WATCHING AND WAITING 
Joo leaned back ami fairly roared. I thought 
it was very rude In him, and i was glad Douglas 
Carter did not laugh. 
“ Whero they can bo soon I" shouted Joe. 
“They'll be .won if you plant thorn the other 
aide of the four-acre lot. V\ r hy, Husle, they're 
sunflowers |“ 
J know I blushed ; for one doos not want to 
be ignorant of the commonest little things; 
and then I made an unguarded movement that 
upset, some of the open packets, so the seeds 
ran all together, Douglas and Joo helped me 
to pick them out as well as they could, but the 
poppies and portulaccas got Inextricably mixed. 
“Here Is a packet you haven't opened," said 
Douglas. "It Is marked 1 Fleart's-eascmy 
favorite of all flowers 1 Vou know it, Miss Su¬ 
sie? Pansies, some call them." 
“ 1 know them In bouquots," 1 said, "but not 
fresh and growing.'» 
I "Plant these for me, Mias Susie!" he ex¬ 
claimed. “Wo college boys have no time for 
flowers, you know. 1 shall come hero again In 
summer. Lot me And a whole bed of heart,'g- 
caso blooming forme. I-or my sake, Miss SuHo! 
Ton must plant them In one of the hearts!" 
His voice was very persuasive, and ho looked 
so handsome and so much lu earnest that I 
nodded my head, and felt a sort of girlish pleas¬ 
ure that 1 could gratify him In such a pretty 
way. J poured tho pansy scod in a saucer all by 
Itself and set it, on the mantel-ploce. Joe was 
drumming on tho window-pane Impatiently. 
“ I <!on't see why J didn’t think of that my¬ 
self," lie said, in his blunt, honoBt way. "I say, 
Susie, there are two hearts ; can't you plant the 
other one forme? I like mignonette first-rate; 
plant mine with mignonette. Here’s a paper ol 
It now. r knew mother must have saved some." 
' es, I will, .Joe," I said, laughing, and gave 
the mignonette seed a saucer by itself also. 
The sorting want on more rapidly after that, 
for both of thorn helped me about It. Wo chose 
phlox for one bed.candy-turt for another, pinks 
for a third, chrysanthemums Tor a fourth, ami 
soon. Many of the flowers were nothing but 
names to me as yet, but I iookod forward to 
my summer’s work with real love and delight. 
A good many seeds got spilled In the sorting, 
and there wore some uulabolod that, no one 
could recognize. Hero Joo Inula bright Idea, 
and proposed that all these seeds should lie 
mixed up together regard lees, and sown all In 
one bed for a medley. 
I Ids arranged, wo throe betook ourselves to 
(lie piano, to sing college songs, for by this 
time I had learned nearly all that Douglas and 
Joe themselves knew. So we fairly sang the 
forenoon away. In the afternoon Aunt Crce 
and I newed and Joo whittled little flower 
Sticks, while Douglas read Browning aloud to 
us. I have always remembered that as such a 
|ovoJy afternoon. 
rrJ"t':vr ,r,d -, At ioaat 1 tun* 8 o 
us I worked long, happy hours In my pardon 
pidling up every Invading weed and giving tho 
Lmw n, 0 " Pr ‘"“! n ‘ f 1>lant « 11 “banco to 
glow or course r gave special oaru to t ie- two 
henna audit surprised me to find liow much 
alike the heart,’a-ease and mignonette were as 
their leaves grow; but Aunt Crec said they 
would look different enough when they came 
From my upper window, at the close of day, 
Sadly watching passers on their homeward way, 
Sadly, sweetly thinking of the Joy and glee 
When one came, my biihlos, home to you and me ! 
In the dusk, with races close against the pane, 
Peered we through the start!, lit, snow, or summer 
rain, 
Happy hearts and faces watching through the gloom 
For tlie blcasod footstep that was sure to eomc. 
Hark ! I Imar Kh echo, babies mine, once moro ! 
Hear tho latoh-key turning in tho opening door! 
From my knoe you're springing fearless in the 
gloom, 
While I Hood with radiance all the darkened room. 
inn .11 joaes ana mischief that even¬ 
ing. I had never seen him lu sc gay a mood. 
Ho teased Joe uumerolfully about some girl—a 
daughter of one of the professors — till Joo 
looked confounded. 
“ What in tho world aro you driving at, 
Doug.?" he blurted out at last, “ r only know 
the girl well enough to take off my hat to her, 
Yon. know there’s nothing In It Susie!" 
“ T don't know anything about It," 1 answer¬ 
ed, indifferently, with my eyes on Douglas. I 
liked to look at, him, lie was so gay and hunJ- 
•<omo, and had such an easy way of holding his 
head. I think Htoorforth must have looked 
something liko him. 
Tho next day tho two went off on a Ashing 
excursion and 1 took that opportunity to plant 
mv garden. I wore Aunt Cree's big bonnet and 
she told inn how much to cover the seeds. She 
could tell better than she could do It herself, 
she was getting so dim-sighted. I laughed when 
I planted the medley bed, and thought, how 
funny It would be to see tho flowers coming up 
all in a jumble and crowding each other. 1 
planted t he hearts last and took Just ns much 
pains with one ns with the other, I had not 
supposed that the seeds of the mignonette and 
the heart's-case looked so much like, It was 
lucky I had left the label on each saucer so as 
to know them apart. 
I n I lie afternoon our .Seniors came straggling 
home, Douglas ahead with a dozen line llsti, Joe 
coining more slowly behind with only one. 
Home people differ Just so In their luck all their 
lives through. But Joe had brought me a Uly- 
of-tho-vnlley root that ho had found In the 
meadow. 
They went back to college that night by tho 
late train. Aunt Croe ami I sat up to see them 
off. They both urged us to promise to come to 
t'ommeiiocmeut, and Aunt free Halil wo would 
if we possibly could. 
"Take care of my mignonette bed, Husle," 
cried Joo, as bo started for tho door. 
“ And please take care of my precious heai t's- 
oaso,” sukl Douglas, merrily following him. " 1 
shall look to»oo which you have tended best 
when I come in July. Good-by, littlo Hue." 
" Gond-by, dear Susie- good-by, mother," said 
Joo; aud tho door shut, and they were off. 
Then Aunt Cree and I settled down to quiet 
ways again, and quiet ways are the eweotost 
Swift y.'» fly to moot him, open whlo the door; 
Clnsuly are ive gathered to his heart once moro. 
Tender kiss and blessing greet your childish glee 
Rut the warmest, babies, always was fur me ! 
Fast my tears are tailing o’er the memory sweet. 
While I eatch the echo stlli of passing feet! [rain 
Rill, through summer starlight, cu through wintry 
Never. O my babies, w ill he come again. 
We aro now the wanderers In the dusk and gloom, 
Ho the one that’s waiting in tho happy home. 
From his upper window, though we may not see, 
He’s watching, O mjr babies, to welcome you and me. 
[Julie M. Barnett, in Harper's Jnr June, 
HEART’S-EASE AND MIGNONETTE. 
It was a sunny day in the latter part of April; 
the grass was starting and tho troes were bud¬ 
ding. I was In the broad window neat looking 
over flower seeds, v bile Douglas Carter and Joe 
sang college songs at tho piano. Douglas was 
Joe's chum and had cornu home with him to 
stay fora week’s vacation. livery now and then 
one of them would turn around and ask me If 
I hadn't got my garden planned yet, so that I 
could come and sing In the choruses. But gar¬ 
dening was now business for me, and I could 
not make haste. There wore so many kinds of 
seeds, and I could not always make out Aunt, 
free's labels on them; besides, there were a 
good many the neighbors had given us that hud 
no labels at all. The morning-glories were to 
go along by the kitchen windows, and tho vel¬ 
vet, marigolds up in the north corner of tho gar¬ 
den, for Aunt Cree could not get along without 
her vol vet■ marigolds. Then tier four-o’cloeks 
and gillyflowers must come next, and t hat, fin¬ 
ished her corner. All tho rest of the flower 
garden was to bo my especial charge, and Joo 
had already spaded It up and shaped about a 
dozen pretty bods for mo. There were 
hearts ami rounds and diamonds and a 
star lu the center, which I meant to sow 
with portulucoas-Joo said they were so 
bright. Then I had chosen swoot-poas for 
otio of the rounds, and was just sotting 
away the seeds In a saucer by thomsel vea, 
win n DoUglas and J oe swung around from 
inging triumphantly the last 
the piano, s 
linoB of 
•' Rolling, rolling, rolling home, boys, 
as we go rolling home. 
Ami happy Is the girl that meets us 
Ah wo go rolling homo I" 
" Where in the aforesaid girl?" said 
Douglas, as t hey came laughing over to 
the window; “ I expect to find her turned 
into a daffodil by this time !" 
Joe sat down In the window close by 
me. I was almost provoke 1 at having to 
move my saucers for him ; but then Joo Is 
always so good-natured it would have 
been a shame to scold him. 
“These touch-me-nots would look well 
in a round," he said, taking up one of 
Aunt Cree's little packets. " They are the 
double kind, all colors. Mother’s were 
very handsome last year, just before you 
came, Susie.” 
“They were all gone by, the first I knew 
of them," I replied; “but I romembor 
how the funny little seed vessels popped 
open at a touch. I can't Imagine how the 
blossoms look." 
"Then you are not used to flowers?" 
asked Douglas, lu a tone of some surprise. 
Used to llow'ers ! No, I was uot, nor used 
to green fields and broad skies aud sunny 
homes set in gardens. What I had always 
been used to until now was a narrow city 
bouse lu a narrow city street and an at¬ 
mosphere of tho shabbiest gentility. When 
my poor worn-out stepmother died, Aunt 
Cree and Joe came to the resouo und took 
me home. 
“ No," I said, “ I have been u city girl, 
on a dingy street, whore nothing over 
grew for me but One poor littlo Ivy." 
“How one may be mistaken!" he ex¬ 
claimed, lightly; “I certainly thought 
your eyes had got their blue from a habit 
of looking at violets." 
“What aro you going to do with those 
seeda you have iu your hand, Husle?" ask¬ 
ed Joe, as I sat counting them over in 
some confusion. 
1‘lioy are some Mrs. Squires gave me 
ami they haven’t any label," I roplled; 
“but they are large, handsome, striped 
ones, and I am sure they must bo some- 
thlog pretty, so I shall plant them where 
they cau be seen." 
in ve Drought, me some of my mlg- 
nonotto too, haven't you, Husle ?” 
“Ob, Joe I’m go sorry!" I exclaimed; 
looked you ,iny '" Aud 1 ben bo 
ooked so blank and disappointed it wont 
o my heart; aud 1 was Just going to toll 
i'n'i , 7 m pa ." Nicrt '*">» “1> In both 6eds 
' d, . d " 1 kl ? ow f be mignonette 
was, but Douglas called him to hurry, for 
I. was time for chapel service. Ho they 
went off together and wo were driven to 
Mrs, Graves’. 
That was a splendid day! After lunch 
the Graves girls wont with us to attend 
the college exercises, and Joe's Latin essay 
came almost immediately. Ho did took 
like such a good, thorough, tellable Joe, 
as he stood thereon tho stage reading It, 
that I knew it waa splendid, although I 
could not understand n word. He got the 
prize, of course, and I saw Aunt ('roe cry¬ 
ing behind her veil. 
After that part, of the exercises was over 
ho and Douglas joined us, and took us out 
all around the college grounds and build¬ 
ings, Douglas with me and Joe with his 
mother and the two Graves girls. Joe 
seemed to give me no chance to speak to 
him at all, and I wondered if he lelf, hurt 
about the mignonette. 
ru the evening came the orations, and 
the moment Douglas stepped upon the 
stage with his graceful, commanding air, 
and uttered the first words In bis ringing 
voice, I knew the prize waa his. He was 
applauded again and again, and at the 
oloso a shower of bouquets fell at his feet. 
He gathered them up; but 1 saw, with a 
thrill, that all through his oration he hud 
worn my knot of pansies In his button¬ 
hole. 
Tho remaining days we did not. care so 
much for; still, the) wore pleasant. We 
went to the tree planting; wo hoard the 
A BUTHi: and hapiiv shepherd boy 
1 trudge across the lea: 
In every little woodland lluwor 
Sonic pretty fancy still I see. 
The pimpernel’s my wouthcr-glaMs; 
1 he Huff ball Is my wuioh no true, 
Itulways tells tho hour I want. 
Town lncls, t would not change with 
