Question

read the passage. there are several questions about this passage.
european papermaking came to the american colonies in the late seventeenth
century. although most paper made today is produced from wood pulp, paper in
colonial days was made from cotton and linen fibers.
\t\t\t\t\t\t\tfrom paper
1\tthe history of paper offers insight into why the colonists wanted
independence from britain. a coin, a paper mill, a newspaper—whatever it
was that the colonists wanted, the crown often prohibited it. and then the
british tried to earn revenue by taxing the goods the colonists were forced
to import from england because local production was stifled.
2\tin 1764, the british, looking for revenues in an economic recession that
had hit both england and the colonies, proposed the stamp act. this
required all american colonists to pay a tax on every piece of printed paper,
including shipping documents, legal documents, books, pamphlets,
newspapers, broadsides, and even playing cards. the tax did not cost the
average colonist a great deal, but they objected to the principle of the new
legislation. the stamp act went beyond the normal practice of regulating
commerce: it was a fund - raising measure, and one that was being done
without the consent of local legislatures.
3\tbut for newspaper publishers, the stamp act was a true hardship. it
assessed a halfpenny on each copy of a newspaper printed on what was
termed “half a sheet.” if a newspaper used a larger format, it was assessed
a penny per copy. the act also charged two cents for an advertisement—
and some of these ads only earned three cents—and a halfpenny for each
copy of a pamphlet. an additional tax on publishing in foreign languages
killed a thriving german - language press in pennsylvania. lawyers, whose
documents were also taxed, were harmed by the stamp act as well, and
together, newspaper publishers and lawyers led a successful campaign to
repeal the act. the experience also pushed the newspaper publishers into
this question has two parts. answer part a, and then
answer part b.
part a
which statement best expresses a central idea of the
passage?
○ 1. paper was both expensive and scarce in the
american colonies because the british taxed
it so severely.
○ 2. newspapers in the american colonies were
the main force behind the boycott of
imported british paper.
○ 3. the use of rags to create paper was the
primary cause of the shortage of paper in
the american colonies.
○ 4. the shortage of paper was a serious
problem in the american colonies before
and after the start of the war.
part b
select two excerpts from the passage that best help
develop the correct central idea from part a.
□ 1. “this required all american colonists to pay
a tax on every piece of printed paper.

Explanation:

Part A

• Option 1: The passage states that British taxation (like the Stamp Act) and stifling local production led to paper being expensive and scarce, which aligns with the central idea about colonial paper issues and British policies.
• Option 2: The passage doesn't focus on newspapers being the main force for boycotting British paper; it's more about the Stamp Act and its impact.
• Option 3: The passage says colonial paper was made from cotton/linen fibers, not rags, and the shortage cause was British policies, not rag use.
• Option 4: The passage is about pre - war (Stamp Act era) paper issues due to British actions, not before and after the war start. So Option 1 is correct.

To support the central idea that British taxation made paper expensive/scarce, the excerpt "This required all American colonists to pay a tax on every piece of printed paper" shows the tax on paper. Another relevant excerpt (from the passage) like "The tax did not cost the average colonist a great deal, but they objected to the principle...it was a fund - raising measure, and one that was being done without the consent of local legislatures" or the one about the hardship on newspaper publishers would also support it. Since the first visible option for Part B is "This required all American colonists to pay a tax on every piece of printed paper", we can select it as one, and another relevant one from the passage (e.g., "But for newspaper publishers, the Stamp Act was a true hardship...") as the second.

Answer:

1. Paper was both expensive and scarce in the American colonies because the British taxed it so severely.

Part B

(Note: Since the full options for Part B are not visible, but based on the passage and Part A's central idea, the relevant excerpts would be ones showing British taxation on paper and its impact. For example, the excerpt "In 1764, the British...proposed the Stamp Act. This required all American colonists to pay a tax on every piece of printed paper..." and another showing the impact like "But for newspaper publishers, the Stamp Act was a true hardship..." would be relevant. Assuming the first visible option for Part B is "This required all American colonists to pay a tax on every piece of printed paper." and another relevant one (if visible) like the one about the Stamp Act's impact on newspaper publishers or lawyers, we can select those. But with the given partial view, we'll work with the visible option and the context.)