Question

read the excerpt from \votes for women,\ a speech by mark twain from 1901.
as for this citys government, i dont want to say much, except that it is a shame – a shame; but if i should live twenty-five years longer – and there is no reason why i shouldnt – i think ill see women handle the ballot.
which quotation correctly uses ellipsis to shorten twains words?
as for this citys government, i dont want to say much, except that it is a shame . . . a shame; but if i should live twenty-five years longer – and there is no reason why i shouldnt . . . i think ill see women handle the ballot.
as for this citys government, i dont want to say much, except that it is a shame – a shame; but if i should live twenty-five years longer . . . i shouldnt – i think ill see women handle the ballot.
as for this citys government, i dont want to say much, except that it is a shame – a shame; but if i should live twenty-five years longer – and there is no reason why i shouldnt . . . .
as for this citys government, i dont want to say much, except that it is a shame – a shame; but if i should live twenty-five years longer . . . i think ill see women handle the ballot.

Explanation:

Ellipsis is used to omit non-essential words while preserving the original meaning and grammatical correctness.

1. The first option incorrectly uses ellipsis on a repeated phrase that doesn't need shortening and breaks the flow unnecessarily.
2. The second option omits "– and there is no reason why" but leaves a disjointed "I shouldn’t" that disrupts the sentence's logic.
3. The third option cuts off the sentence mid-thought, leaving it incomplete.
4. The fourth option omits the non-essential clause "– and there is no reason why I shouldn’t" while keeping the core meaning intact and maintaining grammatical sense.

Answer:

D. As for this city's government, I don't want to say much, except that it is a shame – a shame; but if I should live twenty-five years longer . . . I think I'll see women handle the ballot.