had never seen her before.

"Please, mum," he asked humbly, "do you sell fairy-tales here?"

Maida saw at once that it was one of Billy's games. She had to bite
her lips to keep from laughing. "Yes," she said, when she had made
her mouth quite firm. "How much do you want to pay for them?"

"Not more than a penny each, mum," he replied.

Maida took out of a drawer the pamphlet-tales that Billy had liked
so much.

"Are these what you want?" she asked. But before he could answer,
she added in a condescending tone, "Do you know how to read, little
boy?"

Billy's face twitched suddenly and his eyes "skrinkled up." Maida
saw with a mischievous delight that he, in his turn, was trying to
keep the laughter back.

"Yes, mum," he said, making his face quite serious again. "My
teacher says I'm the best reader in the room."

He took up the little books and looked them over. "'The Three
Boars'--no,'Bears,'" he corrected himself. "'Puss-in-Boats'--no,
'Boots'; 'Jack-and-the-Bean-Scalp'--no,'Stalk'; 'Jack the
Joint-Cooler'--no, 'Giant-Killer'; 'Cinderella,' 'Bluebird'--no,
'Bluebeard'; 'Little Toody-Goo-Shoes'--no, 'Little Goody-Two-Shoes';
'Tom Thumb,' 'The Sweeping Beauty,'--no, 'The Sleeping Beauty,' 'The
Babes in the Wood.' I guess I'll take these ten, mum."

He felt in all his pockets, one after another. After a long time, he
brought out some pennies, "One, two, three, four, five, six, seven,
eight, nine, ten," he counted slowly.

He took the books, turned and left the shop. Maida watched him in
astonishment. Was he really going for good?

In a few minutes the little bell tinkled a second time and there
stood Billy again.

"Good morning, Petronilla," he said pleasantly, as if he had not
seen her before that morning, "How's business?"

"Fine!" Maida responded promptly. "I've just sold ten fairy books to
the funniest little boy you ever saw."

"My stars and garters!" Billy exclaimed. "Business surely is brisk.
Keep that up and you can afford to have a cat. I've brought you
something."

He opened the bag he carried and took a box out from it. "Hold out
your two hands,--it's heavy," he warned.

In spite of his preparation, the box nearly fell to the floor--it was
so much heavier than Maida expected. "What can be in it?" she cried
excitedly. She pulled the cover off--then murmured a little "oh!" of
delight.

The box was full--cram-jam full--of pennies; pennies so new that they
looked like gold--pennies so many