American Tragedy 美国悲剧 chapter 8

The thing that most interested Clyde at first was how, if at all, he was to keep the major portion of all this moneyhe was making for himself. For ever since he had been working and earning money, it had been assumed that hewould contribute a fair portion of all that he received -- at least three-fourths of the smaller salaries he hadreceived up to this time -- toward the upkeep of the home. But now, if he announced that he was receiving at leasttwenty-five dollars a week and more -- and this entirely¹ apart from the salary of fifteen a month and board -- hisparents would assuredly expect him to pay ten or twelve.

 

But so long had he been haunted by the desire to make himself as attractive looking as any other well-dressedboy that, now that he had the opportunity, he could not resist the temptation to equip himself first and as speedilyas possible. Accordingly, he decided² to say to his mother that all of the tips he received aggregated³ no more thana dollar a day. And, in order to give himself greater freedom of action in the matter of disposing of his sparetime, he announced that frequently, in addition to the long hours demanded of him every other day, he wasexpected to take the place of other boys who were sick or set to doing other things. And also, he explained that the management demanded of all boys that they look well outside as well as inside the hotel. He could not longbe seen coming to the hotel in the clothes that he now wore. Mr. Squires⁴, he said, had hinted as much. But, as ifto soften⁵ the blow, one of the boys at the hotel had told him of a place where he could procure⁶ quite all the thingsthat he needed on time.

 

And so unsophisticated was his mother in these matters that she believed him.

 

But that was not all. He was now daily in contact with a type of youth who, because of his larger experience withthe world and with the luxuries and vices⁸ of such a life as this, had already been inducted into certain forms oflibertinism and vice⁷ even which up to this time were entirely foreign to Clyde's knowledge and set him agapewith wonder and at first with even a timorous⁹ distaste. Thus, as Hegglund had pointed¹⁰ out, a certain percentageof this group, of which Clyde was now one, made common cause in connection with quite regular adventures which usually followed their monthly pay night. These adventures, according to their moods and their cash at thetime, led them usually either to one of two rather famous and not too respectable all-night restaurants. In groups,as he gathered by degrees from hearing them talk, they were pleased to indulge in occasional late showy supperswith drinks, after which they were wont¹¹ to go to either some flashy dance hall of the downtown section to pickup¹² a girl, or that failing as a source of group interest, to visit some notorious -- or as they would have deemed itreputed -- brothel, very frequently camouflaged¹³ as a boarding house, where for much less than the amount of cashin their possession they could, as they often boasted, "have any girl in the house." And here, of course, becauseof their known youth, ignorance, liberality, and uniform geniality¹⁵ and good looks, they were made much of, as arule, being made most welcome by the various madames and girls of these places who sought, for commercialreasons of course, to interest them to come again.

 

And so starved had been Clyde's life up to this time and so eager was he for almost any form of pleasure, that from the first he listened with all too eager ears to any account of anything that spelled adventure or pleasure.

 

Not that he approved of these types of adventures. As a matter of fact at first it offended and depressed¹⁶ him,seeing as he did that it ran counter to all he had heard and been told to believe these many years. Nevertheless sosharp a change and relief from the dreary¹⁷ and repressed work in which he had been brought up was it, that hecould not help thinking of all this with an itch¹⁸ for the variety and color it seemed to suggest. He listenedsympathetically and eagerly, even while at times he was mentally disapproving¹⁹ of what he heard. And seeinghim so sympathetic and genial¹⁴, first one and then another of these youths made overtures²⁰ to him to go here, thereor the other place -- to a show, a restaurant, one of their homes, where a card game might be indulged in by two orthree of them, or even to one of the shameless houses, contact with which Clyde at first resolutely²¹ refused. Butby degrees, becoming familiar with Hegglund and Ratterer, both of whom he liked very much, and being invitedby them to a joy-night supper -- a "blow-out" as they termed it, at Frissell's -- he decided to go.

 

"There's going to be another one of our montly blow-outs to-morrow night, Clyde, around at Frissell's," Rattererhad said to him. "Don't you want to come along? You haven't been yet."By this time, Clyde, having acclimated²² himself to this caloric atmosphere, was by no means as dubious²³ as he wasat first. For by now, in imitation of Doyle, whom he had studied most carefully and to great advantage, he had outfitted²⁴ himself with a new brown suit, cap, overcoat, socks, stickpin²⁵ and shoes as near like those of his mentoras possible. And the costume became him well -- excellently well -- so much so that he was far more attractive than he had ever been in his life, and now, not only his parents, but his younger brother and sister, were not a little astonished and even amazed by the change.

 

How could Clyde have come by all this grandeur²⁶ so speedily? How much could all this that he wore now havecost? Was he not hypothecating more of his future earnings²⁷ for this temporary grandeur than was really wise? Hemight need it in the future. The other children needed things, too. And was the moral and spiritual atmosphere ofa place that made him work such long hours and kept him out so late every day, and for so little pay, just the place to work?

 

To all of which, he had replied, rather artfully for him, that it was all for the best, he was not working too hard.

 

His clothes were not too fine, by any means -- his mother should see some of the other boys. He was not spending too much money. And, anyhow, he had a long while in which to pay for all he had bought.

 

But now, as to this supper. That was a different matter, even to him. How, he asked himself, in case the thing lasted until very late as was expected, could he explain to his mother and father his remaining out so very late.

 

Ratterer had said it might last until three or four, anyhow, although he might go, of course, any time, but howwould that look, deserting the crowd? And yet hang it all, most of them did not live at home as he did, or if they did like Ratterer, they had parents who didn't mind what they did. Still, a late supper like that -- was it wise? Allthese boys drank and thought nothing of it -- Hegglund, Ratterer, Kinsella, Shiel. It must be silly for him to thinkthat there was so much danger in drinking a little, as they did on these occasions. On the other hand it was truethat he need not drink unless he wanted to. He could go, and if anything was said at home, he would say that hehad to work late. What difference did it make if he stayed out late once in a while? Wasn't he a man now? Wasn'the making more money than any one else in the family? And couldn't he begin to do as he pleased?

 

He began to sense the delight of personal freedom -- to sniff²⁸ the air of personal and delicious romance -- and hewas not to be held back by any suggestion which his mother could now make.

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