day, Miss Smith, we owe it to you."

"You're making it hard for me, Mr. Perlmutter," Miss Smith replied,
"because I've come to ask you a favour."

"A favour?" Morris replied. "You couldn't ask me to do you a favour
because it wouldn't be no favour. It would be a pleasure. What could I
do for you?"

"I have to leave town to-morrow on a case," Miss Smith explained, "and I
need a dress in a hurry, something light for evening wear."

Morris frowned perplexedly.

"That's too bad," he said, "because just at present we got nothing but
last year's goods in stock--all except--all except this."

He unfolded the model and shook it out.

"What a pretty dress!" Miss Smith cried, clasping her hands.

"Pretty!" Morris exclaimed. "How could you say it was pretty?"

"It's perfectly stunning," Miss Smith continued. "What size is it, Mr.
Perlmutter?"

"The usual size," Morris replied; "thirty-six."

"Why, that's just my size," Miss Smith declared. "Let me see it." Morris
handed her the dress and she examined it carefully. "What a pity," she
said, "it has a slight rip in front. Somebody's been handling it
carelessly."

"Sure, I know," Morris said. "I tore it myself, Miss Smith; but if you
really and truly like it, Miss Smith, which I tell you the truth I
don't, and my partner neither, you are welcome to it, and I would give
you a little piece from the same goods which you could fix up the rip
with."

"I couldn't think of it," Miss Smith replied.

"Not at all, Miss Smith. You would do me a favour if you would take it
along with you right now."

Miss Smith fairly beamed as she opened her handbag.

"How much is it?" she asked.

"How much is it?" Morris repeated. "Why, Miss Smith, you could take that
dress only on one condition. The condition is that you wouldn't pay me
nothing for it, and that next fall, when we really got something in
stock, you would come in and pick out as many of our highest-price
garments as you would want."

Morris's hand shook so with this unusual access of generosity that he
could hardly wrap up the garment.

"Also, Miss Smith, I expect you will come up and have dinner with us as
soon as you get back from wherever you are going. Already the baby
commences to recognize people which he meets, and we want him he should
never forget you, Miss Smith."

The cordiality with which Morris ushered Miss Smith into the elevator
was in striking contrast to the brusk manner in which he greeted Abe
half an