William Gaddis - J R

— Wait the only thing you’ve said I ever heard of is this salary you’ve been saving me from that’s the whole…

— No but that’s not even counting all this legal stuff too, I mean like they’re always saying this here friend in need is this friend indeed boy I must be this real big friend then I…

— It doesn’t mean that it doesn’t mean the one who’s in need, it means the friend who comes to help the one who’s in…

— I know boy I mean you’ve like got this whole fifty-seven thousand dollars and boy am I in nee…

— No now stop look, listen what makes you think I just told you didn’t I? I’ve got thirty-seven cents? What makes you think I sold my stock I just used it to borrow some money, this salary you’ve been saving me from what did you expect me to do I had about four dollars it’s the one thing your neat guy Davidoff’s ever done that made sense, he worked out something with Mister Crawley so I could…

— No but okay what’s the difference, I mean you go sell off your stock for like fifty-seven thousand dollars or you give it to this bank someplace for collateral and loan this here fifty-seven thousand dollars off them then they go sell it for fifty-seven thousand dollars, I mean you still got this here fifty-seven thou…

— I don’t have it! I never had it listen…

— And I mean this whole option thing like when I fixed it up to help you out so instead you’re yelling at me on the phone where were you suppose to get this fifty thousand dollars so you could like exercise it so now you…

— I borrowed it and paid it right back how do you think I…

— No but I mean how could you pay it right back if you didn’t go sell off this here stock that’s what I mean! And I mean anyway there’s this whole law which you can’t loan money off banks to go buy stock with it on top of you even told me that time on the phone you’re not selling it, I mean that’s what’s this here tremendous like disappointment you know Bast? I mean like you didn’t have any confidence in this here whole enterprise and like all this here corporate loyalty where we used each other and all like you didn’t even hardly be…

— Listen first I didn’t sell the stock I didn’t tell the bank to sell it either, second I didn’t borrow money from a bank to buy it I borrowed it from my aunts. I used their stock to borrow enough to buy this stock on this option and then I used this stock to borrow seven thousand dollars Mister Davidoff said would be waiting and the rest of it to pay back the loan on my aunts’ stock and put it back in their account with Mister Crawley, now that’s all I…

— What he keeps it all in this street name down there?

— Here we are, sir.

— Because if he does these here aunts better watch out hey…

— Wait a minute, what driver? Where, we’re where…

— Pennsylvania Station.

— What are we doing here, we want…

— Our instructions sir, bring your group back to the Penn…

— I thought you were taking us back out to Long Island, we…

— See because if Crawley and Wiles and these here brokers need all this collateral for these here big loans they’re…

— Be quiet, driver? Listen take us out there anyhow you can just put it on the same bill, this company that…

— Can’t do that sir I don’t have the authoriza…

— Well I’ll give it to you I’m giving you the authorization!

— Can’t do that sir I don’t have the authorization to accept your authori…

— See they’re getting this real hard time from these commodity exchanges for all this margin money since these here bellies dropped so…

— Be quiet! look do you know who, wait have you got any cash?

— Well, well sure but…

— All right, driver? We’ll just pay cash then how much will…

— Can’t do that sir our franchise don’t permit…

— Why can’t, why didn’t you just say so! Here come on, let’s…

— You want this rest of this here cupcake?

— Bring it bring everything yes you can’t leave…

— Okay could you hold this a second while I…

— I can’t hold anything a second here give me that box and get what’s that on the floor there…

— Boy if I lost that it’s this tape player thing, have you got these here tapes off the phone hey? Because…

— Get that banana on the armrest please sir?

— See because Piscator said they’re like subpoening all these here phone tapes which we want to hear them before…

— Will you get that damn banana! Here the rest of you, this way, this way…

— We going to the movies Mister Bast?

— That guy with all the heads could we go see him hey?

— These women wrestling these eels…

— We’re not going anywhere we’re going home! now here stay together…!

— Because this whole trade deal was loused up too you were suppose to fix up where Ray-X can’t get this rhodium from this place Gandia where they’re having this here war so there’s this dumb law you can’t buy exports off them so there’s this trade delegate guy from this broken down country Malwi right by this place Gandia you were suppose to see him at the Waldorf before you…

— Down this way stay together…

— Where you couldn’t get this export license to like export these bellies down to China so like if we exported them to this place Malwi where they export them down to China we could like one percent this money from them into this Gandia and one percent this here rhodium back out and then like just import it here with this Malwi as country of origin do you have to walk so fast hey? I’m dropping…

— Here this way all of you hurry up…!

— So then this here Malwi place goes and gets sucked in this same dumb war…

— I said stay together!

— And these talks they’re having at the Senate about trading with China and Russia and all, this Senator Broos breaks them off and all these bellies drop so Crawley and Wiles and these brokers get pissed off at me because they’re getting this hard time from these commodity exchanges over all this here margin money which I haven’t got it so they have to hey wait a second…

— There’s our track hurry up the train’s in four min, where’s where did he…

— He’s over there getting a newspaper could we get some candy?

— No! get the train I’ll get him, of all the sorry excuse me, of all the, sorry…

— Oh hey Bast? Have you got some change I can’t reach my…

— Just leave it! the train’s…

— But I already took the paper you said you have thirty-sev…

— Just, damn it here! Now hurry up…

— Boy you almost knocked that old worn…

— I don’t care hurry up!

— Hey wait up hey my shoelace holy…

— Stop that pushing up there! stay togeth…

— Boy I barely made it if you would have…

— Just sit down will you? The rest of you up there sit down…

— Do you want by the window or…

— I don’t care just sit down!

— Okay just let me get my foot over these new laces boy I almost lost my sneaker back there, could you move your…

— I can’t move anything no get your foot down, can’t you just…

— Where am I suppose to put it!

— Try the floor! and get your knee out of my…

— No but I have to set this thing up to play these here telephone tapes so we can hear what…

— Listen if you want to play tapes go find another seat, I’m…

— No but we have to hear them before they get subpoened I mean how do we even know what’s on them. I mean like you sent me one once where right in the middle of I’m telling you where we’re getting this hard time on these Ace mining claims from this here Interior Department suddenly there’s this singing and you hear this guy say you have just heard somebody Fisher dishcloth singing this here foreign…