"Well," said Lawrence, taking out his pocket-book, "I want the address
of Junius Keswick, and I think I will let you look it up for me. What is
your charge?"
"It will be two dollars," said the man, "ordinary; and if we find
inquiries run into other countries we will make special terms. And then
there's seven cents, one for your look, and two threes for ours. You
shall hear from us to-morrow night at your hotel or residence, unless
you prefer to call here."
"I will call the day after to-morrow," said Lawrence, producing a
five-dollar note.
"Very good," replied the proprietor. "Will you please pay the cashier?"
pointing at the same time to a desk behind Lawrence which the latter had
not noticed.
Approaching this desk, the top of which, except for a small space in
front, was surrounded by short curtains, he saw a young girl busily
engaged in reading a book. He proffered her the note, the proprietor at
the same time calling out: "Two, seven."
The girl turned the book down to keep the place; then she took the note,
and opened a small drawer, in which she fumbled for some moments.
Closing the drawer, she rose to her feet and waved the note over the
curtain to her right. "Haven't any change, eh?" said the man, coming
from behind the counter, and putting on his hat. "As the boy's not here,
I'll step out and get it."
The girl turned up her book, and began to read again, and Lawrence stood
and looked at her, wondering what need there was of a cashier in a place
like this. She appeared to be under twenty, rather thin-faced, and was
plainly dressed. In a few moments she raised her eyes from her book, and
said: "Won't you sit down, sir? I am sorry you have to wait, but we are
short of change to-day, and sometimes it is hard to get it in this
neighborhood."
Lawrence declined to be seated, but was very willing to talk. "Was it
the proprietor of this establishment," he asked, "who went out to get
the money changed??"
"Yes, sir," she answered. "That is Mr Candy."
"A queer name," said Lawrence, smiling.
The girl looked up at him, and smiled in return. There was a very
perceptible twinkle in her eyes, which seemed to be eyes that would like
to be merry ones, and a slight movement of the corners of her mouth
which indicated a desire to say something in reply, but, restrained
probably by loyalty to her employer, or by prudent discretion regarding
conversation with strangers, she was silent.
Lawrence, however, continued his remarks. "The whole business seems to
me very odd. Suppose I were to come here and ask for information as to
where I could get a five-dollar note changed; would Mr Candy be able to
tell me?"
"He would do in that case just as he does in all others," she said;
"first, he would go and find out, and then he would let you know. Giving
information is only half the business; finding things out is the other
half. That's what he's doing now."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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