A strange man with umbrella Part 2 My mother agreed, fished into her purse and took out a pound note. He pocketed the pound, raised his hat, gave a quick bow from the waist and was gone. After that, my mother said that she wanted to satisfy herself he wasn't a trickster. But after her words, we saw that man dodged nimbly in and out of the traffic. We were really shocked. And couldn't see him clearly. The old man was in a terrific hurry. Mother was sure, he was up to something. She took my arm and we crossed the street together. We had been pursuing him by the time he reached a pub. We saw through a big plate-glass window the man very well. He was without his coat and hat edging his way through the crowd towards the bar. Bt the time he reached it, he placed his hands on the bar and spoke to the barman. He had ordered something and when the barmen came back, he brought him a treble whiskey. My mother made sure that the man was a real crook. The "gentleman" made a big swallow and emptied the glass. After that, he turned away from the bar and edged back through the crowd to where his hat and coat were hanging. He put on it and lifted from the coat-rack one of the many wet umbrellas hanging there. The situation was clear for me. The men left the bar, opened the umbrella over his head and scurried off down the road the way he had come. That was his game, he exchanged stolen umbrellas for the pound notes. My mother noticed how clever he was. As soon as the next transaction was completed, the man trotted off down the street and was lost in the crowd. But that time he went in the opposite direction. So, he never went to the same pub twice. At the end, my mother passed an opinion that the man prayed like mad for rainy days.