ll go home and make the boy
give it to me!"

And he staggered out of the store, and, as well as he could, steered for
home.

CHAPTER V

"GIVE ME THAT MONEY"

From the village store Robert went to the baker's and bought a loaf of
bread for six cents, making his entire expenditures sixty-four cents.

He was now ready to go home. He walked rapidly and soon reached the
humble cabin, where he found his aunt waiting for him.

She looked with surprise at the three bundles he brought in and asked:

"What have you got there, Robert?"

"First of all, here is a pound of tea," said the boy, laying it down on
the kitchen table. "Here is a pound of sugar and here is a loaf of
bread."

"But I didn't order all those, Robert," said his aunt.

"I know you didn't," answered her nephew, "but I thought you'd be able
to make use of them."

"No doubt I shall, but surely you did not buy them all for twenty-five
cents?"

"I should say not. Why, the tea alone cost fifty cents! Then the sugar
came to eight cents and the loaf cost six cents."

"Mrs. Jones didn't pay you enough to buy all those, did she?"

"Mrs. Jones is about as mean a woman as you can find anywhere," Robert
said warmly. "She didn't pay me a cent."

"Why? Didn't she like the work?"

"She said uncle owed her husband money for drink and the work would part
pay up the debt."

But for the presence of the groceries, this would have had a
discouraging effect upon Mrs. Trafton, but her mind was diverted by her
curiosity, and she said apprehensively:

"I hope you didn't buy on credit, Robert? I never can pay so much
money!"

"Mr. Sands isn't the man to sell on credit. Aunt Jane. No, I paid cash.
And the best of it is," continued our hero, "I have some money left."

Here he produced and spread on the table before his aunt's astonished
eyes the balance of the money.

Mrs. Trafton was startled. The possession of so much money seemed to her
incomprehensible.

"I hope you came by the money honestly, Robert?"

"What have I ever done, Aunt Jane, that you should think me a thief?"
asked Robert, half amused, half annoyed.

"Nothing, my dear boy; but I can't understand how you came to have so
much money."

"I see I must explain, aunt. A strong wind blew it to me."

"Then somebody must have lost it. You shouldn't have spent it till you
had tried to find the owner."

"I'll explain to you."

And he told her the story of the lost hat and the liberal reward h