repulsion of body
and soul.

"Well, it's this," continued Pete, cheerfully. "You see, I've made a
little money over there at my corner, and I'm planning to spread out,--do
things bigger and broader. There ain't no sort of use in holding back to
hams and shoulders when ye can buy yer hogs on the hoof. That's what I'm
in fur now,--hogs on the hoof; cut 'em, corn 'em, smoke 'em, salt 'em,
souse 'em, grind 'em into sausage meat and headcheese and scrapple, boil
'em into lard. Why, a hog is a regular gold mine when he is handled right.
But I can't handle it in that little corner shop I've got now: there's no
room fur it. But it's too good a business there fur me to give up. So I'm
going to open another place further out, and keep both a-going. And I
can't afford no high-class bookkeeper or clerk, that will maybe jump my
trade and gobble all my profits. What I want is a boy,--a bright,
wide-awake boy that knows enough about figguring to keep my accounts, and
see that no one 'does' me,--a boy that I can send round in the wagon to
buy and sell 'cording to my orders,--a boy that will be smart enough to
pick up the whole business from _a_ to _izzard_, and work up as I worked
up till I kin make him partner. That's the chance I've got, and I believe
you're the boy to take it."

"I--I would have to give up college of course," said Dan, slowly.

"Give up college!" echoed Pete. "Well, I should rather say you would!
There ain't no time fur books in a biz like mine. Now, Dan, what's the
good of college anyhow fur a chap like you? It ain't ez if you were one of
these high mug-a-mugs with a rich father to pay yer way through, and set
you up in a white choker and swallow-tail coat afterwards. What's the good
of a strong, husky fellow fooling along with Latin and Greek, that will
never be no use to him? You'd a heap better spiel plain strong English
that will bring you in the spondulics. Why, look at me! I never had two
years' schooling in my life. It's all I can do to scrawl 'P. J.
Patterson,' so folks can read it, and thump out the rest on a secondhand
typewriter. But that 'ere same scrawl will bring five thousand dollars out
of the bank any time I want it. If I had as much eddycation as you have,
Dan, nobody couldn't keep me in any school in the land another minute.
It's all nonsense,--a dead waste of time and money."

"What would you pay me?" asked Dan, as the big loin of beef above joggled
against his shoulder.

"Well, let me see