Summary of A Question of Trust
Theme of the Story
The theme of the story, ‘A Question of Trust’ is based on the robbery committed in a house at Shotover Grange. Two professional thieves come face to face while on the same mission of robbing a safe in the house. Both the burglars made a complete preparation to make the theft a big success. Horace Danby, the protagonist of the story was tricked by the other robber, which he realized much later. The real culprit in the story was the woman who pretended to be a member of the family living at Shotover Grange. Horace Danby believed her and indirectly helped her in robbing the jewels from the safe.
Summary of A Question of Trust Class 10 English
The story of ‘A Question of Trust’ Class 10 is a story of two burglars who wanted to rob the same safe. The protagonist of the story Horace Danby is the first burglar. He was fifty years old, unmarried, and a good man. He was a locksmith by profession and he was doing very well in his business. He also had two assistants to help him in his business. He was a good and respectable man but he was not completely honest.
He had a fascination for rare and expensive books. He bought them at any cost. In order to buy these books, he robbed one safe every year to earn extra money. He secretly bought the books he loved from an agent with the robbed money.
Horace Danby made thorough research and planned well before making a theft. All his previous robberies were completely successful. This time, he studied the house at Shotover Grange for two weeks. He studied every minute detail about the house like its rooms, electrical wiring, paths and its garden. The family was in London. He also observed that the two servants who looked after the house had gone out to the movies.
It was the perfect time to enter the house from behind the garden. Horace Danby took the key from the kitchen door hook. He put on the gloves and opened the door. He always wore gloves while robbing to ensure that he did not leave any fingerprint behind. As he entered the house, he was greeted by a small dog but Horace knew how to make friends with dogs. He arranged his tools carefully and cut-off the wires of the burglar alarm.
There was a big pot of flowers on the table, which was tickling his nose. He was allergic to certain kinds of flowers. He sneezed repeatedly. Horace Danby thought that his sneezing could create a hindrance in his mission. He buried his face in his handkerchief.
Suddenly, he heard the voice of a young lady from behind. She advised him to cure his allergy with special treatment. She spoke very kindly to Horace. She said that she was the wife of the owner of that house. She said that she came down to take out her jewels from the safe to wear them at the party that night. She said that she never expected a burglar at home. She threatened him to call the police. Horace Danby requested her to let him go home. He did not want to go to prison and also promised her that he would never sob again in his life.
The lady decided to let him go if he opened the safe for her. She said she wanted to take her jewellery from the safe but she forgot the passcode of the safe. Danby agreed to help her and opened the safe without wearing gloves. The lady got her jewellery and she let him go.
Horace Danby kept his promise to the young lady for two days. On the third day, he gave in to his temptation and decided to rob some other safe. Unfortunately, he did not get a chance to execute his plan because he was arrested by the policeman for the jewel robbery at Shotover Grange.
The policeman found his fingerprints everywhere in the house and that they traced and arrested him. Horace Danby confessed that he had opened the safe but for the wife of the owner of the house. The owner’s wife who was sixty years old disapproved of the story. No one believed his story and he was sent to jail.
Horace Danby was serving his sentence as an assistant in the prison library. He often thought of the young lady who deceived him. It became clear that the real culprit was the lady in red who was a thief like Horace Danby.
About the Author - Victor Canning
Victor Canning was a famous British writer of novels and thrillers. His books are famous for their romances, mysteries, and unexpected thrilling climaxes.
FAQs on A Question of Trust Summary
Q1. How did Horace Danby Know all the Details of the House?
Ans. Horace Danby always did very extensive research about the place before any robbery. He had been studying every detail of Shotover Grange for the past two weeks. Moreover, a magazine article had published the description of the house, giving a plan of all the rooms and a picture of the room. The owner of the house had also revealed the details of the safe hidden behind a picture.
Q2. Describe Horace Danby’s Encounter with the Young Lady.
Ans. Horace Danby planned to rob the safe at Shotover Grange. He had cut the wires of the burglar alarm and also made friends with the dog. The flowers on the table made a tickle in his nose and he was sneezing continuously. Just then, a young lady dressed in red came inside the room. She spoke in a friendly manner with Danby but her sound was firm. She said that she was the wife of the owner of the house. She told him that she had come there to take her jewellery from the safe, which she wanted to wear for a party that night. She lied that she had forgotten the passcode to open the safe. She told Horace Danby that she would let him go if he opened the safe for her. Danby was taken in. He opened the safe without wearing gloves and gave all the jewels to the young lady. She went away with the jewels, but after two days Danby was arrested and sent to prison.
Q3. Who is the Real Culprit of the Story, the Lady or Horace? How did She Manage to Rob the Safe Without Leaving a Single Fingerprint?
Ans. In the story, the real culprit was the young lady. She tricked Horace Danby by lying that she was the owner’s wife. She said that she would let him go home if he opened the safe for her because she forgot the passcode to open the safe. To escape prison, Horace opened the safe for her. She managed to get the jewels without touching the safe herself. In this way, she robbed the safe without leaving any fingerprint behind.
Q4. Why did Horace Danby Rob Every Year?
Ans. Horace Danby loved reading rare and expensive books. In order to earn extra money to buy those books, he robbed one safe every year.
