Read this excerpt from Margaret Frink's Journal of the Adventures of a Party of California Gold-seekers:


"Here we again heard alarming and discouraging accounts of deeds of violence and bloodshed that had recently been committed on the plains, along the route that we were very soon to travel over."


Which statement best describes the effect of word choice on the tone of the excerpt?


A. Phrases like "we again heard" give the excerpt a questioning tone.

B. Phrases like "alarming and discouraging" give the excerpt a defeated tone.

C. Phrases like "recently been committed" give the excerpt a menacing tone.

D. Phrases like "deeds of violence" give the excerpt a foreboding tone.