d he chose this way to impress upon him the
immorality of the transaction. He concluded, however, to give him an
opportunity to make a voluntary restitution, and so no further
reference was made to the matter.

Oscar was wise enough to heed the warning. Before night, the brass
dog-collar and the ivory pocket-comb were returned to their rightful
owner.

CHAPTER XII.

SICKNESS.

"You have got a bad cold, Oscar," said Mrs. Preston one evening towards
the close of winter, as Oscar came in from his play, and was seized
with a coughing spell. "And no wonder," she added, on glancing at his
feet; "why, do you see how wet the bottoms of your pantaloons are? I
should like to know where you have been, to get so wet--it is strange
that you will not keep out of the water."

"I should like to know how anybody could help getting wet feet this
weather, with the slosh up to your knees," said Oscar.

"I could walk about the streets all day without going over my shoes,"
replied his mother, "and so could you, if you tried to. I believe you
go through all the mud-puddles you can find, just to see how wet you
can get. But it won't do for you to sit down in this condition. Take
off your wet boots, and run up stairs and put on a pair of dry
pantaloons and some dry stockings, and then you may sit down to the
fire and warm yourself."

"I don't want to change my pantaloons and stockings," said Oscar; "I
'll take off my boots and dry myself--that will do just as well."

"No it won't," replied his mother; "you had better change your clothes,
for you've got a real bad cold now, and I don't want you to get any
more. Come, do you hear me? Run up to your chamber and put on some
dry clothes."

Oscar paid no attention to the command, but after removing his wet
boots, sat down before the range to dry his feet and legs. Such
instances of disobedience were too common in the family to attract any
special notice, and Mrs. Preston said nothing more about the matter.

Oscar, that afternoon, had been down to the shores of Charles River,
near Cambridge Bridge, with Alfred Walton and several other boys. They
had been amusing themselves upon the ice that had formed along the edge
of the river, and which was now breaking up. They loosened some of the
large cakes, and set them floating off upon the current towards the
ocean. It was in this way that Oscar got his feet so wet.

The next afternoon, when school was dismissed, Oscar, forge