I recently heard this story. It sounds as if it might be true. Perhaps our
FOT across the pond can verify?
"An American soldier, serving in World War II, had just returned from
several weeks of intense action on the front. He had finally been granted a
week of R&R and had made it to Southampton, England, there to board a train
bound for London. The train was very crowded, so the soldier walked the
length of the train, looking for an empty seat.
The only seat unoccupied was directly across from a well dressed middle-aged
lady and was being used by her little dog. The war-weary soldier asked,
"Please, ma'am, may I sit in that seat?"
The English woman, looking down her nose at the soldier, sniffed and said,
"You Americans...you are such a rude class of people. Can't you see my
little Fifi is using that seat?"
The soldier walked away, determined to find a place to rest, but after
another trip down to the end of the train , found himself again facing the
woman with the dog in the opposite seat. Again he asked, "Please lady, may
I sit there? I'm very tired". The English woman wrinkled her nose and
snorted, "You Americans! Not only are you rude, you are also quite
arrogant. Imagine!"
The soldier leaned against the swaying wall of the train and again asked if
he might please sit down. The lady said, "Not only are you Americans rude
and arrogant, you're also very inconsiderate!"
The soldier didn't say anything else; he leaned over, picked up the little
dog and tossed it out of the window of the train and sat down in the now
empty seat.
While the woman shrieked and screamed, demanding that someone defend her and
chastise the soldier, an English gentleman sitting across the aisle spoke
up, "You know sir, you Americans do seem to have penchant for doing the
wrong thing. You eat holding the fork in the wrong hand, you drive your
autos on the wrong side of the road, and now, sir, you've thrown the wrong
bitch out of the window."
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