re or
less of a crowd. When quittin' time came I hustled up to the feller
what had hired me an' told him I'd like to have my day's pay. "We don't
pay until Saturday night," sez he, hustlin' out o' the store. I stood
on the sidewalk thinkin'; an' what I was thinkin' of, was the nonsense
'at Sandy Fergoson had been talkin'. It didn't sound so foolish now.

The' was a little restaurant across the street, an' the owner of it had
noticed me washin' the windows--he had seemed to enjoy it too. I went
over an' told him that I would like to board with him if he would make
me rates. He sized me up an' sez he would board me for six dollars a
week. I didn't see how I could save enough to buy a store out of four
dollars a week, an' after I got tired o' seein' the sights I'd have to
rent a bed somewheres too; but what I needed then was food, so I agreed.

I sat down an' begun to eat slow, 'cause it's always best to warm up
careful on a long job. I et away peaceful an' contented until I got
good an' used to it again, an' then I kept the waiters hoppin' purty
lively. The proprietor took a deep interest in me, an' dodged around so
he could have an unobstructed view; while the rest of the guests got to
noticin' too, an' when they'd finish they'd just stick around an' keep
cases, until after a while things began to jam, an' every time I'd
order in some new food they'd make bets on whether I'd be able to
finish it or not. When I finally quit, the proprietor came up to me on
a run an' sez, "Are you sure you have had all you wish?"

"Yes," I sez, "an' I ain't no fault to find with the cookin' either."

He eyed me all over, an' then he drew me to one side. "I don't want to
go back on my word," sez he, "an' I don't intend to charge you a cent
for this meal; but Great Scott, man, I wouldn't board you for six
dollars a day, let alone six dollars a week."

I didn't intend to let him know that I was stone broke, 'cause it
didn't seem the thing in a business man; but I did tell him that I
hardly ever et quite so much as I had that night. Still, he wouldn't
take any chances, so I took my blankets an' went on. I was purty sleepy
after my meal, an' it was just all I could do to stagger up an' down
the hills, before I found a place to flop in. It was under a little
tree in a big yard, an' I got out at sun-up 'cause I didn't want any
one to see a business man occupyin' such quarters as that. I didn't
miss breakfast much that day, an' I went about my