Happy Days for Boys and Girls Part 66

Then Tom and Jenny and Mary spread Their hats and ap.r.o.ns wide, and said, "We can catch pears as well as Fred."

Then long and patient they sat, and still, Hoping a breeze from over the hill Their laps with the golden fruit would fill.

Till, weary of waiting, Tom said with a sneer, "I could gather a _bushel_ of pears, 'tis clear, While idly we _wait_ for a _windfall_ here."

Then up the tree he sprang, and the power Of his st.u.r.dy arm soon sent a shower Of yellow fruit as a golden dower.

It was long ago, that August day When four little children rested from play Under the pear trees far away.

And the children, older and wiser now, With furrows of care on either brow, Have not forgotten the lesson, I trow--

The lesson they learned on that August day, That for having our wishes the surest _way_ Is to _work_, and in _earnest_, without _delay_.

THE CAVE OF BENTON'S RIDGE.

The cave was a large opening in a ledge of rocks, about half a mile from the village of M----, and had for years been a favorite resort for the boys on the holidays.

'Twas at the close of school, on a bright June day, when, with a rush and a shout, out came a bevy of boys from the school-house, and over the wall with a bound were half a dozen before the rest had emerged from the open door. The first ones took their way across the fields to the cave, and had thrown themselves down on the rock at the entrance, and were busily talking, when the last comers arrived.

"We've planned to have a time Sat.u.r.day; if Miss Walters will take the botany cla.s.s for a walk, we'll come here and have supper, and go home by moonlight," said Fred Manning. "How does that strike you?"

"Count me in," said Phil Earle. "I second the motion," said Arthur Ames. "Where shall we go to walk?" said another; "this is nearly far enough for some of the girls."

"Pooh! no! we can get some nice pitcher-plants, if we go to Eaton's meadows; we haven't been there for ever so long," said Phil.

All agreed it would be fun, and Phil was deputized to ask Miss Walters, and with her complete the arrangements.

"It's Thursday now; and I'll ask father if we can't have some of the hay they are making down in the lower field, to put inside the cave; for we must fix up a little," said Arthur. Willie Eaton said his mother would make them a jug of coffee; and as he lived near, he would run round that way at noon, and put it in the spring, so as to have it nice and cool. For one of the attractions of this place was a lovely spring, that bubbled and sparkled among the ferns, just under the rock where the cave was.

Fred and Phil began to lay the stones for the fireplace; for though it was not cold on these bright June nights, still a fire was one of the grand features of the occasion.

They all worked, some brushing out the cave with bushes, some getting old wood in piles to burn, rolling stones for seats, etc., until it was time for them to go home, when, with merry shouts, off they ran down the rock, and over the fields, home.

Next morning Phil called for Miss Walters, and on the way told her of the plans for Sat.u.r.day, into which she entered heartily, and wanted the boys to stay a few moments after the morning session, to perfect the arrangements.

At recess she called the girls of the botany cla.s.s to her, and said,--

"Girls, can you go on Sat.u.r.day to walk? The boys have invited us to take supper at the cave."

"O, yes!" "O, yes!" "Yes, indeed!" "Splendid!" answered half a dozen voices.

"We will meet here at two o'clock; and you must dress for the meadows.

I believe the boys are mostly web-footed, by the way they take to such places; however, we do find the best specimens there. Another thing--the boys are to furnish eggs and coffee, they say; and each of you can bring what is most convenient."

Off went the girls, eager to plan and discuss the welcome project.

Sat.u.r.day came--a bright, cloudless day. All were at the school-house at two, or before, and set forth, looking like strollers, as they were.

They did not make many collections on the high land; but when they entered the meadows, they soon found a variety of pretty gra.s.ses.

"Fudge!" said Ella Barton; "I'm not going to get any of that old hay--would you, Miss Walters?"

"No, certainly not, if I did not want the trouble of carrying it; but I think them very lovely to put with branches of bayberry, as they form such a pretty contrast of color with the delicate pearl-gray berries and brown branches; and if you add a few bunches of bright red arum berries, you have a pretty, fadeless winter bouquet."

"Where can we get the bayberries?" said Fred, coming up.

"In most places near the salt water. In the town where my home is, there are acres and acres of it; and may be at Thanksgiving time I can send you some to distribute, or, better still, you might make up a party, and come down. I'll promise you a fine tramp, plenty of berries, and perhaps my mother will let you taste of her Thanksgiving pies."

Off went Fred's hat high in the air. "Hurrah for the pie! I'll certainly go, if you'd like to have me."

Miss Walters laughed, and said nothing would give her greater pleasure than to welcome the whole party.

"O, Miss Walters, what's this lovely flower?" "Come here, come here!"

"O, how lovely! here's plenty more!" "And here, and here," were the exclamations of several of the advancing stragglers.

All who were with Miss Walters hastened forward; and there, in a wet, treacherous-looking place, grew patches of a most delicate lilac-colored or light purple flower.

"O, that's Arethusa," said the teacher; "it is very beautiful."

Rubber boots only can get at them; and two or three boys soon returned with hands full, which they distributed. Miss Walters said they could not stop to a.n.a.lyze any that day, but some of each kind must be put in the botany box, for the cla.s.s to work with at some future time. As they walked along, Miss Walters told them that the flower was named after Arethusa of Grecian story, who was changed by Diana into a fountain, to escape from the G.o.d of the river where she was one day surprised by him while bathing.

They had not gone far when Phil and two of the girls came running up with hands full of the Sarracenia, or pitcher-plant.

"What fine specimens!" said Miss Walters.

"O, I know where they grow!" said Phil. "I always go for them every year, just over that old fence, in a boggy place. I like them better than almost any of the plants, they are so curious. But where's a basket?"

"Here, Amy!" called Bessie White; "can't you let me put my small lunch in your big basket with yours, and let Phil have mine for a specimen basket?"

This arrangement being satisfactorily made, they moved along, one of the girls telling the new comers of the Arethusa and its name. And it was decided that all Miss Walters might tell them concerning the flowers should be written down, for the benefit of all, as they were often separated, searching for specimens.

In the next meadow they came upon beds of Menyanthes--an ugly name, and its common one of buck-bean is not much better. They could find but few perfect specimens of the pretty white velvety flowers, with their yellow and brown anthers, as it was rather late for them.

They found Pogonias and buds of Calopogon,--pretty pinkish flowers,--both of which Miss Walters told them were closely related, and, indeed, belonged to the same family as the Arethusa. This was the Orchid family, which contained a large number of beautiful but strange plants, about a dozen of which were common in New England.

On the edge of an overgrown ditch near by they found very nice specimens of Andromeda.

"See," said Miss Walters, "how white and lovely these bells are, in spite of the cold wet places where it is compelled to grow. It is named after Andromeda, famed in Grecian myths, a victim to her mother's pride of beauty. Her mother had dared to compare herself to the sea nymphs, for which they, enraged, sent a huge monster to ravage the coast. To appease the nymphs, her father thought he must sacrifice his daughter; so he chained her to the water's edge; but as the monster approached, Perseus, a.s.sisted by the G.o.ds, killed him, delivered Andromeda, and afterwards married her."

The party now turned from the meadows on to higher ground. Houstonias and violets, with here and there Potentilla, covered the ground, the last so called because it was supposed to be powerful in medicine, _potens_, from which it is derived, meaning powerful.

The Saxifrage on the rocks, derived from Latin words, indicating its manner of growth.

Anemones, or wind flowers, were not entirely gone; so named because it was formerly thought the flowers only opened when the wind blew.