Neal sharply as he entered. The chief clerk
always looked up sharply. There was a preternatural leanness about the
chief clerk which was accentuated by his sharp hawk's nose, and when he
looked up quickly from his position hunched over his desk, his sharp
little eyes pierced his subordinate through and through, and his
glasses, perched halfway down his nose, trembled from the quickness of
his movements.
"Morning!" he said briefly, and dived down again into his work, with his
shoulders humped.
But Mr. Neal was more expansive.
"Good morning!" he called, so cheerily that the whole office felt the
effect of his good humor.
A young man with a very blond pompadour was just slipping into a worn
office coat.
"Well, Mr. Neal!" he exclaimed. "I swear you're getting younger every
day!"
Mr. Neal laughed happily as he changed his own coat and climbed upon his
familiar stool. His desk neighbor turned and regarded him
good-naturedly.
"He'll be running off and getting married pretty soon," prophesied the
neighbor, for the benefit of the whole office force.
Mr. Neal laughed again.
"You're judging me by your own case, Bob," he rejoined. Then in a lower
tone, "That romance of yours now--how is it coming?"
That was enough to cause the young man to pour into Mr.
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