One 



soft warm earth of the portulaca bed, she 

 had squirmed and twisted her way down 

 into it, the loose earth tumbling in on her 

 and hiding her as she went down. 



When the sharp feminine eyes swept over 

 the flower bed they detected at once the 

 hollow in the middle, showing careless work- 

 manship on the part of somebody. " That 

 hole must be filled up," promptly declared 

 Mrs. James; but first, woman-like, she thrust 

 her trowel deep into it. "Aha! a rock 

 careless man," she gave judgment, and took 

 another jab and a two-handed 

 heave at the hard 

 object. Whereupon 

 out came the big mud-turtle, scrambling, 

 hissing, protesting with beak and claw 

 against being driven out of the best nest 

 she had ever found so early in the season. 

 That night there were curious sounds 

 in the grass and dead leaves 

 rustlings and croakings and low 

 husky trills, as the toads came 

 hopping briskly by 

 twos and threes 



