Argosy All-Story Weekly, February 5, 1921 — page 28: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

$14 ARGOSY-ALLSTORY WEEKLY, “ Hello, Charley,” said Bill a little while later, over in that bakers’ machinery plant in Long Island City. Hello, Bill.” “T’ve gone into the second-hand ma- chinery business, Charley. Thought I’d come over and see if I couldn’t make you one of my first clients.” “What are you doing—buying or sell- ‘ Both, or either. Which ’ll you take?” Charley stood kind of thoughtful for maybe a minute. According to what he told me later, he was trying to think of some way in which he could help Bill— besides knowing that Bill had just got his discharge, he knew that Bill needed some real help to start him in business again— and it just came to him that maybe there might be something in an old piece of machinery they’d had kicking around un- used for some time. Something, that is, both for him and for Bill. You see, Charley knew a lot about ma- chinery, but—lI tell you this so you can understand how he happened to let this piece go as he did—he didn’t know a blooming thing about the machinery mar- ket. Tl always believe What was another part of Bill’s luck, but, after all, it wasn’t so strange at that. Here they were, ’way over in Long Island City, in a section more or less out of the world; they hadn't bought any machinery for several years; they’d never sold any of it at all; and they’d never had occasion even to learn that second-hand machinery was bringing better prices than it had sold for when it was new, and that all machinery was as scarce—well, as scarce as those proverbial hen’s teeth. And, too, although they’d been consider- ing getting rid of this particular piece for some time, they hadn’t gone to it in any way until Bill happened to come along and just hit what they call the “ psychological moment.” I call it luck, but if they want to call it that, let ’em go to it, say I. Let’s see—where was I? Oh, yes, I was telling you about Charley thinking how ‘he was going to help Bill. He finally decided. “T’ve got something, Bill, I bet will in- terest you.” He Jed the way over to one side of the plant and placed his hand on some kind of a contraption of polished steel. That’s all Bill knew about it just then. “What do you think of her, Bill?” he asks, patting one of the potished faces like it was some pet. ‘‘ Ax condition, you see, and practically as good as new. We've outgrown it, and a good bid will let you take it right along.” “H-m,” comes from Bill, with his eyes all squinted up and everything about him looking like genuine business. ‘“ H-m,” comes another grunt as he spars.for more time. You see, although I’ve got to hand it to Bill for having the best speaking ac- quaintance with Lady Luck of anybody I know, at the same time you’ve got to give. Bill credit for one big thing—making the other fellow do the talking. ‘Yes, of course, it’s an unusual machine —a sixty-inch Miles Cement two-head boring mill with a taper attachment is, I guess, a novelty,” is Charley’s answer to Bill’s “ h-ms.” “A sixty-inch Miles Cement two-head boring mill with a taper attachment?’ Bill repeats after him with the questioning in- Aection any one would have who was hearing a lot of Greek. Charley naturally misunderstood it. His thought is that Bill’s questioning that part about the “taper attachment.” As it happens, it | makes the machine really unique. “You see, it’s been cleverly -constructed on one cylinder so it could be used for a pump while the other cylinder was boring,” Charley answers what he thinks is Bill’s question, and he taps another part of the contraption. ‘That's mighty interesting,” Bill tells him, and he drops down on his knees and squints in at ‘the works of the thing as if he and machinery had been brought up in ithe same cradle. When he straightens up finally he looks mighty thoughtful. ‘How much do you want for it?” he asks then, as though he had come to a definite decision. ‘Three thousand dollars as she stands,” Charley returns promptly. ‘““H-m,” says Bill, without batting an eyelash, but doing some-tall.thinkine) dt. nn