Question 2 • 2025/26 IGC-English II - Prescriptive
Read this excerpt from The Great Fire.When the Waterworks burned down at around three in the morning, the pumping machines went dead, and the water supply to the city stopped. The men at the Tribune would do their best to stamp out and smother the burning embers that landed on the roof, but eventually, the fire won out. The shock felt by White and other citizens when they learned the Tribune was a gutted skeleton was captured perfectly by Charles Mackintosh. After describing at great length how solid and fireproof the Tribune Building was, Mackintosh paused and, with a sad sigh, he concluded, "That is, it was fireproof up to the date of its destruction."
Answer
A
The fire was so fierce that it destroyed everything in its path.
B
Certain buildings were spared because they were fireproof.
C
Some structures were spared by the fire because their owners were prepared.
D
Most people did not even try to stop the fire because it was so massive.
Explanation
The excerpt shows that the fire overwhelmed the efforts to protect the Tribune. When the Waterworks burned, the city’s water supply stopped, and the Tribune’s workers could not keep the embers from setting the building alight. Mackintosh’s ironic comment that the supposedly fireproof building was fireproof only until it was destroyed emphasizes how fierce the fire was.
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