“Lucky boy.”
“I s’pose you haven’t any tips to give away, have you, Mr. Hartz?” grinned Jack. “You owe me one for saving that carpet of yours the day Mr. Bird got reckless.”
“Don’t carry such things about with me,” said Hartz, in his sharp, off-hand way. Then, after fixing the boy with his penetrating eyes a moment, he suddenly said: “If you’ve got twenty-five or fifty dollars you haven’t any use for, you might buy a few shares of D. & G. just to keep your thoughts off Percy Chamberlain,” and the broker nodded and walked away.
Jack looked after him.
“A few shares of D. & G.,” he muttered. “I wonder if he meant that? I noticed that stock went up a point yesterday and two points so far to-day. Looks as if it was a safe investment. I’d give something to find out if that was the stock I saw him rushing about after this morning on the floor of the Exchange? It isn’t like him, or any other broker, for that matter, to give out a real, Simon-pure pointer. It isn’t business. Still, I notice Hartz treats me different from most people. Maybe he’s grateful because I saved him from something like a scandal; at any rate, a good many hard things would have been said about him if Mr. Bird had killed himself up in his office that morning. I’ll have to think this over. I guess it wouldn’t be fair to tell anyone what he said about buying D. & G. He kind of sized me up pretty sharp before he opened his mouth about it. I know he doesn’t like Chamberlain coming in his office and taking up Miss Kitson’s time, and he was tickled because I started the dude on the run. I’d like to make another haul out of the market. Hartz hasn’t the least idea I have $5,000 in bank. If he had, I guess——”
“Hello, Jack!” interrupted the voice of Ed Potter, and his chum grasped him by the arm. “Let’s go in here and have a bite.”
Jack allowed his friend to steer him into a crowded New Street quick-lunch house.
They ordered coffee and stew as soon as a couple of stools were vacated.
“I s’pose you haven’t the least idea whether or not your boss is buying any D. & G. stock, have you?” whispered Jack.
Ed shook his head.