I would like to ask a question about the expression, “...and would I please .... . ” Which appeared in a mystery novel. I’ve been wondering what the expression means. And why is the word “please” in there?
After studying this expression, I’ve found this used in two ways. One is used as the example A: ...... and would I please ….., which I came across while reading as I said.
The other is as in the example B: Would I please ….. Are they the same in meaning in both cases?
Example A: Before we started filming, Dickie wrote to me saying that Jane was
going to be in the film, and would I please be nice to her.
(My Word is My Bond: The Autobiography By Roger Moore)
I got married and quit teaching for a while, but during World War II,
when my husband Comer was overseas, Frankell School had dwindled until
it was just one room. There was about a dozen children going there then.
They came to me and said would I please come; they needed a teacher.
(From The Empty Schoolhouse: Memories of One-Room Texas Schools)
Example B: Yes, I discovered the North Pole in April, 1809. But shortly after I
got there the polar bears came to me in a body and told me there was a
great deal of coal there, buried beneath the snow. They knew, they
said, that human beings would do anything, and go anywhere, to get
coal. So would I please keep it a secret Because…….
(From The Voyages of Doctor Dolittle)