y, and it was this that swayed him most.

Now, it chanced that the place he had to visit to leave an order was
the largest grocery store in Riverport. And one of the boys employed
there was Toby Farrell. Fred knew that he was generally sent out each
morning on a wheel, to visit a line of customers, and take down their
orders; though most of them had telephones for that matter, and could
have wired in their necessities.

Still, this grocer was enterprising, and instructed his boy clerk to
tell each customer just what new and attractive goods they had received
fresh that morning, possibly strawberries, vegetables and the like.

And in the course of his wheeling about Toby was accustomed to visit
the establishment of Miss Alicia Muster each and every day. In fact,
Toby was one of the two boys hired by trades-people whom Fred suspected
of being the person guilty of taking the old maid's opals from the
parlor.

Both of them were allowed to cool their heels in the kitchen for
possibly ten minutes at a time, while the aged "mammy" consulted her
mistress in her private room. And an inquisitive half-grown boy might
become so familiar with the premises that, in a spirit of curiosity, or
from some other reason, he would look around him a little at such
times.

Mr. Cleaver, the grocer, was in a good humor, and when Fred mentioned
that he knew someone who had shown an interest in his young clerk, he
immediately broke out in Toby's praise.

"Best boy, barring none, I ever had, Fred," he declared. "Never late in
the morning, neat in his work, obliging in his manners to my customers,
and willing to stay after hours if there is a rush. In fact I'm so well
satisfied with Toby that I expect to add a couple of dollars to his
wages this very next Saturday. And I'm told he's the idol of his
mother's eye. She's a widow, you know, with three small children, Toby
being the eldest. He shows signs of being like his father; and Matthew
Farrell was one of our leading citizens up to the time of his death. I
hope she gets his pension through; it'll mean several thousand dollars
for her. He died really of wounds received long ago in the war. Never
would apply for the pension he was entitled to. Toby's all right, you
tell your friend; and he's promised to stick right here. Some day he
might be a partner in this business, who knows?"

Well, after that, Fred was ready to throw up his hands in so far as
Toby was concerned. He felt that he could ne