sister carrie

Chapter 60 (2)

Chapter 34 The mill is turning: a pile of chaff (2)
"Goodbye!" he said at last, walking out.

This was the first time that an embarrassing situation had created a strong tension between the two.Still, the day of closing is getting closer, and the gloomy atmosphere has become the norm.Hurstwood could not hide his feelings about it.Carrie could not help thinking, not knowing where she was drifting.The result was less talk between the two, but it was not Hurstwood's displeasure with Carrie.It was Carrie who avoided him.This he also noticed.She had treated him so coldly that he resented her.He made it extremely difficult to talk in a friendly manner, and he made it still more difficult with his great displeasure with Carrie's manner.

Then, the last day came.Take Hurstwood for example, his mentality has reached such a point that he originally thought that thunder and lightning were expected.Once the last day really came, he felt relieved, thinking that this day was nothing more than that.The sun is shining and the climate is pleasant.When he came to breakfast, he felt that there was nothing to fear after all.

"Ah," he said to Carrie, "today is my last day on earth."

Yes, he was humorous, and Carrie just smiled in reply.

Hurstwood looked through the papers with an air of gaiety, as if he had let go of his burden.

"I'm going downtown for a while," he said after breakfast, "and looking around. I'll be looking around all day tomorrow. I see, now that I've let it go, I can always find something. .”

He smiled and went out to the hotel to have a look.Sannessee is over there.They split by agreement.He stayed there for a few hours, went out for three hours, and came back less energetic.As much as he had disliked the hotel, he was a little sad that it was no longer there.He wished it wasn't the case.

Sannessy is cold and looks like a businessman.

"Well," he said at five o'clock, "we might as well count the change and split it."

That's what they did.The fixed equipment has long since been sold, and the money has been divided.

"Good night," said Hurstwood at the last moment, trying to be as amiable as possible.

"Goodbye," said Sannessy, ignoring him.

The matter of the Warren Street Hotel was over for good.

Carrie prepared a good meal at home.Hurstwood came home grave and thoughtful.

"Huh?" said Carrie inquiringly.

"I'm free," he replied, taking off his overcoat.

As she looked at him, she wondered what was going on financially with him.They ate and talked very little.

"Have you enough money to buy one elsewhere?" asked Carrie.

"Not enough," he said, "I've got to find something to do and accumulate some."

"It would be nice if I could find a place," said Carrie, anxious and hopeful.

"I think I can find it," he said thoughtfully.

In the next few days, he put on his coat every morning as usual, and then hurried out.When he went out to inquire, the first thing he used to cheer himself up was the idea that even with his 700 yuan, he could still find a deal that would be beneficial to him.It occurred to him that he might as well check out the distillery.He knew that the winery often controlled several hotels, which were leased to each other, so he might as well ask them for help.Then it occurred to him that in any case he would have to pay $700 for the fixtures, and he would have no money left over for the monthly expenses.Now the monthly living expenses are nearly 80 yuan.

"No," he thought in his most sane moments, "I can't do that. I've got to find something else to do and accumulate some."

As soon as he thought about what to do, his "find something to do" problem immediately became complicated.As a manager of a family? Where can I find such a position? There is no recruitment of a manager in the newspaper.He knows very well that such a position is either promoted through years of hard work, or one has to buy half or one-third of the shares.He didn't have the money to get into a store that needed a manager.

Anyway, he went out to look for it.He was well dressed and handsome, but it was a matter of deceiving people.As soon as people saw him, they saw that he was of such a certain age, a strong physique, and well-dressed, and they immediately guessed that he must be a rich man.His appearance, very much like that of a rich man, is a figure that ordinary people can expect to give alms.Now 43 years old, he has a strong body, but it is not easy to walk.For many years, he was not used to sports.His legs tired easily, his shoulders ached, and his feet ached in the evening, even though he took streetcars as he traveled about.Just getting on and off the car, after a long time, it will become like this.

He also knew in his heart that people regarded him as higher than his actual situation.He was painfully aware that this was not conducive to his search for a career.It wasn't that he wished he had less appearance, but that he was ashamed to make demands that did not match his appearance.This made him hesitate, not knowing what to do.

He thought of the hotel industry, but he immediately realized that he had no experience as a clerk, and more importantly, there were no acquaintances or friends in this industry to find.He did know hotel owners in several cities, including New York, but they knew about his events at the Fitzgerald and the Moai.It was impossible for him to ask them.He thought about other businesses, because he saw the building or a business he was familiar with--grocery wholesale, hardware store, insurance company, etc.--but he had no experience in these fields.

How to search, to find any position, this is a very hard thing to think about.Should he go out in person, ask for it in person; should he wait outside the office, and then be interviewed with an unusual and rich man's appearance, and then have to say what he wants? It makes me sad when I think about it.No, he can't do that.

He was really running around, thinking.But it was cold, so he went into a hotel.He knew the hotel well enough to know that as long as he was well-dressed he would be welcome and take a chair in the lounge.This time he was in the Grand Central Hotel on Broadway, one of the most famous hotels in the city at the time.It was hard for him to come here and take a chair! Just imagine how he ended up! He had heard that hotel loafers were derided as "seat warmers."He used to ridicule these people like this when he was prosperous, but now, although he may meet people who know him, he has also fallen here, sheltering in the lounge of a hotel, resisting the cold weather, and walking all over the streets Rest your tired body afterward.

"I can't do this," he thought, "not to decide which places to go, but to get up early in the morning and walk around like this, what's the use of it. I have to choose places in advance, and then To find."

It occurred to him that there were occasional vacancies for bartenders, but on second thought, that was ruled out.Barman!—he's a former manager!
He was also bored sitting in the hotel lounge, so at four o'clock he was on his way home.When he entered the door, he pretended to be returning from business, but he pretended to be reluctant.The rocking chair in the dining room was very comfortable.He happily sat in the rocking chair and read the few newspapers he had bought.

Carrie went through the room to prepare supper, and she said:
"He came to ask for the rent today."

"Oh, yes?" said Hurstwood.

He thought that today is February 28nd, the day that person often comes, and when he thought about it, wrinkles crept up his forehead.He fumbled for his wallet in his pocket.For the first time, I tasted what it was like to have to pay without income.He contemplated a roll of bills the way a patient contemplates a potentially life-saving medicine.So he counted out [-] dollars.

"Here," he said, as Carrie passed the dining room again.

He buried himself in the newspaper.Oh, take a rest--take a breather after walking and thinking all day! These newsletters are such a relief! He forgets his worries--in part.If you believe what the papers say, here's a pretty young woman suing her husband, a fat rich candy dealer in Brooklyn, for a divorce.Here is another piece of news detailing a shipwreck in the snow and ice off Wuzi Bay, Staten Island.There was also a long column of news about what was going on in the theatrical world—the plays being played, the actors on stage, the managers who announced the news.Fort Fanny Daven is playing on Fifth Street.Darry is playing King Lear.He had seen a message that the Vanderbilts and their friends were going on an early vacation to Florida.A fun shooting competition is taking place in the mountains of Kentucky.So he read and read and read, rocking in the rocking chair by the warm fire in the warm room, while he waited for supper to be brought.

(End of this chapter)