CHAPTER XI. PHIL ENTERS UPON HIS DUTIES.

 Phil presented himself in good season the next morning at the store in Franklin Street. As he came up in one direction the youth whom he had seen in the store the previous day came up in the opposite direction. The latter was evidently surprised.

“Halloo, Johnny!” said he. “What's brought you here again?”

“Business,” answered Phil.

“Going to buy out the firm?” inquired the youth jocosely¹.

“Not to-day.”

“Some other day, then,” said the young man, laughing as if he had said a very witty² thing.

As Phil didn't know that this form of expression, slightly varied³, had become a popular phrase of the day, he did not laugh.

“Do you belong to the church?” asked the youth, stopping short in his own mirth.

“What makes you ask?”

“Because you don't laugh.”

“I would if I saw anything to laugh at.”

“Come, that's hard on me. Honor bright, have you come to do any business with us?”

It is rather amusing to see how soon the cheapest clerk talks of “us,” quietly identifying himself with the firm that employs him. Not that I object to it. Often it implies a personal interest in the success and prosperity of the firm, which makes a clerk more valuable. This was not, however, the case with G. Washington Wilbur, the young man who was now conversing⁴ with Phil, as will presently appear.

“I am going to work here,” answered Phil simply.

“Going to work here!” repeated Mr. Wilbur in surprise. “Has old Pitkin engaged you?”

“Mr. Pitkin engaged me yesterday,” Phil replied.

“I didn't know he wanted a boy. What are you to do?”

“Go to the post-office, bank, and so on.”

“You're to be errand boy, then?”

“Yes.”

“That's the way I started,” said Mr. Wilbur patronizingly.

“What are you now?”

“A salesman. I wouldn't like to be back in my old position. What wages are you going to get?”

“Five dollars.”

“Five dollars a week!” ejaculated Mr. G. Washington Wilbur, in amazement⁵. “Come, you're chaffing.”

“Why should I do that? Is that anything remarkable⁶?”

“I should say it was,” answered Mr. Wilbur slowly.

“Didn't you get as much when you were errand boy?”

“I only got two dollars and a half. Did Pitkin tell you he would pay you five dollars a week.”

“No; Mr Carter told me so.”

“The old gentleman—Mr. Pitkin's uncle?”

“Yes. It was at his request that Mr. Pitkin took me on.”

Mr. Wilbur looked grave.

“It's a shame!” he commenced.

“What is a shame; that I should get five dollars a week?”

“No, but that I should only get a dollar a week more than an errand boy. I'm worth every cent of ten dollars a week, but the old man only gives me six. It hardly keeps me in gloves and cigars.”

“Won't he give you any more?”

“No; only last month I asked him for a raise, and he told me if I wasn't satisfied I might go elsewhere.”

“You didn't?”

“No, but I mean to soon. I will show old Pitkin that he can't keep a man of my experience for such a paltry⁷ salary. I dare say that Denning⁸ or Claflin would be glad to have me, and pay me what I am worth.”

Phil did not want to laugh, but when Mr. Wilbur, who looked scarcely older than himself, and was in appearance but a callow youth, referred to himself as a man of experience he found it hard to resist.

“Hadn't we better be going up stairs?” asked Phil.

“All right. Follow me,” said Mr. Wilbur, “and I'll take you to the superintendent⁹ of the room.”

“I am to report to Mr. Pitkin himself, I believe.”

“He won't be here yet awhile,” said Wilbur.

But just then up came Mr. Wilbur himself, fully¹⁰ half an hour earlier than usual.

Phil touched his hat politely, and said:

“Good-morning.”

“Good-morning!” returned his employer, regarding him sharply. “Are you the boy I hired yesterday?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Come up-stairs, then.”

Phil followed Mr. Pitkin up-stairs, and they walked together through the sales-room.

“I hope you understand,” said Mr. Pitkin brusquely, “that I have engaged you at the request of Mr. Carter and to oblige him.”

“I feel grateful to Mr. Carter,” said Phil, not quite knowing what was coming next.

“I shouldn't myself have engaged a boy of whom I knew nothing, and who could give me no city references.”

“I hope you won't be disappointed in me,” said Phil.

“I hope not,” answered Mr. Pitkin, in a tone which seemed to imply that he rather expected to be.

Phil began to feel uncomfortable. It seemed evident that whatever he did would be closely scrutinized¹¹, and that in an unfavorable spirit.

Mr. Pitkin paused before a desk at which was standing¹² a stout¹³ man with grayish hair.

“Mr. Sanderson,” he said, “this is the new errand boy. His name is—what is it, boy?”

“Philip Brent.”

“You will give him something to do. Has the mail come in?”

“No; we haven't sent to the post-office yet.”

“You may send this boy at once.”

Mr. Sanderson took from the desk a key and handed it to Philip.

“That is the key to our box,” he said. “Notice the number—534. Open it and bring the mail. Don't loiter on the way.”

“Yes, sir.”

Philip took the key and left the warehouse¹⁴. When he reached the street he said to himself:

“I wonder where the post-office is?”

He did not like to confess to Mr. Sanderson that he did not know, for it would probably have been considered a disqualification for the post which he was filling.

“I had better walk to Broadway,” he said to himself. “I suppose the post-office must be on the principal street.”

In this Phil was mistaken. At that time the post-office was on Nassau Street, in an old church which had been utilized¹⁵ for a purpose very different from the one to which it had originally been devoted¹⁶.

Reaching Broadway, Phil was saluted¹⁷ by a bootblack, with a grimy but honest-looking face.

“Shine your boots, mister?” said the boy, with a grin.

“Not this morning.”

“Some other morning, then?”

“Yes,” answered Phil.

“Sorry you won't give me a job,” said the bootblack. “My taxes comes due to-day, and I ain't got enough to pay 'em.”

Phil was amused, for his new acquaintance scarcely looked like a heavy taxpayer¹⁸.

“Do you pay a big tax?” he asked.

“A thousand dollars or less,” answered the knight¹⁹ of the brush.

“I guess it's less,” said Phil.

“That's where your head's level, young chap.”

“Is the post-office far from here?”

“Over half a mile, I reckon.”

“Is it on this street?”

“No, it's on Nassau Street.”

“If you will show me the way there I'll give you ten cents.”

“All right! The walk'll do me good. Come on!”

“What's your name?” asked Phil, who had become interested in his new acquaintance.

“The boys call me Ragged²⁰ Dick.”

It was indeed the lively young bootblack whose history was afterward²¹ given in a volume which is probably familiar to many of my readers. At this time he was only a bootblack, and had not yet begun to feel the spur of that ambition which led to his subsequent prosperity.

“That's a queer name,” said Phil.

“I try to live up to it,” said Dick, with a comical glance at his ragged coat, which had originally been worn by a man six feet in height.

He swung his box over his shoulder, and led the way to the old post-office.

1 jocosely   

adv.说玩笑地，诙谐地

参考例句：

2 witty   

adj.机智的，风趣的

参考例句：

• Her witty remarks added a little salt to the conversation.她的妙语使谈话增添了一些风趣。
• He scored a bull's-eye in their argument with that witty retort.在他们的辩论中他那一句机智的反驳击中了要害。

3 varied   

adj.多样的，多变化的

参考例句：

• The forms of art are many and varied.艺术的形式是多种多样的。
• The hotel has a varied programme of nightly entertainment.宾馆有各种晚间娱乐活动。

4 conversing   

v.交谈，谈话( converse的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• I find that conversing with her is quite difficult. 和她交谈实在很困难。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They were conversing in the parlor. 他们正在客厅谈话。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

5 amazement   

n.惊奇，惊讶

参考例句：

• All those around him looked at him with amazement.周围的人都对他投射出惊异的眼光。
• He looked at me in blank amazement.他带着迷茫惊诧的神情望着我。

6 remarkable   

adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的

参考例句：

• She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
• These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。

7 paltry   

adj.无价值的，微不足道的

参考例句：

• The parents had little interest in paltry domestic concerns.那些家长对家里鸡毛蒜皮的小事没什么兴趣。
• I'm getting angry;and if you don't command that paltry spirit of yours.我要生气了，如果你不能振作你那点元气。

8 denning   

vi.穴居（den的现在分词形式）

参考例句：

• From now on, Dorothy Denning's IDES model was come into being. 在这之后，桃乐茜·顿宁(Dorothy Denning)的IDES（入侵检测专家系统）模型产生了。 来自互联网

9 superintendent   

n.监督人，主管，总监；(英国)警务长

参考例句：

• He was soon promoted to the post of superintendent of Foreign Trade.他很快就被擢升为对外贸易总监。
• He decided to call the superintendent of the building.他决定给楼房管理员打电话。

10 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

11 scrutinized   

v.仔细检查，详审( scrutinize的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The jeweler scrutinized the diamond for flaws. 宝石商人仔细察看钻石有无瑕庇 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• Together we scrutinized the twelve lemon cakes from the delicatessen shop. 我们一起把甜食店里买来的十二块柠檬蛋糕细细打量了一番。 来自英汉文学 - 盖茨比

12 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

14 warehouse   

n.仓库；vt.存入仓库

参考例句：

• We freighted the goods to the warehouse by truck.我们用卡车把货物运到仓库。
• The manager wants to clear off the old stocks in the warehouse.经理想把仓库里积压的存货处理掉。

15 utilized   

v.利用，使用( utilize的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• In the19th century waterpower was widely utilized to generate electricity. 在19世纪人们大规模使用水力来发电。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The empty building can be utilized for city storage. 可以利用那栋空建筑物作城市的仓库。 来自《简明英汉词典》

16 devoted   

adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的

参考例句：

• He devoted his life to the educational cause of the motherland.他为祖国的教育事业贡献了一生。
• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。

17 saluted   

v.欢迎，致敬( salute的过去式和过去分词 )；赞扬，赞颂

参考例句：

• The sergeant stood to attention and saluted. 中士立正敬礼。
• He saluted his friends with a wave of the hand. 他挥手向他的朋友致意。 来自《简明英汉词典》

18 taxpayer   

n.纳税人

参考例句：

• The new scheme will run off with a lot of the taxpayer's money.这项新计划将用去纳税人许多钱。
• The taxpayer are unfavourably disposed towards the recent tax increase.纳税者对最近的增加税收十分反感。

19 knight   

n.骑士，武士；爵士

参考例句：

• He was made an honourary knight.他被授予荣誉爵士称号。
• A knight rode on his richly caparisoned steed.一个骑士骑在装饰华丽的马上。

20 ragged   

adj.衣衫褴褛的，粗糙的，刺耳的

参考例句：

• A ragged shout went up from the small crowd.这一小群人发出了刺耳的喊叫。
• Ragged clothing infers poverty.破衣烂衫意味着贫穷。

21 afterward   

adv.后来；以后

参考例句：

• Let's go to the theatre first and eat afterward. 让我们先去看戏，然后吃饭。
• Afterward,the boy became a very famous artist.后来，这男孩成为一个很有名的艺术家。