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                                      Lesson 31

                                             Text A

                                A Difficult Customer
    Dolores works in a shop selling gramophone records. One afternoon a middle-aged woman came in, sat on a stool in front of the counter, and smiled at her brightly.
    "I want a record, dear," she began. "One I heard on the radios this morning. "

    "What was the record called?" Dolores asked, without much hope. The woman shook her head.
    "I don't remember. I should know it if I. heard it , though. Perhaps if you play me a few records, I shall be able to pick it out. "
    She settled herself more comfortably on her stool.

    "We have hundreds of records in stock, " Dolores pointed out. "It would take a very long time to play you even a little of each. Could you hum it to me?"
    The woman shook her head again. "I can't even sing the National Anthem in tune. We should only get into a complete muddle if I were to start humming. " She looked quite depressed, as if this reminder of her own lack of musical ability were the last straw. Then suddenly her face brightened.

    "I've just remembered something," she said. "It comes from a play. There's a girl who speaks very badly, if you see what I mean. But after a time she learns to talk well.Some thing about --- what do you call it? Phonetics."
    This was enough for Dolores. "If you ask me, it's from 'My Fair Iady',?quot;" she said.
"That's it, dear. If you'd thought of it soonerr, we wouldn't have wasted so much time. I suppose you are new to the job."