How We Tried to Buy Shoes

"How can we travel about Germany without knowing a word in German?" I said.

"Oh, no problem» (to say) Harris. I (to buy) a conversation book. Here it (to be). It (to give) you a lot of useful phrases, and we (to look) into it and (to speak) to the Germans."

And that’s how it was…

* * *

We (to stop) at a little shoe shop in Astley street that (to look) like the place we wanted (которая выглядела, как место, которое мы хотели / искали). Boxes of boots (to stand) near the door. Boots (to hang) over the doors and windows. Inside the shop boots (to stand) on the shelves and on the floor all around. The shopkeeper, when we (to come) in, (to be) busy with a chisel and hammer opening a new large box full of boots.

George (to rise) his hat, and (to say) "Good-morning." He (to hope), in answer to his politeness, to hear the polite. Welcome to our shop as this (to be) the answer in the conversation book.

But the man even (not to look) at us.

George (to say): "Mr. X., my friend, (to recommend) your shop to me."

To these words the conversation book (to give) the answer: "Mr. X. (to be) a very fine young man. I (to know) him for years, and I (to be) happy to be useful to his friends."

But the man (to say): "I (not to know) him; I never (to hear) of him."

That (to be) a nice beginning. George (to look) into the conversation book again. The book (to give) three or four methods of buying boots; George (to choose) the one about "Mr. X." as being the politest. At first you should (вам следует) talk to the shopkeeper about this "Mr. X." and then, after coming to the better understanding, you begin to talk naturally about the object of your coming, namely, that you want to buy boots, "cheap and good".

But it (to seem) that the man (not to know) anything about the niceties of trade business. He (not to want) to understand George. So, George (to stop) talking about "Mr. X." and (to look) into the conversation book again. He (to choose) some sentence on the page. It (to be) an unlucky choicein this place, because it (to say): "They say that you have here boots for sale."

For the first time the man (to put) down his hammer and chisel, and (to look) at us. He (to say) slowly: "What you (to think) I (to keep) boots for – to smell them?"

He (to begin) quietly and grew more and more angry as he (to continue).

"What you (to think) I am» he asked, «a boot collector? You (to think) I (to love) the boots, and can’t part with a pair? You (to think) I (to hang) them around here to look at them? Where you (to think) you (to be) – in a museum of boots? You ever (to hear) of a man who (to have) a boot shop and (not to sell boots)? What you (to take) me for – an idiot?"

I always (to say) that these conversation books (to be) never of any realuse. "We had better leave (мы, лучше, пойдем)," (to say) Harris and (to start) for the door. But George suddenly (to find) the answer in the book, the best sentence he could findat the moment. He said: "We (to come) again, when, perhaps, you (to have) some more boots to show me. Till then, adieu!"

With that we came out, (to take) a cab and (to drive) away, leaving the man standing in the doors of his shop. What he said, I (not to hear), but the passers - by (to find) it very interesting.

Дата добавления: 2015-08-13