to the garden, and finds a post of his
grape-arbor rotted off, and the whole trellis out of shape. It should be
propped up immediately. If he have hot-beds, ten to one there are two or
three panes out, and if they are not put in at once, the next hard frost
will destroy all his plants. There is a fruit-tree covered with
caterpillars' nests, another with cocoons, containing what will some day
be butterflies, then eggs, then worms. The barn-yard gate has a broken
hinge, the barn-door has lost its latch, the wheelbarrow wants a nail or
two to keep the tire from dropping off, and there is the best hoe with a
broken handle. So it goes, let him look where he may.

"Now come out into the yard," continued the old man, "and let us see
what jobs there are yet to do."

He led the way to the wood-shed. There was an axe with only half a
handle; Tony knew it well, for he had chopped many a stick with the
crippled tool. Uncle Benny pointed to it with the screw-driver that he
still carried in his hand, but said nothing, as he observed that Tony
seemed confounded at being so immediately brought face to face with what
he knew should have been done six months before. Turning round, but not
moving a step, he again pointed with his screw-driver to the wooden
gutter which once caught the rain-water from the shed-roof and
discharged it into a hogshead near by. The brackets from one end of the
gutter had rotted off, and it hung down on the pig-pen fence,
discharging into the pen instead of into the hogshead. The latter had
lost its lower hoops; they were rusting on the ground, fairly grown over
with grass. The old man pointed at each in turn; and, looking into
Tony's face, found that he had crammed his hands into his pockets, and
was beginning to smile, but said nothing. Just turning about, he again
pointed to where a board had fallen from the farther end of the shed,
leaving an opening into the pig-pen beyond. While both were looking at
the open place, three well-grown pigs, hearing somebody in the shed,
rose upon their hinder feet, and thrust their muddy faces into view,
thinking that something good was coming. The old man continued silent,
looked at the pigs, and then at Tony. Tony was evidently confused, and
worked his hands about in his pockets, but never looked into the old
man's face. It was almost too much for him.

"Come," said Uncle Benny, "let us try another place," and as they were
moving off, Tony stumbled over a new iron-bound