~MACMILLAN

b RIGINA L$ '
 MACMILLAN GUIDED READERS· ORIGINALS 1
BEGINNER LEVEL
Founding Editor: John Milne
Holiday Plans
Macmillan Guided Read ers provide a choice of enj oyable reading
mat erial for all learners of English . The series comprises three At universities in England, May is the month of
ca tegor ies: MODERNS, CLASSICS and O RIGINALS. Macm illan Originals
are spec ially written sto ries, publi shed at five levels of grading -
examinations.
Starter, Beginner, Elementary, Intermediate and Upper. At Beginner Paul was lying on the grass in front of the
Level, th e contro l of content and lan guage has the following main examination hall. His friends, Sheila and Charles, were
features:
sitting near him:
Information Control The three of them were first year students at
The sto ries are written in a fluent and pleasing sty le with
straightforward plots an d a restri ct ed number of main cha rac te rs. university. They were sitting their first year exams. Paul
Cultural background is made ex plicit th rou gh both word s an d and Charles were nineteen and Sheila was a year
illustr ations . Information which is vital to the sto ry is clearly
presented and repeated where ne cessary. younger.
The next exam began in half an hour's time. But the
Structure Control
three students were not talking about the next
Special care is taken with sen tence length. Most senten ces contain
on ly one clause, though compo und sentences are used occas iona lly examination. They were talking about their holidays. '
I
with th e clauses joined by th e conjunc t ions 'and', 'but' and 'or'. The
use of these.com pound sen te nces gives th e text balance and rh ythm .
The use of Past Simple and Past Co ntin uous Tenses is permitted as
these are th e basic ten ses used in narrati on and studen ts must
become famili ar with th ese as th ey con t inue to ext end an d develop
th eir reading ability.

Vocabulary C ontrol
A t Beginner Level th ere is a controlled voca bulary of approximate ly
600 basic words, so th at students with a basic kno wledge of English ..
~ .

will be able to read with und erstanding and enj oyment. Help is given
in th e form of vivid illustrations which are closely related to the te xt .

For furth er information on the full select ion of titl es in all of the
cat egories at every level of th e series, please refer to the Readers
cat alogue.

3
 'Where are you going this summer?' Sheila asked
Paul.
'To Wales,' Paul replied. 'I'm going to stay in a
cottage in the country. '
'You have a cottage in Wales?' asked Charles.
'It's not my cottage,' replied Paul. 'It belongs to my
uncle . He usually goes there for his holidays every
summer. But this year he's going to Greece . And I'm
going to stay in his cottage for two months I- July and
t August.' ;,,-1

'Where are you going for your holida ys?' Paul asked.
'We don't know, ' replied Sheila. 'We haven't
decided yet.'
'Why don't you both come to Wales?' said Paul. 'You
can stay with me for a week or two.'
'What do you think, Charles?' asked Sheila.
The college bell rang loudly. It was time for the next
examination .
'We'll talk about it after this exam,' Charles replied.
'Let' s go now.'
The students got up from the grass. They picked up
their notebooks and hurried towards the examination
hall.

4 5
 Three hours later, the examination was over. Paul,
Sheila and Charles were sitting in a cafe.
'What's your uncle's cottage like?' Sheila asked Paul.
Paul took a photograph out of his wallet.
'How do we get from the station to the cottage?'
asked Charles.
'Look, I'll draw a map,' said Paul. 'The railway line
g~s through a long tunnel before Llanvoy Station. The
cottage is on the hill above this tunnel.'
Charles gave Paul his diary. Paul drew a map and
wrote down the name and address of the cottage.
'There you are,' said Paul. 'But don't worry. I'll meet
you at Llanvoy Station. I'll see you there on Monday the
fifth of August at half past one.'

Monday

'It looks lovely,' said Sheila.

'It is lovely,' agreed Paul. 'But it's very lonely. There
are no houses near the cottage. And-there' s no electricity
and »>no telephone.'
. ~. 'Let's go and stay with Paul,' Sheila said to Charles.
'OK,' agreed Charles. 'We can stay there for a week.'
The three students made arrangements for their
holiday in Wales. i
'Come on the fifth of August,' said Paul. 'That's a 'I
Monday. The train from London arrives at Llanvoy '1

Station at half past one.'

'Where's Llanvoy?' asked Sheila.
'It's a small railway station near the cottage,'
answered Paul. 'Fast trains from London stop there.'

6 7
 It is the fifth of August. Sheila and Charles arrive at
Llanvoy station in Wales.

8 9
 2 They sat at the table and looked out of the window.
A Stranger at the Door
Sheila and Charles went into the small cafe. There was a
young girl behind the counter. Sheila went up to her.
'Has a young man been in here this morning?' asked
Sheila. .
'A soldier?' asked the young girl.
'No, not a soldier - a student,' replied Sheila .
'We see a lot of soldiers here,' said the girl. 'But no
students.'
Charles asked for two coffees. He sat down with
Sheila at a table near the window.
'Paul's forgotten about our visit,' he said. 'We'll have
a coffee. Then we'll walk to Hilltop Cottage.'
10
Some soldiers were loading bags into the lorry. Other
soldiers were standing on guard .
The girl brought the coffees.
'What's in those bags?' Charles asked her.
'Banknores,' replied the girl. 'The money comes from
London by train. Then the soldiers take it to a large army
camp near here.'
'What do they do with the money?' Sheila asked.
'I don't know,' said the girl. And she walked away.
'They are probably old banknotes, , said Charles.
'After some years, the government destroys old
banknotes and new money is printed. The money in
those bags will not be used any more.'
11
 Charles and Sheila waited in the cafe. Paul did not
come. It was now after two o'clock.
They left the cafe and walked to a crossroads. Charles
looked at Paul's map. Sheila pointed to a signpost.
'That's the road to Barconney,' she said.
They pulled their rucksacks onto their shoulders and
walked along the road. It was a very hot day. The sun was
shining brightly and they walked slowly.
After an hour , they came to a telephone box. On the
left, there was a narrow lane into the woods.
'The telephone box is on Paul's map, ' said Charles.
'This is the way to the cottage.'
12
They walked up the narrow lane. Tall trees grew on
each side'. The branches were thick with leaves.
'It's dark in here,' said Charles. 'There's no sun.'
'It's nice and cool after the hot road,' replied Sheila .
'Anyway, Paul's cottage is higher up. It'll be brighter up
there.'
They walked farther up the steep, dark lane.
'I don't like this place.' said Charles. 'It's too dark.
What a place for a holiday.'
'Oh, come on,' said Sheila.
13
 Sheila and Charles arrived at the cottage. There were
high trees all round it.
'There's something wrong,' said Charles. 'Look at
the curtains. They are all closed. There's no one here.'
'Don't be silly,' said Sheila.
She went up to the cottage and knocked loudly on
the door. They waited for some time.
Sheila pushed at the cottage door. It did not open. It
was locked.
'Paul?' shouted Charles. 'Paul? Are you there?'
There was no reply.
Sheila knocked again on the door. They stood and
listened.
'There's someone inside,' said Sheila. 'I heard a
noise. Listen!'
They both stood in silence. Someone unlocked the
door.
'It's Paul,' said Charles. 'Why is he taking so long?'
The door slowly opened. A tall man with a beard
stood in the doorway. He was about forty years old.
Sheila and Charles did not know him. He was a stranger.
'Who are you?' asked the stranger. 'What do you
want?'

14 15
 3 Sheila turned away from the door. She saw a piece of
paper under a bush. She stopped and quickly picked up
Paul is Here the paper.
, 'We've made a mistake,' said Charles. 'Paul isn't
Sheila looked up at the tall man. here. We've come to the wrong cottage. Let's go back to
'Is Paul in?' she asked. the road.'
'Paul?' said the stranger. 'There's no one here with They walked back down the lane. After a few
that name. You've made a mistake.' minutes, Sheila stopped. The cottage was now behind
The stranger slowly closed the door. the trees. Sheila opened the piece of paper and looked at
'But this cottage belongs to Paul's uncle,' said Sheila. it in .surprise.
'We saw it in a photograph.' 'We haven't made a mistake,' she said to Charles.
'It was another cottage in your photograph,' said the 'Look at this!'
man. 'It wasn't this one. This cottage is mine. I live here.' Charles took the paper and looked at it. 'It's an
The man was becoming angry. examination paper,' he said. 'It's our exam paper. We sat
'You've made a mistake,' he shouted. 'I don't like this exam in May.'
visitors here. Go away.'
The door closed with a loud bang.

16 17
 18 19

I '

4 'What's happening?' Charles asked Sheila. 'Bill's put
What's Happening?
Sheila and Charles waited in the old building. Slowly it
became clark. They walked quietly. 1lack to .tQ.~ cQ.t~age
and hid behind a .bush. A 'lorre was parked near the
cottage door.
They waited quietly in the darkness. Suddenly a man
hurried up the lane. He knocked at a wmdow of the
cottage. The door opened quickly.
'Everything is OK, Frank,' said the man outside. 'Bill
has telephoned from London. He's put sleeping pills in
the guard's coffee.'
'Good,' said Frank. 'We can start now. Get the bags
out of the lorry and into the cottage.'
20
\.
sleeping pills in the guard's coffee - what does that
mean? And what's in those bags?'
'I don't know,' said Sheila. 'Listen - they're talking
. ,
agam.
'What about that young man?' one of the men asked
Frank.
'W e'll leave him in the upstairs bedroom,' Frank
replied. 'He's 'tied up tightly. He'll be found tomorrow.
By then, we'll_be far from here.'
'Paul's in the cottage,' Sheila whispered to Charles.
'An dh' .
e s a pnsoner. ,
Four men carried all the bags into the cottage. They
closed the door behind them and locked it.
21
 'Paul's in one of the upstairs bedrooms,' said Sheila.
'We must help him.'
'How are you going to get into the cottage?' asked
Charles. 'They've locked the.door.'
Tll climb up onto the top of the porch,' said Sheila.
'Then I'll get in through a window.'
Sheila and Charles waited for half an hour. Then
they walked up quietly to the front door. There were no
lights in the cottage.
'Help me up, Charles,' said Sheila.
22
Sheila stood on top of the porch. She reached up and
pulled at the window. It opened slowly and made a loud
noise. Sheila waited for ' a few moments. Nothing
happened.
She opened the window wide. The curtains inside
were closed. She opened them carefully and climbed into
the bedroom.
In the dark room, Paul was lying on a bed. He was
tied up j ighrly and there was a gag_over his mouth.
Sheila quickly took off the gag.
'Sh!' she said. 'Don't make a noise. There are some
men downstairs.'
-'It's all right,' said Paul. 'They won't hear us. They're
not in the cottage. They're out at the back. ]
23
 Sheila slowly untied the ropes round Paul.
'What's happening?' she asked him. 'Who are those
men? What are they doing?'
'They're going to rob a train tonight.'
'Rob a train?' asked Sheila in surprise.
'They've found an old shaft behind the cottage,' said
Paul. 'The shaft goes down into the railway tunnel.
They're going to change the-signal in the tunnel. The
signal light will be red and the train will stop.'
'Now I understand,' said Sheila. 'Someone has put
sleeping pills in the guard's coffee."
'That's part of their plan,' said Paul. 'The train will
stop in the tunnel and the guard will be asleep. The men
will steal the bags of money from the train and escape up 'But these men have taken bags into the cottage,'
'the shaft.' said Sheila. 'What are they for?'
'The bags are full of paper,' said Paul. 'They looklike
the bags of money. The .soldiers won't find the paper
until tomorrow morning. Then these men will be far
away from here.'
'We can run down to the telephone box,' said Sheila.
'We can telephone the police from there.'
'There isrr't enough 'time,' said Paul. 'We have to
stop these men. We can put heavy stones over the shaft.
Then the men can't get out.'
'And Charles can run down and telephone the
police;' said Sheila.
Now all the knots were untied and Paul was tree.
They climbed out of the window. Charles was waiting for
them in the darkness.

24 25
 5 'What about the money in the guard's van'?, the mate
asked the driver.
The Robbery 'Don't worry,' replied the driver. 'Pete's a good
guard.'
The train from London was in the long tunnel. The driver watched the signal. It was red. The train
'The signal is red,' said the driver to his mate. 'That's waited in the long tunnel.
unusual.' Frank and his men were in the tunnel. They were
The train slowed down. It stopped on a long bend in waiting at the bottom of the shaft. The train slowed down
the tunnel. and stopped. The guard 's van was in front of them.
The driver's mate looked back. The end of the train Frank quickly climbed up. He opened the lock on the
was out of sight. door of the guard's van . He looked inside.

26 27
 'It's all right,' he said to the others. 'The guard has
drunk the coffee. He's sleeping.'
Frank threw down the bags of money.
'Throw up the bags of paper,' he told his men. 'And
move quickly. We haven't much time.'
A few minutes later, Frank and his men were at the
bottom of the shaft. They were carrying the bags of
money.
'Get up to the cottage,' Frank said. 'I'll follow you in
a moment.'
The signal changed from red to green. The train
moved towards Llanvoy Station.
'Good,' thought Frank. 'The plan has worked.'
28
At the top of the shaft, Sheila and Paul were working
fast in the darkness. There was a heavy iron cover at the
entrance to the shaft. They pulled the cover over the
entrance and put some heavy stones on top of it.
The first of Frank's men reached the top of the shaft.
His head hit the iron cover. He reached up with one
hand and pushed. The cover did not move.
'There's something wrong,' he shouted. 'I can't get
out.'
Below him in the shaft, the other men waited. They
were trapped.
29
 6 'Thanks to you, we've got the men and the money,'
The End
The police moved quickly. A police car came to the
telephone box. Charles jumped in and they drove fast
towards the cottage.
The police arrested two men at the top of the shaft.
An hour later, Sheila, Paul and Charles were in the
police station at Barconney.
said the police sergeant . 'We arrested the other two men
at Llanvoy Station.'
'But there were five men,' said Paul. 'Have you
arrested the leader? He's called Frank.'
Sheila, Charles and Paul spent the night in the home
of the police sergeant. The next morning the sergeant left
early.
'I must go to the police station,' he told them. 'I'll
phone you later in the morning.'
At breakfast, Sheila turned on the radio.
'Here is a police message. The police are looking for
Frank Steel ... aged forty ... this man was last seen on
the railway line to Llanvoy Station in the early hours of
this morning. He is a dangerous . .. '
Sheila turned off the radio.
'It's a strange beginnning to a holiday,' she said.
Later, the phone rang. Paul answered it. It was the
sergeant.
'Good news,' said the sergeant. 'A police car has
picked up Frank Steel.'
Paul put down the phone.
'The police have arrested Frank Steel,' he said to the
other two.
'That's great,' said Sheila. 'Now we can go back to
the cottage and begin our holiday.'
31