“And do you think,” said Eddy, “I’m going to do that for nothing? Not such a fool, my fine fellow. A hundred and fifty, Johnson—down; and as good as gold paid over the counter. Wire him that it’s an offer, and that you’ll be able to push business among the swells you will meet. I can introduce you to half the bigwigs about——, and if you don’t make something out of them.—But I must have that confounded paper back.”
“I don’t wonder that you say so; but it’s no use speaking. If I——it depended upon me! and Master Eddy, if I can do you a good turn another time I will. You never can tell when you may want a good turn.”
“I want this good turn—that confounded bit of paper, and a little ease of my life. Look here!—and there’s more where that came from.”
“I shouldn’t wonder,” said Johnson. He took the cheque out of the young man’s hands and examined it closely. “Yes,” he said; “it’s as good as gold. Lord, what a pity, when he was doing it, he didn’t go a little bit farther and add a nought! Another nought, and just a little bit of change in one word. Bless us all, how easy he could have done it—a touch of the pen.” Johnson put his hand on the cheque, pointing out lightly here and there where the improvement could have been made. “The one would be just as easy to him as the other,” he said “And think! then you would be set right in a moment; that bit of paper given up, and everything squared. When you have a friend like this, why can’t you get him to do something that’s of real use? A hundred’s nothing; I would advise you to keep that for yourself. It might be of use to you for pocket-money. It’s of no use to us.”
“It’s precisely a hundred pounds’ worth of use,” said Eddy.
“Ah! if you take it in that way; but he wouldn’t take it in that way. He would say it’s the tenth part of our claim, and I’m not going to let a young fellow like that (he would say—mind, it’s not me) off for a tenth of our claim. How much more money (he would say) d’ye think we’d get out of him after he had his bit of paper back. No, no, Master Eddy, no use to try on that little dodge, he’s far too old a bird. But, so far as I am concerned, if there’s anything in a moderate way I could help you in, after what you’re going to do for me——”
“How do you know I’ll do it for you now? It’s nothing for nothing in this world,” said Eddy, fiercely. “If you don’t help me, why should I take any trouble? Your day’s shooting and your ball depend upon me, and I’m willing to see you through these and introduce you to all the bigwigs, but if I get nothing in return——”
“Only a word of advice,” said Johnson. “Go back to your friend, Master Eddy, and get him to alter that thing there; he could do it with a scratch of his pen. Another nought, and there’s nothing easier for a man, when it’s his own writing, to change a word. If it looks blotchy, don’t you know he puts his initials to show it’s all right—I’ve seen it done a dozen times—that’s all he’s got to do, and everything would be square. Take it back to him, Master Eddy, that’s my advice.”
“I think you’re the devil in person, Johnson,” was what Eddy replied.