Quiz Questions 141 to 150
| Round
141 - 12 February 2003 Doctor's Orders Providing they're not
advising Earls to apply horse liniment to sprained From the treatment prescribed can you identify the following well-meaning practitioners of the Hippocratic art, their patients and the circumstances? 1. Who recommended inserting a snake into a man's bed to "increase the secretory activity of the thyroid, suprarenal and pituitary glands" and confidently asserted the treatment "Bucks you up, you know. Regular tonic. It'll be like a day at the seaside for old ___(X)___ when he puts his bare foot on (the snake)." 2. Who, alarmed at the lady of the house's wheezing, which he put down as an indication of heightened blood pressure, prescribed first some gentle exercise and then a course of gentle massage to alleviate the problem, "which wouldn't have done for the Duke"? 3. Who advised a hangover patient to mix a couple of 'Never-Say-Dies', by placing one raw egg in half a wineglass of Worcester Sauce, sprinkling liberally with red pepper, adding four aspirins and stirring? HINT: No, the correct
answer is not Jeeves. But then, you'll gather that 4. Who, after
discussing a fool-proof method for eliminating a double-chin,
went on to add, "Of course, if it's a question of
reducing the tummy, that's different. You have to go down
on all fours and crawl 5. In the following example we're looking for the name of the unfortunate rheumatism sufferer ("A") and the identity of the amateur doctors "B" and "C", with their widely differing remedies. "My rheumatism was very bad last night, Mr __(B)__. (...) It kept me awake a very long time, Mr __(B)__. "I read in the paper the other day that bee-stings sometimes have a good effect. (...) You get yourself stung by bees, and the acid or whatever it is in the sting draws out the acid or whatever it is in you." __(A)__ was silent for awhile, and __(B)__ supposed he was about to ask if he could direct him to a good bee. Such, however, was not the butler's intention. (...) "I was awake with my rheumatism last night, Mr __(B)__, and at last it came on so bad I felt I really couldn't hardly bear it no longer. I lay in bed, thinking, and after I had thought for quite some time, Mr __(B)__, it suddenly crossed my mind that Mr __(C)__ had once remarked, while kindly interesting himself in my little trouble, that a glassful of whisky, drunk without water, frequently alleviated the pain." __(B)__ nodded. So far, the story bore the stamp of truth. A glassful of neat whisky was just what __(C)__ would have recommended for any complaint, from rheumatism to a broken heart. Click here to go to Quiz Answers Round 142 - 20 February 2003 Music Hath Charms It's pretty generally recognized that the chappie Congreve hit the nail on the head when he opined that Music hath charms to soothe the savage breast, to soften rocks or bend a knotted oak. But even the most charming of musical selections sometimes runs up against a savage breast that obstinately declines to be soothed. We have four such examples this week and are looking for the names of the principal characters involved. If you like this week's quiz the credit goes to former Quizmaster Arthur Robinson, who inadvertently inspired the topic when his recent canine quiz led me to the house-breaking scene in The Girl on the Boat when Sam Marlowe roused a country house in the small hours by accidentally turning on an orchestrion at maximum volume. If, on the other hand, you don't like this week's quiz, I'll take 100% of the blame. 1. "______________!" yodelled ____(A)____, flinging his head back and giving tongue in a high, penetrating tenor which caused ninety-three _________, lunching in the vicinity, to congeal into living statues of alarm and disapproval. (...) The __________________ Club is one of the few places in London where lunchers are not accustomed to getting music with their meals. White-whiskered financiers gazed bleakly at bald-headed politicians, as if asking silently what was to be done about this. Bald-headed politicians stared back at white-whiskered financiers, replying in the language of the eye that they did not know. The general sentiment prevailing was a vague determination to write to the Committee about it. 2. (...) there came to us from the drawing-room below the sound of a fresh young voice chanting, to the accompaniment of a piano, what exhibited all the symptoms of being an old English folk song. The ear detected a good deal of 'Hey nonny nonny', and all that sort of thing. The uproar had the effect of causing ___(B)___'s eyes to smoulder behind the spectacles. It was as if he were feeling that this was just that little bit extra which is more than man can endure. "___(name of singer)__!" he said bitterly. "Singing at a time like this!" He snorted and left the room. 3. Of all the uncounted millions who in their time have listened to bands playing "Poet and Peasant", few can ever have listened with such a restless impatience as did ___(C)____ on this occasion. Time was flying. Every second was precious. At any moment disaster might befall. And the band went on playing as if it had taken on a life job. It seemed to him an eternity before their final oom-pom-pa. (...) ____(C)____, with a dull despair, perceived that they were going to get an encore. Of all the far-flung myriads who year in and year out have listened to bands playing the "Overture" to Raymond, few can have ever chafed as did ____(C)___ now. This suspense was unmanning him, this delay was torture. He took the papers and a fountain pen from his pocket and toyed with them nervously. He wondered dully as he sat there how the opera Raymond had ever managed to get itself performed, if the "Overture" was as long as this. They must have rushed it through in the last five minutes of the evening as the audience groped for its hats and wraps. 4. At this point, just when everything was so tense and it only needed a spark to precipitate the explosion, what should happen but that the laryngitis-patient on the screen suddenly burst into song. It was the end. I could see the grim look on ___(D)___'s face deepen. There was a little fellow sitting in the row in front, and for some mysterious reason he seemed to think that in him he had found one of the ringleaders. He leaned over and tapped him on the shoulder. "Is that you makin' that singin' noise?" he demanded. And he scooped the chap out of his seat like a winkle from its shell and held him up. To examine his vocal chords, I suppose. The next moment the little man's companion, a woman of the sort that stands no nonsense, was hitting him with her umbrella. Somebody in the row behind jumped on his back. Somebody else grabbed his neck. And in about a quarter of a minute the action had become general. Click here to go to Quiz Answers Round 143 - 1 March 2003 Crossed Signals It is probably fair to say that Wodehouse plots have misunderstandings the way Blandings Castle has impostors. We're not concerned this week with Madeline Bassett thinking Bertie Wooster was proposing to her when he was actually sowing the seeds for Gussie Fink-Nottle or with Lord Emsworth coming back with an elephant after being sent on an errand to purchase apples. Not that he did, but Freddie Threepwood considered it a distinct possibility. This week we're looking for examples when Bloke or Blokess "A" says one thing and Chap or Chappette "B" hears something else. As an example, while we're on this A and B theme, there was the time Bertie was providing a hypothetical scenario to Jeeves involving some problems being encountered by A and B when a third person complicated the situation. "Shall we call him C, sir?" suggested Jeeves. "Caesar's as good a name as any, I suppose," agreed the Young Master. No harm was done in that case but more often than not disaster ensued. Your task is to identify the people involved in the following examples, provide a brief re-cap of the circumstances and the name of the relevant short story or novel. 1. Who mistook "Wilton Street" for "Milton Street"? Was it (a) Lord Biskerton, (b) the Rev. Cuthbert Bailey, (c) Maudie Beach-Montrose-Stubbs-Digby-Bunbury, (d) William Galahad Lister, or (e) Mrs Alice Punter? 2. Who heard "meal" and thought "mille"? Was it (a) FF Widgeon, (b) the Marquis de Maufringneuse, (c) Richard "Bingo" Little, (d) Alfred Mulliner, or (e) the Vicomte de Blissac? 3. Not precisely an example of mis-hearing someone, as the two parties in this conversation were in complete agreement that "the last bedroom on the left" was the operative phrase. The trouble started when the party of the second part in the conversation took that to mean the end bedroom on the left looking at the house when in fact the speaker was referring to the bedroom on the extreme left looking from the house. Was the subsequent bungled burglary attempted by (a) Soapy Molloy, (b) SF Ukridge, (c) Percy Pilbeam, (d) Bertie Wooster, or (e) Pongo Twistleton? 4. Who mistook "miniature" for "Minnie Shaw"? This somewhat lackadaisical telephonist also misheard the name of the caller but we won't provide that clue in order to maintain the degree of difficulty of the question. 5. And finally, who are the principals in the following slightly edited slab of dialogue? "I was assaulted by the duck pond." "How the devil can you be assaulted by a duck pond?" "When I said 'by the duck pond', I didn't mean 'by the duck pond', I meant 'by the duck pond'. That is to say," proceeded ___(X)___, speaking just in time, "'near' or 'adjacent to', in fact 'on the edge of'. I was the victim of an aggravated assault on the edge of the duck pond, sir. Somebody pushed me in." Click here to go to Quiz Answers Round 144 - 10 March 2003 Unforgettable Cameos (Part Two) As we pointed out in Round #66, you don't have to be a major character like Bertie Wooster or even have an important supporting role like Vladimir Brusiloff or Angus McAllister to make your mark in Wodehouse. The canon is full of bit part walk-on artistes made unforgettable by their dialogue, action or description. Some like young Ern, memorable for biting Lady Constance on the leg and wearing hair oil for the Feet, don't even have speaking parts. Please identify the characters referred to in the following extracts and the stories in which they make their appearance. 1. It was at this moment that the distinguished-looking stranger entered the platform. The newcomer was a man of imposing physique, simply dressed in pyjamas, brown boots and a mackintosh. In his hand he carried a top-hat, and into this he was dipping his fingers, taking them out, and then waving them in a curious manner to right and left. (...) "Just scattering largesse to the multitude," replied the stranger, dipping his fingers once more and waving them with a generous gesture. "Devil of a bore, but it's expected of a man in my position." 2. Temperament is a thing that cuts both ways. It brings in the money, but it also leads to violent outbursts on the part of its possessor similar to those so common among the natives of the Malay States. Every ____(X)____ picture grossed five million, but in the making of them she was extremely apt, if thwarted in some whim, to run amok, sparing neither age nor sex. A procedure, accordingly, had been adopted not unlike that in use during air raids in the War. At the first sign that the strain had become too much for Miss ___(X)___, a siren sounded, warning all workers on the lot to take cover. Later, a bugler, blowing the 'All Clear', would inform those in the danger zone that the star had now kissed the director and resumed work on the set. (Note: As you will probably have guessed for yourself, the "X" in an "___(X)___ picture" refers to a character's name, not to a classification by a Board of Censors. And, being a star, X would probably be none too pleased to find herself included in a quiz dedicated to "bit-part walk-on artistes", as I put it in the introduction. Let's keep it our little secret, shall we?) 3. ___(A)___ had left the Fatherland a good many years before with the prudent purpose of escaping military service. After various vicissitudes in the land of his adoption – which it would be extremely interesting to relate, but which must wait for a more favourable opportunity – he had secured a useful and not ill-recompensed situation as one of the staff of Reigelheimer's Restaurant. He was, in point of fact, a waiter, and he comes into the story at this point bearing a tray full of glasses, knives, forks, and pats of butter on little plates. He was setting a table for some new arrivals, and in order to obtain more scope for that task he had left the crowded aisle beyond the table and come round to the edge of the dancing-floor. He should not have come out on to the dancing-floor. In another moment he was admitting that himself. For just as he was lowering his tray and bending over the table in the pursuance of his professional duties, along came ___(B)__ at his customary high rate of speed, propelling his partner before him, and for the first time since he had left home ___(A)___ was conscious of a regret that he had done so. There are worse things than military service! 4. Please identify the champion, C, and provide details of the contest she wins in the following extract: Just as the policeman stood vacillating, there peeped through the clouds a ray of sunshine. It fell on ___(C)___'s face, causing her to screw it up in a hideous grimace. At the same instant, with the race neck and neck, she suddenly started blowing bubbles out of the corner of her mouth. The policeman hesitated no longer. He took ___(C)___'s hand and raised it. "The winnah!" he said. "But you ought to see the one I've got at home." Click here to go to Quiz Answers Round 145 - 18 March 2003 Damsels and Dragons Wodehouse's heroes, though often short on the grey matter, are full of chivalry. Identify the knights (Ancient & Modern) and fair damsels. 1. The restraints of modern civilization irked him. It was not, he told himself, like this in the good old days. In the Middle Ages, for example, this girl would have been a Damsel; and in that happy time practically everybody whose technical rating was that of Damsel was in distress and only too willing to waive the formalities in return for services rendered by the casual passer-by. Name the damsel who has inspired these meditations. 2. Take the case of a knight of old, he meant to say. Was anyone going to tell him that if a knight of old had been sent off by a damsel on some fearfully tricky quest and had gone through all sorts of perils and privations for her sake, facing dragons in black satin and risking going to chokey and what not, the girl would have given him the bird when he got back, simply because – looking at the matter from a severely technical standpoint – he had failed to bring home the gravy? Who is the man who went on this fearfully tricky quest, and for what action did he nearly go to chokey? 3. "This dragon, now?" said A__. For a moment the damsel did not reply. "A fearsome worm, Sir Knight," she said at length. "It raveneth by day and by night. It breathes fire from its nostrils." "Does it!" said A__. "Does it! You couldn't give some idea what it looks like, what kind of size it is?" "Its body is as thick as ten stout trees, and its head touches the clouds." "Does it!" said A__ thoughtfully. "Does it!" "Oh, Sir Knight, I pray you have a care." "I will," said A__. And he had seldom said anything more fervently. The future looked about as bad as it could be. Any hopes he may have entertained that this dragon might turn out to be comparatively small and inoffensive were dissipated. This was plainly no debilitated wreck of a dragon, its growth stunted by excessive fire-breathing. A body as thick as ten stout trees! He would not even have the melancholy satisfaction of giving the creature indigestion. For all the impression he was likely to make on that vast interior, he might as well be a salted almond. Name the knight and damsel. 4. "Good-bye, Mr Rawlinson," she said brightly, extending her hand. "Thank you so much for looking after me." B__ took his cue. With a courteous bow in the direction of the more formidable than ever Aunt C__ he moved off down the platform. He had, as he went, something of the emotions of a knight of old compelled by other engagements to ride off and leave a maiden at the mercy of a dragon. Identify the modern counterparts of the damsel in distress, the knight, and the dragon. Click here to go to Quiz Answers Round 146 - 27 March 2003 Wodehouse's stories are full of detectives, some of them busy detecting impostors, others busy doing their own imposting. Deduce the identities of the following sleuths (two m's, ditto f's). 1. This was the first time he had ever been in the office of a private investigator, and it occurred to him that here was an admirable opportunity of picking up a little atmosphere, which might come in useful when the moment arrived for starting his next novel. He sat down at the desk, noting as Fact One concerning these human bloodhounds, that they apparently liked to work in dusty surroundings, no doubt in order to retain the fingerprints of callers. Name the (alleged) detective who owns this office, and his uninvited guest. 2. It was the Adventure of the Missing Sealyham that brought the young couple together. From the purely professional standpoint, A__ has never ranked this among his greatest triumphs of ratiocination; but, considering what it led to, he might well, I think, be justified in regarding it as the most important case of his career. What happened was that he met the animal straying in the park, deduced from the name and address on its collar that it belonged to B__, and took it thither at the conclusion of his stroll and restored it. Name the detective and the dog's owner. 3. "Exactly. So we must engage the services of someone who can, someone trained to the task, someone whose profession it is to keep an eye on the criminal classes, and most fortunately we are able to lay our hand on just such a person. The guiding spirit of Digby's Day and Night Detectives." C__ gave a start which set both his chins quivering ... "I am in perfect agreement with what you say with regard to the necessity of employing a trained observer to scrutinize D__'s movements, Mr E__, but you are surely not thinking of bringing F__ here? Her appearance--" "I remember her as looking rather like Mae West." "Precisely, sir. It would never do." "I don't follow you, C__." "I was thinking of G__, sir. ... I gravely doubt whether her reactions would be wholly favourable, were you to introduce into the castle a private investigator who is the niece of her butler and looks like Miss Mae West." Name F, the guiding spirit of the detective agency. What ghastly crime is she being brought in to prevent? 4. H__ had gone to the open window and was gazing out into the night when I__ entered the drawing-room. "You wished to see me, Mr H__?" H__ spun round ... "Oh, good evening, I__. You came in very quietly." "Habit," said the parlourmaid. Name the parlourmaid/private detective. Why has H hired her? For extra credit, name another private detective who masquerades as a parlourmaid. Click here to go to Quiz Answers Round 147 - 7 April 2003 Last week we met some of Wodehouse's detectives; this week, star billing goes to their spiritual ancestor, Sherlock Holmes, who is mentioned in many of Wodehouse's stories, from The Pothunters through Aunts Aren't Gentlemen. Identify the novels in which the following passages occur. 1. "Is that based on psychology?" "Yes, sir. Possibly you may remember that it was an axiom of the late Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's fictional detective, Sherlock Holmes, that the instinct of everyone, upon an alarm of fire, is to save the object dearest to them." "It seems to me that there is a grave danger of seeing A__ come out carrying a steak-and-kidney pie...." Name the person proposing this scheme and the person with a fondness for steak-and-kidney pie. 2. Sherlock Holmes himself might have been misled. One can hear him explaining the thing to Watson in one of those lightning flashes of inductive reasoning of his. "It is the only explanation, my dear Watson. If the lady were merly complimenting the gardener on his rose-garden, and if her smile were merely caused by the excellent appearance of that rose-garden, there would be an answering smile on the face of the gardener. But, as you see, he looks morose and gloomy." Who is the gloomy gardener? 3. For the Doctor Watsons of this world, as opposed to the Sherlock Holmeses, success in the province of detective work must be, to a very large extent, the result of luck. Sherlock Holmes can extract a clue from a wisp of straw or a flake of cigar-ash. But Doctor Watson has got to have it taken out for him, and dusted, and exhibited clearly, with a label attached. The average man is a Doctor Watson. We are wont to scoff in a patronizing manner at that humbler follower of the great investigator, but, as a matter of fact, we should have been just as dull ourselves. We should not even have risen to the modest level of a Scotland Yard bungler. We should simply have hung around, saying: "My dear Holmes, how--?" and all the rest of it, just as the down-trodden medico did. ... B__ had read all the Holmes stories with great attention, and had thought many times what an incompetent ass Doctor Watson was; but now that he had started to handle his first case, he was compelled to admit that that there was a good deal to be said in extentuation of Watson's inability to unravel tangles. Who is B, and what case is he handling? (Note: a revised and condensed version of this passage appears in a later novel. If you cannot identify B, you can get half credit for citing the later novel.) 4. This was the first time I had seen C__ today, she having gone off around noon to lunch with some friends in Birmingham, and I would willingly not have seen her now, for something in her manner seemed to suggest that she spelled trouble. She was looking more like Sherlock Holmes than ever. Slap a dressing-gown on her and give her a violin, and she could have walked straight into Baker Street and no questions asked. Who is the Sherlock lookalike, what is her profession, and of whom is she suspicious? Extra Credit: According to Adrian Mulliner, what is Sherlock Holmes's secret? (To save you time, the answer is not in "The Smile That Wins" but a much later story.) Click here to go to Quiz Answers Round 148 - 16 April 2003 Something Squishy This Way Comes In Wodehouse's novels, even snakes are usually amiable. Even so, those who encounter them generally do so without marked enthusiasm. Name the serpentine characters. 1. Much has been written on the subject of bed-books. The general consensus of opinion is that a gentle, slow-moving story makes the best opiate. If this be so, dear old A__'s choice of literature had been rather injudicious. His book was The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, and the particular story which he selected for perusal was the one entitled "The Adventure of the Speckled Band." ... The tale, it may be remembered, deals with the activities of an ingenious gentleman who kept a snake, and used to loose it into people's bedrooms as a preliminary to collecting on their insurance. It gave A__ pleasant thrills, for he had always had a particular horror of snakes. ... His heart gave a bound. There it was again, that hissing sound. And this time he was sure it came from the window. He looked at the window, and remained staring, frozen. Over the sill, with a graceful, leisurely movement, a green snake was crawling. As it crawled, it raised its head and peered from side to side, like a short-sighted man looking for his spectacles. It hesitated a moment on the edge of the sill, then wriggled to the floor and began to cross the room. A__ stared on. Name A and his new roommate. 2. "B__, my snake, has the cutest way of climbing up the leg of the table and looking at you pleadingly in the hope that you will give him soft-boiled egg, which he adores. He did it this morning, and no sooner had his head appeared over the table than C__, with a kind of sharp wail, struck him a violent blow on the nose with a teaspoon." Name the snake whose popularity as a breakfast-table companion rivals Madeleine Bassett's. For extra credit, what does he have in common with the snake in the previous passage? 3. But D__ and E__ were listening to the slithery sound which had attracted their attention earlier. It had come again, and this time it was no longer a disembodied rustling. A large green snake was making its way across the carpet. F__'s misgivings had been well-founded. In saying that he had forgotten to pack G__, he had not erred. At the moment when he was gathering up his little flock, she had been overlooked, and for some time she had explored her new surroundings, broadening her mental outlook by taking in fresh objects of interest and finally falling into a light doze under an armchair. Waking now from this, she had started out on another sight-seeing tour. E__'s foot engaged her notice, and she made for it at a speed highly creditable to a reptile with no feet, for she had begun to feel a little peckish. The foot might prove edible or it might not--time alone could settle the point--but it seemed to her worth investigation. ... At the sight of G__ all the woman in [E] awoke, and with a sharp cry she leaped for the sofa, the nearest object of furniture that seemed capable of raising her to an elevation promising temporary security. At the same time D__, who shared her dislike of snakes, took to himself the wings of a dove and soared to the top of the book-case. G__, a little taken aback, looked from one to the other with a puzzled expression ... Again, name the snake (G). 4. "When that last fellow quit," said H__, stirring her coffee grimly and looking a little like a rattlesnake, if one can imagine a rattlesnake stirring coffee, "he thought he had finally fought off the challenge. But he's living in a fool's paradise. As long as there's a valet left in England, I__ gets him." Name H, the rattlesnake-impersonator. Extra Extra Credit: Name the Wodehouse heroine who states that when her uncle looks at her, "I always feel like a rabbit and a snake." Click here to go to Quiz Answers Round 149 - 28 April 2003 Knitting Hello again. Your nerves may well need soothing after Arthur’s brilliant snake round. So here is a nice, cosy, Jane Marpleish theme – knitting. Bonus points for references and other relevant details. 1. “(...) You'll have to rub up your putting before next year.” At the idea that any such mundane pursuit as practising putting could appeal to his broken spirit now, Sam uttered a bitter laugh. It was as if Dante had recommended some lost soul in the Inferno to occupy his mind by knitting jumpers. “Well, you seem to be in great spirits (...) It’s pleasant to hear your merry laugh again. (...)” Who was the tortured soul? Sam Bagshott? Sam Bulpitt? Sam Marlowe? Sam Shotter? 2. “(...) Excuse me a moment,” murmured Mr A, applying himself to the sock again. “I'm just turning the heel. Do you knit?” “No.” “Sleep does. It knits up the ravelled sleave of care.” Who was the whimsical knitter (Mr A)? 3. “To settle a bet,” said James, “will you please tell us who – I should say, whom – you are knitting that sweater for?” “It is not a sweater,” replied Miss B, with a womanly candour that well became her. “It is a sock. And it is for my cousin Juliet’s youngest son, Willie.” Please name the generous knitter (Miss B). 4. She attached a lead to Willie-dog's collar, and made for the door. (...) “Hey!” exclaimed C, pointing. “You've dropped your knitting, and it's dragging.” Who was the irreverent wag (C)? Click here to go to Quiz Answers Round 150 - 6 May 2003 Stamp collection This is number 150, a nice Round number, and some sort of celebration seems to be called for. Now, in similar circumstances sovereign states issue commemorative stamps, but your humble Quizmistress cannot do so. Faute de mieux she is offering you a small stamp collection. Come on, now, do have a go! I am sure ‘you are all gentlemen and sportsmen who are ready at all times to take part in a little sporting flutter’, as dear old Mustard Pott used to say. Bonus marks for references and other details. 1. “(...) I am broad-minded. If Uncle George wants to marry waitresses, let him, say I. I hold that the rank is but the penny stamp — ” “Guinea stamp, sir.” “All right, guinea stamp. Though I don’t believe there is such a thing. I shouldn’t have thought they came higher than five bob. Well, as I was saying, I maintain that the rank is but the guinea stamp and a girl’s a girl for all that.” Please name both the stamp expert and the Burns scholar. 2. “Woof-woof-woof!” said X. “Wow-Wow-Wow!” yapped the dog, suddenly returning to the scene (...). The effect on X was catastrophic. Ever a high-strung bird, he lost completely the repose which stamps the caste of Vere de Vere and the better order of parrot. His nerves were shocked, and, as always under such conditions, his impulse was to bite blindly. He bit, and Henry – one feels sorry for Henry: he was a well-meaning man – leaped back with a loud howl. What name does X stand for? Bill, Leonard, or Polly? 3. “(...) So I quit. But gee! It’s tough on a fellow to have to sit out of the game and watch a bunch of cheeses like this new crop of middle-weights swelling around and calling themselves fighters when they couldn’t lick a postage-stamp, not if it was properly trained. Hell! Beg pardon, ma’am.” “I find you an interesting study, Mr Y,” said Mrs Z thoughtfully. “I have never met a pugilist before. (...)” Please identify Mr Y. Was he Battling Billson, Kid Brady, Steve Dingle, or Howard (‘Mugsy’) Steptoe? For extra credit name Mrs Z as well. 4. “Then may I consider,” I said, “that your objections are removed? I have your consent?” He stamped angrily, and his bare foot came down on a small, sharp pebble. With a brief exclamation he seized his foot in one hand and hopped up the beach. While hopping, he delivered his ultimatum. Probably the only instance on record of a father adopting this attitude in dismissing a suitor. “You may not!” he cried. “You may consider no such thing. (...)” Who were the hopeful suitor and the hopping (mad) father? |