Important Question and Answers
Q. In which shop the lights were still on?
Ans. The lights were still on in the old clock shop.
Q. Why were the lights still on in old clock shop?
Ans. The old and deaf owner of the shop was working on a watch.
Q. When did Ray get angry?
Ans. Ray felt angry when he saw the visitor keeping one of his hands restlessly in his right coat pocket and he also felt that he had a gun.
Q. Was Ray a pawn broker?
Ans. No, he was not a pawn broker, but he could not say ‘No’ to the needy people.
Q. Did he ever charge any interest on the loan amount?
Ans. No, he never charged any interest on the loan amount.
Q. How much money did Ray pay?
Ans. Ray paid fifty dollars.
Q. What did the man say while returning?
Ans. He said that he would come back to pick the watch as soon as possible and wished him happy Christmas.
Q. When did the little story end?
Ans. The little story ended, when clock struck “half an hour” all together.
Q. What was the message filled with?
Ans. The sweet massage was filled with hope.
Q. What was Ray doing in his shop at such a late hour?
Ans. Ray was working on a clock in his shop at such a late hour.
Q. How did Ray communicate with his customers?
Ans. Ray communicated with his customers by writing on a note pad.
Q. Why did the younger man stay at the door?
Ans. The younger man stayed at the door to probably keep a watch if somebody chanced to come in.
Q. Why did Ray give the older man more money than the wrist-watch was worth for?
Ans. Ray gave the older man more money than the watch was worth for because he knew that the two men were in need of money, so he wanted to help them. He also wanted to avoid a bad situation of a loot in his shop.
Q. “Ray was able to hide his growing fear”. What did Ray fear? Why was he trying to hide his fear?
Ans. Ray had understood that the two men were not customers, but robbers. He feared that they had come to loot him. He had also seen a gun in the right coat pocket of the older man. Ray was trying to hide his fear because he did not want the two men to know that he had understood their intention.
Q. How did his visitor react when Ray wrote, “May I help you”?
Ans. The visitor looked straight into Ray’s eyes. He smiled. It was a cruel smile mocking at the helplessness of Ray. Perhaps, he was mocking at Ray’s offer of help. He had came to rob and so he thought that it was Ray who needed help.
Q. Clocks gave a timeless message by striking together. How?
Ans. It is true that the clocks in the shop gave a message of humanity by striking together at the midnight. They gave a sweet musical message which was filled with hope and joy. No matter how evil a mind is, it can be changed with kindness and love. The two men came to the shop with an intention to rob the shopkeeper that night as they were in dire need of money. The shopkeeper became clear in his mind and understood their motive but behaved in a gentle way. Ray’s warm behavior changed their evil mind and they took a fifty-dollar note and went away peacefully. Ray did not show any anger. The message of peace and goodwill towards all was felt by three men in the old-clock shop, who were present in the shop at that time.