"Well, if I didn't steal it myself, one of my family did, so it amounts to the same thing. Come out here, you unprincipled girl, and beg the gentleman's pardon," she added, kneeling and dragging forth from under the bed a beautiful bird.

It was her own magpie, chattering and scolding.

"Now tell the gentleman who stole his watch? Speak up loud and clear!"

The bird flapped her wings, and cawed out very crossly:--

"Mag! Mag! Mag!"

"Hear her! Hear that!" cried her mistress. "So you did steal it, Mag--I'm glad to hear you tell the truth for once in your life."

"Did she take the watch? Did she really and truly?" cried the children in chorus.

"To be sure she did, the bad girl. She has done such things before, and I have always found her out; but this time she was too sly for me. She went and put it in my mending-basket; and who would have thought of looking for it there?"

Mag tipped her head to one side saucily, and kept muttering to herself.

"Well, I happened to go to the basket this afternoon and take up a pair of stockings to mend. They felt amazingly heavy. There was a hard wad in them, and I wondered what it could be. I put in my hand and pulled out the watch. Yes, 'twas tucked right into the stockings."

"I wonder we didn't any of us mistrust her at the time of it," said Mr.

Templeton; "those magpies are dreadful thieves."

"Well, I suppose you thought 'twas my business to take care of her, and it was. I'm ashamed of myself," said Mrs. McQuilken. "I was looking out of the window when the boys shied over that roof, but my mind wasn't on jewelry then. All I thought of was to run and call for help."

Yes, and it was her screams which had aroused the whole neighborhood.

"And at that very time my Mag was roaming at large. No doubt she saw the watch the moment it fell; and to use your expression, Mr. Templeton, she jumped at it like a dolphin at a silver spoon."

The landlord laughed. "But the mystery is," said he, "how she got back to the house without being seen. She must have been pretty spry."

"O Mag, Mag, to think I never once thought to look after you!"

exclaimed Mrs. McQuilken, penitently.

The bird was scolding all the while, and running about with short, jerky movements, trying her best to get out of the room; but the door was closed.

"Pretty thing," said Edith. "What a shame she should be a thief!"

"She is pretty, now isn't she?" returned her mistress, fondly. "My husband brought her from China. You don't often see a Chinese magpie, with blue plumage,--cobalt blue."

"She's a perfect oddity," said Mrs. Hale. "See those two centre tail-feathers, so very long, barred with black and tipped with white."

"Yes," said Mr. Dunlee, "and the red bill and red legs. She's a brilliant creature, Mrs. McQuilken."

"Well, you'll try to forgive her, won't you, sir? I mean to bring her up as well as I know how; but what are you going to do with a girl that can't sense the ten commandments?"

"What indeed!" laughed Mr. Dunlee.

"You see she's naturally light-fingered. Yes, you are, Mag, you needn't deny it. Those red claws of yours are just pickers and stealers."

Here Edith called attention to Mag's nest on the wall, and they all admired it; and Mrs. McQuilken said the canary liked to have Mag near him at night, he was apt to be lonesome.

"I wish you'd come in the daytime," said she. "Come any and all of you, and hear him sing. He does sing so sweetly, poor blind thing; it's as good as a sermon to hear him."

On leaving Mrs. McQuilken the children went to Aunt Vi's room and Jimmy kept repeating joyously:--

"We've found the watch, we've found the watch!"

"Yes," said Aunt Vi; "but what a wreck it is! Your papa will have to spend a deal of money in repairing it."

"Too bad!" said Lucy, "I 'spect 'twould cost him cheaper to buy a new one."

"'Twouldn't cost him so much; that's what you mean," corrected Jimmy.

"But I'm going to pay for mending it anyway."

"How can you?" asked Kyzie. "All you have is just your tin box with silver in it."

"Well, but don't I keep having presents? And can't I ask folks to stop giving me toys and books and give me money? And they'll do it every time."

"But that would be begging."

Jimmy's face fell. Yes, on the whole it did seem like begging. He had not thought of that.

"Why can't it ever snow in this country?" he exclaimed suddenly. "Then I could shovel it. That's the way boys make money 'back East'"

Then after a pause he burst forth again, "Or, I might pick berries--if there were any berries!"

"It's not so very easy for little boys to earn money; is it, dear?" said Aunt Vi, putting her arm around her young nephew and drawing him toward her. "But when they've done wrong--you still think you did wrong, don't you, Jimmy?"

"He knows he did," broke in Lucy. "My papa lent me the watch."

"She wasn't talking to you," remonstrated Jimmy. "Yes, auntie, I did wrong; but Lucy needn't twit me of it! I won't be _characteristic_ any more as long as I live."

Aunt Vi smiled and patted his head lovingly.

"No, dear, I think you'll be more thoughtful in future. But now let us try to think what can be done to pay for the watch."

"I'll let him have some of the money I get for teaching. I always meant to," said Kyzie.

"Very kind of you," returned Aunt Vi; "but we'll not take it if we can help it, will we, Jimmy? I've been thinking it over for some days, children; and a little plan has occurred to me. Would you like to know what it is?"

They all looked interested. If Aunt Vi had a plan, it was sure to be worth hearing.

"It is this: mightn't we get up some entertainments,--good ones that would be worth paying for?"

"And sell the tickets? Oh, auntie, that's just the thing! That's capital!" cried Edith and Kyzie. "You'd do it beautifully."

"I'm not so sure of that, girls. But we might join together and act a little play that I've been writing; that is, we might try. What have you to say, Jimmy? Could you help?"

"I don't know. I can't speak pieces worth a cent," replied the boy, writhing and shuffling his feet. "Look here!" he said, brightening.