For Love or Gold? The Story of a Great Department Store — page 129: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

$y Be aa ‘7 rae Denton Gives Some Orders 125 fae give You see, I divided the wad, sir, so it wogiee t look so bulky!” — oe “And did your mother scold you?” asked Mr. Denton, | still smiling. ies The boy’ gance fell to the floor and he shifted his feet uneasily. M “No, sir, she didn’t scold—that is, not exactly,” he said, sniffing. ‘She just talked to me, sir, and then she cried something awful!” | Mr. Denton turned his head away for about a min- ute. There was something in the boy’s story that af- — fected him strangely. The poor woman had wept be- — cause her boy had stolen some money, yet rich men smiled complacently over what they called “good bar-~ gains,’ but which in reality were little more than. thiev- ing. “How is your brother?” he asked, when he could trust himself to speak. “The boy’s lips trembled ‘ne he began crying before he answered. _ “He’s pretty bad, sir; in the hospital,’ he whispered, an -brokenly. ‘They think he’ll die! You see, his sweet- | heart, Miss Jennings, died the very day after I stole the money, and the two things, with his hard work, knocked poor Fred out completely.” “Was Miss Jennings his sweetheart?” asked Mr. Den! | ton in astonishment. This was a phase of that horror — that he had not even dreamed of. “Oh, yes, they were sweethearts,” said the boy, with a hysterical giggle. “They was awfully in love, but they couldn’t afford to get married.” oh Mr. Denton rose from his desk and paced the office floor. ‘The misery in the situation was even blacker than Le he had realized. Ae “See here, boy!" he said suddenly. “Give me your a _mother’s address, and here’s a ten- dollar bill for her, — _ Now, go home and take care of her.” The boy’s face flushed crimson as he refused the money. “TI wouldn’t dare to take it,” he muttered sheepishly. “She'd think I stole it.” : SOHN (G| ooo) Ss “Then Ill send it by mail,” said Mr. Denton 1 quickly, (Ee)