"I know not; you must ask him," replied Mrs. Preston.

The same question, put to Oscar, brought from him a reluctant
confession of the last night's folly. When he had concluded, the
doctor arose, and taking his hand, said:

"I will bid you good-bye. It's of no use for me to attend upon you any
longer, if you abuse my confidence in this way. If you want to kill
yourself I won't stand in your way. Good morning."

Before Oscar recovered from his astonishment, the doctor had reached
the entry. Addressing his mother who was following him, he said:

"Call him back, mother--tell him I won't do so again--call him back."

The doctor heard the message, and returned.

"I will consent to prescribe for you only on one condition," he said;
"and that is, that you will agree to do precisely as I tell you to.
You must take the medicines I order, and eat only what I tell you to,
or I will have nothing more to do with you. Do you agree to that?"

"Yes, sir," replied Oscar.

The doctor resumed his seat, and felt the patient's pulse. He had not
yet got entirely over his irritation, and, turning to Mrs. Preston, he
remarked:

"If the patient was a little stronger, my first prescription would be a
smart external application of birch or ratan; but, as it is, we shall
have to omit that for the present. You need not think you will escape
punishment, however," he continued, turning to Oscar. "This scrape of
yours will put you back more than one week and if you are not careful
you may never get your health again. You may trifle with the doctor,
but you can't trifle with the lung fever."

The doctor then gave directions as to Oscar's diet and medicine, and
departed, but not until he had again warned him against leaving the
room without his mother's consent, or eating any articles forbidden by
her.

Oscar found no opportunity after this to evade the commands of the
doctor, had he been so disposed, for some one was always with him by
day and night. Still, his recovery seemed to have been checked very
much by his relapse, and the doctor's skill was taxed pretty severely
to bring the fever to a favorable termination. As it was, his attempt
was not fully successful; for the fever, in spite of all he could do,
left behind it a cough, and a weakness of the lungs, which gave Oscar's
parents no little alarm at times.

For a fortnight after his midnight supper, Oscar allowed his mother and
the doctor to do just as they pleased wit