English Original
In England, nobody under the age of eighteen is allowed to drink in a public bar.
Mr. Thompson used to go to a bar near his house quite often, but he never took his son, Tom, because he was too young. When Tom turned eighteen, Mr. Thompson took him to his usual bar for the first time.
After drinking for half an hour, Mr. Thompson said to his son, "Now, Tom, I want to teach you a useful lesson. You must always be careful not to drink too much. How do you know when you've had enough? I'll tell you. Do you see those two lights at the end of the bar? When they seem to have become four, you've had enough and should go home."
"But, Dad," said Tom, "I can only see one light at the end of the bar."
中文翻译
在英格兰，未满十八岁者不得在公共酒吧饮酒。
汤普森先生以前经常去他家附近的一家酒吧，但他从未带过他的儿子汤姆，因为汤姆年纪太小。当汤姆年满十八岁时，汤普森先生第一次带他去了自己常去的酒吧。
喝了半小时后，汤普森先生对儿子说：“汤姆，现在我要教你一个有用的道理。你必须时刻小心，不要喝太多。你怎么知道自己喝够了呢？我来告诉你。你看到吧台尽头的那两盏灯了吗？当它们看起来变成四盏时，你就喝够了，该回家了。”
“可是，爸爸，”汤姆说，“我只看到吧台尽头有一盏灯。”