8o
over ; he hastily piled it up again. Then he put
his hand in his pocket to return the one guilder to
the pile, but he heard the step into the shop creaking,
he left the guilder lying on a corner of the table.
He couldn't walk away, his uncle came into the room.
When the lamp was lighted, he saw that his uncle
was looking at the guilder that lay so far away
from the pile, but he picked it up and said nothing.
Floris wanted to tell him what he had done, but the
words stuck in his throat. He went out of the room.
When he was undressing, he cried in the dark and
he saw the eyes that had looked at him in the lamp-
light. He told himself that he was a sneak, but
that tomorrow he would confess everything. There
would be severe punishment, for, although he had
thought better of it on this occasion, he would have
to confess that on other occasions he had actually
done it, but he would prefer the worst punishment
to having it always on his mind.
The next morning Uncle Gerbrand was busy, so
he had to wait until the evening. And when it was
dusk he was standing in the parlour again by the
table where the money-tray stood. Again Weren-
donk had left the room for a moment. He waited ;
he heard Stien, busy with her pails, singing in the
yard. His hand stretched out towards the tray, his
fingers picked up a ten-cent piece, but let it drop
again ; he told himself he was doing it to prove to
himself that he didn't need to take anything if he