once did it occur to him that even if the reports had been true, he would
not have been to blame. No one was accusing him of not doing his duty. It
was evident that he was doing all he could. Nor did he stop to consider
that to the minds of the people it was inconsistent that he, a boy of
fourteen, should be supporting a family of six. He took the whole insult
upon himself, writhing under the humiliation. He was half tempted to give
up trying to care for the children. It looked as if failure was all he
could expect.

But determined persistence was one of Austin's strong points, and he set to
work to investigate the origin of these reports, and when he found their
source, a new difficulty was presented and a real cause for concern made
bare. Austin was gone all day long, being at home but a few moments at
noon. The children, when not in school, found the house lonely and dull.
They had no one to direct their efforts nor to control their impulses, so
they came and went as they pleased. Austin had not thought of this
difficulty, for till now they had lived in the country.

One of their neighbors had children about the age of the Hill children, and
the two families played together much of the time. Amy and Nell, as well as
the younger children, had formed the habit of gadding about among the
neighbors, being at home very little. They were especially often found in
the kitchen of this near neighbor, and, as one can easily see, the cooking
of this woman would taste better to them than what they prepared at home
themselves, and they were always glad for anything to eat they could get.
This woman noticed the tendency of the children to seize upon any bit of
food offered them, and formed her own conclusions. She was a woman who
liked excitement, especially the kind caused by gossip, and, going about
among the neighbors, she had circulated the reports which finally reached
the officer with the result we have just heard.