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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. Who wrote "The Coal Scuttle?"
(a) Mr. Paul McCartney, Mayor of Barnsley, Yorkshire.
(b) Mr. John Abbott, Mayor of Chelsey, Yorkshire.
(c) Mr. Joseph Jones, Mayor of Barnsley, Yorkshire.
(d) Mr. Albert Hall, Mayor of Chelsey, Yorkshire.

2. What were "cream crackers?"
(a) Biscuits.
(b) Fried bread.
(c) Potato chips.
(d) Oreos.

3. Who were the only permanent lodgers at the Brookers?
(a) Mr. Reilly and a man named Joe.
(b) Mr. Reilly and the Irish miner with one hand.
(c) Mr. Reilly and Mr. Orwell.
(d) Mr. Reilly and Mr. Simons.

4. How many tons of coal were moved on the conveyor belt every minute?
(a) Several tons.
(b) Hundreds of pounds.
(c) Millions of pounds.
(d) One ton.

5. In what positions did Orwell find himself moving through the tunnels in the coal mine?
(a) Bent over, squatting and crawling.
(b) Bent over, squatting and running.
(c) Bent over, crawling and twisting.
(d) Standing, crawling and moving on his belly.

Short Answer Questions

1. At what point did Orwell leave the Brooker's boarding house?

2. What point was Orwell making in his explanation of the coal miner's pay?

3. Why did men chew tobacco in the mines?

4. In what position must the fillers work?

5. What were some of the most common conditions Orwell notes of housing in the industrial areas?

Short Essay Questions

1. How did Orwell describe the housing in the industrial towns of England? When were most of the houses built?

2. Who were some of the boarders at the Brooker's rooming house? How were thought of by the Brookers?

3. What was one major convenience added to the more modern mines in England? What myth often told about miners did this modern convenience dispel?

4. What did the miners look like when they emerged from the coal mines? What were some of the first things they did upon coming above ground?

5. What were the two largest causes of death to a miner on the job? What were the causes of these hazards?

6. What were the caravan dwellings Orwell speaks about in his book? How many were there in Wigan? What were the living conditions in these caravan dwelling?

7. Why did Orwell believe that our civilization is founded on coal? How did he relate this belief to the coal miner?

8. Who were the Brookers? How did Orwell describe them? What did they look like? Behave like?

9. What is nystagmus? How is it contracted? How is it cured? What happened to a miner in Orwell's time who contracted nystagmus?

10. Describe the typical coal mine Orwell explored while studying the work conditions in the mines.

(see the answer keys)

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