Whenever he has to patronize a strange barber during the course of his travels, it is his invariable custom to immediately hand out a piece of money before sitting down in the chair, and whisper:
"Here, put this in your pocket for yourself."
The barber, delighted of course, always declares that he has never before received a tip before commencing operations.
Whereupon Rickets will frown and cut him short with:
"That is not a tip—it's hush money."
And in every case the barber tumbles to the racket, and puts a lock on his lips.
Rickets was telling me the other day about a wonderful bookkeeper his father used to have in his office.
"An all-around athlete," he declared, with a grin.
"Indeed," I replied, knowing he had a card up his sleeve, for Rickets is quite prone to have his little joke.