Part 20 (1/2)

”You don't know that girl, Henrietta,” he said bitterly. ”She is Regina _selig_ over again--only worser, Henrietta.”

”All right. I would do as you want,” Mrs. Schrimm declared.

”Only one thing I must got to tell you,” Sam said as he made for the door: ”don't let Mrs. Krakauer talk too much, Henrietta, because that girl is suspicious like a credit man. She don't believe nothing n.o.body tells her.”

When Sam entered the showroom of Henry Schrimm's place of business, half an hour later, Henry hastened to greet him. ”_Wie gehts_, Mr.

Gembitz?” he cried.

He drew forward a chair and Sam sank into it as feebly as he considered appropriate to the role of a convalescent.

”I'm a pretty sick man, Henry,” he said, ”and I feel I ain't long for this world.”

He allowed his head to loll over his left shoulder in an att.i.tude of extreme fatigue; in doing so, however, his eye rested for a moment upon a s.h.i.+pping clerk who was arranging Henry's sample garments on some old-fas.h.i.+oned racks.

”Say, lookyhere, Henry,” Sam exclaimed, raising his head suddenly, ”how the devil could you let a feller like that ruin your whole sample line?”

He jumped from his chair and strode across the showroom.

”_Schlemiel!_” he cried. ”What for you are wrinkling them garments like that?”

He seized a costume from the astonished s.h.i.+pping clerk and for half an hour he arranged and rearranged Henry's samples until the job was finished to his satisfaction.

”Mr. Gembitz,” Henry protested, ”sit down for a minute. You would make yourself worse.”

”What d'ye mean, make myself worse?” Sam demanded. ”I am just as much able to do this as you are, Henry. Where do you keep your piece goods, Henry?”

Henry led the way to the cutting room and Sam Gembitz inspected a dozen bolts of cloth that were piled in a heap against the wall.

”That's just what I thought, Henry,” Sam cried. ”You let them fellers keep the place here like a pig-sty.”

”Them's only a lot of stickers, Mr. Gembitz,” Henry explained.

”Stickers!” Sam repeated. ”What d'ye mean stickers? That's the same mistake a whole lot of people makes. There ain't no such thing as stickers, Henry. Sometimes you get ahold of some piece goods which is out of demand for the time being, Henry; but sooner or later the fas.h.i.+ons would change, Henry, and then the stickers ain't stickers no more. They're live propositions again.”

Henry made no reply and Sam continued:

”Yes, Henry,” he went on, ”some people is always willing they should throw out back numbers which really ain't back numbers at all. Take them boys of mine, for instance, Henry, and see how glad they was to get rid of me on account they think I am a back number; but I ain't, Henry. And just to show you I ain't, Henry, do you happen to have on hand some made-up garments which you think is stickers?”

Henry nodded.

”Well, if I don't come downtown to-morrow morning and with all them there stickers sold for you,” Sam cried, ”my name ain't Sam Gembitz at all.”

”Say, lookyhere, Mr. Gembitz,” Henry protested, ”you would make yourself sick again. Come out and have a bite of lunch with me.”

”That's all right, Henry,” Sam replied. ”I ain't hungry for lunch--I am hungry for work; and if you would be so good and show me them stickers which you got made up, Henry, I could a.s.sort 'em in lots, and to-morrow morning I would take a look-in on some of them upper Third Avenue stores, Henry. And if I don't get rid of 'em for you, understand me, you could got right uptown and tell Babette. Otherwise you should keep your mouth shut and you and me does a whole lot of business together.”

Half an hour later Sam carefully effaced the evidences of his toil with soap and water and a whisk-broom, and began his journey uptown. Under one arm he carried a bundle of sample garments that might have taxed the strength of a much younger man.

This bundle he deposited for safekeeping with the proprietor of a cigar store on Lenox Avenue; and, after a final brush-down by the bootblack on the corner, he made straight for his residence on One Hundred and Eighteenth Street. When he entered he found Babette impatiently awaiting him.