uld sell it like a flash."

"I never sold a flash, Mawruss," Abe said; "and, anyhow, Mawruss, while
I ain't saying nothing about your Minnie's family, y'understand, if I
would got to go into a deal with a horse-thief like Ferdy Rothschild,
y'understand, I would take my money first and deposit it for safety with
some of them fellers up in Sing Sing. Such a show I should have of
getting it back, Mawruss."

"Lookyhere, Abe," Morris said, "before you would make some cracks about
my Minnie's family, how about your Rosie's brother, the one what----"

"S'all right, Mawruss," Abe broke in. "I ain't saying my wife's brother
is so much, neither. This is the way I feel about a feller's wife's
brother: If he got a little money then he treats you like a dawg,
Mawruss, and if he's broke, y'understand, then your wife gives him all
your cigars and ties, and if you should happen to have the same size
neck, Mawruss, then all your life you are buying collars and shirts for
two. No, Mawruss, I ain't got no confidence in anybody's wife's brother,
especially, Mawruss, if a feller should make it a dirty failure like
Ferdy Rothschild did and then takes all the money and blows it in on the
horse-races."

"That's from old times already," Morris protested. "To-day he's a
decent, hard-working feller, Abe, and for two years he's been working
for the Rheingold Building and Construction Company. What he don't know
about putting up tenement houses, Abe, ain't worth knowing."

"And what I don't know about putting up tenement houses, Mawruss," Abe
said, "would fill one of them Carnegie Libraries, Mawruss; and also,
furthermore, Mawruss, I don't want to know nothing about it, neither.
And also, Mawruss, if you should stand there and talk to me all day it
wouldn't make no difference. If you want to build tenement houses,
Mawruss, you got my permission; but you could leave me out. I got my own
troubles with cloaks."

Morris rose.

"All right, Abe," he said. "I give you your chance, Abe, and you
wouldn't take it."

"What d'ye mean, Mawruss?" Abe asked.

"I mean, Abe, that I will go into this alone by myself, and only one
thing I beg of you, Abe: don't come to me in six months' time and claim
that I wouldn't let you in on a good thing. I have done my best."

The air of simple dignity with which Morris delivered his ultimatum was
marred to some extent by a raucous laugh from Abe.

"Don't do me no favors, Mawruss," he jeered. "All I got to say is