Oscar / The Boy Who Had His Own Way

evious; but there was little chance for him to join them in their walks on that day. He could not absent himself from church or the Sunday-school

the house slyly, while his father was upstairs, and walked around to Alfred's. But he saw nothin

m, they were trying to persuade Alfred to stay away from school, and accompany them in their rambles. They immediately extended the same invitation to Oscar. Both he and Alfred felt very much inclined to accede to their proposition, but they were pretty sure that it would be usele

anage so that nobody will know it; and if they should find it out, it won't make any difference a hundred years hence. Come

e chances of detection were much greater than with Alfred. No brothers of the latter attended school, to notice and report his absence. With Oscar, the case was different, and he did not see exactly how his trua

imate terms with Oscar and Alfred. He threw off every restraint, and laughed and talked with them just as if they were old acquaintances. One thing very noticeable about him, was his profanity. Neither Alfred nor Oscar, I am sorry to

her. Though sociable, he was less gay and more reserved than Joseph, but he s

d Joseph, as he passed along, boldly helped himself from one of the boxes, taking a good hand-full of walnuts. On looking around, a moment after, he saw a man running up the cellar steps, and concluded that he, too, had better quicken his pace. He accordingly started on a brisk run,

s n't it?" said Joseph, after they h

; "and it was lucky for you

ou suppose he w

aling, I guess, for he looked mad e

ool to make such a fuss about a ce

sugar from one of these stands, and his father had to

d Joseph; "I 'd have gone to ja

-it was his father that pa

ss; as though he really believed that somebody was to blame, not for stealing

Oscar and Alfred pointed out to the strangers the various objects of interest, and they then continued their walk without interruption until they reached the Monument grounds, on Bunker Hill. After examining the nobl

the extent of the yard, and the air of order and neatness which seemed everywhere to prevail. They gazed with curiosity upon the long rows of iron cannons interspersed with pyramids of cannon-balls, piled up in exact order, which were spread out upon the parks. Then their wonder was excited by the dry-dock, with its smooth granite wa

n of a ship, two years before, and had never been heard from. He had rich relatives, who wanted him to go to West Point and be a cadet, but he did not like to study, and had persuaded them

m which Joseph had stolen the nuts. With all his pluck and bravery, he did not

upon any satisfactory plan. The more he reflected upon the matter, the more he was troubled and perplexed about it. He might possibly hide his mis-spent forenoon from his parents, but how should he explain his

dinner, Oscar?" said Alfred,

some hesitation; "I 'll s

d to go to school this aftern

but as neither of them spoke of his absence from school, he concluded that

n his mind, that he had decided not to absent himself from school in the afternoon. He h

we 've been taken in n

do you mean?"

camps that we 've been

ries," said Oscar; "but what h

derstanding the order, accompanied them. They found two men seated there, the sight of whom seemed anything but pleasant to Joseph and Stephen. These men were their fathers-for the boys were not brothers, and Joseph's account of their past life and future prospects was entirely false. They had run away from home, and the money which they had so

is story, "I did n't believe all that boy said,

d n't expect his father's ship would arrive s

went off with them in the

e told me I must go to school this afterno

nt would be greatest, if they should frankly confess how they had been duped and led astray by the young rogues whose acquaintance they had so suddenly and imprudently formed. They supposed that the peculiar circumstances of the case, cou

of the runaways, and was evidently pleased that he had so frankly confessed his fault. As the hour for commencing the afternoo

a lesson to them hereafter. They should not form sudden acquaintances with strange and unknown boys, but should choose their associates from among those whom they knew to be of good habits. He also earnestly cautioned them against yielding to the enticements of those who would persuade them to do wrong. He told them that whenever they laid the

of admonition that might have proved far more feeling and affecting, if not more salutary, than the kindly-meant reproof which had been administered to them. The leniency of the teacher, however, must be attrib