"Why should Moe Griesman want to buy from us Sam Green's account?" Morris muttered to himself; and then a wave of recollection came over him. Obviously it was Moe Griesman who had bought out Sam's competitors and this caused Sam's bank to shut down on him. Now Moe Griesman was attempting to buy up Sam's liabilities and close him up, so that there might be no competitor to Moe's new business in Cyprus. At length the humour of the situation appealed to Morris and he grinned vacuously at his partner.
"Nu," Abe growled; "what are you laughing at?"
"Nothing much, Abe," Morris replied. "I was only thinking—that's all, Abe. I was thinking to myself, Abe, what a joke it would be, supposing, for instance, Sam's check should come back N. G."
When Sam Green entered the smoker of the seven-thirty train from Syracuse to Cyprus, the following morning, a well-dressed man of sixty followed him down the aisle and sat down in the same seat with him.
"Have a cigar?" the stranger said.
"Much obliged," Sam replied as he took it. "If it is just the same to you I would smoke it after dinner."
"Sure!" the stranger rejoined, handing him another; "smoke that one after dinner and smoke this one now."
Sam grinned and after they had lit up he ventured the observation that it was fine weather.
"Aber it should be colder," he concluded, "for heavyweights."