Диалоги на английском языке с переводом (уровень Intermediate). № 58. Тема: Отсрочка от экзаменов.

THIRD TIME UNLUCKY

'This is the third time we've tried to visit the Statue of Liberty,' complained Frances Scott of Leicester. 'Five years ago, my husband fell ill. Two years ago the subway wasn't working.' Yesterday it was a French stuntman in an orange-red parachute. His attempt to land on the statue's torch was unsuccessful for him and a disappointment for Mrs Scott and many others.

The man, who was identified by the police as Thierry Devaux, was rescued and immediately arrested by the police. His actions obliged the authorities to evacuate hundreds of tourists from inside the statue.

Mr Devaux jumped from a plane over New York Harbour at 9:30 am Using a parachute above his head, he tried but failed to land on the platform at the bottom of the torch. He circled around again, only to crash into the top of the flame.

There he remained, unable to free himself for a half-hour. 'People were waving up at him,' said Mr Delaney of Houston, Texas, 'but he wasn't waving back.' It took four police officers to rescue Mr Devaux, who remained strangely silent. 'He didn't seem to know what was going on,' said Sergeant Janelle about Mr Devaux, who hit his head during the rescue.

Mr Devaux, a 41-year-old Frenchman, has a habit of getting into trouble in high places. His resume includes bungee jumps from the Eiffel Tower and the Golden Gate Bridge. But he is obviously fascinated most by the Statue of Liberty. In 1994, he was arrested after spending the night hidden inside the statue. Last year, the police said, he tried to land on the torch but missed and had to make an emergency landing in a nearby golf course in Bayonne, NJ.

Mr Devaux had come well prepared. 'He had a bungee cord and some climbing equipment. He was wearing a T-shirt with the statue on it, and he had a business card on him that showed him flying around the statue,' said Cynthia Garrett, the acting superintendent of the Statue of Liberty National Monument. The authorities believe there was a camera crew in the plane recording the jump.

Jeremy Orden, Mr Devaux's lawyer, described his client as a performer whose chosen medium was the bungee cord. 'He does this because he must do this to express himself,' Mr Orden said.

On the ground, Mr Devaux's disaster caused confusion and disappointment. After being locked out of the statue, visitors like Mrs Scott were unable to leave Liberty Island for up to three hours before the ferryboat service resumed. Boatloads of tourists who had planned entire trips around a visit to the statue were told that it was being repaired and had to be content with a visit to Ellis Island next door. As they waited, Mrs Scott tried to comfort her angry six-year-old granddaughter, Kylie.

'Never mind, dear,' she said, 'we'll try again in a few years.'

(1) Mrs Scott felt particularly angry because…
a) her husband couldn't be with her. /
b) she thought Mr Devaux's actions were dangerous. /
c) she had felt this disappointment before. /

(2) When he was rescued, the stuntman…
a) thanked the police. /
b) did not say anything. /
c) almost fell off. /

(3) The main purpose of the jump was…
a) to make a film about Mr Devaux. /
b) to show how security should be improved. /
c) to test new equipment. /

(4) Mr Orden believes his client should be…
a) seen as an artist. /
b) ignored by the media. /
c) compared to an ordinary businessman. /

(5) People who could not visit the Statue of Liberty were…
a) unable to do anything else. /
b) not told the truth. /
c) invited to come back another day. /