NCERT Solutions A Question of Trust Class-10 | Foot Prints | Chapter-4

 NCERT Solutions : A Question of Trust Class 10 Footprints Without Feet

NCERT Solutions : Read and Find Out (Page 20)

Que 1. What does Horace Danby like to collect?

Answer:

Horace Danby was a respectable man but not completely honest. He liked to collect rare and expensive books. For which he robbed a safe evry year to use that money for buying these books.

Que 2. Why does he steal every year?

Answer:

Horace danby loved rare and expensive books. How ever he could not buy those with his current income. So every year he robbed a safe to collect money enough for rest of the year. 

Que 3. Who is speaking to Horace Danby?

Answer:

When Horace goes to rob a safe in Shotover Grange. There he is caught by a lady, who standing in the doorway speaks to Him. The lady was young and pretty and was dressed in red. She said to Horace that she had just come in time, or else Horace would have robbed her family. Thus she pretended to be one of the members of the family living at Shotover Grange.

Que 4. Who is the real culprit in the story?

Answer:

In the story 'A Question of Trust', a man named Horace is tricked by a lady to unlock a safe for her, which he himself wanted to rob. The lady told Horace that she is a member of the family. And asked Horace to open the safe for her as she has forgot the key. Hence, the real culprit in the story is that woman who pretended to be a member of the family living at Shotover Grange.  She cleverly took away all the jewels that were kept in the safe.

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NCERT Solutions : Think About It (Page 25)

Que 1. Did you begin to suspect, before the end of the story, that the lady was not the person Horace Danby took her to be? If so, at what point did you realise this, and how?

Answer:

Initially when Horace is confronted by that lady, we believe her to be true. The way she made the story, influenced us to not suspect her. However, we begin to suspect her before the end of the story that the lady is not really a member of that family. She was unusually calm after seeking Horace. No one would behave normally when confronting a robber. However, it seemed strange for the lady was completely calm. 

Even she did not call the police, and instead asked Horace to take out all the jewels from the safe, it seems suspicious. Further more, it was highly unlikely that one would forget the number combination to open the safe. Hence, it was evident, before the story ended, that the lady was not the person Horace had taken her to be.

Que 2. What are the subtle ways in which the lady manages to deceive Horace Danby into thinking she is the lady of the house? Why doesn’t Horace suspect that something is wrong?

Answer:

When the lady caught Horace she was very confident and certain. The way she presents her was highly self-assured .Her confident walk, her familiarity with the dog Sherry, her act of touching up her make-up and the ease with which she picks a cigarette from the right place are enough to deceive anybody. However, one could have suspected her but Horace was too frightened to think properly. He only wanted to escape from the site, so he didn’t suspect anything.

Que 3. “Horace Danby was good and respectable – but not completely honest”. Why do you think this description is apt for Horace? Why can’t he be categorised as a typical thief?

Answer:

Horace was a usual man with general possessions. However, he robbed a safe every year to buy rare and expensive books. He was not a habitual thief, who steal the pocket at any time. He was only fond of expensive books. That's why he steal only once in a year to have enough money for rest of the months. However, an act of theft is still a crime, no matter how well a thief behaves. Hence, this description is apt for Horace. He can’t be categorised as a typical thief because he is not a regular offender like other thieves.

Que 4. Horace Danby was a meticulous planner but still he faltered. Where did he go wrong and why?

Answer:

Horace Danby robbed a safe once a year. For that he used to make enough planning. However, this time he failed to get enough information about the real occupants of the house. He was more occupied with collecting information about the map of house, wiring and location of valuable items. Therefore, he could have not done enough research on real residents of the house.

Although, he was smart enough to know the dog’s actual name, and even got him quite. But, he overlooked information about the occupants of the house. When he got into trouble with the sudden appearance of the young lady, he became nervous giving way to carelessness and opened the safe without wearing gloves.

NCERT Solutions Talk About It (Page 25)

Que 1. Do you think Horace Danby was unfairly punished, or that he deserved what he got?

(or)

Do you think Horace Danby was unfairly punished? (CBSE 2013)

Answer:

Horace Danby was punished for robbing a safe. Though, we know that it was a lady who got that jewel and he got nothing. However he was punished for what he deserved. Though he did not really got the jewels but initially he came for that purpose only. A crime is a crime, no matter whether you benefited or somebody else.

Que 2. Do intentions justify actions? Would you, like Horace Danby, do something wrong if you thought your ends justified the means? Do you think that there are situations in which it is excusable to act less than honestly?

Answer:

Intentions for most of the times never justify the means. “Ends do not justify means”, is an age old and time-tested saying. We can not ignore actions only for the sake of ends. For their own benefit nobody should harm others. 

However, it is a debate of realism versus idealism. It is quite difficult to give excuses for a dishonest act. However, there always remain a possibility that for the larger good, in rare circumstances means could be undermined.