"'What do ye get for 'em ?' I asked.

"'Two dollars an' ten cents a barrel,' says he.

"The next time I went into Sam's store there were the same red
apples that came out o' that orchard in the northern part o' the
county.

"'How much are these apples?' I says.

"'Seven dollars a barrel,' says Sam.

[Illustration: Seven dollars a barrel.]

"'How is it that you get seven dollars a barrel an' only return two
dollars an' ten cents to the grower?' I says.

"Sam stuttered an' changed color. I'd been his lawyer for years,
an' I always talked plain to Sam.

"'Wal, the fact is,' says he, with a laugh an' a wink, 'I sold
these apples to my clerk.'

"'Sam, ye're wastin' yer talents,' I says. 'Go into the railroad
business.'

"Sam was kind o' shamefaced.

"'It costs so much to live I have to make a decent profit
somewhere,' says he. 'If you had a daughter to educate, you'd know