ad been working there over two years,
told me that the only way to think of a job was to expect to be fired
every day. He claimed he spent his hour's ride in to work every
morning preparing himself not to see his time card in the rack, which
would mean no more job for him.

I asked Victor one day about the girl who had held my job a year and a
half and why she was fired. There was a story for you! Kelly a few
days before had told me that he was usually able to "get" anybody.
"Take that girl now what had your job. I got her. She was snippy to me
two or three times and I won't stand that. It's all right if anybody
wants to get good and mad, but I detest snippy folks. So I said to
myself, 'I'll get you, young lady,' and within three days I had her!"

Kelly was called away and never finished the story, but Victor did.
The girl, it seems, got several slices of ham one day from one of the
chefs. She wrapped them carefully in a newspaper and later started up
the stairs with the paper folded under her arm, evidently bound for
the locker room. Kelly was standing at the foot of the stairs--"Somebody
had tipped him off, see?"

"What's the news to-day?" asked Kelly.

"'Ain't had time to read the paper yet," the girl replied.

"Suppose we read it now together," said Kelly, whereupon he slipped
the paper out from under her arm and exposed the ham to view.

"You're fired!" said Kelly.

He sent her up to the Big Boss, and he did everything he could think
of to get the girl to tell which chef had given her the ham. The girl
refused absolutely to divulge that.

The Big Boss came down to our kitchen. He asked each chef in turn if
he had given the girl the ham, and each chef in turn said _No_.

The Big Boss came back again in a few minutes. "We can put the
detective force of the hotel on this job and find out within a few
days who _did_ give that ham away and the man will be fired. But I
don't want to do it that way. If the man who did it will confess right
now that he did I promise absolutely he will not be fired."

A chef spoke up, "I did it."

Within fifteen minutes he was fired.

* * * * *

As ever, the day for leaving arrived. This time I gave notice to Kelly
three days in advance, so that a girl could be found to take my place.
"The Big Chief and I both said when we seen you, she won't stay long
at this job."

"Why not?" I indignantly asked Kelly.

"Ah, shucks!" sighed Kelly. Later: "