house, don't it?"

"It was a good trade, that's what it was, an' it's lucky for Polly
that we had it, or he'd found out the difference in huntin' round for
a place to sleep."

Poor Paul! he was doing his best to eat the portion of the feast that
had been set aside as his, but, hungry as he had been, he found it
difficult to swallow because of the lump in his throat, that kept
growing larger and larger every moment, and which seemed to be doing
its best to force the tears from his eyes.

He thought of his parents and his sister, who were probably going
farther away from him each moment, grieving quite as much, if not
more, because of his absence than he did himself; and when he realized
that he might never see them again, the tears would roll from beneath
his eyelids. But he brushed them away very quickly, as if ashamed to
have his companions see them, honest though they were.

Then, as Ben and Johnny began to talk of their business, leaving him
alone, as it seemed, the tears came faster and faster, until he could
no longer wipe them away, and putting back into the paper the cracker
he was trying to eat, he threw himself upon the straw, crying as if
his heart would break.

Paul's hosts seemed bewildered by such singular behavior on his part.
They could not understand why a boy who had had the good-fortune to
find such a place in which to sleep as they had just offered Paul
should cry, and not understanding it, they did the very best thing for
him--they let him cry, without trying to console him, though it sadly
marred the happiness of their feast.

The tears were a relief to Paul in more ways than one, for before they
were done flowing he was sound asleep, and he did not awake to a
consciousness of his troubles until Ben shook him the following
morning.

"It's time to get up," said the boy, in a kindly tone. "You see,
Shiner has to get down about sunrise to buy his papers, an' I go with
him, so's folks won't be so likely to see us comin' out of here."

It was some moments before Paul realized where he was, or what had
happened to so change his sleeping-room from the neat, cleanly one he
called his own at home, to this very rude shelter. But when all that
had occurred came back to his mind, he leaped to his feet at once,
striking his head against the top of the hogshead with a force that
told him he must be careful to get up no higher than his hands and
knees.

"You'll see now what a swell house we've got," s