Slow and Sure: The Story of Paul Hoffman the Young Street-MerchantAlger, Horatio, Jr.
General
Slow and Sure: The Story of Paul Hoffman the Young Street-Merchant
Alger, Horatio, Jr.
Boys -- Conduct of life -- Juvenile fiction; New York (N.Y.) -- Juvenile fiction
"Yes, for you. I hope you will make a good use of it."
Julius selected a five-dollar bill, which he thrust into his vest
pocket, and handed the remainder to Paul.
"Keep it for me, Paul," he said; "I might lose it."
"You have done well," said Mr. Preston, approvingly. "Until you leave
the city, it will be best to leave the money in Paul's hands. Now, my
lad, I must bid you good-morning, as business claims my attention. Try
to lead a good life, and you have my best wishes for your welfare."
He offered his hand, which Julius took shyly.
The two boys went out, and again Marlowe followed them and tried to
overhear what they said.
"Don't you feel rich, Julius?" he heard Paul say.
"He was very good to me," said Julius.
"Fifty dollars is a good deal of money for a boy like you."
"Fifty dollars!" said Marlowe to himself. "So the young dog got fifty
dollars for selling Jack 'n' me? He thinks he's done a good thing.
We'll see! we'll see!"
He instantly conceived the design of getting hold of this fifty
dollars. As we know, he was almost penniless, and money he sorely
needed to effect his escape from the city, where he was placed in
hourly peril. To take it from Julius would give him more pleasure than
to obtain it in any other way, for it would be combining revenge with
personal profit. Not that this revenge would content him. His
resentment was too deep and intense to be satisfied with any such
retaliation. He wanted to make the boy suffer. He would hardly have
shrunk from taking his life. He was, in fact, a worse man than Jack
Morgan, for the latter was not naturally cruel, though, under
temptation, he might be led to desperate acts.
"Now tell me what you want to do, Julius," said Paul.
"I want to go out West."
"You are rather young to travel alone. Besides, you don't know
anything about the West, do you?"
Julius admitted that he did not. His education had been very much
neglected. He probably could not have named half a dozen States, and
had the vaguest idea of the West. He had heard it spoken of, and some
boys whom he used to know about the streets had gone out there. But
beyond that he knew nothing.
"How far do you think it is to the West?" asked Paul.
"About a hundred miles."
"It is all of that," said Paul, laughing. "Now I'll tell you what I
would do if I were in your place."
"What?"
"Were you ever in the Newsboys' Lodging House?"
"Lots of times."
"Then you know Mr. O'Connor, the superintendent?"
"Yes; he's very kind to us boys."
"Well, suppose we go round and ask him when the next company of boys
starts for the West. You could go with them, and he will find you a
place out there. What do you say?"
"I would like to do that," said Julius, with evident satisfaction.
"Then we will go up at once. I guess my business can wait a little
longer."
"You're very kind to me," said Julius, gratefully. "You'll lose money
goin' round with me so much."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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