Class ix --- Adventure of Toto

A. Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ)

(Choose the correct option)

1. Who bought Toto from the tonga-driver?

   a) Grandmother

   b) The narrator

   c) Grandfather ✅

   d) An Anglo-Indian lady

2. How much did Grandfather pay for Toto?

   a) Three rupees

   b) Five rupees ✅

   c) Ten rupees

   d) Seven rupees

3. Where did the tonga-driver keep Toto?

   a) In a basket

   b) On a tree

   c) Tied to a feeding-trough ✅

   d) In a wooden cage

4. What was special about Toto’s tail?

   a) It was unusually short

   b) It was of a bright red colour

   c) It served as a third hand ✅

   d) It was injured

5. Why did Grandfather hide Toto from Grandmother?

   a) Because she was afraid of monkeys

   b) Because she always fussed when new animals were brought home ✅

   c) Because Toto was sick

   d) Because Toto was expensive

 B. Very Short Answer (VSA)

1.Who sold Toto to Grandfather?
Answer: A tonga-driver sold Toto to Grandfather.

2.How much did Grandfather pay for Toto?

Answer: Grandfather paid five rupees for Toto.

3.What colour was Toto?

Answer: Toto was a pretty monkey with bright eyes and pearly white teeth; his body was covered with brown fur and his face was almost hairless.

4.What frightened elderly Anglo-Indian ladies about Toto?

Answer: His bright pearly-white teeth displayed in a smile frightened elderly Anglo-Indian ladies.

5.Where was Toto kept before being shown to Grandmother?

Answer: Toto was kept in a little closet opening into the narrator’s bedroom.

C. Short Answer Questions

1.Describe Toto’s appearance.
Answer: Toto had bright, mischievous eyes, deep-set under his eyebrows, with pearly-white teeth often showing in a smile. His body was covered with brown fur and his face was almost hairless, adding to his expressive look.

2.How was Toto’s tail useful?

Answer: His tail was almost as good as a hand and could be used to hang from branches or lift things.

3.Why did Grandfather think a tail adds to a monkey's good looks?

Answer: Grandfather believed that a tail, besides being useful, completed the monkey’s appearance and enhanced its good looks.

4.Where and how did Grandfather and the narrator keep Toto hidden from Grandmother?

Answer: They kept Toto in a small closet in the narrator’s bedroom and tied him to a peg, ensuring Grandmother wouldn’t discover him immediately.

5.How were Toto’s hands described in the passage?

Answer: His hands were quick and clever, with fingers that could hold and manipulate things skillfully.

D. Fill in the blanks

1.Grandfather bought Toto for a sum of ________. → five rupees

2.Toto’s teeth were ________ in colour. → pearly white

3.Toto’s fingers were described as ________ and ________. → quick, wicked

4.The closet where Toto was kept opened into ________’s bedroom wall. → the narrator’s

E. True/False

1.Grandmother was happy when new animals were brought home. → False

2.Toto’s tail was only for balance. → False

3.The tonga-driver kept Toto tied to a feeding-trough. → True

1. Very Short Answer Questions (1 mark each)

1. What did Grandfather and the narrator find when they returned to release Toto?
   Answer: The ornamental paper was torn off, showing naked brick and plaster; the peg was pulled out, and the narrator’s blazer was in shreds.

2. Who had chosen the ornamental paper for the wall?
   Answer: Grandfather.

3. What happened to the peg in the wall?
   Answer: It was wrenched from its socket.

4. Whose blazer was torn by Toto?
   Answer: The narrator’s.

5. Where was Toto kept after being removed from the house?
   Answer: In a big cage in the servants’ quarters.

6. Name two other animals in the servants’ quarters.
   Answer: A tortoise and a pair of rabbits. (Also: a tame squirrel and a goat.)

7. Why was Toto taken to Saharanpur?
   Answer: Because he wouldn’t let the other animals sleep and Grandfather had to collect his pension there.

8. In what was Toto kept during the trip?
   Answer: A big black canvas kit-bag.

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2. Short Answer Questions (2–3 marks each)

1. Why did Grandfather seem pleased with Toto’s mischief?
   Answer: Grandfather admired Toto’s cleverness and joked that given time, Toto could have tied the torn blazer into a rope to escape from the window.

2. Why did Toto have to be shifted from the servants’ quarters?
   Answer: He kept disturbing the other animals at night, not allowing them to sleep.

3. Describe the bag used for Toto during the trip to Saharanpur.
   Answer: It was a big black canvas kit-bag with straw at the bottom. When closed, it allowed no escape—Toto couldn’t push his hands through and couldn’t bite through the strong canvas.

4. How did Toto behave inside the kit-bag?
   Answer: He struggled to escape, making the bag roll on the floor or jump in the air, attracting the attention of onlookers.

5. What surprised the ticket-collector at the railway station?
   Answer: While Grandfather was showing his ticket, Toto poked his head out of the bag and grinned at him.

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3. MCQs

1. What did Grandfather and the narrator find when they came back to release Toto?
   a) The cage was broken
   b) The wall was bare and blazer torn
   c) The window was open
   d) Toto was missing
   Answer: b) The wall was bare and blazer torn

2. Where was Toto kept after being removed from the house?
   a) In the garden
   b) In the servants’ quarters cage
   c) In Grandfather’s room
   d) In the kitchen
   Answer: b) In the servants’ quarters cage

3. Which animal was NOT mentioned as living in the servants’ quarters?
   a) Tortoise
   b) Rabbit
   c) Parrot
   d) Squirrel
   Answer: c) Parrot

4. What material was the travel bag made of?
   a) Leather
   b) Canvas
   c) Jute
   d) Nylon
   Answer: b) Canvas

5. How did the crowd on the railway platform react to Toto’s movements inside the bag?
   a) They ignored it
   b) They laughed
   c) They were curious
   d) They complained
   Answer: c) They were curious

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4. Long Answer / Essay-type Questions (5 marks)

1. Describe Toto’s mischief in the room before being moved to the servants’ quarters.
   Answer: When Grandfather and the narrator returned, they found the ornamental paper torn off the walls, revealing bare brick and plaster. The peg had been pulled out of the wall, and the narrator’s school blazer was shredded. Grandfather, instead of being angry, admired Toto’s cleverness and humorously suggested that Toto might have tied the blazer pieces into a rope to escape from the window.

2. Narrate the events of Toto’s journey to Saharanpur as told in the passage.
   Answer: Since Toto disturbed the other animals at night, Grandfather decided to take him to Saharanpur. He was kept in a big black canvas kit-bag with straw at the bottom, which was strong enough to prevent his escape. Toto’s attempts to get out made the bag roll and jump, attracting curious onlookers at the Dehra Dun railway platform. He stayed inside until Saharanpur, but as Grandfather showed his ticket, Toto suddenly popped his head out and grinned at the ticket-collector, startling him.