"All boys are not alike, Larry, and your father would not trust you unless he felt sure you would always be careful."
Larry could not rest at ease until he had assured himself that it was all right to leave Gid in charge of the works for the night; and, without telling his mother what his errand was, he went out to find Mr. Gardner, the superintendent.
The gentleman's house was half a mile distant and fully a mile from the shops.
Larry hurried thither. To his surprise, Belle, the superintendent's daughter, came to the door. She was a sweet-faced girl, a year or two older than Larry, although they had been in school together.
"I was just going out," she said, after greeting him, "and so I answered your ring. Did you wish to see my father?"
"Yes, if you please," Larry answered.
"Then you will have to wait, and I don't know how long. It was time for him to be here an hour ago, and he is usually punctual; but he hasn't come."
She noticed, the troubled look on his face, and asked, a trifle anxiously:
"Anything the matter, Larry?"
"I—I think not; but if he comes, you may tell him my errand. And I will go back, and perhaps I may meet him."