Page Thirty-T bree

Through the Shop Door By Vito S. Cianci.

HE School Shop is one great and glorious place from which to make a careful study of the student body. All the students come here sometime or other during the day, and they are most interesting—when hey aren’t exasperating.

There are a few, a very few, methodical souls who trot briskly up, demand their supplies, and pay promptly. They always know exactly what they want, and, what is more important, know the correct names for everything—also the correct prices. “Two sheets of cartridge paper, one sheet of manilla, and a box of charcoal; twenty-two cents. ... . tube of raw umber, tube of white; eighty cents . . .” and so on. Very nice.

Then there are those individuals who resemble the first-named class

in that they know what they want, and how much it is, but... “I haven't any money, can you charge it? . . . Stick it on my account... . Gosh, | don’t owe you very much, can’t you give me a little more? ... . I’ve never owed you anything here before. . . . Aw, come on, don’t be a

crab.” And so on. Not so very nice.

The third type is my particular goat-getter. It seems impossible, but there are some cheerful spirits knocking around this school who haven't yet learned the name of the various kinds of paper they use, and which they have been using since September. It’s “Two sheets of the TOURS (3.5) Some of that cheap stuff. . . . | want some of that shiny kind you sold to So-and-So two weeks ago—how much of it? / don’t know... . Got any of —of—oh you know, that kind we're using now. ... What kind of a shop do you call this, anyway? ... Some shopkeeper! ....” And soon. Not very nice at all! In fact, the very opposite!

The most peculiar of the lot are those hurried souls who almost never arrive on time. They dash up at the last minute, just as I’m shutting up the shop, and in earnest, importunate voices demand their wares. Their voices rise in despairing shrieks if I am in a bad mood and relentlessly refuse them. “How do you expect me to work if | haven’t got any paper?

-... 1 know, but I didn’t get up in time. Only this once... . . Aw, please!”

and make vows whic but annoying.

Oh, well, we should worry.