AN INTRACTABLE AGENT.
The new visitor was a large man, evidently a German, weighing not less
than two hundred pounds. He approached Hugo Higgins, towering above the
dwarf by at least fourteen inches, and shook his fist in his face. Mr.
Higgins shrank back as if fearful of a personal assault, and inquired in
uneasy tones:
"Who are you, my friend?"
"Who am I?" retorted the other, laughing gutturally. "You know me well
enough, you villain!"
"I think I have seen you somewhere," said Hugo, not daring to show the
anger he felt at the hard name by which the other addressed him.
"You have seen me somewhere? Come, that's good. My name is Otto Schmidt,
and I am one of your victims. You understand that, hey?"
"No. I can't say I do."
"Then I'll tell you. I came in here last week and bought some of your
confounded packages. I was to make big wages by selling them, hey?"
"Certainly, I hope you did."
"You hope I did?" repeated Mr. Otto Schmidt fiercely. "Well, I tell you.
I went round two days in Montclair, and how many packages you think I
sell, hey?"
"About fifty," answered Hugo with a sickly smile.
"About fifty? Ha, ha!" returned the German, laughing wildly. "I sell
just one to a young boy named Chester Noyes. That's all I sell."
"My dear Mr. Schmidt, I am afraid you got discouraged too soon," said
Hugo suavely.
"So I am your dear Mr. Schmidt, hey? You cost me dear enough with your
lies about the business, you scoundrel!"
"I cannot allow you to talk to me in this way," said Hugo in a dignified
tone.
"Oh, you won't, hey?" retorted the German, beginning to dance about the
floor.
"Well, I won't. Maybe you prefer to have me step on your necktie, hey?"
Hugo Higgins looked alarmed, and Jed could hardly help laughing.
"Well, what do you want?" asked Hugo, afraid some applicant for an
agency might enter and be frightened away.
"What do I want? I want my money back."
"That is against our rules," said Hugo. "My good Mr. Schmidt, take the
packages and go to some other place. Other agents have told me that
Montclair is not a good town for business. Go to--to Rahway! I am sure
you will sell all your packages there."
"No; I don't go to Rahway. I sell all my packages here."
"But, my good friend----"
"I am not your good friend. I am no friend to a rascal."
"Really, this language----"
"Never mind about the language! I ain't going to be schwindled by no
fakir. I've got forty-nine packages here, and I want you to pay me back
my money, seven dollars and thirty-five cents."
"I can't think of such a thing."
"Then I give you in charge for schwindling," said Otto Schmidt,
thrusting a fat fist directly under Hugo's nose. "I may be one Dutchman,
but I ain't so dumb as you think I am."
"I don't think you dumb at all," said Hugo soothingly. "I think you are
a smart man of business."
"You find me too schmart to be schwindled, I tell you that."
"Still, if you don't want to go on with the business, I'll take back the
packages and give you five dollars for them."
"And I to lose two dollars and thirty-five cents, besides all my time.
Not much, Mr. Hugo Higgins."
"You can't expect me to give you back all the money."
"Well, I do," said Mr. Schmidt stoutly. "I give you just two minutes to
make up your mind."
Just then the door opened, and a young man who was evidently from the
country entered.
"I seed your advertisement," he said. "I want to be an agent, if you
can give me a chance."
Otto Schmidt smiled sardonically, and was about to speak, when Hugo said
hurriedly, "Come out into the hall, Mr. Schmidt, and I think we can
arrange your business satisfactorily."
"All right! I come," and he followed Hugo out into the entry.
"I will pay you your money," said the agent. "It is quite against my
rules, but I will make an exception in your case."
"I want a dollar more to pay me for my time," said the German,
appreciating his advantage.
"But, my dear sir, this is very unreasonable," said Mr. Higgins
uneasily.
"Then I go back into the room and show you up."
"Very well, here is your money!" and Hugo with great reluctance drew out
eight dollars and thirty-five cents and handed it to Mr. Schmidt.
Otto Schmidt chuckled and nodded significantly at the discomfited Hugo.
"I may be a Dutchman," he said, "but I ain't no chump."
Hugo re-entered the office and smiled affably at the young man from the
country.
"One of our successful agents," he said, nodding towards the door. "I
won't tell you how much that German gentleman has made by selling our
famous packages, for you might not believe me."
"Can you give me a chance?" asked the young hayseed anxiously.
"Well, I think I can," said Hugo with assumed hesitation, and then he
explained on what terms he sold, as he had done to Jed.
"How many packages will you take?" he asked pleasantly.
"I guess I'll take a dozen to begin with," said the young man from the
country.
"A dozen!" replied Hugo, much disappointed. "My, that's no order at all.
You would have to come back for more before the day was out."
"Well, I'll take fifteen," said the young man after reflection.
"You'd better take fifty. Very few of our agents take less than fifty."
"No, I ain't got much money. I'll only take fifteen to begin with."
And to this determination he adhered, in spite of the persuasions of Mr.
Higgins.
As Hugo wrapped up the packages and received back two dollars and
twenty-five cents, he regretted that he had so hastily agreed to buy
back Mr. Schmidt's boxes at an advance on the original cost.
"Where would you advise me to sell?" asked the young man.
"Country towns are best," said Hugo. "Some distance from the city, I
advise, as those who live near New York can come here and buy, and are
less ready to patronize agents."
Jed smiled to himself. He understood that Mr. Higgins wished to guard
against a visit from the young man in case his business failed to meet
his anticipations. He lingered behind after the rural visitor had gone.
"I hope," said Hugo, "you took no stock in what that stupid Dutchman
said."
"Well," replied Jed, "it shows that some of your agents are not
successful."
"A man like that could not succeed in selling anything," said Hugo
scornfully. "Now it is different with you. You look smart."
Jed smiled. He began to understand Mr. Higgins and his methods.
"Then you remember the letters from the agents which I read you."
"Yes," answered Jed, but he felt convinced now that the letters were
bogus, and manufactured by Mr. Higgins himself.
"When you can command the necessary funds I shall be glad to have you
call and buy a bundle of samples."
"I don't think I shall care to enter into the business, Mr. Higgins,"
said Jed. "It would be an experiment, and I am not in a position to try
experiments."
Higgins looked at Jed, and saw that he was understood.
"Very well!" he said coldly. "You must do as you like, but you are
making a mistake."
Jed left the office and went down stairs. What had happened did not
encourage him. It seemed a good deal harder to make a living in a large
city than he supposed.
He saw now that there were sharpers ready to fleece the young and
inexperienced. If he had not been robbed of his money, in all
probability he would have fallen a victim to the persuasive but
deceptive representations of Mr. Higgins, and have come back
disappointed like Mr. Otto Schmidt.
He continued his walk down Nassau Street, and presently turned into
Broadway. His attention was attracted to a church with a very high spire
facing Wall Street. He inquired the name and found it was Trinity
Church. The Scranton meeting-house could easily have been tucked away in
one corner of the large edifice, and as far as height was concerned, it
was but an infant compared with a six-footer.
He walked still further down Broadway, till he reached a green park,
which he found was called the Battery. Feeling somewhat fatigued, he sat
down on a bench near the sea-wall and looked over toward Governor's
Island. Craft of different sizes were passing, and Jed was interested
and exhilarated by the spectacle.