Class 10 English Chapter 3 Question Answers - The Midnight Visitor

Q1: Presence of mind and intelligence are more powerful than a gun. How far is it true in case of Ausable, the secret agent?

Ans: Ausable is actually not of that kind as we read in detective stories and books. Nor is he like the heroes of James Bond films. Ausable is an exception. The young writer, Fowler, is disappointed after meeting Ausable. Ausable does not fit any description of a secret agent. He is fat and sloppy. His room is rather small, and that too on the sixth floor. However, appearances are often deceptive. Ausable proves that the presence of mind and intelligence is more powerful than a gun.
The presence of mind and intelligence are the assets of Ausable. His sharp reaction, particularly to a dangerous situation, is very quick and thorough. When he finds crafty Max in the room with a pistol in his hand, he at once understands the purpose of his visit. The rival secret agent who has come to take away the important report that concerns some new missiles must be outwitted and defeated in his own game. Ausable cooks up the stories of the balcony and the police so convincingly that Max falls into his trap. While there is no balcony below the window of his room, the knockings at the door are not of the police but of his waiter. The confused and unnerved Max jumps out of the window in desperation. Thus, through his presence of mind and intelligence, Ausable proves himself more powerful than a gun.

Q2: Describe in detail the two false stories planted by Ausable to get rid of Max, the secret agent of the rival organization. Did the false stories have the desired effect? Give a reasoned answer.

Ans: The presence of mind, quick reactions, and a fertile brain more than compensated for the fat and sloppy man, Ausable. His fertile brain and the stories he cooked up proved more than a match for a gun-wielding rival, Max. Ausable started in a simple but natural way with the story of the balcony below the window of his room. He was able to convince Max that his balcony had really become a nuisance. It was the second time in the month that somebody had got into his room. Actually, it was a clever trap for Max to fall in and the desperate and nervous Max did fall into the trap. He jumped out of the window in desperation to avoid being arrested or shot at by the police.
The second story related to the police was a masterstroke. It was the product of his fertile brain. Ausable knew that he could unnerve his gun-wielding rival by showing the threat to the police. He planted a false story that he himself sought the protection of the police. After all, the all-important report about the new missiles needed some extra protection. The loud knocking at the door signaled the arrival of the police. Max asked Ausable to send the police away. Ausable convinced Max that the police wouldn’t hesitate to shoot. In desperation, he jumped out, never to be able to come back again. Later on, Fowler found that the knocking at the door was done by the waiter. He entered with a tray, a bottle, and two glasses.

Q3: "The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist." Comment with reference to Ausable’s character.
Ans: The quote aptly relates to Ausable's character. Just like the devil in the quote, Ausable conceals his true nature as a secret agent. His interaction with Max justifies the quote. By pretending to be a disinterested individual, he convinces Max, and even Fowler, that he is not a formidable opponent. In reality, he had a great presence of mind, was quick - witted and persuasive. He fabricated a story about the balcony and the police to befool Max. The story was so convincing that Max jumped down the window. He did not think for a moment that it might be a false story. In this way, he gets rid of his enemy Max. He showcases the power of deception and how appearances can be misleading, much like the trick the devil is said to have pulled.

Q4: At the beginning of the story, Fowler feels disappointed with Ausable. Do you think Fowler had the same feeling toward the end of the story? Give reasons for your answer.

Ans: At the beginning of the story, Fowler feels disappointed with Ausable because he does not look at all like a secret agent of his imagination. He found him quite boring. He did not want to be with him anymore. But when he found Max in his room with a gun, he was thrilled. He found that Ausable was not at all perturbed. He cooked up a story about the balcony outside his window. When the waiter knocked at the door, Ausable told Max that it would be the police. He told him that he had called the police for the security of that important paper. Hearing this, Max jumped outside the window to the balcony. But there was no balcony. He fell from the sixth floor and died. Thus, Fowler was thrilled to see all this. So towards the end of the story, he was not disappointed with Ausable.

Q5: Give a character sketch of Ausable highlighting his presence of mind and intelligence.

Ans: Ausable is a different kind of secret agent. Generally, secret agents that are described in detective books and shown in films are very smart and gun-friendly. Wine and dark-eyed beauties are associated with them. However, Ausable doesn’t present such a romantic picture. He is very fat and sloppy. He lives in a small room on the sixth floor. Fowler is disappointed after meeting Ausable.
They say that appearances are often deceptive. This is quite true in the case of Ausable. Physically, he may be fat, but mentally, he is very agile and quick-witted. He knows all the tricks of his trade. He is very quick to react and can cook up stories that may fit in all kinds of situations. He convinces even the crafty Max that there is a balcony below the window of his room. This is a well-thought-out trap, and Max unwittingly falls into it. Then he cooks up the story of the police. He again succeeds in convincing Max that the loud knockings at the door are that of the police. He tells Max that he himself has sought the protection of the police as he has an important report concerning some new missiles with him. In this way, he gets rid of his rival and enemy, Max, who jumps out of the window only to cry for the last time in his life.

Q6: Describe the incident leading to the death of Max.

Ans: Ausable was a secret agent. He was living in a French hotel. His room was on the sixth and top floor of the hotel. One evening, a young writer named Fowler came to meet him. When they entered the room and switched on the light, they found a man standing in the center of the room. He had a pistol in his hand. His name was Max. He came there to grab the important report from Ausable. Seeing Max, Ausable remained cool and silent. But he seemed to be angry with the management of the hotel. He said that because of the balcony just below his window, anyone could enter the writ
When there was a sudden knock at the door, Ausable said that it might be the police. He said that he himself had called the police. Max jumped through the window to the balcony. But in reality, there was no balcony. So, Max fell to the ground from the sixth floor and was killed.

Q7: What makes you think Max was a careless and foolish fellow?

Ans: Though Max was very cunning, he was indeed no match for Ausable. Ausable easily misled him into believing that there was a balcony attached to the room. He also made him fool by cooking up a false story about the police knocking at the door, though he knew it was the waiter. Ausable’s facial expressions were so normal that Max could not believe he was telling lies to him. Ausable was able to get rid of Max with very little effort. So we can say that Max was “a little spy” before Ausable.

Q8: How did Ausable use ‘the knock at the door in his favor? What light does it throw on his character?

Ans: Ausable was a secret agent. He was staying in a hotel. A guest named Fowler comes to meet him. Ausable gives an order to the waiter for a bottle of wine and two glasses. When they entered the room, they were surprised to see an intruder named Max in the room. That man had a pistol in his hand. After some time, there was a knock at the door. Ausable knew that it was the waiter, but he told Max that it would be the police . He said that he himself had called the police for the protection of the important report. Hearing this, Max jumped out of the window onto the balcony. There was no balcony. He fell down and died. This episode shows that Ausable had a great presence of mind. He was a clever spy indeed.

Q9: How did crafty and foxy Max fail to take away the all-important report concerning some new missiles from Ausable? Or How did Ausable outsmart and outwit the crafty Max and get rid of him?

Ans: Naturally, it was a fight between two secret agents belonging to two different organizations. The bone of contention was the all-important report concerning some new missiles. It was with Ausable, and Max wanted to take it away by the use of his gun. The report was so important that several men and women had risked their lives to get it. Someday, that report might well have affected the course of history.
No doubt, Max had come prepared. When Ausable switched on the light, he found Max standing halfway across the room with a small automatic pistol in his hand. Ausable had to use his presence of mind and fertile brain to outwit Max. His cooking up of two stories related to the balcony below his window and the police were his masterstrokes. In his simple way, Ausable succeeds in convincing Max that both stories are true. Actually, there was no balcony below his window. He wanted to unnerve Max by planting the false story of the loud knockings at the door of the police. In desperation, Max jumped out of the window and Ausable got rid of his crafty rival forever.

Q10: Sometimes, appearances can be very deceptive. How does this statement prove with this story?

Ans: Yes, it is true that sometimes we fail to identify the real personality of a man due to his different appearances. So, it can be said that appearances can be deceptive. Fowler was young and romantic. He was a writer of adventurous stories. Ausable was a secret agent—a detective. He faces danger in his work. So, Fowler wanted to meet him for some adventurous stories. But when he met Ausable in a French hotel with a damp corridor, Fowler felt disappointed. But Ausable proved himself after reaching his room. A man named Max was found inside Ausable’s room with a gun in his hand. Ausable at once proved that he possessed the quality of a true detective. He told Max about a balcony next to the window and police at the door. Max believed him because Ausable’s way of talking was so real.