I
would be a good feller, Abe; but an Italiener, Abe, is something else
again. An Italiener would as lief stick a knife into you as look at you,
Abe, and they smell the whole house out with garlic yet."

"There's lots of things smells worse as garlic, Mawruss," Abe retorted,
"and as for sticking a knife into you, that's all _schmooes_. There's
lots of people worser as Italieners, I bet yer, and when it comes right
down to it, Mawruss, I'd a whole lot sooner have a couple Italieners
working for me as some of them fellers which they are coming over from
Russland."

"Since when did you got such friendly feelings for Italieners, Abe?"
Morris inquired satirically.

"Never mind!" Abe exclaimed. "You could knock an Italiener all you want,
Mawruss, but you could take it from me, Mawruss, when an Italiener's got
work to do he don't stand around talking a lot of nonsense instead of
attending to business, like some people I know."

With this scathing rejoinder Abe trudged off toward the cutting room and
Morris proceeded to the office. He had hardly seated himself comfortably
at his desk, however, when Abe burst into the room.

"That's the way it goes, Mawruss," he cried. "Half the time we sit and
_schmooes_ in the showroom and we don't know what goes on in our cutting
room at all."

"What's the matter now?" Morris asked.

"Harkavy has quit us again," Abe replied.

"Quit us!" Morris exclaimed. "What for?"

"Nothing. All I says to the feller was why them piece goods is on the
floor, and he says he is sick and tired and I should get another
designer."

Morris bit the end off a new cigar and glared ferociously at Abe.

"So," he said bitterly, "we lose another designer through you, Abe. What
do you think, a designer would stand for abuse the same like a partner,
Abe?"

"What d'ye mean--abuse, Mawruss?" Abe protested. "I ain't said no abuse
to the feller at all; and even if I would, Mawruss, I guess I could talk
like how I want to in my own cutting room, Mawruss."

Morris rose to his feet.

"_Schon gut_, Abe," he said. "Don't ask me I should step right into
Harkavy's shoes and work like a dawg till you are finding a new
designer, Abe. Them days is past, Abe."

"You shouldn't worry yourself, Mawruss," Abe retorted. "The way business
is so rotten nowadays, y'understand, we would quick get another
designer."

"Would you?" Morris cried. "Well, I guess I got something to say about
that, Abe. If you think we are going to