FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   99   100   101   102   103   104   105   106   107   108   109   110   111   112   113   114   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123  
124   125   126   127   128   129   130   131   132   133   134   135   136   137   138   139   140   141   142   143   144   145   146   147   148   >>   >|  
general knowledge and a slight cognizance of abnormal psychology, I must admit bafflement at the spectacle of your mottled complexion once more in these rooms sacred to the perpetuation of truth and the dissemination of enlightenment. Everyday you embezzle good money from this paper under pretense of giving value received, and each day your uselessness becomes more conspicuous. Almost anyone would disapprove the divine choice in the matter of taking Gootes and leaving you alive, and while I know the world suffered not the least hurt by his translation to whatever baroque, noisy and entirely public hell is reserved for reporters, at least he attempted to forge some ostensible return for his paycheck." "Mr Le ffacase," I began indignantly, but he cut me off. "You unalloyed imbecile," he roared, "at least have the prudence if not the intelligence or courtesy to be silent while your betters are speaking. Gootes was a bloody knave, a lazy, slipshod, slack, tasteless, absurd, fawning, thieving, conniving sloven, but even if he had the energy to make the attempt and a mind to put to it, he could not, in ten lifetimes, become the perfect, immaculate and prototypical idiot you were born." I don't know how long he would have continued in this insulting vein, but he was interrupted by the concealed telephone. "What in the name of the ten thousand dubious virgins do you mean by annoying me?" he bellowed into the mouthpiece. "Yes. Yes. I know all about deadlines; I was a newspaperman when you were vainly suckling canine dugs. Are you ambitious to replace me? Go get with child a mandrakeroot, you, you journalist! I will meet the _Intelligencer_'s deadline as I did before your father got the first tepidly lustful idea in his nulliparous head and as I shall after you have followed your useless testes to a worthy desuetude." He replaced the receiver and picked up the mouthpiece of the dictaphone again, paying no further attention to me. He enunciated clearly and precisely, speaking in an even monotone, pausing not at all, as if reading from some prepared script, though his eyes were fixed upon a vacant spot where wall and ceiling joined. "In the death today of Jacson Gootes the _Daily Intelligencer_ lost a son. It is an old and good custom on these solemn occasions to pause and remember the dead. "Jacson Gootes was a reporter of exceptional probity, of clear understanding, of indefatigable effort, and of great native abilit
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   99   100   101   102   103   104   105   106   107   108   109   110   111   112   113   114   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123  
124   125   126   127   128   129   130   131   132   133   134   135   136   137   138   139   140   141   142   143   144   145   146   147   148   >>   >|  



Top keywords:
Gootes
 

Intelligencer

 

Jacson

 

speaking

 

mouthpiece

 
nulliparous
 
father
 

tepidly

 
deadline
 

lustful


annoying

 

bellowed

 
deadlines
 

virgins

 
telephone
 

concealed

 
dubious
 
thousand
 

newspaperman

 

mandrakeroot


journalist

 

replace

 

suckling

 

vainly

 

canine

 

ambitious

 

custom

 

ceiling

 

joined

 

solemn


occasions

 
indefatigable
 

understanding

 

effort

 

abilit

 
native
 

probity

 
remember
 

reporter

 
exceptional

dictaphone
 

interrupted

 
paying
 
picked
 

receiver

 

testes

 
useless
 

worthy

 
desuetude
 

replaced