"No, no," answered the dentist, "I never went. I learnt from the fellow
I was apprenticed to. I don' know anything about a dental college. Ain't
I got a right to do as I like?" he suddenly exclaimed.
"If you know your profession, isn't that enough?" cried Trina.
"Sure, sure," growled McTeague. "I ain't going to stop for them."
"You go right on," Trina said, "and I bet you won't hear another word
about it."
"Suppose I go round to the City Hall and see them," hazarded McTeague.
"No, no, don't you do it, Mac," exclaimed Trina. "Because, if Marcus has
done this just to scare you, they won't know anything about it there at
the City Hall; but they'll begin to ask you questions, and find out that
you never HAD graduated from a dental college, and you'd be just as bad
off as ever."
"Well, I ain't going to quit for just a piece of paper," declared the
dentist. The phrase stuck to him. All day long he went about their rooms
or continued at his work in the "Parlors," growling behind his thick
mustache: "I ain't going to quit for just a piece of paper. No, I ain't
going to quit for just a piece of paper. Sure not."
The days passed, a week went by, McTeague continued his work as usual.
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