From Farm to Fortune | Page 5

Nat's room.
"Asleep, jest as I thought," he told himself, after listening to the boy's
breathing. Then he peeped into the room, to behold Nat lying under the
cover of the bed, with his face turned to the wall.
"I'll give him another talkin' to in the mornin'," the farmer told himself;
and then retired, with no thought of what was going to happen before
the sun arose upon another day.

CHAPTER III
NAT LEAVES THE FARM
Farmer Balberry was mistaken; Nat was not asleep, nor was there any
thought of sleep in the boy's mind.
The youth had not even gone to bed. He had been sitting on a chair by
the open window when he had heard his uncle coming upstairs, and to
deceive his relative had jumped into bed and pulled the blanket up over
him.
When Nat was thrust up the stairs his mind was in a tumult. He felt that
his uncle was not treating him fairly--and he wanted his supper very
much.
It is bad enough to have a real grievance of any kind--it is worse when
one must bear it on an empty stomach. As he made his way to his room
the boy was in a savage humor and fit to do almost any deed.
"Uncle Abner is getting worse every day!" he muttered to himself. "He
treats me worse than I would treat a dog!"
Sitting by the open window Nat thought of many things--of the death of
his parents, and of the taking off of his aunt--and of how his miserly
uncle had treated him ever since.
"It's not fair!" he told himself, over and over again. "Uncle Abner
doesn't believe in giving a boy a fair show. I wish I lived with
somebody else."
The more he thought over the situation the more he felt that he ought
not to stand such treatment. He felt that he was entitled to his supper,
and also to some spending money if not to regular wages. At the
present time he had not a cent in the world.
"If I had a few dollars I might strike out for myself," he reasoned. "But
I haven't even a few cents. Wonder how I could raise a few dollars?"

As said before Nat's worldly possessions were few. In his room he had
some trinkets from home and also an old silver watch which had
belonged to his father.
"I might sell the watch," he thought, but then decided that it would be
best to keep the heirloom.
Then he thought of Jennie, the white and brown cow. As a calf she had
been given to Nat by his mother, and she was now a part of the herd on
the Balberry farm.
"Jennie ought to be worth twenty or twenty-five dollars," he said to
himself. "That's a pile of money, for a start. Wonder how I could
manage to sell her?"
Thus speculating, Nat gradually drifted around to the point where he
decided that he would leave the farm at once. He had told his uncle that
he wanted his supper or he would not work for the man any more, and
he meant to keep his word.
By the time all was quiet around the house and he was certain both the
housekeeper and his uncle had retired, Nat had settled just what he was
going to do.
Making no noise, he slipped off his working clothes and put on his best
suit--something just a trifle better than the others. He also donned a
clean shirt and collar and necktie and got out his best hat and shoes.
Then, with his other possessions wrapped in a small bundle, and with
his shoes under his arm, he tiptoed his way out of the bedchamber,
along the hall, and down to the lower floor of the farmhouse.
Nat knew exactly where Mrs. Felton kept the things to eat, so it was not
necessary for him to light a lamp. The use of a match revealed as much
as he wanted to know, and in a short time he was devouring what was
left of the fish and also some bread and butter and a generous quarter of
a cherry pie, which the housekeeper had insisted upon baking the day
before, somewhat against Abner Balberry's will, for the farmer would
rather have sold the cherries at the store.

His meal finished, Nat hesitated for a moment, and then got out an old
newspaper. Into this he wrapped half a dozen slices of bread and butter,
along with a bit of cheese and two rather stale doughnuts.
"They'll come in handy for breakfast, along with an apple or two," was
the way he reasoned. "Especially if I don't happen to sell the cow."
The boy's next move was to leave