A Question of Trust – Questions & Answers 

Q1. Who was Horace Danby?
Ans: Horace Danby was a fifty-year-old lock-maker. 

Q2. Was Horace completely honest?
Ans: No, Horace was not completely honest. He secretly robbed a safe once every year to buy expensive books.

Q3. Why did Horace rob only once a year?
Ans: Horace robbed once a year so that he could steal enough money to buy rare and expensive books that lasted him for twelve months.

Q4. What did Horace love the most?
Ans: Horace loved the most rare, expensive books.

Q5. Where did he serve his first and only sentence ?
Ans: He served his first and only sentence in a prison library fifteen years ago.

Q6. Which house did Horace plan to rob that year?
Ans: Horace planned to rob Shotover Grange.

Q7. How did Horace prepare for the robbery?
Ans: Horace studied the house, its rooms, electric wiring, paths, and garden for two weeks and prepared for the robbery.

Q8. How did he know about the value of jewels in the safe?
Ans: He knew from a magazine article which described the house and mentioned the safe hidden behind a painting.

Q9. How much were the jewels worth?
Ans: The jewels were worth about fifteen thousand pounds.

Q10. How did Horace enter the house?

Ans: He used the passkey (kitchen key) which the housekeeper had left hanging on a hook outside.

Q11. Why did Horace wear gloves?
Ans: Horace wore gloves to avoid leaving fingerprints.

Q12. How did Horace manage the dog?
Ans: Horace called the dog by its right name “Sherry” and showed affection. The dog became   quiet.

Q13. Where was the safe located?
Ans: The safe was located in the drawing room behind a poor painting.

Q14. What problem did the flowers cause?
Ans: The smell of the flowers made Horace sneeze repeatedly because he was suffering from hay fever.

Q15. Who entered while Horace was sneezing?
Ans: A young woman dressed in red, who pretended to be the lady of the house, entered.

Q16. How did the woman speak to Horace?
Ans: The woman spoke in a quiet, kind, but firm voice.

Q17. What was Horace’s first thought on seeing her?
Ans: His first thought was to run away.

Q18. Why could Horace not run away?
Ans: Horace could not run because the lady said him that she would call the police.

Q19. Did Horace threaten the woman?
Ans: Yes, at first he threatened her saying that he would cut the telephone wires and keep her silent for hours, but later said that he was only trying to frighten her.

Q20. What did the lady demand from Horace?
Ans: The lady demanded that Horace should  open the safe for her because she wanted to wear her jewels for a party.

Q21. What excuse did the lady give for not opening the safe herself?
Ans: The lady said she had forgotten the numbers to open the safe.

Q22. Why did Horace help the lady ?
Ans: Horace felt hopeful because the lady was  seemed to be amused and he thought that she  will let him go if he helped her.

Q23. What did Horace do for the lady?
Ans: Horace opened the safe and handed over the jewels to her.

Q24. Why did Horace remove his gloves?
Ans: He removed his gloves to give her his cigarette lighter.

Q25. What did Horace do after giving the jewels?
Ans: He went home happily, believing he had escaped without trouble.

Q26. What happened after two days?

or 

Why was Horace areested by the police ?

Ans: On the third day, Horace was arrested by the police for the jewel robbery at Shotover Grange.

Q27. Why was Horace easily caught?
Ans: His fingerprints were all over the room because he had removed his gloves.

Q28. Who was the real culprit of the story ?ans: A beautiful, young and clever lady was the real culprit of the story.

Q29. Did people believe Horace’s story about the lady in red?
Ans: No, nobody believed him. The actual wife of the house owner denied his story and called it nonsense.

Q30. What was the reality about the young lady?
Ans: The young lady was actually another clever thief who tricked Horace.

Q31. Where is Horace now?
Ans: Horace is now in prison working as an assistant librarian.

Q32. How does he feel about the lady in red?
Ans: He feels angry whenever he thinks of the charming, clever young lady who cheated him.

Q33. Why did Horace get angry when anyone says about the 'honour among the thieves' ?Ans: Horace was tricked and and sent to prison by the young lady, who was also a thief like Horace . So he got angry when anyone says about the 'honour among the thieves'. 

Q34. Which saying does the story illustrate ?

Ans: The story illustrates that there is 'no honour among thieves.'

Very Short Answer type questions.

1. Who was Horace Danby?
   Ans : A fifty-year old man who made locks.

2. What did he love?                                        Ans: He loved collecting rare and expensive books.

3. Where was the safe in Shotover Grange?
   Ans : The safe was behind a poor painting in the drawing room.

4. Why did Horace wear gloves?
   Ans: Horace wear gloves to avoid leaving fingerprints.

5. What was the name of the dog?
   Ans : The name of the dog is Sherry.

6. What disease did Horace suffer from?
   Ans : Horace was suffered from hay fever.

SA (Short Answer type  (2–3 marks)

1. Why did Horace rob only once a year?
   Ans :  Horace robbed only once a year because he wanted enough money to buy rare books that would last him for twelve months.

2. How did Horace enter the house?
   Ans : He used the key to the kitchen door which the housekeeper had left hanging outside.                                                                                                 Or                                         Horace used the passkey to enter the house that the housekeeper left hanging outside. 

3. Describe Horace’s first meeting with the lady in red.                                                    Ans: Horace was sneezing when the lady entered. She spoke in a quiet but firm voice, pretended to be the lady of the house, and cleverly engaged him in conversation.

4. How was Horace tricked by the lady in red?
   Ans:  She pretended to be the owner’s wife, convinced Horace to open the safe, took away the jewels and sent Horace’s to prison.