we do something for him?"

"Perhaps," answered Laura. "At any rate, we can give him some money."

The boys came over, and all had a talk with Charley Gamp, who told much
about his former life, when his mother had been alive. Of his father he
knew little or nothing; excepting that he had not treated his mother
fairly according to the story told by some former neighbors.

"I wish we could get him some sort of regular employment and give him a
chance to go to school," said Dave. "Let us ask Uncle Dunston about it.
He knows quite a number of people in Chicago."

"If you want to do something for me, I'll tell you what," said Charley,
eagerly. "I need a new pair of shoes." And he looked down at his foot
coverings, which were full of holes.

"And I should say that you needed a new suit of clothes, too," said
Laura.

"And a new cap," added Jessie. "I'll get you the cap," she went on. "A
real nice one, too."

In spite of his rags and his dirty face and hands Charley Gamp had a
winning way about him, and the boys and girls easily induced him to
follow them to the hotel. Here they waited for the return of Dunston
Porter, and then asked what might be done with the waif.

"You'll have your hands full if you want to help every waif that comes
along," said Dave's uncle, with a smile. "Every big city has hundreds of
them."

"Well, we can't aid every one, but we do want to aid Charley," answered
Laura. And then she and the others told of what had occurred at the
post-office.

"I don't know exactly how much we can do," said Dunston Porter, slowly.
"I know a number of people here, it is true, but whether any of them
will want to bother with this lad is a question. However, after lunch
I'll look into the matter."

As the urchin was too dirty and ragged to eat in the hotel, he was given
a quarter of a dollar for his dinner and told to come back in half an
hour. This he did willingly, and a little later Mr. Porter, Dave, and
the two girls sallied forth to see what could be done for the homeless
boy.

The quest was more successful than they had anticipated. Mr. Porter knew
a certain Mr. Latham, who was in the wholesale fruit business, and this
gentleman agreed to give Charley Gamp a job, at two dollars a week and
his board. He was to live with a man who had charge of a warehouse where
fruit was unloaded, and was to be sent to night school.

This settled, the waif was fitted out with new clothing and other
things, and the boys