No one appeared to wish his jellies.
The little sister had better luck. The women turned from her, but
the men gathered about her and quickly bought out the stock. She
went to the car for more and the men followed her. To Merton, who
watched these scenes, the dramatist's intention was plain. These men
did not really care for jellies and jams, they were attracted solely
by the wild-rose beauty of the little country girl. And they were
plainly the sort of men whose attentions could mean no good to such
as she.
Left on the porch, he was now directed to approach a distinguished
looking old gentleman, probably a banker and a power in Wall Street,
who read his morning papers. Timidly he stood before this person,
thrusting forward his basket. The old gentleman glanced up in
annoyance and brutally rebuffed the country boy with an angry
flourish of the paper he read.
"You're hurt by this treatment," called Baird, "and almost
discouraged. You look back over your shoulder to where sister is
doing a good business with her stuff, and you see the old mother
back in her kitchen, working her fingers to the bone--we'll have a
flash of that, see?--and you try again.
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