Impudent Questions

A little girl from the East Side was invited to a garden party given by a very aristocratic lady to a group of little East-Siders.

The little girl, as she drank her tea and ate her plum-cake on a velvet lawn under a white-blooming cherry tree, said to her hostess:

"Does your husband drink?"

"Why-er-no, not to excess," was the astonished reply.

"How much does he make?"

"He doesn't work, " said the lady. "He is a capitalist."

"You keep out of debt, I hope?"

"Of course, child. What on earth do you mean by all these impudent questions?"

"Impudent?" said the little girl. "Why, Ma'am, Mother told me to be sure and behave like a lady, and when ladies call at our rooms they always question Mother like that."

無禮的問題

　　一個住在城東貧民區(qū)的小女孩獲得邀請，參加一位貴婦人為城東貧民區(qū)的孩子們舉行的花園晚會。

　　在一棵開滿了白色小花兒的櫻桃樹下，小女孩坐在柔軟的草地上，一邊品嘗著她的茶和梅子蛋糕，一邊對貴婦人說：“你的丈夫酗酒嗎？” “呃，呃，不，他喝得不多。”夫人一臉驚詫。

　　“他掙多少錢？”

　　“他不工作，”夫人回答說，“他是個資本家。”

　　“我希望你們沒有負債吧？”

　　“當然沒有，孩子。你問這么些無禮的問題到底是想說什么呢？”

　　“無禮？”小女孩說，“怎么會呢，夫人？媽媽要我的舉止一定要象夫人們一樣，當她們到我們家做客的時候，她們總是那樣問我媽媽的。”