had made no response, mainly from indifference, but to a
degree because of a suspicion that his connection with Mr. Harum would
not, to say the least, enhance his position in the minds of certain of
the people of Homeville. As has been intimated, it seemed at the outset
of his career in the village as if there had been a combination of
circumstance and effort to put him on his guard, and, indeed, rather to
prejudice him against his employer; and Mr. Harum, as it now appeared to
our friend, had on one or two occasions laid himself open to
misjudgment, if no more. No allusion had ever been made to the episode
of the counterfeit money by either his employer or himself, and it was
not till months afterward that the subject was brought up by Mr. Richard
Larrabee, who sauntered into the bank one morning. Finding no one there
but John, he leaned over the counter on his elbows, and, twisting one
leg about the other in a restful attitude, proceeded to open up a
conversation upon various topics of interest to his mind. Dick was Mr.
Harum's confidential henchman and factotum, although not regularly so
employed. His chief object in life was apparently to get as much
amusement as possible out of that experience, and he was quite
unhampered by over-nice notions of delicacy or bashfulness. But, withal,
Mr. Larrabee was a very honest and loyal person, strong in his likes and
dislikes, devoted to David, for whom he had the greatest admiration, and
he had taken a fancy to our friend, stoutly maintaining that he "wa'n't
no more stuck-up 'n you be," only, as he remarked to Bill Perkins, "he
hain't had the advantigis of your bringin' up."

After some preliminary talk--"Say," he said to John, "got stuck with any
more countyfit money lately?"

John's face reddened a little and Dick laughed.

"The old man told me about it," he said. "Say, you'd ought to done as he
told ye to. You'd 'a' saved fifteen dollars," Dick declared, looking at
our friend with an expression of the utmost amusement.

"I don't quite understand," said John rather stiffly.

"Didn't he tell ye to charge 'em up to the bank, an' let him take 'em?"
asked Dick.

"Well?" said John shortly.

"Oh, yes, I know," said Mr. Larrabee. "He said sumpthin' to make you
think he was goin' to pass 'em out, an' you didn't give him no show to
explain, but jest marched into the back room an' stuck 'em onto the
fire. Ho, ho, ho, ho! He told me all about it," cried Dick. "Say," he
declared