and has shifted for
himself all his life. I don't really believe that it's to get the
wheel that has made such a change in him as the idea of being faithful
in every little thing has taken such a holt on him. I've known him to
walk two miles to straighten out the matter of a penny or a
postage-stamp.

"I'm not saying but that the other fellows' mottoes are best for them
that likes them, but, if I was a-hunting somebody that I could tie to
through thick and thin, in any kind of business, and under every kind
of circumstance, I'll be blamed if I wouldn't rather choose somebody
that was a-living up to Chicky's text in dead earnest."

"He certainly does seem to have made more improvement than the others
personally," admitted the grocer, "but in a business way the results
do not show so plainly."

"Well, there's still a week," said Judge Parker, finally. "We'll wait
a little longer before we decide."

Several days later, Todd Walters ran breathlessly up the alley that
led to the back of the Morgan place, and scrambled over the high board
fence. "Hi, Ab!" he called, as he dropped lightly to the ground. "Have
you heard the news?"

"No," answer Ab, dropping the basket he was carrying, and
straightening up to listen.

"Chicky is in luck. He's had a perfectly splendid position offered him
in an express-office in another town. He'll make as much in one month
there as he did here in a whole year. I'm going down after dinner to
ask all the particulars. All I know now is that some strange gentleman
telephoned down to the District Messenger Office a few days ago for
them to send the trustiest employee that they had up to the hotel as
quick as possible. Something important had to be attended to, and he
didn't want anybody that couldn't be trusted in every way. And out of
the whole bunch Chicky was the one they picked, as the most reliable
one in the office.

"The gentleman was sick and couldn't go to take some important papers
somewhere that they had to go, and he was a stranger, and didn't know
anybody in town. But he told Chicky it was very particular that they
should get there on time, and he would make it all right with the
company for sending him out of town. Then he gave him some money to
buy a railroad ticket, and told him just where to go, and what to do
and everything.

"Well, there was a wreck on the road, somewhere along in the night,
and lots of people were hurt. Chicky got a bad cut on his head that
bled awfull