The Street violinist I got up and dressed，stuek my VI‘Olin under my jacket， and went o

The Street violinist

I got up and dressed，stuek my VI‘Olin under my jacket， and went out int0 the streets to try my luck． I wandered about for an hour，100king for a likely spot，feeling as thOUgh 1 were about to cornmit a crime． Then I stopped at last under a hridge near the station and deel’ded t0 have a try．

I felt tense and nervous．It was the first time，afler all．I drew the Violin frm under my coat like a gun． It was here，in Southampton，with trains rattling overhead，that 1 was about t0 deelare myself．0ne morning 1 was part 0f the hurrying crowds，the next I stood apart，my haek to the wall，my hat on the pavement befbre me， the vioin under my chin．

The fist notes I played were 10ud and raw，like a rIeclaration 0f protest． Then they settled down and hegan t0 run more smoothly and t（）stay more 0r less in turn． T0 my surprise 1 was neither arrested nor told to shut up． Indeed，nobody took any noh’ce at a11． Then an o1d man，wi’thout stopping，sur reptitiously tossed a penny into mv hat as though getting out of some guilty evidence．

I worked the streets of Southampton for several days．gradually acquiring the truths of the trade by trial and error．It was not a good thing，for instance，to 1et the hat 6ll up with money—the sight could discourage the patron．Nor was it wise t0 empty it completely，which could also confuse him． giving him n0 hint as t0 where t0 drop his money．Placing a couple of pennies in the hat t0 start the thing going soon became a regular ritual，making sure between tunes，to hide most of the earnings， but always leaving two pennies behind．

Old ladies were most generous，and s0 were women with children，shopgirls，typists and bar． maids．As for the man．heavy drinkers were always willing listeners and s0 were big guys with mnscles．But never a man with a gentleman’s hat．briefcase or dog．Respectable types were the meanest of a11．Except for retired army officers，who would yell“why aren’t you working，young man？”and then toss some money into the hat t0 hide their confusion．

第 41 题 How long did the author wander about in the streets before he stopped under a bridge？

A．a day．

B．an hour．

C．all morning．

D．all afternoon．