“But I shouldn’t like you to go down for me.”
“Why not?”
“You might fall,” said Dick.
“I shouldn’t like to do that,” said Will, smiling. Then in a thoughtful, gloomy way—“It wouldn’t matter much. I’ve no one to care about me.”
“How can you say that?” cried Dick sharply. “Why, your uncle seemed to think a deal of you.”
“He’s very kind to me,” said Will sadly; “but I’ve always been an expense to him.”
“Then,” cried Dick boldly, “you ought to be ashamed of yourself.”
“What—for being an expense to him?” said Will wistfully.
“No; because you couldn’t help that when you were a little fellow. Now you have grown, and are getting a big one, you ought to think of letting him be an expense to you, and you keep him. That’s what I’m going to do as soon as ever I get old enough.”
“That’s right,” said Will, looking at his companion thoughtfully. “I say, is your father going to open a mine down here?”