“‘The girls of Central High should be delighted, Mrs. Kerrick—and very grateful to you, indeed. Two hundred dollars! And a chance for any smart girl to win it!’—just like that. Now, Jess, you and I are both smart girls, aren’t we?” demanded Bobby, roguishly.
“We think we are, at any rate,” returned Jess, more eagerly. “Two hundred dollars! Oh! wouldn’t that be fine!”
“It would buy a lot of candy and ice-cream sodas,” chuckled Bobby.
But to herself Jess Morse thought: “And it would mean the difference, for mother and me, between penury and independence! Oh, dear me! is it something that I can do to earn two hundred dollars?”
And she listened to Bobby’s surmises about the mysterious prize without taking in half what the younger girl was saying. Two hundred dollars! And she and her mother did not have a cent. She looked up and saw the lights of the butter and egg store just ahead, and sighed.
“Well, old Molly-grubs, I’ve got to leave you here,” said Bobby Hargrew, pinching the arm of Jess. “You’re certainly down in the mouth to-night. I never saw you so before. I’d like to know what the matter is with you,” complained Bobby, and ran off in the rain.
Jess was heartily glad to get rid of her; and it was seldom that she ever felt that way about Bobby. Bobby was the double distilled essence of cheerfulness.
But Jess felt as though nothing could cheer her to-night but the finding of a big, fat pocket-book on the street—one that “didn’t belong to nobody!” There wasn’t such an object in sight, however, along the glistening walk—the walk that glistened in the lamplight from Mr. Vandergriff’s store.
She positively _had_ to try her luck at the butter and egg shop. The man could do no more than refuse her, that was sure.
But when Jess had lowered her umbrella and backed into the shop, she found several customers waiting at the counter. Mr. Vandergriff and his son, whom the boys called “Griff” and who played fullback on the Central High football team, were waiting upon these customers. Soon Griff was through with the man he was waiting on and came to Jess.
“What’s yours to-night, Miss Morse?” he asked, and was so cheerful about it that the girl’s heart rose. They didn’t owe Mr. Vandergriff such a large bill, anyway. The proprietor was waiting upon the lady who stood beside Jess as she gave her order to Griff. The lady was a very dressy person and she laid her silver-mesh purse on the counter between herself and Jess. The latter saw the glint of gold coins between the meshes of the purse and her heart throbbed. She moved quietly away from the lady. Wasn’t it wicked—seemingly—that one should have so much money, while another needed the very necessities of life?