Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1882-08-26

20 encourage lnclplent talent, enOuIu eu-
wise you not to adopt the profession of an
artist"
"Well, WELL" said Hopkins. "let us
say no more about it, and he sighed
again.
But we were not inclined to let him off
80 easily, and went on in the same vein till
we were weary, and tossed him and his
aspirations about between us like ball.
We treated him very badly, aud he must
have been the besttempered or the
thickest.skinned of men to have stood it
without showing anger.
Tired at last of batting our imperturb-
able friend, we turned to other topics.
"Seen Jones new picture ?" asked
Frank.
eyes. Don't care much for IT," / re-
piled "men shouldn't try to paint old
subjects unless they can treat them in a
new manner"
"Well, it must be hard to strike on. a
new line with Hamlet and the ghost. l
never tried to paint ghost, so l don't
know what should make of it."
81 shall wait till l see one, and then
offer it handsome terms for few sittings.
l think there is something to be done with
ghosts, but they must be of an original
kind, not conventional, like Jones'"
"Hang it, no. They are always the
same !; thinly painted, with something
placed conveniently behind them to show
their transparency. wouldn'tcare to paint
ghost of that sort, people only laugh at
them but l should like to put that
creepy sensation on canvas-thar feeling
that something uncanny is about"
"Well, when some one does see a ghost
we may get the correct thing; not till
then"
"Ghcsts amt visible" said Hopkins,
solemnly, "but for all that there are
ghosts.
A remark like this from Hopkins was
an event not lightly to be passed by, 80
we cried in a breath:
What do you know about ghosts :?
Ever troubled with them? ?"
He took his pipe from his lips and said
quietly:
'If you young fellows won't laugh too
much l don't mind telling you"
We promised the gravity of Scion, and
Frank winked at me in so barefaced a
manner that anybody but our unobservant
friend would have seen it and at once de.
clined speaking. However. no mischief
was done, for in deep accents he began
You remember"
"Stop bit" said 81 can tell from
the way the story opens it is going to be
something awful. Let US fill the glasses
first" We did so. "Now fire away, old
fellow, and don't, please, embellish your
truthful tale with too many flowers of
fancy"
Hopkins paused little.
Look here" he said, "you won't men,
ton this to any body should not like the
people on the Stock Exchange to hear of
it. They chaff so"
We vowed that wild horses should not
rend the terrible revelation from our
bosoms.
Hopkins began again
"You remember my late partner, poor
old Bobbett?"
"Never even heard of him, interrupted
Blair.
"Ah, to be sure. Before your time.
Well, our firm was-indee6, is now-Bo5.
bett, Hopkins & Company"
What business ?" l asked, with the air
of cross examining counsel.
''Stock. jobbers Office, Capel court. ="
said Hopkins, with return to his usual
brevity.
EASuec H. iuhoiiupttuS YOUR intcTeSI-
ing tale, said Frank; g but what is
stock-jobber? Something eminently re.
spectacle, honest and lucrative, l have no
doubt. But what is it ?"
Hopkins summed up his profession briefly
thus:
.'You want to sell stock-another man
wants to buy stock-you 60 to broker-he
goesto broker-both brokers go to a jobber
or dealer, which sounds nice-your broker
sells him the stock, his broker buys it of
him. That's stock -jobber's business in
nut shell.
but as I an ignorant of all transac.
tions in stock, l fail to see the pull of it.
"Well, your broker sells it to me for,
say, one hundred and twenty the other
mans broker buys it of me for, say, one
hundred and twenty-one and that's the
way we make our living"
That is a nice business" said Blair, in
tones of admiration $50 easy-just the
thing to suit you, l should think"
"Don't listen to him." cried Ego on
with your tale"
Hopkins, not the least discomposed by
the interruptions, proceeded
"Old Bobbett was my partner, and a
capital partner he was-sharp as a needle
and bold as lion, and always fair in his
dealings between partner and partner.
The only fault / had to find with him was
that he was little too fond of specializing
on his own account. | like best to let
people speculate through me. 1t pays best
in the long run, and you sleep sounder
when rising or falling market don't make
difference of thousand or 80 to you.
But Bobbett couldn't keep out of it. The
excitement was everything to him, and I
must say he was very clever, seldom making
q bad mistake. He gave all his time to it,
and had the most marvellous way of pick
ing up information before other people. /
never knew where he got his tips, but when
he strolled into the office of morning and
said, Better sell or buy North British
Brighton AS or what else it might be, l
knew he had heard something, and there
would be move one way or another in the
stocks he named. tell you, used to get
very frightened at first, especially when
we did make losses but at each years
end l found the balance on the right side,
so at last I came to trust Bobbett impli-
citly-let him do just as he liked and if
he had told me consols were going to drop
to so, think / should have believed him.
Poor old Bobbett !"
Hopkins paused here; it might have
been from the emotion caused by the rec
election OF tender commercial passages
between himself and the lamented Bobbett;
but if go his face said nothing.
Frank drew the back of his hand across
his eyes and murmured
''This is all very interesting, very pa
thetic, but where is the promised ghost ?"
Our stolid friend took no notice, but
went on like one commencing fresh chap.
ter of novel.
Zone day my partner told me he was
going to the North of England on some
private business. There was very little
doing on the Exchange at that time, or l
am sure no private business would have
called him away. Better not operate until
my return, he said, unless you hear from
me- Ii / think ANYTHING worth doing. or