Trip to Ooty: Section III

Prose

Trip to Ooty

Section III

Read this section of the letter silently. Discuss with your partner and describe the incident.

There was a cute baby elephant sitting on the track! The mother elephant was nearby trumpeting loudly. The engine driver tried to coax the baby off the track with a bunch of bananas. The mother didn’t let anyone near the baby. So, people stood around trying to make the baby move by making all kinds of sounds. The baby just sat there looking frightened and the mother kept trumpeting. Finally, Muthu, the naughty boy of the class, went up to the baby with a bunch of bananas. Just as it moved to eat it, he moved backwards. He kept doing this till the baby was out on the side of the tracks. Luckily, the mother too, stopped trumpeting and watched the whole show. Everyone cheered as the baby started eating the bananas. Many bunches of bananas were piled near the baby and the mother. As they were eating, everyone got into the train and it left after a delay of half an hour. Geetha ma’am had told us that we would see elephants if we were lucky!

“Madam wouldn’t have imagined we would see a wild elephant this close!” said Fatima.

It was such a fantastic trip. On a normal fast train ride, we do not notice the scenery or the landscape. It rushes by so fast. But slowly chugging up and down the beautiful mountainside was different. I will never forget the wide, wind-swept tea estates, cloud covered mountains or the swaying trees. It was enchanting to listen to the murmur of streams and waterfalls and musical bird calls. We even saw an elephant and its baby! Our whole group was so excited by the trip and they still talk about it.

Your loving friend,

Merlin

Think and answer.

1. What made the trip a memorable one?

During the trip the group saw the wide, wind-swept tea estates, cloud covered mountains and the swaying trees. The murmur of streams and waterfall and the musical bird calls enchanted everyone. The pupils saw an elephant and its baby. All these made the trip a memorable one. 

2. What does the phrase ‘presence of mind’ mean? Explain the phrase using Muthu’s action.

Presence of mind means ability to react quickly in a critical situation. During their trip to Ooty, a baby elephant sat on the railway track and refused to move. Muthu coaxed the elephant by holding a bunch of bananas and moving backwards. The baby elephant slowly moved towards the bananas and thus the track became clear. This incident shows that Muthu had the presence of mind.

3. What is the difference between this toy train and a normal train?

A toy train moves slowly but a normal train moves fast. A toy train is useful for tourists interested in sight seeing. But a normal train is used to cover long distances in a short time.

Paragraph Writing:

Describe the incident that showed Muthu's presence of mind.

A baby elephant was sitting on the track. So the train was unable to move. The engine driver showed a bunch of bananas. The people made all kinds of sounds to coax the baby elephant. Muthu went up to the baby elephant with a bunch of bananas. As it moved to eat the bananas Muthu moved backwards. He kept doing this until the baby elephant was out of the track. Muthu was naughty and bold. But he had the presence of mind to tackle a critical situation.

Paragraph Writing 2:

A cute baby elephant was sitting on the track. The mother was nearby trumpeting loudly. The engine driver showed a bunch of bananas and tried to coax the baby off the track. But the baby elephant was too frightened to move. Now Muthu went up to the baby with a bunch of bananas. The baby elephant moved forward to eat it. now Muthu moved backwards. The baby elephant followed him and soot it was out of track. Many bunches of bananas were piled near the baby and the mother. As they were eating them everyone got into the train. The train pulled out of the place. It was an unforgettable incident for the children. 

GLOSSARY

Trumpeting /ˈtrʌmpɪtɪŋ/ - Making a loud noise

Chugging /ˈʧʌgɪŋ/ - Move  slowly  making  regular  muffled  sounds,  as  of  an  engine running slowly

Coax /kəʊks/ - Persuade (someone) gently to do something

Murmur /ˈmɜːmə/ - To make a low, continuous, indistinct sound; grumble