Intensive Reading of Short Stories

35 UNIT 4 THE HAND THAT RILES THE WORLD "Many of our great men," said I (apropos of many things), "have declared that they owe their success to the aid and encouragement of some brilliant woman." "I know," said Jeff Peters. "I've read in history and mythology about Joan of Arc and Mme. Yale and Mrs. Caudle and Eve and other noted females of the past. But, in my opinion, the woman of to-day is of little use in politics or business. What's she best in, anyway? — men make the best cooks, milliners, nurses, housekeepers, stenographers, clerks, hairdressers and launderers. About the only job left that a woman can beat a man in is female impersonator in vaudeville." "I would have thought," said I, "that occasionally, anyhow, you would have found the wit and intuition of woman valuable to you in your lines of — er — business." "Now, wouldn't you," said Jeff, with an emphatic nod — "would-n't you have imagined that? But a woman is an absolutely unreliable partner in any straight swindle. She's liable to turn honest on you when you are depending upon her the most. I tried 'em once. "Bill Humble, an old friend of mine in the Territories, conceived the illusion that he wanted to be appointed United States Marshall. At that time me and Andy was doing a square, legitimate business of sell-ing walking canes. If you unscrewed the head of one and turned it up to your mouth a half pint of good rye whiskey would go trickling down your throat to reward you for your act of intelligence. The deputies was annoying me and Andy some, and when Bill spoke to me about his offi-cious aspirations, I saw how the appointment as Marshall might help along the firm of Peters & Tucker. "'Jeff,' says Bill to me, 'you are a man of learning and education, besides having knowledge and information concerning not only rudi-ments but facts and attainments.' "'I do,' says I, 'and I have never regretted it. I am not one,' says I, 'who would cheapen education by making it free. Tell me,' says I, 'whi...