Mr. Burton went to the drawer and counted the money. It exceeded eight hundred dollars, for Tom had been doing a good trade that day. In fact, it was close upon a thousand.
He took out a hundred dollars in gold and handed it to Tom.
“Here, Tom,” said he. “I give you a hundred dollars. It will show you that I am not ungrateful.”
“A hundred dollars!” said Tom, in astonishment. “You give it to me?”
“Yes, I don’t know but I ought to give you more.”
“No, no,” said Tom hastily. “You are very generous. But I don’t think I ought to take it.”
“Then be guided by me and accept it. I give it to you freely. Without you I should have lost eight times the amount. You not only have done your duty faithfully, but you risked your life in doing it.”
“I suppose I did,” said Tom, “but I didn’t think of that at the time.”
“Take the money, then, and I hope it may be of service to you.”
“Thank you, sir. The money will be of service to me, and since you insist upon it, I will accept it.”