Jimmy reached into his pocket and drew forth a roll of bills. "Here,"
he said, handing the other two tens.

"Naw," said the Lizard, shoving the proffered money away. "I'm no cheap
skate."

"Come on--take it," said Jimmy. "I may want a box cracked some day."

"All right," said the Lizard, "if you put it that way, bo."

"I should think," said Jimmy, "that a man of your ability could earn a
living by less precarious methods."

"You would think so," replied the Lizard. "I've tried two or three
times to go straight. Wore out my shoes looking for a job. Never landed
anything that paid me more than ten bucks per, and worked nine or ten
hours a day, and half the time I couldn't get that."

"I suppose the police hounded you all the time, too," suggested Jimmy.

"Naw," said the Lizard; "dat's all bunk. De fellows that couldn't even
float down a sewer straight pull dat. Once in a while dey get it in for
some guy, but dey're glad enough to leave us alone if we leave dem
alone. I worked four hours to-day, maybe six before I get through, and
I'll stand a chance of makin' all the way from fifty dollars to five
thousand. Suppose I was drivin' a milk-wagon, gettin' up at t'ree
o'clock in the mornin' and workin' like hell--how much would I get out
of dat? Expectin' every minute some one was goin' tuh fire me. Nuthin'
doin'--dey can't nobody fire me now. I'm my own boss."