Peggy in Her Blue Frock

ought it was strange that small furry things and plants and vegetables should

use and got it ready for planting. It was still more exciting to watch their mother and the old gardener, as they planned where the different crops were to be. Mrs. Owen had made

and carrots, and, also, a great many tomato plants. Mrs. Owen was going to put up all the peas and beans and tomatoes that Mrs. Horton needed, as well as her jams and jellies. And she was going to put up vegetables, fruit, and be

Janet was getting on. One day Clara went with them, and she decided she must have Topsy just as soon as she was big enough to leave home

not a great many of them, but as Mrs. Horton and Mrs. Carter both wanted wild strawberry preserves, Mrs. Owen thought it best to get what she could from her own land. So one glorious June day she and the children started for the h

oing," said her mother. "Th

ing to make strawberry jam. Oh, mother, look at that squirrel, he ga

attend to

he time on such a sunshiny day. It is just

for me. I can't put up squirrels for m

Peggy and Alice were so interested that they went ou

strawberries," said their mother. "Rememb

nd lots of them," said Peggy. "

ven now I shan't have as much wild strawberry preserve as Mrs. Horton and

much nicer to keep the strawberry preserve for ou

keep out of

lled the 'cold-pack' process, whe

might go down to Diana's and see

ig," said Alice. "Can w

firmly. "I must get this pre

any that Mrs. Owen was glad of extra pickers. She proposed having a picnic and asking Miss Rand and Clara, and Diana and her brothers. Diana was much stronger now, and her father was going to take her to the picnic in his automobile. Mrs. Carter decided she would like to go, too, and so did her brother, who

if she had been a person. "Topsy, you are going to a very good home," he said. "Miss Rand is one who understands people like you, and so does Clara. You

n account of the preserving, but she was gett

igger, she will be running home j

t, with a shimmer to them, and Peggy's blue frock seemed a part of all the brightness of the day. Alice had on her yellow frock, and Diana was in green, and Clara in pink. It was almost too beautiful a day for them to stop and pick berries, P

ed to look at squirrels and birds. When Mrs. Owen examined the berries, however, she found some that were not ripe in Peggy's pail. Diana and Alice had both of them picked slowly, but carefully. Christopher had almost as many as Peggy, but his had to be gone over, and some unripe ones taken

na," said Mrs. Owen, "as Tom won't t

e pails. "Oh, mother has a lot more than anybody. Mother, you'll ha

had the fewest of all the grown people, for he had been building a fire

asted anything so good in her life as the bread and butter and hard-boiled eggs and crisp bacon. For dessert they had saucers

ain. Diana and Clara soon got tired, and Miss Rand fixed a comfortable place for them to lie down on the windo

blueberries as well as the quart pails. Peggy had never seen so many blueberries together in her life. The automobile

or a second load,

their Uncle Joe, "and I

by the short

can stow the r

, Diana was in front with her father, an

room for you in fron

lk down the hill with the boys and their

id her mother, "you

ther. I've been so tied down all day pi

a scamper," said Dr. Cart

a was to have a father and an uncle and two brothers. She raced down th

said Peggy, breathlessly, as she sank d

n you if I had trie

hy didn

rl and younger, I'd let you get a

g a girl. Just let's play I'm

ke you better the way you are," Christoph

e Joe, "we all like you

rl and make the best of it. But I do

for nieces. A lot of children I'm no relation to call me 'Uncle

would," said

she went to it. "Alice," she said, as she burst into the house, "Mr. Beal says we

Alice, "for he was so nice about Topsy, b