Post Early for Christmas
R H Wood
1.
What was the Assistant’s experience the other day?
Why
does she consider people funny?
The Assistant considers people funny because the previous day a man came asking
her where he could get a stamp. She thought the man was playing a joke on her.
Then there was an old man who could not see very well. He put a glass on the
counter and asked her to give him a pint of beer. Surely he mistook the post
office for a bar.
2. Why does Mrs.
Smith dislike snow for Christmas?
Mrs. Smith dislikes snow for Christmas because she has rheumatism and snow would
worsen it. She could not enjoy last Christmas because of snow and rheumatism.
3. Why does the Assistant
insist on people posting early for Christmas?
The Assistant insists on people posting early for Christmas
because parcels can reach in time if you post early. Some parcels may get damaged in the last-minute rush.
4. What is
the purpose of the old Gentleman’s visit to the post office?
The old Gentleman comes to the post office to get his old age
pension.
5. Why does the Old Gentleman get angry with the
Assistant?
The old gentleman gets angry with the Assistant because he does not hear
properly. When the assistant asks him if he brought the book, he replies he
didn’t bring his “cook” and that his wife does all the cooking. The assistant
then says he did not hear what she “said”. The gentleman again misunderstands.
He thinks she told him that he ought to be in “bed”. This makes him angry and
he asks the Assistant not to be impudent.
6. What is the problem with Old Lady’s cat?
The Old Lady’s cat Tiddles is not eating her food.
She used to be a big eater. Tiddles has hurt her paw and it must have upset
her.
7. Why does the old lady decide to buy something from the post office?
The old lady decided to buy something from the post office because she came there thinking it was a vet’s clinic. The Assistant tells her where the clinic is. The lady feels that it would be rude to go away without buying something from her lovely post office. So she will buy a two half penny stamp. She thinks they are so beautiful and may be useful.
8. Why did
the farmer humorously enquire about the bombs?
The farmer humorously enquired about the bombs because he had the read the news
of a bomb found in a post office disguised as a Christmas parcel. Scotland Yard
has issued a warning that any suspicious-looking parcel should be reported at
once to the local police station.
9. What was the newspaper report on?
The newspaper report was about a time bomb found in a post office disguised as a parcel.
10. How according to Farmer Brown can a time bomb be detected?
Farmer Brown tells that a time-bomb usually ticks just before it goes off. The Farmer advises the Assistant that if any parcel makes funny noises, she should be careful.
11. Why does the Assistant tell the tourist that the parcel was
in time?
The Assistant tells the foreign tourist that the parcel was in time because it
will definitely reach its destination before Christmas.
12. Why is the tourist very anxious about
his parcel?
The tourist is very anxious about his parcel because it is a special kind of
present and he wants it to reach his friend without getting damaged. Later we
come to know that it is a beautiful clock brought all the way from Switzerland.
13. Why
does everyone in the post office become anxious about the Tourist’s parcel?
Everyone in the post office becomes anxious about the Tourist’s parcel because
it starts ticking. Earlier the Farmer Brown had talked about the time-bombs and
how they tick before exploding.
14. Why do the people
in the post office try to hide themselves?
The people in the post office try to hide themselves because the ticking from
the parcel gets louder as the Assistant picks it up. The Farmer tells the
people to take cover as he thinks the bomb will blast soon.
15. Why
does the Assistant bring a bucket of water?
The Assistant brings a bucket of water so that the parcel could be immersed in
it. It might prevent the time-bomb from going off.
16. Why does the tourist return to the post office?
The tourist returns to the post office to collect his gloves which he had left
behind. He had forgotten to take them with him when he left the post office
after handing over the parcel to the Assistant.
17. How does the play end?
The suspected time-bomb turns out to be a beautiful clock from Switzerland. The
tourist is angry with the policeman and the post office for ruining his present
for his friend. He said that he will make a complaint to the Postmaster
General. The Assistant quits her job at the post office and has decided to work
at the animal dispensary nearby. She says that animals don’t do such silly
things as people do.