'You will not only be able to earn more money,' he said, but in a few years you may be able yourself to set up as a master, and take apprentices of your own. I shall be able to give you plenty of work, and you will find that your time will be as fully occupied as you can desire it to be. Let me give you one piece of advice: never promise what you cannot perform; if you say you will deliver a block at a certain time, keep your word, if you have to sit up all night to finish your work. Let it get to be known that you are a man whose word can be depended upon, and you are sure to be prosperous.'
I thanked him, and commenced almost immediately on the new system, with my hands full of work. So behold me now, with my bedroom, in which there was a good light, fitted up with table and bench, working steadily at home, to my mother's great delight.
[CHAPTER XXXIII.]
MR. GLOVER.
I soon made the acquaintance of Mr. Glover. In pursuance of my plans, I presented myself at Mr. Rackstraw's office every day at a certain hour, for the purpose of seeing Jessie home. I had of course previously consulted Jessie, and she had acquiesced in the arrangement. It was a serious encroachment upon my working hours, but I made up for it in the night, and between sunrise and sunrise I always performed a fair day's work. On the very first occasion of my presenting myself at Mr. Rackstraw's office, I found Mr. Glover there. Having sent in my name to Jessie, I waited in an outer room, the walls of which were lavishly decorated with paintings and photographs of actors and actresses, in the proportion of about one of the former to twenty of the latter. As I was studying these, Jessie made her appearance, followed by Mr. Glover; she was waving him off lightly, and saying as she entered,
'No, thank you; I will not trouble you to-day. Chris has come to see me home.'
'Oh,' he answered, without casting a glance in my direction. 'Chris has come to see you home! Is Chris your brother?'
'No,' she said, 'I haven't a brother or a sister in the world.'
He condescended to look at me after this, and held out his hand to me with smiling cordiality. I took it awkwardly, for I felt myself but a common person by his side.
'Chris and I must become better acquainted,' he said. 'I remember now; I saw this young gentleman at Miss West's on the night of your performance there. He threw you two bouquets.' Jessie nodded. 'And very handsome bouquets they were,' he continued; 'he eclipsed us all by his gallantry; but I had no idea I was to have the pleasure that night of making your acquaintance, Jessie, or I might have entered the field against him. Any friend of yours must be a friend of mine.'