268 FIVE ACRES TOO MUCH. 



promise in a prominent place in the front beds, and 

 watched with tender care till they came up. A pale, 

 delicate, juicy little spear, guarded by its two seed- 

 lobes, pushed its way above ground, where it seemed 

 ill suited to battle with the breeze and brave the sun, 

 that threatened to break or consume it. My solici 

 tude became greater when the feeble stem put forth 

 a feebler leaf, not larger than one s finger-nail, and 

 so thin that the tracing of the veins was like gossa 

 mer. My horror, therefore, can be imagined when I 

 found, on the ensuing morning, that a squash-bug 

 had fallen upon my tender nursling and eaten the 

 leaf all up. 



I killed that bug. He endeavored to slip into the 

 earth, but I slew him without remorse. He was not 

 an ugly bug in outward appearance ; entomologists 

 might even have called him handsome ; his colors 

 were a mixture of gilt and black, but his beauty was 

 no protection. The next day another delicate leaf 

 rewarded my protection, but the following morning 

 another squash-bug devoured it ; he met the fate of 

 his predecessor ;. but, when a third leaf was disposed 

 of in the same way, the result began to be doubtful ; 

 the question was arising, which would give out first, 

 the squash-bugs or the leaves ? Having heard that 

 wood-ashes was good to drive away bugs, I was about 



