Indeed, she made it a point to be as economical as
possible, for she thought it likely Robert would spend all his money,
and return penniless. She had received no letter from him since the one
announcing his being about to sail for Calcutta, and this made her
naturally anxious. But Mr. Paine assured her that letters were likely to
be irregular, and there was no ground for alarm. So she waited with what
patience she could till Robert should return, hoping that by some
strange chance he might succeed in his quest, and bring his father back
with him.
Meanwhile, fortune had improved with Mr. Davis, the superintendent of
the factory. He had lost largely by speculation, but had blundered at
last into the purchase of a stock in which some interested parties had
effected a corner. It went up rapidly, and on the morning when we
introduce him again to the reader he was in high good spirits, having
just received intelligence from his broker that he had cleared seven
thousand dollars by selling at the top of the market.
"Another cup of coffee, Mrs. Davis," he said, passing his cup across the
table.
Seeing that his father appeared in good humor, Halbert ventured to
prefer a request, which, however, he had little hope of having granted.
"Have you seen Will Paine's pony?" he said, paving the way for the
request.
"Yes," said his father; "I saw him on it yesterday.
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