1. Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow

As we walked back to the longhouse, Chabok, who was in front of me, suddenly stopped on the track and raised his blowpipe, quickly inserting a dart into the mouthpiece and packing the end with a small twist of raw cotton. To one side and above him, about twelve meters away, a squirrel was scampering on a branch. I wanted to see Chabok bring it down with a dart but at the same time I had an almost uncontrollable urge to cry out and frighten the animal away. It seemed such a small squirrel. Chabok aimed his blowpipe, and I felt myself holding my breath until he shot. went the dart as it left the end of the tube, and I didn't see it go. The squirrel stayed on the branch unmoved, and I was sure that he had missed and called to him. "You've missed it! You've missed!" and he began to run forward shouting, "1 haven't, Master! I haven't! I haven't!" Arid as he ran, the squirrel toppled over like a rag doll and hit the ground with a soft thud. It was still alive when Chabok picked it up -the poisoned splinter sticking right through its neck -but it was quite paralyzed and unable to move. It died some minutes later. On the way back to the longhouse Chabok sang happily for the first time since leaving the River Yai and in the evening, everyone had a small piece of squirrel meat. My own piece, no more than a mouthful, tasted like stringy rabbit.

The Temiar blowpipe is normally some two meters long and made from one single length of bamboo. It has a slender inner tube inside the outer covering so that one length warps against the other and it always remains true. From it they shoot a small dart, a splinter of wood some twenty or twenty-five centimeters in length; a pith cone at one end, the other sharpened.end tipped with poison. Most aborigines are extremely accurate with a blowpipe up to a range of nine to ten meters, though for some reason they are more accurate if the target is moving vertically than if it moves horizontally. Several times I have put a cigarette on end in a tree and watched it be pinned to the bark by a blowpipe dart but a cigarette placed parallel to the ground is missed seven times out of ten.

The poison with which the darts are smeared is a mixture of poisonous saps from jungle trees and creepers. The sap is tapped from the trees and creepers with knives and is collected in small bamboo cups. This is then stirred together and boiled. The darts are dipped in the boiled mixture and allowed to dry in the sun. Any surplus is left to cool and solidify and it can then be stored away for a considerable period -allegedly as long as two years. When next needed, it is soaked in fresh water and reboiled; but for some reason the water must be fresh and water which has been standing for several days in a bamboo container cannot be used. The strength of the poison can be varied according to the strength of the mixture. Usually the tips of the darts are one of three colors. The red-procured from a fully-grown poisonous tree in its prime -is the strongest and once in the bloodstream, is fatal after about six or seven minutes. The black -which is from an old poisonous tree -is effective after half an hour, and the white -from a young sapling tree -does not take effect until after a lapse of an hour or more.

Answer in your own words in full sentences.

Who do you think Chabok probably was?

Why was the writer/narrator tom between wanting to see Chabok shoot the squirrel with his blowpipe and wanting to frighten it away?

What does a Temiar blowpipe look like?

What conclusion did the writer draw from his observation that a cigarette placed parallel to the ground is missed seven times out of ten?

According to the passage, how do the aborigines make poisonous darts

2. Write a paragraph on anyone of the following: (150 words)

The benefits of exercising.

Why do people keep pets?

The effects of racial, sexual or religious discrimination.

The effects of growing up with a personal computer or a laptop.

3. Write a letter to the Head/Director of the Environmental Protection agency/organisation in your city/state/country; complaining about environmental pollution in your area and requesting that urgent action be taken to improve the situation.

4. What must you keep in mind when writing a 5 report? Give examples in support of your answer.

5. What are the main points you would need to keep in mind when writing a summary? Discuss.

6. Change the following sentences into the passive voice:

We have pulled down the old house.

All desire wealth and only some acquire it.

She showed me the greatest respect.

One expects better behaviour from a professional.

You must endure. What you cannot cure?

7. Fill in the blanks with suitable prepositions.

The man walked the street to get to the police station.

The actor was his fans at the award ceremony.

The letter of the bureau is for my grandmother.

My air can unit is my television in the living room.

The man paddled the canoe the shore of the lake.

8. Match the words in column with their synonyms in column


Attempt Hardworking
Predict Think about
Grumble Forecast
Ponder Try
Diligent Complain

9. Match the words in column with their antonyms in column



Propensity Sophisticated
Impromptu Bright
Timorous Disinclination
Accolade Rehearsed
Naive Reprimand


10. Make a summary of the following passage and 10 supply an appropriate title.

Have you ever wondered why soldiers are always clad in green? This is to enable them to camouflage themselves during wartime. Hiding in the jungles, their green attire blend into the surrounding trees and shrubs, making it difficult for the enemies to spot them.

Long before man make use of camouflaging, insects have already adopted tactic of disguise to escape from the clutches of their predators. By having body colors close to those of the rocks and dried leaves, they catch less attention from the predators and hence escape from being pursued. However, this kind of disguise works only if the insects remain still in the presence of their predators.

Butterflies and moths have developed a variety of camouflage strategies since they are quite defenceless and their predators -birds are abundant in supply. Many moth caterpillars resemble dead twigs while the young of certain species of butterflies appear like bird droppings. Adult butterflies and moths camouflage themselves too, in attempts to escape from their hunters -birds who are superior gliders. Possessing wings which resemble dried leaves help certain butterflies and moths to hide among heaps of dried leaves when predators are around.

Fortunately, not all insects choose the art of disguise to escape from their predators; otherwise, the world would be so dull and colorless. There are insects which assimilate the bright body colors of bees and wasps to escape from being pursued by their predators. The concept of mimicry was derived, owing to the bees and wasps. Long ago, birds have already learnt to avoid brilliantly colored wasps and bees in fear of their painful stings. Hence, over millions of years, many harmless insects have assimilated the bees and wasps by imitating their bright body colors and shapes. In this way, they appear dangerous to their predators and hence ward them off.

Mimics of the wasps and bees are most commonly found in the gardens. The furry, plump bee-fly not only appears like the bumble bee in terms of body colors, even its hums sound similar too. The only difference is that the bee-fly does not have a sting and is hence harmless. The hoverfly is another insect which imitates the body colors of the wasps. Their bodies are striped yellow and black. The only deviations are that hoverflies do not have stings and they have only one pair of wings each while wasps have two pairs each. These variations are hardly noticed by the predators and hence help them to escape.