Question

read the excerpt from \tools of the spymaster.\

general clinton, concerned about what general howe was planning and doing, made use of a mask to write a secret message in a letter to general burgoyne.

before writing the letter, clinton had placed an hourglass-shaped mask on a piece of paper and then had formed the secret message within that shape.

the unmasked letter had enough false information in it to fool any american who happened to see it. but when burgoyne viewed the letter with the mask, he read clintons view of the real situation: howe has made a bad move; i dont have enough men to do anything about it.

which statement best expresses the central idea of the excerpt?

generals were able to send secret messages to each other using a mask.
general howe failed to help the other generals defeat the americans.
the british were better at using codes than the americans.
false information in a letter could cause problems for the americans.

Explanation:

Analyze the text details

The excerpt describes how General Clinton used a physical "mask" (a cutout template) to write and read a hidden message within a letter sent to General Burgoyne. The text explains the process of placing the hourglass-shaped mask on paper to write the secret message, and how the recipient used the same mask to reveal the true message.

Evaluate the options against the text

• Option 1: "Generals were able to send secret messages to each other using a mask." This directly summarizes the main point of the entire passage, which details the mechanism and successful execution of sending a secret message via a mask.
• Option 2: "General Howe failed to help..." This is a specific detail mentioned within the secret message itself, not the central idea of the entire excerpt.
• Option 3: "The British were better at using codes..." The text does not compare the coding abilities of the British and the Americans.
• Option 4: "False information in a letter could cause problems..." While the letter contained false information to fool Americans, the excerpt focuses on how the mask allowed the generals to communicate secretly, rather than the consequences of false information on the Americans.

Determine the central idea

The central idea is the primary focus of the passage. The passage explains the tool (the mask) and how it enabled the generals to send and read secret messages. Thus, the first option is the best fit.

Answer:

• (A) Generals were able to send secret messages to each other using a mask. (Correct answer)
• (B) General Howe failed to help the other generals defeat the Americans.
• (C) The British were better at using codes than the Americans.
• (D) False information in a letter could cause problems for the Americans.