Yes, Mr. Marks, he gets an option
on that house for forty-seven thousand five hundred dollars from the
feller what owns it, when he knows I am already negotiating to sell my
house for forty-seven seven-fifty."
This willful misstatement of the amount of the option produced the
desired result.
"Did you seen it the option?" Marks asked cautiously.
"Well, no, I ain't seen it, but I heard it on good authority, Mr.
Marks," he said, and allowed himself two bars' rest, as the musicians
say, for the phrase to sink in.
"Yes, Mr. Marks, on good authority I heard it that Potash pays five
hundred dollars for a two-weeks' option at forty-seven thousand five
hundred dollars."
"Forty-seven thousand five hundred dollars?" Marks said with a rising
inflection.
"Forty-seven thousand five hundred," Morris replied blandly, "and I
guess he got a pretty cheap house, too."
"Well, I ain't got the same opinion what you got," Marks retorted. "I
got an opinion, Mr. Perlmutter, that your partner pays a thousand
dollars too much for his house."
"Is that so?" Morris replied, and then and there began a three-hours'
session which terminated when they struck a bargain at forty-seven
thousand dollars. Ten minutes later Marks left with a written memorandum
of the terms of sale on his person while Morris pocketed a similar
memorandum and fifty dollars earnest money.
The next morning an executory contract of sale was signed in Henry D.
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