to the theater and
the opera, and was thinking whether she could afford to set up a
carriage. Godfrey she had placed at a private school, and was anxious
to have him prepare for admission to Harvard College, but in this hope
she seemed destined to be disappointed. Godfrey wanted to see life and
enjoy himself, and had no intention of submitting to the drudgery of
hard study.

"Godfrey," said his mother one morning, "I have received a letter from
your teacher, complaining that you don't work."

"I'm not going to work myself to death," answered Godfrey.

"I don't expect you to hurt yourself with work, but I want you to go
to college."

"Oh, well, I'll get in somehow."

"Don't you want to stand well as a scholar?" she asked.

"I leave that to the poor fellows that have got to work for a living.
I am rich."

"You may lose your money."

"I don't mean to."

"Suppose you do?"

"Then I will go to work."

"I should like to have you graduate well at college and then study
law. You might get into Congress," said his mother.

"I guess I'll know enough for that," said Godfrey, carelessly. "I want
to have a good time."

That was not the worst of it, however. He extorted from his mother a
large allowance, which he spent at bars and billiard saloons, and one
day was brought home drunk by a schoolfellow.

"Oh, Godfrey, how can you do so?" exclaimed the selfish woman, for
once fairly alarmed on another's account.

"Hush up, old woman!" hiccoughed Godfrey.

Mrs. Preston was mortified to think this should be said to her before
Godfrey's schoolmate.

"He does not know what he is saying," she said, apologetically.

"Yes, I do," persisted Godfrey. "I'm a--a gen'leman's son. I don't
want you to interfere with gen'leman's son."

He was put to bed, and awoke the next morning with a splitting
headache. It was the morning of the day which the doctor and Mr.
Graves had chosen to call on Mrs. Preston. She was preparing to go
out, when a servant came upstairs to announce that two gentlemen were
in the parlor, and wanted to see her.

"Two gentlemen! What do they look like, Nancy?"

"One of 'em looks like he was from the country, mum."

This referred to Mr. Graves, who did have a rustic look. The doctor
would readily have passed for a Bostonian.

"Did they give their names?"

"No, mum."

"I will go down directly. I suppose they won't stay long."

Mrs. Preston sailed into the parlor with the air of a city lady, as
she