Katherine Merritte Snyder Yates

“ And sometimes they would get a needle and strong thread, and string the blossoms into long chains to wear around their necks.
And in the corn field there were morning glories, too, pink and purple and white, like the corn-flowers, and the vines wound around and around, up the stalks, tossing out curly tendrils which caught Cheery's hair, and tapped their faces more gently than did the rustling corn blades. And in one end of the field there were pumpkin vines with great yellow blossoms, shaped like the morning glory blossoms, and there were always dusty bees buzzing in and out of them. ”

“ Mamma and Aunt Beth bent over. "Goodness!" said Aunt Beth, "I didn't know a pig could be so little! Why he isn't bigger than a baby kitten,—look here—" and she took from the step beside her, a one-pound baking-powder can which The Chum had brought to go with his fishing outfit; and lifting the little pig gently in her hands, she let him down, bodily, into the can. ”

“ Cheery couldn't find quite the right words, "—you see—when I look at the hammock over there, I want to go and climb right into it, but that's just on the outside—and then, when I think of The Chum, and of how glad he'll be that I waited, and what fun it will be to go with each other, that's inside, and it's lots bigger, 'cause it's the thought love made—and so I'm going to wait."
Aunt Beth drew the little girl into her arms. "You believe the thoughts love makes are the best ones?" ”

“ One day, in exploring the granary, they found there stored, two saddles, one of them a side-saddle, and there were also two saw-horses. The Chum suddenly saw the possibilities. For once he didn't say a word; but when Cheery went to feed Winkie Baby, he coaxed Uncle Rob out to the granary; and when Cheery returned, there were the two saddles fastened upon the two saw-horses; and from that time on, the children went riding every day, and had the most glorious canters up hill and down dale, without once going outside of the granary door. ”

“ Cheery put her finger gently up to the back of her arm, and Aunt Beth softly laid her hand over the spot and held Mr. Mouse very tenderly, while she unfastened Cheery's waist and turned it back until she could reach the runaway and draw him from his hiding place.
Cheery laughed and shook, her finger at him as Aunt Beth placed him in his box. "Oh, Mr. Mouse, Mr. Mouse," she said, "you are bad—you ran away from church!" ”

“ Cheery dropped the lid of the box and ran through the hall and Uncle Rob caught her and tossed her up onto the railing of the veranda, where she stood on tiptoe craning her neck and trying to see around the bend in the road below the hill. "Oh, dear! I can't see twenty minutes away," she cried, "and waiting takes so long!"
"It surely does," said Uncle Rob, and just then Mr. Cann came up the steps. Mr. Cann was the man who owned the farm and all the chickens and pigs and geese. ”

“ Mouse dropped again to his four feet, and, with his eyes on the cheese, began to creep, slowly and softly, across the cage. The other made no movement beyond the rapid working of jaws and the turning of the cheese in his paws so that he could nibble it nice and even, but he kept his eye on Mr. Mouse all the time. ”

“ Come, Brother, run into your wheel now and turn it for us as fast as ever you can," and with her finger she chased the little white fellow about the cage and at last through the opening and into the wire wheel; and in a moment the wheel was spinning around and around as fast as the little pink feet could make it fly. ”

“ Cann and Aunt Beth came into the room, and Cheery sat up and brushed away her tears.
"Mrs. Cann," she said, in a very shaky voice; "I'm sorry that I—that I la—laundered Tidd in your tubs and—and—"
But here The Chum broke in, eagerly, noticing that the usual smile was absent from Mrs. Cann's good natured face, and fearing that she was going to be cross to Cheery. "We—we're awful sorry, Mrs. Cann, if we mussed your tubs, honest, we are; but—but—" pointing at the little cat; "—but Tidd didn't like it a lot worse than you didn't—an—' she isn't saying a word!" ”

“ Was I being selfish, Aunt Beth?" and The Chum's lip began to quiver.
"No, no, dearie!" said Aunt Beth. "Of course you weren't selfish. The can was yours, and you offered something else just as good; but the little pig is going back to the pen with the other pigs. Mr. Cann only brought it to show to us."
But Mr. Cann shook his head. "No," he said, "it's no use to put it back with the others,—it's too little. Why, it's nearly three weeks old now, and only that big! It hasn't any chance. It's too little to live."
Mamma reached over and took the little pig into her lap. "May we have it?" ”

“ Come on, hurry!" and away they ran with Winkie Baby at their heels.
Cheery got back first, with the paper, and had spread two big sheets on the floor and set the paint pails between them; when The Chum returned, trying the strong bristle brushes against the palm of his hand. "Uncle Rob gave me the biggest ones he had," he said; "'cause I told him they were for big pictures; an' my, but they're hard and scratchy!"
Cheery started her picture first by painting a very large blue tree, and The Chum watched her, eagerly. "Why don't you have a bird in your tree?" ”

“ Cheery's lips remained tightly closed; but The Chum began to open and shut his mouth quite rapidly. "There—there," he commenced, hurriedly, "—there isn't anything the matter wiv us;—but jus' you look at poor Tiddledewinks!" ”

“ And now she hadn't cried a single time for two whole weeks, and if she kept on that way, perhaps—only perhaps, for he hadn't said so, he would let her be seven next year instead of six—or, if she didn't cry any at all—Cheery's eyes grew big—perhaps next year she would be a beautiful young lady, with a long, fluffy, pink dress, and her hair done up high with a lovely comb. ”

“ And so, in a few minutes, Cheery and The Chum were seated just inside of the wide back door of the barn, while the silk pieces and their fingers were turning red and blue and yellow, and Winkie Baby stood by and watched, and tried to poke his funny nose into the dye-pails.
By and by, when all of the pieces were dipped and hung up to dry, there still remained quite a good deal of the dye-stuff in the bottoms of the pails. The children looked at it thoughtfully; for it was entirely too interesting to throw away. "I'll tell you!" ”

“ Cann was in the yard hanging out the clothes. "She splashes a good deal of water when she washes," thought Aunt Beth, as she paused at the kitchen table to arrange the flowers in a tall glass. Then she passed into the dining-room. ”

“ At first he rather liked it, and ran down the lane, poking his nose into everything, and having a fine time; but by and by he grew lonesome and came back to the gate; and there he stood, patiently, until Uncle Rob came home, and then, as soon as the gate was opened, he dodged in. He didn't wait, politely, for Uncle Rob to go in first, he just went in under Uncle Rob's feet, and Uncle Rob sat down on the ground and watched him go! ”

“ Cann, setting down the pail, "you may have it if you choose; but you must take it out to the barn to do your dyeing, so as not to muss things around here. I'll put it into some little pails that you can carry." ”