CBSE Class 10 English A Question of Trust Assignment Set 02

Short Answer Type Questions
 

Question. “Society must be protected from men like you.” Do you find this statement ironic ?
Answer: The lady in the red dress was very shrewd and cunning. She talked about protecting the society from the criminals like Horace when in fact, the lady was the greater culprit. She had come into that house with the same intention as Horace, but had somehow made Horace the culprit when she was the one who had actually stolen the jewels from the house.

Question. What do you think is the meaning of the phrase ‘honour among thieves’ ?
Answer: The phrase ‘honour among thieves’ means that amongst the thieves there ought to be mutual trust, and that thieves do not compromise the theft or activities of other thieves. They are supposed to be honest among fellow criminals and thus, honour each other’s feeling of trust.

Question. Which of the two thieves lacked honour ?
Answer: It is the young, clever lady who lacked honour as she had breached the mutual trust among thieves. Posing as the lady of the house, she had taken away the jewels for which Horace was arrested and punished.
A small dog was lying in the kitchen. It stirred, made a noise, and moved its tail in a friendly way.

Question. What is the name of the dog and where is the kitchen located ?
Answer: The name of the dog is Sherry. The kitchen was located in a house at Shotover Grange.

Question. What tact did Horace apply here ?
Answer: Horace was very tactful. He had a simple way to keep the dogs quiet. All he had to do was to call them by their right names and show them love.

Question. Where was the safe in the house at Shotover Grange ? What was there inside it ? What did Horace expect to get if he sold them one by one ? What did he intend to buy ?
Answer: The safe in the house at Shotover Grange was in the drawing room, behind a rather poor painting. The safe had a burglar alarm that was poorly built and there were about fifteen thousand pounds’ worth of jewels in it.
Horace expected to get at least five thousand, if he sold those jewels one by one. After getting the money, he wanted to buy three very interesting, rare and expensive books that were coming up for sale in the autumn.

Question. How did Horace open the door ?
Answer: Horace knew where the key to the house was kept as he had seen the housekeeper hang the key to the kitchen door on a hook outside. So, he put on a pair of gloves, took the key, and opened the door. He had worn the gloves because he was always careful not to leave any fingerprints in the houses he robbed.

Question. What did Horace Danby wonder about for a moment? What did he think and decide ?
Answer: On seeing the poor painting in the drawing room, behind which the safe was, Horace Danby wondered for a moment whether he should collect pictures instead of books. But they took up too much room so he soon gave up the idea, as in a small house like his books were better.

Question. Was Horace a typical thief?
Answer: Horace was not a typical thief. He made locks and was successful in his business. He loved rare and expensive books. To purchase these books he used to rob only a safe every year.

Question. Why was it not difficult for Horace to open the safe?
Answer: It was not difficult for Horace to open the safe as he had lived with locks and safes all his life. The burglar alarm was poorly built. He cut the wire of it without difficulty.

Question. How Horace Danby planned his work?
                                          Or
How often did Horace Danby commit a robbery every year? What did he do with the stolen material?
Answer: Horace Danby robbed only one safe every year. Each year he planned carefully just what he would do. He stole enough to last him for twelve months and with the rest of the money be bought rare and expensive books, that he loved, through an agent.

Question. How did Horace quieten the dog at Shotover Grange?
                                                              Or
How did Horace Manage the small dog when he attempted to rob the house at Sohtover Grange?
Answer: A small dog was lying in the kitchen. It stirred, made a noise, and moved its tail in a friendly way. Horace quietened the dog by calling it by its correct name, and showed it love.

Question. What does the writer tell us about Horace Danby’s life?
Answer: Horace Danby was about fifty years old and unmarried, and lived with a housekeeper who bothered about his health. He had hay fever attacks in summer. He made locks and was successful in his business. He was good and respectable-but not completely honest.

Question. Why did Horace Danby feel sure of his success in that year’s robbery?
Answer: Horace Danby felt sure of his success in that year’s robbery as he had been studying rooms, electric wiring, paths and gardens of the house at Shotover Grange for two weeks. He knew that the family was in London and the two servants who lived in the house had gone to watch movie that afternoon.

Question. What story did the lady tell Horace to get the jewels?
Answer: The lady made up a story that before going to London, she promised her husband to take her jewels to their bank; but she left them there in the safe. She wished to put on the jewels to a party that night. Above all she had forgotten the numbers to open the safe. Thus she convinced Horace to open the safe.

Question. Why did the police arrest Horace Danby when he could not keep the jewels stolen from the Grange Safe?
                               ​​​​​​​                               Or
Did Horace get the jewels from the Grange safe? Then why did the police arrest him?
Answer: Horace did not get the jewels from the Grange safe but he was arrested by the police. His fingerprints were traced on the lighter which he gave the lady to light the cigarette. He was eager to please the lady to win her favour and unwittingly took off his gloves.

Question. How were flowers hindering Horace in his work?
Answer: Horace had attacks of hay fever in summer. While he was preparing to break the safe at Shotover Grange, there was a great bowl of flowers on the table and his nose tickled quite often. He sneezed loudly. So he was finding it difficult to carry on his work undisturbed.

Question. Why did the police arrest Horace Danby when he had not kept the jewels stolen from Grange safe?
Answer: The police arrested Horace Danby even when he had not kept the jewels stolen from the Grange Safe because his fingerprints were all over the room. No one believed him when he said that the wife of the owner of the house had asked him to open the safe for her and his story was termed as utter ‘nonsense’.

Question. Horace was no ordinary thief. How can you say this ?
Answer: Horace Danby was a typical thief. He robbed just one safe every year. Moreover, he stole only from those who had a lot of money. He never thought of hurting anybody. Therefore, he did not carry any weapons.

Question. What advice did the lady give Horace about his hay fever ? Was she really interested in his health ?
Answer: The lady advised him that he could cure the disease with a special treatment and if he found out that which plant gave him the disease. She also told him that he should see the doctor if he was serious about work. No, she was not interested in his health.

Question. Why would Horace get angry when anyone talked on honour among thieves ?
Answer: Horace got angry when anyone talked about honour among thieves because being a thief lady in red played a trick on Horace, another thief. She played foul with him and grabbed the entire jewellery. She should have disclosed her identity and shared booty with Horace.

Question. What did Horace Danby know about the Shotover Grange House ?
Answer: Horace Danby had studied the house carefully. He took note of its rooms, electric wiring, paths and garden. He also knew that the family had gone to London. He had seen the servants hanging the keys to the kitchen door and going to pictures.

Question. Why did Horace feel sure that year’s robbery at Shotover Grange would be as successful as all the others ?
Answer: Horace Danby chose the house at Shotover Grange to commit his next burglary. He studied the design of the house carefully. He took note of the rooms, electric wiring, paths and garden. He also knew that the family had gone to London. He had seen the servants hanging the keys to the kitchen door and going to pictures.

Question. How did Horace manage to get into the house ?
Answer: Horace was attempting to rob the house at Shotover Grange. A small dog stirred, made a noise and moved its tail in a friendly way. Horace kept the house-dog quiet by calling him by his right name, Sherry and showing him love.

Question. Do you think that the young lady was smarter than Horace Danby ?
Answer: Yes, the young lady in red was far smarter than Horace. She played her part unhesitatingly in the most natural manner. She had a grip on Horace. He obeyed her command like a puppet. She made him open the safe for her as if he got spell-bound. He was so much fooled that he could not suspect her to be a thief like himself.

Question. How did Horace know all the details of the house?
Answer: Horace had been studying the house for the past two weeks. Moreover, a magazine article had described this house, giving a plan of all the rooms and a picture of the room. There were also the details of the safe hidden behind the painting.

Question. How did Horace fulfil his desire of reading books after he was arrested?
Answer: After Horace was arrested, he became the assistant librarian in the prison and fulfilled his desire of reading books.

Question. Though Horace planned everything meticulously, why did he fail?
Answer: Though Horace planned everything meticulously; he failed led because of the smart lady. She posed herself to be the owner of the house and convinced him to open the shelf as she had “not the password of the shelf. Horace got trapped in her plot.

Question. Did the young lady expect Horace to be caught after the theft?
Answer: The young lady knew very well that Horace would be caught after the theft. She had made him break open the lock without gloves. His fingerprints too were all over the safe.

Question. Why did the lady report to the police though she promised that she would not report to the police?
                               Or
How did the lady deceive Horace?
Answer: The lady was very clever and shrewd. She promised Horace that she would not report to the police if he helped her in getting the jewels from the safe. Horace broke the safe and helped her. But she didn’t keep her promise as she was also a thief and did not want to get into trouble.

Question. How did Horace enter the Shotover Grange?
Answer: Horace had seen the housekeeper hang the key in the hook outside the kitchen door. He came out from behind the garden wall. He put on his gloves, took the key and opened the door of the kitchen and entered the Shotover Grange.
 

Long Answer Type Questions

Question. Who do you think is the real culprit in the story ‘A Question of Trust’?
Answer: Obviously the young lady who pretended to be the member of the family was real culprit. She innocently asked Horace to open the safe as she would need the jewels to wear in the party that day. Horace found himself trapped in a tricky situation and could not make out how to escape. He readily opened the safe; unwittingly leaving his fingerprints. He was arrested and nobody believed that the lady of house asked him to open the safe. It seems the young lady outwitted experienced Horace. She cheated and deceived Horace scrupulously.

Question. Horace stated that he robbed only those who had a lot of money. Was he really a threat to the society ? Did he lack the qualities of a good citizen ? Discuss the values he needs to imbibe to lead a path of righteousness.
Answer: I don’t think Horace was a threat to the society. He never threatened anyone and rather stole for a very good reason. He used to rob a safe every year to pursue his hobby of getting rare and expensive books to read. He was not a professional thief. Moreover, he never harmed anyone. He was considered a good and honest citizen by everyone. He was about fifty years old and unmarried. He had all the qualities of a good citizen. He was not a criminal or a typical thief. He did so only to fulfil his need.
He was an honest and good man. He believed in the lady’s story and gave away all the jewels to her. If he had been a criminal, he would have killed the lady or would have never handed the jewels to her.

Question. Horace Danby requested the lady to forget what she saw. Was Horace afraid of being caught ? Did he lack courage to accept his crime publicly ? Explain the values one must imbibe to accept one’s mistake.
Answer: Yes, Horace Danby was afraid of being caught. He lacked the courage to accept his crime publicly. He was not a professional criminal or thief. He was considered a good and honest man by everyone. He was about fifty years old and unmarried. His house was looked after by a housekeeper. He used to rob only one safe every year to pursue his habit of getting rare and expensive books to read. He used to rob only those who were rich.
He had a good reputation in the society and hence did not want anyone to know about his crimes. Although he helped the lady, but was caught by the police for the crime he did not commit. He learnt from his mistake.

Question. Describe how Horace Danby planned his work.
Answer: Horace Danby was a happy and a healthy man, except when he suffered from hay fever in summer. His business was to make locks and he was quite successful. He was considered to be a good honest citizen. But he would rob one safe once in a year to buy rare and expensive books he loved to read and collect.
Horace always carefully examined the house which he intended to rob. He would plan his robbery in a systematic manner. He would minutely study the location of rooms in the house, its electric wiring, its paths and gardens. Danby would always enter the house, with his tools carefully packed in a bag on his back. He would put on the gloves as he did not want to leave any fingerprints for anyone to catch. In this way, he planned his work quite carefully.

Question. Describe how Horace Danby planned his robbery of Shotover Grange.
                               ​​​​​​​                               Or
Horace was the thief who planned his work carefully. Describe what he did before attempting to rob the house at Shotover Grange.
Answer: A magazine article had described the house Shotover Grange, giving a plan of all the rooms and a picture of the room where the safe was located. The writer had even mentioned that a painting hid the safe.
He had studied the house, looking at its rooms, its electric wiring, its paths and gardens for two weeks. He knew that the family lived in London and the two servants who remained in the house had gone to watch movie that afternoon. So he was sure that it was going to be a successful robbery.

Question. Describe how the lady in red was a more professional thief than Horace Danby.
                               ​​​​​​​                               Or
How did the lady in red prove to be smarter and cleverer than Horace Danby?
Answer: Horace Danby missed to get enough information about all the members of the house. He seems to be too occupied with collecting information about house map, wiring and location of valuable things. Although he was smart enough to know the dog’s actual name but overlooked getting identity of each and every member of the house. Once he was in problem then probably his clever mind gave way to carelessness leading him to open the safe without wearing gloves.
On the other hand, the young lady’s confident walk, her act of touching up her make-up and the ease with which she picked cigarette from the right place were enough to make Horace believe that she was lady of the house. Horace was too frightened to think properly so he didn’t suspect anything.

Question. Why is Horace described as good and respectable, but not completely honest?
Answer: Horace was a good and honest citizen. He made locks and was successful enough at his business. He was good and respectable but not completely honest. Danby’s habits were not typical of a thief. He was fond of books. He used to steal only once in a year so he was never stealing more than his needs. Act of theft is still a crime no matter how good a thief behaves, so Danby can’t be termed as completely honest. He is not a regular offender like other thieves so he can’t be categorized as a typical thief.

Question. Why did Horace choose that house in Shotover Grange for committing a theft ?
Answer: Horace knew that there were about fifteen thousand pounds worth of jewels in the safe of that house in Shotover Grange. That is why, he decided to commit a theft in that house. He expected to get at least five thousand pounds by selling the jewels one by one, which would make him happy for another year.
Horace wanted this money to buy three very interesting books, which were coming for sale the next winter. Moreover, a magazine article had described that house in detail, giving a plan of all the rooms along with the pictures. The magazine had even mentioned that a painting in the room hid the safe. On top of that, the two servants had gone to the movies and the family was in London. Because of all of these circumstances, Horace Danby had chosen that house as the place for committing a theft.

Question. Describe in 100-120 words what happened at Shotover Grange.
Answer: Horace studied the house and came near from behind the garden wall. Carrying his tools carefully packed in a bag on his back, he put on a pair of gloves, took the keys and opened the door to the house. A small dog was lying in the kitchen when he entered, but he made the dog quiet by greeting him. In the house, there was a great bowl of flowers on the table which forced him to sneeze as he had hay fever. Meanwhile, the safe was in the drawing room, hidden behind a painting. When Horace was carefully arranging his tools, a quiet, kindly voice shook him. The voice was that of a young and pretty lady, who was posing as the owner of the house. The lady made Horace believe that she had forgotten the number to open the lock of the safe. Thus, Horace readily agreed to open the safe, so that she did not call the police, and handed her all the jewels. But he was later arrested for robbery because his fingerprints were all over the safe, while, that young lady, a thief, was nowhere to be found.

Question. Suppose that you are Horace Danby. You are sentenced. Write to your friend Morris how you trusted the lady and how she cheated you. You write to him from the Westend Prison Library, Victoria Road, London, England.
Answer: Westend Prison Library,
Victoria Road,
London,
England
25 July 20xx
My dear Morris,
You will be surprised to know that I am now the Assistant Librarian in this prison. I came here due to a charming but a shrewd lady, who was also a robber. She tricked, duped and outwitted me in a very clever manner. This is because I blindly trusted that lady, who was a perfect actress. She had told me that she had forgotten the number of the safe. She acted so well that I could never doubt her intentions.
I trusted the lady so blindly that I opened the safe without putting on my gloves. I will suffer for the rest of my life because I misjudged her. However, it is a good lesson for me as I would never commit the same mistake again.
Yours sincerely,
Horace

Question. Horace was a successful thief because he carefully planned is robberies. Should we call him a successful thief and appreciate his work ? Why or why not ?
Answer: Horace meticulously planned his thefts so he that was never caught. He was successful in carrying out his plans, but he could have used his meticulously planning technique in some honest venture. He bought books with the wealth he stole, but it was still bought in a criminal way. Robbing others is a crime and the criminal needs to be punished, irrespective of what he does with the stolen things.
Horace is not a successful person because a person who robs others cannot be called successful. One who earns money by working hard in an honest manner is said to be a successful person, irrespective of how much he earns.
It is good that while stealing the jewels he was tricked and robbed by another thief. Now working as an assistant librarian in the prison, he will get enough time to read those books and transform himself. Reading books is a good habit, but stealing to buy books is wrong and cannot be appreciated. Horace has some good qualities as well, like he knows how to keep his promise. He had promised the lady who was a thief that he wouldn’t steal, so he didn’t. This tells us that if Horace can change his habits then he can become a person who will be appreciated by all.

Question. Horace Danby represents such people who adopt the wrong ways to fulfil their wishes. What values would you like such people to imbibe to reform themselves?
Answer: Horace Danby was a successful businessman. He was about fifty years old and a respectable citizen but had a habit that led him to do robberies. Danby loved rare, expensive books and to get them he used to rob a safe every year. Every year he planned carefully just to get what he wanted. Danby adopted wrong ways to fulfil his wishes and hence, later got trapped in a plot by a thief like him. People should imbibe good values. They should learn that hard work is the only key to success. One should work hard to fulfil one’s desires. I think such people should imbibe the values of honesty, responsibility, hard work, dedication and self-confidence in order to reform themselves. One should either curb one’s wishes or try to fulfil them by working hard. There is no shortcut to hard work.

Question. Horace Danby was a respectable man but he could not be called loyal. What do you think could be the reasons for leading a respectable man like him on the path of thievery? Did he feel lack of sense of freedom? Was it not in his nature to accept the differences among people regarding their social status? Discuss the values he should have possessed .
Answer: Horace Danby’s habits were not typical of a thief. He was fond of books and was a respectable man but his passion for books led him to commit thefts. He used to steal only once in a year so, he was never stealing more than his needs. He stole only to buy rare books; he loved rare and expensive books. Moreover, Danby used to rob only rich people. It was his nature to accept the differences among people regarding their social status. He was aware that people with high socio-background could help him fulfil his desire. He found such people easy to rob.

Question. Horace promised the young lady that he would follow the path of honesty if sills would not hand him over to the police but he could not keep his promise for more than days. Did he lack reconciliation? Was it not in his nature to keep his promise? Did he lack the courage to fulfill his needs through an honest living? Discuss the valuer he needed to imbibe.
Answer: The lady manipulated the whole situation as well as Horace and very skillfully got the jewels without even touching anything. She talked high things like protecting the society from culprits like Horace. Horace promised her that he would follow the path of honesty. He helped her in getting the jewels by breaking the safe without wearing gloves. But after two days, police caught him for stealing the jewels. He could not convince them that he had not taken the jewels and had helped the owner’s wife. The condition provoked him to break his promise. Although he honestly felt that he would not rob any more he could not do so as he had no other choice left.

Question. “Horace had some hope because she seemed to be amused at meeting him.” Why did Horace feel so? Did he consider the young lady compassionate towards him? Did he find her free from biases? Discuss the values Horace should have imbibe understanding of the person.
Answer: Horace was a fifty-year-old man who used to rob only to buy rare and expensive. This time he decided to rob Shot over Grange. But as soon as he entered the room, a young lady appeared. She posed to be the lady of the house. She was very confident in her way of mannerism. Then she tried to be polite and nice to him. On hearing her, Horace felt that he had a hope of escaping. He found her a bit compassionate towards him. He was amused at Horace. She acted in quite a subtle manner and showed her sympathy and admiration towards a simple and honest man. He could not judge her ace. She made Horace promise that he would never commit the crime again. Horace should have been clever, shrewd and witty like the lady.
 

Extract Based Questions

1. Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follows :
Everyone thought that horace danby was a good, honest citizen. He was about fifty years old and unmarried, and he lived with a housekeeper who worried over his health. In fact, he was usually very well and happy except for attacks of hay fever in summer. He made locks and was successful enough at his business to have two helpers. Yes, Horace Danby was good and respectable — but not completely honest.

Question. State any one inference about Horace Danby from the given context. Everyone thought that horace danby was a good, honest citizen.
Answer: It was hard to think of him as a thief who stole money to buy expensive books because he had an established business.

Question. State which of the options from 1 to 4 can be applied to the given question or context: True (T), False (F), Partially true (PT), Not applicable (NA). Which of these proverbs fits the personality of Horace Danby?
1. Where there’s smoke, there’s fire.
2. If you can’t beat them, join them.
3. Don’t judge a book by its cover.
4. All that glitters is not gold.
(a) 2 - T, 1 - F, 3 - PT, 4 - NA
(b) 1 - T, 2 - F, 3 - PT, 4 - NA
(c) 3 - T, 1 - F, 4 - PT, 2 - NA
(d) 4 - T, 3 - F, 2 - PT, 1 - NA
Answer: (c) 3 - T, 1 - F, 4 - PT, 2 - NA

Question. ‘We can say that Horace Danby was quite well off’ Elaborate in about 40 words, with reference to the extract.
Answer: Horace Danby was a successful businessman of manufacturing locks. Two helpers kept his business in good shape. He also had a housekeeper to look after his house and him. He didn’t have a family to spend his money on.

Question. Which phrase or word would be the correct antonym of ‘respectable’ in the given sentence from the extract? Yes, Horace Danby was good and respectable — but not completely honest.
Answer: disreputable

2. Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follows :
There was a great bowl of flowers on the table, and Horace felt his nose tickle. He gave a little sneeze and then put down his bag. He carefully arranged his tools. He had four hours before the servants returned. The safe was not going to be hard to open. After all, he had lived with locks and safes all his life. The burglar alarm was poorly built.

Question. State any one inference about Danby from the given context. He carefully arranged his tools.
Answer: Horace was a meticulous thief and took his job seriously.

Question. State which of the options from (a) to (d) can be applied to the given question or context? Which of the reasons CANNOT be used to complete this statement? The safe was not going to be hard to open.
(a) True because Horace knew the code.
(b) False because he had lived with locks and safes all his life.
(c) Partially true because he had all the tools.
(d) Not applicable because the servants were out for four hours.
Answer: (a) True because Horace knew the code.

Question. Horace Danby sneezed. What caused it? Elaborate in about 40 words, with reference to the given extract.
Answer: Horace Danby suffered from attacks of hay fever because he had an allergy to pollens. A big bowl of flowers kept in the drawing room caused him to sneeze.

Question. Which phrase would correctly substitute ‘tickle’ in the given sentence from the extract? There was a great bowl of flowers on the table, and Horace felt his nose tickle.
Answer: tingle or itch

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