[Illustration: He talked proud and high learnt about 'em.]

Then his feathers drooped, and sez he, "A Norway spruce, a willer, a
sycamore, and a pine. Dum it all, what do they want to put on such names
as them onto trees that grow right in our dooryard?"

"To show off," sez I, coldly, "and to make other folks show off who have
a hankerin' after fashion and display."

He did not frame a reply to me--he had no frame.




CHAPTER XIV.


I told Josiah this mornin' I wanted to go to the place where they had
flowers, and plants, and roses, and things--I felt that duty wuz
a-drawin' me.

For, as I told him, old Miss Mahew wanted me to get her a slip of
monthly rose if they had 'em to spare--she said, "If they seemed to have
quite a few, I might tackle 'em about it, and if they seemed to be
kinder scrimped for varieties, she stood willin' to swap one of her best
kinds for one of theirn--she said she spozed they would have as many as
ten or a dozen plants of each kind."

And I thought mebby I could get a tulip bulb--I had had such poor luck