after S. Leacock
Some people find great difficulty in saying good-bye when paying a visit or spending the evening. As the moment draws near when the visitor feels it is no longer possible for him to stay he rises and says; "Well, I think..." Then the people say: "Oh, must you go now?" Surely it's early yet and a pitiful struggle follows.
The saddest case of this kind that I ever knew was that o£ my poor friend Melpomenus Jones, a clerk, - such a dear young men and only 23! He simply couldn't get away from people. He was too modest to tell a lie, and too religious to whish to seem rude. Once he took a holiday from his office. The next 6 weeks were entirely his own — absolutely nothing to do. On the very first afternoon of his vacation he dressed in his very bast and went to call on some friends of his. He chatted a little, had two cups of tea, then made up his mind end said suddenly: "Well, I think..."
But the lady of the house said, "Oh, no! Mr. Jones can't you really stay a little longer?"
Jones always told the truth. "Oh, yes", he said, "of course, I- er - can stay!"
"Then please don't go".
He stayed. By the time he had drunk 11 cups of tea, night was falling. He rose again. "Well now", he said shyly, "I think I really..."
"You must go?" said the lady politely.
''I thought perhaps you could have stayed to dinner…
My husband would be delighted".
"All right, I'll stay", he said with a heavy heart, and
Papa came home. They had dinner which was great fun. All through, the meal Jones sat planning to leave at eight – thirty. All the family wondered whether Mr. Jones was stupid and sulky, or only stupid.
- After dinner mamma showed him photographs. She showed him all the family museum-photos of papa's uncle and his wife and mamma's brother and his little boy, and an awfully interesting photo of papa's uncle's friend in his Bengal uniform.
At eight - thirty Jones had examined seventy-one photographs. He rose: "I must say good-night now", he pleaded*
Just then it turned out that the favorite child of the family had hidden Mr. Jones hat; so papa said that he must stay, and invited him to a pipe and a chat. Papa had the pipe and gave Jones the chat, and still he stayed. Every few minutes he meant to say good-bye, but couldn't. Then Papa began to get very tired of Jones, and finally said, with friendly irony, that if Jones wished, he could stay for the night. Jones thanked him with tears in hie eyes and said he would stay just as well, if he wanted him to.
After breakfast next day, papa went off to his work in the City and left Jones playing with the baby, broken-hearted. He was meaning to leave all day, but he simply couldn't. When papa came home in the evening he was surprised and irritated to find Jones still there.
He said jokingly that he'd have to charge him for his board, in case ha was going to stay. The unhappy young man stood speech-child.
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In the days that followed he lived entirely in the drawn-room, and because of the lack of air and exercise he began to lose his health. He spent a great deal of time looking at the photograph, of papa's friend in his Bengal uniform, sometimes even talking to it.
His mind was failing from day to day. At last the crash case, The illness that followed was terrible. Ha recognizedno one, not even papa's uncle in his Bengal uniform. At times ha would start up from his bed and exclaim, "Well, I think..." and then fall back upon the pillowwith a horrible laugh. Then again he would cry. "Another cup of tea and more photographs! More photographs: Har! Har!
At last, after a month of agony, he died, on the last day of his vacation. They say that when the last moment came he sat up in bed with a beautiful smile and said, "Well, the angels are calling me; I'm afraid I really must go now. Good afternoon". And, his spirit rushed from its prison-house as quickly as a hunted cat passing over a garden fence.
Reproduction 2 Home
After Langston Hughes
After eight years travelling about Europe with a jazz band Roy Williams came back home at last. He came back well-dressed but very thin. He was quite ill. He had a feeling that he was going to die, and he wanted to see his mother and sister before his death.
Oh, how glad his mother was to see him. She was a poor working woman, but she always understood his love for music.
When he was quite a little boy she bought him a violin and did all she could to pay for his music lessons, but very often she had no money to pay Millar, the music teacher. She was afraid and cried bitterly when Roy went to Europe with his jazz band, but now she was glad that her son was a real artist.
Negroes and white people all came to Roy's concert. All the Negroes looked at Roy with the greatest interest. In was the first time they had seen a man in evening dress, the first time most of them had heard classical music, the first time they had seen one of their race come back Europe.
Roy played well that evening even though he felt ill. He thought of his old dream of becoming a great artist and playing in a large hall before thousands of people. It could never come true now: he was seriously ill.
He thought about these people in the hall listening to him. The white people and the Negroes who ware looking at him. Ha had to play well – this evening, at least.
When the concert was over, even the white men shook Roy's hand and said how good it was. The coloured people said: "Roy, you play very fine".
A white woman in a red hat came up to Roy and shook his hand too. She complimented him more warmly than the others. They spoke a little about music. She was a piano and violin teacher, but she had no pupils who could play like Roy.
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"That was Miss Reese", Roy's mother told him afterwards. "She is the music teacher at; the white High School".
One morning he received a letter from her, asking him to play for her class. Roy felt very ill, but he went and played at the school. Miss Reese was very kind to him. She accompanied him on the piano and after the concert she said to the white children:
"This is art, my dear young people, this is true art".
That afternoon the white children went home and told their parents about the well-dressed Negro and his concert at school.
Roy want home to bad. Ha was very weak now. Sometimes he was so weak he could not even play. Often he could not eat. Sometimes he could not sleep and then he dressed and went out for a walk.
One night Roy walked out of the house for the last time. As usual, he put on his European overcoat and hat, and took his cane because he felt very weak, and went out. It was very quiet in the streets. He felt a little better, and he remembered the boulevards of Paris, the lights and the music of Europe. It was all like a drama.
Roy was in the main street now, but he didn't see the people, he only saw the figures of his dream and only heard his dream music. Some of the people looked at his European coat and cane and laughed at him. A European coat on a Negro in Hopkinsville Missouri.
"Good evening, Roy", said she. Roy looked up.
"Good evening, Miss Reese", he said.
He was glad to see her. Forgetting he was not in Europe, he took of his glove and held out his hand to his lady
the only person on Hopkinsville who really understood music. They smiled at each other, the young coloured man and the old music teacher. Then she asked him:
"Are you still working on Saransate?"
"Yes, said Roy, and I like it very much".
"Have you heard Heifetz play it?"
But before Roy could open his Mouth to answer, he got a heavy blow on the face. He fell and his head hit the glass window of a shop. Miss Reese screamed. Then a lot of young white men came running. "This Negro was talking to a white woman, insulting a white woman. Yes, he was. Yes, sir. She even screamed.'
So they struck him and knocked him down: they were all like madmen.
The little Negro whose name was Roy Williams lay in the street, his mouth full of blood. He did not see anything. He was dead.
This was the end of his dreams.
1) Listen to the story
2) Reproduce it in writing using the following:
to hunt for a job, without success, to went smth passionately, to bring hope, to look eagerly, to shine with happiness, to thank smb for smth, to employ, to make a fortune, to produce an impression, a well -to-do person, I can't help doing...
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3)Write a conclusion to the story explaining why Bryce Green did not offer Caister a job.
4)Write the story in the first person m if you were
a) Gilbert Caister
b) Bruce Green
Reproduction 3 "Pride and Prejudice"
(an extract)
by Jane Austin
It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.
However little known the feelings or views of such a man may be on his first entering a neighborhood, this truth is so well fixed in the minds of the surrounding families that he is considered as the rightful property of some one or other of their daughters.
"My dear Mr. Bennet" said his lady to him one day, "have you heard that Netherfield Park is let at last?"
Mr. Bennet replied that he had not.
"But it is", returned she: "for Mrs. Long had just been here, and she told me all about it".
Mr. Bennet made no answer.
"Do not you want to know who has taken it?" cried his wife impatiently.
"You wont to tell me, and I have no objection to hearing it".
This was invitation enough.
"Why, my dear, you must know. Mrs. Long says that Netherfield is taken by a young man of large fortune from the north of England; that he came down on Monday in a chaise and four to see the place, and was so much delighted with it, that he agreed with Mr. Morris immediately; that he is to take possession before Michaelmas, and some of his servants are to be in the house by the end of next week".
"Bingley".
"Is he married or single?"
"Oh! single, my dear, to be sure! A single man of large fortune; four or five thousand a year. That a fine thing for our girls.
"How so? How can it affect them?"
"My dear Mr. Bennet", replied his wife, "how can you be so tiresome! You must know that I am thinking of his marrying one of them".
"Is that his design in setting here?"
"Design! nonsense, how can you talk so! But it is very likely that he may fall in love with one of them, and therefore you must visit him as soon as he comes".
"I see no occasion for that. You and the girl may go, or you may send them by themselves, which perhaps will be still better, for as you are as handsome as any of them, Mr. Bingley might like you bent of the party".
"My dear, you flatter me, I certainly have had my share of beauty, but I do not pretend to be anything extraordinary now. When a women has five grown-up daughters, she ought to give over thinking of her own beauty".
"In such cases, a woman has not often much beauty to think of".
"But my dear you must indeed go and see Mr. Bingley when ha come into the neighborhood".
"It is more then I engage for, I assure you".
"But consider your daughters. filly think what an establishment It would be for one of them. Sir William and Lady Lucas are determined to go, merely oil that account, for in general, you known, they visit no newcomers. Indeed you must go, for it will be impossible for us to visit him if you do not".
"You are overscrupulous, surely. I dare say Mr. Bingley will be very glad to see you; and I will send a few lines by you to assure him of my hearty consent to his marrying which-ever he choose of the girls: through I must throw in a good word for my little Lizzy.
"I desire you will do no such thing. Lizzy is not a bit better then others; and I am sure she is not half so handsome as Jane, nor half so good-humoured as Lydia. But you are always giving her the preference".
"They have none of them much to recommend them", replied he: "they are all silly and ignorant, like other girls: but Lizzy has something more of quickness than her sisters.”
"Mr. Bennet, how can you abuse your own children in such a way! You take delight to vexing me. You have no compassion on my poor nerves”.
"You mistake me, my dear. O have a high respect for your nerves. They are my old friends. I have heard you mentioned them with consideration these twenty years at least.
"Ah! You do not know what I suffer ".
"But I hope you will get over it, and live to see many young men of four thousand a year come into the neighborhood”.
"It will he no use to us, of twenty such should come, since you will not visit them”. “Depend upon it, my dear, that when there are twenty I will visit them all”.
Mr. Bennet was so odd a mixture of quick parts, sarcastic humour, reserve, and caprice, that the experience of three-and-twenty years has been insufficient to mare his own wife his charter. Her mind was less difficult to develop. She was a woman of mean understanding, little information, and uncertain temper. When she was discontented, she fancied herself nerves. The business of her life was to get her daughters married; its solace was visiting and news.