fter the theater had closed and
there was no farther chance of earning money. It was not till half an
hour later that the boy came running up.

"I have got eightpence," he said. "That is something like luck. I got
three jobs. One stood me fourpence, the other two gave me tuppence
each. What do yer say? Shall we have a cup of coffee afore we turns
in?"

"I think we had better not, Bill. I have got sixpence. We will put
that by, with the sixpence we saved the other day, for the hostler. We
haven't given him anything for some time. Your eightpence will get us
a good breakfast in the morning."

When they had comfortably nestled themselves in the hay George told
his companion how he had rescued and restored the locket.

"And he didn't give yer nuffin! I never heerd tell of such a scaly
trick as that. I should ha' said it ought to have been good for a bob
anyway."

"I did not wait to see, Bill. Directly I had given the little girl her
locket I bolted."

"Well, that were soft. Why couldn't yer have waited to have seen what
the bloke meant to give yer?"

"I did not want to be paid for such a thing as that," George replied.
"I don't mind being paid when I have done a job for anyone; but this
was different altogether."

Bill meditated for a minute or two.

"I can't see no difference, nohow," he said at last. "Yer did him a
good turn, and got the thing back. I dare say it were worth five bob."

"A good deal more than that, Bill."

"More nor that! Well, then, he ought to have come down handsome.
Didn't yer run like winking, and didn't yer jump on the chap's back
and knock him down, and didn't yer run back again? And warn't there a
chance, ef one of the bobbies had got hold of yer collar and found it
in yer hand, of yer being had up for stealing it? And then yer walks
off and don't give him a chance of giving yer nuffin. My eye, but yer
are a flat!"

"I don't suppose you will quite understand, Bill. But when people do a
thing to oblige somebody, and not as a piece of regular work, they
don't expect to be paid. I shouldn't have liked it if they had offered
me money for such a thing."

"Well, ef yer says so, no doubt it's right," Bill rejoined; "but it
seems a rum sort of notion to me. When people loses things they
expects to pay to get 'em back. Why, don't yer see outside the p'lice
station, and in the shop winders, papers offering so much for giving
back things as is lost. I can't read 'em myself, yer know; but cha