Book I - Chapter II. The Mail Quiz — A Tale of Two Cities

by Charles Dickens

Comprehension Quiz: Book I - Chapter II. The Mail

On what night of the week does Chapter 2 take place?

  • A Saturday night in late November 1775
  • A Friday night in late November 1775
  • A Monday night in early December 1775
  • A Thursday night in mid-October 1775

Why are the passengers walking beside the coach instead of riding inside?

  • The coachman has ordered them out as a security precaution against highwaymen
  • The hill, mud, and heavy load are too much for the horses to pull with passengers aboard
  • A wheel has broken and they must lighten the load until the smith can repair it
  • The passengers prefer walking to breathing the foul air trapped inside the coach

What does Dickens compare the mist to as it moves up the hill?

  • A funeral shroud slowly covering the landscape in darkness
  • An evil spirit, seeking rest and finding none
  • A great white whale surfacing from the depths of the ocean
  • A river of milk flowing upward against the natural order

Why do the passengers on the Dover mail distrust one another?

  • They have received intelligence that one of them is a French spy
  • Highway robbery is so common that anyone on the road might be a robber or an accomplice
  • A recent murder on the same road has been reported in the London papers
  • The guard has warned them that Tellson's Bank suspects a thief aboard

What weapons does the guard of the Dover mail have at his disposal?

  • A single musket and a knife, considered adequate for the short journey
  • A loaded blunderbuss, six or eight horse-pistols, and a cutlass
  • Two dueling pistols and a cavalry saber borrowed from a regiment
  • A crossbow and a set of throwing knives concealed beneath his coat

How does the guard respond when he hears a horse galloping toward the coach?

  • He quietly alerts the coachman and tells the passengers to hide inside
  • He cocks his blunderbuss and orders the rider to halt in the king's name
  • He urges the coachman to whip the horses and outrun the pursuer
  • He fires a warning shot into the air and extinguishes the coach lamps

Who sent the message that Jerry delivers to Mr. Lorry?

  • The French government, warning Lorry not to cross the Channel
  • Tellson's Bank, identified by Jerry as "T. and Co."
  • Lucie Manette, writing from Dover to request Lorry's help
  • Dr. Manette, smuggling a letter out of the Bastille prison

What does the message delivered to Mr. Lorry say?

  • "Recalled to Life — proceed with caution and secrecy"
  • "Wait at Dover for Mam'selle"
  • "The prisoner has been released from the Bastille at last"
  • "Return to London immediately — urgent business at the bank"

What is Mr. Lorry's reply message to send back to Tellson's Bank?

  • "The matter is in hand and will be resolved by morning"
  • "I shall wait at Dover as instructed by the directors"
  • "Recalled to Life"
  • "Tell Mam'selle I am coming to her as quickly as possible"

What do the other two passengers do immediately after Jerry's encounter with Mr. Lorry?

  • They introduce themselves to Mr. Lorry and ask about the message
  • They demand the guard search Jerry for weapons before letting him leave
  • They scramble into the coach, hide their valuables in their boots, and pretend to sleep
  • They refuse to reboard the coach and insist on walking the rest of the way

What does Jerry say about the message "Recalled to Life" as he rides back toward London?

  • "A fine and noble sentiment, worthy of a gentleman of Tellson's"
  • "That's a Blazing strange message. Much of that wouldn't do for you, Jerry!"
  • "I shall remember those words for the rest of my natural days"
  • "Recalled to Life — I wonder if the man has lost his wits entirely"

What conversation takes place between the guard and coachman after the coach resumes its journey?

  • They argue about whether to report the incident to the authorities at Dover
  • They discuss whether Jerry might have been a highwayman in disguise
  • They ask each other what they made of the message, and both say "Nothing at all"
  • They agree that Mr. Lorry is likely a spy working for the French crown

What does the guard's warning — "when I make one [a mistake] it takes the form of Lead" — mean?

  • He will write a formal complaint in pencil (lead) to the postal authorities
  • His mistakes come in the form of bullets — he will shoot first and ask questions later
  • He carries a lead-weighted club for close combat with highway robbers
  • He means his horse carries lead weights that slow its pursuit of criminals

What does Dickens mean when he writes that passengers were hidden "from the eyes of the mind, as from the eyes of the body"?

  • The passengers are mentally ill and cannot perceive reality around them
  • Just as their faces are concealed by cloaks, their true identities and intentions are hidden from one another
  • The mist has a supernatural quality that blocks both sight and thought
  • The passengers have taken sleeping draughts that cloud their awareness

Why does Jerry dismount and walk his horse down the hill after the mail coach departs?

  • He is searching the road for valuables dropped by frightened passengers
  • His horse is spent from the hard gallop from Temple Bar, and he does not trust its footing on the descent
  • The guard has ordered him to walk so he can be watched until out of sight
  • He wants to wait for another coach to rob under cover of darkness

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