When the teacher said: "I need somebody to help me out with this job of buying a grammar book. I've lots of things to do this week andI can't take care of everything. Is there anybody willing to help?”Francesca , who is a very generous , helpful girl, put her up hand immediately. "What do you want me to do?" she asked. " Something very easy but risky. You have to collect the money from your schoolmates and when the bookseller comes to bring us the books,you'll pay him. Do you feel like doing it?" "No problem, teacher" was the immediate answer. "Thank you very much, but remember you'll be responsible for quite a lot of money. Are you sure you want to do it?" "I did it last year for the Maths teacher and everything was OK."OK then, colllect 10 euros from each of your schoolmates in, let's say, a week's time."It took Francesca 10 days to collect all the money because somebody forgot to ask their parents and had to ask the following day.Then Francesca set the deadline and nobody forgot any longer. She was ready for the bookseller but for some reasons or other the bookseller kept postponing his coming.Then one day he arrived and knocked at the door. When Francesca saw him, she went pale. "What's the problem, Francesca?" asked the teacher."Have you spent all the money on clothes?" she added smiling. "I know nobody will ever believe me, but yesterday I threw the money away:" Some of the girls began to giggle, some looked very worried."You're joking, aren't you?" inquired the teacher, though there was something very serious on Francesca's expressive face. "No." She was very tense and looked like she was going to cry. "Yesterday, while going home from school, I was carrying the money in a folder. I had been bringing it to school and back so many times that I forgot I had it. It happened near the bus station. I was laughing and chatting with a friend. She gave me a sudden push and my folder fell to the ground. Before I had the time to pick it up,a bus arrived and ran over it. When I collected it, it was all muddy .Without thinking, I threw it into the dustbin next to the bus stop." Nobody thought Francesca was telling a lie. Something in her voice was very convincing. The teacher and the bookseller looked at each other. "I'll refund the money myself" said Francesca in a low but determined voice. Some of the students said that they would contribute too. Then the teacher had an idea. The school is situated very near the bus station. She asked Francesca if she could go to check the dustbin in case the money was still there.Then she asked the bookseller to accompany her there, as it was not possible for the teacher to leave her class alone. Fifteen minutes later they both were back. Francesca was all red in the face and excited. The bookseller was holding a dirty folder. Inside, all crashed but still usable,there was a bunch of banknotes.