The Time Shop Continued…

“How would you like this set of books about wild animals?” asked Mr. Promptness.

“How much?” said Bobby.

“Two days and a half, or sixty hours,” said Mr. Promptness, inspecting the price tag.

“Send them along with the rest,” said Bobby. “How much is that electric railroad over there?”

“That’s rather expensive,” Mr. Promptness replied. “It will cost you two weeks, three days, ten minutes, and thirty seconds.”

“Humph,” said Bobby. “I guess that’s a little too much for me. Got any marbles?”

“Yes,” laughed Mr. Promptness. “We have china alleys, two for a minute, or plain miggles at ten for a second.”

“Put me down for two hours’ worth of china alleys, and about a half an hour’s worth of miggles,” said Bobby.

“Very good, sir,” said Mr. Promptness, with a twinkling eye. “Now can you think of anything else?”

“Well, yes,” said Bobby, a sudden idea bashing across his mind. “There is one thing I want very much, Mr. Promptness, and I guess maybe perhaps you can help me out. I’d like to buy a Christmas present for my mother, if I can get a nice one with the time I’ve got. I was afraid I couldn’t get her much of anything with what little money I had saved. But if I can pay for it in time, Mr. Promptness—why, what couldn’t I buy for her with those three whole weeks coming to me!”

“About how much would you like to spend on it?” asked Mr. Promptness, with a soft light in his eye.

“Oh, I’d like to spend four or five years on it,” said Bobby, “but, of course—”

“That’s very nice of you,” said the salesman, putting his hand gently on Bobby’s head, and stroking his hair. But I wouldn’t be extravagant, and once in a while we have special bargains here for kiddies like you. Why, I have known boys to give their mothers presents bought at this shop that were worth years and years and years, but which haven’t cost them more than two or three hours because they have made up the difference in love. With love you can buy the best treasures of this shop with a very little expenditure in time. Now what do you think of this for your mother?”

Mr. Promptness reached up to a long shelf back of the counter and brought down a little card, framed in gold, and printed in beautiful colored letters, and illustrated with a lovely picture that seemed to Bobby to be the prettiest thing he had ever seen.

“This is a little thing that was written long ago,” said Mr. Promptness, “by a man who spent much time in this shop buying things that were worth while, and in the end getting from our frame department a wonderful name which was not only a splendid possession for himself, but for the people among whom he lived. Thousands and thousands of people have been made happier, and wiser, by the way he spent his hours, and he is still mentioned among the great men of time. He was a fine, greathearted fellow, and he put a tremendous lot of love into all that he did. His name was Thackeray. Can you read, Bobby?”

“A little,” said Bobby.

“Then read this and tell me what you think of it,” said Mr. Promptness.

He handed Bobby the beautiful card, and the little fellow, taking it in his hand, read the sentence: MOTHER IS THE NAME OF GOD IN THE LIPS AND HEARTS OF LITTLE CHILDREN.

“You see, my dear little boy,” said the kindly salesman, “that is worth—oh, I don’t know how many years, and your mother, I am sure, would rather know that that is what you think, and how you feel about her, than have you give her the finest jewels that we have to sell. And how much do you think we charge you for it?”

“Forty years!” gasped Bobby.

“No,” replied Mr. Promptness. “Five minutes. Shall we put it aside for you?”

“Yes, indeed,” cried Bobby, delighted to have so beautiful a Christmas gift for his mother.

So Mr. Promptness put the little card aside with the bicycle, and the wild animal books, and the marbles, putting down the price of each of the things Bobby had purchased on his sales slip.

They walked down the aisles of the great shop together, looking at the many things that time well expended would buy, and Bobby paused for a moment and spent two minutes on a glass of soda water, and purchased a quarter of an hour’s worth of peanuts to give to Mr. Promptness. They came soon to a number of large rooms at one end of the shop, and in one of these Bobby saw quite a gathering of youngsters somewhat older than himself, who seemed to be very busy poring over huge books, and studying maps, and writing things down in little notebooks, not one of them wasting even an instant.

Go to Part 4 here.