H.E. Bates

H.E. Bates Study questions

The Woman Who Had Imagination

The Ox

Facts about H.E. Bates

➾ His “solitary ambition” while attending grammar school was to become a painter, not a writer.

➾ He acquired techniques for the short story by “voraciously reading” Arthur Conan Doyle and Edgar Wallace.

➾ He credited Stephen Crane, not a mainstream literary figure, with inspiring his first conscious hunger to write.

➾ He qualified for university but was unable to attend because his family could not afford the expense.

➾ He intensely disliked his first post-school job working for a newspaper.

➾ He wrote his first novel, The Two Sisters, while working as a clerk in a factory/warehouse.

➾ He was fired from his clerk job after his employer discovered him writing his first novel during work hours.

➾ During World War II, he served as a commissioned writer for the RAF under the pseudonym Flying Officer “X”.

➾ The character Uncle Silas, known for “earthy, Rabelaisian humour,” was based on his real-life ninety-three-year-old great-uncle.

➾ After achieving novel success, he made a vow that he would “never, never write another novel,” which he soon forgot.

➾ He returned to short fiction with The Daffodil Sky (1955), the collection he apparently valued the most.

H.E. Bates MCQs

1. When was H.E. Bates born?

A) January 29, 1974
B) May 16, 1905
C) October 5, 1900
D) July 10, 1915

B) May 16, 1905
Herbert Ernest Bates was born in Rushden, Northamptonshire, at the beginning of the 20th century.

2. Where was H.E. Bates born?

A) Canterbury, England
B) Little Chart, England
C) Rushden, England
D) Kettering, England

C) Rushden, England
He was born in the industrial town of Rushden, Northamptonshire, which shaped his early work.

3. What was the title of H.E. Bates’s first novel, published when he was twenty?

A) Day’s End
B) My Uncle Silas
C) The Purple Plain
D) The Two Sisters

D) The Two Sisters
He wrote this first novel in 1926 while working as a clerk, launching his literary career.

4. Which collection of short stories was published posthumously?

A) The Wedding Party
B) The Daffodil Sky
C) The Yellow Meads of Asphodel
D) Now Sleeps the Crimson Petal

C) The Yellow Meads of Asphodel
This collection was published in 1976, two years after his death, completing his literary output.

5. For which specific type of fiction is H.E. Bates established as one of the major 20th-century writers?

A) Historical romance
B) Science fiction
C) Short fiction
D) Detective thrillers

C) Short fiction
Alongside his novels, he is celebrated as one of the 20th century’s masters of the short story.

6. What was Bates’s solitary ambition while attending grammar school in Kettering?

A) To become a teacher
B) To become a journalist
C) To become a painter
D) To become an athlete

C) To become a painter
His first ambition was to be a painter, a passion that influenced his descriptive writing style.

7. Which author inspired Bates’s “first conscious hunger to begin writing”?

A) Guy de Maupassant
B) Stephen Crane
C) Joseph Conrad
D) Ivan Turgenev

B) Stephen Crane
Reading Crane’s work sparked his ambition to become a writer, not just a painter.

8. Which famous British authors were Bates “voraciously reading” early in school, influencing his short story methods?

A) Doyle and Wallace
B) Dickens and Austen
C) Wells and Huxley
D) Kipling and Orwell

A) Doyle and Wallace
He was an early reader of popular short story writers like Arthur Conan Doyle and Edgar Wallace.

9. Why did Bates not attend university after qualifying?

A) He was commissioned in the RAF
B) His family could not afford it
C) He disliked formal education
D) He chose professional athletics

B) His family could not afford it
Despite qualifying, his family’s financial situation prevented him from pursuing a university education.

10. What job did Bates hold when he began writing his first novel, The Two Sisters?

A) A newspaper reporter
B) A clerk in a Rushden factory
C) A soldier in the RAF
D) A warehouse labourer

B) A clerk in a Rushden factory
He wrote his first novel in the early mornings before his job as a warehouse clerk.

11. The region Bates grew up in, the Nene Valley in Northamptonshire, provided what for his fiction?

A) Military background
B) Science fiction elements
C) Subject, setting, and themes
D) Only historical facts

C) Subject, setting, and themes
His deep connection to the Midland countryside provided the core material for much of his writing.

12. The transitional period Bates grew up in often mirrored which contrast in his stories?

A) Rich versus poor
B) Rural versus urban values
C) Past versus future
D) English versus French life

B) Rural versus urban values
His work often explores the tension between the traditional rural world and encroaching industrial life.

13. What clashing elements in the Midlands provided themes for Bates’s early work?

A) Crime and punishment
B) Industry and natural beauty
C) Education and ignorance
D) High society and low society

B) Industry and natural beauty
The contrast between the ugly industrial towns and the beautiful countryside marks his early stories.

14. What was the title of Bates’s second collection of short stories, published in 1928?

A) The Watercress Girl
B) The Flying Goat
C) Day’s End, and Other Stories
D) The Daffodil Sky

C) Day’s End, and Other Stories
This 1928 collection helped to solidify his early reputation as a master of the short story.

15. When did H.E. Bates marry Marjorie Helen Cox?

A) 1926
B) 1931
C) 1941
D) 1958

B) 1931
He married Marjorie, whom he had met in 1929, and they moved to Kent.

16. What English county did Bates move to after marrying, where he lived until his death?

A) Northamptonshire
B) Lancashire
C) Kent
D) Surrey

C) Kent
He and his wife settled in Little Chart, Kent, which became his home for the rest of his life.

17. What genre did Bates publish eight collections of during the 1930s?

A) Novels
B) Plays
C) Short fiction
D) Poetry

C) Short fiction
The 1930s were a highly productive decade for his short fiction, establishing his focus on rural life.

18. Bates initially became well known for writing about which subjects, especially after The Poacher (1935)?

A) War and aviation
B) Countryside and agricultural labour
C) Exótic foreign lands
D) Urban industrial life

B) Countryside and agricultural labour
His pre-war reputation was built on his sensitive portrayals of English rural life.

19. From whom did Bates acquire his appreciation for rural English life?

A) His grandfather and father
B) His teachers at Kettering
C) Fellow RAF officers
D) Contemporary critics

A) His grandfather and father
His father and grandfather, both countrymen, instilled in him a deep love for the rural world.

20. Which collection, published in 1940, was enjoyed for its “earthy, Rabelaisian humour”?

A) The Two Sisters
B) The Daffodil Sky
C) The Poacher
D) My Uncle Silas

D) My Uncle Silas
This collection introduced the roguish character Uncle Silas, known for his tall tales and earthy humor.

21. On whom was the character Uncle Silas, a ninety-three-year-old rascal, based?

A) The author’s grandfather
B) A factory owner
C) The author’s great-uncle
D) A fictional archetype

C) The author’s great-uncle
The character was based on his great-uncle Joseph Betts, who was a charming, roguish figure.

22. World War II significantly increased Bates’s fame starting in which year?

A) 1931
B) 1941
C) 1955
D) 1969

B) 1941
His career was transformed when he was commissioned into the Royal Air Force in 1941.

23. What role did Bates assume in the summer of 1941?

A) Foreign correspondent
B) Reporter for the Northampton Chronicle
C) Writer in the Royal Air Force
D) Civilian war observer

C) Writer in the Royal Air Force
He was commissioned to write short stories about the war effort, which gave him great fame.

24. Under which pseudonym did H.E. Bates publish two small collections of war pieces?

A) Corporal X
B) Sergeant Smith
C) Flying Officer “X”
D) Major Bates

C) Flying Officer “X”
He used this pseudonym to publish his RAF stories, giving them an air of authenticity.

25. The collections published as Flying Officer “X” are described as being as much fiction as what else?

A) Biography
B) Memoir
C) Reportage
D) Philosophy

C) Reportage
The stories blurred the line between fictional storytelling and factual wartime journalism.

26. Which Flying Officer “X” collection conveyed the feeling of wartime flying?

A) The Jacaranda Tree
B) Fair Stood the Wind for France
C) The Greatest People in the World
D) The Triple Echo

C) The Greatest People in the World
This collection, along with *How Sleep the Brave*, captured the experience of the RAF for the public.

27. The Flying Officer “X” pieces led to major success for Bates’s subsequent novels, marking what turning point in his career?

A) A shift to poetry
B) A decline in popularity
C) An international reputation
D) A focus on rural life

C) An international reputation
His wartime writing gave him a massive new audience and an international reputation.

28. Which novel became Bates’s first international success and an American Book-of-the-Month Club selection?

A) The Purple Plain
B) The Two Sisters
C) Fair Stood the Wind for France
D) The Darling Buds of May

C) Fair Stood the Wind for France
This 1944 novel about an RAF crew in occupied France became a major international bestseller.

29. Fair Stood the Wind for France is about a British bomber crew forced down in which situation?

A) The Burmese jungle
B) Occupied France
C) The English countryside
D) Coastal Ireland

B) Occupied France
The novel is a tense story of survival as the crew attempts to escape Nazi-occupied France.

30. Which novel was the first of Bates’s works to be adapted into a motion picture?

A) The Jacaranda Tree
B) The Purple Plain
C) The Two Sisters
D) Colonel Julian

B) The Purple Plain
His 1947 novel set in Burma was adapted into a successful 1954 film starring Gregory Peck.

31. Which two successful novels by Bates were set in Burma (Myanmar) during the Japanese invasion?

A) The Poacher and Day’s End
B) The Purple Plain and The Jacaranda Tree
C) Fair Stood the Wind for France and The Triple Echo
D) My Uncle Silas and The Nature of Love

B) The Purple Plain and The Jacaranda Tree
These two novels drew on his experiences in the Far East during the war.

32. What literary form did Bates temporarily abandon for several years after his WWII novel successes?

A) The novel
B) The short story
C) The essay
D) The autobiography

B) The short story
He focused on writing popular novels for several years, neglecting the short fiction he was famed for.

33. What vow did Bates make around 1951, which he soon forgot?

A) Never to write about war
B) Never to write another novel
C) Never to write another short story
D) Never to use a pseudonym

B) Never to write another novel
After focusing on novels for years, he vowed to stop, but soon returned to the form.

34. Bates returned to his “first love, the short story,” in 1955 with which impressive collection?

A) Colonel Julian
B) The Daffodil Sky
C) The Watercress Girl
D) The Flying Goat

B) The Daffodil Sky
This 1955 collection marked his celebrated return to the short story form after a long break.

35. Which short story collection was apparently the one which Bates valued the most?

A) The Flying Goat
B) The Yellow Meads of Asphodel
C) The Daffodil Sky
D) Colonel Julian

C) The Daffodil Sky
Despite many collections, Bates reportedly valued this 1955 collection the most highly.

36. The Watercress Girl, and Other Stories primarily concerns which subjects?

A) Life in the factory
B) Wartime flying
C) Children or childhood recollections
D) Rural agricultural work

C) Children or childhood recollections
This collection focused on the perceptions and experiences of childhood.

37. Following the success of the Larkin series, Bates devoted more energy to which form?

A) Short stories
B) Poetry
C) The novel
D) Reportage

C) The novel
The immense popularity of the Larkin books led him to focus more on novels in his later career.

38. Which novel launched the highly successful Larkin family series?

A) A Moment in Time
B) The Nature of Love
C) The Triple Echo
D) The Darling Buds of May

D) The Darling Buds of May
This 1958 novel introduced Pop and Ma Larkin and was an enormous commercial success.

39. The Larkin family in The Darling Buds of May is characterized as what type of family?

A) Aristocratic and severe
B) Realistic and lovable farm family
C) Struggling urban workers
D) Factory owners

B) Realistic and lovable farm family
The Larkins were a boisterous, lovable, and earthy family living an idyllic life in Kent.

40. In his postwar fiction, Bates developed consistently in which qualities as a novelist?

A) Action and speed
B) Suspense and mystery
C) Subtlety, depth, and strength
D) Humour and brevity

C) Subtlety, depth, and strength
Critics noted that his postwar work showed a greater maturity, depth, and subtlety.

41. Which collection demonstrates Bates’s range in the short story during the postwar period, published around 1955?

A) The Flying Goat
B) Colonel Julian
C) The Wild Cherry Tree
D) The Two Sisters

B) Colonel Julian
This collection, along with *The Daffodil Sky*, showcased his mastery of the short story form.

42. What characteristics define H.E. Bates’s general reputation?

A) War correspondent only
B) Playwright of industrial dramas
C) Novelist and short-story writer of high reputation
D) Historical biographer

C) Novelist and short-story writer of high reputation
He is widely regarded as a major 20th-century writer in both novels and short fiction.

43. Which title is listed as an autobiographical work by H.E. Bates?

A) The Vanished World
B) The Nature of Love
C) The Daffodil Sky
D) The Triple Echo

A) The Vanished World
*The Vanished World* (1969) is the first volume of his acclaimed three-part autobiography.

44. Which later autobiographical work retained Bates’s power to capture the mood of the passing moment?

A) The Purple Plain
B) The Blossoming World
C) Colonel Julian
D) The Yellow Meads of Asphodel

B) The Blossoming World
This second volume of his autobiography (1971) was praised for its evocative prose.

45. Which collection is described as the “least impressive” of Bates’s early collections, rounding out the 1930s?

A) My Uncle Silas
B) The Poacher
C) The Flying Goat
D) Day’s End

C) The Flying Goat
This 1939 collection is considered one of the weaker ones from his prolific 1930s period.

46. Bates wrote The Two Sisters at which location, which led to him being fired?

A) The newspaper office
B) The RAF base
C) The factory/warehouse
D) His grammar school

C) The factory/warehouse
He secretly wrote his first novel in the warehouse, and he was fired when his writing was discovered.

47. What type of humor characterized My Uncle Silas?

A) Dry, intellectual wit
B) Ironic, political satire
C) Earthy, Rabelaisian humour
D) Surreal, experimental comedy

C) Earthy, Rabelaisian humour
The stories are famous for their broad, “Rabelaisian” (boisterous and crude) humor.

48. What honour was H.E. Bates made shortly before his death?

A) Commander of the British Empire (CBE)
B) Knight Grand Cross
C) Officer of the British Empire (OBE)
D) Nobel Laureate

A) Commander of the British Empire (CBE)
He was made a CBE in 1973 for his services to literature.

49. In which year did H.E. Bates die?

A) 1905
B) 1955
C) 1974
D) 1971

C) 1974
He died on January 29, 1974, in Canterbury, Kent.

50. Where did H.E. Bates die?

A) Rushden
B) Little Chart
C) Kettering
D) Canterbury

D) Canterbury
He died in Canterbury, Kent, the county where he had lived for over 40 years.

The Triple Echo MCQs

1. Where is Alice Charlesworth’s husband?

A. In a prison
B. Prisoner with Japs
C. Missing overseas
D. A known deserter

B. Prisoner with Japs.
Alice states her husband is a prisoner held by the Japanese, and she may never see him again.

2. What material replaced the thatch on the farm’s roof?

A. Red clay tiles
B. Corrugated iron
C. New timber
D. Grey concrete

B. Corrugated iron.
Both the red-brick house and the barn had been re-roofed with harsh grey corrugated iron.

3. How old was the war when Alice began running the farm alone?

A. About three years
B. Just one year
C. Five years old
D. Nearly four years

A. About three years.
Alice started running the farm herself when the war was already nearly three years old.

4. What animals infested the hen-run?

A. Hungry foxes
B. Big badgers
C. Large rats
D. Stray dogs

C. Large rats.
Alice’s terrier was used to hunt the rats that commonly infested the farm’s hen-run area.

5. Why did Alice shoot her terrier?

A. It bit the cow
B. It severed a leg
C. It attacked hens
D. It ran away

B. It severed a leg.
She shot the dog after it severed its leg in a gin-trap she had set to catch hares.

6. What colour were Alice’s denim trousers?

A. Dull brown
B. Dark green
C. Pitch black
D. Faded blue

A. Dull brown.
Alice consistently wore dull brown denim trousers, a dark green sweater, and caked gum-boots.

7. What did Alice believe was the primary danger to her hens after dark?

A. German spies
B. Foxes after hens
C. Wild pigs
D. Roaming soldiers

B. Foxes after hens.
She carried the shotgun for protection against “two-legged foxes after the hens” or unexpected parachutists.

8. What kind of trees bordered the far end of the hillside path?

A. Oak and birch
B. Beech and chestnut
C. Willow and ash
D. Pine and fir

B. Beech and chestnut.
Dense barriers of beech and chestnut cut the small farm off from the main roads.

9. What month was it when Alice saw the man near the haystack?

A. Early June
B. Late April
C. One evening in May
D. Mid-summer

C. One evening in May.
The first encounter between Alice and the young man occurred on a soft evening in May.

10. What was Alice’s immediate reaction upon seeing the man disappear near the woods?

A. She cried out
B. She raised the gun
C. She ran inside
D. She hid quietly

B. She raised the gun.
Alice quickly raised the shotgun and started running after the figure disappearing towards the woods.

11. What type of eyes did the young soldier have?

A. Intensely pale blue
B. Warm brown
C. Sharp black
D. Shifty grey

A. Intensely pale blue.
Barton was described as having intensely pale blue eyes that initially seemed scared when Alice confronted him.

12. What was the soldier’s name?

A. Stan
B. Lemmon
C. Barton
D. Charlesworth

C. Barton.
The soldier introduced himself after denying Alice’s fear, saying, “My name’s Barton”.

13. What animal’s singing did Barton and Alice stop to listen to?

A. A skylark
B. A cuckoo
C. A nightingale
D. A wild owl

C. A nightingale.
Barton lifted his head and pointed out the sound of a nightingale singing in the beech branches.

14. Where was Barton’s home farm located?

A. Near London
B. In Yorkshire
C. In Hampshire
D. By a river

C. In Hampshire.
Barton said he came from Hampshire, stating it was similar to Alice’s place but a bit bigger.

15. What dish did Barton refer to as “two on a raft”?

A. Bacon and eggs
B. Eggs on toast
C. Beans and ham
D. Poached eggs

B. Eggs on toast.
Barton used the nickname “two on a raft” for two poached eggs on a thick square of toast.

16. What did Barton volunteer to help fix for Alice the next day?

A. The fence
B. The well
C. The stove
D. The tractor

D. The tractor.
Alice mentioned her tractor packed up, and Barton offered to “have a look at it” the next night.

17. What term did Barton use to summarize his frustrating army life?

A. Pointless bull
B. Easy money
C. Constant fighting
D. Meaningless duty

A. Pointless bull.
Barton summarized his army life activities like parades and schemes as “Farce, most of it… lot of waffle”.

18. What task did Barton complete using the hay cutter knives he sharpened?

A. Cutting the corn
B. Cutting the clover
C. Planting potatoes
D. Stacking wood

B. Cutting the clover.
During his three weeks of visits, Barton sharpened knives and cut, turned, and stacked the early clover.

19. What did Alice trade three dozen eggs for at the pub?

A. A bottle of gin
B. Six bottles of beer
C. A piece of fish
D. Extra cheese

B. Six bottles of beer.
Alice traded her eggs for six bottles of beer ahead of Barton’s special supper.

20. What garment did Alice put on that made her feel “curiously free and airy”?

A. Green blouse
B. Red coat
C. Pink scarf
D. Denim skirt

A. Green blouse.
Alice put on a green blouse, skirt, and leather shoes, feeling flushed, free, and airy.

21. What ominous sight developed across the valley during supper preparation?

A. A red moon
B. Smoky mushroom clouds
C. Thick sea fog
D. A dark rainbow

B. Smoky mushroom clouds.
Two clouds “like smoky mushrooms” fused into a single ominous thundery mass, shutting out the sun.

22. What sound prevented Alice and Barton from talking during dinner?

A. Wind howling
B. Drum tattoo of rain
C. Thunder claps
D. Loud gunfire

B. Drum tattoo of rain.
The dense rain falling on the corrugated iron roof created a loud “drum tattoo,” making speech impossible.

23. What object did Alice finger repeatedly due to nervousness?

A. Her ring
B. Her scarf
C. Her necklace
D. Her wrist

B. Her scarf.
Alice repeatedly made the gesture of fingering the chiffon scarf that she had decided not to wear.

24. What time was Barton planning to catch the milk train home?

A. Late evening
B. Midnight
C. Four AM
D. Early dawn

B. Midnight.
Barton told Alice he was catching the milk train, which was scheduled to leave at midnight.

25. What did Alice compare their state of emotional isolation to?

A. A dark hole
B. A vacuum
C. A glass case
D. A quiet river

B. A vacuum.
Barton picked up on Alice’s feeling, confirming their intense isolation by calling it being “in a vacuum”.

26. How did Alice react after Barton confessed he wanted to kiss her but hesitated due to her husband?

A. She wept
B. She pulled away
C. They embraced
D. She slapped him

C. They embraced.
Surprised by his response, they sat “locked together in a completely silent embrace” for some time.

27. What did Alice realize the morning after the storm regarding Barton’s appearance?

A. He looked like a stranger
B. He looked military
C. He seemed frightened
D. He seemed relaxed

B. He looked military.
Barton was dressed in army trousers, shirt, and boots; the illusion of him as a stranger vanished.

28. What bus time did Alice suggest Barton could catch to the station?

A. About eleven
B. One PM
C. Half past nine
D. Six thirty

A. About eleven.
Alice suggested that Barton could get the bus that went down “about eleven” to reach the station.

29. What was Alice’s inner conflict regarding Barton missing his train?

A. Guilt and dread
B. Fear and hope
C. Anxiety and dread
D. Relief and peace

C. Anxiety and dread.
Alice was poised between anxiety that he would miss a train and dread that he would catch one.

30. What insect did Alice compare the tanks scouring the hillside to?

A. Dark beetles
B. Monstrous ants
C. Slow slugs
D. Giant flies

B. Monstrous ants.
After Barton’s decision, a number of tanks appeared, which Alice described as “dark monstrous ants”.

31. What crop did Alice think she could cut for hay the following week?

A. Wheat
B. Clover
C. Four-acre bit
D. Barley

C. Four-acre bit.
To push aside departure, Alice mentioned aloud she might cut the “four-acre bit” for hay next week.

32. What was Barton’s decisive statement about returning to the army?

A. He’ll be late
B. He’s finished
C. He needs to leave
D. He hates fatigue

B. He’s finished.
Barton, in a burst of anger, declared: “I’m not bloody going back again” and “I’m finished”.

33. What did Alice suggest Barton wear for disguise besides her clothes?

A. A large hat
B. A head scarf
C. False beard
D. Dark glasses

B. A head scarf.
Alice made Barton wear a scarf over his head and insisted he use a bust for disguise.

34. How was the bust for Barton’s disguise ultimately made?

A. Rags and tape
B. Bra with cotton wool
C. Rolled-up sweater
D. Padded shirt

B. Bra with cotton wool.
Alice took one of her bras, sewed cotton wool into the cups, and insisted he wear it.

35. What name did Alice give Barton (the deserter) for cover?

A. Jill, my sister
B. Cathy, her friend
C. A farmhand
D. Her cousin

A. Jill, my sister.
Alice warned Barton to tell others, if in a fix, that he was “Jill, my sister”.

36. What caused Alice’s tensions to burst “like a central fester” into anger?

A. Barton’s laziness
B. Her rising bills
C. His refusal to work
D. His refusal to return

B. Her rising bills.
Alice confessed she had to draw her allowance due to “a pile of bills,” which led to an argument.

37. What did Alice realize, in anger, that Barton looked like?

A. A coward
B. A stranger
C. A spoiled child
D. A woman

D. A woman.
Alice stared at Barton’s lengthening fair hair and sensitive blue eyes, seeing him “as a woman”.

38. Who arrived at the farm gate in November wearing khaki?

A. Two privates
B. A major
C. A subaltern and sergeant
D. Captain and driver

C. A subaltern and sergeant.
Alice saw two men in khaki, a young subaltern and a massive sergeant, inside the yard gate.

39. What was the name of the farm Alice claimed to live on?

A. Bawbey Wood Farm
B. Grange Cottage
C. Charlesworth Farm
D. The Triple Echo

A. Bawbey Wood Farm.
The subaltern confirmed the name of the farm according to his map: Bawbey Wood Farm.

40. What activity did the sergeant mockingly ask Alice and her sister if they missed?

A. Riding
B. Reading
C. Dancing
D. Drinking

C. Dancing.
The sergeant repeatedly brought up the idea of going dancing down at the camp.

41. What item did the sergeant note was old, implying it was dangerous?

A. The tractor
B. The shot-gun
C. The clothes
D. The house

B. The shot-gun.
The sergeant mocked the gun, claiming it “came over with Julius Caesar,” suggesting it was ancient.

42. What film star did the sergeant compare the silent Barton to?

A. Mae West
B. Greta Garbo
C. Bette Davis
D. Ingrid Bergman

B. Greta Garbo.
The sergeant said Barton reminded him of Garbo because she “Looks good but don’t have nothing to say”.

43. What did Alice buy at the shop that inspired her Christmas decorating ideas?

A. Red candles
B. Gold paint
C. Tin of pilchards
D. Holly sprigs

B. Gold paint.
Alice was excited to discover a pot of gold paint, planning to gild natural items for Christmas.

44. What animals did the sergeant bring with him on Christmas Eve?

A. Two rabbits
B. A brace of pheasants
C. A dead fox
D. Two pigeons

B. A brace of pheasants.
The sergeant returned with a cock and a hen pheasant, hanging dead over the chair back.

45. What name did Barton tell the sergeant he was called?

A. Jill
B. Charlesworth
C. Cath
D. Annie

C. Cath.
The sergeant referred to Barton using the name “Cath,” which Barton admitted he had to call himself.

46. What structure did Alice instruct Barton to hide in if the army came?

A. Underground larder
B. The coal shed
C. The old barn
D. Beneath the house

A. Underground larder.
Alice told Barton he would be safe in the “old larder,” a cave used long ago as a refrigerator.

47. What clothing items did Alice spot hanging, indicating Barton’s plan for the dance?

A. Pink dress
B. Girdle and stockings
C. Sergeant’s coat
D. New gum-boots

B. Girdle and stockings.
Alice saw her pink chiffon dress, stockings, and a girdle, confirming Barton planned to go in drag.

48. What detail about Barton struck Alice when he appeared ready for the dance?

A. His manicured nails
B. His height
C. His strength
D. His perfume

A. His manicured nails.
Barton had carefully manicured nails touched with a light shell pink, enhancing his look.

49. What type of military officer accompanied the sergeant looking for Barton?

A. An M.P.
B. A Lieutenant
C. A Colonel
D. An Ensign

A. An M.P..
The sergeant returned wearing an M.P. (Military Police) armband and holster, confirming his status.

50. What final action created a “triple echo”?

A. Barton’s cry
B. Alice firing the gun
C. The sergeant’s shout
D. The wind is turning

B. Alice firing the gun.
The sounds of Alice’s final two shots, ricocheting back from the hills, created a triple echo.

Brief Overview

The Triple Echo is a novella by H. E. Bates, first published in book form in 1970. The story is a bleak psychological drama set in the English countryside during World War II. It centers on the intense and ultimately tragic relationship between a lonely woman and a young army deserter.

The novel focuses on Alice Charlesworth, a lonely woman living alone on an isolated farm while her husband is a Japanese prisoner of war. Alice is armed with a shotgun. She meets Barton, a young soldier who has deserted the army, and allows him to hide on the farm.

To conceal him from the authorities, Alice makes Barton wear her female clothes, including a bra and scarf. She introduces him to outsiders as her sister, “Jill.” Their secluded time together creates intense psychological worry and jealousy for Alice.

A crude Sergeant visits the farm and eyes “Jill” with suspicion. On Christmas Eve, Barton, fully disguised in a pink dress, goes dancing with the Sergeant, successfully deceiving him for a short time.

The next day, military police, led by the Sergeant, return to the farm, now knowing that Barton is a deserter. Alice watches from the window as the Sergeant catches and handcuffs Barton.

Alice takes her shotgun and shoots the Sergeant, then immediately shoots Barton as well. The chilling sound of the shots echoes back three times from the nearby hills.