she grabbed a trowel for when a man must 

 off to the brook for his first trout a woman, 

 by the same inner compulsion, must dig in 

 an< ^ star ted for the flower bed. 



mom ent later her excited call came floating 

 in through the open window. 



" Ja-a-a-a-mes ? James!" the first call 

 with a long up slide, the second more per- 

 emptory "what in the world did you plant 

 in this flower bed ? " 



" Why," said the Reverend James, peer- 

 ing quizzically over the rim of his spectacles 

 at the open window, "why, I thought I 

 planted portulaca seed." 



" Then come out here and see what 's 

 come up," ordered his wife; and the sur- 

 prised old gentleman came hurriedly to the 

 door to blink in astonishment at three fat 

 toads that were also blinking in the warm 

 sunshine, and a huge mud-turtle that w r as 

 sprawling and hissing indignantly in a great 

 hole in the middle of his flower bed. 



A sly, whimsical twinkle was under the 

 old minister's spectacles as he regarded the 

 queer crop that had come up overnight. 



