35 points
high scalers
bureau of reclamation (excerpt)

millions of years of weather[ing] [had] eroded the canyon walls [where the hoover dam was to be built]. water [had] frozen in cracks and crevices, splitting the rock. before construction could begin on the dam, this loose rock had to be removed. special men were required for the job, men called "high-scalers."

their job was to climb down the canyon walls on ropes. here they worked with jackhammers and dynamite to strip away the loose rock. the men who chose to do this work came from many backgrounds. some were former sailors, some circus acrobats, some were american indians. all of them were agile men, unafraid to swing out over empty space on slender ropes.

it was hard and dangerous work, perhaps the most physically demanding work on the entire project. laden with tools and water bags, the men would descend the canyon walls. jackhammer drills were lowered to them, and powder holes were drilled into the rock. the jackhammers weighed 44 [pounds] and had to be maneuvered into position by hand. once the holes had been drilled into the rock, they were loaded with dynamite. after the shot, broken rocks sometimes had to be levered free using crowbars.

moving about on the cliffs was difficult and dangerous. live air hoses, electrical lines, bundles of drill steel festooned the cliffs. the scalers had to carefully pick their way through the resulting maze. the danger from falling rocks and dropped tools was extreme.
which sentence best summarizes the passage?
a.
high scalers moved down the canyon walls carrying loads of tools and a water bag. then, they manually maneuvered the jackhammer drills that were lowered to them to drill rocks and then loaded the drilled holes with dynamite to blast the rocks.
b.
high scalers were a group of former sailors, circus acrobats, and american indians whose job was to climb down the canyon walls on ropes to strip away loose rock.
c.
the high scalers' task of clearing loose rock from the cliffs was difficult and dangerous because they had to move among live air hoses, electrical lines, and bundles of drill steel and risk injury from falling rocks and dropped tools.
d.
the high scalers were strong, agile workmen who moved on the equipment-strewn cliffs on ropes, using heavy jackhammer drills, dynamite, and crowbars to remove loose rock from the canyon walls, risking their lives to do so.