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Roberto paused for breath, and continued more gently.

“And at that, they have the advantage of being in touch with things; they know one another, they know the newspaper men, and believe me, my friend, the press today is a brutal power. But no, you can’t get into the newspaper game; you’d require seven or eight years of preparation, hunting up friends and recommendations. And in the meantime, what would you earn a living at?”

“But I don’t want to be one of them. I realize well enough that I’m a common workingman.”

“Workingman! Indeed! I only wish you were. Today you’re nothing more than a loafer who has yet to become a workingman: a fellow like me, like all the rest of us who toil for a living. At present, activity is a genuine effort for you; do something; repeat what you do until activity becomes a habit. Convert your static life into a dynamic one. Don’t you understand? I want to impress upon you the need of will power.”

Manuel stared at Roberto dispiritedly; they each spoke a different language.