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151 What is the most important animal in your country? Why is the animal important? Use
reasons and specific details to explain your answer.

   The history of mankind came to a turning point when our ancestors looked into the eyes of the stout animal standing before them. In his eyes, they saw strength，stamina, and above all, unswerving loyalty. From then on, horses became men’s constant companion. Men provided horses with forage when snow blanketed the grassland and food became scarce; in return, horses carried men to the four corners of the world. Such a reciprocal alliance changed men’s life. In china, like in many other countries, horses are by far the most important animals in terms of contribution to human civilization.

Horses facilitated the interaction between China and the west and therefore enriched the Chinese culture, bringing into it novel ideas, exotic commodities and other valuable borrowings from alien cultures. Chinese merchants mounted unto their horses the luxurious silk and led their caravans across the Gobi desert to the Byzantine Empire and on their way back loaded their cases with grapes, walnuts, all of which were Western farm products to later take root in the Chinese soil. Without horses, such long trip would have been unimagined and the Gobi desert would have been an unconquerable barrier deterring any attempt on the Chinese part to communicate with the West.

Besides, horses helped Chinese farmers cultivate the vast territory of our country, much of which is inhospitable to human residence. A vivid illustration of this would be the cultivation of what is now the Sichuan province in south China. Found in that province is a breed of horse, which is unusually short compared with other breeds but has astonishing stamina unseen in any other farm animal. This kind of horses can till a large tract of land without a rest, even without eating and drinking. Thanks to these adorable animals, the once barren land is now the most fertile farmland in China, with sophisticated irritation systems and a yearly yield enough to feed that densely populated province.

Horses, which empowered Genghis Khan to establish a vast empire stretching from Korea to Russia, also helped the Mongolian-Chinese people in their heroic battle against Japanese invaders. Mounted, descendants of Genghis Khan swept the battlefield like a gust of wind and dazzled the Japanese army. The epic victory of the Anti-Japanese war can be attributed in part to the feat of the Mongolian horses.

So for all the reasons given above, horses, the noble animal that contributed so much to our country, well deserve the honor of being reckoned as the most important animal in China.
            

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155 Plants can provide food, shelter, clothing, or medicine. What is one kind of plant that is important to you or the people in your country? Use specific reasons and details to explain your choice.

From the tropic rain forest on the South Sea Islands to the tundra in icy Manchuria, from the redwood trees on the eastern coast to the oasis in the western deserts, China not only boasts vast territory but also features a diversified flora. So many plants settled in China that made this country nature’s largest botany. However, among such dazzling varieties of plants, the humble and obscure common wheat distinguishes itself as the most important plant in China. Several facts made this farm plant stand out from its peers.

Wheat nurtured the Chinese civilization. The moment our ancestors made bon fires by striking the flint, the aroma of cooked wheat permeated the valley of the Yellow River, the Chinese mother Nile. From that moment on, a civilization with the dragon as its totem emerged in the oriental world, a civilization that lasted more than five thousand year without interruption. Archaeologists found in the ruins of Banpo village ample evidence to support the conclusion that the Chinese are the first to cultivate wheat and wheat constituted the staple food of the Banpo people. Unlike maze and potatoes, which are native American food and was introduced into China after the age of geographical discovery, wheat is undisputedly a native Chinese farm plant.

Today wheat is still widely cultivated in northern China and flour extracted from its grains are made into dumplings, noodles, doughnuts and many other kinds of food, all of which are found on a routine Chinese dining table. Compared with rice, wheat does not require large amount of water, which enables it to be planted widely in the arid northern plains, where tillable land abounds; and in contrast to corns and potatoes, the main component of which is starch and fiber, wheat is rich in protein. Its wide geographic distribution and higher nutritional values add to its importance on the Chinese diet.

The utilitarian value of wheat should not divert us from exploring the spiritual and symbolic dimension this plant has. In the works of many modern Chinese poets, the most prominent of them being Haizi, the image of the wheat field is often used as an icon for homeland, symbolizing the poet’s nostalgic sentiment and root seeking instinct. What is more important, the humble plant is an epitome of the Chinese farmers. They toil in the wheat field until death; they earn their food through the sweat on their eyebrows as any man of integrity should; they sacrificed so much to build the foundation stone of the nation’s economic house, but never complained the fact that they get so little in return.

On my desk is a framed picture of me standing in front of a barn against a background of golden wheat field. It serves as a constant reminder of the cultural heritage I inherited, the national identity I cherish and the farmer family from which I come and in which I take pride.

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154 In some countries, people are no longer allowed to smoke in many public places and office buildings. Do you think this is a good rule or a bad rule? Use specific reasons and details to support your position.

Freedom is priceless, yet freedom has its boundary. Anyone has an inherent and inalienable right to do, even if to his own detriment, whatever he deems appropriate. However, when exercising his freedom, no one should be allowed to infringe upon other people’s legitimate right, nor should he be allowed to tread on the public interest. Law exists to fortify individuals’ rights and also to draw a clear-cut boundary to confine them. In the case of public place smoking, the health concerns of non-smokers at stake and the overwhelming public interest involved justify the legal ban on smoking in any public places.

Institutional economists made extensive study in the interdisciplinary subject of law and economics. They came to the conclusion that clearly defined and properly allocated individual rights facilitate free trade and set the necessary platform upon which the market mechanism functions. Otherwise, disputes arise and litigation explosion will frustrate economic development and peaceful life. In the case of smoking, legal interference is absolutely necessary. Without a clear rule, smokers can assert their alleged right that they can take liberty to suck at the filter tip while non-smokers can make a counter-claim that their right to fresh air is legal and equitable. Quarrels would fill restaurants, corporate boardrooms and any other public places.

However, economics couldn’t answer the further question that naturally arises: in what way should law interfere? In what direction should the legal scales tilt? Considerations suffice to tilt the balance in favor of the non-smokers. Compared to the potential health hazards to which non-smokers will be exposed to, the pleasure to smokers is trivial; the hazards can not be avoided or offset by any other way while the pleasure can be obtained by smoking on private occasions or in specially designated smoking areas. Non-smokers are usually the disperse public not in a good position to assert their right in a united voice while smokers are usually a few who persist on smoking. Law should endorse the right of the non-smokers by prohibiting smoking in public places.

At stake are not only the interests of individuals, but also public security. Smoking is a cause of fire which should not be neglected. Some public places are not equipped with fire extinguishers. If fire does break out, the public would easily panic and the ensuing chaos would make rescue and damage control work extremely difficult to execute. Buildings would be reduced to rubbles and money burned to ashes, even if we are lucky enough not to have any casualty.

Tobacco is, after all, a poison and smoking, in the eyes of physicians, a form of chronicle suicide. It’s bad enough that we have citizens ignoring that stern facts and continuing to inhale the poisonous gas. Here, prohibition of public place smoking seems to be one of the few partial remedies available to us.