Free The Devil Tree by Jerzy Kosinski

lawyers, like that of company managers, is to represent this country’s business elite.
    Calvin Coolidge, a lawyer and a president, once quipped that “the business of America is business,” and my father was known to say that his company was known by the men it kept. However, a recent nationwide survey of American business managers suggests that business—the heart of America—is ailing. Half of all the businessmen polled asserted that they found their work utterly unsatisfactory; one-third said that the strain of day-to-day business hurt their physical and mental health; and over seventy percent admitted that in order to conform to the standards established by their corporate superiors they frequently had to compromise their personal principles. No wonder, then, that in order to escape such growing business pressures, the average American watches television almost seven and a half hours a day.
    So much for the work ethic of our success-oriented business elite. Equally revealing were the findings of other polls. Even though hypertension affects millions of Americans and heart disease is the nation’s number-one killer, only one percent of the public is aware that the control of high blood pressure is a necessary step in combating heart disease.
    I was tempted to ask my lawyers what they thoughtabout the state of this nation, but all I said was “Well now, gentlemen, let’s talk about something that’s a real high.” I paused and glanced at their well-cut suits, and they all froze, fearing I was about to mention opium. “My income,” I blurted, and they all chuckled, those six clean-shaven college kids put at ease by their unpredictable master.
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    Glancing through an illustrated magazine, I ran across a picture of Karen posing naked in a full-page advertisement for some hygienic preparation; her arms were crossed in front of her breasts, and her hands were folded between her thighs.
    When I voiced annoyance to Karen about the ad’s demeaning nature—” Antibacterial” was written next to her face, “Antipruritic” next to her neck, “Anti-inflammatory” next to her breasts, and “Antifungal” next to her belly—she angrily told me that her job was to model for the advertisers, not to question their taste. I countered by pointing out that although she often censored what she considered to be my antifeminist attitude, yet she found no fault with this ad, even though it used only a woman as the host of various body pollutants which, after all, affect both sexes equally. The incident made me aware of how proud and determined Karen is. She insists on working even though, if she would agree to share my income, she wouldn’t have to. Ironically, her independence is one gift I cannot buy her.
    Maybe because she insists so on her independence, I don’t feel overly sympathetic when Karen claims to be exhausted from her work, or when she says she doesn’t feel well. Several times when I’ve been at the bank settling myestate, surrounded by people who were obviously eavesdropping, she’s called to break our date for the evening. In such circumstances I haven’t been able to express my indignation freely. On two occasions I had been looking forward to spending a couple of days with her, and both times she called it off only a few hours beforehand. This erratic behavior I know to be habit with her, but still it suggests that other people and events are more important to her than I am. Is our being together so exhausting that we can see each other only when we are both well rested? Must we assume that after each meeting we have to go back into our private lives to recuperate? Yesterday when she called to cancel another date, I was unresponsive once again. Karen’s rejection sets off torments within me. Instinctively I retreat instead of exploding, however, lest I obliterate my chances for whatever may happen next.
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    “I was vacationing with my family in the