re an' it depinds on the size."

"Mine are great big ones. Mrs. Grinnell says they ought to bring a
pretty penny in Martindale."

"Well, thin, I think maybe they'd be bringing a quarter."

"Each one?"

"Shure!"

"And how much would that make if twenty-one were sold?"

"Five dollars and a quarter," promptly answered Mike, who was quick at
figures and proud of the accomplishment.

"That would be enough," cried Peace in great glee. "All I need is two
dollars and a quarter. Come on over to my house and pick them right
away."

"What?" yelled Mike, wondering if the child had gone crazy.

"Oh, I forgot! I haven't told you yet, have I? You can sell my melons in
the city for me if you like and save me the trouble."

The boy stared at her, transfixed by her complacent self-assurance.

"Has the cat got your tongue?" Peace asked, when he did not speak.

"No, but you have your nerve," he stuttered. "What d'ye take me for,--a
dray horse?"

"You've got a mule team, haven't you?" flared Peace, seeing no occasion
for his anger. "And you peddle truck nearly every day. Then I don't see
why you can't take my melons and sell them. Black Prince is gone, and we
can't drive about any more ourselves."

"Well, where do I come in? Melons take up a sight of wagon room, nothing
said of the time it will take to sell them. And then you expict me to do
it all for nothing!"

"I--I hadn't thought about that," faltered Peace; and, sitting down on
the windmill platform, she pulled a pencil stub from her pocket and
began to do some figuring on the sole of her shoe.

Mike watched her serious face in amusement, and grinned broadly when,
after five minutes of vigorous scratching and hard thinking, she
released her foot and said in her most business-like tones, "I'll tell
you what I will do. If you can sell all those twenty-one melons at
twenty-five cents each, you can have half the money for your trouble.
That will still leave me enough to get our family inside the Fair. Will
you do it?"

Mike scratched his head thoughtfully and then replied, "I'll take a look
at thim melons first."

So she led him to the small patch and proudly displayed her treasures.
"You see there are more than twenty-one melons on the vines. Those two
big ones Mrs. Grinnell is going to tote along with her pumpkins to the
Fair, and the little ones and the crooked fellers we'll eat at home; but
there are twenty-one nice ones to sell."

Mike expressed his admiration