"I suppose I did. But let's not talk about it. You weren't at school to-day."
"No."
"How did that happen?"
"Working."
"Working? How careless! I didn't know you ever did such a thing."
"Well," said Roy slowly, "this was a case of necessity, you see."
"Oh, you needed the money, eh?"
"No; it wasn't that, though I earned a dollar and a quarter helping shingle John Holbrook's barn. You see—my mother, she—she lost some money recently."
"Lost it?"
"Yes; lost it, or—or something," Roy replied stumblingly. "It wasn't much, but it was all she had. She'd saved up a little at a time to buy material for a new dress."