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Subject: +*+*+*+ Solomon's Private File #381 "Smithy" +*+*+*+
Date: Sat, 30 Sep 2017 03:59:11 -0400
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Solomon's Private File #381
These stories about Stephen and Solomon take place starting in
1950's. Stephen wrote about his life in letters to a penpal, and then
in a secure blog, in case he lost his memory again, in the master
computer in his school for gifted students, which he started attending
in 2016 in a new incarnation, until his death. Now his son Solomon is
attending the same school, and is writing in his own secure blog for
his future incarnations.
All characters are fictitious, even if some of them might have names
that belong to some actual people, or act like people we know.
Solomon is 32 in this story, in the Winter of 2058-2059.
Solomon's Private File #381 "Smithy"
START Page
I said to Marcel, "The most necessary job in our business is the
smith. Without the service he provides, we would soon have not much of
a business. We can't work without tools. He also makes things for other
uses, such as parts for animal harnesses, nails, hinges, knives, and
many other things we can't have without the smith in this society. The
smith is the most skilled of our people who work with their hands.
Sometimes an artist, too, as with the carpenter." He said, "I've seen
that. I admire their work. I don't know how they can do that." I said,
"We're going to change that." He looked uneasy, and backed off
slightly. Smith tried not to grin.
I said, "Small businesses can't afford to have their own smith, so
they use one in a town or city, or one who travels to different places,
which is very inconvenient for them, and costly. Well, their tools and
supplies are VERY heavy, and need a very sturdy wagon and animals to
pull it. So, they have to charge more for their services." He said to
the smith, "Oh! I see. I'm very glad you're here with us!" Smith was
pleased at that, and a little embarrassed, which wasn't made any less
when he noticed me trying not to grin at that.
I said to Marcel, "There is really only one way to understand the
true value of a smith, and particularly, our smith." I said to the
smith, "Please meet your new temporary apprentice, Marcel." Marcel
said, "Oh no! Do I have to?" I said, "Trust me. It will be difficult at
first, but it will be an experience you will treasure for the rest of
your life. Eh, if you survive it." That made him smile. I said, "Yes,
this is necessary. What if he were to become ill, and some work had to
be done? Who could do it? Who is the most responsible for it being
I said, "Even I regretted your turn as the cook." He had to laugh. He
said, "I think not as much as the cook did. I didn't know a person
could look so much in pain, with no injury to cause it." All three of
us laughed.
I said to Marcel, "You will have some advantages over other new
apprentices. You're stronger and more coordinated than most. But you
also have some disadvantages. You are more knowledgeable and
intelligent than most." He said in surprise, "How are those
disadvantages?" I said, "That could cause you to disagree with the
smith in some things which may not seem reasonable to you at first
understanding. In this skill, proper steps MUST be followed, and not
just because of custom, or the risk of an imperfect product, but
because you could severely injure or kill yourself in that. Even if
something looks stupid to you, you still need to do it as required.
Stupid, you can live with. Dead, you can't. Hmm." Chuckles. Marcel
asked the smith, "Has he been like this with you before?" Smith said,
"Oh yes he has, Master Marcel! His way of er, commenting, can be
distracting at the least." They exchanged grins. I said to the smith,
"While he is your apprentice, you will not address him as Master." He
said, "Yes, Master Solomon."
Marcel said to me, "Did you apprentice with him?" I said, "I did."
Smith said, "May I?" I nodded. He said to Marcel, "Working with gold
and silver, as he is expert in, is not so different from what I do,
except in size and material. I had little to teach him, and I learned a
lot from him, for which I am truly grateful." Marcel said, "From that,
I must assume you are the best smith in the land." He couldn't say, so
I said, "I think he is. We are proud to have him with us." Marcel said,
"Yes. After this day, I'll try to believe that. I WILL do my best!" I
said, "Always." I left. That evening, after he groaned into the house,
I said to him, "Had fun?" He said, "I'm too tired to laugh." I said,
"Don't worry, it will change." He said, "Gets better?" I said, "Worse."
He groaned loudly. He returned my grin. I said, "Hot bath will help. Be
careful not to fall asleep in it, or you will look a little strange in
the morning." He chuckled.
I went out to talk to the smith. I said, "He's behaving?" He said,
"Sir, he's a very good student. It's difficult for him to not disagree
with me. Some things he is unable to believe, despite your instructions
to me when you worked with me. I know now much more of how what I do
here, works." I said, "He will learn, and value this. He may even want
to continue to do some things in this area, for the rest of his life.
Creating with our hands can be an interest, even a passion, that
respects no class or station. We who do that have our own society of
equals in this." He said, "I feel it." We hugged.
I had to help Marcel out of bed in the morning. I gave him some
exercises to do, and he felt better. Over breakfast, I said to him,
"You're strong enough, but now you're using your muscles differently.
They'll get used to it." He said, "Hot work." I said, "Needs good
leathers. Never touch anything casually." He said, "Oh, I do know that!
Tell me, can he fight?" I said, "Were you thinking of rebelling?" He
grinned, and said, "No, but he makes weapons. Shouldn't he know how to
use them?" I said, "Good thought. Yes, he can fight. You know I tested
him." He said, "You would." I said, "He doesn't make rapiers. That
requires a large establishment, and big grinding stones. Most of those
blades are made in another land." He said, "Is he from there?" I said,
"The best smiths are." He grinned, and said, "So he is." My nod
confirmed it.
He said, "We aren't the biggest employer, but we have the best. How
did you do that?" I said, "Ask him after your apprenticing is ended. He
might tell you." He said, "So it's personal to him. I understand. Must
be some good story!" I just looked mysterious, and he chuckled.
I had purchased the rundown properties, and was asking around for
workers who could repair them. I found many good ones who could be
enticed by good pay, but there were no smiths available. I had them
start to work, anyway. I did some of the smithing myself, severely
surprising the workers. A gentleman doing that? Amazing! Then a
carpenter came to me, and said, "You're looking for a smith." I said,
"I knew that." Grins. He said, "There is one who claims to be a smith,
in jail. Drunken fight. Claimed he was waylaid before he arrived in the
city. They took everything. His last few coins he spent in a tavern.
There was some kind of a fight. He beat them all." I said, "I think I
might like him." More grins. I thanked him, and went straight to see
the Chief Constable.
I said to him, "I hear you have an unusual stranger as a prisoner."
He said, "He practically destroyed a tavern. Not the best one for sure,
but the law is the law." I said, "Oh, too bad. I would have liked him
better if he had destroyed a GOOD tavern." He laughed. I said, "I hear
he's a smith. I need one." He said, "He says he is. Pay his fine, and
keep him out of taverns, you can have him." I said, "Oh no, not so
fast. I want to test him first." He looked very interested, and said,
"How will you do that?" I said, "I will ask him questions. I will test
his strength. All during that, I will judge his character." He said,
"May I be present in that?" I said, "He may be reluctant to be truthful
in your hearing." He said, "Oh. I understand. In private it is. You
guarantee he won't escape, you can have him in the yard." I said, "I
agree to that. What's his fine?" He said, "That's yet to be assessed.
Tavern has been slow in reporting fully about the damage." I said,
"Trying to falsify the extent of the damage? I think they aren't going
to like me." He grinned, and said, "But I will!" Grins.
The smith was escorted out to meet with me. I said, "Chamben, I am
Solomon. I've purchased property that I'm repairing. I need a smith. My
carpenter told me about you. Are you a smith, and are you any good?" He
said, "I am both." I said, "Oh, there are two of you?" He laughed. I
said, "Can you fight?" He said, "I can. I have to know how to use the
weapons I make." In a blur of motion, I threw a knife at a post 5m
away. He didn't look surprised, and said, "The way you move. I know you
can fight. May I?" I nodded. He went over to the post and withdrew the
knife and examined it. He said, "This is good work! Who made it?" I
said, "Me." He nodded and walked to me, and then, nodding to the post,
said, "May I?" I nodded. He threw the knife well. He brought it back to
me. I juggled it with two more I had, and didn't get cut. I put them
away, and he was very interested in how I did that.
He said, "A master fighter!" I said, "Don't move your right foot
after you put it against mine. Give me your right hand. Now we see who
can push the other off balance." He grinned, then stopped that on
discovering it was going to be quite a test. Then he tried to squeeze
my hand. I equaled him. I almost made him fall, then said, "Enough.
You're proved your ability." We disengaged. I said, "I hope I surprised
you." He laughed, but didn't say. I said, "Tell me about how you lost
your things." He did, and including what happened in the tavern. I
said, "We're going to get your property back! Your tools are personal
to you. The pain of separation should NOT be allowed to continue! Come
with me." He did, very surprised.
I said to the Constable, "He spoke the truth to me. He's been served
unjustly. I want him out of here. What will it cost to make that happen
now?" He said, "Ten silver is the usual civil fine. I don't know what
the restitution will be. Will you guarantee it?" I said, "With what I
determine to be fair, I will. We're going there now." He said, "May I
accompany you?" I said, "Good. Then I won't have to invite you." Grins.
It wasn't far. The tavern owner wasn't at all pleased to see us. I said
to Chamben, "Report." He nodded, and described the fight in detail, and
what was broken. I said to the Constable. "He spoke the truth." He
said, "How do you know that?" I said, "I know something about fighting,
and about construction. Well, I've had to, with what I've been doing
here." He nodded. I said, "And one more thing. He will never lie to
me." He looked at me strangely, and said, "I can actually believe
that."
I said, "There is shared blame for the fighting that caused the
damage. What portion of that am I to pay?" He said, "What is your
determination of the total?" I said, "Repairs and replacement,
subtracting the use of the broken wood for other things, 16 silver. His
portion, ten silver. I offer to pay 12." The owner was about to
protest, "You will have nothing from this man, who has nothing to give.
Better what I offer, than that." He said thoughtfully, "That's true. I
accept. Thank you." I said to the Constable, "Who do I pay?" He said,
"You may pay him directly. I'll record it at the station, with the fine
that I assess at 3 silver. He was no trouble, but ate a lot!" Smiles. I
paid the owner, and we went back to the station. I paid the fine, and
he gave me the receipt.
We left to go to my big house on the city. I introduced the smith to
the lead carpenter who had told me about him. I said, "He's with us
now. There is still the problem of what he's to work with. I need to
know who robbed him, and where they are. Got any writing materials
here?" He brought me some paper, pen, and ink. We sat, and I said to
the smith, "Describe them, one at a time. I'm going to help you do that
by saying things that will help your concentration and memory." What I
actually did, was put him under light hypnosis. He did very well, and
named them, too. I brought him out of it, and said, "These the people?"
He said, "Yes! How did you know?" I said, "You did, and helped me."
Carpenter said, "I know that one!" He told us where he could be found.
I said to the smith, "I know you want to go with me when I question
him. No. I don't want what I will do, to be witnessed by people who
might be moved to lie about it. I severely dislike lies. Interesting
expressions you're wearing." Chuckles. I said, "I won't harm him. Er,
much. But I DO intend him to believe I will." Grins.
I left, and went to where the robber was, which was a little shack at
the edge of the city. He was alone. I went inside, and he tried to run
out. I caught him in a very painful hold, and said, "The smith's
things. Where are they?" He tried to call for help. I said, "Do that,
it might be very unhealthy for you. Do what I want, I'll let you still
be a man." He told me. I said, "You warn them, I will not kill you, no
matter how much you beg me to. No, I won't kill them. That ends
suffering. You will tell no one of this, or anything of me." That was
in command voice, so he couldn't. I went to where the smith's things
were, near a small village not too far away. Most of it was still in
his cart. His animals were gone. I ported the cart to be near the
smith's shack at my country holdings, and ported all of his things that
weren't in the cart, to it, even his money. Some had been spent. I made
more to replace that. I did all that at night.
The next day I was at my house in the city. I said to the carpenter,
"All done. His things are at the country property. How has he been
here?" He said, "Great worker! Cheerful and skilled. Keep him?" I said,
"We'll try." Grins. He had the smith brought to me. I said, "Your
possessions have been recovered, except the animals. You continue to
work for me, you can earn enough to buy replacements very soon." He
said, "I owe you what you paid for my release." I said, "Actually, you
don't. There was no contract between us. You didn't ask me to do what I
did, and I didn't offer it to you." Carpenter said, "You will find no
man of greater honor in all the world, than Master Solomon." I said to
him, "How can you know that, without knowing all people?" He said, "Am
I wrong?" I said, "Don't do that." He laughed. I said to the amazed
smith, "I find strict formality annoying among my associates in
private. I respect the true worth of a man, not his wealth or ancestry.
And that all respect should be earned." He nodded, still amazed.
He said, "You have more property?" I nodded to the carpenter, who
told him about it. Smith said, "You need a full time smith. I ask that
it be me. I never liked traveling. A big waste of time, and I couldn't
do some things that way." I said, "If we agree on this, you will be
allowed to do work for others, as your duties permit, and for fair
payment." He said, "Thank you!" I said, "Our Master Carpenter, who you
know, is in charge of all construction and maintenance. That includes
the work of the smith. Your pay will equal a journeyman carpenter with
us, which is greater than you will find elsewhere, until you have
proved your worth, and part of that will be in teaching me something of
your skill. At the moment, there is just too much work for one smith. I
provide food and lodging, although you can choose to have that
elsewhere. If you agree, will we will do this for a month. If at the
end of that, we both want to continue it, we will make the contract as
full employment. Then there will be bonuses for exceptional work, at
times. Well, I'm something of an artist. I have to respect that." Nods
of agreement.
He said, with emotion, "I accept!" I said, simply, "I knew that."
Carpenter laughed, and said, "I'll never get used to that." Smith said,
"I know what you mean!" We shook hands to seal the contract. I helped
him set up his workshop at the country estate. He was amazed by my
strength. I arranged for charcoal and and other supplies for his work.
Then I said, "I make things in precious metals and gems. Here's some of
my work." He said, "This is amazing! A true artist! This engraving, you
and said, "So I need to know their use!" That we did. Part of that
exchange of knowledge and technique, was me teaching him something of
the science of what he was doing, such as how carbon affects iron, and
how to control the percentage of it in the work, and how and why heat
treating works. He learned well.
Marcel learned well, too. One evening, after cleaning up, he said to
me, "You were right. A great experience! I've learned a lot, and much
more than how to work as a smith. You knew I would." I said, "Yes.
Regret?" He said, "Absolutely not! Oh, and he told me how he came to
us. I wasn't as surprised as he hoped I would be." Grins. I said, "Your
time as an apprentice will end soon." He said, "May I still do some of
the work, in the future? It's fulfilling in a strange way." I said, "Of
course, as you choose. It's not really strange. Managing is actually
boring, when it's not frustrating. Working with your hands, creating
new things, is something very different. You have a REAL
accomplishment, that you can see and feel, and know for all time, that
YOU created it, and it's like no other thing in the world. A part of
you, that others can enjoy as well. A gift to the world, of your own
skill and love." He said through his tears, "That is SO true! You
really understand this. Thank you!" We hugged.
END Page
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++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Grant
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