Given below are six sentences taken from a paragraph. The first and the last sentences are numbered S1 and S2 and are placed in the first and last positions respectively and are fixed in their positions. The other four sentences between the first and last sentences are jumbled up and are numbered A, B, C, and D. Rearrange the jumbled sentences in a logical sequence keeping the unity and coherence of the paragraph intact. Choose the correct alternative that best describes the sequence.
$1. There was plenty of fish in the creek, fresh-water bream, cod, cat-fish, and tailers.
A. Andy would fish for three hours at a stretch if encouraged by a 'nibble' or a 'bite' now and then say once in twenty minutes.
B. The party were fond of fish, and Andy and Dave of fishing.
C. However, the creek was low, just a chain of muddy water-holes, from the hole with a few bucketfuls in it to the sizable pool with an average depth of six or seven feet, and they could get fish by baling out the smaller holes or muddying up the water in the larger ones until the fish rose to the surface.
D. The butcher was always willing to give meat in exchange for fish when they caught more than they could eat; but now it was winter, and these fish wouldn't bite.
S2. There was the cat-fish, with spikes growing out of the sides of its head, and if you got pricked you'd know it, as Dave said.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: C
Explanation
Logical Explanation:
S1 (Fixed Starting Point): "There was plenty of fish in the creek, fresh-water bream, cod, cat-fish, and tailers."
This introduces the topic: fish in the creek.
Sentence B: "The party were fond of fish, and Andy and Dave of fishing."
This naturally follows S1 by introducing the characters (Andy and Dave) and their interest in the fish mentioned.
Sentence A: "Andy would fish for three hours at a stretch if encouraged by a 'nibble' or a 'bite' now and then – say once in twenty minutes."
This provides specific detail about Andy’s fishing habits, expanding on his interest mentioned in B.
Sentence D: "The butcher was always willing to give meat in exchange for fish when they caught more than they could eat; but now it was winter, and these fish wouldn’t bite."
This introduces a problem: despite Andy's patience (A), the fish aren't biting because it is winter.
Sentence C: "However, the creek was low... and they could get fish by baling out the smaller holes..."
The "However" acts as a transition to a solution for the problem in D. Since the fish won't bite (D), they find an alternative way to catch them by baling out water.
S2 (Fixed Ending Point): "There was the cat-fish, with spikes growing out of the sides of its head, and if you got pricked you’d know it, as Dave said."
This concludes the passage with a specific anecdote about one of the types of fish caught/seen.
The correct sequence is ‘BADC’.