Struggling Upward | Page 6

you ask me, mother, I am obliged to say that I do."
"It was a very mean trick!" said Mrs. Larkin, resentfully.
"Yes, it was; but poor Tom was well punished for it. Why, he's got a
bunch on the back of his head almost as large as a hen's egg."
"I don't pity him," said Mrs. Larkin.
"I pity him, mother, for I don't believe Randolph will repay him for the
service done him. If Randolph had met with the same accident I am not
prepared to say that I should have pitied him much."
"You might have been seriously injured yourself, Luke."
"I might, but I wasn't, so I won't take that into consideration. However,
mother, watch or no watch, I've got a good appetite. I shall be ready
when supper is."
Luke sat down to the table ten minutes afterward and proved his words
good, much to his mother's satisfaction.
While he is eating we will say a word about the cottage. It was small,
containing only four rooms, furnished in the plainest fashion. The
rooms, however, were exceedingly neat, and presented an appearance
of comfort. Yet the united income of Mrs. Larkin and Luke was very
small. Luke received a dollar a week for taking care of the schoolhouse,
but this income only lasted forty weeks in the year. Then he did odd
jobs for the neighbors, and picked up perhaps as much more. Mrs.
Larkin had some skill as a dressmaker, but Groveton was a small
village, and there was another in the same line, so that her income from
this source probably did not average more than three dollars a week.

This was absolutely all that they had to live on, though there was no
rent to pay; and the reader will not be surprised to learn that Luke had
no money to spend for watches.
"Are you tired, Luke?" asked his mother, after supper.
"No, mother. Can I do anything for you?"
"I have finished a dress for Miss Almira Clark. I suppose she will want
to wear it to church to-morrow. But she lives so far away, I don't like to
ask you to carry it to her."
"Oh, I don't mind. It won't do me any harm."
"You will get tired."
"If I do, I shall sleep the better for it."
"You are a good son, Luke."
"I ought to be. Haven't I got a good mother?"
So it was arranged. About seven o'clock, after his chores were
done--for there was some wood to saw and split--Luke set out, with the
bundle under his arm, for the house of Miss Clark, a mile and a half
away.
It was a commonplace errand, that on which Luke had started, but it
was destined to be a very important day in his life. It was to be a
turning-point, and to mark the beginning of a new chapter of
experiences. Was it to be for good or ill? That we are not prepared to
reveal. It will be necessary for the reader to follow his career, step by
step, and decide for himself.
Of course, Luke had no thought of this when he set out. To him it had
been a marked day on account of the skating match, but this had turned
out a disappointment. He accomplished his errand, which occupied a
considerable time, and then set out on his return. It was half-past eight,
but the moon had risen and diffused a mild radiance over the landscape.

Luke thought he would shorten his homeward way by taking a path
through the woods. It was not over a quarter of a mile, but would
shorten the distance by as much more. The trees were not close together,
so that it was light enough to see. Luke had nearly reached the edge of
the wood, when he overtook a tall man, a stranger in the neighborhood,
who carried in his hand a tin box. Turning, he eyed Luke sharply.
"Boy, what's your name?" he asked.
"Luke Larkin," our hero answered, in surprise.
"Where do you live?"
"In the village yonder."
"Will you do me a favor?"
"What is it, sir?"
"Take this tin box and carry it to your home. Keep it under lock and
key till I call for it."
"Yes, sir, I can do that. But how shall I know you again?"
"Take a good look at me, that you may remember me."
"I think I shall know you again, but hadn't you better give me a name?"
"Well, perhaps so," answered the other, after a moment's thought. "You
may call me Roland Reed. Will you remember?"
"Yes, sir."
"I am obliged to leave this neighborhood at once, and can't
conveniently carry the box," explained the stranger. "Here's something
for your trouble."
Luke