ring were the two vices most common among the
Laketon boys, and therefore most hated by the parents, they felt that
there was, at least, no occasion to regard the new-comer with suspicion.

As for Mr. Morton, he rapidly made his way among the more solid
citizens. He was willing to work, whether his services were required by
church, Sunday-school, or society, and he did not care to hold office of
any sort, so his sincerity was cheerfully admitted by all. When,
however, he had one day, soon after his arrival, asked several prominent
men why the town had no society or even person to visit the very poor
and the persons who might be in prison, he ran some risk of being
considered meddlesome.

"We know our own people best," said Sam Wardwell's father. "The only
people here who suffer from poverty are those who won't work, while the
few people who get into our jail are hard cases; half of them wouldn't
listen to you if you talked to them, and the others would listen only to
have an excuse to beg tobacco or something. There's a man in the jail
now for passing counterfeit money; he's committed for trial when the
County Court sits in September; that man is just as smart as you or I.
He is as fine a looking fellow as you would wish to see, talks like a
straightforward business man, and yet he passed counterfeit bills at
four different places in this town. What would talk do for such a
fellow?"

"No one knows, until some one tries it," replied the teacher, quietly.

"Well, all I have to say is," remarked Mr. Wardwell, in a tone that was
intended to be very sarcastic, "those who have plenty of time to waste
must do the trying. If you want such work done, why don't you do it
yourself?"

"I would cheerfully do it if it did not seem to be presumptuous on the
part of a stranger."

"Don't trouble your mind about that," said the store keeper, with a
laugh; "the counterfeiter is a stranger too, so matters will be even.
There's the sheriff, in front of the post-office; do you know him? No?
Let us step over, and I'll introduce you. And I'll wish you more luck
than you'll have in the jail, if that will be of any consolation."

Mr. Morton found Sheriff Towler quite a pleasant man to talk to, and
perfectly willing to have his prisoners improve in body and mind by any
method except that of getting out of jail before their respective terms
of imprisonment had expired, or before they were by superior authority
ordered to some other place o