! I didn't know anybody could get that much money unless they
died!"

Mrs. Mullarkey said nothing; her lips were trying to smile though the
tears still stood in her eyes.

"Besides which," continued the clown, "Helen and I will help you look
out for the children and we want you to call on us any time that you may
be in trouble."

"We do, indeed," said Jerry's mother. "You cannot work so hard and take
care of your children the way you want to. If you only lived near us--"

"Helen," interrupted Jerry's father, "I've been thinking, now that we
are going to settle down in business, it would be a wise thing for Mrs.
Mullarkey to sell her place here and move to Carroll with us. Then
we'll know how they are getting on and can look after the children some.
I'll help her dispose of the place here and buy one in Carroll, if she
would like such an arrangement."

"Would you, Mrs. Mullarkey?" asked Jerry's mother.

It took her such a long time to answer that Jerry looked up and saw her
lips were twisting. She was crying inside so that you couldn't hear her.
Jerry knew how that hurt--to cry when you didn't dare cry out loud. He
had often done it in the night, before he ran away, so the man with the
big red scar wouldn't hear him. He left his mother and Kathleen, climbed
up on Mother 'Larkey's lap, put one arm about her neck and with his
other hand patted her wet cheek.

"An' then Kathleen won't cry for me," he coaxed, "'cause I'll be right
there an' can run over any time, couldn't I, Mother?"

"Yes, of course you could, dear."

"There, you see," he continued.

"I should love to," Mrs. Mullarkey replied at last to Mr. and Mrs. Bowe.
"It would be such a relief to have some one I could go to for advice
about the children. It's not that they're wayward or bad, but Danny is
hot-headed like his father and thoughtless. I'm sure, he didn't mean to
steal Jerry's ticket to the circus--"

"Why, mother!" exclaimed Danny. "I didn't steal it! He gave it to Celia
Jane of his own free will and she gave it to me, didn't you, Celia
Jane?"

"Yet it was stealing," replied his mother, "for you put Celia Jane up to
it. Nora told me all about it and Nora never tells what is not true."

"You gave your ticket to Celia Jane, didn't you, Jerry--I mean, Gary?"
appealed Danny.

"Yes," Jerry replied hesitantly.

"There, you see, Mother, I didn't steal it," Danny defended himself.

"Because you put Celia Jane up to getting Jerry's ticket for yo