“I worked at school,” said I meekly.
“So I hear,” said he. “Now go to Mr Evans, and tell him you want a job.”
Whereupon my genial guardian quitted me. But he came back a moment after.
“Remember you are to be at the girls’ school at 2:30. Tell Miss Bousfield you are the little boy I spoke to her about, and mind you behave yourself up there.”
Was ever a young man in such a shameful disgrace?
Three days ago I had imagined myself everybody; two days ago I had at least imagined myself somebody; yesterday I had discovered with pain that I was nobody; and to-day I was destined to wonder if I was even that.
Mr Evans raised his eyebrows when I delivered my message to him.
“Are you the governor’s little ward,” he inquired, “who’s just finished his education? All right, my little man, we’ll find a job for you. Run up High Street and bring me the time by the market clock, and here’s a halfpenny to buy yourself sweets on the way.”
It occurred to me as odd that Mr Evans should want to know the time by a clock which was quite ten minutes’ walk from the office. Still, perhaps he had to set the office clocks by it, so I set off, wondering whether I ought to take the halfpenny, but taking it all the same.
I decided that the dignified course would be to buy the sweets, but to take them all back to him, so as to impress him with the fact that I was not as devoted to juvenile creature comforts as he evidently thought me.