His cousin

4. How old is Richard Allen Mesington when he has his first crush on Peggy?
(a) Sixteen years old
(b) Twenty years old
(c) Nine years old
(d) Fourteen years old

5. What does the Mesinger family do in the early evening of Christmas Eve, 1993?
(a) They play "sub-for-Santa" with the Kline family
(b) They sit down to a huge dinner of goose
(c) They go snow sledding
(d) They walk the neighborhood looking at Christmas decorations

6. According to the novel, how much pressure does a black powder charge generate?
(a) Two British tonnes
(b) Very little
(c) Enough to blow up the average gun
(d) 11,000 pounds per square inch

7. For what did sailing ships in the Revolutionary War use black power?
(a) To cook meals
(b) As a fuel in the engine
(c) To charge their cannon
(d) They didn't use blackpowder onboard sailing ships

8. According to the novel, what is the muzzle velocity of a black powder rifle's projectile?
(a) About 30 long paces
(b) The speed of light
(c) Mach 2
(d) 1,200 feet per second

9. According to the novel, how fast is the rifle ball traveling when it hits Richard Allen Mesinger?
(a) Mach 2
(b) 1,000 feet per second
(c) About 20 miles per hour
(d) About 30 long paces

10. Richard Allen Mesington dreams of learning how to throw what kind of a baseball pitch?
(a) A fastball
(b) A strike
(c) A bodyline pitch
(d) A clean dropping curve

11. The novel states that black powder has what chemical property?
(a) It is extremely explosive
(b) It will dissolve if it gets moist
(c) It is very corrosive
(d) It is poisonous if ingested

12. How does Richard Allen Mesington get along with Harv Kline?
(a) They like to hunt together
(b) They like each other as neighbors
(c) They fight about nearly everything
(d) They are best friends

13. How much linear distance in the bore of the "sweet" rifle is used by a typical loading of powder and patched ball?
(a) None
(b) The entire length of the bore
(c) Two feet
(d) Two inches

14. From age nine to ten, Richard Allen Mesington believes he will pursue which profession?
(a) Law
(b) Medicine
(c) Veterinary science
(d) Airplane pilot

15. What clears the "mummified grease" (p. 92) from the touchhole of the "sweet" rifle?
(a) Harv Kline's cigarette melts it
(b) John Byam pricks it with a needle
(c) Tim Harrow removes it while cleaning the rifle
(d) A candle flame melts it

Short Answer Questions

1. When Richard Allen Mesington is fourteen years old he considers pursuing all of the following careers except?

2. Where was Richard Allen Mesington born?

3. Who tells Peggy that Richard Allen Mesington has a crush on her?

4. How does Richard Allen Mesington refer to the first bear he sees as an infant?

5. What actually ignites the black powder in the "sweet" rifle as it hangs in Harv Kline's house?

(see the answer keys)

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