THE HACK DRIVER CLASS 10 QUESTION ANSWERS

 The Hack Driver

Question and Answers

1. Why was the lawyer sent to New Mullion? What does he first think about the place?

• The lawyer was sent to New mullion to serve a summon to a man named Oliver Lutkinss.

He first thought New Mullion to be a Sweet and Simple country village.

2. Who befriends him? Where does he take him?

• A forty year old delivery man, who called himself Bill Murguson befriends him.

He claimed that he knew Oliver Lutkinss and would help him to find him, so he took the lawyer whereever Lutkins expected to be. He took the lawyer to Fritz’s shop where Lutkins played a lot of poker. Then he took him to Gustaf's barber shop and Gray’s barber shop and then to the pool room and finally to Lutkins mother’s firm house.

3. What does he (Bill) say about Lutkins?

• Bill told the lawyer that it is very hard to catch Lutkins and he owed a lot of money from many people including him. He played a lot of poker and he is very good at deceiving people.

4. What does Bill say about Lutkins Mother?

• Bill told the lawyer that Lutkins’ mother is a real terror. She is about nine feet tall and four feet thick and could talk a lot. He also assured the lawyer that Lutkins must have gone there to hide behind his mothers skirt as soon as he came to know that somebody was chasing him.

5. Does the Narrator serve the summons that day?

• No, as he couldn't find Lutkins that day so he was unable to serve the summon that day.

6. Who is Lutkins?

• The Hackdriver was Lutkins Himself. He pretended to be Bill Murguson to trick the lawyer to avoid the summons. 

Think about the text

1. When the lawyer reached New Mullion, did ‘Bill’ know that he was looking for Lutkins ? When do you think ‘Bill’ came up with his plan for fooling the lawyer?

• No, Bill did not know that the lawyer was looking for Lothkins.

When the lawyer told him that he was looking for a man called Oliver Luthkin, then Bill came up with the plan for fooling the lawyer.

2. Lutkins openly takes the lawyer all over the village. How is that no one lets out the secret? (Hint : Notice that the hack driver asks the lawyer to keep out of sight behind him when they go into Fritz’s.) Can you find other such subtle ways in which Lutkins manipulates the tour?

•  First of all nobody actually knows that the lawyer didn’t know Oliver Luthkin; moreover Bill has convinced the lawyer that Lutkin will run away if he knew someone is looking for him so the lawyer was always kept out of sight. The stories Bill fabricated in the journey made the lawyer believe that Oliver Lutkin was a different person and thus he manipulates the entire tour.

3. Why do you think Lutkin’s neighbours were anxious to meet the lawyer?

• Almost everyone in the village had seen the lawyer who had been made a fool by Luthkins. So when the lawyer came back the next day, the neighbour who missed the sight of the gulible man was anxious to meet the lawyer.

4. After his first day’s experience with the hack driver the lawyer thinks of returning to New Mullion to practise law. Do you think he would have reconsidered this idea after his second visit?

• No, absolutely not. After knowing how Lutkins had made a fool of him, he would never return to New Mullion to practise law.

5. Do you think the lawyer was gullible? How could he have avoided being taken for a ride? 

• Yes, the lawyer was gullible. He believed every word of what Oliver Lutkins said. He should have asked about Lutkins from other villagers. Instead, he depended completely on the hack driver.

FOOTPRINTS WITHOUT FEET | CLASS 10 | QUESTION AND ANSWERS

 FOOTPRINTS WITHOUT FEET

FOOTPRINTS WITHOUT FEET 

1. How did the invisible man first become visible?

The Invisible man (Griffin) first becomes visible after he slipped into a big London store for warmth. There he wore warm clothes and slept on a pile of quilts. The clothes made him visible to the assistants when the shop opened in the morning.

2. Why he was wandering in the streets?

Though he was a brilliant scientist he was rather a lawless person, so his land owner disliked him and wanted Griffin to evict his place. In revenge, he set fire to the house. To escape, he removed his clothes, becoming invisible thus he become homeless and wandered the streets of London.

3. Why does Mrs. Hall find the scientist eccentric?

Mrs. Hall found the scientist eccentric because he had an uncommon appearance and wanted nothing more than to be left alone..

4. What curious episode occurs in the study?

Very early one morning a clergyman and his wife were awakened by noises coming from their study. Then they heard the sound of coins being taken from the desk there. However, when they entered the study, they did not find anybody there. This is strange because they had heard the sounds which indicated that someone was in the study. They searched all over the room and yet found no one, yey the desk has been opened and the money was taken, which was curious.

5. What are the extraordinary things that happen in the inn?

At the inn, Mrs. Hall and her husband went to the scientist’s room on finding its door open. However, he was not seen in the room but Mrs, Hall heard a sniff, and the hat on the bedpost leaped up and dashed into her face. Then the bedroom chair sprang into the air and pushed them both out of the room. This made Mrs. Hall think that her furniture was haunted.

6. “Griffin was rather a lawless person” comment.

On many occasions, Griffin broke the law, that too without any good reason. He set his landlord's house on fire because his landlord tried to evict him from his house. He then broke into a departmental and theatrical store to steal clothes. He also attacked the shopkeeper and stole the clergyman’s housekeeping money at Iping. And threatened the landlady of the inn by throwing furniture around. Thus Griffin was indeed a lawless person who took advantage of his invisibility and added to his crimes every day.

7. How do you assess Griffin as a scientist?

Griffin was a brilliant scientist, as he discovered how to make oneself invisible, for this he had to carry out numerous experiments, which was indeed a very big achievement for a scientist.

8. Are there forces around us that are invisible? For example magnetism? Are there aspects of the matter that are ‘invisible’ or not visible to the naked eye? What would the world be like if you could see such forces or such aspects of matter?

Magnetic forces electric forces, sound waves, etc are some of the examples of invisible forces around us. The atoms and molecules in the matter are so small that they are not visible to the naked eye. Though the idea of seeing invisible things can be very exciting., their visibility would create many problems. For example, if a you are able to see all the sounds around us that would be too irritating.

9. What makes glass or water transparent (what is the scientific explanation for this)? Do you think it would be scientifically possible for a man to become invisible or transparent?

The way light behaves when passing through the glass and water makes the medium appears transparent.

Yes, i think it is scientifically possible for a man to become invisible or transparent because the way we see things depends on the properties of the object and light itself. So, if the light could be made to pass through man, he can become invisible.

10. Who was Griffin? How did he become invisible? Why did Mrs.Hall find him eccentric?

Griffin was a scientist. He had carried out several experiments to prove that human body could become invisible.

He had swallowed certain rare drugs and his body become transparent as a sheet of glass. In this way he becomes invisible.

Mrs.Hall found Griffin eccentric because he had an uncommon appearance and wanted nothing more to be left alone.

11. Give a description of Griffin's experience in Drury lane.

Or, 

Describe Griffin's experience in the Drury lane.

After what had happened in big London store. He tries the stock of a theatrical company in the hope of finding not only clothes but also something that would hide the empty space above his shoulders. Shivering with cold he hurried to Drury lane, the center of the theatre world.

He soon found a suitable shop. He made his way invisible upstairs and come out a little later wearing a bandage around his forehead , dark glasses, a false nose, a big bushy side-whisker, and a large hat. To escape without being seen, callously attacked the shopkeeper from behind after which he robbed him of all the money he could.

12. Why did Griffin become a homeless wanderer? Why did he slip into the big London store and what did he do there?

Though he was a brilliant scientist he was a lawless person. His landlord disliked him and wanted him to evict Griffin. In revenge, he set fire to the house. To escape, he removed his clothes and become homeless, and was wandering the streets and become a homeless wanderer.

As it was winter and Griffin was wandering clothless, he thought of going into a big London store instead walking about the streets for warmth.

As soon as the doors were shut Griffin was able to give himself the pleasure of clothing and feeding himself without regard to expense. He broke open the boxes and wrappers and fitted himself out with warm clothes, shoes, an overcoat, and a wide-brimmed hat. After that, he ate some cold meat and coffee and followed by sweets, after that he settled down to sleep on a pile of quilts.

13. How and why did Grifin come to the village of iping ? Why does Mrs Hall find him eccentric.

London was too crowded for Griffin, so he was eager to get away from the crowded London, so he took a train to the village of Iping, where he booked two rooms at the local inn.

Mrs. Hall found the scientist eccentric because of his uncommon appearance.

While she tried every way possible to be friendly with the scientist, the scientist took no interest and told her that he wanted nothing more than to be left alone