“We’ll neither count nor weigh,” said Mr Stratton; “we’ll trust to every fellow’s honour. Why, if we couldn’t do that, do you suppose the shop would keep open a week?”
This impressed the meeting vastly, and the discussion was changed to the question of profits.
The boys were in favour of screwing all they could out of their customers. They didn’t see why, if Bob sold bad tarts for three-halfpence, they shouldn’t sell good ones at least for the same price.
“It’s giving it to ’em both ends,” said they.
“Why not?” said the master. “We want the fellows to get the benefit. We don’t want all the profit. As it is, we shall make a farthing on every tart we sell. We ought to sell four times as many as Bob did, oughtn’t we?”
“Quite that,” said they.
“Very well; see how that works out.”
And Mr Stratton took his chalk and worked out this sum on the black-board:—
12 bad tarts at 1½ pence = 1 shilling, 6 pence, cost 9 pence, profit 9 pence.
48 good tarts at 1 penny = 4 shillings, cost 3 shillings, profit 1 shilling.