The Housing Lark by Sam Selvon

Author:Sam Selvon [Selvon, Sam]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
Published: 2020-01-14T00:00:00+00:00

* * *

* * *

Gallows was going up the Bayswater Road that same night. The kind of thing they use for the pavements there, in the night you does see sparkles and glitters, and Gallows was wondering if in truth the streets of London pave with gold. Supposing one of them sparkle turn out to be a diamond or a real pearl! Plenty time already he find brooch and rings, but all of them was Woolworth and ain’t worth a damn. Nonetheless, there is nothing like the hopes and dreams of man, and Gallows was sure that like how every dog has his day, so a time would come when he would be laughing. Like what Alfonso tell him happen to him one day. The tale sound so tall that Gallows had was to believe it. Alfonso say that one day, in broad daylight, he was walking down the road and just by a cafe he see a trail of pound notes on the pavement. The whole world in motion, people walking up and down, crossing over from the tube station by the zebra, standing up by the bus-stop, traffic going to and fro, and just there, on the pavement, Alfonso see this trail of pounds, like a millionaire was playing paper-chase with some spare cash. Alfy say the first thing that come to his mind was to take a photo. But a bird in hand was worth more than anything else. Because on top of everything, people as if they not seeing this money, as if they fraid to bend down and pick up a note. Well Alfy say he look around and as nobody want to strain their backs, he start to pick up the money. He say he pick up eighteen pounds, scooping them up like if he cleaning the pavement. And nobody bothering with him. In fact, a old lady bend down and pick up one and hand him saying, ‘You’re careless, ain’t you?’ and another Englisher say, ‘You want to be more careful with your lolly, mate.’ All of them believe that the money belong to Alfy in truth, and this time Alfy done planning that if a copper only come up, he would say he was collecting the notes to take to the nearest police station. But such is life, that nobody make a move to stop Alfy, and when he finish collecting the manna he duck around the corner and take off like he on Ascot racecourse. ‘And you mean to say nobody ask you anything?’ Gallows did ask him. ‘If I lie I die,’ Alfy did say.

Gallows never forget that tale. One day he might find a wallet—he wouldn’t have to bend down and pick up money scatter all about. And in that wallet he would find so much that his head would spin.

As he reach up by where the hustlers does be spaced off waiting for customers, he glancing up now and then to see if he could spot Jean. (Of

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.