HOW THE CAMEL GOT HIS HUMP

PART 1

1 What did the camel eat and where did he live? Why?
Answer: The camel ate thorns and prickles and lived in the middle of a Howling Desert because he did
not want to work.
2. What did the three animals do after the camel refused to work?
Answer: The three animals namely the horse, the dog and the ox held a panchayat on the Edge of the
Desert after the camel’s refusal to work.
3. What tasks, do you think, were assigned to the dog and the ox?
Answer: The dog was assigned the task of carrying and fetching things. The ox was asked to carry the
yoke on his neck and thereby plough the field.
4. Why did the camel live in the middle of the desert?
Answer: The camel lived in the middle of the desert because he did not want to work.
5. What made the dog, the horse and the ox very angry?
Answer: The dog, the horse and the ox were very angry because they had to do extra work to compensate
for camel’s idleness; while the camel did not do any work.
6. How did the Djinn punish the camel?
Answer: The Djinn encouraged the camel to work but when he refused to work, it angered the Djinn and
on his back became a big hump. He was told to work equally with the other animals, come out of the
desert and behave properly.
7. What work was given to the horse, the dog and an ox?
Answer: The horse was given the work to trot, dog was given the work to fetch and carry and ox had to
plough.
8. Why do you think the camel was looking at his own reflection?
Answer: Camel was looking at his own reflection to see how smart he was not to work and make others
work in his place.
9. What was the purpose of the ‘humph’ on camel’s back?
Answer: The purpose of the ‘humph’ was to live on it without eating.
10. Why did early man domesticate a few animals?
Answer: Early man domesticated animals for different purposes. They used them to carry heavy loads,
draw carts and plough the field.
12. Which animal in your opinion is man’s best friend and most useful too?
Answer: The dog is man’s best friend. It provides security and even draws the sledge on ice. It is known
for its faithfulness. The horse and the elephants have also been very friendly to man.
13. Do you think the camel renders no service to man?
Answer: The camel is rightly called the ship of the desert. It renders a variety of services to man. It is the
chief means of transport across the desert. It ploughs the fields and gives milk and meat to its master.
14. Do yon think hump on a camel’s back has no use?
Answer: The hump on a camel’s back is an obstruction in riding. But it is very useful. It coma ins fat arid
food. A camel can get its food from the hump for several days.
15. Who was Djinn? How did he set the camel right?
Answer: Djinn was in-change of all deserts. So the horse, ox and the dog complained to him about the
camel’s laziness. The Djinn scolded the camel, gave a hump on its back and ordered it to serve man as did
other animals.
Long Answer Type Questions
1. What made the Three very angry?
Answer: The Three (the Dog, the Horse and the Ox) were hard working animals. They did different
works for men. The Dog carried heavy loads, the Horse drew carts and the Ox ploughed the field. These
three were fed up with the Camel because he didn’t do any work. So one day they complained to Man
about the Camel’s laziness. At this the Man became angry. He told the three to leave the Camel alone and
work double time to compensate his (Camel’s) work. That made the three very angry. They held a
panchayat but it proved in vain. The camel came chewing and laughed at them.
2 How did the Camel get a hump?
Answer: In the beginning the camel was a lazy animal. He didn’t want to work and lived in the middle of
a desert away from other working animals. But the animals never forgot him and his nature. They wanted
him to work like them. They complained against him to the Djinn, who was in-charge of all deserts. The
Djinn decided to punish such an idle animal. He told the Camel to work like other animals but the Camel
showed no willingness to work. This made the Djinn angry. He put a curse on the Camel. Soon the
Camel’s back puffed up into a big bump. This is how the Camel got a hump.

PART 2

Short Answer Type Questions

Question 1. Do you think the camel renders no service to man?
Answer
The camel is rightly called the ship of the desert. It renders a variety of services to man. It is the chief
means of transport across the desert. It ploughs the fields and gives milk and meat to its master.

Question 2. Who was the incharge of ‘All Deserts’?

Answer
The Djinn was the incharge of all deserts rolling in a cloud of dust.

Question 3. Why did early man domesticate a few animals?

Answer
Early man domesticated animals for different purposes. They used them to carry heavy loads, draw carts
and plough the field.

Question 4. What work was given to the horse, the dog and an ox?
Answer
The horse was given the work to trot, dog was given the work to fetch and carry and ox had to plough.

Question 5. Why did the camel live in the middle of the desert?
Answer
The camel lived in the middle of the desert because he did not want to work.

Question 6. What did the camel eat and where did he live? Why?
Answer
The camel ate thorns and prickles and lived in the middle of a Howling Desert because he did not want to
work.

Question 7. Who was Djinn? How did he set the camel right?
Answer
Djinn was in-change of all deserts. So the horse, ox and the dog complained to him about the camel’s
laziness. The Djinn scolded the camel, gave a hump on its back and ordered it to serve man as did other
animals.

Question 8. Where did the lazy animal live?

Answer
The camel, the lazy animal, lived in the middle of a Howling Desert.

Question 9. Which animal in your opinion is man’s best friend and most useful too?
Answer
The dog is man’s best friend. It provides security and even draws the sledge on ice. It is known for its
faithfulness. The horse and the elephants have also been very friendly to man.

Question 10. What was the purpose of the ‘humph’ on camel’s back?
Answer
The purpose of the ‘humph’ was to live on it without eating.

Question 11. How did the Djinn punish the camel?

Answer
The Djinn encouraged the camel to work but when he refused to work, it angered the Djinn and on his
back became a big hump. He was told to work equally with the other animals, come out of the desert and
behave properly.
Question 12. Why did the ‘Three’ call the Man?
Answer
The ‘Three’ were fed up with the attitude of the camel. They called up the man to complain about him as
he was not doing anything at all.

Question 13. What was the purpose of puffing up a big hump on the back of the camel? v
Answer
The Djinn asserted that his hump was punishment for his reluctance to work. Secondly, he could live
without food for three days.
Question 14. What tasks, do you think, were assigned to the dog and the ox?
Answer
The dog was assigned the task of carrying and fetching things. The ox was asked to carry the yoke on his
neck and thereby plough the field.

Question 15. What did the three animals do after the camel refused to work?
Answer
The three animals namely the horse, the dog and the ox held a panchayat on the Edge of the Desert after
the camel’s refusal to work.

Question 16. Do you think the camel paid for ignoring the advice of Djinn?
Answer
The camel did not pay any heed to the advice of the Djinn. He answered ‘Humph’ to every thing he asked
for. So a hump grew on his back as punishment.

Question 17. What made the dog, the horse and the ox very angry?
Answer
The dog, the horse and the ox were very angry because they had to do extra work to compensate for
camel’s idleness; while the camel did not do any work.

Question 18. What was the Camel doing when Djinn reached him?
Answer
When Djinn walked up to him in the desert. The camel was looking at his own reflection in a pool of
water.

Question 19. Why do you think the camel was looking at his own reflection?
Answer
Camel was looking at his own reflection to see how smart he was not to work and make others work in
his place.
Question 20. Do yon think hump on a camel’s back has no use?
Answer
The hump on a camel’s back is an obstruction in riding. But it is very useful. It contains fat arid food. A
camel can get its food from the hump for several days.

Long Answer Type Questions

Question 1. What made the dog, the horse and the ox very angry?
Answer
The man told the dog, the horse and the ox that since the camel cannot work, he would leave it alone and
the three of them would have to work double-time to make up for the work not done by the camel. This
made the three of them very angry.
Or
The Three (the Dog, the Horse and the Ox) were hard working animals. They did different works for men.
The Dog carried heavy loads, the Horse drew carts and the Ox ploughed the field. These three were fed
up with the Camel because he didn’t do any work. So one day they complained to Man about the Camel’s
laziness. At this the Man became angry. He told the three to leave the Camel alone and work double time
to compensate his (Camel’s) work. That made the three very angry. They held a panchayat but it proved
in vain. The camel came chewing and laughed at them.

Question 2. What, according to the Djinn, was the use of the “humph”?
Answer
The Djinn assured the camel that his “humph” would not create a problem for him while working. Since
the camel had skipped work for three days, he could live on his humph and would be able to work for
three days without eating. This means that the hump was a kind of food reserve.

Question 3. “… he has never yet learnt to behave”. In the light of this. What is the writer’s opinion
about the camel?
Answer
According to the writer, the camel is still a very lazy animal that is unwilling to work. After he got the
hump, the Djinn asked to go out of the desert to help the other three animals. It seems that the camel still
did not behave himself and worked lazily in the desert itself. It is for this reason that he was still unable to
complete the pending work of those three missed days, and he continued carrying the hump and living in
the desert.

Question 4. Do you think reward and punishment works as incentive in general for the Camel in
particular?
Answer
The Camel did not want to work at all until he was punished for his reluctance. Djinn wanted him to do
the assigned work but seeing his irresponsible behaviour he had to punish him by puffing up a hump on
his back. Yet he helped him in a better way. Because of the hump, camel can survive for atleast three days
in desert. Thus be it reward or punishment, they do well in general.