PLANTING BEFORE THE WALL 93 
in squeaky voices. Joseph has found out they are 
likely to eat a great many grubs that might do harm 
to the flowers; and that on occasions they eat the 
eggs of other birds. This is a trait not to be re- 
spected in the grackles. Yet I like to watch the 
male birds in their metallic-looking black coats. I 
have noticed that they are often iridescent like 
coals and of a remarkable shiningness. Timothy 
has warned us strongly against these birds, saying 
that they do no good to the farmers’ corn. Still, 
there are so few farms near us in Nestly that Joseph 
may some time have to give the grackles some 
grains in payment for the grubs they destroy. 
We have found that, even with the best inten- 
tions, there come moments of real discouragement 
in gardening. Except for the general air of tidi- 
ness about the Six Spruces and the triangle, and the 
fine symmetry of the flower-beds, there is really, 
so far, little to be seen for all the work that has 
been done. Were it not for the fact that Hope 
whispers to us, and we believe the seeds are sprout- 
ing and the little plants growing, we should hardly 
have the courage to go on. The cold, wet days 
that come after the middle of spring especially 
dampen the spirits. 
When this discouragement falls upon me, I tell 
Little Joseph it is time for us to go to the woods 
and see what is blossoming there in Nature’s world 
of wild flowers. Somehow, I cannot think the 
flowers that live in a garden and have to be sown 
