Read the following passage from 'The Beggar and the King' and answer the
questions that follow.
THE KING: Send the beggar here.
THE SERVANT: O King!
THE KING: Ha! I rather fancy the fellow will stop his noise when the king
commands him to. Ha, ha, ha!
THE SERVANT: O King, thou wilt not have a beggar brought into thy royal
chamber!
THE KING: (pleased with his idea) Yea. Go outside and tell this fellow that the
king desires his presence.
THE SERVANT: O great and illustrious king, thou wilt surely not do this thing.
Thou wilt surely not soil thy royal eyes by looking on such a filthy creature.
Thou wilt surely not contaminate thy lips by speaking to a common beggar
who cries aloud in the streets for bread.
THE KING: My ears have been soiled too much already. Therefore go now
and do as I have commanded thee.
THE SERVANT: O great and illustrious king, thou wilt surely not--
THE KING: (roaring at him) I said, Go! (The Servant, abashed, goes out.)
Forsooth, I fancy the fellow will stop his bawling when I order him to. Forsooth,
I fancy he will be pretty well frightened when he hears that the king desires
his presence. Ha, ha, ha, ha!
1. What does the king fancy the beggar would do?
2. What suggestion by the servant pleases the king?
3. How, according to the servant, would the king's eyes and lips be affected if
the beggar was brought into the palace?
4. What reason does the king finally give for bringing the beggar to the palace?
5. Look at the sentence: 'My ears have been soiled too much by the beggar.'
Now, begin the sentence with 'The beggar . . . . . .
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