Daddy Takes Us Skating

the automobile, as she glanced at what Hal and Mab had spread ou

as she put a funny pair of spectacles, on a stick, up to her

" answered Hal. "Daddy and us j

to can the tomatoes," explained Mab, for their father

on the first lady, "And how well

w pretty the red, green and yellow colors

carrots. They say carrot

tered on the funny stick-spectacles. The automobile had stopped and the chauffeur got down off

atoes?" asked the lady

to ask that price, which was what they were selling for at

arts, and you may keep the extra penny for yourselves," s

ould hardly put the three quarts of red tomatoes in the paper bags Daddy Blake had brought for them

put them in bags, and brought the money back to the children. The beans and carrots were

e auto had rolled away down the street, and h

," exclaimed M

t a man, walking along the street, bought a quart of tomatoes. Later on a li

d for her," said the lady, "but she says she doesn

like anything," comp

t," said Mab. "You'll like the

w," said the little girl.

bunches of carrots, in an hour, and now they began putting their store counter

ustomers stopped to buy things, but Aunt Lolly was near at hand,

tarted their store, and by noon they had sold everyth

pile of copper, nickle and silver coins in

d Mab. "We'll sell mo

"We must not take too much from our garden to sell. But you

we do with i

. "This is the first money you ever earned from your garden, and I want you to thi

s trick could be more wonderful than that. This money will pay for almost all the seed I bou

, the rain and sunlight, can take a tiny seed, no larger than the head of a pin, and make from it a great, big green tomato vine, that blossoms

ing things at their vegetable store. The little boy seemed to be wonde

ke children had sold all their things, and were moving their e

at he will d

from his father's garden," suggest

ng his potatoes so I guess Sammi

the sidewalk his little express wagon, in which he had piled some tomatoes. They were large, ripe ones, and he

ning out to him, "What are y

'em like you an' Hal. You want come my 'ma

all the tomatoes we

e one else would buy his vegetables. He wheeled his cart up n

dy," he said. "Peopl

tomatoes were. They may have thought he was only playing, and that hi

ther," suggested Mab to her brother.

eed. "Come on; he might get

y did not see Sammie's mother, but his father was do

Porter. "Did you come over to

u about Sammie," sa

little while ago, making believe hoe the weeds out of the potatoes. I don't

trying to sell to

ld him not to pick anything, but you

y saw Sammie seated on the ground near his express wagon, and he was

the world are doing

wer. "Nobody come to my store like H

stick, into this he was letting some of the tomato juice an

ur mother will say I don't dare guess! Here! Drop that tomato, Sammie! You've

r as his father picked him up. "I put see

gh Sammie was a queer sight. "Besides, I told you not to pick my tomatoes.

in the express wagon with what were left of the vegetables. Sammie had squeezed three

" said Mab as she and Hal told Daddy and M

be any lack. If each tomato, squash or pumpkin or if each bean or pea pod only had one seed in, that one might not be

ermelon or muskmelon. And nearly all of them are fertile

matoes, and each tomato may have a hundred seeds or more, and each of those seeds may be grown into a

with a laugh. "It's like the story

to us," said Daddy Blake. "The earth is a wonderful place. It i

they could spend more time in the garden with their mother, with Uncle Pennywait or Aunt

g to make your garden, a suc

on big farm

otatoes, the farmer runs a cultivator through the rows. The cultivator is like a lot of hoes joined together, and it loosens the dirt, cuts down the weeds and piles the soft, brown soil ar

t was fun to watch the things growing, to help them by hoeing, by keeping away the weeds and the bugs and worms, yet there was work in all

ab to pick as many of the ripe tom

e another store and

ce of the others," answered his mother. "In tha

nnywait, they had gathered several baskets full of the red vegetables. Then Aunt Lolly and Mother Blake made themselves busy in

that good!"

d next Winter!" la

t of our garden-the tomat

hile, when they had picked all t

u going?"

on's and have some fun

their uncle, and Hal and Mab were very glad to wait,

Blake family was awakened by the

se isn't on fire!" cried Aunt Lo

rted Hal, who had looked from the window of his

telegram?" asked Mr. Blake, as he, too, lo

n waited anxiously to hear