How Do You Know He Wants More Then to Be Friends

For thirty years now I have been studying my fellow-men. I do non know very much virtually them. I suppose it is on  the confront that for the nearly part we estimate the persons we meet. We draw our conclusions from the shape of the jaw, the look in the eyes, the shape of the oral fissure. I shrug my shoulders when people tell me that their beginning impressions of a person are e'er correct. For my ain part I notice that the longer I know people the more they puzzle me: my oldest friends are just those of whom I can say that I don't know anything about them.
These thoughts accept occurred to me because I read in this morning'south paper that Edward Hyde Burton had died at Kobe. He was a merchant and he had been in Nippon for many years. I knew him very footling, but he interested me because once he gave me a swell surprise. If I had non heard the story from his ain lips I should never have believed that he was capable of such an action. It was the more than startling because both his appearance and his manner gave the impression of a very different man. He was a tiny little fellow, very slender, with white hair, a ruddy confront much wrinkled, and blue eyes. I suppose he was about lx when I knew him. He was e'er neatly and quietly dressed in accordance with his historic period and station.
Though his offices were in Kobe Burton oftentimes came down to Yokohama. I happened on one occasion to exist spending a few days there, waiting for a ship, and I was introduced to him at the British Club. We played bridge together. He played a adept game and a generous i. He did not talk very much, either and so or afterwards when we were having drinks, merely what he said was sensible. He had a quiet, dry out sense of humor. He seemed to exist popular at the club and subsequently, when he had gone, they described him as one of the best. It happened that we were both staying at the 1000 Hotel and next day he asked me to dine with him. I met his wife, fat, elderly and smiling, and his ii daughters. It was manifestly a united and loving family. I think the chief thing that struck me about Burton was his kindliness. There was something very pleasing in his mild blueish optics. His voice was gentle; you could non imagine that he could heighten it in anger; his smiling was kind. Hither was a man who attracted yous considering you felt in him a existent love for his fellows. He had charm. But there was zilch sentimental about him: he liked his game of cards and his cocktail, he could tell a good and spicy story, and in his youth he had been something of an athlete. He was a rich human and he had fabricated every penny himself. I suppose one thing that made you similar him was that he was and then small-scale and frail; he angry your instincts of protection. You lot felt that he would non hurt a fly.
Ane afternoon I was sitting in the lounge of the G Hotel. From the windows you had an excellent view of the harbour with its crowded traffic. There were great liners; merchant ships of all nations, junks and boats sailing in and out. It was a decorated scene and nevertheless, I do not know why, restful to the spirit.
Burton came into the lounge shortly and caught sight of me. He seated himself in the chair next to mine.
"What do you say to a little potable?"
He clapped his easily for a boy and ordered 2 drinks. As the male child brought them a man passed along the street outside and seeing me waved his hand.
"Do yous know Turner?" said Burton as I nodded a greeting.
"I've met him at the club. I'm told he'southward a remittance man."
"Yes, I believe he is. Nosotros have a proficient many here."
"He plays bridge well."
"They generally exercise. There was a fellow here concluding year, a namesake of mine, who was the best bridge player I e'er met. I suppose you never came beyond him in London. Lenny Burton he called himself."
"No. I don't believe I remember the name."
"He was quite a remarkable player. He seemed to have an instinct nigh the cards. It was uncanny. I used to play with him a lot. He was in Kobe for some time."
Burton sipped his gin.
"It'due south rather a funny story,", he said. "He wasn't a bad chap. I liked him. He was always well-dressed and he was handsome in a way, with curly hair and pink-and-white cheeks. Women thought a lot of him. There was no impairment in him, you know, he was merely wild. Of course he drank too much. Fellows like him e'er do. A chip of coin used to come in for him once a quarter and he made a scrap more by card-playing. He won a good deal of mine, I know that."
Burton gave a kindly petty chuckle.
"I suppose that is why he came to me when he went broke, that and the fact that he was a namesake of mine. He came to run across me in my office one solar day and asked me for a job. I was rather surprised. He told me that there was no more coin coming from home and he wanted to work. I asked him how old he was.
"Thirty 5,' he said.
'"And what take you been doing before?' I asked him.
'"Well, nothing very much,' he said.
"I couldn't assist laughing.
"'I'one thousand afraid I tin can't practice annihilation for you just now,' I said. 'Come up back and run across me in some other 30-five years, and I'll run into what I tin do.'
"He didn't movement. He went rather pale. He hesitated for a moment and then he told me that he had had bad luck at cards for some time. He hadn't a penny. He'd pawned everything he had. He couldn't pay his hotel bill and they wouldn't give him any more credit. He was down and out. If he couldn't get a job he'd have to commit suicide.
"I looked at him for a bit. I could encounter at present that he was all to pieces. He'd been drinking more than usual and he looked fifty.
'"Well, isn't at that place anything you can do except play cards?' I asked him.
"'I can swim,' he said.
"'Swim!'
"I could hardly believe my ears; it seemed such a silly answer.
"'I swam for my academy.'
"'I was a pretty good swimmer myself when I was a young man,' I said.
"All of a sudden I had an idea.
Pausing in his story, Burton turned to me.
"Practise y'all know Kobe?" he asked.
"No," I said, "I passed through it in one case, just I but spent a nighttime there."
"Then you lot don't know the Shioya Club. When I was a young man I swam from in that location round the beacon and landed at the creek of Tarumi. It's over three miles and it'southward rather difficult on account of the currents circular the beacon. Well, I told my young namesake about it and I said to him that if he'd do it I'd requite him a job.
"I could see he was rather taken aback.
"You say you're a swimmer,' I said.
'"I'm not in very good condition,' he answered.
"I didn't say anything. I shrugged my shoulders. He looked at me for a moment and then he nodded.
"All right,' he said. 'When do you desire me to do information technology?'
"I looked at my watch. It was but after ten.
"The swim shouldn't have y'all much over an hour and a quarter. I'll drive round to the creek at one-half-past twelve and meet you lot. I'll accept you back to the club to clothes and so nosotros'll have lunch together.'
"Washed,' he said.
"We shook hands. I wished him good luck and he left me. I had a lot of work to do that morning and I but simply managed to become to the creek at half past twelve. I waited for him in that location, just in vain."
"Did he get frightened at the last moment?" I asked.
"No, he didn't. He started swimming. But of form he'd ruined his wellness past drink. The currents round the beacon were more than than he could manage.' We didn't go the trunk for most 3 days."
I didn't say anything for a moment or ii. I was a piddling shocked. So I asked Burton a question.
"When you lot offered him the job, did you know that he'd be drowned?"
He gave a fiddling mild chuckle and he looked at me with those kind bluish optics of his. He rubbed his chin with his paw.
"Well, I hadn't got a vacancy in my part at the moment."

Exercises

1. The title of the story is the beginning of the maxim 'A friend in need is a friend indeed'. Why do y'all retrieve the author doesn`t give the ending of the maxim?

2. Observe in the story the English for:

Судить о человеке, делать вывод, озадачивать (ставить в тупик), приходить на ум, быть способным на что-то, морщинистый, повышать голос, и мухи не обидеть, помахать рукой, тезка, потягивать джин, быть высокого мнения о ком-либо, посмеиваться, в состоянии отчаяния, совершить самоубийство, измученный, течение, ошеломленный, пожелать удачи, тщетно (зря), подорвать здоровье, утонуть.

three. Fill the gaps with these words or word combinations in an advisable form:

• To draw conclusions
• In vain
• To wave one`s hand
• To sip
• A current
• To shrug ane`s shoulders
• To be capable of
• Wrinkled
• To commit suicide
• To exist drowned

one. We _____________ from the shape of the jaw, the look in the eye, the shape of the mouth.
2. I should never have believed that he __________ such an action.
3. He was a tiny, lilliputian young man, very slender, with white hair, a scarlet face much ______________ and blueish eyes.
4. A man passed along the street exterior and seeing me _____________.
five. Burton _________ his gin.
6. If he couldn`t get a job he`d have to _____________.
seven. The __________ round the beacon were more than than he could manage.
8. I ____________ when people tell me that their impressions of a person are always correct.
9. I waited for him there but _________.
x. When you offered him a job did you know that he __________?

4. Replace the italicized words/ give-and-take combinations with a synonym:

• To judge
• A namesake of
• To raise 1`s voice
• Puzzled
• To think a lot of
• To ruin one`s wellness
• To occur
• Down and out

ane. Nosotros oft course an opinion about a person by his looks.
two. These thoughts came to my mind because I read in this morning`southward newspaper almost Edward Burton`south death.
three. Yous could non imagine that he could speak in a higher tone in anger.
4. In that location was a fellow at that place concluding yr whose name was besides Edward.
5. Women idea highly of him.
half dozen. He was unemployed and without money.
7. I could see he was rather taken ashamed.
8. But of grade he undermined his health by beverage.

Discussion points

Answer the following questions:

1) What thoughts occurred to the author when he read in a newspaper virtually Mr. Burton`s death?
two) Why did Mr. Burton interest the author?
3) Where did the author make Mr. Burton`s associate?
iv) What did the author know near Mr. Burton?
5) What attracted the writer in Mr. Burton?
6) When and where did he tell the writer the story of his namesake?
7) What kind of man was young Burton?
8) Why did he one time come up to Mr. Burton?
nine) What was the state of affairs he found himself in?
10) What idea did suddenly Mr. Burton take when his namesake said he had swum for the academy?
eleven) Why was young Burton taken back?
12) Why was young Burton drowned?
13) What was the author`s reaction to the story?
14) Why did Mr. Burton say he offered his namesake a job?

Talk over the following:

1. Why would the writer never accept believed that Mr. Burton was capable of such an actionif he had not heard the story from his ain lips? Do you think that the commencement impressions of a person are e'er right?

Annotate on the following proverb (with referrence to the story):

Appearences are deceitful.

2. Brand guesses about young Burton`southward 35 years of life. Why had he never washed annihilation in his life?

3. Is at that place any evidence in the story that Mr.Burton was non that kind and gentle? Why did he promise his namesake a task if the latter swam round the beacon? Did he know he would be drowned? Why did he come up to the creek?

4. Why did Mr.Burton tell the author the story? Why did he say it was rather a funny story? Why did he give a little balmy chuckle when the writer asked him if he had known that the guy would be drowned?

5.What is the story well-nigh beneath the surface of the narrative? Explain the championship of the story. What could have naturally expected of 'a friend in demand' in that situation? What would you have told Mr.Burton if you had been his listener?

6. What is yous master impression of the story?

How Do You Know He Wants More Then to Be Friends

Source: https://lingvistov.ru/blog/reading-club/reading-club-pre-intermediate-a-friend-in-need-by-s-maugham/

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