“It’s Abel Wood. Abel Wood is every mite as big and strong as you are, and he come round last evenin’ and said he’d work for two dollars and a quarter a week.”
“I couldn’t work for that,” said Chester.
“I don’t mind bein’ generous, considerin’ you’ve been working for me more than a year. I’ll give you two dollars and a half. That’s twenty-five cents more’n the Wood boy is willin’ to take.”
“Abel Wood doesn’t know anything about store work.”
“I’ll soon learn him. Sitooated as I am, I feel that I must look after every penny,” and Mr. Tripp’s face looked meaner and more weazened than ever as he fixed his small, bead-like eyes on his boy clerk.
“Then I guess I’ll have to leave you, Mr. Tripp,” said Chester, with a deep feeling of disgust and dismay.
“Do just as you like,” said his employer. “You’re onreasonable to expect to get high pay when business is dull.”
“High pay!” repeated Chester, bitterly. “Three dollars a week!”
“It’s what I call high pay. When I was a boy, I only earned two dollars a week.”
“Money would go further when you were a boy.”