- Tom's mother drives him to town on the way to one of her cleaning jobs. He goes to the mill and asks for a job.
- He's nervous but determined. Just like a good hero.
- Mr. Ackerman at the feed mill hires Tom for twenty-five cents a day (cha-ching!). Since Tom is so young and has no experience, he says they'll try the situation out for a week and then decide whether to keep the kiddo permanently.
- Tom starts that day. A man named Ox shows him how to bag the meal and grain.
- Doesn't school sound like a step up from scooping grain into bags?