William Gaddis - J R

— Tell him to hold his water Beaton, what does he mean running around loose.

— Meant what I said what does she call Boody, the Bank of England? Damn law falling apart anyplace you look give these eighteen-year-olds the right to sue vote make contracts all the rest of it see Boody marry some black find some shyster lawyer get this sock off me Beaton, why I told you to look into those gossip items see if it was some corporate stunt they cooked up to start a raid on Diamond or just plain damn greed with this what’s his name Bast? he’s a black isn’t he?

— I think not sir, that was a misapprehension you gained initially from a poor quality newspaper picture when their activities first came to our atten…

— No other damn reason anybody black or white want to marry Boody but these two hundred thousand shares is there? Anybody who could get near enough to her to…

— Beaton you tell him anybody who wants a smell of those shares can kiss mine tell him he gets both cheeks, tell him she’s being committed I had the papers drawn up for Ude’s signature to…

— Having his funeral Saturday ask her how the devil she’s getting his signature, up there yesterday his wife and daughter pouring scotch down the drain hand over fist so damn scared of estate taxes…

— Well tell him Beaton!

— Yes ma’am the papers were drawn up last week sir, Judge Ude signed them the morning he fell into the…

— Excuse me sir could you lie back and give me your arm…

— Nurse get me some water.

— Damn it Zona she’s…

— What are you strapping a radio on him for nurse he’s not going anyplace, now get me some water.

— It’s an external heart pacer ma’am just until he…

— Want somebody to wait on you hand and foot damn it Zona where’s your black girl this is a hosp…

— That’s what I want to know where is she Beaton, get me some water.

— Deleserea she’s still in jail ma’am, she…

— What’s she doing there, you proved she wasn’t peddling her ass on that street corner didn’t you? You said you could prove she was just asking directions dragging that city bus sign into court where nobody could understand it what’s she doing in jail.

— She’s been given a complete medical examination and placed in a rehabilitation program involving beauty school where she’s able to spend her time having her hair and nails done taking showers and watching telev…

— What does she mean I have twelve at lunch tomorrow!

— I told her that yes ma’am that’s when she abruptly changed her plea to guilty, she…

— That’s the most the most ungrateful here give me that you’re spilling it, what gets into these people no consideration at all as bad as Vida’s girl last night she could have ruined the evening…

— Tell me how anybody could ruin one of Vida’s evenings worst damn wastes of…

— You were standing right there when she went down with a tray of Vida’s best Waterford and some busybody called the police who said not to move her, she had to be covered with a tablecloth till the coroner could…

— Had the crystal insured didn’t they? Thought I heard something fall must have been when I was talking to Handler he’s doing this job this morning isn’t he nurse? Something to discuss with him when we get up there…

— The implant? Yes sir but you’ll have a shot before you go up I don’t think you’ll be able to discuss anything with…

— You look into it then Beaton, Handler’s damned annoyed said he was looking around for a good tax loss Crawley put him onto backing a play from some bunch called Angels East told him it was so bad it would fold overnight the damn thing opened it’s sold out must be some way to get it closed, fire laws health laws unions contracts must have pulled a fast one somewhere never met anybody in that theater bunch wasn’t a scoundrel a damn fool or both, one of them with no tie going on at me last night at Vida’s thought he was making some sense about what the pound’s been through rallies declines public turning its back turns out he’s talking about some damn dead poet finally had to put him out the door, few free drinks he’s insulting Vida tells her husband they betrayed literature selling out to this same damn bunch we’re talking about, the bank acting as corporate trustee of this Duncan stock nobody tells me a damn thing about it how the devil’d they get hold of it.

— From what I’ve been able to piece together sir during their acquisition of Triangle Paper they took advantage of a bad debt situation involving an entirely different Duncan and Company, an Ohio wallpaper manufacturer, to mislead the…

— Other damn way round I’d understand it take the wallpaper any day something you can draw up a budget on, don’t matter how ugly it is houses like a string of motel rooms you know how many damn rolls you can sell, these damn books you need a fortune teller in there doing your budget publish ten hold your breath waiting for one of them to bail out the other nine that any way to run a business?

— No sir in fact their major objective in this scheme to get control of the Duncan trade list and textbook line was obviously to use it as a readymade adver…

— Get into these mass paperbacks print an edition of five hundred thousand might as well ship three straight to the shredder one thing I hate it’s waste, can’t figure costs to sales too many unknowns too damn much waste…

— Yes sir what they’ve done is reduce the significance of the cost factor, largely write off the waste element and outrage traditional publishing convention by using the entire list as a readymade advertising enterprise, they…

— Have to advertise the damn things how else they going to sell them.

— No sir in the books I mean ads in the books themselves sir, textbooks and novels filled with columns of advertising the prime space goes to their own subsidiaries but most of them appear to be quite tastelessly solicited, what figures I’ve obtained from our sources indicate a startling amount in billings which no excuse me sir just my briefcase I, yes here are some of the figures, it’s created a furor in publishing particularly the textbook area and drawn violent objections from some prominent writers who threat…

— Always objecting to something only damn reason they’re writers, make their damn peace the country could get on with its business if this bunch hadn’t done it somebody else would here what’s these figures, haven’t got my glasses…

— Those are, oh yes that’s a children’s encyclopedia they’re bringing out sir, it’s doing extremely well even though it seems to be teeming with inaccuracies and a number of prominent educators have demanded its withdraw…

— Didn’t ask your editorial opinion Beaton I said what’s the figures.

— Down here sir the initial outlay is in the neighborhood of a third of a million, two hundred sixty-six thousand on promotion sixty-six thousand in production and, yes and six hundred sixty dollars went in research writing and editorial costs yes no wonder the…

— Beaton what’s that, that magazine give it to me.

— Where the, oh this ma’am yes this is their magazine She, they took over the old Her magazine and turned it into a…

— Don’t stand there blubbering about it give it to me, the cover looks like Emily.

— Here let me see that, looks like Amy if she was some broken down two dollar…

— Two dollars worth of cold fish she wouldn’t spread her toes for the King of…

— This Mister Katz’s room?

— What the devil does he want.

— You Mister Katz?

— What Mister Katz get him out of here.

— Wait sir he, what’s that name who…

— Room three eleven come to do the phones right on the order here, right here c, a, t e s. Katz.