“Boys, I must request you to desist from this bickering,” said Allan Roscoe.  “I am sorry, Hector, that I cannot comply with your request.  By the way, you did not tell me where you were staying.”

“With a gentlman on Forty-second Street.”

“What is his name?”

“Andrew Ross.”

“Not the eminent merchant of that name?” asked Allan Roscoe, in surprise.

“Yes, I believe so.”

“He is worth a million.”

“I supposed he was rich.  He lives in an elegant house.”

“Where did you get acquainted with him, Hector?”

“At Saratoga, a year and a half ago.”

“Did you beg him to take you in?” asked Guy, unpleasantly.

Hector quietly ignored the question.

“Walter Boss and I have been very intimate, and I was invited to pay him a visit.”

“Does he know that you are a poor boy?” asked Guy.

“I have communicated to Mr. Ross what your father told me,” answered Hector, coldly.  “He is a real friend, and it made no difference in his treatment of me.  I hope to get a situation through his influence.”

“You are lucky to have such a man for a friend,” said Allan Roscoe, who would himself have liked to become acquainted with a man whose social position was so high.  “I hope you will not misrepresent me to him.  Should any opportunity occur, I will try to procure you employment.”

“Thank you, sir,” said Hector, but his tone lacked heartiness.  He saw that his being a visitor to Mr. Ross and his son had made a difference in his favor.  Guy, too, began to think he might be a little more gracious.  He, like his father, liked to associate with boys of high social position, and he would have liked to be introduced to Walter Ross.

“What is your number?” he asked of Hector, “I don’t know but I’ll call and see you some time.  Is Walter Ross generally at home?”

“Don’t put yourself to any inconvenience to call,” said Hector, significantly.  “Walter and I are generally away in the afternoon.”

“Oh, I don’t care to call upon you,” said Guy, annoyed.  “I can have all the company I want.”

“I won’t detain you any longer, Mr. Roscoe,” said Hector, realizing that the conversation had occupied considerable time.  “Good-morning.”

“That boy is as proud as ever,” said Guy, after Hector had left them.  “He doesn’t seem to realize that he has lost his money.”

“He has not had time to realize it yet.  It won’t be long before he will understand the difference it makes.”

“I am glad he isn’t my cousin,” continued Guy.  “I dislike him more than any boy I know.”

Allan Roscoe looked thoughtful.

“I fear that boy will give me trouble yet,” he said to himself.  “He evidently suspects that something is wrong.”

CHAPTER XXIX.

Jim Smith effects A Loan.