William Gaddis - J R

— I thought the tape was blank! I, I tried to get some things off that junk pocket radio that’s all, what difference does…

— Because if they subpoen them that’s why! Because this here old lady Begg she’s suing me too she’s subpoening everything for where we took over at Eagle so if there’s this tape where I’m saying how we’re protecting these here stockholders like where Eagle’s losing all this money so we move everything down at Georgia so we can…

— Look you’re spilling papers all…

— Wait it’s under here, I mean we even try to help out this dump Union Falls with this whole big cemetery thing and like giving them these Eagle properties for this here park and speedway so how this old lady Begg thanks us she goes around telling these here other old stockholders how I screwed them converting my preferred stock into common to like get control so I could wait here it is look, the Begg Action is a consolidated class action brought by former stockholders of Eagle wait no this one’s yours, where’s…

— My what, what’s…

— Where she’s pissed off at you too here, the Action arises out of alleged violations of Section ten b of the Securities Exchange Act of nineteen thirty-four and rule ten b five progul, mul, progulma…

— Promulgated give me that! what’s, she’s suing me too?

— You didn’t need to grab it, I mean you didn’t get one? Piscator sent me this here cop…

— Wait now just because she’s suing you I didn’t even know what the, I just went up there and ate that disgusting candle salad with…

— No but see she’s suing you for this whole other thing hey, like where I took over this control to protect these here stockholders where their J R Corp equity went way up if they would have sold see? Only when it went down and they sell at like five and an eighth like this old lady Begg so they’re all pissed off at you for getting this eleven and a half where you knew what’s going on inside ahead of time…

— Inside what, I…

— Like inside the company and all that’s why they call it this insider suit see where you’re this here…

— Inside? that’s, how could I be inside there isn’t any inside! How could anybody believe the, the only inside’s the one inside your head like these statements you make, these tapes you play over the phone to these newspapers virgin minerals gas discoveries the health plan of tomorrow travel of the future some reporter even found me out there he said he understood we were freezing sound now what kind of a…

— No but wait that was right in the paper hey, just…

— Look don’t start digging through that trash again can’t you see it’s all just…

— No but that’s what I been telling you about protecting these here stockholders trying to keep the price up of their stock, I mean where these like security analysts are making this big deal out of like where Ray-X is getting screwed with these big penalties on these old fixed price contracts where they can’t get this here rhodium and like recalling these products, like these old cruds with these heart pacer things quit working so they have to go get these new ones replanted in them where we even have to pay the hospital and all, and I mean right when we get these here big cost-plus look, here it is look. Frigicom, a process now being de wait, operating at faster than sound speeds, a complex process employing liquid nitrogen will be used to convert the noise shards…

— Listen can’t you understand? it’s just like that story about the Indian res…

— What where they wrecked up everything? No but see why these here students threw rocks at General Haight see this university down there by Ray-X where we did them this big real estate favor right when he comes down there to get this here honorable degree these students get pissed off at these big military contracts we got them for research development to like help them out you know? Where this same shithead this Senator Broos he starts these secret hearings where they’re like reviewing this defense budget, I mean it’s like this here hundred billion dollars so his crumby Armed Service Committee they’re making this big deal out of this lousy thirty-eight million about cost overruns where they been having these technical problems with these here shards and all hey? hey Bast?

— What.

— You looked like you weren’t listening, I mean did you ever know we hired Mister diCephalis hey?

— No and I don’t really…

— I mean I didn’t even know it either, see they got him from this computer executive employment place where everybody’s this here number so we’re looking for this skilled psychological personnel guy which it exactly matched his number isn’t that funny hey?

— Funniest thing I can…

— I know I mean I didn’t even know it till we just sent him down to see this big scientist he hired us down there at Texas this here Doctor Vogel you know? Like I even saw in the paper we told him don’t come back if they can’t fix up these technical problems with these here noise shards and this big thing I been waiting to tell you hey look. See where it says here a method of transport so new it remains classified top secret-sensitive by the Defense Department I mean I couldn’t even tell you it over the phone you know? I mean we already set up this here whole subsiderary for it what it is it’s called Teletravel, see what it is is this hey? Hey Bast?

— What what…

— I thought you went to sleep, I mean I’m telling you this here tremendous…

— Look the conductor’s waiting will you pay him for my…

— We all got return tickets this time see so I don’t…

— Well I didn’t! Pay him.

— Okay don’t get mad, I mean could you just hold this stuff a second…? Paper scraps, handkerchief wad, the wadded bills came out, coins — hey? Could you give me…

— Look I just bought your newspaper I don’t even have the thirty-sev…

— No I mean if you give me seventeen cents I won’t have to break this here quarter see then you can…

— Pay him!

— I am! but, wait give me two cents then I won’t have to break this nick okay okay! You don’t need to get so mad and I mean this here newspaper you can put it on your expen wait, wait where is it…

— You…

— No but where is it! holy, it must have dropped is it by your feet hey?

— You probably dropped it in the station get another one, what difference…

— No but all this stuff’s happening today I have to see what happened, I mean this here whole court thing and this explosion they’re like setting off underground out there for this here big gas deposit where these like radicals they’ve been going around telling the newspapers and everybody it’s so dangerous and getting this here injunction to what’s the matter hey, how come you’re shivering.

— Be, cause I’m cold…

— How could you be cold you’re like sweating all down your…

— Look just, just get this stuff of yours off my lap I’m going to take a nap.

— What like go to sleep? No but wait a second we got all this stuff to go over and these tapes and all I mean…

— I told you get another seat, you can lis…

— No but you need to help me out listening I mean how do I even know whose voice they are talking, I mean like I’m always reading this stuff in the paper where this company spokesman makes this statement which I don’t even know who it is’like this here whole explosion thing, it says this company spokesman which prefers to remain anonymous says what’s the difference if the whole state blows up who would even miss it so Senator Milliken gets real pissed off and we have to go…

— Look I haven’t even been here how can I…