4
Not Such a Simple Question

Alan Robinson was a handsome young man with good manners.

One morning he was walking along a street on his way to an appointment. He did not want to be late. He had forgotten to put on his watch so he went up to a man who was waiting for a taxi.

“Excuse me sir, ”he said,very politely,“but could you tell me the time? ”

The man who was very well-dressed and looked quite rich, said nothing. He did not even look at Alan.

Alan spoke to him again. “Excuse me sir, ” he said, “but could you please tell me what time it is? ”

This time the man looked at him, but he did not speak and looked quickly away.

Alan thought to himself:Well,he's not deaf.He must be just rude.

“Why won't you tell me the time,sir? ”he demanded.

The man turned towards him and said, “Try to understand me.I am standing here waiting for a taxi. You come up to me and ask me for the time. If I tell it to you, you will thank me. I will say, ‘That's all right.' You may then say, ‘It's a beautiful day, ' to which I may reply, ‘Yes, I like these sunny winter days.' Before we know what is happening, we have a friendly conversation. You are a pleasant, polite young man and so when my taxi comes, I offer you a ride. You accept.We talk.I like you.You like me.I invite you to my home.You meet my daughter. She is a very pretty girl. You are a good-looking man. You like each other. Soon you fall in love. You want to marry. Now do you understand my problem? ”

Alan shook his hand.“No sir, I'm sorry, I don't. Everything you have said seems very natural to me.”

“Exactly, ” the man said, “and I do not want my daughter to marry a man who is too poor to buy a watch. Good morning to you.”

And with these words he hurried away.