The Secret Garden

for nearly a week o

at when its beautiful old walls shuther in no one knew where she was. It seemed almost likebeing shut out of the world in some fai

thought must be rather stupid. She had nointention of going to sleep, and,

d, but enjoyed it. She could run faster,and longer, and she could skip up

stress Mary had known it, they began to cheer upunder the dark earth and work tremendously. The sun couldget at

determined about,she was very much absorbed, indeed. She worked and dugand pulled up wee

r like a fascinat

ed to find. They seemed to be starting upeverywhere and each day she was sure

ulbs spreading and making new ones. These had been leftto themselves for ten years and perhaps they had spread,

it would be like when it was coveredwith thousands of lovely things in bloom.

by seeming to startup beside him

way if he saw her coming, so she alwayswalked toward him as silently as pos

e had been. He did not know that when shefirst saw him she spoke to him as she would have spokento a native, and had not known

to her one morningwhen he lifted hi

ee or which side tha'llcome from.""H

atherstaff. "Makin' upto th' women

he wouldn't do for

' his tail-feathe

answerMary's questions except by a grunt, but this morning hesaid more than usual. He

tha' been here

about a month,

to do Misselthwai

n' tha's not quiteso yeller. Tha' loo

on an uglier, sourer faced young 'un."Mary was not vain and as she

. "My stockingsare getting tigh

he lookednicer than ever. His red waistcoat was as glossy as satinand he flirted hi

ned to make Ben Wea

n was sa

Tha' can put up withme for a bit so

enin' up thy wais

s two weeks. I kno

ome bold young mad

robin on MisselMoor an' ready to fight all th'

idently in a fasci

fmore and more engagingly. He flew on to the nearestcurrant

ing not to look pleased. "Tha' thinks no one canstand out against thee--that's what tha' thinks."The robin spread his wings-

tood still as if he were afraidto breathe--as if he would not have stirred

rthly, tha's so knowin'."And he stood without stirring--almost without drawinghis breath--until the robin gave another flirt to hiswings and flew away

nto a slow grin now and then,Mar

arden of your o

plant?""Cabbages an' 'taters an' onions.""But if you wanted to make a flower garden," persisted Mar

like roses

d up a weed and threw it

Iwas gardener to. She had a lot in a place she was fond

notherweed and scowled at it. "That were as much as ten y

e soil, "'cording to what parson says.""What happened to

hemselves."Mary was b

es quite die when they arelef

to like 'em--an

Ben Weatherstaff a

ey run wild, but they wasin rich soil, so some of 'em lived.""When they have no leaves and

wait till th' sun shineson th' rain a

"How--how?" cried Mary,

' if tha' see a bitof a brown lump swel

e stopped suddenlyand looked curious

oses an' such, all of

r face grow red. She wa

ve a garden of my own,"she stammered

sn't."He said it in such an odd way that Mary wondered if hewas actually a little sorry for her. She had ne

seemed to be changin

t the secret garden, she s

questions as she dared. He answered everyone of them in his queer grunting wa

she was going awayand it reminded her of

ee those other ros

oints."He said it in his grumbling voice, and then quite suddenlyh

e!" he said sha

ions. Tha'rt th' wo

ever come a cross

t use in staying another minute. She wentskipping slowly down the outside walk, thinking him overand sa

n Weatherstaff. Ye

ed to try to make

e that he knew everything

e would slip round this walkand look into the wood and see if there were any rabbitshopping about. She enjoyed the skipping very much andwhen

opped to look at it. A boy was sittingunder a tree, with his back against

heeks were as red as poppies and never had Mistress Ma

heasant was delicately stretchinghis neck to peep out, and quite near him were two rabbitssitting up and sniffing with tremulous noses

nd and spoke to herin a voice almost

lowly that it scarcelyseemed as though he were moving at all, but at last hestood on his feet and then the squirrel scampered backup into the branche

own at first thathe was Dickon. Who else could have been charming rabbitsand pheasants as the nati

use if tha' makes aquick move it start

not speak to her as if they had never seeneach

nd she spoke to him a littlestif

Martha's lett

whyI come."He stooped to pick up something which h

rden tools. There'

good 'uns. There'sa trowel, too. An' t

one o' blue larksp

l you show the seed

if he liked herand was not the least afraid she would not like him,though he was only

and leaves about him,almost as if he were made of them. She liked it very muchand when she look

on this log and loo

his coat pocket. He untied the stringand inside there were ever so m

o' mignonette an'

sweetest smellin'

ver you cast it, s

'em,them's th' nicest of all." He stopped and turned

robin as is call

bush, bright withscarlet berries, an

ly calling us

e most natural thingin the world, "he

s sayin' `Here

f a chat.' There

herstaff's, but I think he kn

ee," said Dickon in

e bush with the slow movement Maryhad noticed before, and then he made a sound almost likethe robin's own tw

riend o' yours,"

o wantto know. "Do you think he really likes me?""He

an flout a body worsethan a man. See, h

emed as if it must be true. He so sidledand

nd everything bird

seemed all wide, red,curving mou

hey think I do," he sa

long. I've watched

rabbit, or a squirrel,or even a beetle, an' I don't know it."He laughed and came back to the log and began to talkabout the flower seed

d suddenly, turning

nds clutched each other as they lay onher lap. She did not know what to

And she felt as if she

o' garden, hasn't

t she had turned

nd as she still said noth

ve thee a bit?" he

her hands tighter and tu

ything about boys,

cret, if I told you on

t I should do if a

ie!" She said the last

hand over his rough head again, but he answered quitegoo

' other lads,secrets about foxes' cub

I cankeep secrets."Mistress Mary did not mean to p

den," she said very

goes into it. Perhaps everything is dead init already. I don't know."

t it and theydon't. They're letting it die, all shut in by itself,"she ended passionat

blue eyes grew ro

lamation out slowly,and the way he d

do," said Mary. "No

y justlike the robin, and they wouldn't take it from th

ontrary again, and obstinate, and she did not careat all. She w

and I'll show

ace. He felt as if he werebeing led to look at some strange bird's nest and mustmove softly. When she stepped to the wall and liftedthe hanging

e only one in the world who wants it to be alive."Dickon

hispered, "it is a

s if a body w