by Vincent O'Sullivan
Mrs. Wilton passed through a little alley leading from one of the gates which are around Regent's Park, and came out on the wide and quiet street. She walked along slowly, peering anxiously from side to side so as not to overlook the number. She pulled her furs closer around her; after her years in India this London damp seemed very harsh. Still, it was not a fog today, and a dense haze, gray and tinged ruddy, lay between the houses, sometimes blowing with a little wet kiss against the face. Mrs. Wilton's hair and eyelashes and her furs were powdered with tiny drops. But there was nothing in the weather to blur the sight; she could see the faces of people some distance off and read the signs on the shops.
Before the door of a dealer in antiques and second-hand furniture she paused and looked through the shabby uncleaned window at a heap of things, many of them of great value, and read the Polish name fastened on the pane in white letters.
"Yes; this is the place."
She opened the door, which met her entrance with an ill-tempered jangle and from somewhere in the black depths of the shop the dealer came forward. He had a clammy white face, with a scanty black beard, and wore a skull cap and spectacles. Mrs. Wilton spoke to him in a low voice.
The dealer said Yes, she is here, madam. Whether she will see you or not, I do not know.
Mrs. Wilton followed him to the back of the shop, where there was a winding staircase. She knocked over a few things in her passage and stooped to pick them up, but the dealer kept muttering, "It does not matter—surely it does not matter."
He lit a candle and said You must go up these stairs. When you come to a door, open it and go straight in.
He stood at the foot of the stairs holding the light high above his head as she ascended.
6
Read the sentences from the passage.
The dealer said Yes, she is here, madam. Whether she will see you or not, I do not know
What is the correct way to punctuate these sentences?
A.
The dealer said "Yes, she is here, madam. Whether she will see you or not, I do not know.
B.
The dealer said, "Yes, she is here, madam. Whether she will see you or not, I do not know."
C.
The dealer said "Yes, she is here, madam." Whether she will see you or not, I do not know.
D.
The dealer said, Yes, she is here, madam. "Whether she will see you or not, I do not know."
1 answer
The correct way to punctuate the sentences is:
B. The dealer said, "Yes, she is here, madam. Whether she will see you or not, I do not know."
This option correctly uses quotation marks to indicate the spoken words and includes a comma before the opening quotation. It also correctly places the period inside the closing quotation marks.
