Noisy,yes;butifyouwanteddeepquietandcool,ifyouwantedtostepfromtheglareofaCanadianAugusttothedeepshadowofanenchantedglade,——walkdownbelowintotheRats’Cooler。Thereyouhadit;darkoldbeams(whocouldbelievetheywereputthereamonthago?),greatcaskssetonendwithlegendssuchasAmontilladoFinodoneingiltonablackground,tallsteinsfilledwithGermanbeersoftasmoss,andaGermanwaiternoiselessasmovingfoam。HewhoenteredtheRats’Cooleratthreeofasummerafternoonwasburiedtherefortheday。Mr。GolgothaGinghamspentanythingfromfourtosevenhoursthereofeveryday。Inhismindtheplacehadallthequietcharmofaninterment,withnoneofitssorrows。
Butatnight,whenMr。SmithandBilly,thedeskclerk,openedupthecashregisterandfiguredoutthecombinedlossesofthecaffandtheRats’Cooler,Mr。Smithwouldsay:
\"Billy,justwaittillIgetthelicenserenood,andI’llcloseupthisdamncaffsotightthey’llneverknowwhathither。
Whatdidthatlambcost?Fiftycentsapound,wasit?Ifigureit,Billy,thateveryoneofthemhogseatsaboutadollar’sworthagrubforeverytwenty—fivecentstheypayonit。AsforAlf——bygosh,I’mthroughwithhim。\"
Butthat,ofcourse,wasonlyaconfidentialmatterasbetweenMr。