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the money that would be best for Polly. His mother could not spare time to talk to him then. But at night, when it was almost bedtime, when Polly was already in bed and asleep, and mother and son were seated by the fire, she allowed him to go as deep as he liked into the subject. There was a third chair by the fire, and a friend whose advice had often proved useful to Jack, sat in it. "Old Benjamin " was a little, broad, dark-complexioned man, who lived up a neighbouring court. His occupation was selling fish about the streets, and all day long he was slowly pushing his wheelbarrow before him, as he shouted in a measured tone "Cokells, and Mosells, buy-'em-alive-oh!" Having no one to live with, he often spent an hour by the widow's fire; and having thought a good deal during some sixty years' experience, his conversation at such times, when he spoke without restraint, was of a higher character than would have been expected.

"I saw many things I could ha' bought," said Jack, in a musing tone. "There were picture-books in one window, and I know Polly would like one of them, wi' posies in Then there's a very good cap, looks like new, in Jacob Levi's, that's marked only a shilling. Just what I want, a cap is. Then I thought I could buy mother two ounces of that prime tea, like what she had at Aunt Betsy's, she said it were same as Queen drinks. Eh! what a sight o' things you can get wi' It's a fine thing is money." money.

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Bless the boy," said his mother, "he thinks two shillings 'll ne'er be spent. Thou cannot but spend it once, Jack, and it 'll none go so far, lad, thou'lt see that. But hows'ever it's thine, and do what thou'st a will, I'll none stop thee. Its a rare thing for thee to have ought to spend; and we'n see how wise thou can'st be o'er it.'

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Money is a fine thing," remarked Benjamin, "for them as knows how to use it. But there's many a one, as I've often noticed, is waur wi' money than beout it. It leads some folk to think o' nought nobbut drinking and roistering, and doing such things as is neither pleasin' to God nor man.

"Aye," sighed the widow, "like my poor maester, when he'd had a good job and drawed the wages."

"There's others again," continued Benjamin, without regarding the interruption, "that can live in peace and quietness when they're poor, but when they get a bit o' money, they fall out ower it, because they never can abear to see another ha' more than theirselves."

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'Just as Dennis and me got to fighting to-day," said Jack. "But th' money shannot do me no harm. I'll buy Polly a book—that'll be sixpence; and mother two ounces of the tea, and then there'll be a shilling left for the cap."

"Well, lad," said Benjamin, looking hard at him, "thou art right not to spend it all on thyself; but then the tea won't last long, and the cap 'll wear out; the book mayhap 'll get torn or lost. Suppose we could always ha' some money,-not just once, but more when that's gone.'

I shall have," said Jack, "when I'm old enough to work at factory."

"But some folk," persisted Benjamin, wi'out working at factory.

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There's Wilson sells tea as

thou talks o' buying for mother; he works none, and he's getten money enough."

"The men i' the shop gie him the money they sell tea for," reasoned Jack, "and that's how he does.'

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"Aye, but," persisted Benjamin, "I mind when he were a poor lad, and had no tea to sell. When he were thy age, he had none two shillings. But he gathered pennies till he geet enough to buy a pound or two o' tea, and I seen him going round, all up and down the country, to tempt folks to buy his tea, and then he saved money enough to start a little shop, and then little shop grown into big un, and now he's an old man he needs do nought but find tea and pay other men to sell it for him."

"Oh, I see!" exclaimed Jack, "I'll buy half a pound o' tea wi' two shillings, and I'll take it to the folks' doors and tell 'em mother says it's same as Queen drinks, and sell 'em a bit here and a bit there, and get as rich as Mr. Wilson."

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"Eh, lad," cried his mother, after a hearty laugh, get thee to bed, and dunnot talk such nonsense." "Stop, stop," remonstrated Benjamin, with a quiet

smile. "Now-a-days people like to go to a shop for their tea, Jack, and thou'd never get on that-a-way. But there's other things sold besides tea. Fish now,folk allus wants fish, oysters, and cokells, and mosells,it's a sure sale, and one or the other's in season all the year round. Then there's herrings, and flukes, and shrimps betimes. Now I've got a small barrow as 'ud be light enough for thee, and if so be thou'll like to spend one of thi shillings in fish, I'll see thou gets 'em good, and at a fair price, and I'll set thee going. Thou'lt sell 'em for one shilling and sixpence

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"I shall ha' my half-crown back," interrupted Jack. But," said Benjamin, there's two rules to be attended to. Whether it's cold, or wet, or late, thou must never come home till thi barrow's empty—that's number one; and when thou gets thi money, thou must bring it home and save it, because thou'lt want a new barrow in a bit, and a bigger stock for every day. So no pennies for apples nor tossing, Jack!-that's rule number two."

"You shall see," said Jack, "I'll earn- -how much do you earn, Benjamin ?"

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Well, one week wi' another, mayhap ten or twelve shilling."

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Then, when I get like that, I can buy lots of tea for mother, and books for Polly."

"But dunnot be impatient, lad. Now go to bed, and be up at six to go wi' me to buy thi cokells; and Jack, dunnot be so full of thi new fancy as to forget thi prayers. Ask God to bless thee, lad, and to make thi money a good for thee."

CHAPTER IV.

From this time Jack might be seen, every day, wheeling his little barrow, with its small heap of shellfish, in the rear of old Benjamin, and imitating, with his thin childish treble, the lusty shout with which his friend proclaimed to the public the wares he had to. dispose of. It was no very light or easy task Jack had undertaken. Every morning he had to be ready to accompany Benjamin to meet the early train, which brought the fish to supply the day's stock. Then after

breakfast he had to start on the rounds, and as there was now more to be sold than when Benjamin had gone alone, the round was longer. Sometimes it was dark

and late before the barrow was empty; and though the old man kindly sent him up the small streets where he knew people lived likely to be customers, and gave him all the advantage of his own experience and judgment, the boy, who had never been used to regular work, found it very difficult to persevere. Sometimes too, after every effort, a large part of the fish were unsold and left to spoil, and this was a heavy loss to the young tradesman, so that it was full three months before the half-crown was doubled. By this time, however, Jack got able to go by himself. He therefore took one part of the town, while Benjamin took another; their gains were greater, and Jack's prosperity from that time gradually increased. He had no time now for tossing, and felt the temptations to vice and bad company no longer powerful. Regular industry strengthened all the good parts of his character. He kept as close as he could to the two rules laid down by his old friend, and, under Benjamin's influence, became a thoroughly honest, steady, hard-working boy.

Before Jack had arrived at the age of twelve years, only three circumstances varied his career of slow but steady progress. The first was the time when, with Benjamin's consent, he spent a portion of his earnings in buying a book for Polly, and some tea for his mother. At the same time he spent a shilling or two in buying some little comforts for some aged and sick neighbours. He often said, in after life, that he then first understood the happiness to be found in the possession of money when it is used to do good to others. The book he bought for Polly had a description under each picture, and she was now old enough to ask Jack eagerly to tell her what it said. Alas! he could not read. This he determined he would learn. His clothes were now much neater than of old; his mother willingly helped him to buy a new cap and shoes; and the next era in his life was when he entered a Sunday-school. Here he learned to read, and at a night-school connected with the Sunday-school he learned writing and cyphering.

But his connection with these schools had a still more important consequence: it brought him to the acquaintance of a pious teacher, by whose efforts his knowledge and love of God were cultivated, and he was led to become a youthful disciple of Christ. The prayer, which had been a habit with him, instilled by his mother in earliest childhood, became now a source of comfort and strength, and the money which was spent on a little Bible and hymn-book was the best spent of any of his earnings.

When Jack was nearly twelve years old, he could wheel Benjamin's barrow, loaded to its full extent, and was acknowledged, even by Benjamin himself, to be well able to manage all transactions of buying and selling fish. Besides £3. in the savings' bank, he had money enough to buy a new barrow of the largest and best kind, and expected to earn with it nearly ten shillings a week. To do this he knew he must work hard, but he meant to try, for his mother, who had never yet allowed him to pay anything to the expenses of the house, had agreed, when he got his new barrow, to receive half his earnings, and he had set his mind on bringing her five shillings each week.

It was a bright sunny morning when Jack pushed his new barrow merrily up the court where Benjamin lived. The old man had determined to let Jack go all the rounds to-day, that he might begin with a good day with his new barrow, and Jack was come to show himself and his fish, before he started. Surprised that his friend was not at the door to meet him, the boy made the narrow court resound with the cry of his trade. Still no Benjamin; and when the anxious questions Jack asked caused his room to be entered in search of him, he was lying on the floor in a helpless condition, produced by a paralytic stroke.

Benjamin never wheeled a barrow or cried fish again; when able to speak, he faltered forth a request to be taken to the workhouse, for he had very little money saved. But Jack would not hear of it; remembering that he owed all his prosperity to the old man's guidance and help, he took on himself the task of supporting him. It seemed that his energies were to be taxed to

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