him. How, he asked himself, in case the thing lasted until very
late as was expected, could he explain to his mother and father his
remaining out so very late. Ratterer had said it might last until
three or four, anyhow, although he might go, of course, any time,
but how would that look, deserting the crowd? And yet hang it all,
most of them did not live at home as he did, or if they did like
Ratterer, they had parents who didn't mind what they did. Still, a
late supper like that--was it wise? All these boys drank and
thought nothing of it--Hegglund, Ratterer, Kinsella, Shiel. It
must be silly for him to think that there was so much danger in
drinking a little, as they did on these occasions. On the other
hand it was true that he need not drink unless he wanted to. He
could go, and if anything was said at home, he would say that he
had to work late. What difference did it make if he stayed out
late once in a while? Wasn't he a man now? Wasn't he making more
money than any one else in the family? And couldn't he begin to do
as he pleased?
He began to sense the delight of personal freedom--to sniff the air
of personal and delicious romance--and he was not to be held back
by any suggestion which his mother could now make.
Chapter 9
And so the interesting dinner, with Clyde attending, came to pass.
And it was partaken of at Frissell's, as Ratterer had said. And by
now Clyde, having come to be on genial terms with all of these
youths, was in the gayest of moods about it all. Think of his new
state in life, anyhow. Only a few weeks ago he was all alone, not
a boy friend, scarcely a boy acquaintance in the world! And here
he was, so soon after, going to this fine dinner with this
interesting group.
And true to the illusions of youth, the place appeared far more
interesting than it really was. It was little more than an
excellent chop-house of the older American order. Its walls were
hung thick with signed pictures of actors and actresses, together
with playbills of various periods. And because of the general
excellence of the food, to say nothing of the geniality of its
present manager, it had become the hangout of passing actors,
politicians, local business men, and after them, the generality of
followers who are always drawn by that which presents something a
little different to that with which they are familiar.
And these boys, having heard at one time and another from cab and
taxi drivers that this was one of the best places in town, fixed
upon it for their monthly dinners. Single plates of anything cost
from sixty cents to a dollar. Coffee and tea were served in pots
only. You could get anything you wanted to drink. To the left of
the main room as you went in was a darker and low-ceilinged room
with a fireplace, to which only men resorted and sat and smoked,
and read papers after dinner, and it was for this room that these
youths reserved their greatest admiration. Eating here, they
somehow felt older, wiser, more important--real men of the world.
And Ratterer and Hegglund, to whom by now Clyde had become very
much attached, as well as most of the others, were satisfied that
there was not another place in all Kansas City that was really as
good.
And so this day, having drawn their pay at noon, and being off at
six for the night, they gathered outside the hotel at the corner
nearest the drug store at which Clyde had originally applied for
work, and were off in a happy, noisy frame of mind--Hegglund,
Ratterer, Paul Shiel, Davis Higby, another youth, Arthur Kinsella
and Clyde.
"Didja hear de trick de guy from St. Louis pulled on the main
office yesterday?" Hegglund inquired of the crowd generally, as
they started walking. "Wires last Saturday from St. Louis for a
parlor, bedroom and bat for himself and wife, an' orders flowers
put in de room. Jimmy, the key clerk, was just tellin' me. Den he
comes on here and registers himself an' his girl, see, as man and
wife, an', gee, a peach of a lookin' girl, too--I saw 'em. Listen,
you fellows, cantcha? Den, on Wednesday, after he's been here tree
days and dey're beginnin' to wonder about him a little--meals sent
to de room and all dat--he comes down and says dat his wife's gotta
go back to St. Louis, and dat he won't need no suite, just one
room, and dat they can transfer his trunk and her bags to de new
room until train time for her. But de trunk ain't his at all, see,
but hers. And she ain't goin', don't know nuttin about it. But he
is. Den he beats it, see, and leaves her and de trunk in de room.
And widout a bean, see? Now, dey're holdin' her and her trunk, an'
she's cryin' and wirin' friends, and dere's hell to pay all around.
Can ya beat dat? An' de flowers, too. Roses. An' six different
meals in de room and drinks for him, too."
"Sure, I know the one you mean," exclaimed Paul Shiel. "I took up
some drinks myself. I felt there was something phony about that
guy. He was too smooth and loud-talking. An' he only comes across
with a dime at that."
"I remember him, too," exclaimed Ratterer. "He sent me down for
all the Chicago papers Monday an' only give me a dime. He looked
like a bluff to me."
"Well, dey fell for him up in front, all right." It was Hegglund
talking. "An' now dey're tryin' to gouge it outa her. Can you
beat it?"
"She didn't look to me to be more than eighteen or twenty, if she's
that old," put in Arthur Kinsella, who up to now had said nothing.
"Did you see either of 'em, Clyde?" inquired Ratterer, who was
inclined to favor and foster Clyde and include him in everything.
"No" replied Clyde. "I must have missed those two. I don't
remember seeing either of 'em."
"Well, you missed seein' a bird when you missed that one. Tall,
long black cut-a-way coat, wide, black derby pulled low over his
eyes, pearl-gray spats, too. I thought he was an English duke or
something at first, the way he walked, and with a cane, too. All
they gotta do is pull that English stuff, an' talk loud an' order
everybody about an' they get by with it every time."
"That's right," commented Davis Higby. "That's good stuff, that
English line. I wouldn't mind pulling some of it myself sometime."
They had now turned two corners, crossed two different streets and,
in group formation, were making their way through the main door of
Frissell's, which gave in on the reflection of lights upon china
and silverware and faces, and the buzz and clatter of a dinner
crowd. Clyde was enormously impressed. Never before, apart from
the Green-Davidson, had he been in such a place. And with such
wise, experienced youths.
They made their way to a group of tables which faced a leather
wall-seat. The head-waiter, recognizing Ratterer and Hegglund and
Kinsella as old patrons, had two tables put together and butter and
bread and glasses brought. About these they arranged themselves,
Clyde with Ratterer and Higby occupying the wall seat; Hegglund,
Kinsella and Shiel sitting opposite.
"Now, me for a good old Manhattan, to begin wit'," exclaimed
Hegglund avidly, looking about on the crowd in the room and feeling
that now indeed he was a person. Of a reddish-tan hue, his eyes
keen and blue, his reddish-brown hair brushed straight up from his
forehead, he seemed not unlike a large and overzealous rooster.
And similarly, Arthur Kinsella, once he was in here, seemed to perk
up and take heart of his present glory. In a sort of ostentatious
way, he drew back his coat sleeves, seized a bill of fare, and
scanning the drink-list on the back, exclaimed: "Well, a dry
Martini is good enough for a start."
"Well, I'm going to begin with a Scotch and soda," observed Paul
Shiel, solemnly, examining at the same time the meat orders.
"None of your cocktails for me to-night," insisted Ratterer,
genially, but with a note of reserve in his voice. "I said I wasn
t going to drink much to-night, and I'm not. I think a glass of
Rhine wine and seltzer will be about my speed."
"For de love o' Mike, will you listen to dat, now," exclaimed
Hegglund, deprecatingly. "He's goin' to begin on Rhine wine. And
him dat likes Manhattans always. What's gettin' into you all of a
sudden, Tommy? I t'ought you said you wanted a good time to-
night."
"So I do," replied Ratterer, "but can't I have a good time without
lappin' up everything in the place? I want to stay sober to-night.
No more call-downs for me in the morning, if I know what I'm about.
I came pretty near not showing up last time."
"That's true, too," exclaimed Arthur Kinsella. "I don't want to
drink so much I don't know where I'm at, but I'm not going to begin
worrying about it now."
"How about you, Higby?" Hegglund now called to the round-eyed
youth.
"I'm having a Manhattan, too," he replied, and then, looking up at
the waiter who was beside him, added, "How's tricks, Dennis?"
"Oh, I can't complain," replied the waiter. "They're breakin' all
right for me these days. How's everything over to the hotel?"
"Fine, fine," replied Higby, cheerfully, studying the bill-of-fare.
"An' you, Griffiths? What are you goin' to have?" called Hegglund,
for, as master-of-ceremonies, delegated by the others to look after
the orders and pay the bill and tip the waiter, he was now
fulfilling the role.
"Who, me? Oh, me," exclaimed Clyde, not a little disturbed by this
inquiry, for up to now--this very hour, in fact--he had never
touched anything stronger than coffee or ice-cream soda. He had
been not a little taken back by the brisk and sophisticated way in
which these youths ordered cocktails and whisky. Surely he could
not go so far as that, and yet, so well had he known long before
this, from the conversation of these youths, that on such occasions
as this they did drink, that he did not see how he could very well
hold back. What would they think of him if he didn't drink
something? For ever since he had been among them, he had been
trying to appear as much of a man of the world as they were. And
yet back of him, as he could plainly feel, lay all of the years in
which he had been drilled in the "horrors" of drink and evil
companionship. And even though in his heart this long while he had
secretly rebelled against nearly all the texts and maxims to which
his parents were always alluding, deeply resenting really as
worthless and pointless the ragamuffin crew of wasters and failures
whom they were always seeking to save, still, now he was inclined
to think and hesitate. Should he or should he not drink?
For the fraction of an instant only, while all these things in him
now spoke, he hesitated, then added: "Why, I, oh--I think I'll
take Rhine wine and seltzer, too." It was the easiest and safest
thing to say, as he saw it. Already the rather temperate and even
innocuous character of Rhine wine and seltzer had been emphasized
by Hegglund and all the others. And yet Ratterer was taking it--a
thing which made his choice less conspicuous and, as he felt, less
ridiculous.
"Will you listen to dis now?" exclaimed Hegglund, dramatically.
"He says he'll have Rhine wine and seltzer, too. I see where dis
party breaks up at half-past eight, all right, unless some of de
rest of us do someting."
And Davis Higby, who was far more trenchant and roistering than his
pleasant exterior gave any indication of, turned to Ratterer and
said: "Whatja want to start this Rhine wine and seltzer stuff for,
so soon, Tom? Dontcha want us to have any fun at all to-night?"
"Well, I told you why," said Ratterer. "Besides, the last time I
went down to that joint I had forty bucks when I went in and not a
cent when I came out. I want to know what's goin' on this time."
"That joint," thought Clyde on hearing it. Then, after this
supper, when they had all drunk and eaten enough, they were going
down to one of those places called a "joint"--a bad-house, really.
There was no doubt of it--he knew what the word meant. There would
be women there--bad women--evil women. And he would be expected--
could he--would he?
For the first time in his life now, he found himself confronted by
a choice as to his desire for the more accurate knowledge of the
one great fascinating mystery that had for so long confronted and
fascinated and baffled and yet frightened him a little. For,
despite all his many thoughts in regard to all this and women in
general, he had never been in contact with any one of them in this
way. And now--now--
All of a sudden he felt faint thrills of hot and cold racing up and
down his back and all over him. His hands and face grew hot and
then became moist--then his cheeks and forehead flamed. He could
feel them. Strange, swift, enticing and yet disturbing thoughts
raced in and out of his consciousness. His hair tingled and he saw
pictures--bacchanalian scenes--which swiftly, and yet in vain, he
sought to put out of his mind. They would keep coming back. And
he wanted them to come back. Yet he did not. And through it all
he was now a little afraid. Pshaw! Had he no courage at all?
These other fellows were not disturbed by the prospects of what was
before them. They were very gay. They were already beginning to
laugh and kid one another in regard to certain funny things that
had happened the last time they were all out together. But what
