37. In the last sentence of the first paragraph, what does the boldfaced word “deleterious” most
likely mean?
(A) Calming.
(B) Deliberate.
(C) Beneficial.
(D) Harmful.
Wherever people live together in communities, disputes are bound to arise. Among animals,
conflicts result in victory for the stronger or quicker. But human beings believe that in an argument
the one who is right should win. Sometimes an argument can be settled quickly. But sometimes the
problem is more complicated and can be settled only in a court.
A court is a forum, or meeting place, established by the government for the just and peaceful
settlement of disputes and the enforcement of laws. Courts and methods of carrying out justice have
changed as society has changed. Over the centuries the changes have been enormous.
Europeans in the Middle Ages often settled the disputes in ways that seem extremely crude
and unfair to us today. One method was called trial by ordeal. There were four forms of
ordeal—“cold water,” “hot water,” “hot iron,” and the “morsel.” In the cold water ordeal, the
accused person was tied and lowered into water. If he sank, he was declared innocent. If he floated,
he was considered guilty and was punished. In ordeal by hot water, the accused plunged his hand
into boiling water and pulled out a stone. If his hand showed no injury after three days, he was
considered innocent. In the hot iron ordeal, the accused had to carry a red-hot iron bar nine feet. As
in the boiling water ordeal, his hands were inspected three days later to determine guilt. The morsel
ordeal, although not so painful, was as hard to pass as the other three. The accused had to swallow a
big piece of food without choking on it.