american tragedy

Chapter 43 (1)
Chapter 211 (1)
Since that visit, the Griffiths have not sent any information to Clyde, but Clyde is still obsessed with exaggerating the significance of the visit, and fantasizing about his dates with those girls from time to time.Their circle was simply wonderful-noble and charming, many times better than his surroundings.Dillard! Rita! Humph! They mean nothing to him now, he needs something else.Therefore, he tried his best to stay away from Dillard, which directly led to the alienation between them. Dillard felt that Clyde was a snob.And in fact, if Clyde does live out his dream, he probably is.But later, he slowly realized that he was still left behind.But he didn't want to go back to Rita and Dillard now—he had lost interest in them, and what he wanted now was to get out of here, go back to Chicago, or go to New York.He felt that, with all his efforts, he could find employment in a hotel.But at this moment, something restored his confidence, and he began to feel that the Griffiths' impression of him was slowly improving.

It was a spring Saturday, and Samuel Griffiths came to see the production in the factory, accompanied by Joshua Whigan.At about noon, he arrived in the sink, and saw Clyde, who was only in his underwear, working on the cloth feeding end of the two drying wheels, which made him feel a little sad.His nephew had learned the low man's work, and a few weeks before he had been respectable in his house.This made him very uneasy.He had a good impression of Clyde: whether in Chicago or at his house, he had a good appearance and was very likable.Also, he looked almost the same as Gilbert, but Clyde looked like this: in sleeveless underwear and drawers, with these people.This fact made him think more than ever: Clyde was his nephew, and he shouldn't be doing this kind of work anymore.Let other people see it, maybe he will say that he doesn't value the relationship between them, and this is not right.

However, he restrained himself at the time and did not mention it to anyone, including Huigan.On Monday morning, when his son came back from his trip, he called him into the office and said to him: "On Saturday, I went to the workshop and saw that young man—Clyde was still working in the sink."

"What's the matter then? Dad," his son asked.Why his father had brought up Clyde, he wondered. "Before him, other people also worked below, it's not a big deal."

"Oh, yes, but he's my nephew, the others aren't. Besides, others are like you." This remark made Gilbert very unhappy. "It can't go on like this, I don't think it's appropriate. I think other people think so too. Others can see that he looks like you, your cousin, my nephew. I've been ignoring These, because I never went down. But now, I see how he works below, I think this situation must change. We should give him another job to make him look better."

His face was a little gloomy, and his brows were also wrinkled.Think about what Clyde looks like, in that kind of clothes, in that kind of job: the image is terrible!

"Listen to me, Dad," Gilbert said, resentful of his father's ideas, firmly.Because he really didn't like Clyde, and he wanted to keep him there as long as he could. "There is no shortage of manpower in other departments now. If he wants to replace others, he has to work there for a while and work hard. But now, he can't do anything, so he can only work there."

"This layer doesn't matter at all," said Griffiths Sr.He felt that his son was very unfriendly to Clyde, probably out of jealousy. "In short, I want him to change jobs as soon as possible. That's not the place for him. Besides, he's been in it for a long time. I can't let anyone with our family name lose the care, hard work, and talent that they should have. feature. It’s not good for our business either, and it’s not good right now. I think you know what I mean.”

"Yes, I see."

"Okay, then you go find Huigan and let him try to arrange a job for him, which is better than the original job. It was wrong to let him do this kind of job in the first place. I think it can be done in a department Find some job, and you'll be in charge, or someone else's assistant, so he can wear a cleaner suit and look fit. If necessary, get him back on full pay until Until you can arrange him. By the way, what is his current salary?"

"About fifteen dollars," Gilbert whispered.

"To make him better, fifteen dollars is not enough. Give him twenty-five dollars. Of course, I also know that this money is beyond his ability and deserves remuneration, but this is the only way to do it now. He lives in Here, we have to live with money. From now on, in order not to let others think that we despise him, we must give him this amount."

"Well, I see, Dad, don't be angry."

Gilbert pleaded: "It's not all my fault. You agreed with me when I said it at first. But now you are right, and I will take care of it." After speaking, he went to Huigan, At this moment, he was thinking about how to prevent Clyde from thinking that he was important here, and how to let him know that this was done as a favor to him, not because he had any special ability.

Huigen will be here soon, and after Gilbert skillfully conveyed this meaning to him, he thought for a long time and left.After a while, he came back again. He said that since Clyde didn't have any skills, what he could do was to be Mr. Rich's assistant.Ricky is the head of the five sewing rooms on the fifth floor. There is a non-technical department under him, and someone needs to supervise it.

He was talking about the printing room, which is on the west side of the fifth floor.Seventy-five thousand to one hundred thousand unfinished collars of various sizes are sent from the cutting shop every day.Those female workers print according to the specifications marked on the size strip.Gilbert knew very well that the only thing the foreman's assistants here did was to maintain order so as not to stop the printing work.In addition, after the collar is tied, the detailed account should be recorded in the book so that the wages are equal to the workload of each person.Here is a desk and register for work.The strips of the cloth-knitter are taken out by the printer, and handed over to the assistant in piles of dozens or dozens.This is really the job of a small clerk.In the past, this work has also been distributed to young men and women, or old men, as well as middle-aged women.

Huigen worried that Clyde was inexperienced and young, and might not be able to adapt to the work there at first.There were only young girls there, and some of them were pretty.And someone like Clyde—young and handsome, wouldn't it be right to work there? After all, he's young, and he might be too easygoing and not strict enough, and the girls might take advantage of that, and it wouldn't be easy.However, after all, this is the only job that can be found for him at present, so what's the problem with letting him try it? It won't be long before he knows whether there is a job that is more suitable for him, and he will also know whether it is suitable. It is not difficult to adjust him again.

Therefore, at three o'clock this afternoon, Gilbert called him, and according to the old rules, let him wait for 15 minutes to show his dignity and status.

"Are you doing okay?" Gilbert asked coldly, and Clyde, who had no good impression of Gilbert himself, forced a smile and said, "That's all, Mr. Griffiths, it's nothing Good or bad. I like my current job, and I think I learned a little bit."

"yes?"

"Oh, yes. Of course I've learned a little bit." Clyde said blushing. At the same time, he felt a little disgusted in his heart, but still showed a sorry and flattering smile on the surface.

"Well, that's right, no matter who it is, staying down there for such a long time will pay off." Then, he felt that he might be a little too much, and his tone was gentler, "I called you here this time, not for this matter ...I want to talk to you about another thing, tell me, have you ever been in charge of anyone other than yourself so far?"

"I can't hear clearly." Clyde was a little flustered and didn't understand the question clearly.

"I want to ask, did anyone ever work under you, where, for what, how many? Have you ever been a foreman or a foreman's assistant?"

"No, never, sir." Clyde was too nervous, and answered a little intermittently.Because Gilbert's tone was very severe, and he was simply looking down on people.On the other hand, he also noticed the hidden meaning behind these words.Although his cousin was very strict with him and had a bad attitude, he had already seen that his boss wanted him to manage some people as a foreman.That's right, that's right! He immediately had a strange feeling all over his body. "I've seen people management in clubs and restaurants, though," he went on. "Given me a chance, I think I'd do my best." His face was flushed, and his eyes had a strange gleam.

"That's different," Gilbert snapped. "Seeing is not the same as doing. An inexperienced person can't do it even if he thinks well. This job requires a talented person."

(End of this chapter)