Page:Girls of Central High on the Stage.djvu/41

Rh Mr. Chumley rose up with a grunt and a groan; he had the purse and all the coins.

"Very careless! very careless!" he repeated. "And here is nearly a hundred dollars, madam. Think of carelessly carrying a hundred dollars in a silly purse like that! It is astonishing"

Mrs. Prentice had implanted a soft little kiss on Jess's forehead and shaken her a little playfully by both shoulders.

"Don't you bear malice, my dear," she whispered. Then she turned briefly to the old man.

"You're very kind, I'm sure," she said, taking the purse into which Mr. Chumley had crammed the money. "Thank you."

"Money comes too hard for folks to scatter it around," complained the landlord.

Mrs. Prentice seemed to be much amused. "I should be more careful, I suppose. I presume, now, I ought to count it to see if—if you gathered it all up, sir?" she added, her eyes dancing.

A little breath of red crept into the withered cheeks of the miserly old man. "Well, well!" he ejaculated. "One can't be too careful."

"I presume not," said the lady.

"And if the gal had known the money was there she might have been tempted, ye see."

Jess flushed again and Griff looked angry; but Mrs. Prentice said, coolly: