tained his neighbor's goods, he must fully compensate him.
2. If he did it unknowingly and unwillingly, he must, as soon as he comes to know that it is another man's property, restore all that is still left and as much more as his wealth has increased by it.
In the former case, full restitution must be made not only of the things stolen, or, if they are gone, of their value, but also of that which, in the meantime, they have produced; those expenses, however, being deducted which even the owner would not have been able to avoid. And, in general, the owner must be compensated for all the profits which he has been deprived of, and for all the losses he has suffered. In the latter case, we are bound to restore all that which, after deducting the expenses, is still remaining of the ill-gotten goods and of their produce, and, in general, as much as, by their possession and temporary use, we have become the richer.
11. To whom must restitution of the ill-gotten goods be made?
To the owner or to his heirs; but if this be not possible, they must be given to the poor or be appropriated to religious and charitable purposes.
12. What must they do who cannot immediately make restitution?
They must sincerely have the intention of doing so as soon as they can; and, in the meantime, they must employ all reasonable means to enable themselves to perform this duty.
13. What should we bear in mind in order to guard against stealing, or against neglecting to make restitution?
1. That death will at length wrest the ill-gotten goods from us, and perhaps sooner than we expect; 2. That the stolen property will bring us, not happiness and blessing, but misfortune and malediction, uneasiness and a miserable end;1 and 3. That there is no greater foolishness than to forfeit Heaven for the perishable things of
