Two weeks later an envelope arrived with photographs, an incomplete inventory, and summaries of the bank's storage expenses. Earl read everything, marked questions in the margins, and asked Walter and Ray to inspect the pictures with him. They saw barrels sitting on damp ground, loosened hoops, and stacks of staves that had been prepared without uniform spacing. They also saw material that might still be recoverable if separated from the damaged stock.
"How much of that lot do they think is worth selling?" Walter asked. Earl turned the page. "They haven't separated hope from condition yet." Ray nodded toward one photograph.
"They're going to be unhappy when we tell them how much has to be rejected." Earl placed the file on the table. "Then we'd better tell them before anybody signs a contract."
They arranged a site inspection. Earl brought a clipboard, his old moisture meter, and the steady skepticism that had guided him through eleven years of learning. Larkin met them beside the bank's storage building and tried to begin with a discussion of what selected barrel stock was bringing in the market. Earl asked to see the piles first.
Some barrels were still sound, with good structure and recoverable color. Others had deteriorated beyond premium use, and several lots lacked the documentation Earl required for sale under his established name. He and Walter moved through the rows for hours, placing chalk marks on samples and recording categories. By the time they finished, Larkin looked exhausted.
"You can't be serious about rejecting that many," the manager said. Earl showed him a stave whose surface looked acceptable until a split appeared along the inner edge. "If I sell this as sound wood, someone pays for my mistake. I won't do that." Larkin stared at the pile. "It's still oak."
"Yes," Earl said. "And a field full of corn is still corn after a flood. That doesn't mean every ear can go to market." The manager had no ready reply. For the first time, he was receiving an explanation of the work he had assumed was automatic.
They parted without an agreement. Earl took the inspection notes home and calculated the cost of handling the recoverable material, the hours of labor required, the space it would occupy, and what could reasonably be sold after conditioning. He also calculated the effect on Walter and Ray's workload. If the contract were poorly structured, taking on the bank's problem could put his own carefully built business at risk.
He thought about the original $750 transaction. Back then, Larkin had been pleased because the bank would avoid the cost of removal. Now the manager wanted to earn money from the material but hoped Earl would assume most of the hard work and risk. The numbers were larger, yet the underlying question had hardly changed. Who was responsible for turning a pile of used barrels into something useful?
At the kitchen table, Earl made a list of terms he would require before proceeding. Transportation had to be the bank's responsibility. Damaged and undocumented stock had to be separated before pricing. And the people he employed would need guaranteed work for the full contract term if he committed to expanded capacity for the bank's material.