“How ’ll that bother Bockers?” says Mr. Atkins.
“Why, we kin bid on every job that comes along, and accordin’ to his agreement he’s got to bid lower ’n what we do. We’ll figure what a job will cost, and then we’ll be able to bid quite a lot lower ’n it ’ll cost to do it. Bockers ’ll have to bid lower ’n that, so that every time he takes a job we’ll be compellin’ him to lose a heap of money. Don’t figger he’ll be able to keep it up very long.”
“Sounds reasonable,” says Mr. Atkins. “But I dunno nothin’ about buildin’.”
“Don’t tell anybody,” says Catty, with a grin. “Let’s hike and see Mr. Witherspoon.” The three of us went over to Mr. Witherspoon’s office and was shown in.
“We hear you’re figgerin’ on buildin’ a house,” says Catty.
“Yes,” says Mr. Witherspoon.
“Bein’ in the contractin’ business, father and me come over to see about takin’ the contract to build it—complete, includin’ paintin’ and paperhangin’ and all.”
“I was thinking of letting separate contracts for each part of the work.”
Mr. Atkins cleared his throat and up and spoke. I was so surprised I didn’t know what to do. He was actually helpin’ Catty to land a job!
“My experience,” says he, and he sounded like he had had lots of it, “is that it hain’t ever satisfactory to let separate contracts. Makes for delay and scamped work. Your masons has to wait on the cellar-digger, and the carpenters has to wait on the masons, and the lathers and plasterers has to wait on the carpenters, and they git to bickerin’ and quarrelin’, and fust you know somebody’s scamped the work some place.... It’s always best, Mr. Witherspoon, to have one man a-supervisin’ of the whole job and responsible for everything. Then you kin look to him.”