sure of relief to his figure-harried brain. He paused
at Max's table and distorted his face in what he conceived to be an
amiable grin.

"No one compels you to congradulate me, Mr. Maikafer," he said, "and,
anyhow, Mr. Maikafer, with business the way it is, understand me, twins
ain't such _Simcha_, neither."

"Sure, I know," Max rejoined; "but so far as I could see, Trinkmann,
you ain't got no kick coming. You do a good business here. You got
three good waiters and the customers don't complain none."

"Don't they?" Trinkmann grunted.

"Not at the waiters, Trinkmann," Max said significantly. "And the food
is all right, too, Trinkmann. The only thing is, Trinkmann, when a
feller got a nice _gemuetlicher_ place like you got it here, y'understand,
he should do his bestest that he keeps it that way."

Trinkmann's smile became a trifle less forced at Max's use of the
adjective _gemuetlicher_, for which the English language has no just
equivalent, since it at once combines the meanings of cozy,
comfortable, good-natured, and homelike.

"Certainly, I am always trying to keep my place _gemuetlich_, Mr.
Maikafer," Trinkmann declared, "but when you got waiters, Mr. Maikafer,
which they----"

"Waiters ain't got nothing to do with it, Trinkmann," Max interrupted.
"On Sutter Avenue, Brownsville, in boom times already was a feller--still
a good friend of mine--by the name Ringentaub, which runs a restaurant,
Trinkmann, and everybody goes there on account he keeps a place which
you could really say was _gemuetlich_. The chairs was old-fashioned,
_mit_ cane seats into 'em, which they sagged in the right place, so
that if you was sitting down, y'understand, you _knew_ you was sitting
down, not like some chairs which I seen it in restaurants, Trinkmann,
which if you was sitting down, you might just as well be standing up
for all the comfort you get out of it."

"The chairs here is comfortable," Trinkmann remarked.

"Sure, I know," Max continued. "Then in this here restaurant was tables
which they only got 'em in the old country--big, heavy tables,
understand me, which you pretty near kill yourself trying to move 'em
at all. A feller sits at such a table, Trinkmann, and right away he
thinks he must drink a cup coffee; and not alone that, Trinkmann, but
he must got to order coffee for the crowd. He couldn't even help
himself, Trinkmann, because such a table makes you feel good to look at
it. That's what it is to keep a _gemuetlic