noon
His scanty clothing scarcely afforded any protection from the cold , and his hands soon became so numb that he could scarcely use them ; but , if he stopped one moment to rap them , or breathe upon them , in the hope of imparting some warmth , the farmer who was close at hand , in warm woollen clothes and thick husking gloves , would call out , `` Hurry up , hurry up , my boy ! no idle bread must be eaten here ! '' And bravely did Johnny struggle not to mind the cold and pain , but it would not do ; he began to cry , when the master , who never thought of exercising anything but severity towards those who laboured for him , told him sternly that if he did not stop his bawling in a moment , he would send him home . This was enough for Johnny ; anything was better than to go back and be a burden on his mother ; he worked to the best of his ability until noon . At noon , he managed to get thoroughly warm , behind the stove , while eating his dinner . Still , the sufferings of the child , with his insufficient clothing , were very great ; but nobody seemed to think of the _ hired boy _ being an object of sympathy , and thus it continued . The rule seemed to be to get all that was possible out of him , and his little frame was so weary at night , that he had hardly time to feel rested , until called with the dawn to renew his labour .