A Terrible Mistake

I have been in the back bedroom up stairs all the afternoon, and I am expecting father every minute. Jt was just after one o'clock when he told me to come upstairs with him, and just then Mr. Thompson came to gei him to godowntown with him, and futher said i'd have to excuse him for a little while and don't you go out of that rom till I come back. So 1 excused him and he hasn't coiné back yet; but I've opened one of the pillows and .st-iffed my clothes full of feathers, and I don't care mueli how soon he comes back now. It's an awful feeling to be waiting up stairs for your father, and to knovv that you have done wrong, though you really didn't mean to do so much Wrong as you have done. I am willing to own that nobody ought to take anybody's clothes when he's in swiinming but anyhow they begau it first, and Í thought, just as much as could be that the clothes were theirs. The real boys that are to blame are Tom Wilson and Aiazi Willetts. A week ago Saturday Joe Ilamilton and I went in swimming down at the island. It's a beautiful place. The ïsland is all full of bushes, and on one side the water is deep, wnero the big boys go in, and on the other it is sigilo w, where we fellows that can't swim very much where the water is more thantwofeet deep go in. While Joe and I were swimming, Torn and Amzi came and stole our clothes, and put them in their boat, and carried them clear across to the deep part of the river. We saw them do it, and we had an awf ui time to get the clothes back and I taink it was just as mean. Joe and I said we'd get even with them, and I know it was wrong, because it was a revengeful feeling, but anynow we saicl we'd do it; and I doii't think revenge is so very bad when you don't hurt a fellow, and wouldn't hurt him for anything, and jast want to play him a triok that is pretty nearly almost quite innocent. But I don't say we did right, and when I've done wrong I'm always ready to say so. "Well, Joe and I watched, and last Saturday we saw Tom and Amzi go down to the island and go in swimming on theshallow side;so wewaded across and sneaked down araong the bushes, and after a while we saw two piles of clothes. So we picked them up and ran away with them. The boys saw us and made a terrible noise; but we sung out that they'd know how it feit to have your clothes carried off, and we waded back across the river, and carried the clothes to Amzi's house and hid them in his barn, and thought we'd got even with Torn and Amzi, and taught thera a lesson which would do them a great deal of good, and would make them good and useful men. This was in the morningaboutnoon, md when I had my dinner I thought I'd go and see how the boys liked swimming, and offer to bring back their dollies if they'd promisu to be goud friends. I never was more astonished in my life tlmu I was to find that they Were nowhtre near the island. I was beginniug to be afraid they'd buen drowneri, when I heard some men calling me, and I found Squire Meredith and Amzi Willets's father, who is a deacon, hiding among the bushes. They told me that some villians had .rtolen their clothes while they were in swirnming, and they'd give me fifty cents if I'd go up to tneir houses and get their wives to give me some clothes to bring' down to them. I said I didn't want the fifty cents, but l'd go and try to find some clothes for them. I meant to go straight up to Amzi's barn and to bring the clothes back, but on the way I met Amzi with the clothes m a basket bringing thein down to ihe island, and he suid: "Somebody's goin' to be arrested for stealiug father's and Squire Muredith's clothes. I saw the fellows that stole 'em, and I'm going to teil." You see, Joe and I had taken the wrong clothea, and Squire Meredith and Deacon Willet ts, who had been in svvimming on the deep side of the island, had been about tvvo hours trying to play they were Zulus, and didn't wear any clotlies, but they found it pretty hard work. Deacon Willetts came straight to our house, and told father that nis unhappy son- that's wliat he called me, and wasn't I unhappy, though- had stolen his clothes and Squire Mereditn's; but for the sake of our family hc wouldn't say very much about it, only if father thought best to spare the rod and spoil a child, he wouldn't be able to regard him as a man and a brother. So faMier called me and asked me if I had taken Deacon Willetts's clothes, and when I said yes, and was going to explain how it happened, he said that my conduct was such, and that I was bringing his gray hairs down, only I wouldn't hurt them for flfty mi Ilion dollars, and l've of ten heard him say he hadn't a gray hair in his head. And now I'm waiting up stairs for the awful moment to arrive. I deserve it, for they say that Squire Meredith and Deacon Willetts are mor'n half eaten up by mosquitos, and are conflned to the house with salt and water, and crying out all the time that they can't stand it. I hope the feathers will work, but if they don't, no matter. I think I shall be a missionary, and do good to the heathen. I think I hear father coming in the front gate now, so I must close. - Young People. England must stop producing great men or induce them to live forever, or enlarge Westminister Abbey, or erect their monuments somewhere else; for the distinguished dead of eight centuries have fllled the national mausoleum to almost its entire capacity