In the United States, the first day-nursery was opened in 1854.@Nurseries were established

in various areas during the (1)_____ half of the 19th century; most of them were (2)_____ Both in Europe and in the U. S., the day-nursery (3)_____ received great (4)_____ during the First World War, when (5)_____ of manpower caused the industrial employment (6)_____ numbers of women. In some European countries nurseries were established (7)_____ in munitions (军火)plants, under direct government (8)_____ Although the number of nurseries in the U. S. also rose (9)_____, this rise was accomplished without government aid of any kind. During the years following the First World War, (10)_____, Federal, State, and local governments gradually began to exercise a measure of control over the day-nurseries, chiefly by (11)_____ them and by inspecting and regulating the conditions within the nurseries.

The (12)_____ of the Second World War was quickly followed by an increase in the number of day-nurseries in almost all countries, as women were again called upon to replace men in the factories. On this (13)_____ the U.S. government immediately came to the support of the nursery school, (14)_____ $6,000,000 in July, 1942, for a nursery school program for the children of working mothers. Many States and local communities (15)_____ this Federal aid. By the end of the war, in August, 1945, more than 100,000 children were being cared for in day-care centers receiving Federal (16)_____. Soon afterward, the Federal government (17)_____ cut down its (18)_____ for this purpose and later (19)_____ them, causing a sharp drop in the number of nursery schools in operation. However, the (20)_____ that most employed mothers would leave their jobs at the end of the war was only partly fulfilled.

A．latter

B．late

C．other

D．first