nciliation. Perhaps if he had
waited longer, Ivy might have behaved differently, but Hugh never
waited.

Sure enough, he soon gave signs of the "coming round" process, but
instead of "coming round" to Ivy with a handful of flowers he had
found, he gave them to Alene.

After that it was to Alene he came when he had an especially large
berry to show; he insisted upon her eating it; he compared the state of
his tin cup and hers, and they made a wager as to whose cup would be
filled the first.

His celerity amazed Alene.

"How can you fill yours so quickly?"

"By sticking to a good bush when I find one!"

"You girls lose time by flitting from bush to bush like butterflies,"
added Mat.

"We are more like busy bees, Mat. We gather only the best as we fly!
There's Laura, no boy can beat her picking berries," said Ivy.

"I believe there's a good deal in what Hugh says," remarked Laura, "not
only in berry picking, but in work and study. We accomplish more by
sticking to one thing at a time. They say 'Beware of the man of one
book.'"

"I would indeed be beware of him. He'd be an insufferable bore!"
retorted Ivy, as she moved away to another bush.

"Now we will transmigrate ourselves into robins and do the 'babes in
the wood' act!"

Ivy gazed at the speaker compassionately.

"Has the poor boy gone daffy?"

Mat pointed to the two buckets, by that time filled with berries.

"We will cover them over with leaves!"

"Do you know what Claude does when he's angry or out of humor?"
inquired Ivy.

"Throws himself on the floor and kicks, I guess!"

"No, he runs to a corner and hides his face!"

"Well?"

"If I were you, I'd follow his example!"

"But I'm not angry or out of humor with you, Ivy. On the contrary, I
feel as mild as a lamb, and I'm so razzle-dazzle-dizzled pleased with
getting these buckets filled in spite of you girls, that I
could--could--"

"Please don't, whatever it is you could do, be wise and don't do it!"

"What's the time?" asked Laura.

"Eleven A.M.!"

"Are you sure of the A.M.?"

"I'm surer of it than of the eleven! I made a guess at that!"

"We'd better start home. It will take some time to make the jam and
get Mrs. Kump's basket ready," said Laura.

Mat made a horn of his hands and gave a yell.

"What's that for?"

"To call our party in."

"We don't want everybody in the field; we're all here but Alene and
Hugh."

"Where are they? Haven't seen 'em for some time!