1-What is well-known about Semarang? Semarang is the hottest place in the whole of the islands.
2- How long did the writer stay in front of Semarang? He stayed for ten hours on two separate days.
3-Why did the ship have to stand half a mile from the shore? Because the harbour was too shallow.
4-How did the writer describe Semarang? He said "Semarang lacks colour and gaiety."
5-Why wasn't the writer attracted to Semarang? The appearance of Semarang didn't attract him because it lacked colour and gaiety.
6-Why was Semarang very hot? The mountain behind it kept the wind off.
7-Who was standing beside the writer? A young officer.
8-Why did the officer speak in English? Because he had lived most of his live in London.
9-Why did the officer want to speak with the writer in English? He liked to speak English and he didn't get many opportunities of doing so.
10-How was the water of the sea near Semarang? It was smooth, solid and glassy because there was no wind.
11-What made the writer decide to talk to the officer? Because the officer didn't move, the writer thought he ought to talk to him.
12-What question did the writer ask the officer? He asked him if he had ever been on a ship when someone jumped into the sea.
13-Why was the officer surprised when he heard the writer's question? Because it actually happened at that place.
14-What did the passenger do early in the morning? He jumped into the sea.
15-What was the officer doing when the passenger jumped into water? He was standing near one of the life boats to smoke a cigarette.
16-How did the passenger jump into the water? He jumped into the water with his feet first .
17-Why didn't the passenger notice the officer when he jumped into the water? He didn't notice things usually ,or he was thinking to much just then.
18-How did the officer know the man's shoes were made of leather? Because the shoes weren't white. They were black or brown.
19-What did the officer do when the passenger jumped into the sea why? He did nothing. There wasn't time for him to do any thing. The man climbed straight out again.
20-What did the man do after he had jumped into water? The man climbed straight out again. (He climbed up the ladder.)
21-What did the passenger do when he climbed up the ship? He looked at his watch and at the officer He looked at his watch again then he went to his room .
22-Why didn't the officer ask the passenger why he had jumped into the sea? Because he was surprised and he didn't know what to say .
23-When did the officer see the passenger after going back to his room? He saw him at breakfast . He sat next to him as usual .
24-Why did the officer not report the incident to the ship's captain? Because he was astonished. It was such a strange business.
25-Why was it wrong for the officer not to report the incident? He would have got into trouble if the captain had learned that he failed to report the incident.
26-What did the officer know about the passenger? He knew that he was coming back to his work in Semarang.
27-Why wasn't the writer surprised that the man jumped into the sea? What did he find more surprising? The writer wasn't surprised because the passenger was coming back to work in that great heat. He found that not all the people jumped into the sea was more surprising.
28-How did he feel towards the people in Semarang? He felt sorry for them.
29-What happened when the ship moved? The writer felt some air.
30-How did the writer feel when the ship began to move? He felt as if he was getting out of prison.
31-What was the writer's feeling about Semarang? He hated it and he didn't want to go there again.
By Mr. Mohamed Abdullah
الصفا /تمى الامديد /دقهلية