“Old Bangs saw me pass his shop, and he asked me to come in and said he’d give me ten cents if I’d do some sums for him.  I guess he’s pretty busy just now.  He said he’d give me ten cents every day till Christmas if I’d come in after school and do the sums.  His boy’s got mumps or something, and can’t.  There’s no harm in that, is there, father?”

“Harm!  I’m proud of you, my boy.  You’ll win through—­some day!”

It was the first relief from his misery the poor man had felt since he had read the letter about the overdraft in the morning.

“What I can’t understand is the rest of the money,” said Overholt.

Newton looked very uncomfortable again, and moved uneasily on his chair.

“Oh well, I suppose I’ve got to tell you,” he said, looking down into his plate and very busy with his knife and fork.  “Say, you won’t tell mother, will you?  She wouldn’t like it.”

“I won’t tell her.”

“Well”—­the boy hesitated—­“I sold some things,” he said at last, in a low voice.

“Oh!  There’s no great harm in that, my boy.  What did you sell?”

“My skates and my watch,” said Newton, just audibly.  “You see I didn’t somehow feel as if I were going to skate much this winter—­and I don’t really need to know what time it is if I start right by the clock to go to school.  I say, don’t tell mother.  She gave me the watch, you know, last Christmas.  Of course, you gave me the skates, but you’ll understand better than she would.”

Overholt was profoundly touched, for he knew what delight the good skates meant in the cold weather, and the pride the boy had felt in the silver watch that kept such excellent time.  But he could not think of much to say just then, for the sight of the poor little pile of dirty money that was the sordid price of so much pleasure and satisfaction half-choked him.

“You’re a brave boy,” he said in a low tone.

But Newton was indefinitely far from understanding that he had done anything brave; he merely felt much better now, because he had confessed and had the matter off his mind.

“Oh well, you see, something had to be done quick,” he said, “and I couldn’t think of anything else.  But I’ll go and earn that ten cents of Bangs every afternoon, you bet!  And I guess I can pick up a quarter at the depot now and then; that is, if you don’t mind.  It isn’t much, I know, but it’ll help a little.”

“It’s helped already, more than you have any idea,” said Overholt.

He remembered with bitter shame how he had completely broken down before his son that afternoon, and how quietly the lad had gone off to make his great sacrifice, pretending that he only wanted to see whether the pond was freezing.

“Well,” said Newton, “I’m glad you don’t think it was mean of me to go and sell the watch mother gave me.  And I’m glad you feel better.  You do feel a good deal better, don’t you?”