The Hack Driver

Meanings:

Magnificent: glorious, majestic

Legal briefs: written legal documents

Summons: court order

Detective: investigator

Shadowy: dark, dim

Unpleasant: horrible

Rejoiced: felt happy, felt joyful

Witness: viewer, observer, who saw something happening

Eager: impatient, curious

Expectation: belief, supposition

Disappointed: upset

Agreeable: pleasing, nice

Poker game: a type of card game

Hack: A horse drawn vehicle, horse cart

Hangs out: To spend time doing nothing in particular

Affection: love and care for someone

Bargain: to negotiate the price of something

Black box on wheels: refers to the horse cart (the cart appeared like this)

Owes: be in a debt/ an obligation to pay money

Suspicious: doubtful

Hack Driver: the one drives a horse cart or hack

Confidence: trust, belief

Earnestly: sincerely

Proceed: to begin

Deceiving: cheating

Admire: praise, appreciate

Regret: to be sorry

Cheerily: happily

Hesitated: be in two minds, confused, unable to decide

Admitted: confess, agree

Lingered: waited around

Swede: a native or inhabitant of Sweden, or a person of Swedish descent

Concluded: to arrive at an opinion

Exhausted: used up, finished, tired

Poolroom: A place to play pool, a betting shop

Scarcely: hardly

Greasy meal: oily food

Pastures: grassland

Creeks: a stream, a body of flowing water

Adventures; exploit or event

Philosophy: ideology, beliefs

Meadows: fields, pastures

Resumed: restarted, continued

Cornered: forced into a place or situation

Enormous: huge

Represents: to be appointed to act on behalf of or speak for someone

Retired: Here, went inside

Seized: grabbed, snatched, got hold of

Frightened: afraid or anxious

Retreat: to pull back

Whispered: murmured

Disrespectful: rude, impolite

Examine: to look or consider a person or place, to assess

Barn: outhouse, shelter

Stable: A place where horses are kept

Shameful: disgraceful

Promising: hopeful

Hinted: suggested

Digging: tilling,

Ditch: a drain or trench

Loafing: spend time doing nothing

Hunt: search for

Begged: requested

Anxious: concerned, worried

Folks: people

Summary

The narrator of the story explains that after completing his graduation he started working with a famous law firm in the city. He was working as an assistant clerk there. He was not very happy with his job of serving summons because sometimes he had to face harsh situations while serving them. One day, he got the task of serving summons to Oliver Lutkins who was a key witness in some case. He lived in a small town named New Mullion.

The narrator was very excited to visit a small and beautiful town but his excitement ended by the dull appearance of the town. He saw a cheerful and nice deliveryman at the station. He enquired about Oliver Lutkins as he was new to the town and wanted to find him. The deliveryman told him that Oliver was a nasty man who owed debts to many people. The deliveryman, who introduced himself as Bill cunningly got to know that the lawyer came to serve summons to Lutkins relating to a court case.

The narrator made a deal with Bill. He hired Bill’s hack and went on a search for Lutkins. Bill impresses the narrator with his friendly manner and manages to trap him. They visit different places in search of Lutkins. Bill always asks the lawyer to stay behind. They go to Fritz’s to catch Lutkins while playing poker. They were told that he has gone to Gustaff for a shave. At Gustaff’s they weren’t able to meet him.  

Bill described Lutkins as a cunning man and guessed that he must have gone to Gray’s for a shave. They could not find him there. They were told that someone saw him at the pool room. Here somebody said that he left the poolroom after buying cigarettes.

In the afternoon, Bill offered him to buy lunch from his wife as it would be less costly than at the restaurant. They had lunch at Wade’s hill which was a very beautiful place. By that time the narrator was totally impressed by Bill’s nice and cheery nature. He even started comparing village people to city people. Later on, they went to search for Lutkins at his mother’s house on the basis of information derived from one of his friends.

There the lady received them horribly and they hurriedly left the place as she was about to attack them with a hot iron rod. At last, the lawyer had to leave without serving summons to Lutkins. The next day he was scolded badly by his chief and was again sent to New Mullion with a companion who knew Lutkins. Upon reaching the station, the lawyer happily pointed out that Bill was such a helpful person to him search Lutkins.

At this time, the truth was revealed by his companion from the law firm that the hack driver was none other than Lutkins himself. The clerk felt so bad and ashamed of how he had been fooled by a villager.

Read and Find Out (Answers to the questions on Page 47)

1. Why is the lawyer sent to New Mullion? What does he first think about the place?

The lawyer was sent to New Mullion to serve summons on Oliver Lutkins, who was needed as a witness in a law case.

He first thinks that the place must be a sweet and a simple country village.

2. Who befriends lawyer? Where does he take him?

A hack driver at the station, who called himself Bill Magnuson, befriends him. He told the lawyer that he knew Lutkins and would help in finding him. Bill took him to all the places where Lutkins was known to hang out. He took the lawyer to Fritz’s shop, where Lutkins played a lot of poker; to Gustaff’s barbershop and then to Gray’s barbershop; to the poolroom and several other places before finally taking him to Lutkins’ mother’s farm. However, Oliver Lutkins was not found.

3. What does Bill say about Lutkins?

Bill told the lawyer that Lutkins was a hard person to find as he was always busy in some activity or the other. He owed money to many people, including Bill, and had never paid back anybody. He also said that Lutkins played a lot of poker and was good at deceiving people.

Read and Find Out (Answers to the questions on Page 50)

1. What more does Bill say about Lutkins and his family?

Bill told the lawyer that he knew the mother of Lutkins’. He said that she was a terror. He narrated an incident when he took a trunk to her once and she almost took his skin off because he did not carry it carefully. He also said that she was very tall and bulky. She was very quick and could talk a lot. He said that Lutkins must have heard that somebody was chasing him and consequently would have gone into hiding at his mother’s place.

2. Does the narrator serve the summons that day?

No, the narrator did not serve the summons that day.

3. Who is Lutkins?

The hack driver himself is Lutkins but pretends to be Bill Magnuson. He tricks the lawyer to avoid the summons.

Think About It (Answers to the questions on Page 53)

1. When the lawyer reached New Mullion, did ‘Bill’ know that he was looking for Lutkins? When do you think ‘Bill’ came up with his plan for fooling the lawyer?

No, ‘Bill’ did not know initially that the lawyer was looking for him.

He must have made his plan for fooling the lawyer when the lawyer told him that he was looking for Lutkins, as he knew that he was required as a witness but did not want to give his testimony.

2. Lutkins openly takes the lawyer all over the village. How is that no one lets out the secret? (Hint: Notice that the hack driver asks the lawyer to keep out of sight behind him when they go into Fritz’s.) Can you find other such subtle ways in which Lutkins manipulates the tour?

Lutkins never allows the lawyer to reach the place where the imaginary Lutkins is supposed to be present at a given time. The way he weaves stories about Lutkins’ vagabond nature and the way he scares the lawyer about Lutkins’ mother are ways of fooling the lawyer devised by the hack driver. Everywhere he does not allow the lawyer to ask about Lutkins but he himself pretends to ask about him, which the villagers are knowing is a pretense. So the villagers also join in the whole drama.

3. Why do you think Lutkin’s neighbours were anxious to meet the lawyer?

Almost the entire village had enjoyed Lutkins making a fool of the lawyer. Only Lutkins’ neighbours had not seen the lawyer but had come to know what happened. They wanted to see the gullible man whom Lutkins had taken for a ride. That is why tiny wanted to meet him.

4. After his first day’s experience with the hack driver the lawyer thinks of returning to New Mullion to practice law. Do you think he would have reconsidered this idea after his second visit?

No, absolutely not. After knowing how Lutkins had made fool of him, he would never return to New Mullion to practice law.

5. Do you think the lawyer was gullible? How could he have avoided being taken for a ride?

Yes, the lawyer was gullible. He believed every word of what Oliver Lutkins alias Bill Manguson said. He should have asked about Lutkins from other villagers. Instead, he depended completely on the hack driver.