"Then you won't take me?" asked Peabody, sadly.
"Are you in debt to Captain Fletcher for board?"
Peabody reluctantly admitted that he was, but had no idea how much he owed.
"Fletcher tells me that he shall not trust you any longer."
Lawrence Peabody looked frightened.
"What shall I do?" he faltered. "I shall starve."
"You can't blame the captain; he knows that you spend the little money you do earn at the saloon. But he will give you a chance. There is no one to wash clothes in the camp, and we have all observed that you keep yours looking well. If you will set up a laundry, you can make more money than in any other way."
"But then I should be a common washer-woman," objected Peabody. "What would my friends in Boston say?"
"They won't hear of it. Besides, a man can do here what he would not do at home."
It may be stated here that Peabody, finding work absolutely needful, went into partnership with a Chinaman, who arrived at the camp a day or two later, and succeeded in making a fair living, which hitherto he had been unable to do. After he was employed, his visits to the saloon became less frequent. At times he was disturbed by the fear that his friends at home might learn the character of his employment; apart from this he found his new business, with the income it yielded, not distasteful.