The Best Christmas Present in the World
Read the following extracts and answer the questions that follow choosing the correct options among the given ones :
I. "Mother," said he, while the Great Face smiled on him, "I wish that it could speak, for it looks so very kindly that its voice must indeed be pleasant. If I ever see a man with such a face, I should love him very much." (Page 125)
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Who is "he" in these lines ?
- (a) Ernest
- (b) Gathergold
- (c) General Blood-and-Thunder
- (d) a poet.
2. That which is looking very kindly is
- (a) Great stone Face
- (b) the mother
- (c) the poet
- (d) Gathergold.
3. Ultimately there appears a man with such a face who is
- (a) a poet
- (b) Gathergold
- (c) Ernest
- (d) General Blood-and-Thunder.
Answers
- 1. (a) Ernest
- 2. (a) Great stone Face
- 3. (c) Ernest
II. Ernest had had no teacher, but the Great Stone Face became one to him. When the work of the day was over, he would gaze at it for hours, until he began to imagine that those vast features recognised him, and gave him a smile of kindness and encouragement. (Page 126)
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Ernest was now
- (a) a child
- (b) a youth
- (c) an oldman
- (d) a middle-aged man.
2. All Ernest"s education came from
- (a) his mother
- (b) a teacher
- (c) Great Stone Face
- (d) the society.
3. The Great Stone Face was able to
- (a) feed Ernest
- (b) look after Ernest
- (c) talk to Ernest
- (d) inspire and encourage Ernest.
Answers
- 1. (b)a youth
- 2. (c) Great Stone Face
- 3. (d) inspire and encourage Ernest
III. He attracted little notice from the inhabitants of the valley. They saw nothing remarkable in his way of life, except that, when the labour of the day was over, he still loved to gaze upon the Great Stone Face. Their idea was that this was a folly, but pardonable, because Ernest was industrious, kind and neighbourly. (Page 127)
Multiple Choice Questions
1. The inhabitants of the village
- (a) took some notice of him
- (b) took no notice of him
- (c) sent him a notice
- (d) got a notice from him.
2. The villagers pardoned his folly which was
- (a) to take little notice
- (b) to have nothing remarkable
- (c) to labour all day
- (d) to look upon the Great Stone Face.
3. The word "industrious" means the same as
- (a) the owner of an industry
- (b) industrial
- (c) hardworking
- (d) ran an industry.
Answers :
- 1. (b) took no notice of him
- 2. (d) to look upon the Great Stone Face
- 3. (c) hardworking
IV. His wealth, which was the body and spirit of his existence, had disappeared before his death. Since the melting away of his gold, it had been generally agreed that there was no great likeness, after all, between the ruined merchant and the majestic face upon the mountain. (Page 128)
Multiple Choice Questions
1. This passage is about
- (a) Gathergold
- (b) Ernest
- (c) General Blood-and-Thunder
- (d) a poet.
2. The passage says there was no likeness between
- (a) Gathergold and Ernest
- (b) Gathergold and the Great Stone Face
- (c) Ernest and Gathergold
- (d) Blood-and-thunder and Ernest.
3. The melting away of gold means
- (a) making a gold pot
- (b) making goldcoins
- (c) melting gold coins
- (d) vanishing of wealth.
Answers:
- 1. (a) Gathergold
- 2. (b) Gathergold and the Great Stone Face
- 3. (d) vanishing of wealth
TEXTUAL EXERCISES
COMPREHENSION CHECK (Page 129)
Write "True" or "False" against each of the following statements.
- 1. The Great Stone Face stood near where Ernest and his mother lived. ___
- 2. One would clearly distinguish the features of the Stone Face only from a distance.___
- 3. Ernest loved his mother and helped her in her work. ___
- 4. Though not very rich, Gathergold was a skilful merchant. ___
- 5. Gathergold died in poverty and neglect. ____
- 6. The Great Stone Face seemed to suggest that Ernest should not fear the general. ___
Answers:
- 1. False
- 2. True
- 3. True
- 4. False
- 5. True
- 6. False
WORKING WITH THE TEXT (Page 130)
Answer the following questions.
Question. 1.
(i) What was the Great Stone Face ?
(ii) What did young Ernest wish when he gazed at it ?
Answer:
(i) The Great Stone Face was a work of nature. It was formed on the side of a mountain by huge rocks. They had been thrown together in such a position that they resembled a human face.
(ii) Young Ernest gazed at the Great Stone Face. It smiled on him. Ernest wished that it could speak because it looked very kindly. Its voice must be pleasant. He would love the man whoever bore such a face dearly.
Question. 2.
What was the story attributed to the Stone Face ?
Answer:
The story attributed to the Stone Face was that a special child should be born there. He would become the greatest and noblest person of his time. In manhood, his face would bear an exact likeness to the Great Stone Face.
Question. 3.
What gave the people of the valley the idea that the prophecy was about to come true for the first time ?
Answer:
There was a rumour in the valley that the great man resembling the Great Stone Face had appeared. A young man, named Gathergold had left the valley. He had grown a rich merchant by the time he became old. He had decided to return to his native valley. The rumour went that he had the living likeness of the Great Stone Face. It made the people of the valley think that the prophecy was about to come true.
Question. 4.
(i) Did Ernest see in Gathergold the likeness of the Stone Face ?
(ii) Who did he confide in and how was he proved right ?
Answer:
(i) No, Ernest did not see the likeness of the Stone Face in Gathergold.
(ii) Ernest confided in the valley, where the Stone Face was formed. He was proved right because Gathergold died after sometime. He was then a poor man. All the people, then, said that he had no likeness with the stone face.
Question. 5.
(i) What made people believe General Blood-and-Thunder was their man ?
(ii) Ernest compared the man"s face with the Stone Face. What did he conclude ?
Answer:
(i) General Blood-and-Thunder rose in position from a soldier. He desired to return to his native valley. The residents of the valley said that he bore the likeness of the Great Stone Face. His childhood friends also said that the General had always looked like the Stone Face. It made people believe "General Blood-and- Thunder" was their man.
(ii) Ernest compared the face of Blood-and-Thunder with the Stone Face. He could not recognise any likeness between them. He concluded that the man, bearing likeness to the Stone Face had yet to come.
WORKING WITH LANGUAGE (Page 130)
Question 1.
Look at the following words.
like - likeness
punctual - punctuality
The words on the left are adjectives and those on the right are their noun forms.
Write the noun forms of the following words by adding -ness or -ity to them appropriately. Check the spelling of the new words.
- (i) lofty ___
- (ii) able ___
- (iii) happy___
- (iv) near ____
- (v) noble ___
- (vi) enormous ___
- (vii) pleasant ___
- (viii) dense ___
- (ix) great ___
- (x) stable ___
Answers:
- (i) loftiness
- (ii) ability
- (iii) happiness
- (iv) nearness
- (v) nobility/nobleness
- (vi) enormity
- (vii) pleasure
- (viii) density
- (ix) greatness
- (x) stability
Question 2.
Add -ly to each of the following adjectives, then use them to fill in the blanks.
1
- (i) Why didn"t you turn up at the meeting ? We all were___waiting for you.
- (ii) ___write your name and address in capital letters.
- (iii) I was___surprised to see him at the railway station. I thought he was not coming.
- (iv) It is ___ believable that I am not responsible for this mess.
- (v) He fell over the step and___broke his arm.
Answers
- (i) Why didn"t you turn up at the meeting ? We all were eagerly waiting for you.
- (ii) Kindly write your name and address in capital letters.
- (iii) I was pleasantly surprised to see him at the railway station. I thought he was not coming.
- (iv) It is perfectly believable that I am not responsible for this mess.
- (v) He fell over the step and nearly broke his arm.
SPEAKING AND WRITING (Page 131)
Question 1.
Imagine you are Ernest. Narrate the story that his mother told him.
Begin like this : My mother and I were sitting at the door of our cottage. We were looking at the Great Stone Face. I asked her if she had ever seen any one who looked like the Stone Face. Then she told me this story.
Answer:
. My mother said that there is an old prophecy. According to it we may one day come across a man with exactly such a face. A child would be born near here. He will become the greatest and noblest person of his time. In manhood, this man will wear exact resemblance to the Great Stone face. Some people believe in the prophecy, some don"t.
Question 2.
Imagine you are Gathergold. Write briefly the incident of your return to the valley.
Begin like this : My name is Gathergold. I left the valley of the Great Stone Face fifty years ago. I am now going back home. Will the people of the valley welcome me ? Do they know that I am very rich ?
Answer:
. Some selfish, greedy persons should certainly come forward to welcome me. I should be careful about it. They can cause me loss of money as well as respect.