02.The Adventures of Toto

SUMMARY

This is a story of a mischievous monkey. The writer's grandfather liked to collect animals and had a zoo at home. Once he bought a monkey named Toto from a tonga driver for a sum of five rupees. Toto was kept secretly as the writer's grandmother disliked animals. Toto was a very mischievous monkey. When the writer and his grandfather hid Toto in a cupboard, and tied him to a hook, he broke the hook and caused havoc in the room. The next day, when he was kept in the servants room along with other animals, he did not let them sleep all night. As writer's grandfather had to go to Saharanpur for work, he decided to take the monkey along with him. He carried Toto in a strong bag made of canvas and closed the zip nicely so that Toto could not escape. Toto made unsuccessful attempts to get out of the bag, which made the back jump and roll. This aroused the curiosity of fellow passengers at the railway station. when grandfather was getting his ticket checked. Toto peeked out of the bag and smiled at the ticket collector. As the ticket collector declared that it was a dog, grandfather had to buy a ticket of 3 rupees for him. Toto enjoyed taking bath in warm water dring the winter season. One day, Toto almost boiled himself when he jumped into a kettle of boiling water. One afternoon, Toto ate the family meal of pulao. He threw the empty dish from the tree and broke it into several pieces. Toto's mischiefs grew by the day and grandfather realised that they could not keep him at home. Finally, grandfather found the same tonga driver and sold Toto back to him for a sum of three rupees.

Think About It

Q1. How does Toto come to grandfather’s private zoo ?

Ans : Grandfather was fond of animals. He had seen little Toto tied to a feeding-trough with a tonga driver. He got sympathetic with Toto and thinks that his private zoo would be better place for him. So, he purchased Toto from that tonga driver for the sum of 5 rupee.

Q2. “Toto was a pretty monkey.“ In what sense is Toto pretty.

Ans : According to the narrator Toto was a pretty monkey. His bright eyes sparked with mischief beneath deep-set eyebrows, and his teeth, which were pearly white, were very often displayed in a smile that frightened the life out of elderly Anglo-Indian ladies. But his hands looked dried up as though they had been pickled in the sun for many years. Toto used his tail as his third hand. He used his tail to hang from branches and to pick up any dish.

Q3. Why does grandfather take Toto to Saharanpur and how ? Why does the ticket collector insist on calling Toto a dog ?

Ans : When Toto was transferred to a big cage in the servants quarters’ where a numbers of Grandfather’s pets lived very sociably together. But the monkey wouldn’t allow any of his companions to sleep at night; so Grandfather decided to take Toto to Saharanpur.
At the Railway station the ticked collector was following the rule. As he was unable to fixed the monkey’s fare he equated Toto with a dog and charge rupee 3 as his fare.

Q4. How does Toto take a bath ? Where has he learnt to do this ? How does Toto almost boil himself alive ?

And : In the winter evening Toto takes a bath in a bowl of warm water. He checks the temperature of the water then puts his leg in the water one by one. When the water reach his neck, he takes soap and rub it all over his body. When the water became cold Toto run to the kitchen fire to dry himself.
Toto has leant to do this by watching the narrator of this story .
Toto was fond of bathing with warm water. So finding the water just warm enough for a bath. Toto sits in the kettle left on the fire to boil for tea. This was just fine for a while, until the water began to boil. Toto then raised himself a little but finding it cold outside he sat down again in the kettle. He continued hopping up and down for some time, until Grandmother arrived and hauled him half-boiled, out of the kettle.

Q5. Why does the author say “ Toto was not the sort of pet we could keep for long” ?

Ans : Toto was a very mischief animal. He damaged a lot of things in the narrator’s house. He tore the ornamental papers from the wall, he shreds narrator’s blazer, wrenched the peg from its socked. He broke utensils and scared the guests. He didn’t even play with the animals at in the zoo. That’s why the author says “Toto was not the sort of pet we could keep for long”.