“If everybody was so conservative like Wechsel, Baum & Miller,” said Morris, “the retailers might as well go out of business.”

“Wait a bit, Mawruss,” Abe replied.  “That ain’t all.  Louis Frank’s wife is a sister to the Traders’ and Merchants’ Outlet, of Louisville—­you know that thief, Marks Leshinsky; and Louis Frank’s uncle, Mawruss, is Elkan Frank & Company, them big swindlers, them auctioneers, out in Chicago.”

Abe sat down and dipped his pen in the inkwell with such force that the spotless surface of Morris’ shirt, which he had donned that morning, assumed a polkadot pattern.  It was, therefore, some minutes before Abe could devote himself to his task in silence.  Finally, he evolved the following: 

THE FLOWER CITY CREDIT OUTFITTING CO.

Gents:  Your favor of the 16th inst. received and contents
noted, and in reply would say our Mr. Potash seen the trade
extensively and we are sorry to say it in the strictest
confidence that we ain’t got no confidence in the party you name. 
You should on no consideration do anything in the matter as all
accounts are very bad.  We will tell your Mr. Hahn the particulars
when he is next in our city. 
Yours truly,
POTASH & PERLMUTTER.

“It ain’t no more than he deserves, Mawruss,” Abe commented after Morris had read the letter.

“No,” Morris admitted, “but after the way Miss Kreitmann got that feller Gubin in the hole and the way she treated Adolph Rothstein, Abe, it ain’t no more than she deserves, neither.”

For several days afterward Miss Kreitmann went about her work with nothing but scowls for Potash & Perlmutter’s customers, married and unmarried alike.

“The thing goes too far, Abe,” Morris protested.  “She kills our entire trade.  Hahn or no Hahn, Abe, I say we should fire her.”

Abe shook his head.  “It ain’t necessary, Mawruss,” he replied.

“What d’ye mean?”

“The girl gets desperate, Mawruss.  She fires herself.  She told me this morning she don’t see no future here, so she’s going to leave at the end of the week.  She says she will maybe take up trained nursing.  She hears it that there are lots of openings for a young woman that way.”

Morris sat down and fairly beamed with satisfaction.

“That’s the best piece of news I hear it in a long time, Abe,” he said.  “Now we can do maybe some business.”

“Maybe we can,” Abe admitted.  “But not with Philip Hahn.”

“Why not?” Morris cried.  “We done our best by him.  Ain’t we?  Through him we lost it a good customer, and we got to let go a good shipping clerk.”

“Not a good shipping clerk, Mawruss,” Abe corrected.

“Well, he was a good one till Miss Kreitmann comes.”

Abe made no reply.  He took refuge in the columns of the Daily Cloak and Suit Record and perused the business troubles items.

“Was it our fault that Immerglick is N. G., Abe?” Morris went on.  “Is it——­”