y sick a bed for a
day. Those rapscallions wouldn't leave a carpet on the floor! They'd
tear the house apart! I know! I've read about 'fresh-air children'
before."

"You might take the carpets up," suggested Dick, with a smile.

"What?" almost shouted Uncle Ezra. "Nephew Richard, there's carpets in
our house that hasn't been up for years. Why the spare room hasn't been
opened since sister Jane's funeral, and that was--let me see--that was
the year when Ruth Enderby got married. Take 'fresh-air children' into
our house! Why, we wouldn't have any house left at the end of the week."

"Oh, I guess not as bad as that," replied Mr. Hamilton, indulgently.
"But, of course, you know your own business best. I hope Mrs. Larabee
soon recovers."

"She may, but it was quite a shock," replied Uncle Ezra. "Well, I think
I'll go to bed. I must be up early in the morning. I came here to
transact a little business, and the sooner it's over the sooner I can
get back home. I'm afraid my hired man will burn too much kindling wood
starting the fires. He's the most wasteful man I ever saw." And, sighing
deeply at the depravity of hired men in general and his own in
particular, Uncle Ezra went to bed.

Dick offered to take him for a spin in the runabout the next day, but
his uncle declined, on the ground that there might be an accident.

"You might run somebody down and hurt them," he said. "Then they'd sue
you for damages and I'd be liable for a share. I haven't any money to
throw away on automobile accidents."

"All right," said Dick. "But I'm very careful."

"You can come walking with me instead," suggested his uncle. "You and I
ought to be friends. We may have to live together some day, you know,"
and he tried to smile, but it was only a forced grin.

"Not much!" thought Dick, as, with rather a heavy heart, he prepared to
accompany his uncle on the walk. "No, no, Grit, you can't go," he said,
as the dog jumped about in delightful anticipation, for he always went
with Dick. "You might bite Uncle Ezra," he added, as, much against his
wish, he chained Grit in the kennel. Dick could not bear to look back at
his pet, who gazed reproachfully after him.

Dick showed his uncle such sights as there were in Hamilton Corners. It
was a hot day, and, as they tramped along, Dick got quite thirsty.

"Come in here, Uncle Ezra," he suggested, as they passed a drug store,
"and we'll get some soda water."

"What? Pay for a drink of water?" asked