stepmother? All stepmothers are not bad or unkind."

"I know that, sir."

"Yours is, I presume?"

"You can judge for yourself."

Carl recited some incidents in his experience with his stepmother. The
stranger listened with evident interest.

"I am not in general in favor of boys leaving home except on extreme
provocation," he said, after a pause; "but in your case, as your father
seems to take part against you, I think you may be justified, especially
as, at your age, you have a fair chance of making your own living."

"I am glad you think that, sir. I have begun to wonder whether I have
not acted rashly."

"In undertaking to support yourself?"

"Yes, sir."

"How old are you?"

"Sixteen."

"At fourteen I was obliged to undertake what you have now before you."

"To support yourself?"

"Yes; I was left an orphan at fourteen, with no money left me by my poor
father, and no relatives who could help me."

"How did you make out, sir?" asked Carl, feeling very much interested.

"I sold papers for a while--in Newark, New Jersey--then I got a place at
three dollars a week, out of which I had to pay for board, lodging
and clothes. Well, I won't go through my history. I will only say that
whatever I did I did as well as I could. I am now a man of about middle
age, and I am moderately wealthy."

"I am very much encouraged by what you tell me, sir."

"Perhaps you don't understand what a hard struggle I had. More than once
I have had to go to bed hungry. Sometimes I have had to sleep out, but
one mustn't be afraid to rough it a little when he is young. I shouldn't
like to sleep out now, or go to bed without my supper," and the little
man laughed softly.

"Yes, sir; I expect to rough it, but if I could only get a situation, at
no matter what income, I should feel encouraged."

"You have earned no money yet?"

"Yes, sir; I earned a dollar yesterday."

"At what kind of work?"

"Archery."

The little man looked surprised.

"Is that a business?" he asked, curiously.

"I'll explain how it was," and Carl told about the contest.

"So you hit the mark?" said the little man, significantly.

Somehow, there was something in the little man's tone that put new
courage into Carl, and incited him to fresh effort.

"I wonder, sir," he said, after a pause, "that you should be walking,
when you can well afford to ride."

The little man smiled.

"It is by advice of my physician," he said. "He tells me I am gettin