United States -- Social life and customs -- 20th century -- Fiction; Villages -- Fiction
"Now, Grandma, that's all I said to that young one and I'll be goshed
if I don't think that kid's turning out to be the best bet I've made.
But, of course, I always think that about every one of them. But,
honestly, Grandma, Barney has brought in five new customers and last
week he kept chinning and holding on to a sixth man that come in here
until I came in and made the deal. Never let go of him a minute and
just entertained him to kill time and give me a chance to get here.
And I'm going to buy some books to learn myself and Barney bookkeeping.
We can't none of us keep books here and that dumbed account book is
lost every time you want it and I've got the poorest memory. Of
course, now and then a party comes in and tries to get out of paying
but the boys usually settle him and so I don't lose much that way. But
the old woman wants me to do this slick and proper and her word goes.
So Barney and I are going to study.
"I'm telling you all this, Grandma, because you always did understand
my crazy way of doing things ever since that time when you sent me to
the store for that can of molasses and I give the money to the tramp
instead. Remember?"
Billy laughed heartily at the memory and Grandma Wentworth laughed,
too, laughed so hard that she had to wipe her eyes. And she smiled all
the way home.
"Some day," said Grandma Wentworth to her old friend and neighbor,
Roger Allan, "I'll ask some minister to preach a sermon on 'God's
Humor.' I suppose that the Almighty gets so tired running things just
so and listening to petitions for sunshine and petitions for rain and
to prayers for automobiles and diamonds and interest on mortgages and
silk stockings, death and babies that some days he just gets tired of
being a serious God and shuffles things up for a joke. And, mark me,
Roger, that boy, Billy Evans, is just one of God's tender jokes. If
only people would see that and laugh.
"Now, Billy has no money sense, no business ability. That's what the
real business men like George Hoskins and all the old blessed Solomons
at Uncle Tony's say. Yet Billy is making money. His business is
growing just because without knowing it Billy has got hold of the
biggest force in the world to run his business. He's just using
love,--plain, old-fashioned love,--and love is making money for Billy.
He's picked out of the very gutters all the human waste and rubbish
that the others, the wise business men, threw there and with the town's
worst drunkard and half a dozen mistreated, misborn, misunderstood boys
he's playing the business game and winning. He's got the knack of
making his help feel like partners and he's so square and sensible in
his dealings with them that they are all ready to die for him. Now if
that isn't the greatest kind of a business gift I want to know.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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