Jack's Ward; Or, The Boy Guardian by Jr. Horatio Alger (adventure books to read .txt) 📕

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JACK'S WARD OR THE BOY GUARDIAN BY HORATIO ALGER, JR.
1910

 

 

 

Contents BIOGRAPHY AND BIBLIOGRAPHY
 
CHAPTER I—JACK HARDING GETS A JOB
CHAPTER II—THE EVENTS OF AN EVENING
CHAPTER III—JACK'S NEW PLAN
CHAPTER IV—MRS. HARDING TAKES A BOARDER
CHAPTER V—THE CAPTAIN'S DEPARTURE
CHAPTER VI—THE LANDLORD'S VISIT
CHAPTER VII—THE NEW YEAR'S GIFT
CHAPTER VIII—A LUCKY RESCUE
CHAPTER IX—WHAT THE ENVELOPE CONTAINED
CHAPTER X—JACK'S MISCHIEF
CHAPTER XI—MISS HARDING'S MISTAKE
CHAPTER XII—SEVEN YEARS
CHAPTER XIII—A MYSTERIOUS VISITOR
CHAPTER XIV—PREPARING FOR A JOURNEY
CHAPTER XV—THE JOURNEY
CHAPTER XVI—UNEXPECTED QUARTERS
CHAPTER XVII—SUSPENSE
CHAPTER XVIII—HOW IDA FARED
CHAPTER XIX—BAD MONEY
CHAPTER XX—DOUBTS AND FEARS
CHAPTER XXI—AUNT RACHEL'S MISHAPS
CHAPTER XXII—THE FLOWER GIRL
CHAPTER XXIII—JACK OBTAINS INFORMATION
CHAPTER XXIV—JACK'S DISCOVERY
CHAPTER XXV—CAUGHT IN A TRAP
CHAPTER XXVI—DR. ROBINSON
CHAPTER XXVII—JACK BEGINS TO REALIZE HIS SITUATION
CHAPTER XXVIII—THE SECRET STAIRCASE
CHAPTER XXIX—JACK IS DETECTED
CHAPTER XXX—JACK'S TRIUMPH
CHAPTER XXXI—MR. JOHN SOMERVILLE
CHAPTER XXXII—A PROVIDENTIAL MEETING
CHAPTER XXXIII—IDA IS FOUND
CHAPTER XXXIV—NEVER TOO LATE TO MEND
CHAPTER XXXV—JACK'S RETURN
CHAPTER XXXVI—CONCLUSION

 

 

 

 

BIOGRAPHY AND BIBLIOGRAPHY

Horatio Alger, Jr., an author who lived among and for boys and himself remained a boy in heart and association till death, was born at Revere, Mass., January 13, 1834. He was the son of a clergyman; was graduated at Harvard College in 1852, and at its Divinity School in 1860; and was pastor of the Unitarian Church at Brewster, Mass., in 1862-66.

In the latter year he settled in New York and began drawing public attention to the condition and needs of street boys. He mingled with them, gained their confidence, showed a personal concern in their affairs, and stimulated them to honest and useful living. With his first story he won the hearts of all red-blooded boys everywhere, and of the seventy or more that followed over a million copies were sold during the author's lifetime.

In his later life he was in appearance a short, stout, bald-headed man, with cordial manners and whimsical views of things that amused all who met him. He died at Natick, Mass., July 18, 1899.

Mr. Alger's stories are as popular now as when first published, because they treat of real live boys who were always up and about—just like the boys found everywhere to-day. They are pure in tone and inspiring in influence, and many reforms in the juvenile life of New York may be traced to them. Among the best known are:

Strong and Steady; Strive and Succeed; Try and Trust; Bound to Rise; Risen from the Ranks; Herbert Carter's Legacy; Brave and Bold; Jack's Ward; Shifting for Himself; Wait and Hope; Paul the Peddler; Phil the Fiddler; Slow and Sure; Julius the Street Boy; Tom the Bootblack; Struggling Upward; Facing the World; The Cash Boy; Making His Way; Tony the Tramp; Joe's Luck; Do and Dare; Only an Irish Boy; Sink or Swim; A Cousin's Conspiracy; Andy Gordon; Bob Burton; Harry Vane; Hector's Inheritance; Mark Mason's Triumph; Sam's Chance; The Telegraph Boy; The Young Adventurer; The Young Outlaw; The Young Salesman, and Luke Walton.

 

 

 

 

JACK'S WARD

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER I JACK HARDING GETS A JOB

"Look here, boy, can you hold my horse a few minutes?" asked a gentleman, as he jumped from his carriage in one of the lower streets in New York.

The boy addressed was apparently about twelve, with a bright face and laughing eyes, but dressed in clothes of coarse material. This was Jack Harding, who is to be our hero.

"Yes, sir," said Jack, with alacrity, hastening to the horse's head; "I'll hold him as long as you like."

"All right! I'm going in at No. 39; I won't be long."

"That's what I call good luck," said Jack to himself. "No boy