日本科幻文学 经典科幻文学:《宇宙尽头的餐馆》第32章2

经典科幻文学:《宇宙尽头的餐馆》第32章2  

The crowd swivelled round.
“Ah my dear fellow
” called out the Captain
“Got any matches on you? Or a lighter? Anything like that?”
“No
” said Ford
sounding a little deflated. It wasn’t what he’d prepared. He decided he’d better be a little stronger on the subject.
“No I haven’t
” he continued
“No matches. Instead I bring you news…”
“Pity
” said the Captain
“We’ve all run out you see. Haven’t had a hot bath in weeks.”
Ford refused to be headed off.
“I bring you news
” he said
“of a discovery that might interest you.”
“Is it on the agenda?” snapped the man whom Ford had interrupted.
Ford smiled a broad country-rock singer smile.
“Now
e on
” he said.
“Well I’m sorry
” said the man huffily
“but speaking as a management consultant of many years’ standing
I must insist on the importance of observing the mittee structure.”
Ford looked round the crowd.
“He’s mad you know
” he said
“this is a prehistoric pla.”
“Address the chair!” snapped the management consultant.
“There isn’t chair
” explained Ford
“there’s only a rock.”
The management consultant decided that testiness was what the situation now called for.
“Well
call it a chair
” he said testily.
“Why not call it a rock?” asked Ford.
“You obviously have no conception
” said the management consultant
not abandoning testiness in favour of good old fashioned hauteur
“of modern business methods.”
“And you have no conception of where you are
” said Ford.
A girl with a strident voice leapt to her feet and used it.
“Shut up
you o
” she said
“I want to table a motion.”
“You mean boulder a motion
” tittered a hairdresser.
“Order
order!” yapped the management consultant.