The most attractive /also called suricate/ is perhaps /of the mongooses/ the meerkat

Which inference can a reader make based on the information in the excerpt?

Read the following excerpt from life on the mississippi by mark twain. no girl could withstand his charms. he "cut out" every boy in the village. when his boat blew up at last, it diffused a tranquil contentment among us such as we had not known for months. but when he came home the next week, alive, renowned, and appeared in church all battered up and bandaged, a shining hero, stared at and wondered over by everybody, it seemed to us that the partiality of providence for an undeserving reptile had reached a point where it was open to criticism. how does twain's use of understatement serve his purpose? be sure to use specific details from the text to support your answer.

Constructing an argument: in modern american society, the legalization of marijuana continues to be controversial and hotly debated. some people find it contradictory that certain "drugs"—such as tobacco and alcohol—are legalized even though they pose proven health risks, while marijuana, which has many medicinal applications, continues to be illegal by the federal government. what reasons do you think the federal government gives for outlawing marijuana, and do the reasons support the conclusion?