n
my feet, an' little by little I kind o' came to give the family a
standin'."

"I s'pose that's all right," said the father; "but I want you to
understan' one thing, an' understan' it so plain that you can't ever
make any mistake about it afterwards. When I put any money into your
hands to be used for anythin', it don't matter what, you must spend it
for that, or you must get an awful thrashin' when you come back home
again. Do you understan' me?"

The feeding motions of the eldest male of the Kimper collection of
children stopped for an instant, and Master Tom leered at his father as
he said,--

"Who's goin' to give the thrashin'?"

"I am, Tom,--your father is,--an' don't make any mistake about it.
He'll do it good an' brown, too, if he's to die used up right away
afterwards. This family is goin' to be decent from this time on; there
ain't to be no more thieves in it, an' any member of it that tries to
make it diff'rent is goin' to feel so bad that he'll wish he'd never
been born. Do you understan'? Don't go to thinkin' I'm ugly: I'm only
talkin' sense."

The cub of the family looked upward at his father from the corners of
his eyes, and then he clinched his fists and turned slightly in the
chair. Before he could do more, his parent had him by both shoulders,
had shaken him out of the chair, thrown him upon the floor, and was
resting upon him with both knees.

"Tom," said Sam to his astonished son, "you was the first boy I ever
had, an' I'd give away my right hand rather than have any real harm
come to you, but you've got to mind me now, an' you've got to do it
until you're of age, an' if you don't promise to do it now, right
straight along, from this time forth, I'll give you the thrashin' now.
That ain't all, either, you've got to be man enough to stand by your
dad an' say somethin to the fellers, an' explain that you're goin' to
stop bein' a town loafer, an' are goin' into decent ways."

Tom was so astonished by this demonstration of spirit that he made all
the desired promises at once, and was released.

But Tom was not the only juvenile member of the family who was in need
of reformation. Mary, little Mary, not far beyond twelve years of age,
demanded money to replenish her own wardrobe.

"Mary," said her father, "we're poor; we can't afford fancy fixin's.
This ain't very cold weather. You've good enough clothes on you to
keep you warm: what d'you want o' somethin' else?"

"What do I want o' somethi