looked after his little roll of bills for a long time, and that some
of them might be missing. He crawled out of bed again, and felt inside
the lining of his coat for the purse. He had sewed it there for
safe-keeping until he reached the city, for he had some little change
in his pocket, which he knew would last him for several days.

The poor boy's hand felt nothing but a cut in the lining, where the
roll of bills had been, and all at once he realised that the money
must have been stolen from him. And he at once thought of the night in
the ruins, when he fell asleep among the tramps, and there was no
doubt in his mind but that they had taken his money from him. This was
a terrible blow. Here he was, with just a few cents in his pocket, and
no one to whom he could appeal for aid. It was the worst predicament
Archie had ever been in, and he hardly knew what to do. He sat on the
side of his dirty little bed for awhile, and then he snuggled under
the covers and was soon asleep again. For a boy who has been walking
all day seldom stays awake from worry.

But when he awoke in the morning, it was to realise the fact that he
must get some money this very day or go to the police station. The few
cents he had remaining were only enough to buy some coffee and bread
for breakfast, and the poor lad didn't know where his next meal would
come from. As he went out, the clerk in the filthy office of the
lodging-house told him that he needn't come back any more.

"Why did you tell him that?" asked the fat man with a sly face.

"Because I went through his clothes last night when he was asleep, and
he had only six cents in his pocket. We don't want no starvin' brats
around here, to bring the Gerry Society down upon us."