lar bill is doing the street cleaners a favor."

"You don't understand my noble motives," I said, "so I will not talk
about them anymore. Tomorrow we start rehearsing the new act."

* * * * *

Well, sir, it was absolutely amazing the way Horatio picked that act
up. With his dexterous, invisible help Mystiffio performed like the
paragon of all prestidigitators. Alice added a jolt of high-voltage
eye-appeal to the ensemble, by smiling sweetly and wearing a black
satin bathing suit that had been designed by some patriotic person who
believed in saving material to the point of cutting down on
essentials.

I was sure, for the first time in my stretch in this loony business,
that I had an option on a nice private little gold mine.

And I wasn't going to let anything upset my cartful of golden apples.

"Okay," I said. They were rehearsing on the stage of an empty theater
which was owned by a guy I'd done some favors for. "You look pretty
good, but don't let it go to your head. The act needs a lot of work.
Keep at it. I'm going out to get a sandwich."

Alice put her hands on her hips and looked down at me.

"Everything is fifty-fifty with you, isn't it?" she said. "We do the
work, you get the money. Nice even split."

"Careful, beautiful," I said. "You'll die of your own poisons, if you
don't look out." I waved to her and left. After I'd had a bite to eat,
I went to see one of the biggest agents in the business, the guy who
books all the acts into the Capitol in New York.

"Look, Morry," I said, when his secretary had ushered me into his
office, which was big enough to hold the World Series in, "I've really
got something terrific lined up."

Morry looked up at me and his little eyes were uninterested. He yawned
and dusted a fleck of dust from the sleeve of his coat.

"What is it?" he asked.

"It's a magician's act that--"

Morry shook his head. "Magicians are dead. Who wants to see rabbits
pulled out of a hat?"

"This is different. This guy is good."

"All right, he's good," Morry said. "So what? We can't use him."

"But you ought to at least see the act," I pleaded. "It's got a honey
of a girl, too."

"Girl?" Morry glanced up and there was a flicker of interest in his
little eyes.

"Yeah, a honey."

"Well," Morry shrugged. "I can't promise anything, but we do need an
act to fill in a spot within a week or so. But whatever I get has to
be good. I can't send bums to New Yo