t and handed Sidney twenty
dollars.

"Just a loan for a few days, y'understand," he said as the waiter
brought in a loaded tray, "or a year--what's the difference--ain't it?
Now, let's get busy."

Together they polished off the entire trayful of food, and when Abe
leaned back the waiter presented a check for ten dollars and eighty
cents.

"Cheap at the price," Abe remarked as he added a generous tip to the
amount of the bill. "And now, Sidney, I suppose you're going back to the
store?"

"No, I ain't," Sidney said. "I ain't doing no good down there; so what's
the use? The old man won't let me do nothing down there and they all
think I'm a joke."

"Well, you see, Sidney," Abe commented, "that's the way it goes. It's an
old saying, but a true one: 'There's no profit for a feller in his own
country.'"

"And what's more," Sidney continued, "they ain't given me a chance
neither. What I want to do is to sell goods on the road."

"Sure, I know," Abe interrupted. "Every young feller wants to go on the
road. All they can see in it is riding in parlour cars and playing
auction pinocle in four-dollar-a-day hotels. Believe me, Sidney, selling
goods on the road, when you been at it so long as I am, is a dawg's
life; and as for auction pinocle that's poison for a salesman."

"Auction pinocle is nothing to me," Sidney declared. "I swore off."

"Another thing is lunches, Sidney," Abe went on. "Ain't it a funny thing
what a lot of satisfaction it is when you are eating zwieback and a
cup of coffee for lunch? In the first place, all it is costing you is
ten cents and you feel like a prince. Many a big bill of goods I sold on
zwieback and coffee, Sidney--crackers and milk, too. And now, Sidney,
the best thing you could do is to go back and tell the old man you are
through with auction pinocle and high-price lunches, and you want him he
should give you a show you should sell goods."

Again Sidney shook his head.

"It ain't no use, Mr. Potash," Sidney declared. "Pop ain't got no
confidence in me. If I was a greenhorn fresh from the old country he
might let me start in and do something, but----"

At the word greenhorn Abe Potash leaned forward and struck the table
with his open hand.

"By jiminy, Sidney!" he cried, "I know the very job for you. Only one
thing I must got to say to you, Sidney: you would got to commence small;
so if what you are saying about auction pinocle and other monkey
business goes, Sidney, all right. Ot