company n b they don t even say send a stamped envelope said jim i wonder what it is yours is the best fist so you write to day and find out in due time when the row of had still further a letter arrived in the shabby house in street setting out full particulars of the new scheme the two boys read the circular with attention not much in it said they want us to take out a policy for our own keys likely when we ve got the as low as it is now that we shall spend a shilling of it in our own keys my keys he went on ha ha the key of my trunk the latch key the key of the shed where we keep our what have you got latch key answered jim house � two boxes � and my at the ah yes you re better off for keys than i am do you think you could get any shillings at the a little mystery i don t know i don t mind trying you see after all you get a very decent and i know a good many people of sorts in london people to whom a shilling wouldn t be much it s better than selling tea selling tea echoed yes one of the fellows at the out his living by selling tea and another one goes in for a special brand of ah you have the advantage over me said at the you fellows are all or at all events if you re not personal youve with one another excepting you old chap i never meet any fellow that i am on terms with you walk into an office in search of work you only see a few jack a doing watch dog and they re told to keep you and they do it but you know lots of people in town come now more than i do lots of people said bitterly do i well you know yes i know she must have a bunch of keys i she has you might as well ask her it s doing her a favour i don t like doing it said oh i don t see that if you want to live and you want to make money you must put your pride in your pocket otherwise there s nothing but a corner for it � until the begin to come in that is love and twenty well in the end the two friends went round on a sad little pilgrimage among the houses of their friends who were not very many nor very influential and at the end of the first week between them they had got twenty persons to take up the new this added a trifle to their a trifle that was indeed very welcome but so many people asked jim whether he had his own keys that he determined to do it on the principle that it was ridiculous to ask other people to take a precaution which you neglected yourself consequently he filled up in his own name one of the forms which he had induced others to accept during the past few days and on to his modest bunch of keys he slipped by means of the split ring it had attached a little bearing a number and the name of the royal company at poor old his thoughts ran as he played idly with the bunch of keys i don t wonder he hates it as he does he s so proud that comes of having a father on the council of india with eighteen and all that sort of thing and then after all coming down to live in a dingy street off the road and in the of that and to around among one s friends for a commission that brings one in a like this ah poor old chap i don t wonder he hates it so and then as he sat there some wandering devil of evil slipped into jim s heart a curious twisted ray of light seemed to shine in upon him he ejaculated that would be an easy way of making a few shillings of course it isn t quite a little mystery square but when your starving � it isn t like taking it from an individual it s no different to what they do on the stock exchange when they buy for a rise and sell a fall for some minutes jim sat staring at the reverse side of the on which an inscription ran thus any person finding this bunch of keys and taking it to the police station will receive five shillings reward by the company after of owner that was the beginning of a long course of deception it is not necessary for me to go into the actual details of how these two struggling boys managed to make money out of the royal company of suffice it to say that every week three or four of keys were lost and found within the area always a visit to a different police station it was no such great find in the way of but it did manage to keep two starving bodies and two ambitious souls together and for some time the royal company of continued to pay the five shillings reward without any question then a communication was received by jim saying that the company had noticed that a very large of his were unfortunate in losing their keys jim wrote back that he was sorry that it was true but his acquaintance was largely among the student class the company promptly withdrew the appointment but all the same for some weeks jim continued to of keys and to claim an reward and then one fine morning love and twenty came in triumphant having been appointed sub editor of a not very important weekly journal at a salary of twenty 