almost fancy you wuz in a tropical forest, as you looked up into the
great feathery masses and leaves as big as a hull tree almost; and
risin' right in the centre wuz a mountain sixty feet high all covered
with tropical verdure; leadin' into it wuz a shady, cool grotto, where
wuz all kinds of ferns, and exquisite plants, that love to grow in such
spots.

And way in through, a-flashin' through the cool darkness of the spot,
you could see the wonderful rays of that strange light that has a soul.

And if you will believe it--I don't spoze you will--but there is plants
here grown by that artificial light--the idee!

I sez to Josiah, "Did you ever see anything like the idee of growin'
plants by lamplight?" and he sez--

"It is a new thing, but a crackin' good one," and he added--

"What can be done in one place can in another," and he got all excited
up, and took his old account-book out of his pocket and went to
calculatin' on how many cowcumbers he could raise in the winter down
suller by the light of his old lantern.

I discouraged him, and sez I, "You can't raise plants by the light of
that old karsene lantern, and there hain't no room, anyway, in our
suller."

And he said, "He wuz bound to spade up round the pork barrel and try a
few hills, anyway;" and sez he, dreamily, "We might raise a few
string-beans and have 'em run up on the soap tub."