§ 341 Calling for Night Work, Too
A well-known public lecturer occasionally tells this story on the platform as illustrative of the enterprise and instinctive commercial sagacity of the young American. He vouches for it as an actual personal experience. His version of it runs somewhat as follows:
“Two summers ago I was motoring up in New England. Taking a short cut over a dirt road I ran into a miry place and the car bogged down and stuck fast. Providentially, as it would seem, a farmer boy immediately hove into sight, driving a team of big horses. I entered into negotiations with him and the upshot was that for two dollars he agreed to undertake the job of rescuing me from my predicament. The price seemed reasonable and we closed the bargain.
“He hooked his horses to the axle of the stalled automobile and soon had the car upon high ground. I was struck by the brightness of the lad and the skill he had shown in extricating the heavy car from the mire. After I had paid him I led him into conversation, taking occasion to compliment him upon his smartness.
“‘Well,’ he said, ‘I’ve had considerable practice, Mister. This makes the third car that I’ve pulled out of this mudhole to-day.’
“‘Did each one of them pay you two dollars?’ I asked.
“‘Yep,’ he said. ‘That’s my regular price for this job.’
“‘Then you’ve earned six dollars to-day?’
“‘Yep, that’s right,’ he said.
“‘Pretty fair wages for a boy of your age, I should say,’ I commented.
“Before answering me, the youngster withdrew from my immediate vicinity and mounted one of his horses.
“‘Well,’ he said, ‘this has been a ’specially good day. I don’t always earn this much, and anyhow, ’tain’t as easy as you might think for me to earn this money. All day I’ve got to be hangin’ ’round waitin’ for one of you city fellers to get bogged down and start callin’ for help and that ain’t the worst of it neither; except when it rains, I’ve got to be around here a good part of every night.’
“‘What do you do here at night?’ I asked.
“He drew his team off the road and started away through the woods. Then, over his shoulder, as he vanished, he replied:
“‘Oh, night-times I have to draw water and fill up this here mudhole so as it’ll be ready for business the next day.’”