TOO DEAR

One mark question

1. Where is the kingdom of Monaco?

The kingdom of Monaco lies on the shore of the Mediterranean sea near the
borders of France and Italy

2. On the shores of which sea is the kingdom of Monaco is located

Mediterranean sea

3. What is the population of Monaco?

Seven thousand inhabitants

4. If the kingdom of Monaco were divided among its inhabitants how much land
would each inhabitant get?

Each inhabitant would get less than an acre.

5. How many men are there in the army of Monaco?

Sixty men

6. Why was ‘Monaco’ called a ‘toy kingdom’?

Monaco was called a toy kingdom because it had such a tiny landmass that if
all the land in the kingdom were divided, there would not be even an acre for
each of its seven thousand inhabitants.

7. Name the commodities that were taxed in Monaco.

The commodities taxed in Monaco were tobacco, wine and spirit The people
also paid a poll tax.

8. What was the source of the King’s special revenue? Who were its beneficiaries?
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OR

Name the special source of revenue in the kingdom of Monaco.

The percentage of profit given by the gaming house keeper to the kinglet was the
source of the king’s special revenue. The king, the keeper of the gaming house,
his ministers, courtiers, his servants, a bishop, his generals and little army were
its beneficiaries.

9. Why was it hard for the Prince to feed his courtiers and officials and to keep
himself?

As very few people in the kingdom drank and smoked the revenue from the taxes
on tobacco and on wine and spirits was insufficient for the Prince to feed his
courtiers and officials and to keep himself.

10. What was the new and special source of revenue found by the king?

Gaming house.

11. What did people play in the gaming house?

Roulette

12. How did the king of Monaco supplement the kingdom's revenue?

He supplemented the kingdom’s revenue by keeping to himself the monopoly of

the gaming business.

13. What did the king of Monaco consider dirty business?

Gambling

14. Why did the Germans stop gaming houses in their country and how did it
benefit Monaco?
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The Germans stopped gaming houses in their country because the gaming houses
encouraged people to gamble and try their luck. This way people lost their
money, and sometimes some of them drowned or shot themselves in despair. In
Monaco the money received from the gaming house served as a special source of
revenue and benefitted the king.

15. What proverb does the writer mention to justify the dirty business of gambling?

“You can't earn stone palaces by honest labor'

16. In what way does the Prince of Monaco hold his court with all the ceremony
of a real king?

The Prince of Monaco had his coronation, and his levees. He also gave rewards,
and awarded sentences and pardons. He also held reviews, councils, laws and
courts of justice.

17. What unusual crime was committed in the kingdom of Monaco?

A murder

18 .What was the punishment given to the murderer?

The murderer was sentenced to death.

19. Who according to the council, was the brother monarch in ‘Too Dear’?

Or

Who is known as a brother monarch?

King of Italy

20. In what manner was the criminal condemned to be executed?

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The criminal was condemned to be executed by an executioner using a guillotine
machine.

21. What was the hitch in the execution of the criminal?

The kingdom of Monaco did not have either a guillotine machine or a

professional executioner.

22. How much did the French government expect from machine and an expert?

The French Government offered to lend a machine and an expert for a price of
16000 francs (16 thousand)

23. How much did the Italian government demand for the execution?

It demanded 12000 francs (12 thousand) for lending the machine and the services
of an executioner. It also included the travelling expenses.

24. Why was the prince of Monaco unwilling to put an additional tax of two francs
of the people?

Prince of Monaco was unwilling because the people wouldn't stand it and it may
also cause a riot.

25. What reason did the soldiers give for not accepting to execute the criminal?

The council of ministers wanted one of the soldiers to cut off the criminals
head in a rough and homely fashion. But the soldiers said that they did not know
how to do it and that was one thing that they had not been taught.

26. What were the duties expected of the guard?

The guard was expected to watch the criminal and also to fetch his food from the
palace kitchen.
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27. The present plan is too expensive what is the present plan referred to by the
prince?

The plan of keeping the murderer in prison and a guard to keep watch over him
which was about 600 francs a year.

28 . On what condition did the criminal agree to leave the prison?

The criminal agreed to leave the prison on a condition that the king undertakes to
pay his pension regularly and received one-third of his annuity as advance from
the prince.

29. What work did the prisoner do after being released from prison?

The prisoner bought a bit of land and started market –gardening.

30. How did the king of Monaco supplement the kingdom’s revenue?

By keeping to himself the monopoly of the gaming business.

31. Where was the only gambling establishment left in Europe located?

OR

Which was the only place of gambling in Europe as mentioned in ‘Too Dear!’?

Monaco.

32. What business does the Prince of Monaco monopolise?

The Prince of Monaco monopolized the business of gaming at the roulette

table.

33. What unusual crime was committed in the kingdom of Monaco?

Once, a murder was committed in the Prince’s domains.

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34. What was the hitch in the execution of the criminal?

OR

Why couldn’t the murderer be executed?

OR

Mention one of the reasons for altering the death sentence to life imprisonment in
‘Too Dear!’.

The Kingdom of Monaco did not have either a guillotine machine or professional
executioner.

35. To whom did the ministers of Monaco write first to help them with the
execution?

The ministers of Monaco wrote a letter of inquiry to the French Government to

lend them a guillotine machine and the services of an expert and also inform
them of the cost of doing so.

36. Where was the criminal’s food fetched from in ‘Too Dear!’?

From the palace kitchen.

37. Who brought food from the palace kitchen for the prisoner?

OR

Who fetched the criminal’s food initially in ‘Too Dear!’?

The guard who was appointed to keep watch over the prisoner brought food for
him from the palace kitchen. ,

38. What was the new item of expenditure noticed by the Prince?
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The new item of expenditure was the money spent on keeping a guard to watch
the criminal and to feed the criminal.

39. According to the narrator people in Monaco were.

Peaceable.

40. Who is referred to as ‘a rascal’ by the king in ‘Too Dear!’?

The criminal who committed a murder in Monaco is referred to as ‘a rascal’ by

the king in ‘Too Dear!’.

41. Where did the criminal settle after emigrating in ‘Too Dear!’?

After emigrating, the criminal settled in a place just across the frontiers, which
could be reached by rail in only a quarter of an hour.

42. Which government is Republican and has no proper respect for the King in
‘Too Dear!’?

In ‘Too Dear!’ the French government is Republican and has no respect for the
King.

43. How long did the criminal stay in the prison in ‘Too Dear!’?

The criminal remained in the prison watched by a guard for one year. Then, the
guard was dismissed so as to prompt him to run away. But he remained there on
his own, unguarded until he was promised a pension.

44. What does the keeper of the gaming house pay the Prince in ‘Too Dear!’?

The keeper of the gaming house pays a large sum to the prince, out of his
profits from the gaming house.

45. Who gains more from the gaming house in ‘Too Dear!’?
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In ‘Too Dear!’, the prince gains more from the gaming house.

46. What arrangements were made to keep the murderer in the prison?

The murderer was locked in a prison. A guard was appointed to keep a watch
on him and fetch him food from the palace kitchen.

47. Why did the council decide to dismiss the guard?

At the end of one year of the imprisonment of the murderer, the king found that
they had to spend a lot on the guard appointed for him. So they dismissed the
guard.

48. Why did the prisoner not escape from the prison? What complaints did he
lodge?

The prisoner did not escape from the prison saying that he had nowhere to go. He
complained that the king had ruined his name and character. He even told the
king that he had harassed him by removing the guard.

49. What was the price the government had to pay in order to make the prisoner go
away?

The government had to promise the criminal to pay the annual pension of 600
francs and they even had to give him one third of it in advance.

50. According to the author, what was a good thing for a murderer?

According to the author, it was a good thing that he did not commit his crime in
a country where they do not grudge expense to cut a man’s head off or keep him
in prison for life.

51. How does the author describe the kingdom of Monaco?

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The kingdom of Monaco was near the borders of France and Italy, on the shore
of the Mediterranean Sea. It had only seven thousand inhabitants and a small army
of sixty men. This toy kingdom also had a king, a palace, courtiers, bishops,
generals etc. it also had kinglet.

Justify the title of the story

The title of the story is quite apt and suggestive. The story is about a king and his
kingdom which finds it ‘too dear’ to handle a crime and a criminal. A murderer
committed a crime in the kingdom of Monaco. He was put to trial by the court of
the kingdom. After much discussion he was sentenced to death. It was declared
that he should be executed; but, the kingdom neither had a guillotine, nor an
executioner. The king was not ready to spend money on renting the guillotine and
the executioner from Italy or France. Thus it was declared that the murderer should
be imprisoned for life. A guard was appointed outside the prison that not only
guarded, but also brought food for him from the palace kitchen. The annual
expense of the kingdom increased due to the murderer. Thus the guard was
removed. The king waited for the prisoner to run away. But to his surprise the
prisoner decided to stay in the prison. He even fetched food for himself from the
kitchen and locked himself back in the room. The king summoned him and asked
him that why did he not run away. The prisoner was very shrewd and practical. He
told the king that he had nowhere to go. He blamed the king for spoiling his name
and character. He said that now he would not even get a job. He argued that he
should have been executed when once declared. Thus the king had to pay him a
pension of 600 francs per year to get rid of him. He got one-third of it in advance.
He purchased a land at the borders of the kingdom and started market gardening.
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He made a point to come regularly to collect his pension. Thus it proved to be too
dear for the king.

Summary of the story

“Too Dear!” is a story written by count Leo Tolstoy, a famous Russian writer,
master of realistic fiction and is widely considered one of the world’s greatest
novelists. The story “Too Dear!” is a parody of one of the modern systems of
governance. It ridicules the ways of punishing criminals and dispensing justice in
modern states. The story is narrated in third person with an undercurrent of
sarcasm.

The story ‘Too Dear!’ is based on an absurd situation in which a small state finds it
much too expensive to either hang a criminal or to keep in prison for long. Finally,
the criminal has to be rewarded with a pension to save the kingdom some money!

The story begins with the description of a place, its people and their system of
governance. There is a tiny little kingdom called Monaco near the borders of
France and Italy. There are only about seven thousand inhabitants in Monaco. The
kingdom is so small that if all the land in the kingdom were divided among its
inhabitants, there would not be even an acre of land for each inhabitant. But this
toy kingdom has a real kinglet and like any other real king, he lives in a palace
with courtiers, ministers, a bishop, generals and an army of only sixty men in all.
The king lives by collecting taxes from the people. There are taxes on tobacco,
wine and spirits and a poll tax too. However, the number of people living in his
kingdom being very small, the taxes the people pay for their ‘drinking’ and
‘smoking’ are not adequate enough to feed the king’s courtiers, and officials and to
keep himself. Therefore the king had found out a new source of revenue. It came
from a gaming house, where people play roulette. The keeper of the gaming house
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got a percentage on the turnover irrespective of whether people lost or won. Out of
his profits, the gaming housekeeper paid a large sum to the kinglet. People in and
around Europe came to play roulette in Monaco because it was the only gaming
house left. German sovereigns banned gaming houses because it did much harm
to its people. Many a time, it so happened that a man would come and try his luck,
then he would risk all he had and lose it. He would Finally drown or shoot himself.
However, there was no one to stop the Prince of Monaco, and he remained with a
monopoly of the business. So now, whoever wants to gamble goes to Monaco and
the prince gains a lot of money this way. The Prince of Monaco knows that earning
revenue this way is a dirty business but he feels helpless because he has to live.

A murder was committed in the Prince of Monaco’s domains. The people of

Monaco were peaceable and such a thing had not happened before. He was
brought before the court and judges carried out the trail in the most judicious way
and sentenced the criminal to death. The death sentence was approved by the king.
Monaco was a toy kingdom and it did not have either a guillotine for cutting heads
off or an executioner. The ministers sent a letter of inquiry to the French
Government, asking whether they could lend them a machine and an expert to cut
off the criminal’s head and also inform the cost involved in it. They received a
reply a week later informing them that the French Government would lend them a
machine and an expert as well, and it would cost 16000 francs. The king felt that
sixteen thousand francs was a lot of money and it was utterly a waste of money to
spend so much on beheading a wretched criminal. The king requested for help
from the king of Italy who agreed to provide the requirements at the cost of 12000
francs. Though the price quoted by the king of Italy was cheaper than that of the
French government, still the price was too much for a toy kingdom like theirs.
Therefore, the ministers called another council and discussed the matter. The
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council asked the General of the army to find a soldier who would be ready to cut
off a man’s head. The members of the council believed that the soldiers have been
trained for such a job. The general discussed the matter with his soldiers to see
whether one of them would agree to do that job. But the soldiers did not agree to
do it because they had not been taught how to behead a criminal.

The king and the ministers met again and discussed the matter thoroughly. Finally,
they came to the conclusion that the best thing to do was to alter the death sentence
to one of imprisonment for life. This way it would enable the prince to show his
mercy and it would also be cheaper. The prince agreed to this and so the matter
was arranged accordingly. Though there was no suitable prison for a man
sentenced for life, they managed to find a place that would serve as a prison and
put the criminal in it. They also placed a guard over him. The guard had to watch
the criminal and had also to fetch his food from the palace kitchen. This way, they
kept the prisoner imprisoned for more than a year. The whole arrangement of
keeping a guard to watch over the criminal and feeding the criminal cost more than
600 francs a year.

One day, while the kinglet was examining the account of his income and
expenditure, the new item of expenditure caught his eye. He got worried and so he
summoned his ministers and urged them to find some cheaper way of dealing with
the criminal. The ministers again met and discussed ways of reducing the
expenditure. Finally, they all came to the conclusion that the guard could be
dispensed with so that the expenditure on his salary could be saved.

They went to the extent of saying “let the prisoner run away and be hanged”. The
ministers conveyed their decision to the kinglet and the kinglet gave his consent to
it. Accordingly, the guard was dismissed; but they all waited to see how the
prisoner would react. At dinner time the criminal came out, and not finding his
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guard, he went to the Prince’s kitchen to fetch his own dinner. After collecting his
dinner, he returned to the prison, shut the door on himself and stayed inside. He did
not show any signs of running away and this got the ministers worried. The
criminal was brought before the Minister of Justice. He suggested to the prisoner to
run away. He even told him that if he ran away, the prince would not mind it The
prisoner told the minister that he had nowhere to go and accused them of ruining
his character by sentencing him to death. Secondly, he told them that having been
confined to the prison, he had given up his habit of working. He actually resented
their action in not executing him. He finally told them that he would not like to
agree to their proposal that he should run away and escape. The minister felt
helpless. Once more the council was summoned and the criminal’s issue was
discussed again. They came to the conclusion that the only way they could get rid
of him was by offering him a pension. The ministers decided to pay the prisoner a
fixed sum of600 francs as a pension. On receiving the news, the prisoner told them
that he would go away on that condition but they must undertake to pay it
regularly.

Finally, the prisoner received one-third of his annuity in advance and left the
king’s dominions. He emigrated to another country just across the frontier. He
bought a bit of land, started market gardening and lived there comfortably.

Points To Remember
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1. Kingdom of Monaco – Near Borders of France and Italy.

2. Shore of Mediterranean Sea

3. 7,000 Inhabitants

4. Like small country town

5. TOY KINGDOM – REAL KINGLET

- Palace, Courtiers, Ministers, Laws, Courts of justice, Bishops, Generals.

- Army consists of just 60 Men

6. TAXES

- Tobacco, Wine, Poll tax

- Monopoly in a Gaming House – Roulette because of it Monaco Govt. rakes in

money.

- Problem – Youngman (Rascal) commits murder unprecedented event.

7. DECISION – 1

- His Head cut off as law

HITCH IN FOLLOWING

- Non availability of Guillotine and executioner unaffordable

- French Govt – 16,000 francs, Italian Govt – 12,000 francs

- Military men do not accept proposal of executing the man

8. DECISION – 2

- Life imprisonment, Hitch, Jail, Guard, Food. Result: - Expenses – Above 600
Francs.
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9. DECISION – 3

- Dismisses guard and offers safe escape

- Murderer is offered 600 Francs pension for life time to leave the king’s domain
for life time

- Given 1⁄3 of annuity in advance

- Murderer buys lands and starts market gardening

10. TITLE

Too Dear! Is justified because per capita income of Monaco is 2 Francs

expenditure to cope up with murderer

(Rascal) comes up to 600 Francs per year for his remaining life.

4 mark questions
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1. Why did the king of Monaco keep changing his mind in dealing with the
criminal?

OR

What problems did the authorities of Monaco face in dealing with the criminal?
How did they resolve them?

OR

What made the king of Monaco alter his decisions in dealing with the criminal?

The kingdom of Monaco had never encountered a crime like Murder in its
domains. When this happened the king and the law keepers did not know how to
handle this crisis. The king of Monaco kept changing his mind in dealing with the
criminal because, every time he took a decision, he faced a problem to execute it.
First, the king accepted the judge’s verdict and ordered the execution of the
criminal, but there was neither a guillotine machine nor an executioner. The
ministers sent a letter of inquiry to the French Government, asking whether they
could lend them a machine and an expert to cut off the criminal’s head and also
inform the cost involved in it. They received a reply a week later informing them
that the French Government would lend them a machine and an expert as well, and
it would cost 16000 francs. The king felt that sixteen thousand francs was a lot of
money and it was utterly a waste of money to spend so much on beheading a
wretched criminal. the king requested for help from the king of Italy who agreed
to provide the requirements at the cost of 12000 francs. Though the price quoted by
the king of Italy was cheaper than that of the French government, still the price
was too much for a toy kingdom like theirs. Therefore, the ministers called another
council and discussed the matter. The council asked the General of the army to find
a soldier who would be ready to cut off a man’s head. The members of the council
 TOO DEAR
believed that the soldiers have been trained for such a job. The general discussed
the matter with his soldiers to see whether one of them would agree to do that job.
But the soldiers did not agree to do it because they had not been taught how to
behead a criminal.

The king and the ministers met again and discussed the matter thoroughly. Finally,
they came to the conclusion that the best thing to do was to alter the death sentence
to one of imprisonment for life. Though there was no suitable prison, they
managed to find a place that would serve as a prison and put the criminal in it.
They also placed a guard over him. The guard had to watch the criminal and had
also to fetch his food from the palace kitchen. This way, they kept the prisoner
imprisoned for more than a year. The whole arrangement of keeping a guard to
watch over the criminal and feeding the criminal cost more than 600 francs a year.
After an year the kiglet found out a new item of expenditure. It was incurred for
the keeping of the criminal. Therefore, as advised by his council of ministers, he
dismissed the guard hoping that the prisoner would run away. But the prisoner
refused to run away because he had nowhere to go and he had stopped the habit of
working  he complained that they had spoilt his character by their sentence.. Once
again the king faced a new problem. Then, as suggested by his council of
ministers, the king ordered payment of 600 francs a year as pension and got rid of
the criminal. Having received one-third of the annuity in advance the criminal left
the king’s dominion. Thus the matter was settled. This is how the King of Monaco
kept changing his mind dealing with the criminal

Why was the criminal reluctant to go out of the prison?

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Or

What were the arguments put forth by the prisoner for not running away from the
prison?

Once a murder was committed in the toy kingdom of Monaco. The criminal was
given death sentence but carrying out death sentence was expensive. So the king
and the ministers decided to alter the death sentence onto life imprisonment.
Finally the criminal was kept in a lockup and a guard was kept to watch over him
and to fetch his food from the palace kitchen. After one year king of Monaco
found a new expenditure in the account. This was for the keeping of the criminal. It
came around 600 francs. As the toy kingdom could not afford this much amount,
the Prince decided to dismiss the special guard who was kept to watch over the
prisoner. This would indirectly give an opportunity for the prisoner to escape and
the prince waited to see whether the prisoner escaped but this never happened. The
criminal was reluctant to go out of prison because his character had been ruined by
the death sentence given to him and he had nowhere to go as nobody would offer
him a job as he was a murderer.. Secondly, by being imprisoned and given food in
his cell every day, he had given up working to earn his living. So he had become
lazy. He felt that he was treated badly and it was not fair to ask him to move out of
prison. He said that, first as he was sentenced to death, he must have been
executed. It did not happen and he had not complained about the same. The
judgment was changed and he was sentenced for life and a guard was put to bring
him the food, but he too was removed with the changing judgment for the third
time. This time, he was asked to go away from the prison which he was not willing
to do, as he found his life secured inside the prison. Therefore he decided to stay in
the prison instead of running away.
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How did the criminal lead his life after his release?

Or

How did the criminal benefit from the pension he was offered?

The king’s authorities could not get the criminal executed as per the king’s orders
because there was neither a guillotine for cutting heads off nor an executioner in
their kingdom. Then, they tried hiring a guillotine and an executioner from their
neighboring countries. They wrote a letter to France and Italy. The amount quoted
by France and Italy was too expensive. So they decided to ask a soldier to cut off
the criminal’s head. . But the soldiers did not agree to do it because they had not
been taught how to behead a criminal.

The king and the ministers met again and discussed the matter thoroughly. Finally,
they came to the conclusion that the best thing to do was to alter the death sentence
to one of imprisonment for life. Finally the criminal was kept in a lockup and a
guard was kept to watch over him and to fetch his food from the palace kitchen.
After one year king of Monaco found a new expenditure in the account. This was
for the keeping of te criminal. It came around 600 francs. As the toy kingdom
could not afford this much amount , the Prince decided to dismiss the special guard
who was kept to watch over the prisoner. This would indirectly give an opportunity
for the prisoner to escape and the prince waited to see whether the prisoner escaped
but this never happened. The criminal was reluctant to go out of prison because
his character had been ruined by the death sentence given to him and he had
nowhere to go as nobody would offer him a job as he was a murderer. they offered
him a pension of 600 francs and sent him away. The criminal received one-third of
 TOO DEAR
his annuity in advance and emigrated to another country just across the frontier.
There he bought a bit of land and started market-gardening. He visited the gaming
tables and staked two or three francs, sometimes winning and sometimes losing.
He lived comfortably and peaceably like the others.

Where was the criminal in ‘Too Dear!’ kept and what were the arrangements made
for him?

A murder was committed in the Prince of Monaco’s domains. The people of

Monaco were peaceable and such a thing had not happened before. He was
brought before the court and judges carried out the trail in the most judicious way
and sentenced the criminal to death. The death sentence was approved by the king.
Monaco was a toy kingdom and it did not have either a guillotine for cutting heads
off or an executioner. The ministers sent a letter of inquiry to the French
Government, asking whether they could lend them a machine and an expert to cut
off the criminal’s head and also inform the cost involved in it. They received a
reply a week later informing them that the French Government would lend them a
machine and an expert as well, and it would cost 16000 francs. . The king
requested for help from the king of Italy who agreed to provide the requirements at
the cost of 12000 francs. Though the price quoted by the king of Italy was cheaper
than that of the French government, still the price was too much for a toy kingdom
like theirs. Therefore, the ministers called another council and discussed the
matter. The council asked the General of the army to find a soldier who would be
ready to cut off a man’s head. The members of the council believed that the
soldiers have been trained for such a job. The general discussed the matter with his
soldiers to see whether one of them would agree to do that job. But the soldiers did
not agree to do it because they had not been taught how to behead a criminal.
 TOO DEAR
The king and the ministers met again and discussed the matter thoroughly. Finally,
they came to the conclusion that the best thing to do was to alter the death sentence
to one of imprisonment for life. This way it would enable the prince to show his
mercy and it would also be cheaper. The prince agreed to this and so the matter
was arranged accordingly. Though there was no suitable prison for a man
sentenced for life, they managed to find a place that would serve as a prison and
put the criminal in it. They also placed a guard over him. The guard had to watch
the criminal and had also to fetch his food from the palace kitchen. This way, they
kept the prisoner imprisoned for more than a year. The whole arrangement of
keeping a guard to watch over the criminal and feeding the criminal cost more than
600 francs a year.

Why were a series of meetings held in Monaco in ‘Too Dear!’?

In Monaco, a series of meetings were held to figure out the most prudent or the
least expensive way of executing the criminal. Monaco faced a series of problems
in dealing with criminal as it was the first time a murder was committed there. The
criminal was brought before the court and judges carried out the trail in the most
judicious way and sentenced the criminal to death. The death sentence was
approved by the king. Monaco was a toy kingdom and it did not have either a
guillotine for cutting heads off or an executioner. The ministers sent a letter of
inquiry to the French Government, asking whether they could lend them a machine
and an expert to cut off the criminal’s head and also inform the cost involved in it.
They received a reply a week later informing them that the French Government
would lend them a machine and an expert as well, and it would cost 16000 francs.
The king felt that sixteen thousand francs was a lot of money and it was utterly a
waste of money to spend so much on beheading a wretched criminal. the king
requested for help from the king of Italy who agreed to provide the requirements at
 TOO DEAR
the cost of 12000 francs. Though the price quoted by the king of Italy was cheaper
than that of the French government, still the price was too much for a toy kingdom
like theirs. Therefore, the ministers called another council and discussed the
matter. The council asked the General of the army to find a soldier who would be
ready to cut off a man’s head. The members of the council believed that the
soldiers have been trained for such a job. The general discussed the matter with his
soldiers to see whether one of them would agree to do that job. But the soldiers did
not agree to do it because they had not been taught how to behead a criminal.

When they came to know that none of the soldiers would do it, the authorities
assembled a commission, a committee and a sub-committee and finally came to the
conclusion that the best way would be to alter the death sentence to one of
imprisonment for life. But, they did not find a prison suitable for a criminal
sentenced to life imprisonment. Finally, they managed to find a place strong
enough to keep the criminal in it. They put the young criminal there and placed a
guard over him. They asked the guard to watch over the criminal and also to fetch
his food from the palace kitchen. After an year the kiglet found out a new item of
expenditure. It was incurred for the keeping of the criminal. A committee and a
subcommittee was held to discuss this matter. The committee decided to dismiss
the guard hoping that the criminal would run away. Finally the criminal was let go
by offering him a pension of 600 francs.
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Describe the various ways in which the Prince of Monaco tried to get the criminal
executed.

Or

Describe the attempts made by the ministers in solving the problem of cutting off
the criminal’s head.

The kingdom of Monaco had never encountered a crime like Murder in its
domains. When this happened the king and the law keepers did not know how to
handle this crisis. Soon after receiving the judgment given by the court, the prince
read out the sentence, confirmed it and ordered the execution of the criminal.
However, there was a problem in executing the king’s orders. Monaco did not have
either a guillotine or an executioner. The ministers discussed the matter and sent a
letter of inquiry to the French Government asking whether they could lend them a
machine and an expert to execute the criminal and also inform the cost involved in
it. The French Government informed them that it would lend them a machine and
an expert as well and it would cost 16000 francs. When the ministers informed the
king about it, he thought over it and felt that it would be too burdensome for his
people to bear. Then a similar inquiry was sent to the King of Italy. The Italian
government offered to lend a machine and an expert at a cost of 12000 francs
which included travelling expenses also. Though the price quoted by the Italian
government was lesser than that of the French government, the king felt that the
price was too much for a toy kingdom like theirs. Therefore, the council met
discussed the issue and asked the General of the Army whether a soldier in the
Army would be ready to cut off the man’s head in a rough and homely fashion.
When the General discussed this issue with his soldiers, no soldier agreed to do it
because they had not been taught how to behead a criminal.
 TOO DEAR

Explain how and why the Council got rid of the prisoner.

Or

In spite of all their efforts, the king and his team failed in punishing the criminal.
How is it narrated in the story Too Dear!’?

Soon after the king had ordered imprisonment for life as the punishment, the
ministers with great difficulty managed to find a place to keep the criminal
imprisoned. They put him in it and placed a guard to watch over him. This way the
criminal spent one year in prison. This arrangement cost the king 600 francs a year.
When the king thought over it, it struck him that the criminal was young and may
live for another fifty years. The king became apprehensive about the cost of
keeping the criminal imprisoned for life. Therefore, he summoned his ministers
and asked them to find a cheaper way of punishing the criminal. The ministers met
and discussed the issue and came to the conclusion that the only way to save
money was to dismiss the guard. They believed that the criminal would run away
and their problem would be solved. The king agreed to their suggestion and the
guard was dismissed accordingly. However, they waited curiously to see what the
criminal would do. The criminal came out of his prison at dinner time, collected
his food from the palace kitchen, and returned to the prison, shut the door on
himself and stayed inside. Later, the Minister of Justice asked him why he had not
run away, as there was no guard to watch over him. They even assured him that the
prince would not mind his running away. But the prisoner told them that he had
nowhere to go as his character had been ruined and people would turn their backs
on him. Moreover, he had forgotten the habit of working and so if he ran away he
would be forced to work to earn his living. The ministers met once moreand
 TOO DEAR
discussed the matter seriously. It struck them that the only way to get rid of him
was to offer him a pension. The king gave his consent and. Thus, in spite of all
their efforts, the king and his team failed in punishing the criminal.

‘Too Dear!’ ridicules the foolishness of rulers. Discuss.

The story ‘Too Dear!’ exposes the predicament of a ruler who is forced to revise
his own judgment not out of mercy but out of financial compulsions. The narrator
seems to ridicule the foolishness of rulers who make rules unmindful of the real
situation in which they are placed. The story is thus a parody of one of the modern
systems of governance. It ridicules the ways of bringing criminals to book and
dispensing justice in modern states. Though the story is narrated in a matter of fact
tone, there is an undercurrent of sarcasm. Monaco is a tiny kingdom with only
seven thousand inhabitants. It has a real kinglet who lives in a palace with
courtiers, ministers, a bishop, generals and an army of only sixty men in all. The
king lives by collecting taxes on tobacco, wine and spirits and a poll tax. As the
revenue collected from the people is too meager to feed himself and his people, the
king permits a gaming house where people play roulette. From the profits of the
gaming house, the king gets a large sum of money. This is the situation in which
the king is placed. From this one can infer that, based on the size of the population
and the army, the king can only be a toy king or a dummy who in reality cannot
control the behaviour of the people except through mutual understanding and
ethical principles. The system of governance is only a make-believe system and it
can boomerang or collapse at any point in time. As long as life goes on smoothly,
there is no need for the king to prove to the people that he is their ruler and they
must obey him. But, it so happens that a crime is committed, and the king being the
moral authority has to exercise his authority. Herein lies the crux of the whole
story. The king behaves like a king of a big kingdom in terms of both money and
 TOO DEAR
muscle power and announces a death sentence, which cannot be implemented and,
instead of punishing the criminal, gives him a pension. This ironical situation is
created because of the foolishness of the king. The king ought to have arrived at
his final decision about the criminal only after examining the ground reality.

‘It is a good thing that the criminal committed his crime in Monaco’. Why does the
narrator in ‘Too Dear!’ feel so? Explain.

The story ‘Too Dear!’ exposes the predicament of a ruler who is forced to revise
his own judgment not out of mercy but out of financial compulsions. The narrator
seems to ridicule the foolishness of rulers who make rules unmindful of the real
situation in which they are placed. Monaco is a tiny kingdom with only seven
thousand inhabitants. It has a real kinglet who lives in a palace with courtiers,
ministers, a bishop, generals and an army of only sixty men. The king lives by
collecting taxes on tobacco, wine and spirits and a poll tax. As the revenue
collected from the people is too meager to feed himself and his people, the king
permits a gaming house where people play roulette. From the profits of the gaming
house, the king gets a large sum of money. It so happens that a crime is committed,
and the king being the moral authority has to exercise his authority. Herein lies the
crux of the whole story. The king behaves like a king of a big kingdom in terms of
both money and muscle power and issues a death sentence, which cannot be
implemented and instead of punishing the criminal, ends up giving him a pension.
This ironical situation is created because of the foolishness of the king. The king
ought to have arrived at the final decision only after examining the ground
reality.That is why, the narrator says, “It is a good thing that the criminal
committed his crime in Monaco” to ridicule the king because despite being the
king he has no power to exercise his authority.
 TOO DEAR
Inspite of all their efforts the king and his team failed in punishing the criminal.
How is it narrated in the story Too Dear?

Monaco is a small kingdom with hardly seven thousand inhabitants. The writer
describes it as a ‘Toy Kingdom’. But it had a king and ministers and his army. The
problem is the kingdom started when a murder was committed. The prisoner was
tried in the court of law and was given death sentence. His head was to cut off. But
the state had neither Guillotine nor the executioner. So they thought of buying it
from France and Italy, their neighboring countries. France asked for 16,000 Francs
while Italy quoted 12,000 Francs. The king decided that it was too expensive and
not worth it so the punishment was changed to life imprisonment but after a year
the king realized that they were spending 600 Francs on the prisoner. Again they
found it too expensive and the prisoner was asked to run away, but he didn’t till
they promised him annual lifelong pension of 600 Francs. The decision of the king
and the advice given by the ministers, both were worth a laugh. Moreover, the
maintenance of criminal in prison and the amount spent by the state on them is also
mocked at. To get rid of the criminal only after promising a lifelong annual
pension of 600 Francs. The criminal who was supposed to be punished by the state
now enjoyed his life on state’s money. He gambled in gaming house and spent a
happy life thereafter.

.
 TOO DEAR
How does the kinglet in ‘Too Dear!’ feed his courtiers and officials and keep
himself?

Monaco is a tiny little kingdom of seven thousand inhabitants, which lies on the
shore of the Mediterranean Sea near the borders of France and Italy. Many a small
country town has more inhabitants than this kingdom. In spite of this, Monaco has
a Kinglet, a palace, courtiers, Ministers, a bishop, generals and an army, consisting
of sixty men. The kingdom also levies taxes on its subjects on the use of tobacco,
wine and spirits and a poll-tax. Since this kingdom has very few subjects, the
revenue drawn from them was not sufficient.

Describe the toy kingdom of Monaco.

The narrator begins by telling about the location of Monaco. It was located near the
borders of France and Italy on the shore of the Mediterranean Sea. It was a small
kingdom which just has seven thousand inhabitants and if all the land in kingdom
were divided there would not be even an acre for each inhabitant.

The narrator calls it a toy kingdom as it did not have that glory, splendor and
strength of a large kingdom. In this kingdom there was a kinglet and he had palace
and courtiers, ministers and a Bishop and generals and an army. The kingdom in
all had only sixty men as army. There were also taxes in the kingdom. The items
that were taxed were tobacco, wine and spirits and poll tax. to feed the king’s
courtiers, and officials and to keep himself. Therefore the king had hit upon a new
 TOO DEAR
source of revenue. It came from a gaming house, where people play roulette. The
keeper of the gaming house got a percentage on the turnover irrespective of
whether people lost or won. Out of his profits, the gaming housekeeper paid a large
sum to the kinglet. to feed the king’s courtiers, and officials and to keep himself.
Therefore the king had hit upon a new source of revenue. It came from a gaming
house, where people play roulette. The keeper of the gaming house got a
percentage on the turnover irrespective of whether people lost or won. Out of his
profits, the gaming housekeeper paid a large sum to the kinglet.

What benefits did the criminal enjoy in the lesson ‘Too Dear’

A murder was committed in the Prince of Monaco’s domains. The people of

Monaco were peaceable and such a thing had not happened before. He was
brought before the court and judges carried out the trail in the most judicious way
and sentenced the criminal to death. The death sentence was approved by the king.
Monaco was a toy kingdom and it did not have either a guillotine for cutting heads
off or an executioner. They wrote letters to france and Italy . The amount quoted
by France was 16000 franc and the amount quoted by Italy was 12000 franc. It
was too expensive. So they decided to ask a soldier to cut off the criminal’s head.
But the soldiers did not agree to do it because they had not been taught how to
behead a criminal. Hence death sentence was altered into life-imprisonment. Thus
the criminal’s life was saved.

But Monaco did not have a strong prison to keep the criminal. They managed to
find a place that would serve as a prison and put the criminal in it. They also
placed a guard over him. The guard had to watch the criminal and had also to fetch
his food from the palace kitchen. The criminal lived there happily. Since the
 TOO DEAR
expense for keeping the criminal was unaffordable, they decided to dismiss the
guard. The prisoner refused to run away claiming that he had nowhere to go and
accused them of ruining his character by sentencing him to death. The prisoner told
them that having been confined to the prison; he had given up his habit of working.
King decided to give the criminal a pension of 600 franc per annum for his life.
The criminal received one-third of his annuity in advance and emigrated to another
country just across the frontier. There he bought a bit of land and started market-
gardening. The criminal who was supposed to be punished by the state now
enjoyed his life on state’s money. He gambled in gaming house and spent a happy
life thereafter. Thus the punishment turned out be a reward.