Footprints Without Feet
Chapter 4 - Question of Trust
‘Appearances are often deceiving.’
About the Author:
Victor Canning (16 June 1911 – 21 February 1986) was a prolific British writer of novels and
thrillers who flourished in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. He was personally reticent, writing no
memoirs and giving relatively few newspaper interviews.
About the chapter:
A Question of Trust is a story based on a robbery in a house where two thieves come face to
face, and one outwits the other. The author suggests that one mustn't trust others without
knowing his/her entire truth as people can be deceiving.
Characters
1.Horace Danby : He is a lock-opening expert who is caught for a jewellery robbery by
trusting a woman who pretended to be a family member of the owner.
The Unknown (lady in Red) : Woman She is a smart thief who uses Horace‟s lock-opening
skills to rob the jewellery from a safe.
Sherry –dog at shotover grange.
Important links:
Detailed explanation https://youtu.be/rNA7oTdQdkg
Short animated summary https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M_KgEQOpjfw
Mind map of the chapter https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4C0WnNQzUSU
Overview of the chapter
Horace Danby: A Businessman and an Unusual Thief
Horace Plans a Theft
Lady‟s Condition for Horace‟s Freedom
Horace Got Arrested
Questions Answers
Question 1.What does Horace Danby like to collect?
Answer: Horace Danby likes to collect rare and expensive books.
Question 2.Why does he steal every year?
Answer: He stole every year so that he could buy the rare and expensive books that he
loved to collect. Each year he planned carefully so as to steal enough to last twelve months.
Question 3.What was the passion of Horace Danby and how did he satisfy it?
Answer: Horace Danby likes to collect rare and expensive books. He stole every year so that
he could buy the rare and expensive books that he loved to collect. Each year he planned
carefully so as to steal enough to last twelve months.
Question 4.Who is speaking to Horace Danby?
Answer: A lady standing in the doorway is speaking to Horace Danby. She was young and
pretty and was dressed in red. She pretended to be one of the members of the family living
at Shotover Grange.
Question 5.Who is the real culprit in the story?
Answer: The real culprit in the story is the woman who pretended to be a member of the
family living at Shotover Grange. She tricked Horace Danby into believing her, and cleverly
took away all the jewels that were kept in the safe.
Question 6.Whom did Horace Danby see in the kitchen? How did they greet each other?
What tact did Horace apply there?
Answer: Horace Danby saw the family dog, Sherry, in the kitchen. The dog greeted Horace
by stirring, making a noise and wagging its tail in a friendly way. Horace greeted the dog by
tactfully calming it down, calling it by its name and showing love to it.
Question 7.How did Danby prepare for the robbery at Shotover Grange?
or
How did Horace Danby plan his robberies?
Answer: Danby always planned his robberies meticulously. He prepared for the robbery at
Shotover Grange by studying the house, the electric wiring, paths and garden. He knew that
the family normally lived in the city and knew about the movement of the servants, who had
gone out that afternoon. He had kept his tools ready, packed in a bag.
Question 9.Describe the safe at Shotover Grange.
or
Where was the safe at Shotover Grange? What was there inside it? What did Horace expect
to get if he sold them one by one?
Answer:Safe at Shotover Grange was kept in the drawing room behind a poor painting and
had jewels worth about 15000 pounds kept in it. It had a poorly built burglar alarm, but could
be opened only through a specific code. Horace expected to get 5000 pounds if he sold the
jewels one by one.
Question 10.How can you say that Horace Danby was good and respectable but not
completely honest?
Answer:Horace Danby was good and respectable because he was an expert in his
profession of making locks. However, as he loved collecting rare and expensive books, he
robbed a safe every year to buy these books through an agent. Thus he was not completely
honest
Question 11.How did flowers hinder Horace in his work?
Answer:Horace Danby had hay fever ,an allergy for flowers, especially during pollen
season. The pollen grains in the "flowers made him sneeze again and again and were
hindering him in his work.
Question12.Why does Horace Danby get angry when anyone talks about „honour among
thieves‟?
Answer: When anyone talks about „honour among thieves‟, Horace Danby gets angry
because the young lady who cheated him was also a thief, who did not follow this saying.
Question 13.What is the subtle ways in which the lady manages to deceive Horace Danby
into thinking she is the mistress of the house?
Answer: The subtle ways in which the lady manages to deceive Horace Danby into thinking
she is the mistress of the house are her grace, charm, comfort level, knowledge,
persistence, way of talking confidently and familiarity with the household. She even
threatens to get him arrested, which convinces Horace Danby that she is genuine.
Question 14.What did Horace Danby wonder about for a moment? What did he think and
decide?
Answer:
On seeing the poor painting in front of the safe, Horace Danby wondered for a moment
whether to collect pictures instead of books. But then, he thought that books were better in a
small house like his, as paintings took up too much room.
Question 15.Whom did Horace meet at Shotover Grange? How did the meeting affect his
plans?
Answer: Horace met a young, pretty woman dressed in red at Shotover Grange. She
pretended to be the owner‟s wife and deceived him into breaking open the safe to remove
the jewels for her. She threatened even to call the police. This meeting adversely affected
his plans, as he was not able to get away with the jewels.
Question 16.What does the title “A question of trust” mean?
Answer: Horace believed the statements of the woman who pretended to be the owner of
the house. Even though she was a thief, Horace trusted her and did not suspect her. As a
result, there is some uncertainty about whether Horace should have trusted her, and his trust
in her was called a question. Hence the title is appropriate.
Question 17.Do you think Horace Danby was unfairly punished, or that he deserved what he
got?
(or)
Do you think Horace Danby was unfairly punished?
Answer: Horace Danby deserved what he got. A crime is a crime, no matter if it is committed
for your own benefit or for somebody else‟s benefit.
Question 18.Horace was clever but the lady in red was cleverer. Do you agree with this
statement? Justify your answer.
Answer: Yes, I agree with this statement. Horace was clever, as he planned the robbery
carefully, studied the target, took the proper tools and also took his gloves, to ensure leaving
no fingerprints. But the young lady in red had all the necessary information, and, posing as
the mistress of the house, exploited Horace‟s fear on being discovered, tricked him into
cracking open the safe and handing her the jewels. She even ensured that Horace left his
fingerprints at the site, as she distracted him by picking up a cigarette which Horace offered
to light after removing his gloves. Thus the lady outwitted him.
Word Meanings
The given page nos. correspond to the pages in the prescribed textbook.
Word Meaning
PAGE 20
housekeeper person looking after the domestic work in a house
hay fever disease affecting the nose and throat caused by allergy to pollen or dust
respectable regarded as good by people
served spent
sentence punishment
safe strong locked box storing valuable items
Grange big house in a rural area
tickle itching
PAGE 21
make him happy keep him satisfied
fingerprints marks left by fingers
wondered thought
room space
burglar alarm alarm to warn about thieves
hindering delaying
PAGE 22
one with firmness in it determined
ornaments decorations
inconvenience trouble
get you arrest you
PAGE 23
hate the thought of don‟t like
des‟perate without any hope
wrong kind of people criminals
mended repaired
PAGE 24
look for steal from/rob
sharp-tongued using harsh, or critical language
charming friendly and likeable
in the same profession doing the same work
honour respect for each other
https://www.cbsetuts.com/cbse-rivision-notes-class-10-english-footprints-without-feet-
chapter-4-question-trust/
