U.S.A_ - John Dos Passos [441]
One night when he'd taken Bil Cermak, who was now
a foreman at the Flint plant, over to a roadhouse the other side of Windsor to talk to him about the trouble they were having with molders and diemakers, after they'd had a couple of whiskies, Charley found himself instead asking
-308-Bil about married life. "Say, Bil , do you ever have trou-ble with your wife?"
"Sure, boss," said Bil , laughing. "I got plenty trouble. But the old lady's al right, you know her, nice kids good cook, al time want me to go to church."
"Say, Bil , when did you get the idea of cal in' me boss? Cut it out."
"Too goddam rich," said Bil .
"S---t, have another whiskey." Charley drank his down.
"And beer chasers like in the old days. . . . Remember that Christmas party out in Long Island City and that blonde at the beerparlor. . . . Jesus, I used to think I was a little devil with the women. . . . But my wife she don't'
seem to get the idea."
"You have two nice kids already; what the hel , maybe you're too ambitious."
"You wouldn't believe it . . . only once since little Peaches was born."
"Most women gets hotter when they're married a while.
. . . That's why the boys are sore at your damned effi-ciency expert."
"Stauch? Stauch's a genius at production."
"Maybe, but he don't give the boys any chance for re-production." Bil laughed and wiped the beer off his mouth.
"Good old Bil ," said Charley. "By God, I'l get you on the board of directors yet." Bil wasn't laughing any more. "Honestly, no kiddin'. That damn squarehead make the boys work so hard they can't get a hard on when they go to bed, an' their wives raise hel with 'em. I'm strawboss and they al think son-ofabitch too, but they're right." Charley was laughing. "You're a squarehead yourself, Bil , and I don't know what I can do about it, I'm just an employee of the company myself. . . . We got to have
-309-efficient production or they'l wipe us out of business. Ford's buildin' planes now."
"You'l lose al your best guys. . . . Slavedrivin' may be al right in the automobile business, but buildin' an air-plane motor's skil ed labor."
"Aw, Christ, I wish I was stil tinkerin' with that damn motor and didn't have to worry about money al the time.
. . . Bil , I'm broke. . . . Let's have another whiskey."
"Better eat."
"Sure, order up a steak anythin' you like. Let's go take a piss. That's one thing they don't charge for. . . . Say, Bil , does it seem to you that I'm gettin' a potbel y?
. . . Broke, a potbel y, an' my wife won't sleep with me.
. . . Do you think I'm a rummy, Bil ? I sometimes think I better lay off for keeps. I never used to pul a blank when I drank."
"Hel , no, you smart young fel er, one of the smartest, a fool for a threepoint landing and a pokerplayer . . . my God."
"What's the use if your wife won't sleep with you?" Charley wouldn't eat anything. Bil ate up both their steaks. Charley kept on drinking whiskey out of a bottle he had under the table and beer for chasers. "But tel me
. . . your wife, does she let you have it any time you want it? . . . The guys in the shop, their wives won't let 'em alone, eh?"
Bil was a little drunk too. "My wife she do what I say."
It ended by Bil 's having to drive Charley's new Pack-ard back to the ferry. In Detroit Bil made Charley drink a lot of sodawater in a drugstore, but when he got back in the car he just slumped down at the wheel. He let Bil drive him home to Grosse Pointe. Charley could hear Bil arguing with the guards along the road, each one real y had to see Mr. Anderson passed out in the back of the car before he'd let Bil through, but he didn't give a hoot,
-310-struck him so funny he began to giggle. The big joke was when the houseman had to help Bil get him up to his bed-room. "The boss a little sick, see, overwork," Bil said each time, then he'd tap his head solemnly. "Too much brainwork." Charley came to up in his bedroom and was able to articulate muzzily: "Bil , you're a prince. . . . George, cal a taxi to take Mr. Cermak home . . . lucky bastard go home to his wife." Then he stretched out on the bed with one shoe on and one shoe off and went