证券经纪人的书记员05（在线收听）

“‘Well.’ said he, ‘the fact is that I have heard some really extraordinary stories about your financial ability. You remember Parker, who used to be Coxon’s manager. He can never say enough about it.’

“Of course I was pleased to hear this. I had always been pretty sharp in the office, but I had never dreamed that I was talked about in the City in this fashion.

“‘You have a good memory?’ said he.

“‘Pretty fair,’ I answered modestly.

“‘Have you kept in touch with the market while you have been out of work?’ he asked.

“‘Yes. I read the stock-exchange list every morning.’

“‘Now that shows real application!’ he cried. ‘That is the way to prosper! You won’t mind my testing you, will you? Let me see. How are Ayrshires?’

“‘A hundred and six and a quarter to a hundred and five and seven-eighths.’

“‘And New Zealand consolidated?’

“‘A hundred and four.’

“‘And British Broken Hills?’

“‘Seven to seven-and-six.’

“‘Wonderful!’ he cried with his hands up. ‘This quite fits in with all that I had heard. My boy, my boy, you are very much too good to be a clerk at Mawson’s!’

“This outburst rather astonished me, as you can think. ‘Well,’ said I, ‘other people don’t think quite so much of me as you seem to do, Mr. Pinner. I had a hard enough fight to get this berth, and I am very glad to have it.’

“‘Pooh, man; you should soar above it. You are not in your true sphere. Now, I’ll tell you how it stands with me. What I have to offer is little enough when measured by your ability, but when compared with Mawson’s it‘s light to dark. Let me see. When do you go to Mawson’s?’

“‘On Monday.’

“‘Ha, ha! I think I would risk a little sporting flutter that you don’t go there at all.’

“啊，”他说道，“事情是这样的，我听说你在理财方面很有才干，有许多不凡的事迹。你记得考克森的经理帕克吧，他对你总是赞不绝口的。”

“听他这么说，我当然高兴了。我在业务上一向一精一明能干，可从未梦想到城里竟有人这样称赞我。

“你的记忆力很好吗？”他说道。

“还算不错，”我谦恭地回答道。

“你失业以后，对商情还留意吗？”他问道。

“是的。我每天早上都要看证券一交一易所的牌价表。”

“真下功夫啊！”他大声喊道，”这才是生财之道呢！你不反对我来测验你一下吧？请问埃尔郡股票牌价是多少？”

“一百零六镑五先令至一百零五镑十七先令半。”

“新西兰统一公债呢？”

“一百零四镑。”

“英国布罗肯-希尔恩股起呢？”

“七镑至七镑六先令。”

“太好了！”他举起双手欢呼道，”这完全符合我知道的行情。我的朋友，我的朋友，你到莫森商行去当书记员太屈才了！”

“你想想，他这样狂喜多么使我感到惊奇。“啊，”我说道，“别人可不象你这样替一我着想，平纳先生。我找到这份差事可不容易，我可非常喜欢它呢。”

“什么话，先生，你理应飞黄腾达，干这事是不得其所。我要告诉你，我是多么重视你的才能。我给你的职位和薪俸，按你的才干衡量还是够低的，但和莫森商行相比，那就有天壤之别了。请你告诉我，你什么时候到莫森商行去上班？”

“下星期一。”

“哈，哈！我想我应当冒险打个赌，你根本不要到那里去。”