h about hiring my rooms to such tenants. Refugees are
certainly becoming as thick as locusts in the State, and are nearly
all as poor as Job. However, I have made myself secure against any
excuse for pay on the ground of poverty, by the paper she signed," and
with these reflections, that worthy gentleman re-entered his room, and
was soon deeply interested in his newspaper.

CHAPTER TENTH.

THE NEW HOME.

Mrs. Wentworth followed the boy till he arrived in front of series of
wretched looking rooms, situated on one of the miserable lanes with
which Jackson abounds. Stopping in front of one of them, he pointed to
it, and with no other words than "Dem is de room, ma'm," walked off.
Taking the key, which Mr. Elder had previously given her, she opened
the door and entered.

Mrs. Wentworth's heart sank within her as she viewed the wretched
looking apartment. The interior of the room was exceedingly dirty,
while the faded paper, which once gaudily adorned it, now hung in
shreds from the walls. The fireplace was broken up, and disgusting
words were written in every part of the room. It had been, in fact,
the lodging of a woman of dissolute character, who had been accustomed
to gather a crowd of debauched characters in her apartment nightly,
but who, from a failure to pay her rent, had been turned out by Mr.
Elder. The other apartments were still occupied by abandoned women;
but of this fact Mrs. Wentworth was not aware.

As she looked at the room a feeling of indescribable sadness crept
over her, and a sigh of bitterness burst from her throbbing bosom. It
was, however, not to be helped; she had already paid the rent, and was
compelled to keep it for the month. Sadly she left the room, and
locking it after her, repaired to a store to purchase a few necessary
articles of furniture.

On entering a store, the first person she saw was Mr. Swartz, who had,
by this time, risen from the lowly position of a grocer to that of a
"General wholesale and retail merchant," as the sign over his door
very pompously announced.

Mr. Swartz remained on his seat at her entrance, barely raising his
eyes to sec who had entered. She stood for a few moments, when, seeing
that no one appeared to notice her presence, she walked up to him and
informed him that she wished to purchase a few pieces of furniture.

"Vot kind do you vant?" he inquired, without moving from his seat.

"A small bedstead, three or four chairs, a table and a washsta