night beanery to have a cup of coffee and some pie. And
now all he was thinking was that he would only need to
work from noon until six, when he should be free until the
following morning at six. And then he would make more
money. A lot of it to spend on himself.
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Chapter 8
THE thing that most interested Clyde at first was how, if at
all, he was to keep the major portion of all this money ‘he
was making for himself. For ever since he had been
working and earning money, it had been assumed that he
would contribute a fair portion of all that he received—at
least three-fourths of the smaller salaries he had received
up to this time—toward the upkeep of the home. But now, if
he announced that he was receiving at least twenty-five
dollars a week and more—and this entirely apart from the
salary of fifteen a month and board—his parents would
assuredly expect him to pay ten or twelve.
But so long had he been haunted by the desire to make
himself as attractive looking as any other well-dressed boy
that, now that he had the opportunity, he could not resist
the temptation to equip himself first and as speedily as
possible. Accordingly, he decided to say to his mother that
all of the tips he received aggregated no more than a dollar
a day. And, in order to give himself greater freedom of
action in the matter of disposing of his spare time, he
announced that frequently, in addition to the long hours
demanded of him every other day, he was expected to take
the place of other boys who were sick or set to doing other
things. And also, he explained that the management
demanded of all boys that they look well outside as well as
inside the hotel. He could not long be seen coming to the
hotel in the clothes that he now wore. Mr. Squires, he said,
had hinted as much. But, as if to soften the blow, one of the
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boys at the hotel had told him of a place where he could
procure quite all the things that he needed on time.
And so unsophisticated was his mother in these matters
that she believed him.
But that was not all. He was now daily in contact with a type
of youth who, because of his larger experience with the
world and with the luxuries and vices of such a life as this,
had already been inducted into certain forms of libertinism
and vice even which up to this time were entirely foreign to
Clyde’s knowledge and set him agape with wonder and at
first with even a timorous distaste. Thus, as Hegglund had
pointed out, a certain percentage of this group, of which
Clyde was now one, made common cause in connection
with quite regular adventures which usually followed their
monthly pay night. These adventures, according to their
moods and their cash at the time, led them usually either to
one of two rather famous and not too respectable all-night
restaurants. In groups, as he gathered by degrees from
hearing them talk, they were pleased to indulge in
occasional late showy suppers with drinks, after which they
were wont to go to either some flashy dance hall of the
downtown section to pick up a girl, or that failing as a
source of group interest, to visit some notorious—or as they
would have deemed it reputed—brothel, very frequently
camouflaged as a boarding house, where for much less
than the amount of cash in their possession they could, as
they often boasted, “have any girl in the house.” And here,
of course, because of their known youth, ignorance,
liberality, and uniform geniality and good looks, they were
made much of, as a rule, being made most welcome by the
various madames and girls of these places who sought, for
commercial reasons of course, to interest them to come
again.
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And so starved had been Clyde’s life up to this time and so
eager was he for almost any form of pleasure, that from the
first he listened with all too eager ears to any account of
anything that spelled adventure or pleasure. Not that he
approved of these types of adventures. As a matter of fact
at first it offended and depressed him, seeing as he did that
it ran counter to all he had heard and been told to believe
these many years. Nevertheless so sharp a change and
relief from the dreary and repressed work in which he had
been brought up was it, that he could not help thinking of all
this with an itch for the variety and color it seemed to
suggest. He listened sympathetically and eagerly, even
while at times he was mentally disapproving of what he
heard. And seeing him so sympathetic and genial, first one
and then another of these youths made overtures to him to
go here, there or the other place—to a show, a restaurant,
one of their homes, where a card game might be indulged
in by two or three of them, or even to one of the shameless
houses, contact with which Clyde at first resolutely refused.
But by degrees, becoming familiar with Hegglund and
Ratterer, both of whom he liked very much, and being
invited by them to a joy-night supper—a “blow-out” as they
termed it, at Frissell’s—he decided to go.
“There’s going to be another one of our montly blow-outs to-
morrow night, Clyde, around at Frissell’s,” Ratterer had said
to him. “Don’t you want to come along? You haven’t been
yet.”
By this time, Clyde, having acclimated himself to this caloric
atmosphere, was by no means as dubious as he was at
first. For by now, in imitation of Doyle, whom he had studied
most carefully and to great advantage, he had outfitted
himself with a new brown suit, cap, overcoat, socks,
stickpin and shoes as near like those of his mentor as
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84
possible. And the costume became him well—excellently
well—so much so that he was far more attractive than he
had ever been in his life, and now, not only his parents, but
his younger brother and sister, were not a little astonished
and even amazed by the change.
How could Clyde have come by all this grandeur so
speedily? How much could all this that he wore now have
cost? Was he not hypothecating more of his future earnings
for this temporary grandeur than was really wise? He might
need it in the future. The other children needed things, too.
And was the moral and spiritual atmosphere of a place that
made him work such long hours and kept him out so late
every day, and for so little pay, just the place to work?
To all of which, he had replied, rather artfully for him, that it
was all for the best, he was not working too hard. His
clothes were not too fine, by any means—his mother should
see some of the other boys. He was not spending too much
money. And, anyhow, he had a long while in which to pay
for all he had bought.
But now, as to this supper. That was a different matter,
even to him. How, he asked himself, in case the thing
lasted until very late as was expected, could he explain to
his mother and father his remaining out so very late.
Ratterer had said it might last until three or four, anyhow,
although he might go, of course, any time. but how would
that look, deserting the crowd? And yet hang it all, most of
them did not live at home as he did, or if they did like
Ratterer, they had parents who didn’t mind what they did.
Still, a late supper like that—was it wise? All these boys
drank and thought nothing of it—Hegglund, Ratterer,
Kinsella, Shiel. It must be silly for him to think that there
was so much danger in drinking a little, as they did on these
occasions. On the other hand it was true that he need not
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drink unless he wanted to. He could go, and if anything was
said at home, he would say that he had to work late. What
difference did it make if he stayed out late once in a while?
Wasn’t he a man now? Wasn’t he making more money
than any one else in the family? And couldn’t he begin to do
as he pleased?
He began to sense the delight of personal freedom—to sniff
the air of personal and delicious romance—and he was not
to be held back by any suggestion which his mother could
now make.
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Chapter 9
AND so the interesting dinner, with Clyde attending, came
to pass. And it was partaken of at Frissell’s, as Ratterer had