PrepTest 101, Section 4, Question 12
Many Native Americans view the archaeological excavation and(446 more words not shown)
The passage suggests that in(24 more words not shown)
- AAre the descendants(5 more words not shown)
- BWhat was the(7 more words not shown)
- CHow long after(9 more words not shown)
- DDid the descendants(10 more words not shown)
- ECould the property(13 more words not shown)
Reading the passage
Why bury the objects? If a family buries jewelry with a relative, are they throwing it away for a stranger to take, or intending it to stay with the deceased? The ruling turns on that distinction. We're looking for the question about intent that would let the court decide whether burial amounts to abandonment.
Working the answers
- A
Whether descendants are still alive doesn't tell us why the items were buried. The stated reasoning turns on the purpose of burial, not the survival of particular descendants.
- BCorrect
The court says burial does not signal an intention to give up ownership to outsiders (paragraph 2). Asking the reason for burying the objects gets directly at that intent. Leaving jewelry with the deceased is different from discarding it, even though someone could later find it.
- C
This asks how much time passed, not whether burial was intended to surrender ownership. The court rejects an interpretation that would allow despoliation even “immediately after interment.”
- D
The family's departure is mentioned, but as another situation in which the rejected interpretation would expose the grave to despoliation. The court isn't making its ruling depend on whether descendants stayed nearby.
- E
This concerns whether the land was abandoned. The ruling concerns whether the buried objects were abandoned. Repeating the word doesn't make those the same issue; we need the reason for placing the objects in the grave.
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