, and Archie
at once decided to engage a room here, where he could have his New York
home. So he called upon the motherly landlady, and was glad to learn
that the room he had first was still vacant, and that he could take
possession at once.

As before, when he came to this house, Archie was almost out of
clothing, so he went out and fitted himself with everything he needed.
And this time he felt able to buy the best to be had, for he thought he
had now earned the privilege to dress well if he liked. And then, when
he had everything he needed to wear, he went out and bought many pretty
things for his room, for he felt that he would like to have it just as
cosy and home-like as possible. He wasn't able to do much at it this
first night, but in the succeeding days he furnished the place in a
charming way, so that the landlady said it was the "handsomest room in
the house, sir." The dear old lady could hardly understand this great
change in her lodger's circumstances. She worried about it very often,
and discussed the question with many of the neighbours. "He come here
last fall looking mighty poor-like, but, lawsy me, he's as fine now as
any man on the avenue." And she never did understand it until one day
she learned that her lodger was the "very young man who had been to the
war in the Philippines, and writ about his battles in the Enterprise."

There was no ceremony when Archie began work on the evening paper. Mr.
Jennings told him that he thought they understood each other pretty
well, and that he could use his own discretion, very often, about
getting articles. "You can be as independent as you like, Archie," he
said, "and use your own ideas as much as you like." This pleased the boy
very much indeed. He was beginning to feel now that he had really won
his spurs, and that he was a full-fledged journalist. It seemed scarcely
possible that it had taken him little more than six months to make
this great advance in circumstances, and yet he could see himself a few
months previous, sleeping in the station-house. Now his days of poverty
were surely over, and he would have a clear path ahead of him to
accomplish his great ambition to be a successful author and writer of
books. For the present, it was good experience for him to be working
upon the Enterprise, and he felt that he ought to be very much
contented, since there were men old enough to be his father who were not
earning as much money.

He liked the work upon the