When one takes shoes to a shop to be mended， one gives a ticket with a number on it. Then， when one's shoes are ready， one goes back to the shop， gives the ticket to the shoemaker， gets one's shoes and pays for them.

One day Mrs.Smith gave her husband a pair of her shoes which needed mending and asked him to take them to the shop. Mr. Smith did so， and put the ticket in his pocket.

He went back four days later to get the shoes， but when he went into the shop， he was not able to find his ticket again， and the shoemaker did not want to give him the shoes until he got the ticket.

\"How do I know that the shoes are yours unless you give me the ticket?\" he said. \"If I give them to you now， somebody else may come into my shop with the ticket tomorrow， and then I shall notbe able to give him the shoes.\"

Mrs.Smith needed the shoes urgently，so her husband thought for a moment and then went out to his car， which was at the side of the road outside the shop.He opened the door，and whistled to his wife's small dog， which was sitting on the back seat. Then he went back into the shop with it and said to it. \"Get the shoes!\" The dog began to smell around the shop， and soon it recognized Mrs. Smith's shoes and brought them to Mr.Smith one after the other.

\"That should prove that they are my wife's.\" suggested Mr. Smith.

The shoemaker laughed. \"It certainly does! That is better proof than the ticket.\" He answered as he wrapped the shoes up and gave them to Mr. Smith.

人們去商店修鞋的時候，會拿到一張帶著號碼的小票兒。鞋子修好后，顧客們就可以返回商店，把小票兒給修鞋的人，取回鞋子，然后付款。

一天，史密斯太太把她的一雙穿壞的鞋給了丈夫，叫他拿到商店去修。史密斯先生照做了，把小票兒放進口袋里。

四天后，他來到商店取鞋，當他走進商店的時候，卻找不到小票兒了，修鞋的人要他找到小票兒才肯給他鞋子。

“你不給我小票兒，我怎么知道鞋子是你的呢?”修鞋的人說?！叭绻椰F(xiàn)在把鞋子給你，明天可能會有人拿著小票兒來取鞋，那時我就沒法給他鞋子了?！?/p>

史密斯太太急著要那雙鞋，史密斯先生想了一會兒，然后出了商店，走到他停在路邊兒的車那兒。他打開門，朝坐在后座上妻子的小狗吹了幾聲口哨兒，然后抱起小狗走回了商店。史密斯先生朝小狗喊道：“拿鞋子去!”小狗在商店里到處嗅，很快就認出了史密斯太太的鞋，然后一只只地叼到史密斯先生那兒。

“這樣能證明這雙鞋是我妻子的了吧。”史密斯先生說。

修鞋的人大笑起來：“當然了!這是比小票兒更好的證據(jù)呢?！彼呎f邊把鞋子包好交給史密斯先生。