Name ___________________________________ Date: ______________

The Man Higher Up

1. Where do the narrator and Jeff Peters meet?

2. What are the two types of graft that ought to be wiped out by law, according to Peters?

3. When, according to Peters, does a man get into bad company? Do you agree? Explain.

4. In what state and what town did Jeff Peters run out of luck? What was Peters supposedly selling?

5. Why were the townspeople out to get Peters?

6. What did they do to Peters?

7. Freight train travel was not usual among vagrants at the turn of the century. Who falls off the train and what is his occupation? How do you know?

8. Who helps Bill Bassett perform burglaries in the big house?

9. What had happened in his most recent burglary attempt?

10. What are both men in need of at this point, and how do you think the man with the high hat and satchel can help them? What do they do to him, and what is the result?

11. Describe Alfred E. Ricks and his line of work.

12. What do Peters, Ricks, and Bassett have in common, and what is their plan for the next few days/

13. Which o f the men is most resourceful/ Why?

14. Ricks accepts one hundred dollars form Bassett. Does the narrator accept any money? Why or why not?

15. What does Bassett mean when he says, “I can’t sleep on one side all night”?

16. What game is proposed and later disallowed by Ricks? What is Bassett’s part in it?

17. What is the outcome of the game?

18. What has Jeff done with the five thousand dollars/

19. Quote the line that reveals the narrator’s reaction. Is he skeptical about this investment? Why?

20. Why is Jeff’s confidence in the new venture ironic? Explain.

21. When you first start reading the story, what does the title appear to mean? At the end of the story what does it mean/? Explain.

22. Does the dialect used by the crooks add to or detract from the story? Why?