From The Middle of Things

Which excerpt best contributes to the somber tone of the passage?
• A. behind him, far down the long, wide terrace
•B. so old that the brick had grown black with age and smoke
• C. an old-fashioned affair, fixed against the wall, halfway down
D. the doors of the yards at the rear of the big houses on either side

B. so old that the brick had grown black with age and smoke