Willie's eyes gleamed with delight, but all he could say was, "Oh, Bob!"
The little fellow proved a splendid salesman. However ragged his clothes might be, his face was always clean, for the boys never missed their morning wash in Trafalgar Square, and he found several customers, who were attracted by his bright face and cheery voice as he called out "Box o' lights, sir! box o' lights!" and his happiness reached its height when he was able to put into Bob's hand quite a heap of pennies, the result of his morning's efforts.
When the evening came they made their way back to the lodging-house, buying, on their way, half a loaf and some cheese to take in for their supper. Bob had a good day himself so that he had managed to save threepence towards paying back the sixpence their kind friend had lent them in the morning, and it was with a face flushed with pride that he offered it to her.
"No, laddie," she said; "wait until you can afford it better."
"Please take it," he urged. "We've done well to-day, Willie and me."
So Mrs. Blair took the money, but she insisted on their lying down in a corner of her room, instead of going into the common kitchen.
"And you must come every night," she said. "I've been thinking to-day that if I had a little boy of my own I should like one with a face like Willie's. Bless him!" And the kind woman kissed the child tenderly.
"That was nice," said the child. "Nobody ever did that afore."
So the two children were always sure of a shelter for the night. Sometimes they were gone in the morning before Mrs. Blair was about, but if not, she always put fresh water into her tea or coffee-pot and gave them a hot drink. She was a very poor woman herself and it was as much as she could do for the little ones. But she did it gladly.