“And we are fifty miles from Boston. Won’t it cost a good deal to go there?”

“No; there is a rivalry between the steamboat lines and the fare has been put down to one dollar.”

This statement, which may surprise some of my readers, was strictly correct. For a short time, some years ago, it was possible to travel between these two cities for this small sum.

“It will cost a dollar and a quarter to get to Boston from here.”

“I know it.”

“Are you well provided with money, Ben?”

“Not very.”

“Then I tell you what I’ll do. I’ll lend you five dollars.”

“But how do you happen to have as much, Albert?”

“You know I rode as a jockey at the last agricultural fair. I was to get ten dollars if I succeeded in winning the race, and you know I did win.”