A SUGGESTION.
It could be understood that Teenie was a frequent visitor by the
familiar manner in which he threaded his way amid the obstacles before
reaching Carrots's very retired residence.
"Old man," said Teenie, "this is ever so much nicer a place to live in
than a reg'lar house."
"Yes," the host replied, grimly; "'specially when the nights are cold,
or it rains. I s'pose you'd rather have the water comin' in on you than
not, when you're asleep, wouldn't you?"
"Well, I didn't mean it jest that way," Teenie replied; "but when you
get in here an' have the candle lighted, it allers seems mighty fine. I
got mother to let me come down an' stay all night with you."
"There! that's jest what I thought you was up to," Carrots said, in
rather a cross tone.
"Why, what's the matter? Don't you want me?" Teenie asked in surprise.
"Of course I'm glad to have you come, Teenie; but I am busy to-night,
an' talkin' with you is bound to upset things."
"What are you doin'?"
"You see, I took the job of gettin' that feller from Saranac out er the
station-house; an' it's goin' to be a pretty hard one, I'm 'fraid, as
things are lookin' now. If I can get him clear of the scrape, you'll see
some fun one of these days, 'cause this thing ain't goin' to stop here,
I'll tell you that. I only wish I knew what ought ter be done."
"How have you been tryin' to fix it?"
"Well, I've talked with some of the fellers that saw the row, to get 'em
to go down to court an' tell how it happened; but they're so terribly
'fraid of Skip they don't dare to say their souls are their own."
"Well, I do," Teenie replied, bravely. "I saw the whole of the scrap,
'cause I was there before it began."
"Will you tell that when the chap's brought inter court to-morrow
mornin'?"
"'Course I will, if you'll stand by me in case Skip tries to come his
funny business; 'cause that's what he says he's goin' to do to anybody
who helps the feller from the country."
"I'll stand by you, Teenie, if that's what you want; an' if we do get
Teddy clear, there'll be three of us. Skip won't dare to tackle as big a
crowd as that."
"No; but you see the feller ain't out, an' I can't figger how it's goin'
to be done."
"We'll tell the judge jest what we saw."
"I don't b'lieve we'll get the chance. They wouldn't let you go anywhere
near him, 'less you had a lawyer."
"We've _got_ to fix it somehow."
"Why not get a lawyer?"
"Now you're goin' crazy, Teenie Massey. It costs as much as a dollar to
get one of them fellows to go to court. They come high!"
"Don't you s'pose you could hire one, an' let him take it out in trade?"
"By jiminy! I never thought of that. I wonder if I couldn't?"
"It wouldn't do any harm to try. I sell papers to a man that would come
an' 'tend to the whole business, I guess, if you'd 'gree to black his
boots so many times a week."
"I'd 'gree to black him all over, if he'd do what I want. Where does he
hang out?"
"I'll show you in the mornin'. Been to supper?"
"Yes; had a little spread up to Delmonico's. It wasn't much, an'
charlotte roosters an' sich things as that ain't fillin', you know."
"I kinder thought you might be hungry, so I got mother to do up a
lunch." And Teenie drew from his pocket a small parcel of cold roast
meat, adding to it from another pocket five boiled eggs.
"Say, we'll have a reg'lar lay-out, won't we?" Carrots said, as he
surveyed the food with the keenest pleasure.
"Now I reckon you can kind er ease up on your business long enough to
'tend to this stuff, can't you?" Teenie answered.
"Well, I should say so! You're a brick, Teenie, an' I wish you'd come
every night."
"Business would have to be pretty good if I was goin' to have such a
spread as this right along. I've been to supper, so you pitch in."
"S'pose we put it away for a while? It hasn't been so long since I ate
that lot o' quails, you know; and I can hold on a spell, an' we'll be
hungry before we're ready to go to sleep."
Teenie was satisfied; and he reclined carelessly in one corner of the
packing-case home, enjoying himself to the utmost.
Carrots followed his example, and soon the two were busily engaged
discussing the probable outcome of Teddy's case, as well as the
possibility of engaging a lawyer upon the condition of his being willing
to accept the fee "in trade."
Not until a late hour was the lunch disposed of; and then, nestling into
the straw, the two were ready for slumber.
Owing to the peculiar location of his home, and the necessity of keeping
his whereabouts a profound secret, Carrots was obliged to arise at a
very early hour, in order to leave the residence before any of the
clerks in the shop should arrive. Therefore it was that the host and his
guest were on the street shortly after sunrise.
Of course it would have been folly to look for the attorney in his
office at such an hour, and the possibility of doing any business before
seven or eight o'clock was so slight that Carrots, with the recklessness
of a spendthrift, invited his friend to a breakfast at Mose Pearson's,
even though it involved an expenditure of fully one-fifth of his entire
wealth.
"We'll kind er need somethin' to brace us up," he said, in explanation
of his generous invitation.
As a matter of course, Master Massey was not proof against the kind
hospitality, and so he very willingly followed his friend to Mr.
Pearson's establishment, which was located in the basement of a dwelling
on Baxter Street.
When the boys, leisurely, and with the air of capitalists, sauntered out
on the street once more, they looked thoroughly contented with the world
in general, and themselves in particular.
"We'd better get up somewhere near the lawyer's office before that Skip
Jellison comes 'round," Teenie said.
Carrots recognized the wisdom of this advice at once; and the two,
keeping a sharp lookout lest Master Jellison should spring upon them
unawares, made their way to Centre Street, where for an hour and a half
they waited in the hallway of the building in which the lawyer with whom
Teenie was acquainted had an office.
On his arrival it was evident the gentleman did not recognize them as
two possible clients, for he passed without even a nod to the boy who
claimed to be his friend, entered the office, and closed the door behind
him.
"Why, he doesn't even know you!" Carrots exclaimed, in a tone of
reproach.
"Oh, yes, he does; but you see it's kind er dark in here, an' I s'pose
he couldn't see my face very well, or he didn't notice."
"What are you goin' to do 'bout it?"
"Wait till he gets settled, an' then we'll go up an' call on him. You do
the talkin', while I stand back an' 'gree to all you say."
Now that they were where the scheme could be carried into execution,
Carrots was by no means confident it would be a success, and actually
felt rather timid about making the attempt; but, urged on by Teenie, he
finally mustered up courage to open the door of the office. He stood on
the threshold, gazing first at the attorney and then back at his friend.
"Well, what do you want?" the gentleman asked, looking inquiringly at
the boy.
This question appeared to restore to Carrots a certain portion of his
self-possession, and he entered the room, standing in the middle of the
floor as he beckoned to his friend to follow.
"What do you want?" the lawyer asked again, impatiently.
"Well, you see--I come--we want--"
"Out with it. What did you come for?"
Teenie nudged his friend from behind, as a sign that he should speak up
promptly; and Carrots, catching his breath much as one does after a
plunge in cold water, began:
"There's a feller what walked down from Saranac, that's goin' to be took
inter the Tombs court this mornin' for fightin' in City Hall Park, an'
we've come to see how much it would cost to hire you to git him out."
"I might defend him, but I couldn't agree to get him out. That depends
on the judge."
"Well, you could make the talk, an' I reckon when the thing's put up
right they'll have to let him go, 'cause he didn't do anything."
[Illustration: "'IT WAS JEST LIKE THIS,' SAID CARROTS."]
"Suppose you tell me the whole story, and I shall be better able to
judge what they may be obliged to do."
"It was jest like this: You see, Skip he come up an' hit Teddy in the
jaw, and Teddy tried to hit back. Skip let out with a left-hander;
Teddy warded it off. Then Skip jumped; down went the papers. Skip got
frightened of a cop; he started to run, Teddy after him, an' Teddy was
'rested, and that's all there is 'bout it."
"That may be the whole of the story; but I must confess I don't
understand it yet."
"Why, it's plain enough. You see, Skip he struck out, an' Teddy warded
it off--"
"Now wait a moment. Tell me which boy is arrested."
"Why, Teddy, of course. You don't s'pose we'd come here if it had been
Skip? I wish it _was_. He'd stay there a good while, for all _I'd_
care."
"Who is this Teddy?"
"He's a feller what walked down from Saranac, an' got here yesterday
mornin'; but jest as he was goin' to sell papers up jumped Skip, 'cause
he thinks he owns the whole town, an' 'lowed he was goin' to clean Teddy
right out. Now, I never did think Skip could fight any great deal,
'cause how was it when he was over to Brooklyn, an' that feller tackled
him?"
"Try to tell me the story as I want to hear it. You say Teddy was
arrested?"
"Why, it's worse'n that! He's in the station-house!"
"Certainly; if he is arrested. On what charge was he taken?"
"Eh?"
"I mean why did the officer take him?"
"Why? 'Cause the park policeman said he was fightin'; but he wasn't. He
was only beginnin'. He might uv licked Skip, too, if they'd let him
alone. I know by the way he put up his hands."
"Then it seems, according to your story, that he really was fighting."
"How could he, when he hadn't even commenced? Skip hit him, an' knocked
the papers out er his hands, an' then he was goin' to lick Skip, but
didn't have time."
The attorney was a patient man, and, possibly, the boy's manner of
telling the story amused him; therefore he continued asking questions,
preventing any detailed account of previous quarrels which Skip might
have had, until he was in possession of all the important facts, when he
asked:
"Do you know what a lawyer usually charges for such a case as this?"
"Now you're comin' right down to dots!" Carrots said, beginning to feel
more at ease since the attorney treated him in such a friendly fashion.
"You see, this feller hasn't got any money, an' I don't claim to be a
millionaire myself. I know lawyers charge a good deal for doin' a little
o' nothin'; but I thought if you'd kind er take it out in trade, we
might make a bargain."
"What business are you in?"
"I shine boots; an' if you'll get this feller out er the scrape, I'll
come in here an' black your boots every mornin' this year, for nothin'.
You can't make a better trade'n that if you should look 'round a good
while."
"That is quite a contract you are proposing."
"I know it; but you see I want ter make it an object for you to get
Teddy out."
"That can be done only in the proper manner. The question is whether you
have any witnesses to prove that this boy was not really fighting, and
that he had sufficient provocation to excuse his trying to thrash the
other one."
"Sufficient what?"
"Provocation. That is, whether what had been done was enough to warrant
an attempt to whip this other boy; for, as I understand it, that is
really what he did try to do."
"Why, of course; he had to. How'd you like it if a feller sneaked up an'
whacked you in the face when you wasn't doin' anything, an' knocked your
papers in the mud."
"It wouldn't be very pleasant, I'll admit; but how can you prove that
such was the case? Who saw the beginning of the trouble?"
"I did, an' Teenie, an' lots of other fellers; but they wouldn't dare to
tell it for fear Skip might thump 'em. He calls hisself a fighter."
"Then you two are willing to run the risk, and tell your story in court,
are you?"
"Of course we are; but will you go an' get him out?"
"Suppose I should take this case, and spend an hour or two on it, how do
I know you would come here each morning to black my boots, as you
propose?"
"How do you know? Why, ain't Teenie here, an' don't he hear what I say?
That's enough to make a trade if you've got a witness, ain't it?"
"Yes, I suppose it is," the lawyer replied, laughingly. "I don't see any
other way for me but to take the case. Go to the Tombs, and wait there
until I come."
"You'll be sure to be on hand before they bring him down, eh?"
"I won't neglect it."
With this assurance the boys left the office, and, once on the outside,
Carrots said to his friend, in a tone of relief:
"Well, now that's fixed, an' I guess we needn't bother any more 'bout
Teddy's gettin' out; but there'll be an awful row when Skip hears what
we've done, an' you an' I've got to stand right 'longside of each other
if he tries any funny business. We must look out for him."
This suggestion that they would stand together against Teddy's enemy was
far from displeasing to Master Massey.
In the seclusion of the packing-case home he could talk boldly about
what Skip might yet be able to do; but once on the street, where it was
possible to meet the bully at any moment, the matter assumed a different
aspect, and he began to realize the danger in which he had thus
voluntarily placed himself.
"It won't do for us to hang 'round here, 'cause he's likely to come any
minute," Teenie said, in a tremulous tone. "I think we'd better go down
to the Tombs, an' then we'll be on hand when the lawyer wants us."
This was a very good idea, and Carrots led the way at a rapid pace, both
taking heed lest they should accidentally meet Skip.