FROM FRANCIS AND SALLIE 145 



them himself in moistened cotton. I took them 

 out of the box very carefully. The Laurel looked 

 very much like Tommy's pictures. Francis's let- 

 ter read: 



" The piece of Laurel I have sent is not the 

 large one that some people call Mountain Laurel, 

 or Calico Bush, because they think it looks like that 

 stiff, white stuff spotted with pink. It is the little 

 one which we call here Sheep Laurel, or Lambkill, 

 I love it best, although the larger one is very beau- 

 tiful, much more so than any calico you ever saw. 



" Lambkill is my favorite because it's so pink, 

 and because when thousands of its blossoms are 

 open, it makes the hillsides look like great 

 bouquets. It is not fragrant like the Mountain 

 Laurel, and this makes me wonder at liking it bet- 

 ter. Besides, it is poisonous. 



" Last spring two of Betsy Tibbit's cows died 

 because they ate its young shoots just as they were 

 beginning to turn green. One day I told Betsy 

 that I thought her cows looked stupid. They 

 always do when I get close to them and see them 

 chewing their cud. She said her cows were as 

 clever as boys any day, and it was just after that 

 they ate the Lambkill. It's too bad the cows have 

 died because Betsy's an old woman, and only has 

 the money she makes from selling milk and butter. 



" Perhaps you'll think Lambkill is just a little 

 pink flower when you take it from the box. It 

 is a trap besides, and much more finely made than 



