Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions that follow:
Holding under his arm an object wrapped in a newspaper, Sasha, walked
nervously into the office of Doctor Koshelkov.
‘My mother sends her regards and begs to thank you… I am my mother’s
only son and you have saved my life… and we both hardly know how to thank
you. We are not in a position to pay you for your trouble. Both of us, beg of you
to accept from us, as token of our gratitude, this object which is an object of
rare worth, a wonderful masterpiece in antique bronze.’
Sasha undid the package and enthusiastically placed it on the table. It was
a low candle-stand of antique bronze, a work of real art. On a pedestal stood
two figures of women scantily dressed. When the doctor saw the present, he
slowly scratched his head, cleared his throat and blew his nose.
‘Yes, indeed, a very pretty piece of work,’ he mumbled… ‘But, should I
place such a piece of art on my table, I would pollute my entire home! I am a
married man. Little children run in and out of this room and ladies come here
continually.’
‘Why, Doctor, what a strange conception you have of art!’ cried Sasha in
offended tones. ‘If you look at it through the eyes of the rustics, you see this
noble masterpiece in an entirely different light. But you certainly are above all
that, Doctor… my only regret is that we are unable to give you the second piece
of the candle-stand.’
After the departure of Sasha the doctor looked for a long time at the gift and
scratched his head. ‘This is beautiful, all right,’ he thought. ‘It would be a pity to
throw it away… And yet I dare not keep it… Hm!.. Now who in the world is there
to whom I can present it?’
After a long deliberation he hit upon a good friend of his, the lawyer Ukhov,
to whom he was indebted for legal services. Dressing himself, the doctor took
the showpiece and went to the home of Ukhov.
‘Good morning, old chap!’ he said. ‘I have come here to thank you for your
trouble. You will not take money, and I will therefore repay you by presenting
you with this exquisite masterpiece…’
As soon as the lawyer caught sight of it, he was exhilarated with its beauty.
‘What a wonderful work of art! But I can’t accept it, old chap. It is because
my mother often visits me, my clients come here…. and besides, I would be
disgraced even in the eyes of my servants.’ But the doctor refused to listen to
him. He ran out of Ukhov’s house thinking that he had got rid of his present.
The lawyer carefully examined the object of art. ‘A very beautiful object,’ he
said. ‘It is a pity to throw it away, and yet it is disgraceful to keep it.’
‘Why don’t you sell it?’ suggested his assistant. ‘There is a certain old
woman who buys up antique bronzes… Her name is Smirnova…
The lawyer followed his advice… The old woman was Sasha’s mother.
Two days later the doctor was sitting in his office. Suddenly the door was
opened and into the office rushed Sasha. In his hands he held something
wrapped in a newspaper.
‘Doctor!’ he cried breathlessly. ‘Imagine my joy! I’ve just succeeded in
getting the second piece of the candle-stand.’
(a) Give the meanings of the following words as used in the passage. One word
answers or short phrases will be accepted. [3]
(i) Token…………….
(ii) Conception………
(iii) Exhilarated……
(b) Answer the following questions briefly in your own words:
(i) Why did Sasha give a candle-stand to the doctor? [1]
(ii) When the doctor saw the gift, why did he scratch his head, clear his
throat and blow his nose? [2]
(iii) Why was the doctor hesitant to keep the gift on his table? [1]
(iv) How did Sasha justify to the doctor that his gift was worth keeping? [2]
(v) What did the lawyer do with the gift? [1]
(c) In not more than 50 words, state how Sasha got the “second piece” of the
set of the candle-stand.
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