Vocabulary

Complete the sentences. Circle the letter of the correct answer.

1. A person who sells medicines is a ________.

1. druggist

2. millionaire

3. business­man

2. ________ is a sweet, heavy liquid that tastes good.

1. Syrup

2. Cola

3. Soda

3. Pemberton sold Coca-Cola to make people well and ________ their problems.

1. keep

2. cure

3. mix

4. A medicine that cures many things is ________.

1. popular

2. all-purpose

3. free

5. The different things that are mixed together to make Coca-Cola are its ________.

1. ingredients

2. ideas

3. sodas

6. ________ of ingredients is the amount you put in.

1. The factory

2. The quantity

3. The permission

7. Not many people knew about Pemberton's syrup. _________ bought it.

1. A lot

2. Few

3. All

8. The way Coca-Cola's ingredients are put together is its ________.

1. ingredients

2. soda fountain

3. recipe

Comprehension

A. Looking for Main Ideas

Write complete answers to these questions.

1. How was Coca-Cola first used?

2. What did Asa Candler sell Coca-Cola as?

3. When did Coca-Cola begin to be­come popular around the world?

B. Looking for Details

Number the sentences 1 through 8 to show the correct order.

___ Today, there are Coca-Cola fac­tories around the world.

___ Few people bought John Pemberton's syrup.

___ Asa Candler made Coca-Cola into a soda.

___ That was how Coca-Cola became so popular in the United States.

___ John Pemberton sold Coca-Cola to Asa Candler.

___ During World War I, the Coca-Cola Company sent Coca-Cola to U.S. soldiers in Europe.

___ But two other businessmen put Coca-Cola into bottles.

___ A druggist, John Pemberton, in­vented Coca-Cola in 1886.

Chewing gum

We think of chewing gum as a modern American invention. But this is only partly true. For thousands of years people have chewed gum resin, a juice collected from trees. In Mexico, for example, Indians have long chewed chicle, the gum resin from the sapodilla tree.

In 1850 Mexico and the United States fought a war over Texas. General Antonio Lopez de Santa Ana led the Mexican soldiers. When Mexico lost the war, Santa Ana had to leave his country. He went to live in New York and he took with him a large amount of chicle.

An American inventor, Thomas Adams, bought some chicle from Santa Ana. He wanted to make the chicle into rubber but his plan failed. Adams then decided that chicle was better as something to chew. In 1871 he made and sold the first gum balls. These gum balls were a great success.

Then, in the 1890s, a man named William Wrigley first made chewing gum as we know it today. William Wrigley had little education or money, but he had an idea. He made gum into flat sticks and added special flavors. Today, Wrigley's Spearmint gum and Juicy Fruit gum are among the most popular chewing gums in America.

How did modern chewing gum spread from the United States to other countries?

During World War I and World War II, the U.S. Army found that chewing gum kept soldiers from getting thirsty. So American soldiers were given chewing gum each day. The soldiers who fought in Europe often gave gum to the people they met. Gum became as popular as it was in the United States. Today, of course, chewing gum can be found around the world.