22 OUR BACKDOOR NEIGHBORS 



so many pictures of ever-changing hue to be 

 seen. When he worked among his bees he 

 must stop ever and anon to watch the busy 

 little creatures bringing in their loads of 

 bright yellow pollen and to listen to their 

 cheerful hum as they went about their labor. 

 Now and again a brilliant cardinal would 

 alight in a tree top and whistle, or a quail 

 would call "Bob White" from a fence post, or 

 a cicada would start his shrill call, in a way 

 to make it very plain that life was not all 

 intended for work on the bright summer days. 



At night he would wander under trees 

 watching the flashing of the lights of the fire- 

 flies, and listening to the songs of the crickets 

 and katydids, and sometimes lie down in the 

 grass and fall off to sleep to awaken with the 

 sun shining and the day once more at hand. 



When he worked in his garden he marveled 

 at the certainty with which the tendrils of the 

 grape vine found the nearest support, and 

 found much of interest in the life cycle of the 

 cut worm which fed on his cabbages. The 

 growing of vegetables was so much more inter- 

 esting than the selling of them that he was 

 inclined to neglect the latter phase. After all, 

 why go to the trouble of growing things when 



