s Ben ran home to carry the good news to
his mother.

CHAPTER III

THE OFFICE BOY

When I approached the office the next morning, little Ben Mayberry was
standing outside, smiling and expectant.

My heart was touched when I saw what pains his mother had taken to put
her boy in presentable shape. He had on a pair of coarse shoes, carefully
blacked, and a new, cheap hat replaced the dilapidated one of the day
before. He wore a short coat and a vest, which must have served him as
his Sunday suit for a long time, as they were much too small for him.

But there was a cleanly, neat look about him which attracted me at once.
His face was as rosy as an apple, and his large, white teeth were as
sound as new silver dollars. His dark hair, which was inclined to be
curly, was cut short, and the ill-fitting clothes could not conceal the
symmetry of his growing figure.

"Well, Ben," said I cheerily, as I shook his hand, "I am glad to see you
are here on time. You are young, you know, but are old enough to make a
start. As I expect you to reach the top of the ladder, I mean that you
shall begin at the bottom round."

I am not sure he understood this figurative language, but I made it clear
to him the next minute.

"You are to be here every morning before seven o'clock, to sweep out the
office and make it ready for business. You must see that all the
spittoons are cleaned, that the ink wells at the desk are provided with
ink, that the pens are good enough for use (I never yet have seen a
public office where the writing facilities were not wretched), abundance
of blanks on hand, and that everything is tidied up. In summer, you must
wash off the ice and place it in the cooler, and in winter, see that the
fires are going and the office comfortable at the time we go there for
business. Can you do it, Ben?"

"Yes, sir, and glad to have the chance."

"This will give you some opportunity to attend the public school, which,
of course, you will take advantage of. Then, when you can, you will begin
to study telegraphy. I will see that you have every chance, and, at the
same time, I will give you a lift now and then in your studies. This is
the first step, Ben; in this country anything is possible to the boy who
has brains, pluck, and application. Everything now depends on yourself;
with the help of Heaven you will succeed; if you fail, it will be your
own fault. To-day you start on your career, which will lead to success
and