He walked westward till he reached Madison Avenue. A stage
approached, being bound downtown, and, feeling tired, he got in. The
fare was but five cents, and he was willing to pay it.

Some half dozen other passengers beside himself were in the stage.
Opposite Ben sat a handsomely dressed, somewhat portly lady, of middle
age, with a kindly expression. Next her sat a young man, attired
fashionably, who had the appearance of belonging to a family of
position. There were, besides, an elderly man, of clerical
appearance; a nurse with a small child, a business man, intent upon
the financial column of a leading paper, and a schoolboy.

Ben regarded his fellow-passengers with interest. In Pentonville he
seldom saw a new face. Here all were new. Our young hero was, though
be did not know it, an embryo student of human nature. He liked to
observe men and women of different classes and speculate upon their
probable position and traits. It so happened that his special
attention was attracted to the fashionably-attired young man.

"I suppose he belongs to a rich family, and has plenty of money,"
thought Ben. "It must be pleasant to be born with a gold spoon in
your mouth, and know that you are provided for life."

If Ben had been wiser he would have judged differently. To be born to
wealth removes all the incentives to action, and checks the spirit of
enterprise. A boy or man who finds himself gradually rising in the
world, through his own exertions, experiences a satisfaction unknown
to one whose fortune is ready-made. However, in Ben's present strait
it is no wonder he regarded with envy the supposed young man of