“Certainly, sir. You shall have them without fail. They shall be sent to your house at ten on Monday morning.”
The Bari man left his address and departed.
In the Street of Æolus he entered another shoemaker’s shop and ordered a precisely similar pair of shoes in the same terms.
“Have I made myself understood?”
“Perfectly. Let me have the address, and on Monday at ten——”
“I shall not be in at ten. Don’t send them before eleven.”
“At eleven you may count on having them, without fail.”
On Monday at ten the first victim appeared. The gentleman tried on the shoes; the right was a perfect fit, the left was fearfully tight over the instep; it wanted stretching a little.
“All right,” said the obliging tradesman; “I will take it away, and bring it back to you to-morrow.”
“Very well; and I will settle your account then.”