300 NUTTING TIME 



Nearly all the flowers have been bitten by Jack 

 Frost. The Goldenrod looks very brown and gray, 

 and there is surely not a fresh bud anywhere that 

 would dare to unfold. Two nights ago Jack Frost 

 knocked over all the Asters that were standing 

 up straight in the meadow. They have a sick look 

 now, and I think they will soon die. 



The best thing that the frost has done so far 

 has been to crack open the Chestnut and Hickory 

 nut burrs. Kate Hood, Lucy, Philip, Tommy 

 and I have all been nutting. We went too far 

 for Little Trudy to walk, so we promised to bring 

 her back more nuts than she could eat. On the 

 way we wished that Francis and Sallie, and Jean 

 and Dickey were with us, but Tommy said that 

 most likely they were all gathering nuts near their 

 own homes. 



" Not such big ones as these," Philip said, as 

 we ran under a Chestnut-tree, and began picking 

 up the nuts. 



" I have one," Lucy shouted; " and I," " and 

 I," the rest of us shouted as we found them. 



We turned each one over before dropping them 

 into our baskets to see if there were any worm- 

 holes, or if squirrels had taken bites out of their 

 sides. Indeed both gray and red squirrels like 

 chestnuts very much, and they are up so early in 

 the morning that it is hard to get ahead of them. 



It is easy enough to see the chestnuts that have 

 fallen out of their burrs lying on the ground. They 



