CHAPTER XX 



ON WILD rose's highway 



Wild Rose's Highway is the little path that 

 leads to the village. We like to go along it, be- 

 cause that way is shorter than around by the road. 

 On both sides of the lane now Wild Rose is bloom- 

 ing, and Tommy thinks it is the prettiest rose in 

 the world. It has only five very thin, pink petals. 

 They are never white, or red, or yellow, but al- 

 ways a bright, pure pink. Besides, Wild Rose 

 doesn't like being taken from the highway, and 

 fades almost at once, although even then its sweet 

 scent is left. 



Wild Rose has what the most beautiful of Herr 

 Wilhelm Fritz's roses has not, and that is a circle 

 in its center of many soft little things bearing 

 the golden dust. Wild Rose has something to 

 do in life, which is to make seeds and sow them, 

 so that year after year there will be roses along 

 the highway. 



Now the garden roses gave up taking this 

 trouble long ago, and are very idle. They seldom 

 make seeds, for Herr Wilhelm Fritz looks after 

 there being plenty of roses each year. Of course 

 he doesn't make seeds for them and sow them; 



"5 



