I did not like to see the result of so much hard labor destroyed; especially as, by Mr. Whippleton's own showing, the figures would be correct when he produced the missing invoices. But I had my rough draft, which I had carefully copied, in the desk, and I intended to carry this home, in order to ascertain at some future time whether my figures were correct or not. When I obtained the invoices I could tell whether I had made a failure or not in the act of taking a trial balance. I was not satisfied that I was so utterly stupid as my employer made me out to be. "Those bills ought to have been entered on the lumber book," said I, when the junior partner had disposed of my papers. "That's of no consequence at all. The lumber book is a humbug," he replied; "I don't believe in it; indeed, I had even forgotten that there was any such book. The firm don't recognize it, and I think it is liable to lead us all into blunders and errors, as it has you." He went to the other side of the desk, where the objectionable volume lay, turned over its leaves, and glanced at its pages. He was still very nervous, for the effects of his sudden attack of illness appeared not to have left him. "No reliance whatever can be placed on this book, and I am disposed to destroy it." "I thought it was a very good thing. Faxon uses it a great deal, and says he can tell what stock he has on hand, when a customer comes, without going out of the counting-room." "It is not reliable. The only way to know what stock we have is by looking it over." Very likely he would have destroyed it if Mr. Collingsby had not called him into the private counting-room at this moment. He evidently had a hearty grudge against the book, which I thought was entirely groundless. "Mr. Whippleton don't think much of your lumber book," said I, when the head salesman came in a moment later. "Why, what's the matter with it?" asked the man. "He says it is not reliable." "I think it is; and since I adopted it, two or three other concerns have kept one like it, after asking me about it. What's the reason it isn't reliable?" "You may neglect to enter invoices or sales." "Your ledger wouldn't be good for anything if you neglected to carry all your items to its pages." I was about to specify more particularly that the firm had about forty thousand dollars' worth of stock on hand more than appeared in the lumber book, when Mr. Whippleton returned. He evidently understood what I was doing, and told me to make up the bank account. "You needn't say anything to Faxon about his book. Let him keep it, if he wishes to do so," said he. "I did say something to him." "You did? What did you say?" "I only told him you didn't think his book was reliable." "That's no more than the truth, but you need not mention the matter again. It will only make unpleasant feeling. Smooth it over if he says anything more about it, and let the matter drop." I was rather puzzled, but I went on with the bank account.