Mr. Shay made constant and impartial use of the name Bill. Except in a very few instances, he applied it to all males over the age of two, and he did it so genially that resentment was rare. Americans, Britons, Irishmen, Portuguese, Spaniards, Indians, Swedes,—all races, in fact, except the Hebrew,—came under the sweeping appellation. His Hebrew acquaintances were addressed by the name of Ike.
It so happened that this particular “Bill” was lamentably slow in picking up the English language. It was even said that he prided himself on being halfwitted. However, being an exceedingly dull creature, he was quite naturally a polite one. He was a good listener. You could speak English to him by the hour and never be annoyed by verbal interruptions. At regular intervals he would insert a shrug of the shoulders, or nod his head, or lift an eye-brow, or spread out his hands, or purse his lips,—and he never smiled unless you did.
Perceiving that some sort of an answer was expected, “Bill” wisely shrugged his shoulders. “Soapy” interpreted the shrug as affirmative,—having a distinct advantage over “Bill,” who hadn't the faintest idea which it was,—and proceeded to go a little deeper into the matter.
“Now, as I was saying, this Landover guy is up against something, Bill. She handed him something he didn't like. Right on the nose, too, if I'm any judge. What do you suppose it was, Bill?”
“Bill” nodded his head very earnestly.
“That's what I think,” said “Soapy,” fixing his hearer with a moody, speculative frown. “Now, I know something about this Landover guy that she don't know. I suppose A. A. will give me an awful panning if I up and tell her what I saw that day. He seems to think it's a secret.”
There was a slight pause, suggesting to “Bill” that he ought to frown as if also in doubt.
“At the same time, I think she ought to be told, don't you, Bill?”
This called for something definite. So Bill scratched his left ear.
“In the first place, she's too nice a girl to be hitched up with a Priscilla like him. Now, I don't know what happened here a couple of minutes ago, but it looks to me as if she needs a little moral support. It strikes me that this would be a good time to tell her. What do you think about it, Bill?”