watch the really big operators, there doesn’t seem to be any rhyme or reason to what they do. They seem to make decisions on an emotional basis. You begin to think their shrewdness is just a myth. But over a period of time you can begin to see a pattern. Those papers were typed up this morning. Mike decided he wants you. He wants you on his personal staff. He doesn’t haggle. He makes his top bid the first time.”
“A third of a million dollars after taxes is a hell of a big bid. I feel shook, Cam.”
He grinned. “I would too.”
“And I can look at it another way. Through dummies and so on, he’s picked up say a hundred thousand shares. And he stands to make three and a half million bucks. So what does it cost him to hedge his bet? Ten per cent of the take.”
“It’s not only hedging the bet. He, at the same time, is acquiring a hell of a competent man.”
“Buying his soul?”
Cam gave me a sour look of annoyance and got up and paced over to the window to look down the slant of lawn toward the water. “Faustus is a little dated, Sam. You’re a nice guy, but this is a practical world and you have to live in it. You’ve got to get the hell off your white horse or be left behind.”
“I know all the rationalizations too. The world is insecure. Let me get mine first. They’ve given up the premium on decency.”
He turned and the lamplight on his face emphasized the deep hollows in his cheeks. “Am I an indecent man?” he asked softly.
“Answer it yourself. Every man lives with himself. Every man shaves himself. And why the hell are we both feeling uncomfortable and slightly guilty right now just because I brought up the question of decency? What’s turned it into a shameful subject?”
His smile was crooked. “I give you the pat answer. The decay of public morality, political morality, private morality. The venality of public institutions.”
“So what you are saying to me, you and Mike Dean, is that these are the rules of the game, and it’s time I accept the rules and make my pile. So it’s a cynical invitation.”
He sighed and collapsed into his chair. “You’re a hell of a difficult man, Sam. I like you. I know what you’re talking about. But I’ve outgrown my boyhood urge to fight windmills. Maybe you haven’t. Take a good hard look at where you stand. I personally don’t think Mike has to hedge the bet. I think he’s going to acquire control anyway. And so do you. Suppose you stand on principle and refuse this offer. The Dean organization moves in. You go out on your ear, and in order to justify tossing you out, there’ll be some publicity about a young, dreamy-eyed idealist who was so completely unsuited to running a big corporation that Mike had to bounce him in order to save everybody’s marbles. And don’t think that Guy Brainerd’s mill won’t grind that out in a way that will really sting.”
“So?”
“So it’s going to happen anyway. What do you do when a building is burning down? Do you paint safety slogans on the walls, or do you carry out the cash?”
“When do you want a decision?”
“There’s no rush.”
“There’s no point in my carrying this stuff around. Here.” He put it in the drawer. “Should I wait around for Mike to come back?”
“No. I’ll tell him you’re thinking it over.”
I stood up and started toward the door and then turned back and said, “About this Bowman. Working with him would hardly be a joy.”
“Mike makes optimum use of him. He makes optimum use of me. There’s something to be said for being constantly stretched to fulfill your capacities. When you understand Fletcher he isn’t so bad. He is just a completely and astonishingly emotionless man who has had to learn how to simulate warmth in order to get along.”
I managed to get down to the dock without running into anybody. I went out toward the end to get away from the mosquitoes. I sat with my legs dangling. The fuzziness of the liquor was entirely
“A third of a million dollars after taxes is a hell of a big bid. I feel shook, Cam.”
He grinned. “I would too.”
“And I can look at it another way. Through dummies and so on, he’s picked up say a hundred thousand shares. And he stands to make three and a half million bucks. So what does it cost him to hedge his bet? Ten per cent of the take.”
“It’s not only hedging the bet. He, at the same time, is acquiring a hell of a competent man.”
“Buying his soul?”
Cam gave me a sour look of annoyance and got up and paced over to the window to look down the slant of lawn toward the water. “Faustus is a little dated, Sam. You’re a nice guy, but this is a practical world and you have to live in it. You’ve got to get the hell off your white horse or be left behind.”
“I know all the rationalizations too. The world is insecure. Let me get mine first. They’ve given up the premium on decency.”
He turned and the lamplight on his face emphasized the deep hollows in his cheeks. “Am I an indecent man?” he asked softly.
“Answer it yourself. Every man lives with himself. Every man shaves himself. And why the hell are we both feeling uncomfortable and slightly guilty right now just because I brought up the question of decency? What’s turned it into a shameful subject?”
His smile was crooked. “I give you the pat answer. The decay of public morality, political morality, private morality. The venality of public institutions.”
“So what you are saying to me, you and Mike Dean, is that these are the rules of the game, and it’s time I accept the rules and make my pile. So it’s a cynical invitation.”
He sighed and collapsed into his chair. “You’re a hell of a difficult man, Sam. I like you. I know what you’re talking about. But I’ve outgrown my boyhood urge to fight windmills. Maybe you haven’t. Take a good hard look at where you stand. I personally don’t think Mike has to hedge the bet. I think he’s going to acquire control anyway. And so do you. Suppose you stand on principle and refuse this offer. The Dean organization moves in. You go out on your ear, and in order to justify tossing you out, there’ll be some publicity about a young, dreamy-eyed idealist who was so completely unsuited to running a big corporation that Mike had to bounce him in order to save everybody’s marbles. And don’t think that Guy Brainerd’s mill won’t grind that out in a way that will really sting.”
“So?”
“So it’s going to happen anyway. What do you do when a building is burning down? Do you paint safety slogans on the walls, or do you carry out the cash?”
“When do you want a decision?”
“There’s no rush.”
“There’s no point in my carrying this stuff around. Here.” He put it in the drawer. “Should I wait around for Mike to come back?”
“No. I’ll tell him you’re thinking it over.”
I stood up and started toward the door and then turned back and said, “About this Bowman. Working with him would hardly be a joy.”
“Mike makes optimum use of him. He makes optimum use of me. There’s something to be said for being constantly stretched to fulfill your capacities. When you understand Fletcher he isn’t so bad. He is just a completely and astonishingly emotionless man who has had to learn how to simulate warmth in order to get along.”
I managed to get down to the dock without running into anybody. I went out toward the end to get away from the mosquitoes. I sat with my legs dangling. The fuzziness of the liquor was entirely
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