He had not brought a sufficient supply
from Geelong to complete his contract, which was to construct some
benches for a Presbyterian Church. Jack was standing near listening
to the conversation.
"What kind of timber do you want?" he said. "There is a lot of
planks down there in the yard, and if you'll be outside about eleven
o'clock, I'll chuck over as many as you want."
The contractor hesitated. "Whose planks are they?" he asked.
"I don't know whose they are, and I don't care," replied Jack. "Say
the word, and you can have them, if you like."
The contractor made no reply, at least in words, to this generous
offer. It is not every man that has a friend like Jack; many men
will steal from you, but very few will steal for you, and when such a
one is found he deserves his reward.
We adjourned to the bar parlour, and Jack had a glass of brandy, for
which he did not pay. There was among the company a man from Adelaide,
a learned mineralogist, who commenced a dissertation on the origin of
gold. He was most insufferable; would talk about nothing but
science. Darwin wrote a book about "The Origin of Species," and it
has been observed that the origin of species is precisely what is not
in the book. So we argued about the origin of gold, but we could get
nowhere near it.
When the rest of the company had retired, Jack observed to me: "You
put down that Adelaide chap gradely; he had not a leg to stand on.
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