"Alger Jr, Horatio - Ragged Dick" - читать интересную книгу автора (Alger Horatio Jr)

blacking, and he had set up in business on his own account.
But he had not energy enough to succeed, as has already been
stated, and I am afraid the poor boy had met with many
hardships, and suffered more than once from cold and hunger.
Dick had befriended him more than once, and often given him a
breakfast or dinner, as the case might be.

"How'd you get away?" asked Dick, with some curiosity. "Did
you walk?"

"No, I rode on the cars."

"Where'd you get your money? I hope you didn't steal it."

"I didn't have none."

"What did you do, then?"

"I got up about three o'clock, and walked to Albany."

"Where's that?" asked Dick, whose ideas on the subject of
geography were rather vague.

"Up the river."

"How far?"

"About a thousand miles," said Johnny, whose conceptions of
distance were equally vague.

Go ahead. What did you do then?"

I hid on top of a freight car, and came all the way without
their seeing me.* That man in the brown coat was the man
that got me the place, and I'm afraid he'd want to send me back."


* A fact.


"Well," said Dick, reflectively, "I dunno as I'd like to live
in the country. I couldn't go to Tony Pastor's or the Old
Bowery. There wouldn't be no place to spend my evenings.
But I say, it's tough in winter, Johnny, 'specially when your
overcoat's at the tailor's, an' likely to stay there."

"That's so, Dick. But I must be goin', or Mr. Taylor'll get
somebody else to shine his boots."

Johnny walked back to Nassau Street, while Dick kept on his