r here?" He called her in behind his daily paper which was big
enough to hide three of Mary Elizabeth, and when he saw that nobody was
looking he gave her a five-cent piece in a hurry, as if he had committed
a sin, and said quickly: "There, there, child! go now, go!"

Then he began to read his newspaper quite hard and fast and to look
severe, as one does who never gives anything to beggars, as a matter of
principle.

But nobody else gave anything to Mary Elizabeth. She shuffled from one
to another, hopelessly. Every gentleman shook his head. One called for a
waiter to put her out. This frightened her and she stood still.

Over by a window, in a lonely corner of the great room, a young man was
sitting apart from the others. He sat with his elbows on the table and
his face buried in his arms. He was a well-dressed young man, with
brown, curling hair.

Mary Elizabeth wondered why he looked so miserable and why he sat alone.
She thought, perhaps, that if he weren't so happy as the other
gentlemen, he would be more sorry for cold and hungry girls. She
hesitated, then walked along and directly up to him.

One or two gentlemen laid down their papers and watched this; they
smiled and nodded to each other. The child did not see them to wonder
why. She went up and put her hand upon the young man's arm.

He started. The brown, curly head lifted itself from the shelter of his
arms; a young face looked sharply at the beggar girl,--a beautiful young
face it might have been.

It was haggard now and dreadful to look at,--bloated and badly marked
with the unmistakable marks of a wicked week's debauch. He roughly said:

"What do you want?"

"I'm hungry," said Mary Elizabeth.

"I can't help that. Go away."

"I haven't had anything to eat for a whole day--a whole day!" repeated
the child.

Her lip quivered. But she spoke distinctly. Her voice sounded through
the room. One gentleman after another laid down his paper or his pipe.
Several were watching this little scene.

"Go away!" repeated the young man, irritably. "Don't bother me. I
haven't had anything to eat for three days!"

His face went down into his arms again. Mary Elizabeth stood staring at
the brown, curling hair. She stood perfectly still for some moments. She
evidently was greatly puzzled. She walked away a little distance, then
stopped and thought it over.

And now paper after paper and pipe after cigar went down. Every
gentleman in the room began to look on