TUESDAY AFTERNOON,
OCTOBER 3, 1871
- The New Man in Charge -
Justin had promised Charlie that he’d be ready to work at three o’clock. He reached Butterworth’s Jewels and Timepieces just as the clocks inside began to chime.
Ding-Dong! The bells on the door sounded loudly as he entered, immediately followed by the tolling of the grandfather clocks. The hand-carved wooden German cuckoos and the banjo clocks all clamored at once.
“I’m here, Charlie! Right on time!”
“Just by the skin of your teeth!” Charlie, who had been polishing the glass, handed him a rag and a bottle of vinegar. “Here, finish wiping these countertops. They’re covered with fingerprints.” He nodded toward the office door near the back room. “When you’re finished, come see me in the workroom.”
Justin sighed and did as he was told. Then he followed his brother to the workroom, where his father repaired watches and jewelry.
He first had to walk through the office, where his father kept the safe and all the most valuable gems and timepieces. The large safe worked with a combination lock, and no one, except Father, knew the combination of letters that would open it. Justin often wondered if it was the name of one of the family members. Sometime, when no one was looking, he’d like to try it—just for fun.
“Come in here, Justin.” Charlie had a large, velvet box and called him into the workroom. On the table by the window where his father repaired the jewelry were a list and a bag of tags. “You need to put price tags on all the new watch chains in this carton,” Charlie said, depositing the jewelry box on the table.
“See this list?” Charlie continued. “There are two prices for each numbered item that you’ll match up in the box. The first price is the wholesale price. Do not put that price on the tag. You must only put the second price—the retail price—on the tag.”
Charlie demonstrated by taking a gold chain from the box. “Here’s the number already on the tag. What does it say?” He showed it to Justin.
“B-one-one-eight-eight,” Justin answered. This was an easy job. Why was his brother making so much over it?
“Now look on the list. See? Here’s B-one-one-eight-eight. There are two prices, right?”
“Charlie, I’m not stupid. I can do this.”
“Tell me which price you’ll put on the tag for this chain, then.”
Justin glanced at the paper and then spoke as if he were reciting from a first-grade book. “Dear me. The wholesale price is thirty-five dollars. The retail price is seventy dollars, and this is the price that I’ll put on the tag.”
“Don’t be so flip. If you put the wholesale price on because you’re not paying attention, Father will lose money. If it’s wrong, whoever buys it will get a real bargain and Father will lose out.”
“Very well, boss. I get it. I’ll be careful. I’ll pay attention. I’ll put the retail price on the tags. Hmm, looks like a lot of jewelry here. Should take me the rest of the day. By the way, how much will I get paid for this very difficult work?” Justin asked in a wry tone.
Charlie rolled his eyes. “A fair wage, but only if you do it right. Pay attention. Retail versus wholesale.” He went out into the shop, leaving Justin to do his work.
“I got it, I got it.” Charlie just loves being the manager, he thought bitterly. Justin sat down and began to work. The sun shone through the window and gave him enough light to work quickly.
After about an hour, the late afternoon sun had dropped and the room became dusky. Justin lit a lantern and checked to see how many more tags he needed to mark. Two more pocket-watch chains and he’d be done. Hastily, Justin checked the list. One was fourteen-karat white gold and the other was sterling silver. He made out the tags and tied them onto the chains. Then he placed the jewelry in the large box and brought it out to the sales room.
“I’m done!” he exclaimed. “Where do you want these items?”
“They can go on display now. You know where they go.”
Justin lit another lamp—it was dark in this part of the shop now. He put the items in display cases around the store, replacing empty spots where items had been sold.
“I’m heading home,” he told his brother, finding him in the back room. “Are you coming?”
“I need to lock up.”
At that moment the bells on the front door jingled. “I’ll be in the sales room. Maybe I can sell something really expensive today and surprise Father,” Charlie said in a low voice. “Wait for me, will you?”
Grudgingly, Justin went to the office to sit and wait.
“Good afternoon, Mrs. Ogden,” Justin heard his brother greet the wife of a well-to-do Chicago banker.
“I’m looking for a gift, Charles. It’s for my husband’s anniversary as president of the Center Bank.”
Mrs. Ogden talks so snooty—like she’s got a hot potato in her mouth. Justin moved closer to the door so he could hear.
“That’s quite an honor, ma’am,” Charlie answered. “My father has a beautiful chronometer that just came in from New York City.”
“Well, Frank already has a watch.”
“And a very nice one, I’m sure,” Charlie said. “I’m only suggesting a chronometer because it is even more elegant … and of course, your husband is a prestigious man. Let me show it to you.” Charlie went into his father’s private office. Justin followed him as he opened the safe.
“How come you know the combination? Does Father trust you with it?” Justin asked with a frown.
“Well, I’m the manager now, so Father thought I’d need it.” Charlie twisted the dial to various letters on the combination lock.
Justin could catch the first few letters: C-R-I. Whose name started like that? He watched more closely, but Charlie turned away so he couldn’t see.
“What are you hanging over my shoulder for? If Father wanted you to know the combination, he’d have told you.”
“I’m just waiting for you to open the safe so I can see the chronometer,” Justin answered. “You know I love to see the good stuff in there.”
Charlie turned the dial, opened the safe, and pulled out one of the drawers.
Justin watched as his brother opened a black box. Inside were several gold and silver pocket watches. Charlie held one up for Justin to see. “Here it is! Look at the engraving on the cover. Father would be proud of me if I could sell this.” Charlie headed toward the sales room. “Just watch the master at work.”
Charlie’s trusted with the combination to the safe. Charlie will end up running the store, and what will be left for me? I’ll just end up sweeping all the time or posting those stupid tags that a first grader could handle. Justin decided to pay attention to his brother’s sales pitch to Mrs. Ogden. Maybe he could learn something from listening to the conversation in the sales room.
“First of all, notice the many shades and colors of gold on the cover,” Charlie was saying.
“It is a beauty,” Mrs. Ogden agreed.
“I can guarantee that neither you nor anyone in Chicago has ever seen the likes of this. Let me explain the inside.” Justin could hear a click as his brother opened the face. “This mechanism knows the number of days in each month and also accounts for leap years. When activated, the watch chimes the exact time using different tones to designate the hours, quarter hours, and minutes with a loud, clear pitch.” Charlie demonstrated the gentle chimes.
Mrs. Ogden drew a deep breath. “Oh, it is lovely! What is this dial for?”
“That is the second hand. It actually shows the seconds passing, and it can be stopped for measuring times … in a race, for example.”
“I see. And this dial with the moons?”
“The phases of the moon accurately move as the month passes—a most modern development you won’t find in an ordinary pocket watch.”
There was a long pause. Then Mrs. Ogden spoke. “And the price? I hope it’s within my price range.”
Justin smothered a laugh. The Ogdens have so much money, they could buy out the entire state!
“For you, a special price. Twelve hundred dollars, Mrs. Ogden.”
“That’s exorbitant!”
“Well, of course it’s expensive,” Charlie agreed. “This is a work of art with an unmatched mechanism.”
There was a long silence.
Charlie finally spoke again. “If you think it’s too much, take a look in the showcases. Perhaps you’ll find something in your price range.” Justin could hear his brother putting the chronometer back in its container. “Besides, I believe I heard my father saying Mrs. Palmer is looking for a special gift. So it might be sold already. I probably shouldn’t have shown it.”
Justin put both hands over his mouth to keep from laughing. Mrs. Palmer was the richest and most powerful woman in Chicago. Mrs. Ogden will never let Mrs. Palmer get that pocket watch, he thought. He couldn’t help admiring Charlie’s salesmanship.
There was another long silence. Then Mrs. Ogden sighed. “Very well. I’ll give you a check for it right now. But I want it engraved with these initials.” Justin could hear the scratching of a pen and a rustling of paper. “There better not be a charge for engraving!”
“There’ll be no charge for you, Mrs. Ogden.”
“I would hope not.”
When Justin heard the bells on the front door jingle as Mrs. Ogden left, he ran into the sales room. “Wow! Charlie! Wait until Father hears you sold that chronometer!”
“I think he’ll be pleased. While I make out the sales slip and directions, why don’t you sweep the front entry before we head home.”
Another big day for Charlie, Justin thought enviously. Father will be making him vice president of the company before long. He moved into the entry and was about to begin sweeping when he saw the small figure of a girl.
“Hi, Justin,” she said.
It was Poppy.