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 Oxford University Press Chapter 1
Walton S1Tc:c1, Oxford OX2 6DP

O xford New York

Athens Auck.land Bangkok Somb:ly
Cakurta Cape Town Dar C$ Sala:im Delhi
Flortncc Hong .Kong lstanbul Kara.c hi
Kuala Lumpur Madras Madrid Melbourne
Mexico City Nairobi P:tris Singapore
Taipei Tokyo Toronto
and associated companies in
I t was cold and dark out in the road a nd the rain did
not stop for a minute. But in the litcle living-room of
number 12 Castle Road it was nice and warm. Old Mr
Berlin tbacbn
White and his son, Herbert, played chess and Mrs
OXFORD and OXFOR1> RNCLISH White sat and watched them. The old woman was
arc rrade ma.rks of Oxford Universiry Pren
happy because her husband a nd her sort were good
ISBN O l9 421639 X
friends and they Jiked to be together. ' H erbert's a good
This !iimplificd cdl.tioo
IC) Oxford Univer,11ty Presi. l!JS!I son,' she thought. 'We waited a long time for him and l
was nearly forty when he was born,. but we are a happy
F, rst published 1.98:9
Eighlh impression 1?9-1 family.' And old Mrs White smiled.
No unAuthoriud pbotOCiOpylng It was true. Herbert was young and he laughed a lo t,
All righ~ r~ttvcd. No pa'rt of this pnbliauion may but his mother and his father laughed with him. They
be: rcpr~uccd, stored in a retrieval 9')'6tem, or transmitted, had not got much money, but they were a very happy
in any form or by any means, clcctronie; rnechlinical,
pbotOCOIY)'ing, recording, or otherwise. wlthO\lt the prior l.ittle family.
wriuen permission of Oxford Univenicy !'~.
The two men djd not talk because they played
This book is wld subjea ro Lhe cond ition that it sbllll nor,
by way of trade or othe.rwi,c, be: lent, rc-solcl, hired out, or careful1y. The room was quiet~ but rhe noise of the rain
mhcrwisc cl rculared without the pu_bl!sher's prior .oonsc,nr
In any form of binding or cover other th.an chat in whidi it is
was worse now and they could bear it on the windows.
publish(...J ond, w,thour a s.imilar condirion including this Suddenly old Mr White looked up. 'Listen to the raio! '
condition bc:ing imposed on the subsequdlL purd,,ucr.
he said.
11,c J>ublishers lllC grateful to the Socicry of Aurhors, as 111:er~ry
nipre$Crlr:nivc of the Esrn tc of W. \YI. Jacobs, for pcrm:iss:ion l'O 'Yes, it's a bad night,' Herbert answered. 'It's not a
c:r~rc 1his slmpli&rl edition.
good night to be out. But is your friend, Tom Morris,
Jltusmucd br Kevin Jones coming tonight?'
Pdmcd in Engbnd by Clays Ltd, St hes plc
1
 The Monkey's Paw The Monkey's Paw

' Yes, that's r.ight. He's coming at about seven

o'clock,' tbe old man said. ' But perhaps this rain .. .'
Mr White did not finish because just then the young
man heard a no ise.
' Listen!' Herbe rt said. 'There's someone at the door
now.'
' l didn't hear a noise/ his father answered, but he
got up from bis chair and wenrto open the front door.
Mrs White got up too a.nd began to put things away.
Mr White sari.cl, ' Come in, come in, Tom. It's
wonderfuJ to see you again. What a bad night! Give me
your coat and then come into the living-room. It's nice
and warm in there.'
The front door was open, and in the living-room
Mrs White and Herbert felt the cold. Then Mr White
came back into the living-room with a big, red-faced
man.
'This is Tom Morris,' Mr White told his wife and
son. 'We were friends when we were young. We
worked together before Tom went to India. Tom, this
is my wife and this is our son, Herbert.'
'Pleased to meet you,' Tom Morris said.
'Pleased to meet you, Mr Morris,' Mrs White
answered. 'Please come and sit down.'
'Yes, come on, Tom,' Mr White said. 'Over here. It's
Old Mr White and his son played chess. nice a.nd warm.'

2 3

'
 The Monkey's Paw The Monkey's Paw

'Thank you,' the bjg man answered and he sat down.

'Let's have some whisky,' old Mr White said. ' You
need someth ing to warm you on a cold night.' He got
out a bottle of whisky and the two old friends began to
drink and talk. The little family listened with interest
to this visitor from far away and he told them many
strange stories.

Chapter 2

A fter some time Tom Morris stopped talking and

Mr White said to his wife aod son, 'Tom was a
soldier in India for rwenry-one years. lndia is a
wonderful country.'
' Yes,' Herbert sai.d. 'J'd like to go there.'
'Oh, Herbert!' his mother cried. She was afraid
because she did not want to lose her son.
' I wanted to go to India too,' her husband said,
' but .. .'
'It's better for you here!' tbe soldier said quickly.
'But you saw a lot of strange and wonderful things in
India. I want to see them too one day,' Mr White said.
The soJdier put down his whisky. ' No!' he cried.
'Stay here!'
Old Mr White did not stop. 'But your stories were 'Let's have some whisky,' old Mr White said.

4 5
 The Monkey's Paw The Monkey's aw r:

interesting,' he said to Tom M orris. 'Wh at did you

begin to say a bout a mo nkey's paw ?'
'Nothing!' Morris a nswered quickly. 'Well . . .
no thing impo rtant.'
'A monkey's paw?' Mrs White said.
1Come on, M r Mo rris! TeU us about it,' H erbert

said.
Morris took his whisky in his ha nd, but suddenly he
put it down again. Slowly he put his hand anro the
pocket of his coat and the White family watched rum.
'What is it? Whar is it?' Mrs White cried.
Morris said nothing. He took his hand out of bis
pocket. The White family watched carefully· - and in
the soldier's hand they saw sometltlng little and d irty.
Mrs White moved back, afraid, but her son, Herbert>
took it and looked at it carefully.
'Well, what is it?' Mr White asked his friend.
'Look at it,' the soldier a nswered. 'It's ::i little pa w
.. . a monkey's paw.'
'A monkey1s paw!' Herbert said - a nd he laughed.
'W,hy do you carry a monkey's paw in your pocket, M t
Morrjs?' he asked the o ld soldier.
'Well, you see, Morris said, 'this monkey's paw is
magic!'
.Herbert laughed again, but the sold.ier said, 'Don't
laugh, boy. Remember, you're young. I'm old now and Herbert looked carefully ert the monkey's paw.

6 7
 The Monkey's Paw The Monkey's Paw

in India I saw many strange things .' H e sto pped talking

for a minute and then he said, 'This monkey's paw can
do strange and wonderful things. An old Indian gave
the paw to one of my friends. My friend was a soldier
too. This. paw is magic because it can give three wishes
to three peoEle.'
'Wonderful!' Herbert said.
'But these three wishes don't bring happiness,'
the soldier said. The old Indian wanted to teach
us something - it's never good to want to cha nge
things.'
'Well, did your friend have th ree wishes?' Herbert
asked the old soldier.
•Yes,' Morris answernd quietly. ' And his third and
last wish was to die!'
Mr and Mrs White li.stened to the story and t hey felt
afraid, but Herbert asked, 'And did he die?'
'Yes, he did,' Morris said. ' He had no family, so his
things came to me when he died. The monkey's paw
was with his things, but he told me about it before he
died,' Tom Morris finished q ui.etly.
'What were his first two wishes, then?' Herbert
asked. 'What did he ask for?'
' I don't know. H e cLidn't want to tell me,' the solctier
a nswered.
'An old Indian gave the m onkey's paw to one of my friends.' For a minute or two everybody was quiet, but then

8 9
 The Monk ey's Paw The Monkey's Paw

Herbert sajd, 'And you, Mr Morris: clid you have three

wishes?'
' Yes, I did,' Morris a nswered. 'I was young. I wanted
many things - a fast car, money ... ' Morris stopped
for a minute and then he said with di.fficuJty, ' My wife
and my young son died in an acci.dent in the car.
Without them I didn't want the money, so, i.n the end, I
wished to lose it. But it was too late. My wife and my
child were dead.'
The room was very quiet. The White family looked
at the unhappy face of the old soldier.
Then Mr White said, 'Why do you want the paw
now? You don't need i.t. You can give it to someone.'
'How can I give it to someo ne?' the soldier said. 'Th.e
monkey's paw brings unhappiness with it.'
'Well, give it to me,' Mr White said. ' Perhaps this
time ir .. .'
'Nol' Tom Morris cried. ' You're my friend. J can't
give it to you.' Then, after a minute, be said,'] can't give
it to you, but, 0f course you can take it from me. Bur
remember - this monkey's paw brings unhappiness!'
Old Mr White did not listen and he did nor think.
Quicl<ly, he put out his hand, and he took the paw.
Tom Morris looked unhappy> but Mr White did not
want to wait.
'What do I do now?' he asked his friend. 'The monkey's paw brings unhappi1J$SS with it.'
10 11
 The Monkey's />aw T he Monkey's Paw

' Yes, come on, Father,' Herbert sajd_ 'Make a wish!'

And he laughed.
The soldier said no thing and Mr White asked him
again, 'What do I do now?'
At first the old soldier did not answer, but io the end
he said quietly, 'OK. Bur remember! Be careful! Th ink
before you make your wish.'
'Yes, yes,' Mr White said.
'Take the paw in your right ha nd and then make
your wish, but .. . ' Tom Morris began.
' Yes~ we know,' Herbert said. 'Be careful!'
Just then old Mrs White stood up and she began to
get the dinner. Her husband looked at her. Then he
smiled and said to her, 'Come on. Help me! What can 1
wish for? We need money; of course.'
Mrs White laughed, bur she thought for a minute
and then she said, 'Well, I'm getting old now and
sometimes it's difficult to do everything. Perhaps I need
four hands and not two. Yes, ask- the paw to give me
two more hands-.'
'OK,. then,' her husband said, and he took the
monkey's paw in his ri.g ht hand. Everybody watched
him and for a minute he waited. Then he opened his
mouth to make his wish.
Suddenly Tom Morris stood u.p. 'Don't do it!' he
'What can I wish for? We .need money, of course.' cried.

12 13
 The Monkey's Paw The Monkey's Paw

The old soldier's face was white. Herbert and bis

mother laughed, but Mr Whi te looked at Tom's face.
Old Mr White was afra id and he put the monkey's
paw into h is pocket.
After a minute or two they sat down at the table and
began to have dinner. The soldier told the fa mily many
strange and wonderful stories about India. They forgo t
the monkey's paw, and because the soldier's stories
we.re interesting, they asked him many questions about
Jndia. When Tom Morris stood up to leave, it was very
late.
T hank you fo r a very nice evening,' Morris said to
the family. 'And thank you for a very good dinner/ he
said to Mrs White.
'It was a wonderful evening for us, Tom,' old Mr
White answered. 'Your stories were very interesting.
Our life iso>t very exciting and we don' t b~ve tbe
money to visit India, so please come again soon. You
can ceU us some more stories about India.'
Then the old soldier put on his coat. He said
goodbye to the White family, and went out into the
rain.

The soldier told the family many stories about lnd;a.

15
 The Monkey's Paw

Chapter 3

I t was nearly midnight. [n their warm living-room,

the two old peo ple and their son sat and talked
about the soldier's stories.
'India is a wonderful country,' Mr White said. 'What
exciting stories! lt was a good evening.'
Mrs White stood up to take some things into the
kitchen, but she stopped and listened to H erbert and
'Perhaps the story was true.'
his father.
'Yes,' Herben said. 'Morris told some interesting much, and at first he didn't want to take it. H e wanted
stories, but, of course, some of them weren 't true.' the monkey's paw.,
'Oh Herbert!' Mrs White said. ' Well, he can 1t have it,/ H erbert laughed.. ' It's our
' Well, Mo ther, that story about the monkey's paw paw now and we•re going to be rich and happy. Come
wasn't true. A dirty little m onkey's paw isn't magic! on, Father. Make a wisb!'
But it was a good story.' .And Herbert smiled. Old Mr White took the paw from his pocket. ' OK,
'Well, l iliink you're right, Herbert,' his mother said. Herbert, but what am r going to ask for? I have
'l don't know,' Mr White said qujetly. 'Perhaps the everything - you, your mother. What do I need?'
story was true. Strange things can happen sometimes.' ' Money, of course,' Herben answered quid<ly. 'We
Mrs White looked at her husband. ' Did you give need money! You~re always thinking about money.
some money to Tom Morris for that paw?' she asked. That's because we haven't got very much of it. With
'We don't have money to give away for nothing'!' Mrs money you can pay for this house. It can be your
White was angry now. house! Go on, Father, wish for thirty thou.sand
'WeU, yes,' her husband answered. 'I did, bat not pounds!'

16 17
 The Mo nkey's Paw The Monkey's Paw

They looked ar the paw. Ir was now oo the floor and

not in the old man's hand. The family watched it, and
they waited - but it did not move again.
So the little family sat down again and they waited.
Nothing happened. The noise of the rain on the
windows was worse now and their little living-room
did not feel nice and warm.
Mrs White said, ' It's cold. Let's go to bed.'
Mr White did not answer and in the end Herbert
said, 'WelJ, there's no money, Father. Your friend 's
story wasn't trne.' But Mr White did not answer. He
'I wish for £30,000.'
sat quietly and said nothing.
Herbert stopped talking and his old father thought After some time Mrs White said to her husband,
for a p,inute. The room was quiet and they could hear 'Are you OK?'
the rain on the windows. 'Yes, yes,' the old man answered/but for a minute
Then Mr White took the monkey's paw in his right or two I was afraid.'
hand. He was afraid, butlle looked at bis wife and she 'Well, we needed that money,' Mrs Whjte said, 'but
smiled at him. we aren't going to get it. I'm tired. I'm going to bed.'
•Go on,' she said. After Mrs White went to bed, the two men sat and
Slowly and carefully Mr White said, 'I wish for smoked for some time.
thirty thousand pounds.• Then Herbert said, 'Well, Father, I'm going to bed
Suddenly he gave a cry and Mrs White and Herbert too. Perhaps the money is in a bag under your bed!
ran to him. Goodnight, Father.' And Herbert laughed and went
'What,s the matter, Father?' Herbert asked. out of the room.
'It moved!' Mr White cried. 'The monkey's paw - it Old Mr White sat in the cold living-room for a long
moved!'' time. The candle died and it was dark. Suddenly, the
18 19
 The Monkey 's Paw The Monkey's Paw

Sudd,e,i/y, he saw a face at the window. 'I'm going u, work.• Herbert said.
old man saw a face at the window. Quickly, he looked little table near the window, but nobody looked at it
again, bur there was nothing there. He felt afraid. and nobody thought about it.
Slowly be stood up and left the cold, dark room. 'J'm going to the shops this morning,' Mrs White
said. 'l want to get something ruce for clinner. Are you
going to come with me?' she asked her husband.
Chapter 4 'No, I'm going to have a quiet morning. I'm going to
read/ her husband answered.

T he next morning the winter sun came through the

window and the house felt njce and warm again.
Mr White felt better and he smiled a t his wife and son.
'Well, I'm not going te go our this evening; Herbert
said, 'so we can go to bed early tonight. We were very
late last night.'
The family sat down to nave breakfast and they began 'And we aren't going to have stories about monkeys'
to talk about the day. The monkey's paw was on a paws!' Mrs White said. She was angry. 'Why did we
20 21
 The Monkey 's Paw The Monkey's Paw

listen to your frjend?' she asked her husband. 'A

~I
.,
,· ,?
~.
monkey's paw can't give you th ings!' She stopped but \'\ ..;;:

the two men did not answer her. 'Thirry thousand

-.·-
pounds!' she said quietly. 'We needed that money.'
Just then Herbert looked at the clock and stood up.
Tm going to work,' he said. ' Perhaps the postman has
got the money for you in a letter. Remember, I wam
some of it too!' Herbert laughed and bis mother
laughed too.
'Don't laugh,, son,' Mr White said. 'Tom Morris is
an old friend and he thinks the story is true. Perhaps,
it is.'
'Well, leave some of the money for me,' Herbert
laughed again.
His mother laughed too and she went to the door
with him.
•Goodbye, Mother; Herbert said happily. ' Get
something nice for runner this evening at the shops. l'm
always hungry after a day at work.'
'1 know you are!' Mrs White answered.
Herbert left the house and walked quickly down the
road. His mother stood at the door for some time and
watched him. The winter sun was warm, but suddenly
she felt very cold.

Mrs White stood at the door for some time.

23
 The Monkey's Paw

Then he said, 'But that thing moved. The monkey's

paw moved in my hand! Tom's story was true!'
Chapter 5 ' You drank a lot of whisky last night. Perhaps the
paw didn't move,' Mrs White answered.

S lowly, old Mrs Whjte went back into tbe house.

Her husband looked up and saw sornerhing strange
in her face.
'It moved! ' Mr White cried angrily.
At first hjs wife did not a nswer, but then she said,
'Well, Herbert laughed about it ... '
'What's the matter?' be asked. Suddenly she stopped talking. She stood up and
'Nothing,' his wife answered, and she sat down to went over to the window.
finish her breakfast. She began to think about Tom 'What's the matter?' her husband asked.
Morris again and suddenly she sajd to her husband, 'There's a man jn front of our house,' Mrs White
'Your friend drank a lot of whisky last night! A answered. ' He's a stranger-very tall ...., and wel I dressed.
monkey's pa.w! What a story!'
Mr White did not answer her because just then the
postman arrived. He brought two letters for them -
but there was no money in them. After breakfast the
two old people forgot about the money and the
monkey's paw.
Later in the day, at about one o'clock, Mr and Mrs
White sat down to eat and then th,ey began to talk
about money again. They did not have very much
money, so they o&en needed to talk about it.
'That thirty thousand pounds,' Mrs White said, 'we
need it!'
'But it didn't come this morning; her husband
answered. 'Let's forget it!' 'There's a tall, well-dressed stranger in front of our house. ·

24 25
 The Monkey 's Paw The M oizkey's Paw

He's looking at our house ... Oh, no . .. it's OK ...

He's going away ... '
'Come and sir down! Finish earing! ' Mr White said.
The old woman did not listen to her husband. 'H e
isn' t going away,' she went o n. 'H e's coming back. I
don't know him - he's a stranger. Yes, he's very well
dressed .. .' Suddenly Mrs White stopped. She was
very excited. 'H e's coming to the door ... Perhaps he's
bringing the money!'
And she ran out o f the room to open the front door.
The tall, well-dressed stranger stood there. Fo r a
minute he said nothing, but then he bega.n, ' Good
afternoon. I'm looking for Mr and Mrs White.'
'Well, l'm Mrs White,' the old woman answered.
'What can I do for you?'
At first the stranger did n o t answer, but then he said,
'Mrs White, I'm from Maw and Meggins. Can I come
in and talk to you?1
Maw and Meggins had a big factory and Herbert
White worked there on the machinery.
'Yes, of course,' Mrs. White answered. 'Please come
in.'
The well-dressed stranger came into the little living-
room and Mr White stood up.
'Are you Mr Whjte?' the stranger began. Then he
'Can I come in and talk to you?' went on, 'I'm from. M.aw and M.eggins.'

26 27
 The M o,ikey's Patu The Monkey's Paiv

Mrs White looked at the stranger and she thought, Suddenly the old woman sropped because she saw
'Perhaps he has the money . . . but why Maw and the stranger's face. Then the two o ld people knew.
Meggins? And his face is very unhappy . . . Why?' Their son was dead! Old Mrs White began ro cry
Suddenly the old woman was afraid. qujetly and Mr White put his arm round her.
' Please sit down,' Mr White began, but now l1is wife Some time later the maa fro m Maw and Megg.ins
could not wait. said, 'It was the machinery - an accident. H erbert
' What's tile matter?' she cried. 'ls Herbert ... ' She called, " Help! ". The men heard him - and ran ro him
could not finish the question. quickly., but they could do nothing. The next minute he
The stranger did not look at their faces - and Mr was in the machinery. l' m very, very sorry,' he finished.
White began to be afraid too. For a minute or two the room was qwer. At last Mrs
' Please, tell us!' he said. White said, 'Our sop ! Dead! We're never going to see
' I' m very sorry,' the man from Maw and Meggins him again. What are we goi ng co do without him?'
began. He stopped for a minute and tlien he began He.r husband said, 'He was our son. We loved him.'
again. 'I'm very sorry, but this morning there was an
accident at the factory . . . '
'What's the matter? ls Herbert OK?' Mrs White
cried again.
'Well .. : the man began slowly.
'Is he in hospital?• the old woman asked, very afraid
now.
'Yes, but . .. ' the stranger looked at Mts White's
face and stopped.
'Is he dead? Is Herbert dead?' Mr White asked
quietly.
'Dead!' Mrs White cried. 'Oh no ... p lease ... not
dead! Not Herbert! Not our son!' 'Th~ morning there was an accident at the factory ... '

28 29
 The M onkey's Paw The M onkey's Paw

talk agai n. 'There's one more ·th ing; he said. 'Your son
worked fo r M aw and M eggi ns fo r six years a nd he was
a good worker. Now Maw and Meggins want to help
you at rhis unhappy time.' Agai n the tranger stopped.
After a minute he began again. 'M aw and Meggins
wane to give you some money.' Then he put something
into Mr White's band.
Old Mr White d id no t look at the money in his hand.
Slowly he stood up aod looked at the stranger, afraid.
'How much?' Mr White asked, very quietly. H e did not
want to hear the answer.
'Thirty thousand pounds,' the stranger said.
'Maw and Meggins want to help you at this unhappy ti~.'

Then Mrs White asked the stranger, •can we see

him? Can we see our son? Please take me to him. I Chapter 6
want to see my son.'
But the stranger answered quickly, 'Nol' he said.
'lt's better not to see h,m. They couldn't stop the
machlnery quickly. He was in there for a long time.
T hree days later, in the big, new cemetery two miles
from their house, the two o ld people said goodbye
to their dead son. Then they went back ro their dark,
And ar first they couldn't get him out. He was . . .'The old house. They did not want to live without Herbert,
man stopped. Then he said, 'Don't go to see him!' but they waited for something good to happen,
The stranger went over to the window because he something to help them. The days went by very slowly.
did not want to see the faces of the two old people. He Sometimes they did no t talk because there was nothing
said nothing, but he stood there fot some time and he to say without Herbert. And so the days feJt very long.
waited. Then, one night, about a week later, Mrs White got
Then he went back to the old people and began to out of bed because she could not sleep. She sat by the

30 31
 The Monkey's Paw The Monkey's Paw

window and she watched a nd waited for her son. He

~
I 111111111111l'lli,lijllllilllhlll"
did not come and she began to cry quietly.

I I 11 I I . I I I1~Jl\l1tllll
I1111111 Ii111111111!11 I 1i~IU In the dark her husband heard her and he called,
'Come back to bed. It's cold out rbere.'
111 1 'It's colder for my son,> his wife answered. 'He's o ut
I·
11
1111"Ill!I Ii' IIIllll11'1/l/ll11~111'""""',,, •""'""'" iirult ' ~' 1
11 there in the cold cemetery.'
i ,I
1 I I •11!!~i!ll ~l llll~llllllllll l ll l!l1, Mrs Whfre did not go back to bed, but Mr White
was old a nd tired a nd the bed was warm. So, in the
end, he went to sleep again. Suddenly he heard a cry
from his wife.
'The paw!' she cried. 'The monkey's paw!' She came
back ro the bed and stood there.
'What is it? What's the matter?' Mr White cried. He
sat up in bed. ' What's the maner?' he rhougbt. 'Why is
she excited? Wha t's she t a1kipg about?' H e looked at
bis wife.
-- Her face was very white in the dark. '] want it,' she
said quietly, 'and you >ve got it! Give it t o m e! Please!'
'What?' Mr White asked.
'The monkey's paw,' Mrs White said. 'Where is it?>
'Jes downstairs,' Mr White answered. 1Why?'
Mrs White began to laugh and cry. 'We can have
two more wishes!' she cried. 'We had one - but there
are two more'!'
'Oh, no! Not again! Think, woman!' Mr White
The two old people said goodbye to their dead son. cried. But Mrs Whi,re did nor listen.

32 33
 The Monkey's Paw The Monkey's Paw

'The monkey's paw! We can have two more wisbes!' ' I wish for my son. Herl,ert, to come back to us.'

'Qujck.Jy,' she said. •Go and get the paw. We' re put out his hand for the monkey's paw. He touched it,
going to wish for our boy to come back to us!' and quickly took his hand away again.
'No!' Mr White cried. 'You're mad! ' 'No!' he thought. 'I can't! I don'r want to see
'Get it! Get it quickly!' Mrs White cried again. Herbert! His face - after he was ia the machinery ...
Mr White said again, 'Thin~ woman! Think! Oar no!'
boy was in the machinery for a long time. They didn' t Then he thought about his wife - and he put out hjs
want to show him to us! Think! Do you want to see his hand and. took the paw.
body?' In the bedroom his wife waited. She saw the paw jn
'Yes! He's my son. I'm not afraid of him!' she Mr White's hand and cried, 'Quick! Make the wish!'
answered. 'I can't,' Mr White answered. 'Remember - he died
'You don't understand,' Mr White said sadly, but he in the machinery I'
went downstai rs to Look for the monkey' s paw. 'Make the wish! Pm not afraid of my own son!' Mrs
ln the Uving-room it was dark and Mr Whlte did not White cried again.
have a candle. SJowly, he went across the room and he Mr White Looked sadly at his wife; but he took the

34 35
 The Monkey 's Paw The Monkey's Paw

paw in his righr hand and said slowly, ' I wi h for my

son, Herbert, ro come back to us.' Then he sat down in
the nea rest chair.
But Mrs White w ent over to the window a nd looked
out into the road. She stayed there fo r a long time and
she did nor move. Nothing happened. The monkey's
paw could oot do it!
'Thank God!' Mr White said, and he went back to
bed.
Soon Mrs White wenr to bed too.

Chapter 7

B ut they did not sleep. They waited and they

listened. In the end Mr White got up to get a
candle because the dark made him more afraid. He
began to go downstairs, but suddenly he heard a noise
at the front door. He stopped, and he listened. He
could not move. Then the noise came again. This rime
he ran. He ran upstair~, back into the bedroom and he
closed the door behind him. But again the noise came.
"What's that?' Mrs White cried, and she sat up in
bed.
'Nothing! Go to,sleep again!' her husband answered.
But Mrs White listened - and the noise came again. 'Tl1e pawl' Mr White thought. 'Where's the monkey's paw?'

36 37
 The Monk ey's Paw The M onkey's Paw

'It's H erbert! It's Herbert!' she cried. ' I'm going to

o pen the door for him .'
And she got our of bed and ran to the door of the
bedroom. Mr White got there first and stopped her.
' No!' he cried. 'T hink!'
'But it's my boy! It's Herbert,' she answered.
'No! Don't go! Don't .. : her husband cried again.
But Mrs Wh ite did not listen to him. She o pened the
bedroom door and ran from the room. 'I'm coming,
H erbert. I'm coming!' she called.
Mr White ran after her. 'Stop!' be cried. ' Remember,
Herbert died in the machinery! You don't want to see
him!'
For a minute Mrs White stopped a nd looked at ber The road was dark a1Jd quiet.

husband, but then the noise came again and she began in his right hand and he made bis third wish.
to l1JJ') downstairs. Mrs White gave a long unhappy cry and her
'Help me! Help me!' she called to her husband. husband ran down to her. She stood by t he o pen door.
But Mr White did not move. 'The pawf' he thought. Very afraid, old Mr White looked out into the dark.
'Where's the monkey's paw ?' The road was dark and quiet - and there was
He ran back into the bedroom. 'Quick!' he thought. nobody there.
1
Where is it?' At first he could not find it in the dark.
Ahl There it was! He had it!
Just at that minute he heard bis wife downstairs.
'Wait! Wait, Herbert! I'm coming!' she cried. She
began to open the front door.
At tbe same time Mr White took the monkey's paw

38
 Exercises

J Mr White wanted bis wife ro open the front door.

Exercises 4 Mr White took the monkey's pa~ in his left ha nd and made bis rhird
wish.

A Checking your understanding B Working with language

Chapter l Write down the answers to these qitestio,1s. l Complete these sentences w;ih i,zformation from the sto·ry.
l Who lived at number 12 Castle Road? J The White family liked Tom's stories bec:aase . ... ,
2 What do we know about the people in rhe family? 2 When Mr White first wished for the money he . .. . .
3 Herbert wanted to go to Jndia because . , ...
Chapter 2 Write t/Je answers to these questions. 4 Mr White felt afraid because .....
1 How long was Tom Morris in lndia? 5 Mr White ran into the bedroom and dosed the door because .....
2 Why did the soldier not want tO talk about rhe monkey's paw? 6 Mrs Whi.te ran downsrn irs because .... .
3 Why was the paw magic? 7 Herbert did not come back because .... .
4 How did the monkey's paw bring unhappiness to Tom Morris?
2 I lere are some beginni11gs and endings of some sentences from
Chapters 3 and 4 Are these sentences tTUe (T) or false (F)? chapters 1 and 2. Can you put them together?
1 Mr White gave Tom Morris some rnoncy for the monkey's paw. 1 The two men did not rnlk 7 when we were young.
2 Mr White gave a cry because the monkey's paw moved. 2 We were friends 8 to rhis visitor from far away.
3 Mr and Mrs White went to bed and Herbert sat an d smoked. 3 Give me your coat 9 because it can give three
4 At brl!akfast the White family sat and tallced about the monkey's 4 The little fami lyJisrn.ned with wishes to three people.
paw. interest 10 and the'l make your wish.
S Mrs White did nor want thi.: thirty thousand pounds. 5 This pa w is magic 1 l because they played care•
6 Take the pa w in your right fully.
Chapter S Write down the ans111e1s to these questions. hand 12 and then come into the living
1, What do we know about the man who came to rhe house? room.
2 Why do you think the strangec said, 'lr's better not to see him.'?
J. How did Mr White feel when the stranger _gave him the money? C Activities
Chapter 6 Writ£ down the answers to these questions. 1 You are the man from Maw and Meggins. Write his diary for rhc
1 How were Mr and Mrs White different after Herbert died? day when be visired Mr and Mrs Whhe.
2 Why did Mrs White want the monkey's paw again? 2 lorn Mo rris comes back ro12. Castle Road after Herbert is dead.
3 Why did Mr White not want Herbert to come back? What does he say tO Mr and Mrs White, and what do they sayto
him?
Chapter 7 Are these se-ntencff true (T) or faise (F)?
3 You have th.ree wishes. Wha,t do you ask for, and why?
1 Mr Whit~ got a ,candle from the room downstairs.
2 Mr and Mrs White heard a noise in the street.

41
40
 Glossary

sat past tense o f 'co sir'

Glossary saw past tense of ' ro see'
show to let som<.-one see
soldier a man who figh1s fo r his country
stood past rc nse o f ' 10 stand'
began past rensc of ' to beg.i n· Slrange difforcnr, not known
brought past te nse of ' to bring' sun the yellow sun in the sky gives us lig ht and hear
came past tense of 'to come' Thank God! we say these words when we are happy because some-
candle somerhing to give light thing bad has nor happened
cemccery where we put a dead person in the ground though, (v) pasr tense of ' to chink'
chess rwo people play this game wi1h black and white 'men· (see the together with somebody
picture on page 2) cold past tense of ' to tell'
could pas1 tense of ·can' tooj{ pasr tense of 'to take'
cried pas, rense of ' to cry' touch pu, your hand or linger on somerhing
factory a place whe re workers make things unhappy nor happy
Felt past tense of ' to feel' whisky n strong drink from S~tland
forgot past tense of ' to fo.rget' w.ish (v) want
go oo not s top wish (II) saying whar you want
got p~sr tense of ' ro get'
had past tense of ' to have'
happiness being happy
heard pasr tense of 'to hear'
idea when you rhink of somerhing new
Indian (11) a person from India
kitchen the room where you cook food
leh (v) past rense of 'to leave'
liYing-room the room where you sit and talk
ma.chin.cry machines whkh make rhings in a factory
mad ill in the head
magic something which can do wonderful things
monkey a small anim;1l with a long ra il (stt the picture on the front
cover)
paw the baud or foor of an animal
pay give money for somerhing
pur away put things where they were before
sad nor happy
said pasr tense of ' to say'

42