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READ THIS
Oom Schalk Lourens tells the story of how, when looking after cattle in the Marico district, he lay down
to rest awhile and suddenly woke to find a leopard sniffing his boots. No-one, however, will believe him
. . .
READ THE FOLLOWING PASSAGE:
To make matters worse, Krisjan Lemmer was there, too, and when I got to the part of my story where the
leopard lay down beside me, Krisjan Lemmer winked at me. You know that kind of wink. It was to let me
know that there was now a new understanding between us, and that we could speak in future as one
Marico liar to another.
I didn't like that.
"Kêrels," I said in the end, "I know just what you are thinking. You don't believe me,
and you don't want to say so."
"But we do believe you," Krisjan Lemmer interrupted me. "Very wonderful things happen in the
Bushveld."
Have you looked at the questions
in the right column?
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TEST YOURSELF!
Read the left column and then answer
the following questions:
What does Krisjan Lemmer's wink signify to Oom Schalk? (2)
[Need help?]
Krisjan Lemmer was a great liar.
When Oom Schalk Lourens tells what appears to be a made up story, Lemmer winks at him to show him
that he recognises that Lourens is also a great liar.
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The humour in this story is mainly the result of the "lies" told by Oom Schalk Lourens and Krisjan
Lemmer.
- Make a list of some of these "lies". (8)
[Need help?]
Krisjan Lemmer's lies:
- that he had a 20 foot mamba which followed him to church on Sundays and waited outside under the
tree because he didn't like the sermons that were being preached, and yet he was not a proud snake but
knew he was only a mamba.
Oom Schalk Lourens's lies:
- that he mistook the leopard for Abjaterskop; that the leopard was sniffing him and studying his clothing
carefully; that the leopard lay down beside him and went to sleep; that Lourens was embarrassed about
the leopard seeing the type of clothing he was wearing; that he then just stood up and walked
away.
But, on the other hand, are all of these actually lies? Can some of it be the truth?
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The story does not only rely on lies to provide humour.
- Show how the truth, which others regard as lies, can provide humour. (4)
[Need help?]
It is possible that Lourens was telling the truth and that none of his claims about the leopard were lies.
But he couches his story with quaint descriptions of his embarrassment over the clothing he was wearing,
and his pleasure that the leopard could admire his new shirt.
He also makes fun of his own face, hoping that the leopard will not take exception to how ugly he is.
He states that he does not want the leopard to hold him in poor regard -- all this after just having stated
how terrified he was!
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Krisjan Lemmer tells the story of Hans, his mamba.
- Why, according to Krisjan Lemmer, did the snake not like to go to church? (2)
[Need help?]
The preacher obviously liked telling the story of Original Sin, and of how the evil snake tempted Adam and
Eve in the Garden of Eden.
The story puts snakes in a truly poor light -- many people today believe snakes are evil because of that
story from the book of Genesis.
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- How does one know that Krisjan Lemmer is definitely lying when he tells this story? (2)
[Need help?]
Apart from the fact that Krisjan Lemmer's story is really far-fetched , he also winks at Lourens to signify
that they are both equally liars.
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Which incident from the story proves that, in spite of his deceptive appearance, Oom Schalk is sensitive
and possibly even soft-hearted. (2)
[Need help?]
In the final paragraph, it is very clear that Lourens is truly sorry to see that the leopard has been shot and
is dead.
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