29. Improve your pronunciation skills.

Listen to the tape and put the words according to the pattern of pronunciation of the following vowels.

[ u]	[ u: ]	[ ju ]	[ ju: ]
could	two	contribution	human

30. Listen to the tape and repeat the poems and tongue-twisters.

How much wood would a wood-chuck chuck

If a wood-chuck would chuck would?

The Listening Woods

By Ida W. Benham

I looked at the shadowed mosses

I looked at the nests o’erhead,

I looked at the small brook dreaming

Alone in its sandy bed.

Writing

☺ The memorandum, or memo for short, is a form of business communication used for exchanging messages between people within one organization. The purposes of memos are the following:

• to remind

• to confirm

• to request information.

Memos usually start with the introduction to the subject and finish with the initials of the sender. The tone of memos is neutral and the language is rather simple, but not bossy. The memos usually contain a request for action.

30. Study the memo.

Date 18 April 2008

To All Heads of Departments

From Roy Palmer, the CEO

Subject Meeting with Donald Raffner

Please note that Donald Raffner, our Eastern Europe Sales Manager is arriving

next Monday 21 April. You are invited to meet him in our Conference Hall at 11 a.m.

Donald Raffner will provide us with the latest information on Polish and Bulgarian markets and will consult us on the subject of our product launch in these countries and distribution perspectives.

Please confirm that you can attend.

R.P.

32. Put the following parts of the memo into the correct order.

a. We would like everyone to attend a meeting on a new pension scheme. The meeting will

take place in Room 22 at 2:30.

b. Date 20 May 2009

c. From Gregory Malcom, the Human Resourses manager

d. G.M.

e. Please confirm that you are able to attend

f. To All staff

g. Subject New pension scheme

h. For more information contact me in person or via the Internet.

33. Pre-reading task

1. Make a presentation about the life and works of Agatha Christie

2. Read the text.

3. Watch the corresponding episode from the film “At Bertram’s Hotel”

4. Compare your impressions from the film and from the text.

5. Discuss your impressions with your friend.

34. Reading

1. Read the text again.

2. Match the highlighted set expressions to the words and phrases a-i

a. is progressing, showing improvement

b. be experienced in a particular kind of work

c. worry, that continues for a long time

d. had gradually become worse

e. be full of

f. are involved in different activities, often in a way that people do not approve of

g. buying or getting sth quickly, because it is cheap

h. from a person who has direct personal knowledge of sth

i. support

Mind that some of the set expressions used have been slightly modified by the speakers. The original versions are:

to have fingers in every pie; to go downhill; to hear something straight from the horse’ s mouth,

Agatha Christie

At Bertram’s Hotel

Mr Hoffman was a big solid-looking man. He gave the appearance of being carved out of wood - preferably teak. His face was so expressionless as to give rise to surmise - could such a man be capable of thinking, of feeling emotion? It seemed impossible. His manner was highly correct. He rose, bowed, and held out a wedgelike hand.

"Bertram's Hotel?" he said. His voice was inquiring, slightly puzzled. It might have been that he had never heard of Bertram's Hotel or that he could not quite remember whether he knew Bertram's Hotel or not.

"You have a connection with it, have you not, Mr Hoffman?"

Mr Hoffman moved his shoulders. "There are so many things," he said. "One cannot remember them all. So much business, so much - it keeps me very busy."

"You have your fingers in a lot of pies, I know that."

"Yes." Mr Hoffman smiled a wooden smile. "I pull out many plums, that is what you think? And so you believe I have a connection with this - Bertram's Hotel?"

"I shouldn't have said a connection. As a matter of fact, you own it, don't you?" said Father genially.

"Oh yes," said Hoffman. "For the moment - I could not quite remember - you see -" he smiled deprecatingly - "I own quite a lot of property in London. It is a good investment - property. If something comes on the market in what I think is a good position, and there is a chance of snapping it up cheap, I invest."

"And was Bertram's Hotel going cheap?"

"As a running concern, it had gone down the hill," said Mr Hoffman, shaking his head.

"Well, it's on its feet now," said Father. "I was in there just the other day. I was very much struck with the atmosphere there. Nice old-fashioned clientele, comfortable old-fashioned premises, nothing rackety about it, a lot of luxury without looking luxurious."

"I know very little about it personally," explained Mr Hoffman. "It is just one of my investments - but I believe it is doing well."

"Yes, you seem to have a first-class fellow running it. What is his name? Humfries? Yes, Humfries."

"An excellent man," said Mr Hoffman. "I leave everything to him. I look at the balance sheet once a year to see that all is well."

"The place was thick with titles," said Father. "Rich travelling Americans, too." He shook his head thoughtfully. "Wonderful combination."

"You say you were in there the other day?" Mr Hoffman inquired. "Not - not officially, I hope?"

"Nothing serious. Just trying to clear up a little mystery."

"A mystery? In Bertram's Hotel?"

"So it seems. The Case of the Disappearing Clergyman, you might label it."

"That is a joke," Mr Hoffman said. "That is your Sherlock Holmes language."

"This clergyman walked out of the place one evening and was never seen again."

"You know more about that than I do, my dear Chief Inspector," said Mr Hoffman. He added, "I hope they gave you every assistance at Bertram's Hotel?"

"They couldn't have been nicer," Father assured him. "That Miss Gorringe, she has been with you some time, I believe?"

"Possibly. I really know so very little about it. I take no personal interest, you understand. In fact -" he smiled disarmingly, "I was surprised that you even knew it belonged to me."

It was not quite a question; but once more there was a slight uneasiness in his eyes. Father noted it without seeming to.

"The ramifications that go on in the City are like a gigantic jigsaw," he said. "It would make my head ache if I had to deal with that side of things. I gather that a company - Mayfair Holding Trust or some name like that - is the registered owner. They're owned by another company and so on and so on. The real truth of the matter is that it belongs to you. Simple as that. I'm right, aren't I?"

"I and my fellow directors are what I dare say you'd call behind it, yes," admitted Mr. Hoffman rather reluctantly.

"Your fellow directors. And who might they be? Yourself and, I believe, a brother of yours?"

"My brother Wilhelm is associated with me in this venture. You must understand that Bertram's is only a part of a chain of various hotels, offices, clubs, and other London properties."

"Any other directors?"

"Lord Pomfret, Abel Isaacstein." Hoffman's voice was suddenly edged. "Do you really need to know all these things? Just because you are looking into the Case of the Disappearing Clergyman?"

Father shook his head and looked apologetic. "I suppose it's really curiosity. Looking for my disappearing clergyman was what took me to Bertram's, but then I got - well, interested if you understand what I mean. One thing leads to another sometimes, doesn't it?"

"I suppose that could be so, yes. And now," he smiled, "your curiosity is satisfied?"

"Nothing like coming to the horse's mouth when you want information, is there?" said Father genially. "Well, I mustn't be keeping you. I expect you're pretty busy taking over take-over bids, or something like that."

"Ah. It amuses you to pretend to be ignorant of all these things. No, I am not busy. I do not let business absorb me too much. My tastes are simple. I live simply, with leisure, with growing of roses, and my family to whom I am much devoted."

"Sounds ideal," said Father. "Wish I could live like that."

Mr Hoffman smiled and rose ponderously to shake hands with him.

"I hope you will find your disappearing clergyman very soon."

"Oh! that's all right. I'm sorry I didn't make myself clear. He's found - disappointing case, really. Had a car accident and got concussion - simple as that."

Father went to the door, then turned. "By the way, is Lady Sedgwick a director of your company?" he asked.

"Lady Sedgwick?" Hoffman took a moment or two. "No. Why should she be?"

"Oh well, one hears things. Just a shareholder?"

"I - yes."

"Well, good-bye, Mr Hoffman. Thanks very much." Father went back to the Yard and straight to the Assistant Commissioner.

"The two Hoffman brothers are the ones behind Bertram's Hotel - financially."

"What? Those scoundrels?" demanded Sir Ronald.

"Yes."

"They've kept it very dark."

"If the Hoffmans are behind all this, it accounts for a lot. They're never concerned in anything crooked themselves - oh no! They don't organize crime - they finance it though!

"Wilhelm deals with the banking side from Switzerland. He was behind those foreign currency rackets just after the war. We knew it, but we couldn't prove it. Those two brothers control a great deal of money and they use it for backing all kinds of enterprises - some legitimate, some not. But they're careful - they know every trick of the trade. Robert's diamond broking is straightforward enough, but it makes a suggestive picture - diamonds, banking interests, and property - clubs, cultural foundations, office buildings, restaurants, hotels - all apparently owned by somebody else."

"Do you think Hoffman is the planner of these organized robberies?"

"No, I think those two deal only with finance. No, you'll have to look elsewhere for your planner. Somewhere there's a first-class brain at work."

3. Fill in the table with the words from the text relevant to the topic “ Field of business”

-verbs and collocations

-adjectives

4. Draw a structure of Mr Hoffman’s financial empire. Come up with an imaginary story, how this empire was created

5. Match phrasal verbs and their equivalents:

1.clear up a. take action to achieve smth

2.deal with b. examine the facts

3.look into c. search

4.take over d. give an explanation

5.look for e. take control of a company by buying enough shares to do this