1. There was ... knock on ... door. I opened it and found ... small dark man in ... blue overcoat and ... woollen cap. 2. He said he was ... employee of ... gas company and had come to read ... meter. 3. But I had ... suspicion that he wasn't speaking ... truth because ... meter readers usually wear ... peaked caps. 4. However, I took him to ... meter, which is in ... dark corner under ... stairs (... meters are usually in ... dark corners under ... stairs). 5. I asked if he had ... torch; he said he disliked torches and always read ... meters by ... light of ... match. 6. I remarked that if there was ... leak in ... gaspipe there might be ... explosion while he was reading ... meter. 7. He said, "As ... matter of ... fact, there was ... explosion in ... last house I visited; and Mr Smith, ... owner of ... house, was burnt in ... face."8. "Mr Smith was holding ... lighted match at ... time of ... explosion." 9. To prevent ... possible repetition of this accident, I lent him ... torch. 10. He switched on ... torch, read ... meter and wrote ... reading down on ... back of ... envelope. 11. I said in ... surprise that ... meter readers usually put ... readings down in ... book. 12. He said that he had had ... book but that it had been burnt in ... fire in ... Mr Smith's house. 13. By this time I had come to ... conclusion that he wasn't ... genuine meter reader; and ... moment he left ... house I rang ... police. 14. Are John and Mary ... cousins? — No, they aren't ... cousins; they are ... brother and ... sister. 15. ... fog was so thick that we couldn't see ... side of ... road. We followed ... car in front of us and hoped that we were going ... right way. 16. I can't remember ... exact date of ... storm, but I know it was ... Sunday because everybody was at ... church. On ... Monday ... post didn't come because ... roads were blocked by ... fallen trees. 17. Peter thinks that this is quite ... cheap restaurant. 18. There's been ... murder here. — Where's ... body? — There isn't ... body. — Then how do you know there's been ... murder? 19. Number ... hundred and two, ... house next door to us, is for sale. It's quite ... nice house with ... big rooms. ... back windows look out on ... park. 20. I don't know what ... price ... owners are asking. But Dry and Rot are ... agents. You could give them ... ring and make them ... offer. 21. ... postman's little boy says that he'd rather be ... dentist than ... doctor, because ... dentists don't get called out at ... night. 22. Just as ... air hostess (there was only one on the plane) was handing me ... cup of ... coffee ... plane gave ... lurch and ... coffee went all over ... person on ... other side of ... gangway. 23. There was ... collision between ... car and ... cyclist at ... crossroads near ... my house early in ... morning. ... cyclist was taken to ... hospital with ... concussion. ... driver of ... car was treated for ... shock. ... witnesses say that ... car was going at ... seventy miles ... hour. 24. Professor Jones, ... man who discovered ... new drug that everyone is talking about, refused to give ... press conference. 25. Peter Piper, ... student in ... professor's college, asked him why he refused to talk to ... press. 26. We're going to ... tea with ... Smiths today, aren't we? Shall we take ... car? — We can go by ... car if you wash ... car first. We can't go to ... Mrs Smith's in ... car all covered with ... mud. 27. He got ... job in ... south and spent ... next two years doing ... work he really enjoyed.28. It is ... pleasure to do ... business with such ... efficient organization. 29. ... day after ... day passed without ... news, and we began to lose ... hope. 30. Would you like to hear ... story about ... Englishman, ... Irishman and ... Scotsman? — No. I've heard ... stories about ... Englishmen, ... Irishmen and ... Scotsmen before and they are all ... same. 31. But mine is not ... typical story. In my story ... Scotsman is generous, ... Irishman is logical and ... Englishman is romantic.— Oh, if it's ... fantastic story. I'll listen with ... pleasure. 32. My aunt lived on ... ground floor of ... old house on ... River Thames. She was very much afraid of ... burglars and always locked up ... house very carefully before she went to ... bed. She also took ... precaution of looking under ... bed to see if ... burglar was hiding there. 33. "... modern burglars don't hide under ... beds," said her-daughter. "I'll go on looking just ... same," said my aunt. 34. One morning she rang her daughter in ... triumph. "I found ... burglar under ... bed ... last night," she said, "and he was quite ... young man." 35. ... apples are sold by ... pound. These are forty pence ... pound. 36. It was ... windy morning but they hired ... boat and went for ... sail along ... coast. In ... afternoon ... wind increased and they soon found themselves in ... difficulties.