CHAPTER XX. PAUL PERKINS, OF MINNEAPOLIS.

 If a bomb had exploded in the office David Mullins and his friend Ralston could not have been more astonished than by the appearance of Paul Perkins, whose name was invented without the slightest idea that any such person existed.

 

Before relating what followed, a word of explanation is necessary.

 

Chester went to the Fifth Avenue Hotel without the slightest suspicion that he had been sent on a fool's errand. He imagined, indeed, that Mr. Mullins wanted to get rid of him, but did not doubt that there was such a man as Paul Perkins, and that he was expected to arrive at the Fifth Avenue Hotel.

 

He walked up Broadway in a leisurely¹ manner, feeling that his hasty return was not desired. He reached the Fifth Avenue, and entering—it was the first time he had ever visited the hotel—went up to the desk.

 

The clerk was giving instructions to a bell boy, who was directed to carry a visitor's card to No. 221. When at leisure, Chester asked:

 

"Has Mr. Paul Perkins, of Minneapolis, arrived at the hotel?"

 

The clerk looked over the list of arrivals. Finally his forefinger² stopped at an entry on the book.

 

"Yes," he answered, "he arrived last evening. Did you wish to see him?"

 

About this Chester was in doubt. He had only been asked to inquire if Mr. Perkins had arrived. He assumed, however, that the bookkeeper wished to see Mr. Perkins at the office. Accordingly he answered, "Yes, sir. I should like to see him."

 

The clerk rang a bell and another bell boy made his appearance.

 

"Write your name on a card," said the clerk, "and I will send it up."

 

"The gentleman won't know my name," said Chester.

 

"Then give the name of your firm."

 

So Chester, after slight hesitation³, wrote:

 

"Chester Rand. From Clement⁴ Fairchild, Real Estate Broker⁵."

 

"Take that up to 169," said the clerk to the bell boy.

 

In five minutes the boy returned.

 

"Mr. Perkins says you are to come upstairs to his room," he reported.

 

Chester followed the bell boy to the elevator.

 

He had never before ridden in such a conveyance⁶ and the sensation was a novel one. They got off at one of the upper floors, and Chester followed his guide to the door of a room near by.

 

The bell boy knocked.

 

"Come in," was heard from the inside.

 

Chester entered and found himself in the presence of a man of fifty, with a sandy complexion⁷ and thick, brown beard. He held the card in his hand, and was looking at it.

 

"Are you Chester Rand?" he asked, in a high-pitched voice.

 

"Yes, sir."

 

"And you come from Clement Fairchild?"

 

"Yes, sir."

 

"This is very curious. I never heard the name before."

 

Chester looked surprised.

 

"I can't explain it, sir," he said. "I was asked to come to the hotel and ask if you had arrived."

 

"Where is Mr. Fairchild's office?"

 

"On West Fourteenth Street."

 

"And he is a real estate broker?"

 

"Yes, sir."

 

"I don't understand what he wants of me, or how in the name of all that is curious he ever heard of me. I don't own any real estate, except a three-story house in which I live."

 

"Perhaps, sir, if you will go to the office with me you will get an explanation."

 

"Precisely⁸. That is a very practical and sensible suggestion. Is it far off? I ask because I have never been in New York before."

 

"It is only about ten minutes' walk."

 

"Then I'll go with you, that is, if you can wait fifteen minutes while I finish writing a letter to my wife, apprising⁹ her of my safe arrival."

 

"Yes, sir, I am in no especial hurry."

 

"Then sit down, and—you may look at this," handing him the last copy of Puck.

 

Chester opened the paper eagerly, for Puck had accepted two of his sketches¹⁰. He opened it at random¹¹, and his eye lighted up, for there was one of the two sketches handsomely reproduced. He uttered a little exclamation¹².

 

"What have you found?" asked Paul Perkins, looking up from his letter.

 

"This picture—is one of mine."

 

"You don't mean it!" exclaimed the man from Minneapolis, dropping his pen in surprise. "I thought you were an office boy."

 

"So I am, sir, but—sometimes I sell sketches to the illustrated¹³ papers."

 

"What did you get for this?"

 

"Seven dollars and a half. That is, I sold this and another for fifteen dollars."

 

"By the great horn spoon! but this is wonderful."

 

Chester did not feel called upon to say anything.

 

"How long did it take you to draw this picture?"

 

"A little over half an hour."

 

"Jerusalem! that is at the rate of ten dollars an hour. I am contented¹⁴ to make ten dollars a day."

 

"So should I be, sir. I don't draw all the time," said Chester, with a smile.

 

"I was going to ask if you wouldn't give me lessons in drawing and sketching¹⁵."

 

"I should be afraid to, sir," laughed Chester. "You might prove a dangerous rival."

 

"You needn't be afraid. I can play as well as I can sing."

 

"I suppose you sing well, sir," said Chester, roguishly.

 

"You can judge. When I was a young man I thought I would practice singing a little in my room one night. The next morning my landlady¹⁶ said, in a tone of sympathy, 'I heard you groaning¹⁷ last night, Mr. Perkins. Did you have the toothache?'"

 

Chester burst into a hearty¹⁸ laugh.

 

"If that is the case," he said, "I won't be afraid of you as a rival in drawing."

 

Mr. Perkins set himself to finishing his letter, and in twenty minutes it was done.

 

"Now, I am ready," he said.

 

As they went downstairs, Chester observed, "I will ask you as a favor, Mr. Perkins, not to refer to my work in Puck, as it is not known at the office that I do any work outside."

 

"All right, my boy. By the way, how much do they pay you at the office?"

 

"Five dollars a week."

 

"Evidently it isn't as good a business as drawing."

 

"No, sir; but it is more reliable. I can't always satisfy the comic papers, and I am likely to have sketches left on my hands."

 

"Yes; that is a practical way of looking at it, and shows that you are a boy of sense. What sort of a man is Mr. Fairchild?"

 

"A very kind, considerate man, but I forgot to say that you won't see him."

 

"But I thought he sent you to call on me?"

 

"No, sir; Mr. Fairchild started for the West this morning. It was Mr. Mullins, the bookkeeper, who sent me."

 

"That complicates¹⁹ the mystery. Is he a good friend of yours?"

 

"No, sir; he dislikes me."

 

Mr. Perkins looked curious, and Chester, considerably²⁰ to his own surprise, confided²¹ to him the story of his relations with the bookkeeper.

 

"He's a scamp!" commented the man from Minneapolis. "Why does Mr. Fairchild keep him. I wouldn't! I'd bounce him very quick."

 

"He has been with Mr. Fairchild five years and understands his business thoroughly²²."

 

"Well, there is something in that; but I wouldn't like to have in my employ a man whom I couldn't trust. Have you ever been out West?"

 

"No, sir."

 

"You ought to come out there. The city I represent is a smart one and no mistake. Of course you've heard of the rivalry²³ between Minneapolis and St. Paul."

 

"Yes, sir."

 

"I don't take sides, for I live in both, but I think business facilities in Minneapolis are greater. I think you are a boy who would succeed at the West."

 

"I should like to go there some day. I own some property in Washington Territory."

 

"You do?" exclaimed Paul Perkins, in great surprise. "Whereabouts?"

 

"In Tacoma. I own some lots there."

 

"Then let me tell you, my boy, that you will be a rich man."

 

"But I thought prices of land in Tacoma were small."

 

"So they are—at present; but it is the future terminus of the Northern Pacific Railroad. When it is completed there will be a boom. How many lots do you own?"

 

"Five."

 

"Take my advice and hold on to them. What square is this?"

 

They had reached Seventeenth Street.

 

"union Square."

 

"It's a pretty place. Is Tiffany's near here?"

 

"Yes, sir; only two blocks away. We shall pass it."

 

"All right! Point it out to me. I'm going to buy a gold watch for myself there. I've needed one for a long time, but I wanted the satisfaction of buying one at Tiffany's. Anything that is sold there must be A No. 1."

 

"I have no doubt of it, but I don't trade there much yet."

 

"No; you must wait till you have realized on your Western lots."

 

They turned down Fourteenth Street, and soon stood in front of Mr. Fairchild's office. They entered, and this brings us to the point where the last chapter ends.

1 leisurely   

adj.悠闲的；从容的，慢慢的

参考例句：

• We walked in a leisurely manner,looking in all the windows.我们慢悠悠地走着，看遍所有的橱窗。
• He had a leisurely breakfast and drove cheerfully to work.他从容的吃了早餐，高兴的开车去工作。

2 forefinger   

n.食指

参考例句：

• He pinched the leaf between his thumb and forefinger.他将叶子捏在拇指和食指之间。
• He held it between the tips of his thumb and forefinger.他用他大拇指和食指尖拿着它。

3 hesitation   

n.犹豫，踌躇

参考例句：

• After a long hesitation, he told the truth at last.踌躇了半天，他终于直说了。
• There was a certain hesitation in her manner.她的态度有些犹豫不决。

4 clement   

adj.仁慈的；温和的

参考例句：

• A clement judge reduced his sentence.一位仁慈的法官为他减了刑。
• The planet's history contains many less stable and clement eras than the holocene.地球的历史包含着许多不如全新世稳定与温和的地质时期。

5 broker   

n.中间人，经纪人；v.作为中间人来安排

参考例句：

• He baited the broker by promises of higher commissions.他答应给更高的佣金来引诱那位经纪人。
• I'm a real estate broker.我是不动产经纪人。

6 conveyance   

n.(不动产等的)转让，让与；转让证书；传送；运送；表达；（正）运输工具

参考例句：

• Bicycles have become the most popular conveyance for Chinese people.自行车已成为中国人最流行的代步工具。
• Its another,older,usage is a synonym for conveyance.它的另一个更古老的习惯用法是作为财产转让的同义词使用。

7 complexion   

n.肤色；情况，局面；气质，性格

参考例句：

• Red does not suit with her complexion.红色与她的肤色不协调。
• Her resignation puts a different complexion on things.她一辞职局面就全变了。

8 precisely   

adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地

参考例句：

• It's precisely that sort of slick sales-talk that I mistrust.我不相信的正是那种油腔滑调的推销宣传。
• The man adjusted very precisely.那个人调得很准。

9 apprising   

v.告知，通知( apprise的现在分词 )；评价

参考例句：

10 sketches   

n.草图( sketch的名词复数 )；素描；速写；梗概

参考例句：

• The artist is making sketches for his next painting. 画家正为他的下一幅作品画素描。
• You have to admit that these sketches are true to life. 你得承认这些素描很逼真。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 random   

adj.随机的；任意的；n.偶然的(或随便的)行动

参考例句：

• The list is arranged in a random order.名单排列不分先后。
• On random inspection the meat was found to be bad.经抽查，发现肉变质了。

12 exclamation   

n.感叹号，惊呼，惊叹词

参考例句：

• He could not restrain an exclamation of approval.他禁不住喝一声采。
• The author used three exclamation marks at the end of the last sentence to wake up the readers.作者在文章的最后一句连用了三个惊叹号，以引起读者的注意。

13 illustrated   

adj. 有插图的，列举的 动词illustrate的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• His lecture was illustrated with slides taken during the expedition. 他在讲演中使用了探险时拍摄到的幻灯片。
• The manufacturing Methods: Will be illustrated in the next chapter. 制作方法将在下一章说明。

14 contented   

adj.满意的，安心的，知足的

参考例句：

• He won't be contented until he's upset everyone in the office.不把办公室里的每个人弄得心烦意乱他就不会满足。
• The people are making a good living and are contented,each in his station.人民安居乐业。

15 sketching   

n.草图

参考例句：

• They are sketching out proposals for a new road. 他们正在草拟修建新路的计划。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• "Imagination is busy sketching rose-tinted pictures of joy. “飞舞驰骋的想象描绘出一幅幅玫瑰色欢乐的场景。 来自英汉文学 - 汤姆历险

16 landlady   

n.女房东，女地主

参考例句：

• I heard my landlady creeping stealthily up to my door.我听到我的女房东偷偷地来到我的门前。
• The landlady came over to serve me.女店主过来接待我。

17 groaning   

adj. 呜咽的, 呻吟的 动词groan的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• She's always groaning on about how much she has to do. 她总抱怨自己干很多活儿。
• The wounded man lay there groaning, with no one to help him. 受伤者躺在那里呻吟着，无人救助。

18 hearty   

adj.热情友好的；衷心的；尽情的，纵情的

参考例句：

• After work they made a hearty meal in the worker's canteen.工作完了，他们在工人食堂饱餐了一顿。
• We accorded him a hearty welcome.我们给他热忱的欢迎。

19 complicates   

使复杂化( complicate的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• What complicates the issue is the burden of history. 历史的重负使问题复杂化了。
• Russia as a great and ambitious power gravely complicates the situation. 俄国作为一个强大而有野心的国家，使得局势异常复杂。

20 considerably   

adv.极大地；相当大地；在很大程度上

参考例句：

• The economic situation has changed considerably.经济形势已发生了相当大的变化。
• The gap has narrowed considerably.分歧大大缩小了。

21 confided   

v.吐露（秘密，心事等）( confide的过去式和过去分词 )；（向某人）吐露（隐私、秘密等）

参考例句：

• She confided all her secrets to her best friend. 她向她最要好的朋友倾吐了自己所有的秘密。
• He confided to me that he had spent five years in prison. 他私下向我透露，他蹲过五年监狱。 来自《简明英汉词典》

22 thoroughly   

adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地

参考例句：

• The soil must be thoroughly turned over before planting.一定要先把土地深翻一遍再下种。
• The soldiers have been thoroughly instructed in the care of their weapons.士兵们都系统地接受过保护武器的训练。

23 rivalry   

n.竞争，竞赛，对抗

参考例句：

• The quarrel originated in rivalry between the two families.这次争吵是两家不和引起的。
• He had a lot of rivalry with his brothers and sisters.他和兄弟姐妹间经常较劲。