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--- lesson 31 A lovable eccentric |
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--- Listen to the tape then answer the question below. |
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--- Why did the shop assistant refuse to serve Dickie? |
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True eccentrics never deliberately set out to draw attention to themselves. |
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They disregard social conventions without being conscious that they are doing anything extraordinary. |
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This invariably wins them the love and respect of others, for they add colour to the dull routine of everyday life. |
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Up to the time of his death, Richard Colson was one of the most notable figures in our town. |
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He was a shrewd and wealthy businessman, but most people in the town hardly knew anything about this side of his life. |
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He was known to us all as Dickie and his eccentricity had become legendary long before he died. |
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Dickie disliked snobs intensely. |
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Though he owned a large car, he hardly ever used it, preferring always to go on foot. |
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Even when it was raining heavily, he refused to carry an umbrella. |
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One day, he walked into an expensive shop after having been caught in a particularly heavy shower. |
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He wanted to buy a £300 watch for his wife, |
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but he was in such a bedraggled condition that an assistant refused to serve him. |
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Dickie left the shop without a word and returned carrying a large cloth bag. |
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As it was extremely heavy, he dumped it on the counter. |
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The assistant asked him to leave, but Dickie paid no attention to him and requested to see the manager. |
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Recognizing who the customer was, the manager was most apologetic and reprimanded the assistant severely. |
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When Dickie was given the watch, he presented the assistant with the cloth bag. |
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It contained $300 in pennies. |
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He insisted on the assistant's counting the money before he left -- 30,000 pennies in all! |
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On another occasion, he invited a number of important critics to see his private collection of modern paintings. |
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This exhibition received a great deal of attention in the press, |
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for though the pictures were supposed to be the work of famous artists, they had in fact been painted by Dickie. |
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It took him four years to stage this elaborate joke simply to prove that critics do not always know what they are talking about. |
