had not pretended to hold an
argument with him, for Simon always overwhelmed him by the force and
elegance of his rhetoric. He spoke familiarly of great men and great
events.

His business relations--for Master Sneed was a business man--were not
very complicated. According to his own reckoning, he was the chief
person in the employ of Messrs. Sands & Co., wholesale and retail dry
good Washington Street; one who had rendered immense service to the
firm, and one without whom the firm could not possibly get along a
single day; in short, a sort of Atlas, on whose broad shoulders the
vast world of the Messrs. Sands & Co.'s affairs rested. But according
to the reckoning of the firm, and the general understanding of people,
Master Simon was a boy in the store, whose duty it was to make fires,
sweep out, and carry bundles, and, in consideration of the fact that
he boarded himself to receive two dollars and a half a week for his
services. There was a vast difference between Master Simon Sneed's
estimate of Masters Simon Sneed, and the Messrs. Sands & Co.'s idea of
Master Simon Sneed.

But I beg my young friends not to let anything I have written create a
prejudice against him, for he was really a very kind-hearted young man,
and under certain circumstances would have gone a great way to oblige a
friend. He had always been exceedingly well disposed towards Katy;
perhaps it was because the simple-hearted little girl used to be so
much astonished when he told her about his mercantile relations with
the firm of Sands & Co.; and how he managed all their business for them
after the store was closed at night, and before the front door was
unlocked in the morning; how he went to the bank after immense sums of
money; and how the firm would have to give up business if he should
die, or be obliged to leave them. Katy believed that Master Simon was a
great man, and she wondered how his long, slim arms could accomplish so
much labor, and how his small head could hold such a heap of
magnificent ideas. But Master Simon, notwithstanding his elevated
position in the firm, was condescending to her; he had more than once
done her a favor and had always expressed a lively interest in her
welfare. Therefore she did not scruple to apply to him in the present
emergency.

"Well, Katy, in what manner can I serve you?" inquired Simon, as he
elevated his head, and stood picking his teeth before her.

"I want you to do something for me very much ind