question: CHAPTER III 

IN THE LOW COUNTRY 

Master Lirriper had stood apart while the boys were conversing with Francis Vere. 

"What do you think, Master Lirriper?" Geoffrey exclaimed as they joined him. "We have asked Mr. Vere to take us with him as pages to the war in the Low Country, and though he said we were not to be hopeful about his reply, I do think he will take us. We are to go round to Westminster at one o'clock to see him again. What do you think of that?" 

"I don't know what to think, Master Geoffrey. It takes me all by surprise, and I don't know how I stand in the matter. You see, your father gave you into my charge, and what could I say to him if I went back empty handed?" 

"But, you see, it is with Francis Vere," Geoffrey said. "If it had been with anyone else it would be different. But the Veres are his patrons, and he looks upon the earl, and Mr. Francis and his brothers, almost as he does on us; and, you know, he has already consented to our entering the army some day. Besides, he can't blame you; because, of course, Mr. Vere will write to him himself and say that he has taken us, and so you can't be blamed in the matter. My father would know well enough that you could not withstand the wishes of one of the Veres, who are lords of Hedingham and all the country round." 
1. How did the Master feel about he news?
2. What was his name?
3. Who was talking to the lads apart from the Master?
4. What's his first name?
5. Where would they go?
6. For what?
7. What would be their role there?
****
answer: 1. surprise
2. Geoffrey.
3. Mr. Vere
4. Francis
5. Low Country
6. as pages
7. pages

The Bantu languages (), technically the Narrow Bantu languages as opposed to "Wide Bantu", a loosely defined categorization which includes other Bantoid languages, constitute a traditional branch of the Niger–Congo languages. There are about 250 Bantu languages by the criterion of mutual intelligibility, though the distinction between language and dialect is often unclear, and "Ethnologue" counts 535 languages. Bantu languages are spoken largely east and south of present-day Cameroon, that is, in the regions commonly known as Central Africa, Southeast Africa, and Southern Africa. Parts of the Bantu area include languages from other language families (see map). 

Estimates of number of speakers of most languages vary widely, due both to the lack of accurate statistics in most developing countries and the difficulty in defining exactly where the boundaries of a language lie, particularly in the presence of a dialect continuum. 

The Bantu language with the largest total number of speakers is Swahili; however, the majority of its speakers know it as a second language. According to Ethnologue, there are over 180 million second-language (L2) speakers, but only about 2 million native speakers. 

Other major languages include Zulu with 27 million speakers (15.7 million L2) and Shona with about 11 million speakers (if Manyika and Ndau are included). Ethnologue separates the largely mutually intelligible Kinyarwanda and Kirundi, which, if grouped together, have 12.4 million speakers. What are the answers to this following set of questions: 1. How many Bantu languages are there using criteria of mutual intelligibility?
2. what about using "Ethnologue" criteria?
3. Which Bantu language has the most speakers?
4. Do most Swahili speakers learn it as a first language?
5. How many native Swahili speakers are there?
6. What other major Bantu language is there?
7. How many Zulu speakers are there?
8. How many learned Zulu as a second language?
9. Is there another major Zulu language?
10. What does Wide Bantu mean?
11. Where are Bantu languages spoken?
12. Do parts of Bantu areas include languages from other families?
13. Is it easy to determine the exact boundaries of a language?
14. Which language has about 11 million speakers?
15. What separates Kinyarwanda and Kirundi?
16. How many speakers do they have if grouped together?
17. Is Bantu a traditional branch of Niger-Congo languages?
18. Are there accurate statistics of language speakers in developing countries?
Answer: 1. about 250
2. 535
3. Swahili
4. no
5. 2 million
6. Zulu
7. 27 million
8. 15.7 million
9. no
10. a loosely defined categorization which includes other Bantoid languages
11. east and south of present-day Cameroon
12. yes
13. no
14. Shona
15. Ethnologue
16. 12.4 million
17. yes
18. no

input: Make use of the article to answer the questions. Liu Qian, a magician from Taiwan, cast his spell over an audience of thousands on the CCTV Spring Festival Show. Die-hard fans are still trying to work out the secrets behind many of the tricks he performed. 

But Liu, 32, when asked, laughed off the idea that there might be an "answer" to his magic. "The most fascinating things about magic is the puzzling process. People enjoy how magicians make the impossible come true," said Liu. 

Few people today believe in the possibility of real magic. They also often fail to consider magicians' devotion to their art. It can take a magician years' of practice to perfect a trick before he performs it on stage. 

Part of Liu's star appeal is his astonishing skill. However, when he began in the industry, he was embarrassingly clumsy. "I could practice thousands of times for one single act. It wasn't much fun," he said. 

No magician's supernatural powers on stage extend to their life off stage. Liu says his life was no easier or funnier because he was a magician. 

He developed an interest in magic at a young age, but didn't consider making a living out of it until he graduated from university. He had studied Japanese language and found himself unable to find a job. "My parents never considered being a magician as a proper job. To begin with, I had little confidence I would be doing this in the long term," he said. 

Yet Liu felt a powerful calling to become a magician. "For many people, magic somehow means a miracle, which is something we all secretly wish for no matter how hard-bitten or cynical we become," he said. 

Liu may be right. A popular modern dream is of the fairy godmother, who waves her magic wand and makes our dreams come true. But according to Liu, we all have the power to create magic in our lives. As Liu puts it: it's not the magic that makes it work;it's the way we work that makes it magic. 1. What is his name?
2. What does he do?
3. how old?
4. Where is he from?
5. Did he graduate college?
6. What did he study?
7. Why did he become a magician?
8. Did he plan to make it a permanent job?
9. DO we all have the ability to create magic?
10. What makes magic work?
numbered_answers:
1. Liu Qian
2. he is a magician
3. 32
4. Taiwan
5. yes
6. Japanese
7. he found himself unable to find a job
8. no
9. yes
10. the way we work