Question

father went through this spasm of solitary fear each first night of vacation. it wasnt genuine fear. it was the growing - pain of freedom. the cricket who chirped so gaily when he was with mother was also a weary man, a prisoner of daily routine. he had to become free for freedom.
laughingly, then bitterly, he rebuked himself for fear. and presently he was fascinated by the wonder of the unknown. beyond the water through which they slid, black and smooth as polished basalt, 5 he saw a lighthouse winking. from his steamer time - table he learned that it must be great gull island! it suggested to him thunderous cliffs with surf flung up on beetling rock, screaming gulls, and a smuggler on guard with menacing rifle. he lost his fear of fear; he ceased to think about his accustomed life of two aisles and the showcase of new models and the background of boxes and boxes of shoes—tokens of the drudgery that was ground into him like grit. the father who worried was changing into the adventurous wanderer that henceforward he would be—for two weeks. he stretched out his short arms and breathed deeply of the night wind.
half an hour later he was asleep. but not, it must be confessed, in the aristocratic seclusion of his own berth. he was downily curled beside mother, his cheek nuzzled beside her delicate old hand.
1 palpitating: fast beating of the heart
2 tartan: a plaid that represents a scottish clan
3 promenaded: paraded
4 timorous: timid
5 basalt: a type of volcanic rock
what do father and mother do when travelling that they do not manage to while at home?
a nap in the afternoon
b stay awake late at night
c keep their belongings separate
d eat their meals together

Explanation:

To solve this, we analyze the text: "The Father who worried was changing into the adventurous wanderer that henceforward he would be—for two weeks. He stretched out his short arms and breathed deeply of the night wind. Half an hour later he was asleep. But not, it must be confessed, in the aristocratic seclusion of his own berth. He was downily curled beside Mother, his cheek nuzzled beside her delicate old hand." Also, the context of travel (vacation, steamer) and the contrast with home routine. The key is to find what they do at home but not while traveling. From the text, at home, they likely have their own separate sleeping spaces (berth implies a separate bed on the steamer, but at home, maybe? Wait, no—wait, the question is what they do when traveling that they don't do at home. Wait, no: "what do Father and Mother do when travelling that they do not manage to while at home?" Wait, maybe misread. Wait, the options: A. nap in the afternoon, B. stay awake late at night, C. keep their belongings separate, D. eat their meals together. Wait, the text: "the background of boxes and boxes and boxes of shoes—tokens of the drudgery that was ground into him like grit. The Father who worried was changing... Half an hour later he was asleep... not in the aristocratic seclusion of his own berth. He was... beside Mother". So on the steamer, he sleeps beside Mother, but at home, maybe he has his own berth (separate space). Wait, no—"keep their belongings separate": the text mentions "boxes and boxes" of shoes, maybe implying separate storage? Wait, no, the key is the sleeping arrangement. Wait, maybe the correct answer is C? Wait, no, let's re-examine. Wait, the question is what they do when traveling that they don't do at home. Wait, the text says "he was asleep... not in the aristocratic seclusion of his own berth. He was downily curled beside Mother". So at home, he has his own berth (separate space), but while traveling, he sleeps beside Mother—so maybe at home, they keep their sleeping spaces (belongings? berth is a type of bed/space) separate, but while traveling, he is beside Mother (so not keeping belongings separate? Wait, no, the option C is "keep their belongings separate". Wait, maybe I got the direction wrong. Wait, maybe when traveling, they can't keep their belongings separate (because of the boxes and drudgery, but no). Wait, alternatively, the correct answer is C: keep their belongings separate. Wait, the text says "the background of boxes and boxes and boxes of shoes—tokens of the drudgery that was ground into him like grit". Maybe at home, they have separate spaces for belongings, but while traveling, the belongings are all together (boxes and boxes), so they can't keep them separate. So when traveling, they do not manage to keep their belongings separate (which they do at home). So the answer is C.

Answer:

C. keep their belongings separate