A father was one day sitting at dinner with his wife and his children, and a good friend, named Waldo, who had come on a visit ate with them.

It was striking twelve o'clock as they sat, and Waldo saw the door open. He saw a very pale boy-child dressed in snow-white clothes came in.

The boy did not look around, nor did he speak. Instead he went straight into the next room. Soon afterwards he came back, and went out at the door again in the same quiet manner.

On the second and on the third day, the boy came also exactly in the same way. At last Waldo asked the father:

"Who owns that handsome boy? He comes in through the door and goes into that room over there, but nobody takes a blind bit of notice."

"I have never seen him," said the father. "And, for the life of me, I can't think who he belongs to, either."

The next day when the boy in white again came, Waldo pointed him out to the father. The father was unable to see him, and the mother and the children also all saw nothing.

At this Waldo got up, went to the room door, opened it a little, and peeped in. There he saw the child sitting on the ground, busily digging and seeking about between the boards of the floor. Waldo took a step into the room, but a board squeaked under his foot. When the boy saw Waldo, he disappeared. Waldo now told what he had seen and described the boy exactly, and the mother recognized him, and said:

"Ah, it is my dear son who died a month ago."

They took up the boards and found two farthings.

"That's very odd," said the mother. "I gave my son two farthings once, to give to a poor man."

"Yes," added her other son. "I remember you doing that and my brother said, 'You can buy yourself a biscuit for that.'"

With a pale face and wide eye, the mother picked up the farthings.

"He must have hidden them in the openings between the boards."

"And he has had no rest in his grave, ever since," concluded the father.

The mother gave the coins to Waldo, saying, "Give this money at once to someone in need."

Waldo went out immediately and gave the two farthings to the first beggar he encountered.

Next day he dined once more with his friend's family, but he never saw the child again.


Based on The Stolen Farthings.