II . 七选五 (每小题 2 分,共 10 分 ) Cats in ancient Egypt Many of us love cats. They are beautiful, soft, clever and loving. The ancient Egyptians ( 埃及人 ) considered cats, also known as Mau, to be very important. They honored them with great respect ( 尊敬 ). __ 1 __ For one thing, cats helped people by keeping their homes free of mice, rats, and snakes. Without cats Egypt could not have been the important grain­growing ( 谷物种植 ) center that it was. __ 2 __ Though I don't know what other pets the Egyptians had, cats were probably the most important. Cats were also trained to help hunters ( 猎人 ). __ 3 __ The Egyptians loved cats so much that Bast, an Egyptian goddess, was pictured in the form of a cat. Bast appeared in artwork. She was the protector of the house. This idea made a special connection between cats and children. __ 4 __ The safety of all cats was of great concern to ancient Egyptians. __ 5 __ Foreigners sometimes took cats out of Egypt secretly and took them to other lands. They traded them for treasures in these lands. Egyptian soldiers were sent to pick up cats found in other countries and bring them back home to Egypt. A . There were good reasons for that. B . Two types of cats appeared in ancient Egypt. C . In grain fields, cats helped catch rats and mice. D . They were able to help pick up the wounded birds. E . There were even laws against getting a cat out of Egypt. F . Anyone who killed a cat on purpose would be put to death. G . That's why most Egyptian families had cats for good luck.