JANUARY 279 



they dig it up and eat it. I suppose most 

 of them do it with the same philosophical 

 conceit that man has: they think that is 

 what it was made for. So the stupid, 

 lumpish potato usually comes to an untime- 

 ly end. It has put away a great store of 

 food, as useful to any animal as to itself, 

 and left it quite unprotected. 



THE INDIAN TURNIP 



Jack-in-the-pulpit has better sense. For 

 all the religious profession implied in his 

 name, he is at bottom a very hot-tempered 

 gentleman. The country boy is apt to learn 

 very early, through the solicitous efforts of 

 some companion, the taste of the "Indian 

 turnip," which is only the underground 

 portion of Jack-in-the-pulpit. The sad les- 

 son is in active process of learning for just 

 about half an hour, for it takes fully that 

 long to get the hot sensation out of the 

 mouth. This is because Jack is shrewder 

 than the potato. When he puts his starch 

 away under the ground, he packs it as full 

 as it can stick with wonderfully minute but 



