8. Basketball is generally better than tennis. I chose this because the author picked basketball and its best qualities.
9. The boy and the old man are very poor, but they are happy it is referenced in the passage and Patrasche is the dogs name.
10. The old man and boy were never able to make enough food. They were poor and didn't have a big garden to grow an abundance of food.
That's my take on the questions, hope it helps you.
To comport is to act a certain way, or carry yourself in a certain way. The greek root "port" means carry
External means outside basically
