Intermediate F.Sc F.A ICS I.Com English XI Short Questions A Mild Attack Of Locusts 1st Year English Notes Online Taleem Ilmi Hub Class 11th
Q 1. What are locusts?
Ans. Locusts are large insects that live in hot countries and fly in large groups, destroying all the plants and crops of an area.
Q 2. Why did the farmers throw wet leaves on fire?
Ans. They wanted to make the smoke acrid and black so they threw leaves on the fire.
Q 3. What was the desire of every farmer?
Ans. Every farmer wanted the locusts to move to the next farm and overlook his farm.
Q 4. Did Margaret know what to do to keep the locusts away?
Ans. Margaret knew nothing how to keep the locusts away.
Q 5. What was the condition of trees?
Ans. All the trees were queer and still, clotted with insects. Their boughs weighed to the ground.
Q 6. How did old Stephen treat the stray locust which he found in his pocket?
Ans. He picked it and split down with his thumb nail.
Q 7. Are the hoppers different from the locusts?
Ans. New born locusts are hoppers.
Q 8. Did Margaret lose heart on the loss of crops?
Ans. Margaret lost heart to see the devastated and mangled land. She felt like a survivor after the war.
Q 9. Why are the locusts compared with the bad weather?
Ans. Locusts are compared with bad weather because both are harmful for the crops and both are imminent.
Q 10. Why did the men eat their supper with good appetites?
Ans. They were tired because they had tried hard to save their crops. They also thought that it could have been worse. They were planning for their future crops.
Q 11. How did the farmers try to prevent the main swarm of locusts from landing on their farms?
Ans. The farmers gathered piles of wood and grass. They burnt fires from which thick clouds of smoke were rising. They were throwing wet leaves on to the fires to make the smoke acrid and black. Everywhere, fifty miles over the countryside, the smoke was rising from myriads of fires. The air got thick with smoke. The only way to prevent the main swarm of locusts from landing on their farm was to make enough smoke and enough noise till sun went down. All these efforts were made to keep the main swarm away.
Q 12. Why, even after all the crops were destroyed, did the men continue to fight the swarm?
Ans. A man informed that all the crops had been finished. The locusts had eaten every leaf and every blade of grass but the men still kept beating the gongs and shouting. They continued to fight the swarm because the main swarm was not settling. The locusts were heavy with eggs. They were looking for a place to settle and lay. The farmers wanted to stop the main body settling on their farm. If they got a chance to lay their eggs, the hoppers would eat everything later on. They did not want to see a hopper swarm on the march.
Q 13. What was the condition of the land when the locusts had moved to the south?
Ans. The locusts had finished everything. Not a single leaf was left. Everything was to be replanted. People hoped that there would be rain very soon and there would be some new grass. Otherwise the cattle would die. The farm was barren. The land was giving a look of ruin. Countryside was devastated and mangled. The whole picture was gloomy devoid of greenery.
Q 14. What are the measures the farmers should have taken to save their crops?
Ans. The attack of locusts cannot be avoided be taking any measures. It is a calamity. What all the farmers can do is to make them change their course. They should cooperate with each other forgetting their personal differences. They should collect dry wood and leaves to burn huge fires and generate black smoke. The farmers should get their crops properly sprayed. They should seek the help of government to provide them such facilities as are helpful to face the calamity.
Q 15. Write a note on the character on Margaret.
Ans. Margaret sees the locusts coming and starts shouting vigorously. She stands all the time looking towards the smoke of fires. She has a deep concern over the grave situation. She actively attends the phone calls and answers properly without losing sight of the locusts. She is very anxious to help her people but cannot find any means. She is inquisitive about the noise even after the destruction. She also asks about the hopper swarm and becomes frightened. She prefer not even to think of locusts and wants to get used to the idea of three to four years of locusts. She feels dejected at the devastation caused by the locusts. She has never seen such havoc in her life.
Q 16. Where did the houseboy run and why?
Ans. The houseboy ran off to the store to collect tin cans or any piece of metal.
Q 17. What was happening over seven patches of bared soil?
Ans. Thick clouds of smoke were drifting up from each patch of bared soil.
Q 18. What was every farmer hoping?
Ans. Every farmer was hoping that the locust would overlook his farm and go on to the next.
Q 19. What was the strange darkness like?
Ans. It was like the darkness of a veldt fire, when the air gets thick with smoke.
Q 20. How were all the trees looking?
Ans. All the trees were queer and still. They were clotted with insects. Their boughs weighed to the ground.
Q 21. What was the scene in the evening amid locusts?
Ans. In the evening, the air was not black and thick. It was clear blue, with a pattern of insects whizzing this way and that across it. Everything else like trees, buildings, bushes, earth was gone under the moving brown masses.
Q 22. Why did the farmers want to kill the locusts?
Ans. The farmers wanted to kill the locusts because they knew that the insects would eat each and every single blade of the crops. They were afraid of complete devastation. They tried their best to save their crops but failed.
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